# Symbol: What Does it Mean!?!?

Good day my digital friends. I hope that the day has found you well. Every so often on my Facebook news feed, a discussion goes by about this silly little symbol: #. I have been taught to refer to it as the Number Sign or a Pound Sign. More recently with the explosion of Social Media, specifically Twitter, it has come to take on an entirely new meaning...to me. It is also a Hash Tag. Facebook has also recently taken the move to adopt it into their platform as well and if you're an avid Twitter user as I am, you know full well the purpose of using the # symbol; Facebook users do not share the same understanding or love of the # symbol.

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It surprises me how much of a hot topic this actually is for many people in the Facebook world. I understand that there is a certain lack of understanding if you've never used Twitter and thus I can understand some resistance however like anything new, once must give it an opportunity. Use correctly #Hashtags are a very effective social media tool. They allow for like-minded people to find one another through a vast expanse of users. By simply clicking on a hash-tagged word you are brought directly to all information that has been posted with that same hash tag. Imagine, people being able to freely seek out engagement, debate, knowledge and understanding. Facebook users, it's time to get on board simply for the sheer volume of knowledge and information that can be made available there versus Twitter. 

I shall also take a moment to note that I get some of the hatred. People absolutely abuse the use of the hash tag; oftentimes tagging every word in a post or Tweet. This is an improper use of the hash tag and even the Twitterverse shuns such usage; you are not alone in this Facebook. However, mocking it continuously by using hash tags in every one of your words to voice your distaste will only make you out to be a troll or someone who lacks basic social media understanding. Now onto the meat of what I actually wanted to talk a little about after finding the following on Wikipedia on the # symbol:

""Outside of North America, the symbol is called hash and the corresponding telephone key is called the hash key. In American and Canadian English, the symbol is usually called the pound sign (outside the US, this term often describes instead the British currency symbol "£"), and the telephone key is called the pound key.[1]"

So first, one more thing to Facebook users who despise the # symbol without even trying to understand, it is a symbol and symbols can and do have many shapes, forms and especially meanings. Take for example the color Red. It can mean stop, it can mean danger, it can mean hot. Yet it is still the same color; where is you campaign on the atrocity on Red being used so frivolously? 

Ok, so back to the quote. I've read several times over and what strikes me here, what jumps out is that the # symbol is only called the Pound Key/Symbol in North America. Imagine that. Essentially the rest of the planet calls it a Hash Key/Symbol yet it is we here in the Canada and the USA that blast people who call it a has tag, call them idiots and constantly remind people that it's called "pound". How absolutely and typically ethnocentric of us. How very arrogant.

Sure it may sound like a bit of a stretch to you but after reading this it just further reinforces the idea in my head that North Americans need to wake up and get there heads out of the sand. We are not the center of the Universe and we need to stop thinking we are. We do not know any better and while I am merely discussing a silly little symbol, it serves as a very real indication on how we behave on a larger scale towards much more serious issues. If we cannot even accept that what we call this symbol is the minority view in the world and that perhaps maybe WE could change for the rest of the world a little then I've wasted every second I have spent writing this. 

While I am happy to live where I do, I do not take for granted nor do I ignore the privileges that come with it. I am aware of the grand scale of ethnocentrism that we possess and the we attempt to enforce on other nations and peoples across the globe. We enforce our values, our laws, our democracy, our freedom, our opinions...can't we just say fuck it and call it a hash tag already?

While I sound bleak and condemning I assure you that I am not meaning to be negative but when one points out the ugly, no matter how you paint it, it's still ugly. I'm just pointing out some ugly and asking that maybe we clean a little bit of it up and I don't mean the damn hash tag (as I'm sure some of you are fuming by now or getting tired of reading it over and over again) but other, meaningful things that we can change to stop enforcing our own North American views on the rest of the world. 

The last time I checked a picture of the Earth from space there were no borders dividing land masses.

The last time I checked a biology textbook there is only one species of human beings, homo sapien sapiens, and not many, subdivided by color, religion or culture.

We are one people living on one Earth and that's all we have for as long as we're here. Let's spend that time together doing better things than enforcing views, condemning other views or arguing over what a # symbol means. As always, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read and doubly so if you felt compelled to share. Love on another.

Press Release - Southern Unified Organization for the Top Hemisphere (SOUTH)

For Immediate Press Release*

21 September 2013

The Southern Unified Organization for the Top Hemisphere (SOUTH) would like to announce its intention to put forward a motion at the upcoming United Nations World Conference in November of 2013. The United Nations World Conference will be held at the New York United Nations Building located at 1 United Nations Plaza in New York from November the 20th, 2013 through to November 24th, 2013. Representatives from all 192 countries will be present, the majority of which will be representing countries from the Southern Hemisphere.

The motion put forward by SOUTH will be to present a case and put forth a study on revising what has commonly been the layout of the planet on maps and globes. It is a scientific fact that our perception of direction is subjective. We have named the poles North and South, given those terms definitions of direction and created our geographical records to reflect those terms. The reality of the situation is that we, SOUTH, feel that we were not given an opportunity to take part in the finalization of how our geographical representations should look like. It is with this in mind that we present our request to move forward with change.

