Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom (And Whimsy)

Posted on May 15, 2024 under Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom with no comments yet

 

Degrees. B.A. 1973. B.U 2024

 

What’s in a name?

What’s in initials?

I am frequently asked why I go by the moniker of P.D. My cheeky friends might chirp me and say Pretty Dumb. The truth of the matter is that growing up in this part of the world, having a last name of MacDonald poses some challenges. In my case, being raised as a Catholic, just about every second boy’s first name was John, a tip of the hat to the bible. What an unimaginative bunch we Scots are. Do you have any idea how many John MacDonalds there are just in my hometown let alone this region of the province?

In order to distinguish one MacDonald family from the next, the initials of your father were often used. There were the D.D. MacDonalds, the D.V. MacDonalds to name but a few. My dad’s name is Peter Donald so let’s clear up this mystery once and for all. I’m one of the P.D. MacDonalds.

When you see the initials P.C., what is the first thing that comes to mind?

Rabid political junkies will automatically conclude that you’re talking about the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada once led by the irascible John Diefenbaker. The P.C. party no longer lives. In 2003, the Canadian Alliance and the PC’s merged forming the Conservative Party of Canada.

Having mail delivered to your door was once common but these days, group mailboxes are in vogue and the way things are going, mail as we know it (other those annoying flyers) might soon be extinct. People rarely write letters any more or send Christmas cards. Most bills are sent electronically and paid online. Which begs the question. Will we still need Postal Codes (P.C.) in the future?

Is a Mac better than a PC? Just about every one of us owns a computer. One would think that being a MacDonald, I would favour a Mac (!) but as far as I know, my electronic devices are considered Personal Computers. This is a broad term to describe any computing device for everyday individual use. Laptops, desktops, tablets, smartphones and other devices are all considered P.C.

You’re likely scratching your head wondering where this piece is going.

“Ball of confusion,

Oh yeah, that’s what the world is today,

Woo, hey, hey.”

Ball of Confusion – The Temptations

When it comes to grocery stores, I have no real preferences. I could just as easily do my shopping for President’s Choice (another PC) products at the local Atlantic Superstore as I could at Sobey’s. I can go broke there just as easily as I can at Sobey’s. However, since I decided that I would no longer own a car, walking to Sobey’s from home, an 8-minute jaunt, makes more sense.

A few times a week, I walk up Church Street toting a couple of reusable grocery bags. I grab only what I can carry at Sobey’s and then it’s all down hill back to my apartment. Most of you will remember vividly that going to a grocery store during Covid was like visiting the morgue. People were masked and no one seemed to want to engage with any other human being. Who will soon forget the one-way arrows posted on the floors of the aisles to keep people away from each other?

These days, the grocery store feels like the good old days. People will often stop and chat and get caught up on the news.

I would hardly consider myself a celebrity, but I do have a loyal following of readers of posts like the one you are reading now, so it is inevitable that I will occasionally bump into someone who wants to bend my ear.

I had a lovely chat with an old high school acquaintance in aisle 7 last week. He and his wife were shopping together, something you never saw during Covid. We hoed the usual rows and every conversation, yes every single conversation among seniors starts and ends with health. I inquired about the health of the woman’s mother. She is getting up there in years. Aren’t we all!

She said that her mom was doing pretty well but that dementia was setting in. She also had a bad fall recently which ended up in a stay in the hospital. In a discussion with a nurse about her mother’s overall condition the nurse said, “Your mom is “pleasantly confused”. (P.C.)

Pleasantly confused. I’m not sure about you but I think that description suits me to a T. I’m a glass half full kind of guy and I’m in good humour most of the time. That covers the “pleasantly” part of the equation. When was the last time that you walked into the kitchen and, for an instant, couldn’t remember why you were there? When was the last time that you met someone you knew from a previous life walking along the Main and you couldn’t conjure up their name? As time marches on relentlessly, these spells of confusion will no doubt increase.

Until then, I’ll choose to be blissfully unaware.

I have a university degree on my wall. It says Bachelor of Arts. 1973 (B.A.)

One of these days, I’ll just replace the parchment which will read: “Blissfully Unaware. 2024.” (B.U.)

All in all, that’s Pretty Cool!

Have a great weekend.

P.S. At school last week, I was teaching the students about the Gaels, the Highland Clearances, and famine, a few of the factors resulting in some of our ancestors coming from Scotland to the New World. I told them about The Hector and the replica of the ship in the town of Pictou. The Hector arrived here in 1773, just over 250 years ago. Several students in my class have recently come here from war torn countries. Something got lost in the translation as one young boy said that I didn’t look 250 years old!