Please Play Again

Well, it’s that time of year again that all Canadians look forward to. It is ROLL UP THE RIM at Tim Hortons! For those that don’t know, Tim Horton’s is a donut and coffee shop that has become an integral part of Canadian culture, and at this time of year there is a contest with literally millions of prizes. The prizes range from a Toyota Camry (mine I hope), 3D TV’s, camping equipment, $100 gift cards and 72,000,000 food prizes. Of course most people will win a free coffee, donut or a cookie. This is my year however and I shall win the Camry! Perhaps all I will win is a donut, but it’s better than nothing. Whatever, just so long as I win something.


I had my first coffee this afternoon and I could hardly wait while that hot, brown, caffeine laden liquid slowly, ever so slowly worked its way to the bottom of the cup. I tried to drink faster, but my lips and tongue are hyper sensitive to heat. When the moment of truth finally came I took the empty cup in my hands and with a push of my thumbs I rolled the rim up to reveal the secret message. Please play again! 


I’m not a fool, I knew that the chances were that I wouldn’t win on the first cup of the season. I have dreams though, and wouldn’t it have been fantastic to win on the first cup? I don’t know if they sell more coffee at this time of year, but it is one hell of a good promotion. I even have a special plastic rim roller, which must have been designed for those with weak thumbs or equally weak minds. Who can’t roll the rim on a paper cup? I have had difficulty from time to time, so I guess that I will have to go with the “weak mind” description. My hands are just fine thank you. It is kind of a moot point because I can’t remember the last time I remembered to bring my rim roller.


Here is the web site that will tell you all that you want to know about Tim Hortons Roll Up The Rim. You can even play online! http://www.rolluptherimtowin.com/en/index.php 


When I got home today I was thinking about some Buddhist friends of mine in particular and the whole concept of reincarnation in general. I have always believed that the eastern religions make far more sense than our western ones. I guess that it is because it is more of a way to live your life in a way that fits you specifically rather than our religion that tends to tell you how you should live your life.


I particularly like the concept of reincarnation as opposed to heaven and hell. To me spending an eternity in either heaven or hell would be …well…Hell. I know that I may need to relearn a few lessons that I have skipped over in this lifetime, and I am prepared to spend the next one or two working on it. It is kind of like being failed in school. No one really wants to stay back a year, but after a while it becomes obvious that it is for the best. I failed grade 10 because that was the year I learned two important things. The first was that no matter what you did in school there wasn’t really anything in the way of punishment that they could do to you. They couldn’t kill you or even torture you. If they suspended you for skipping class, you got to miss class with their permission. Perfect! A detention was just an hour or so being spent in quiet reflection…more or less.


The second reason that I failed and this is the one that probably caused the realization of the first reason; was that this was the year I discovered there are substances in the world that can alter the way you look at said world. 


It occurred to me that life with reincarnation is a lot like drinking a coffee at Tim Hortons. Every day is a prize, some are better than others are and sometimes you just get a notification to Please play again