I wrote the following yesterday....

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Tick tock tick tock

Its not often one gets to schedule the tragedy or sorrow in one’s life.

If you could know the date of a future injury, sorrow or pain – would you want to know of it? Or would you prefer to walk through life normally, unaware of the inevitable sadness awaiting you around the next corner?

On the one hand knowing, they say, is half the battle. It allows us to adequately prepare, plan, brace and fortify ourselves as best we can against what we know is coming. On the other – would you want to enjoy those few moments you have left before this sorrow touches your life?

An interesting question that I’m afraid I do not have the answer to. The practical side of me says ‘yes – let’s plan. Let’s guard. Let’s go into it with our eyes open’. The other side of me…wants to hide under the covers, shut my eyes and pretend the monster’s not there.

All abstractly loose questions, are they not? And unless one were to acquire a sub standard 1980’s style sports car that comes fully loaded and equipped with a flux capacitor….it will never really matter, because no one can see into the future, no?

Yes. And no.

What I don’t think that many of you know is that The Russian and I haven’t ‘technically’ broken up. We’re on a ‘break’. What this means? I don’t know – I didn’t make the rules to this utterly fucked up situation. However, the ‘break’ had a time span of two months – ending January 31^st. And so, my dear readers, the Russian and I have scheduled a time to talk…this evening. It is THE talk. Hoping its not… but knowing that it will be…the break-up.

It’s not often that one gets to schedule the date and time their heart will break. I’ll chalk it up with genetic engineering on terms of control to the nth degree of creepy.

Frankly, I don’t want to walk around this next corner, but I know this street ahead of me is a dead end…so I’ll have to turn eventually if I want to keep moving. I’d rather hide my head under a blanket, close my eyes and wait for the morning to save me.

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We're broken now.

You know, more and more I realize that people actually DO read this blog. Statistically speaking, hundreds, sometimes thousands in any given week. But with the exception of a select few, most I view as no more than I.P. addresses that show up on a stat tracker. This is not to say that I don't care who's reading - just that only a small overall percentage of you, my lovely readers, comment or email me on a regular basis. Thus, its harder to get to know you.

Apparently though, a friend of the Canadian’s reads this blog (Scarlett waves 'hello'). This friend has managed to put two and two together (aren't you smart!?) and has taken it upon themselves to share these pages with him. Thank you, dear reader. This extra amount of romantic drama is JUST what I needed in my life right now. Perhaps you were sick of hearing about the Russian? Maybe my posts were getting a bit boring and you thought you'd shake things up?  At any rate - its done.

Be careful what you wish for I guess because I wanted to meet his friends....just didn't know they'd meet me first.

And so, my beloved Canadian decided to come clean yesterday evening and share his reaction to these pages. Much to my relief and frankly, surprise, and shock – he’s not angry with me and wrote the below message.

He posted the following in response to Friday's post. I’m afraid that I am at a loss for words….

But he obviously took the opportunity to address my readers and therefore this act of contrition, I believe, deserves the floor.

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As a child, young adult, and now even in the sunset of my 20s – I love love LOVE Lucy Maude Montgomery’s timeless classic, Anne of Green Gables and all its sequels.

I remember reading with fascination and awe as Anne walked the ridgepole of Moody Spurgin’s tin roof in response to a dare; I remember crying before my ballet class as I read of Matthew’s death; and then admiring her as she stood up for herself and clung to the preciousness of her education and pride. These daydreams of literary adventures were only heightened when the CBC brought the character to life in the form of Megan Follows, Colleen Dewhurst and of course – Jonathan Crombie (be still my heart). I currently own the collector’s edition, boxed set. Yes – I am that girl.

Growing up as a redhead (though with a hue dark enough to escape the notorious taunt of ‘carrots’) with an adventurous spirit and a tireless mind, I found a true ‘kindred spirit’ in the character of Anne Shirley. She taught me that it was OK to be a smart girl, it was OK to enjoy school, its was OK to be a little bit different, it was OK to have red hair. While spending one’s childhood on a Midwestern farm might not offer the allure or the beauty of Prince Edward Island, it was certainly a fertile playground for the imagination. And, not unlike Miss Shirley, I found myself daydreaming, reading and pretending mostly in the woods, fields or near the creak running through our property. 

 'Happy Birthday’ to my favorite scarlet headed heroine!

Frankly, I do believe that I wouldn’t be the person I am without your inspiration to fuel my childhood fantasies.

Some of my favorite Anne wisdom:

“You'd find it easier to be bad than good if you had red hair,” said Anne reproachfully. “People who haven't red hair don't know what trouble is.”

“Tomorrow is fresh, with no mistakes in it”

Anne always remembered the silvery, peaceful beauty and fragrant calm of that night. It was the last night before sorrow touched her life; and no life is ever quite the same again when once that cold, sanctifying touch has been laid upon it. ~ Lucy Maud Montgomery

P.E.I. is Getting Ready to Welcome Pilgrims Looking to Trace the Roots of Canada's 100-year-old Child

January 26, 2008

Kelly Toughill

CHARLOTTETOWN–My expectations were not high. A summer-stock musical geared to 9-year-olds and their grandmothers?

Yet, by the final scene of Anne of Green Gables – The Musical, I was blubbering along with the rest of the crowd. How do they do this? What kind of magic is spun around the red-headed lass in the straw hat and pinafore that can reach even a cynic like me?

That magic may explain why Canada's iconic orphan continues to draw tens of thousands of visitors to this island every summer. The Anne phenomenon is no fad.

The story by Lucy Maud Montgomery turns 100 years old this year and the island is bracing for an influx of pilgrims to the land of Anne. Sure, some come to P.E.I. for the fantastic golf (the island has 26 courses) and others come to fly kites on the magnificent beaches (the island has 500 kilometres of shoreline). But this story is for those who want a 24-hour, all-Anne vacation, those who want to eat, sleep and dream Anne from Avonlea.