SOUTH proposes that beginning on January the 1st, 2020 that all georgraphical representations of the planet be done with the Southern Hemisphere at the top of the map while the Northern Hemisphere will be moved to the bottom. We are currently in the process of drafting a resolution to change the global definitions of North and South. It is time that the dictatorial demands of the developed countries of the Northern Hemisphere now take a back seat to the needs and demands of those developed nations in the Southern Hemisphere.

"For too long, everything in the World has revolved around some country or city-state in the Northern Hemisphere. Throughout history it has been the Northern countries that have been the source of war, poverty and environmental destruction," says recently elected Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott. "It is time that we, SOUTH, stand together and be given our opportunity; they've had a few millenia to get it right and have failed miserably."

While we, SOUTH, understand the magnitude of this undertaking we do so with great resolve and determination. The Southern Hemisphere currently contains the majority of all countries on the planet as well as the majority of countries who are members of the United Nations. Most of the world's largest supply of natural resources are also found in the Southern Hemisphere. With such a vast populace and reserve of resources, SOUTH will, over the coming years, become a force of influence and power.

There are currently 83 countries who have joined SOUTH to push this resolution forward. 

No media contact will be made available until one week prior to the conference as we continue to finalize the resolution that will be put forward during the United Nations World Conference.

For more information please contact SOUTH via email at southern.hemisphere@gmail.com. Please find included a tentative reproduction of our proposal for a new World Map.

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*this is a work of fiction by the writer

Social Etiquette on Holding a Door or Elevator

Good afternoon to you all. I hope the day has found you all very well and continues to get even better. It's been about a two weeks since my last post, which is about three months less than the interval between posts prior to that; I consider it a rather small, but positive victory. Last night I realized I need to get a new post going and feeling some writer's block, I crowd-sourced for topics. Unfortunately it was quite late however I did get this one little interesting response. I said I would write about anything and I guess this contributor thought she was being funny but here we go nonetheless.

So what is the social etiquette on the length of time that one should hold open a door or elevator for someone else. It seems like a simple enough topic to discuss, throw out a subjective time from my own personal experiences and voila! We have a blog post...but that'd be far too simple for someone like myself who likes to examine even the simplest of  notions in depth. I've actually come up with a few different variables that can potentially change the length of time you wait holding a door for someone.

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The first thing I examined was the 'who'. Who am I holding this for? Is it a friend? A stranger? A family member? An acquaintance? A celebrity? This is a very important question. It would seem far more likely that we would hold the door for a shorter amount of time for a stranger rather than a family member; or maybe it's the reverse for you. The individual(s) and their personal connection to us can subjectively alter the length of time one might hold a door open for someone. Personally, I am fairly equitable on a day to day basis on who I hold doors for and how long. It's an act of kindness, however small.

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The next thing to cross my mind is distance and speed. How far away is the person? How quickly are they moving? These are two interesting questions because they impact our decision to hold or not to hold a door and how long we might hold it for. As an example, if I am holding an elevator door for someone walking from 15 feet away and they are moving particularly slow, I will hold the door as long as necessary if I have already started to. If however I see that the door will be closed long before someone arrives I may just continue on my way. When it comes to elevators I have a general rule of thumb: if I don't see you coming towards the elevator, I hit the 'close door' button; if I see you coming and it is obvious I will hold the door as long as it takes for you to get in (even if I get annoyed that you're walking at a sloth's pace). 

Something else that will impact the length of time I might hold a door is my own personal disposition. I am a human being. I have emotions and sometimes those emotions are negative. If I am in a particularly negative mood I might not hold a door or elevator for anyone for any reason regardless of anything else. We've all had days like that and it's hard to get out of the negativity. Interestingly enough, someone holding a door or elevator for you can be just the right amount of kindness to eradicate the bad mood.

So I still have yet to address her actual question which was: how long should one actually hold open a door or an elevator for someone else? I look at them as two different questions because I have different 'rules' for each type of hold. When it comes to a door, I will not hold it open or try to hold it open if it looks like it will take longer than 15-20 seconds for the individual to get to the door to walk through. The only exception to this rule is for those with disabilities that impair movement; I will wait for minutes. For an elevator I have kind of already explained how I do that so the actual amount of time I would hold it for varies. Pretty much if you're out of sight, I'm leaving you behind when it comes to an elevator. People occasionally get annoyed because if someone starts coming to catch the elevator after already having waited for someone before them, I will continue to wait.

I would personally suggest, Amanda (the contributor) that you use your own best judgment however I will leave you with this:

People react positively to kindness even in the most foul of moods. Doing something kind for someone for the sake of being kind does not come with a time limit. Social etiquette is a subjective term and no official paper has been written in stone on what is good or what is bad. We have ideas, some personal and some public that influence what we perceive to be good or bad social etiquette but what it really comes down to is this: do you want to hold the door/elevator because society has imposed this idea in your head or do you want to do it out of kindness. Ultimately what you decide will determine how long you hold for.

And with that, we shall bring this post to an end. I am hoping to not wait so long for the next one but as I mentioned, the frequency between this and the last post is a vast improvement for me. I look forward to decreasing the interval between posts. As always, thank you all for reading and double thanks to those who share. Have a wonderful day and love one another.

