On New Year’s Day, the kids and I found ourselves stuck in downtown Charlottetown for a little while, waiting for Sandy. There being not much to do, we made our way over to the Confederation Centre, where PEI Premier Pat Binns’ New Year’s Levee was taking place. This was actually the first time I’ve ever been to a levee, which is perhaps surprising because levees are a pretty big Thing To Do on PEI. It was an interesting experience. We arrived near the end, so there was no punch left, but there were lots of sweetbreads, cookies, etc. I told the kids they could each eat two things, and hoped they wouldn’t notice the woman who was surreptitiously stuffing sweets into her coat pockets – I didn’t know how I would explain why they could only have two things while she was allowed to take all she wanted. (I dare say there must be several interesting characters show up to these things!) While waiting in line to greet Premier Binns, I coached the kids on how to shake hands, and they did great – it was very cute – and as we shook hands with the Premier, our photo was taken. Now check this out: upon arrival, I’d been instructed to write my name on a card, which I was to give to the Premier’s aide so she could introduce us to him. Apparently, this card and the photo were cross-referenced, and as if by magic, an envelope containing the photo was mailed to us from the Premier’s office. Scary in a way, since I hadn’t given anyone my address. There’s no anonymity in PEI!
Here’s the photo:
Dale Sorensen's Blog 