Kendall Defoe
Bio
Teacher, reader, writer, dreamer... I am a college instructor who cannot stop letting his thoughts end up on the page. No AI. No Fake Work. It's all me...
And I did this:
Stories (824)
Filter by community
I Don't Give A Fap...
I know, I know... You need an explanation...or set of explanations... Movember is a growing popular movement where men grow a moustache and donate money to various charities which support men's health around issues of testicular and prostate cancer, mental health and suicide prevention. There are various suggested charities and events that can be taken up if you are willing to lend a hand.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Filthy
The Two-Week Plan
I wonder about how we make friends. Peter Ustinov said that friends are not the ones you pick; they are the ones who simply got there first. Others believe that friendship is deeper than any love affair can be. People often regret losing a friend more than a lover.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Confessions
Sail On...
This autumn in Montreal has been glorious. Several warm and unOctoberlike days have been followed by a cool start to November with many of those days of heat to return (you can still call it an Indian summer if you like; I just think of it as Canadian weather – wait five minutes, you’ll get something different). I have been out for a run at the park, facing the blinding light of the sun and looked over some papers for school and a possible new job opportunity.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Confessions
Seen to Be Seen
I have been reacting to the reactors. We have become much more keyed in to our technology than at any time in our history. A bus or subway ride in the morning is a parade of the plugged in and the texted out, along with the gamers and the surfers exercising their thumbs. This creates an interesting distance between us, besides the usual one we all live with in order to stay sane. It is impossible to have a conversation or even an idle chat with people who are in a co-dependent relationship with a screen. And I am beginning to think that we are feeling the distance, post-Covid, post-quarantining, and post-everything else faced in the last three years. This may explain why, on video-sharing web sites, there are so many groups of people who come together and share their emotions with the larger, unseen but well-connected public. This is the reason why the reaction video is now having a special moment in our lives.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in 01
A Trip to England (Part III)
There are moments in your life that cloud things; that make things seem so difficult to comprehend that you just do not deal with them in a way that would seem proper. I was given that photograph of my half-sister and kept it hidden in a drawer from any curious eyes in my house. I did not mention it or even hint at it until my mother confessed that she knew all about her and we both realized that two lies were living in the same house. As I think about that scene between us, I realize that I would not believe it if I had heard about it from a friend (not even the film studios of Hollywood could have imagined such things). But it was too real and made me more aware of what was true and what was imaginary. I paid more attention to the racist graffiti I saw on an embankment wall as we travelled to a cricket match (contrasted with a wheat field that appeared like liquid gold, it was startling to see an attitude so honest). I noted that fruit sold in the markets came from South Africa. This was during apartheid and I made a point of buying a t-shirt that recommended that one Boycott South African Goods. I then looked carefully around that neighbourhood. Cramped homes, grey weather, narrow and mugger-friendly lanes and walls, appalling programs on TV (comedy specials seemed to have to volume of the audience turned way up for the weakest jokes) and I have already commented on the food.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Wander
A Trip to England (Part II)
It is hard for me to accept how naïve I was about life in London, even at the age of fourteen. I unpacked my bags and filled up her front room with my collection of music tapes. This was my first mistake and a sign that I did not know the culture I was in. I was listening to mostly progressive or light rock (Genesis and Supertramp were personal favourites). My mistake was sharing this so publicly. I had a Walkman, but I sometimes insisted on playing these records on her stereo. What I mean by saying this is that I did not understand the culture I was in and that I was out of step with what I thought I knew from those exports I mentioned (most of my recordings were made by British groups and record companies).
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Wander
A Trip to England (Part I)
When I was fourteen, I was sent to visit part of my family in London, England. It was in the summer of 1988 and I do not know why I was sent at that particular time. We had just moved into a new house (this would be our last move after years of changing apartments and houses around the same city). Perhaps my mother felt that I would be used to another change in my location and had enough experience travelling to take such a trip. I had already seen parts of the Caribbean on different plane trips with my family and we had taken part in a long trip by car from our home to a friend’s place in California. The trip to England would be another stamp on my passport.
By Kendall Defoe 3 years ago in Wander
