ABSTRACT
It was in the early morning of the 10th of June, 2013, that the last journey began. Desultory and sleepy-eyed, I dragged my frayed ruck-sack into the domestic departure hall of the Vancouver Airport, scouting for the fastest way past exuberant vacationers and equally erratic rolling suitcases tightly leashed to their button-down business owners. A glance at the bright and uninviting electronic glare of the self-check-in terminals reminded me that, thankfully, by now I had accumulated enough air miles to qualify for the privilege of human contact. I made a beeline for the deserted frequent-flier counter and the bored-looking agent behind it.
