From coast to foggy coast

by David Ball
National Coordinator
March 27, 2009

As I write it’s almost 1 a.m. I am on an island that is 30 minutes off of the time-space continuum and upon which things happen quite differently from what I am used to; it all seems hidden in a fog. No, this is not the mysterious magical island on the show Lost. I am in fact in St. John’s, Newfoundland enjoying spectacular hospitality and friendliness.

Today, I did three local events with SCMers here, including a lunch-time presentation in which people dropped in and out and we watched SCM’s short video about the School of the Americas (despite watching it twice for different students, it still impacts me quite a lot). Also, a student shared with me her passion for haircuts and dress styles of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints which you can order from their website although I’m not sure it’s something I totally support.

Also, we hosted a Theology on Tap, basically buying a pitcher of beer and nachos and inviting students (and a chaplain) to chat about whatever they feel like. We ended the evening by showing the film Baraka, an incredible view of our earth and cultures without words – the most stunning shots of world religion, culture, nature, as well as the craziness of urban industrial civilization.

I feel quite tired from a very busy few days preparing and presenting these. I am glad for transferable YMCA passes (though I can’t seem to get away from SCM… since we did, in fact, break off from the Y in 1921, calling them ‘capitalist lapdogs,’ I am told by Senior Friends, and ‘a creature of the businessmen and used by them’

I’m most excited about tomorrow – I’ve been invited to play live music at LGBT-MUN’s weekly queer coffee house. This is their first one that’s in a highly visible, public place in the University Centre. I’m so, so grateful for these wonderful folks I have been talking to every day since I got here. Not only for their courage, but for being such a fun, healthy presence here, and also for being open to talking about spirituality and its importance. I feel honoured to be invited to offer my gifts, in full trust. There’s a lot shaking on the Queer & Christian Without Contradiction front these days, including a brand new and quite exciting new website and forum and a swathe of upcoming resources including book study, theology and arts journal, ‘Where Would Jesus Poop’ t-shirts highlighting transphobia, and more!

Emily and I are both traveling right now (she in Ottawa and Montreal, me in the Atlantic provinces), putting a last-minute push into promoting SCM’s Shine! General Conference in May. We just got funding to reduce the fees by more than half and extended the deadline. It’s going to be AMAZING so you should register!

Off to bed, I’m exhausted, and I still have an anti-war ‘mixer’ (fundraiser party) tomorrow night, visiting Fredericton, New Brunswick this weekend (yay Quaker meeting with a former SCM board member), then Halifax for a few days of events!

Oh yeah, on top of all that, I’ll get to practice my Newfoundland slang at BeerFest tomorrow night:

  • ‘A feed of…’ : A feast, a hearty meal
  • ‘Bye’ : Literally, ‘boy,’ but used generically like ‘folks’
  • ‘Grubjob’ : Also a feast
  • ‘Getting up my grill’ : Annoying, pestering
  • ‘Birch broom in the fits’ : How Newfoundlanders describe my hair when I first joined SCM at conference here in 2004, when I had dreadlocks on one side of my head