Writing for Writing's Sake

Good afternoon Cyberspace. It has been far too long since my last blog post update. I haven't exactly been busy or occupied or anything; unless you count working five to six days a week, eight to ten hours a day (which I don't). Regardless it is not work that has kept me from maintaining my blog or any of the other things that have suffered over the last few months. Nope, it's not that I'm too busy; it's not even that I'm uninspired because there have been a whole bunch of issues that I could have easily written posts about at great lengths but chose not to. 

Today I am having a pretty lousy day. I awoke to a phone with no text message notifications from a loved one. I arose to a hard rain pounding down all across the city which negated my ability to get the things I wanted to do done this morning...like get to a store to buy something so that I could eat some breakfast. Above that I also did not sleep very well, haven't been eating all that great and have generally been stressed about finances. I went to the wrong building when I arrived at work and had to walk back through the rain to get to the right one, my brain is groggy and I feel disassociated. BUT! I am determined to start making changes and resuming regular blog posts (this is like my third attempt in the last six months) is part of that. So here I am, terrible day, and I am forcing myself to write something even if it's just griping.

Lately there it has seemed like there has been an ever increasing rise in negative attitudes and opinions everywhere I go. People attacking people over this or that; people vilifying other people because they share differences of opinion; every day good people slinging insults and attacks because they share different political ideologies; people using other people for scapegoats for issues that could in no possibly be attributed to the simple stupid and mistaken actions of a single individual. And I'm nobody's fool; I don't expect campfires and kumbaya but a little human decency and respect isn't really asking for a lot...is it? 

Not sure what else to write about right now. I suppose just getting something out is a way to get the ball rolling on resuming writing. I mean, if I write about nothing and nonsense enough there is bound to be something creative or inspiring to find its way to the surface. Like that old expression: a thousand monkeys typing on a thousand keyboards for a thousand years will eventually hammer out the entire Encyclopedia Britannica (or all of Shakespeare's works depending on the origin). Let us hope that it doesn't take me a thousand years to find something interesting and passionate to type about.

Well, nearing the end of anything sensible to really discuss. I guess I will add something relevant to local and global events just to feel like I've shared something important for you: 

Firstly, let's stay the hell out of Syria. While I am aghast and horrified by the use of chemical weapons against civilians, I also opposed military intervention into a country that has been fighting a civil war for years. I am all for humanitarian support for the people of Syria and maybe we should be set up near borders to assist with that but Syria should be permitted to find its own path just as the United States once did and we did in Canada (though for us there was little violence in comparison). 

Secondly, if Miley Cyrus' twerking was something you felt compelled to talk about longer than her performance at the MVA's then you spent far too much time on it. 

And lastly, frosh weeks at post-secondary education institutions is a complete and utter waste of time and resources. University is for education, not humiliation. Frosh weeks may help people to break out of their "shell" but more often they help people to get drunk and get stupid. The events and activities at many of these events, especially the after hours ones, as despicable and no child in the world would feel comfortable doing these things if their family were there watching. If you wouldn't do it at home, don't do it abroad. Also, don't act so fucking surprised to hear about it either. That really pisses me off. People acting like this stuff has never happened before. It's been happening for years and years and years and we continue to turn blind eyes to it so you don't get to claim ignorance here. One last thing on the subject, the SMU incident was not isolated and similar occurrences will continue to happen unless we address the issue and not sit around looking for who is at fault for it happening. A student union president's resignation; sensitivity training for student leaders; disciplinary action for two students; and a promise from faculty will not a solution create. While there are outside groups applying pressure, it won't do any good if the support dies off once the next big news headline hits. Stay vigilant to the issue and don't think because we've made some cosmetic changes on the surface that anything is different underneath. Rape, rape culture and sexual assault are serious matters; not to mention illegal, and the life-long affects of being a victim are impossible to gauge. But I've gone on too long about this here, and not long enough about it to properly express and share my thoughts on it (another blog post perhaps).

Guess that's it for today. This is my third attempt to re-kindle the writing fire I had not so long ago and I really want to tell you, and myself, that I am committed; that I will follow through; that I will get back to doing that which I enjoy but let's face it, talk is cheap without action. Here's hoping the action I started here today continues as a reaction tomorrow...and then again the next day...

A wonderful day to each and every one of you who may have stumbled across this garbled blog post of vague ideas. One Love.

Racism in the HRM

Good day fellow citizens of the Internet. In the last three days I have bore witness to one blatant case of verbal racism and have heard first hand the account of another case of willful racism in my beautiful and wonderful home called the Halifax Regional Municipality. Don't get the wrong idea; it really is a unique and special place. I have seen much of my homeland, Canada, and this city has something that sets it apart from other places; other great places. But there is a little darkness and I want to share one such instance because I know people involved very personally and they are good people; honest people.

I like politics. I enjoy the debate; I enjoy the engagement; and I enjoy participating in what we shall call an open and free democracy. At some point in the near future there is going to be a Provincial election called and so the political talk is starting to jump into drive. Personally, I know a number of individuals who have put themselves forward with different parties. Just to cover myself and attempt to demonstrate my non-partisanship and bias I refer you to my past post on why I despise party politics; I don't support parties, I support people. Moving on, I do volunteer for a few of these candidates because I believe them to demonstrate true character and depth. 