Herewith, a guide to the ultimate Anne of Green Gables vacation:

Dive right in and begin your Anne immersion at the foot of Confederation Bridge. When the bridge was built, canny P.E.I. planners put a shopping mall in the path of every visitor. You can drive around Gateway Village, but why bother? Here you may begin to understand how completely Anne pervades the culture and economy of Prince Edward Island.

Gateway Village has 20 stores. Some are devoted exclusively to Anne of Green Gables merchandise; all carry something Anne-related. There are dolls (large, small, rag, porcelain, wooden), dishes, soap, candy, chocolates, pyjamas, lampshades, sheets, dollhouses, furniture, hats, braids, key chains, figurines, pencils, pens, stationery, T-shirts, ice cream, sweat pants, infant sleepers and, of course, raspberry cordial. Ninety companies are licensed to create Anne merchandise; the breadth of items is vast, and growing every year.

The true Anne aficionado will head straight to Cavendish, the kitschy little town that is at the heart of the Anne legend. P.E.I. is a quiet place of green fields, blue sky and contemplation, but Cavendish is not like that. It is a little bit brash, a little bit odd and a little bit loud, a town of minigolf, amusement parks and Eastern Canada's only Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum. It is also the site of Green Gables, Avonlea Village and the farm where Montgomery wrote the famous novel that launched her career.

Green Gables is an old farmhouse, now part of Prince Edward Island National Park, where Montgomery was raised by her grandparents. It was the inspiration for Anne's fictional home. The house is open to visitors, but it is the land around it that brings the book to life. Anne was an outdoor girl. Here visitors can share her love of P.E.I. nature by strolling down the cow path Montgomery transformed into "Lover's Lane" and across fields and forests that have changed little since the book was written. The house is a short walk through the park from the ocean and a beautiful beach. The beach isn't featured in the book but go anyway. It's stunning.

Avonlea Village is a small recreation of Anne's village. Visiting children (and adults) may dress in costume, make butter, listen to music and watch animators re-create scenes from the classic novel series.

Look for a new museum this summer at Avonlea that documents the Anne phenomenon, including some of the quirkier takes on the Anne myth, such as posters from the play Anne-ken-stein and a famous T-shirt that shocked island sensibilities by depicting Anne headed to the beach topless.

The Lucy Maud Montgomery Cavendish Homestead is where Montgomery was raised by her grandparents and where she wrote Anne of Green Gables, the first of her 20 novels. Today, it is occupied by her descendants, who open it to visitors from May through October.

There are dozens of places to stay in Cavendish; most are small, seasonal family affairs. P.E.I.'s excellent tourism website (gentleisland.com) lists 10 hotels in Cavendish, 10 bed-and-breakfast inns and 34 cottage operations.

Cottages are the preferred vacation option here, particularly for families that want a little extra space and the chance to cook their own meals. Cottage options in Cavendish range from $75 to $300 a day and $500 to $2,000 a week.

You can camp in the national park, but reservations are precious. Call today (877-737-3783) if you want to try to snag a campsite overlooking the ocean this summer.

Cavendish may be the heart of Anne land, but bits and pieces of the myth and lore are scattered across the island. Park Corner is second only to Cavendish as the site of all-things-Anne. There are two shrines to her work in town: the Anne of Green Gables Museum and the Lucy Maud Montgomery Museum, both focused on buildings where the author once lived. In one, you can even arrange a wedding in the same parlour where Montgomery herself was married.

If you are tracing the life path of the author, you should also stop at the restored parsonage in Bideford, where Montgomery once lived, and at the school in Lower Bedeque where she once taught. Her grave is in Cavendish.

One of the reasons that Anne-themed vacations work so well is that the tone of the Anne books is reflected in the culture and pace of island life. P.E.I. recently rebranded itself the "gentle island." Unlike many such exercises, this one works. P.E.I. really is a gentle island, a place of country roads, tidy farms and potato fields. This is a place where you can stumble on a strawberry social or a lobster supper in a white clapboard church hall. Don't worry, you are welcome to join in.

Even though Anne was a village sort of a girl, the island's biggest towns also get in on the Anne act.

Three years ago, a second musical about Anne was launched in Summerside, P.E.I.'s second-largest town. Anne and Gilbert: The Island Love Story extends the Anne tale, covering material in Montgomery's later books that detail Anne's life and loves as a young adult. This season's schedule has not been announced, but it is expected to open again in Summerside this summer.

Charlottetown is the capital of P.E.I., less than an hour's drive from Cavendish. It is a lovely little city of leafy neighbourhoods and parks that is worth at least one overnight, particularly if you are headed to the theatre. The range of accommodation is large, spanning big hotels such as the Delta Prince Edward to quaint places such as the Inns on Great George, a hotel that threads through several historic properties downtown. My favourite is the Rodd Charlottetown, an old railway hotel now part of a local chain owned by the Rodd family.

Charlottetown has two claims on the Anne myth: It is the site of the L. M. Montgomery Institute and it is home to Anne of Green Gables – The Musical.

The institute was established 15 years ago by the University of Prince Edward Island and is an international centre of research about Montgomery. It is hosting a special conference this June to mark the 100th anniversary of the publication of Montgomery's first novel.

No Anne vacation is complete without a visit to the Confederation Centre for the Arts to see Anne of Green Gables – The Musical. This production has run every summer in Charlottetown since 1965, making it the longest-running play in Canada. Sets, costumes and staging are traditional. The audience usually includes a big contingent of bus tour patrons.

Still, you must go. I dare you not to cry.

For more information about an all-Anne vacation, visit anne2008.com.