I recently spent a long weekend in Florida, God's waiting room, where I was soothed by the hot sun and excited by the hot prices for booze. You see, living in Canada we get conned into believing that our state run liquor stores are exercising their buying power to bring us the best deals from the world of alcohol. We ignore the obligatory 100% mark up in taxes that fund useless and unneeded social fluff, and settle into our Canadian winters secure in the knowledge that we are a beer drinking nation well served by a presumably beer drinking government.
One trip to Total Wine and Liquor in Fort Myers popped that illusion like a champagne cork- I left armed with $18 cases of beer and $20 jugs of Rum. But I digress.
So I sat at the pool, ice cooler by my side, and contemplated life. My Blackberry continued to buzz as the office never stopped, but I still managed some quiet reflection and mass liquid consumption. Important to stay hydrated!!
As usual, the pool was sparsely used by the locals and my mere attendance brought the average age down to 90.
I overheard chatter about how Obama was destroying the American way of life, insane and unmanageable debt was being passed on to many generations by a federal government hell bent on controlling every aspect of our lives.
Then I heard how gas was outrageously over priced now (still half the price of Canada), how golfing on the local Bermuda grass was impossible, and how the government should step in and do something about it (the grass, not the gas).
After a while I realized that one person, sitting apart from the other senior pundits, had not said a word, nor moved an inch since I got there. There was a little chest movement so I assumed the reaper had not dropped by for a swim.
Then it struck me. I had seen this face before. So dark, commanding and yes, evil. Could it be possible? Surely this character was the fictional stuff of movies.
But no, there I sat, directly across the pool from the Imperial Emperor from Star Wars.
Now you may mock me for such an observation, after all, what would the Emperor, who apparently met his demise in episode six, be doing at a condo swimming pool in southern Florida? But it was him!
I hastily grabbed my blackberry and positioned it to take a picture. Knowing the quality would be terrible, I had no choice but to chance it.
Here you see the fruits of my photographic labor. Resolution is bad but you can clearly see him there, alone, unattended - not an imperial guard in sight.
I sat there thinking of the irony - all those republican candidates out there debating and campaigning for the right to face Obama in this year's federal elections, when the perfect man for the job lay right in front of me. What a lost opportunity! Obama wouldn't stand a chance!
Anyway - at that point I was out of Rum and beer so I had to decide between engaging the Emperor in political discussion, or going back to the condo for refills.
God that beer was good!
Long live the Empire!