One of the candidates I volunteer with is Abad Khan (yeah, that's a plug; he's a great individual) who is the NDP candidate for the Fairview-Clayton Park riding here in HRM. I've know him for a little over a year now and we've engaged in a number of discussions. He is well informed and we share many similar thoughts and opinions. 

Another candidate running in the same riding is Travis Price who is the Conservative candidate. You may know Travis from his Pink Shirt and Anti-Bullying campaigns. I was fortunate enough to spend a year and a half attending Eastern College with Travis. He has brought his message all around the world and it is a great pleasure to know him. Travis is an upstanding individual and despite the positive impact he has had on youth, he was quite modest about it during our time in school. I mention Travis because he brings kind of a sick, ironic twist to this story (and yes, I'm getting to the point; it's called a set up!).

So because I volunteer with one and know the other, I follow their campaigns. The Conservatives made a to-do about Travis' announcement; and why shouldn't they? There was plenty of media coverage, a number of articles written and some photos snapped and circulated. Jamie Baillie, who is the leader of the Provincial Conservatives, was present at the event and posted one of those pictures to his Facebook wall. If you follow that link you will find the picture.

If you read the comments you might have noticed something seemed missing; it is. Two nights ago, I happened to come across the post and what I found in the comments section was just disgusting and vile: open, ignorant racism. Now, the comments are gone and that's probably good but the fact that it happened wasn't addressed; at least not publicly. This would have been a good opportunity for Mr Baillie to follow his young candidate's example and do something positive. Perhaps relay the message that the Conservative party doesn't tolerate racism and does not condone such behavior; or perhaps he could have said that the Conservative party does not want the any vote that derives from racism; or maybe you could have said something instead of kind of brushing it out. 

What really needs to be addressed here is the behavior: racism. How, in this day and age, anyone can seriously choose their political allegiance based solely off of skin color; or even worse: a prejudice rolled into racism. Like I said, decent people came to the rescue but knowing Abad, I was hurt, shocked and blown away. And maybe I'm blowing it out of proportion because you're thinking: there aren't enough people like that to make a difference. No? How many closet racists are out there? If one is this bold, and there are more than one, then others will be too. It also means that someone else risks the chance of adopting such behavior which will grow into more people adopting it and the behavior being passed on over time. You can judge for yourself. Below you'll find my screen shot from that night. 

I'm sad and ashamed to know this sort of mentality exists in such a great place like HRM. There are so many wonderful and amazing people from all forms of cultural backgrounds and that is one of the great allures of this great city. It celebrates it's diversity and uses that very diversity to grow in a progressive and socially constructive way that is truly amazing. And for the record, Abad is Canadian; went to school here; grew up here' lives here; works here; and Stuart, he probably speaks better English than you. I hope that in your daily lives you will step up like the people above, like Travis, like good decent people and put an end to this behavior. It cannot be tolerated.

Goodbye

Well now that things have changed I feel I owe all you amazing and supportive people an explanation, as best I can, for the depression and anxiety you've all helped me through.

Yesterday I had to say Goodbye; I had to put an end to a ten year chapter of my life and I had to do so very much against my will. Goodbyes are never an easy thing and this one in particular shall rank up there as one of the hardest I've ever had to find the strength to say. No one died so you can put that worry to rest. The only thing damaged from my end was my heart.

For ten years I have been in love with one very special woman. The very first time I ever laid eyes on her I bore witness to what I have come to be told was an "aura". I don't see aura's but what I saw that first moment I will never forget. A shining light so brilliantly white and yellow that the sun's rays paled in comparison. I was struck instantly and knew in that very moment that I had experienced what many a poet, writer and artist has been trying to express for millenia: I experience love at first sight. A different kind of love I've never known before. One that I will never forget and never regret.

Saying goodbye meant more than losing this, not that it was really mine at the time but in a way it was. It's not just the love you lose; you lose a part of yourself. That has been the source of my anxiety: my heart was existing in one place, my mind and body another. One cannot live without one's heart; it leaves the soul empty. I know that in my heart that this was the right thing to do, right now, in this time and place. Will it be the same tomorrow? I don't know.

Make no mistake; I have no regrets. I don't believe in them. Regret is meant for people who are unwilling to take action; who chose doing nothing over risking doing the wrong, or right, thing. Doing the wrong thing is better than doing nothing; a mistake can be corrected. It is not how I envisioned this Once Upon A Time ending; I'd always hoped for a Happily Ever After. This is not to be.

So today, while my heart is heavy and aches with sorrow, I am working on moving forward and growing. I carry with me every moment, good and bad, every memory I have made and those will have to suffice as reminders of what it truly means to find happiness and love in one's life...until I am able to find them again. I'm sure this won't go over well for some; others will know exactly what I'm talking about; some will have a little more clarity; and some will finally have an understanding of what I have been dealing with personally. The worst feeling in the world is letting go of something or someone you love with every fiber of your being; a love that overwhelms the foundations of the heart and shakes you to the core.

I could go on at great lengths about all the wonderful things I've taken away or the things I have allowed myself to suffer through and endure; but I think this is enough for you to get the gist of it. I was depressed because I knew that I would be saying Goodbye to a great love; goodbye to someone who is, on the inside, one of the most wonderful, caring, sensitive and thoughtful people I know...she just doesn't know it.

