Those who know me in real life know that I have a morbid fascination with the end of the world — more specifically, post-apocalyptic stories about afterwards… and I’m also a fan of alternate history stories.  There’s a book in my bookshelf that contains a collection of short stories about different ways the world could end; I’ve got another one that takes place in 1972, 10 years after the Cuban Missile Crisis escalated into nuclear war; I own the book Fail Safe and I’ve seen that movie as well; and I’m glued to my TV every time Jericho is on.  I occasionally joke with my parents that their wedding anniversary was cursed — according to Terminator 2: Judgment Day, August 29 was Judgment Day.  It’s also the day that Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans.  But things hit a little too close to home this weekend. 

I was in Borders, going through the stacks when I ran across an entire display of books dedicated to December 21, 2012.  Apparently, there’s a whole movement going on, following the Mayan calendar, which sees cosmic significance on that morning.  The Earth will complete its 26,000-year axis “wobble” and realign itself with Polaris, the planets in our solar system will be aligned, and our solar system will be aligned with the central plane of our galaxy.  The Mayans see this as the end of the 12th iteration of the Long Count, a calendar cycle they developed, starting our 13th cycle… a number many believe to be unlucky.  And so, the predictions about the end of the world on that day have begun evolving in force and en masse, including a comet or an asteroid striking the planet, the rise of the Antichrist, massive solar flares or a nuclear apocalypse.  The end of the world.  My birthday.

I’m going to try to forget about that for a little while, though — I’m packing up my suitcase and heading to Canada for a few days on a trip I’ve been looking forward to for a while.  Every year, the Canadians hold a music and radio industry conference, which I had a blast at last year.  This year, they’ve asked me to come up and not only appear on a panel, but also moderate another one.  Apparently, they think I’m some kind of responsible adult or something.  Either way, this deal will rapidly de-evolve into a government-sponsored alcohol-drinking competition, which I’m sure I’ll lose… with nothing better to do during the wintertime, Canadians practice drinking — I hear it helps keep you warm or something, which is probably another reason why they drink.  Plus, their beer is much stronger than American beer, and I remember last year when a bunch of Canadians got together, decided to feed this American lots of liquor and then casually ask, “So… how do you like Canada?” The only possible response in such a scenario, by the way, is “I LOVE CANADA!!!”