the end of the world

I spent some time in Cuba recently (beautiful country, nice sand) in a resort. I admit I was not traveling for the thrill of exploring a new foreign land as I have in the past; I was there for the beach and all-inclusive alcohol.

Open bar...

Though I did get to see Havana. It was fascinating and sexy. It was a real sexy city, like New York. New York has sex appeal. So did Havana. Also, shady stores selling rum, coffee and cigars. As well as shadier individuals outside promising said goods for a cheaper price. (I am sure such places exist in NYC as well, though I have not seen them.)

During the majority of my time there, I could be found at the beach under the floppy hat, jealously guarding my book and beer with my standard paranoia and muscular travel companion. I quickly finished my novel about the gossip during the first day, and moved on to Murakami's 'Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World'.

The book is utter crack. Which isn't a bad thing. But it got me thinking about the End of the World. To be honest, a lot of things get me thinking about the End of the World, but that's only because of the aforementioned paranoia.

In any case, I went down to the beach one night and gazed out over the water. The waves broke over the sand as they did during the day, and bumped and swelled a little further out. Then a little further out... darkness. The black water stretched out and up, and up - until there were stars. There was no horizon, just blackness stretching out from your feet in the surf. It was like standing on the edge of the world. It was like standing at the End of the World.

And what if, I thought, there was nothing out there in the blackness. I knew that somewhere to the north lay Florida, and beyond that, the sexy city of New York, and beyond that, my home, my friends, my family, my bed, the mall down the street, the clubs downtown, my old schools, my favourite restaurants... But what if all that wasn't there? What if the world had ended and there were no more schools and no more clubs because there was no more electricity and no more people? What if there were no more hospitals and no more doctors and no one you could call for help? What if it was just you, standing on the edge? You and the universe and the End of the World.

I left the beach after a while and went back with my muscular travel companion to the open bar and the lights and stopped thinking about the End. For a while. But the End always creeps back into my mind. Because it's always on the edge. Waiting.

identity theft

I've been thinking a lot lately about Identity Theft. This is perhaps because in the last week, there have been three thefts concerning people I am close to. Jamais deux sans trios, oui?

In this day and age, information is sent at impossible speeds around the world, so when you're paying for yet another case of beer in Brazil, your bank in Windsor can say, "No, fool. DECLINED." And in the morning, you're glad that this technology exists. You're glad that the store that sold you your 62" television has a record of your phone number and address so when you lose the receipt and it stops working in three days, they can say, "Hey, not a problem."

But no one's glad to see that their bank account has been emptied one day. ESPECIALLY when it wasn't you who emptied it. No one wants to be turned down for a mortgage because their credit has turned sour. No one is glad to learn they're on the airport's special list because some other John Smith with your birthday (and let's face it, there must be tons) has been convicted of murder. Will the real John Smith please stand up!

So while trying to catch a cab home from the airport (because they finally figured out it wasn't you, but damn, you missed your flight), you're starting to wonder how this is possible. How can you be wanted for a crime you did not commit? How can someone else have used your debit card to demolish your life savings? How can we stop sharing so much information?

And do we even want to? What is the alternative? Sharing all this information is so convenient for everyday living, we all know this. But it comes at a price. There is that risk we take everyday. That someone could walk away with your IDENTITY. And what is scarier than that?

I think Eminem had something there.