So there it is. Remarkable how such a simple little word can have such an impact on an individual but yet, here I am. Yesterday I lived in perptual heartache and stress but I loved and was loved; today, my heart begins to heal, the stress has been alleviated, I still love but I'm no longer being loved (I know I'm loved but I think you know what I mean).

And I guess the hardest part is going to be the void. While I don't discount that I will fall in love again someday, the pain and realization of knowing what I am missing during the between will certainly be a struggle to overcome. Life is hard; love even harder at times but these are the risks we must accept if we want to really live. I may sad, but I am alive and living; the pain tells me so much like the joy will do again.

Thanks for listening; thanks for caring; and thanks for loving.

You Be The Judge...

Good morning readers! I hope that the morning has found you well and that you are enjoying what the world has to offer. Today I'm actually wondering about a situation that happened to me last night on the bus ride home and if I was justified in what I did. Of course I will explain it all for you to decide so let's get started.

I picked up an extra shift to help out at work on Saturday night. It was supposed to be a four to 12 shift but because I rely on transit and the routes end early on the weekends, my employer is kind enough to schedule me in 15 minutes early so I can leave on time to catch the bus. So I clocked out and walked to the bus stop to wait for my bus; the route 80. 

When it pulled up, on time I might add, I could see that it was full of people; which is fine. Before my foot hit the first step I could smell the repugnant odor of alcohol flowing out the door. The next sense to be offended was my poor ears which were greeted by the excessively loud conversation that is had between drunks. I know this all too well after working as a bouncer, waiter and bartender for a few years off an on. I know drunks and mostly they're harmless. These were the kind on the bus; annoying and obnoxious but otherwise harmless.

As I made my way onto the bus there were very few seats and I found myself sitting at the very back among a group out celebrating some young lady's 21st birthday. If you happen to be a follower of mine on Twitter you may have caught some of my Tweets from the ride home. The young fellow I found myself sitting next to, I was in the corner and he the middle at the very back, immediately struck up what I'm sure he thought was a thrilling conversation. Midway through, and without missing a beat, he leans forward and gives a wedgie to his friend sitting directly in front of us who is keeled over, semi-comatose trying his best to not get sick on the bus I'm sure. The good friend does this two more times before the girlfriend gives him a swipe.

This same young fellow proceeds to ask me to switch seats with him; he really needs to pee and he's going to do it in the corner sitting down while the bus is in motion. Well I will tell you, I didn't quite know what to do so I did the first thing that came to mind: I switched seats. Now this is where I start to feel a little uncomfortable. One drunk to my left deciding if he's going to piss on the bus; another very quiet drunk to my left who has begun rolling up his sleeves (it's cold out people!); an irritated and now moving extremely drunk in front of me; and surrounded at every other angle by more drunk people with these other ones.

So let's take a step back to me working in a bar. I have seen it all; and if I haven't someone I worked with has told me about their experience. When people are drunk they are not themselves and they behave in an entirely different manner than they otherwise would. Sometimes they exhibit behaviors you couldn't even imagine. One such oddity I've seen countless times is the ability of a drunk in a near comatose state to suddenly snap back to reality, still very much drunk but very much awake. Now this does not always result in something bad however if the last thing that person remembers is being annoyed or angry that is how they snap back and generally tend to seek out some form of justice; usually a verbal assault which can be followed by a physical assault.

I wasn't afraid of getting assaulted; I was sober and can carry myself quite well despite my stature. My concern was that I was alone and they were all together. So I took out my phone and I turned the camera on video, I didn't press record, but I had it ready sitting there. I had it ready in case the fine young gentleman in front of me now, where once sat his companion who was pulling up his underwear while he was ill, and my concern was that now that he was moving he would suddenly remember and it would be me he would find sitting there. Again, I was prepared but having no one to eye witness a potential confrontation on my behalf, I had my phone ready to be my eye-witness.

One of the lesser drunk ladies sitting to my forward right leaned over and began telling me to stop recording and that I shouldn't be doing that. I explained to her that I wasn't recording to which she claimed to have watched me. Now I am an honest man so it is of particular importance to me that people know this. I went so far as to even let her browse my phones Gallery to prove it which satisfied her. She went one step further to explain and say that her partner next to her had mentioned it and she had defended me at first but then questioned it herself. For the record I wasn't waving my phone around or anything; I just opened it up and held it in my hand. They were watching me I guess.

So the question is: was it the right thing to have my phone ready in case? I think it was. The fact that there were at least three people drinking quite heavily from their pop bottles (that lightly colored Pepsi must be a new flavor?) showed a complete lack of interest on behalf of the driver. Proven more so after one bottle went rolling down the aisle and someone else picked it up and yes, drank from it not knowing where it came from. As an aside, coma gentleman was kind of pushed off the bus by his girlfriend somewhere on Robie street so nothing did happen. 

Thanks for reading and curious about your thoughts. Love each other.

The News

The Newsroom Speech 4:44

Good day Cyberspace! I hope that the day has found you well and that you are making the most of it. I hope that you have taken a moment to watch the above video; it's only 4:44 long and it's extremely relative to the point I want to make today. That point? That "news" or "journalism" is no longer about informing the public, sharing information and educating the masses. No. It is all about fear, propaganda and useless dribble to keep us occupied.

