Oh Canada

I'm in Montreal.  Been up here since April 16th, gonna be here till May 5.  Visiting my mom's bff and her 3 sons whom I've known all my life and therefore call my cousins.  I'm having a good time.  The last time I came up I was with my brother Jesse, and was not in a good head space at all.  Let's be real I was deep in a depression back in '03 and didn't have a good time, at all.  7 years is long time and thankfully I'm healthy and in great spirits.  I've been enjoying the quality time with moms and taking in some of the charm of Quebec.  One thing I've realized while in another country is that pop culture is not some general knowledge that crosses all cultural bounds.  It is very particular to age, race, culture, exposure, etc.  My sense of humor doesn't always translate (literally and figuratively) up here.  Case in point, I had to Youtube a Colt 45 commercial to show my cousin who Billy D. Williams was so that I could then explain a reference ("works every time") someone made while I was playing poker on Facebook.  Long story long, it dawned on me that no, everyone does not know who the smoothest black man in America is!  What a revelation.  So in a personal sense it's a further reminder that the world that revolve around me and the way that I interact with it.  Culture is pockets of subjective perspectives, joined together in the human experience.  While in Canada I'm realizing a lot of things, how much I missed out on by not having siblings, and that my grasp of French isn't completely gone, and also that spring time up here has its redeeming qualities, but these people need to get a grip, hockey isn't all that!