The Mermaid of English Bay

Swiss scientist Dr. Fahrenheit Celius sat on the huge rock overlooking English Bay not far from the entrance to Vancouver's Stanley Park.

As he sat there, a mermaid rose out of the waters to speak to him.

It was his friend Priyanka.

Priyanka had spent most of her life swimming the waters of the Indian Ocean just off India.

But then she had fallen in love with a dashing young mortal sea captain- Captain Ahab Albatross Mariner Singh.

She had swam after his ship The Taj Mahal of the Seas when it sailed to Canada.

Tragically, the ship struck a rock on the B.C. coast because the lighthouse that had been there for years had been shut down due to cutbacks in spending from the Canadian Federal government.

More lighthouse closures on B.C.'s coast had also been announced this year by the Canadian Federal Government.

No doubt Canada's West Coast would soon be swarming with mermaids pining for their mortal lovers who had been killed in shipwrecks as a result of the lighthouse closures.

"A penny for your thoughts?" she asked the scientist.

Dr. Celsius laughed.

Because the Canadian Federal Government had announced the abolition of the penny as a coin of this particular Dominion realm of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

So in effect, Priyanka was unintentionally implying that his thoughts were worth nothing.

Priyanka suddenly dove back into the sea.

Dr. Celsius was wondering what was up.

He then looked up and noticed a stranger walking along this stretch of the Seawall path and walking trail.

"Was that a Bollywood actress swimming in the water that I just saw?" the stranger inquired.

"She probably could be a Bollywood actress if she didn't have fins," Dr. Celsius replied.

The stranger looked at him as if he were nuts and continued walking.

To be continued.