I spend a lot of time on social media. I use the many popular platforms that most use to stay in touch and to stay informed. I use Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Blogspot, Wordpress, Foursquare, Tumblr and others less frequently that aren't worth mentioning. While my primary use is to stay connected to friends and family, it is also a great way to keep current on local, national and global events. I am saddened that each day it seems I waste more and more of my time on useless information.

I'm not just talking about those pinnacles of trash news TV like FOX or CNN; no I'm talking about almost every single publication and news media outlet there is. Nobody is willing to write the important stuff; no one is willing to step out of the crowd and go against the grain; no one is willing to be honest...or at least not many. Anytime there is a breaking news story these days it always seems that every news outlet is on the same page; why? Is there no one willing to offer an opinion that differs from the status quo?

I am sure there are many fine journalists out there with the greatest of integrity who are willing to ignore the slights, the slurs and the unpopularity of speaking out with some truth. I know they exist because I have met them. Locally there is one particular individual who, with every hard hitting investigative article, is not afraid to speak their truth; who is not afraid to rub the crowd the wrong way; who stands by their work and defends it yet is still humble enough to acknowledge mistakes. Tim Bousquet of The Coast, you are one of what I consider the few remaining true journalists and I applaud you. Another up and coming such journalist that I hope will maintain her integrity is Hilary Beaumont. 

But that's not enough. The news shouldn't be who Justin Bieber is dating today; what the sex of Kim Kardashian's baby will be; what Snooki's baby name should be; or anything at all to do with entertainment. The news is not entertainment; it is information (or supposed to be). The news is meant to engage and inform. It is to hold the people who sit in positions of authority, power and control responsible for their actions. The news is not an advertising agency nor is it a public relations firm for the government; the news is the defender of the people...or it's supposed to be.

So I read the news less and pay less attention to the feeds; not because I don't care or I'm apathetic but because so often now one article is the same as the next which is the same as the next, etc., etc., etc. I'm no journalist, I found that out the hard way when I took a shot at writing some stories, and that's OK by me but I do what news is; I do know what important news is and I don't see it all that much anymore. Jumping on a bandwagon is not news; reprinting the same information about the same story for days on end without anything new but opinion and speculation is not news; anything to do with Hollywood, also not news.

Journalism and news media are the real last line of defense for any group of citizens. The news is meant to be independent of influence and control because it is meant to be an agent for the people. An agent who carries one of the greatest responsibilities, perhaps greater than that of any government: to keep an informed and engaged public aware.

So if you didn't watch the video I strongly urge you to return to the top and watch it. This is the sort of honesty we need from our journalists and reporters. This is the type of brutal truths we need to start hearing as a public to be motivated and inspired to effect real positive change. Public apathy can be overcome and you, the news reporter, you have that power. 

Cigarettes

Good morning my friends! It's been a while but I have determined myself to get back to writing and while I have said this before, recent events in my life have left my but little choice but to "shit of get off the pot" as I have heard it put. Those recent events I spoke of forced changes in my life that significantly impacted my emotional and mental well being. As a result I have had to re-evaluate many of my future goals and plans and realized that I had ceased any efforts towards achieving them; my life existed in limbo and I suffered for it.

One of those goals I spoke of is to quit smoking. A little background on me as a smoker would help I suppose. I started smoking about the same time I started drinking: February of 1996. How do I remember that? I remember a lot of things for some reason; some things I'd rather not and others I would never want to do without. Regardless, I've been smoking for over 16 years now and let me tell you, I can tell that it has been that long.

In the last decade and a half since I took up smoking, I have tried to quit several times. I have gone a few hours to a few days to over a month without smoking but for some reason I keep coming back to those terrible cancer sticks. I've tried the patch; I've tried the gum; I've tried cold turkey; I've tried just about everything one can try and still find myself a smoker. Most recently, in February, I managed to wake up one morning and just stop smoking. That last a whopping 30 days and then one day I picked up a cigarette and I was once again a smoker.

I have given up a good number of highly addictive substances, most notably crack-cocaine and alcohol. It has been nearly a decade of being clean and I am quite proud of myself for having overcome such over-whelming obstacles and odds. I have climbed, rung by bloody rung, from the abyss and back into the light and yet cigarettes, they still hold authority over my will. It baffles me that I am strong enough for such struggles yet I am so powerless when it comes to the cigarettes.

I can feel the damage in my body. I can feel the bronchi in my lungs rattle every morning when I wake up and take a deep breath. I can feel the burning in my lungs when I run further than 15-20 feet or longer than 30 seconds or so. I can feel the light-headed and dizzy feeling that comes from shortness of breath. I struggle to catch my breath just breathing sometimes. I can clearly see the discoloration in my phlegm; it looks like ash some days, other days like diluted blood.

It's scary to be a smoker but oddly not scary enough to quit. I don't want to die of cancer. From what I've seen and what I've read it is extremely painful on every level: mental, physical, emotional and spiritual. I am a strong individual but I do not want to test the limits of my determination and strength. I scorn myself daily for my disgusting and deadly habit but it does no good; or maybe it is readying me and I just don't know it. Either way, I wake up every morning wanting to quit and every night I go to bed telling myself that tomorrow is the day; tomorrow I can do this and then I can't. But I am not defeated.

