2008-11-09 - 4:56 p.m.
If you've been reading this regularly at all (well, as regularly as I update) you probably remember me whining about how much work seminary is. Well, that was nothing compared to what I see coming at me over the next few weeks. Before the second week of December I have five papers (although one is nearly done) two class projects, several journal entries in two classes, and two exams, one of which is in greek. It's gonna be a fun November!
I spent last weekend in Victoria, in my last cheerful defiance of schoolwork. My friend Ian was being ordained to the Transitional Diaconate, which in the Anglican Church is what you are before you're a priest. He'll be ordained priest, if everything goes well, in six or eight months. Anyway, it was a nice excuse to get back to the island.
I stayed with Jeff and Kirsten, who treated me awesomely, as usual. When they came to visit me I grudgingly cleared a spot on the floor, and told them they were welcome. When I went to visit them, I get the couch (which folds into a bed) all made up with sheets and blankets and everything. Jeff bought a bottle of scotch, which we managed to empty over the weekend.
I came over on Thursday, since I have no classes on Friday. Friday morning I headed down to the Cathedral and Diocesan office to see everyone, and have lunch with Janet. It was a bit weird going back in the Cathedral office, but Laura (who took over for me) seems to be doing a really great job, and be happy there. It was nice to get caught up with Janet as well - it's rare when you really become friends with a person you worked with, at least, rare for me, and it was nice to see her again.
Doug had an extra ticket to the Salmon Kings that night, so I went along with him to see them lose. Since it was Halloween we hit a pub after with a bunch of people for some drinks etc.
The ordination was Saturday afternoon, out at Holy Trinity, North Saanich (out near the airport). I saw lots of people there, since Ian has been helping with evensong at the Cathedral, and some people knew from Holy Trinity. The service was lovely, and included all eight verses of "For All the Saints". Ian and I were at ACPO together (the Advisory Committee on Postulants for Ordination), and it was really great to see him taking this huge step.
That evening we went on a ghost walk. Yep. A ghost walk. Downtown Victoria has a reasonable amount of history (for Canada) and as with any older city ghost stories abound! We didn't see any ghosts, it was mostly just stories, but the history was interesting. There was a good story about Robert Service ("The Bard of the Yukon") who lived in Victoria as a young man. He lived over the bank, which was next door to a funeral home (now a pub and "Seeing is Believing" respectively) He was coming home one night, and saw a light in the funeral home. Thinking it was people trying to break into the bank, he slipped in to apprehend the crooks. Moving through the dark, he tripped over something, and fell with a crash. When who he thought were burglars came over to investigate, it turned out that there had been a boat wreck, and what he had tripped over were the mangled bodies of the victims! He was so freaked out he left town as soon as possible and never came back. The ghost part comes in because someone who lived across the bank kept seeing a man in the window of the bank. This was just after Service died, and so he was supposed to have been coming back to make peace with Victoria. I don't know about that part, but I like the rest of the story.
Went to St. George's on Sunday, of course, and it was nice to see everyone there. There was a triple baptism, which makes the third baptism that I've been at since September! It was a good service though, and nice to reconnect with the folks there.
I caught the 7:00 ferry back, which got me home by just after 10:00. The bus system is very good here, but it still takes a while to get in!
