Writers Beyond Borders

What would you do?

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We asked the members of Writers Beyond Borders, “If money were no obstacle, how they would spend their time?”

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If I had all the money in the world and could do anything I wanted, then this would be my plan. I would purchase a few acres of land outside of Edmonton – I don’t want it to be more than an hour drive away from town. I like some restaurants and theatres in town, and I visit my friends. I could drive home if the weather is clear and the roads are in good condition. Or, I’d keep a small apartment for the nights I spend time in town.

On the land I purchase, I would build a large commercial-sized runway, hire a pilot and a maintenance officer or two, and own a few airplanes of different sizes for different occasions. I am so tired of all the security checks at the airport, especially with the recent talk about introducing a more thorough scanner, which surely means more time to stand in lines. I am not happy with having to be at the airport three hours ahead of time so that I can be patted down, with bare feet and my bags open to show all that is contained within, not to mention getting my eyebrow tweezers confiscated.

My eyes are terrible, so I don’t think I can learn to become a pilot myself. But it does not matter because I’d have all the money in the world to hire private pilots. You might think that there are ways to make my eyes better by some sort of surgical procedures. I actually still don’t quite trust these eye surgeries to improve your eyesight. I hear all the horror stories about these. Besides, my eye problem is astigmatism – you know, the one where the eyeball is the shape of a football? I don’t really know if they can alter the shape of my eyes in a surgery. I don’t quite believe they can do that without squishing the eyeballs like you do when you try to make a snowball perfectly spherical.

Also, making a runway on private land may require some paperwork – development permit and so on. Yes, that would probably be the case. I will be fine. I can hire a very capable lawyer who can take care of all the paperwork one can conceive of in the world. Maybe I can even hire a specialized lawyer for each need. I am sure lawyers would not mind that. I would pay well for those who have acquired specialized knowledge and expertise through their hard work and experience. This sounds better than me trying to learn all the rules and regulations.

In addition to being able to fly to anywhere I choose, I would also make arrangements so that charter planes can land on my runway. This way, I just have to hire a charter plane with a pilot from the point of origin to fly directly to my backyard. I can invite my friends and family from all over the world to come visit me. Seeing in-laws from Victoria and Montreal will be really easy. Being able to see my parents, sister, relatives from Japan will be easy, too, as long as they can get some time off their work. (You know, it’s hard to take vacations in Japan.) They’ll love their own guest suite built to perfection, and even the charter plane pilot is welcome to stay in accommodations made especially for them, complete with internet access if they want to e-mail or talk to their family through Skype about their trip to a small town near Edmonton, Alberta. It would be quite an experience for the pilot, too. Imagine my friends visiting me from other parts of the world – US, UK, Germany, Greece, Spain, Singapore, Mexico, Malta, Chile, China, Taiwan, Thailand, and Japan...

I wish I were able to see my friends and family easily. People say that the world is getting smaller with air travel and even through the internet. Yes, Facebook can connect you with your friends quickly and you can see what they are doing – as long as they tell you on their page. It’s wonderful. I agree. But the best part of having friends and family is to be able to see them and visit with them once in a while. At least for me, these days, it is so hard to take the time off to go see a family member across the country or ocean. I wish I could see them more often.

– Yukari F. Meldrum

 

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Dream Job

My dream job would allow me to travel whenever the spirit moved me. It would make it easier to visit my elderly mother across the country.

My dream job would offer daily intellectual challenges. I would keep on perfecting my language skills, even acquiring some new ones.

My dream job would offer remuneration reflecting my university studies.

Come to think about it, I already have my dream job!

Now, if I could only earn the same income by working six months a year, leaving the other half for travelling and writing!

– Jocelyne Verret