On my last attempt I used social media to help me quit and I garnered quite a large amount of support; much of which I still have encouraging me to try again but it is difficult to do on social media even though it helped me find more success at quitting than I ever have. It's harder because there are more people to disappoint and while I do not depend on others for my happiness and self-worth per se, it is tough to have so much support and encouragement to simply end up back where I started. I feel guilty for making them believe I could do it when I couldn't. But I know they care and that it doesn't matter; I know I am loved and that those same people will be there when I'm ready to try again.

And I will try again....and again.....and again....until I accomplish my goal. I want to quit smoking and I will; it is simply a matter of time. Thanks for reading, thanks for caring and thanks for sharing. Love each other and keep smiling!

Bad Drivers, Good Driver

Good evening Cyberspace! It's a little late in the evening but I've been having the urge to do some writing lately but every time I've sat down to do it something else has consumed my time. Even now, I am putting off making a very late supper and my stomach is literally (yes Debra, literally) grumbling but I'm inspired to write something so it can wait a few minutes while I share some thoughts. 

First of all, if you do not live in the great Halifax Regional Municipality, I urge you to at least come visit us as we really are wonderful people and this is an amazing place with much to offer. Back to the point, if you don't live here, you're probably unaware that we seem to have a problem with driving here; not very much unlike many other cities. Just this year alone we've had several pedestrian/vehicle accidents and while I am not laying blame entirely on drivers for these incidents, I am pointing out that these accidents occurred.

With this in mind, we are currently being bombarded with what is the second large dumping of snow we've had this winter. Needless to say we've got a few inches down out there and road conditions are less than ideal and visibility at times was terrible. Yet despite all of these things it appears as though some drivers could not even take the simplest of cares while driving their vehicles on the roads tonight.

While waiting for some very late buses to get home, on a small side street, I bore witness to some of the worst and grotesque displays of driver caution that I've seen in a long time. Three such drivers, who might as well have received their licenses from a Cracker Jack box, felt the undying need to tempt fate by travelling well in excess of 60km/hr (~37mph for my non-metric readers) on roads with 4+ inches of snow; they had yet to be plowed after several hours of snowing.

The next two drivers, as well as one of the role models already mentioned, thought it fit to drive on these very same roads with but one hand on the wheel. I'm no driver instructor however I do know that you can control a vehicle a lot more safely with both hands on the wheel; doubly so in bad weather. Meanwhile, somewhere in between all of this, a driver opted to step on the gas while a transit bus was trying to pull out despite still being a full car length behind the bus.

Which leads us to tonight's scariest driver who should be forced to be on Canada's Worst Driver immediately and upon graduation be forced to have a GPS device installed to allow other drivers to know she is on the road. I'm not being sexist here either, it really was a she (the others were a mix of male and female drivers; young and old) and her driving almost compelled me to run down the road to take her license plate number and call her in.

She came down the road with her right turn signal on driving a modest 30km/hr or so and my first thought was that this was finally a safe driver...She stopped about 100m up from the bus stop and so I figured she was (though I didn't know it was a she yet) at her home or whatever. Well, she pulled out again and started cruising down the street, accelerating to just below the speed limit; turn signal still blinking. As she drives by and I look in, I cringe as I see this woman with her phone in her hand, to her ear, one hand loosely flopped atop her steering wheel, head turned to the right, eyes away from the oncoming vehicles and the parked bus. 

I'm just dumbfounded at the level of ignorance here. The danger this woman created for herself and anyone that happened to be near is absolutely ridiculous. BUT! there is a silver lining here and now that I've sufficiently vented my disgust on the matter, I want to share some hope. 

I don't know who is driving the Tiger Patrol mini van tonight (16/Jan/2013, ~8:25pm on South Street near Robie Street) or what the Tiger Patrol is but whoever it is should be given a Driving Safety Medal of some sorts. If one doesn't exist, we need to make one and give it to this person. They are a shining example of smart driving. As they were coming down the street towards a high volume four way intersection with lights, they had a green light facing them.

I happened to be outside smoking at the time, watching traffic (the arrogance of human ignorance amazes me at times) at the intersection when the van drove by. I happened to also be watching the little countdown to the yellow light; it was at two when a car turned right on a red. It was a different red light that caught my attention however, that of the Tiger Patrol applying their breaks and slowing down then coming to a smooth stop at where the white stop line would be underneath the snow as the green light switched over to the yellow. When most drivers I've seen would step on the gas and race the light (regardless of weather), this individual chose the safer, smarter route.

This amazing driver is either getting undeserved praise or their due. To have the awareness and attention to gauge the stopping distance, note the incoming light change in two seconds and properly come to a safe stop is incredible. No skidding, no sliding and no abrupt slamming of the breaks. Just a damn fine driver paying attention to what's going on. Kudos to you. I know that I feel a lot safer, despite the bad drivers out there, knowing you are out there on the road!

Thanks for taking the time to read. I'm sorry if you feel I was too harsh with my commentary but I have made the very arrogant and ignorant mistake of being a bad driver. I was fortunate enough that the only one involved was myself but this is most often not the case. Please, slow down out there; for yourself, for other drivers and for pedestrians (and pedestrians, don't forget how bad the roads are, you have the added responsibility of knowing that vehicles behave differently in this sort of weather; don't bolt out; wait for lights; wait for vehicles to come to complete stops as this may be much harder on ice). Let's all get home safely; I'm sure that each one of us has family that would miss us dearly.

