Today was my last regular day at Langara and it was really sad to leave. Some of my co-workers took me for dim sum at Sun Siu Wah, which was awesome because there were enough of us to have a bunch of stuff and I got my beloved radish cakes. Then toward the end of the day everyone in my office gathered around my desk and gave me a card and an edible gift and played "I Love A Man In Uniform" by Gang of Four, and it was just really, really lovely. (They told me they refused to get a more permanent gift because they expect to see me back there.) I really like working there and am hoping to be able to work Saturdays there because it's just such a good place to work. I feel really fortunate that they seem to like me enough to want me to be there more. We're all hoping something comes up sometime before the end of my contract (or at least right around the time it ends) so I can be back there on a permanent basis. That would be rad.
Unrelated, I was closing up some email stuff from one of my other jobs and noticed a news item about a person who was promoted to the presidency of an association that sounded quite prestigious. I froze and my hand flew to my mouth to stifle the gasp that leapt from my mouth. The man in the news item used to be a priest that I knew through one of our former parish priests. I went to the ceremony when he became a full-fledged priest. He had dinner at our house a few times. Judging from the story, he's no longer a priest, because he had charges against him for child molestation (that wasn't in the story). We knew there were accusations against him, but had no idea what happened to him, if he was found guilty or jailed or anything. This was when I was about 15 or 16. He was nothing but kind and appropriate to me, even when I was a child in a summer camp that he organised. But these charges... It was a weird internal struggle to see him doing well: part of me wondered how he managed to get out of that situation and if he was guilty, but the other part was kind of glad that he was living a functional, productive life. Do people in his workplace know of his former life? Does he have to register as a pedophile? This probably requires greater effort and I may look into this further, just to appease my mind.
Strangely, he was the second priest that was accused of child molestation. The other was a much older priest who came to dinner with our parish priest (the one was staying with our priest while charges were being laid and the case was being prepped for trial) when I was about 11 or 12, and all I recall was that neither my parents nor our parish priest would allow him to be alone with me at all, even for a minute. My mother had told me of the accusation, so I knew why they were being so cautious. But seeing him, I had no idea how he could convince anyone to do anything sexual.
Tangenting, I just got back from Sondre Lerche and found him to be quite intoxicating. I would have loved to watch to the end, but the early start tomorrow made me nervous. As it is... Anyway, I did get to hang out with Heather and Blair, which was great fun. The rare chances that we get to hang out are always a treat.
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