I just came across this account of the "impossibly overproduced" celebration of Poland joining the EU.

I had a strong suspicion that tonight's show was masterminded by the same genius who first juxtaposed slow-motion footage of the Berlin Wall coming down with the Scorpions' "Winds of Change". In the future, every momentous historical occasion will get a crap soundtrack.

It was a fantastic feeling. Not only did I now have both an American and a European passport, meaning I could have any Russian bride in the catalog, but it also meant that this silly but deeply beloved country was here for good, was here to stay. It would be come a normal, second-tier European nation, besieged by annoying backpackers and completely unremarkable. That may not sound like much of a national dream, but for Poland it is the culmination of two hundred years' bitter struggle. My own grandfather is older than modern Poland; being in Europe means we can now take the independence and continued existence of this country for granted, a remarkable luxury.

Dominion: Beautiful -- Privatized -- British Columbia?

Media Analysis: What makes a scandal scandalous?

Apparently due to the lack of weblog updates post-Estonia, a few people have wondered if I'm still there.

I came back to Montréal at the end of September, and became immediately, utterly immersed in life here. I haven't got around to processing the meaning of the ol' trip to Estonia, though it pops up in conversation now and again, and what I experience is mostly confusion. What role does this far off--yet culturally and personally near--land play in an already fragmented and hectic life? Open question.

I also had a list of things I wanted to write more about related to Estonia, but didn't get a chance. When, if ever, will I write about those. Similarly open.

On a related note, my friend Riina just sent me a link to this somewhat amusing blog about an American guy who is adjusting (slowly) to life in Estonia.

It's a little different than my "hyperpoliticized väliseestlane* returns to a nominal homeland, imposes conceptual framework" narrative.

* Estonian living (or born) outside of Estonia

Laughing Meme: "So Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all represent successive waves of innovation to produce a more viral ideology that could better leverage network effects. It's an idea that has fascinated me since an off hand comment in a college history class that monotheisms were better able to displace traditional pagan cultures because monotheists were able to bring their God with them rather then being tied to a series of local, non-portable phenomena."