Wednesday, 08 June, 2005

Well two and a bit weeks have passed since my last post. In that time, I've been to two countries, Canada and the USA. My trip to the US took me through four states and back across the USA-Canadian border four times. On this trip I drove around a thousand kilometers and took seven flights. I've shot a hand-gun and high powered custom rifle, I've been to the Hamptons in long island, I've had Guinness in an Irish bar in Canada and slept in the living room of a man I've only met once before. I've seen ground zero, the empire-state building, the Canadian parliament. I've been in a hot-tub with new-yorkers I've only known for an hour I've solved world hunger. Well, okay not that part, but you get the picture

Needless to say, the last couple of weeks has been throughly exhausting but terribly fun. But it's over now and all I have has the memories. I did take a camera but catching these moments in still frames never does justice to the joy of reflecting on what I actually did there. It has, by far, been the greatest foreign adventure of my life and I hope that in the coming years the adventures get bolder.

So what a transformation it is to return to the normal humdrum of life. As I mentioned here, I am to be a witness in trial against a man accused of possessing child pornography. I got a letter through the post this week that has set a provisional date of trial for this man. My feelings are a mixture between relief and anxiety. I'm relieved because soon this dark cloud will dissipate and a jury will either find the man guilty or not guilty and we can all go on with our lives. I'm anxious because testifying in court is a scary prospect.

If I don't show up at court I will likely be arrested and taken to court as a hostile witness. If I tell a lie by accident while in the stand I could end up going to prison. Make no mistakes about it, It's a high stakes game. Over the past year or so I've had time to mentally prepare myself for the task ahead. I was certain from day one I'd be giving evidence to a jury and I've been trying to examine possible ways his defense might try and trip me up. Above all, I want to give the jury an honest account of the situation without allowing too much wiggle-room for the defense's council.

Life is a lot like choosing a sweet from a box of chocolates without looking: sometimes you get your favourite chewy caramel nugget and sometimes you get the horrible coffee chocolate. A good life is to achieve balance of the rough and the smooth and at the moment that balance is almost exact.

Simon.