Love each other; love yourself; and smile.

A New Year, No Resolution

Good afternoon to you all. It is a beautiful sunny day out here on the east coast of Canada and I'm inspired to write so here I am; and here you are. A few days ago, we all rang in the new year in our respective ways, in our respective places around the world. One of the traditions with New Year's Eve is to form a resolution that one intends to commit to in the coming year. I think it's time we lay this tradition to rest or at least start being honest about it.

I don't make New Year resolutions for my own reasons but one of the largest contributing factors is the set up for failure. Now I'm not going to blame the media or entertainment for this one, although they do help perpetuate it. No, the blame is mostly on ourselves. The biggest failure is the goals that we set for ourselves are usually ill-thought out or downright unattainable for one reason or another. This leads to a significant rise in the number of failed resolutions and because we fail so often at our resolutions it has become a part of the custom now too; to fail. It's an expectation we carry consciously or not and it is a direct result of our failure to accomplish or follow through.

I was going through my Twitter feed post-New Year and reading the many resolutions as well as the many cynical resolutions and what I came to realize is that we're not really setting realistic goals and I will explain why using some of the more common resolutions I come across. 

I'm going to get in shape/eat healthy/join a gym/exercise/lose weight.

By far this [these] is the most common resolution I think we decide upon each year. While keeping in mind this is a fantastic resolution, let's take a moment to really examine and think about it. What this resolution implies is that you are the opposite of this; that your current behavioral pattern and comfort zone do not include staying as fit and healthy as you want to be. So what we're talking about here isn't just doing these things, it is changing/adding behavior from outside our comfort zone.While the zest and zeal of the promise of a new year and positive change is inspiring, it requires will and determination once those expire; and they do for most of us within the first two weeks.

I'm going to quit smoking/drinking/drugs.

No you aren't. If any of these are a real problem in your life, or even if they aren't but you consider them habits they will not be solved overnight. A significant amount of will power, determination, control and support is required for a serious attempt at abandoning these habits. Like the first mentioned above, this resolution is unrealistic for most of us; we simply are not prepared for such a monumental change to our way of life. Habits, especially habits that can cause physical dependencies, are especially difficult to break. While I have known a small number of individuals who have accomplished this feat, they are few and far between and unique among the general masses.

I'm going to be nicer.

If there was a resolution that I dreamed people could stick to, this would be the one. It warms my heart to know so many people have at least the inward desire to be better people; it saddens me that most remain the same as this one is the most quickly forgotten. I am not saying that the people who make this resolution are bad to begin with, what I am saying is that this resolution in particular is difficult to stick with because it is often easily discouraged; especially in the world we find ourselves currently. When we decide to attempt to, again, change our behavior to be more thoughtful, kind and nice, we generally develop expectations of the results of this change. We expect people to notice, to show thanks, to return kindness and to be happy around you. Sadly, this is most often not the case. Many times people don't notice the simple kindnesses, they are ignorant or indifferent to it and some even become turned off by it and may return with negativity to your kindness.

These are just three of some of the most popular resolutions. I'm sure you may have even used one of these yourself before; I know I have more than once in my past. When you decide to make a life changing decision, you have to really want to commit to it. Just because you make it on New Year's Eve does not mean you will have any extra strength or ease to accomplish a previously unattainable goal.

If you haven't found the will necessary to accomplish any of these resolutions, chances are it isn't just going to arrive because you decided, out of custom, to change your lifestyle. This sort of change requires planning and commitment combined with attainable short and long term, measurable goals. You cannot commit to this sort of endeavor on the whim of one night because of tradition; you are setting yourself up for failure. Your best bet is to make a resolution to draft up a plan to accomplish your final goal. A step by step guide on how you see yourself getting to the actual goal; don't worry it can change as you go. Something that's more flexible will allow you to reach your ultimate goal without being setback by smaller failures.

I'm not trying to discourage any one of you from pursuing your resolutions, I fully support your efforts and hope you are able to follow through on them. If you're not one of those people, then don't give up on your change just yet. Take some time to re-examine just what it is you wanted and reflect on yourself (you know yourself better than anyone) and come up with something that might be more attainable; something small and short term. Once you get that done, go a little further. With each small accomplishment, you will gain confidence, feel better about yourself, what you are doing and reach your ultimate resolution much faster than not at all.

Remember, December 31st is just a day on a calendar. There are 364 other days on that calendar and they are all good days to make new life resolutions. Because isn't that what the whole tradition/custom is about? Getting rid of something negative or adopting something positive in our lives permanently? Changing who we are by adopting or abandoning behavior is, for the most part, not done on a whim; it takes time, planning and commitment. It also takes a few mistakes and failures. As they say, Rome wasn't built in a day, and you should not expect to reach the end before you've even started. 

Thanks for reading and I wish you all the very best over the coming year and in attaining any goals you've set out to reach! Stay safe, love each other and always, always smile.

"You're too nice."

Greetings and salutations cyberspace! It's good to be back to writing again. With the last six months of my personal life being extremely busy with numerous endeavors and several struggles, I am finally happy to have life returned to a controlled chaos where I can squeeze in the occasional blog post as I move back towards full time writing. My first topic of this wonderful new phase in my life is a sentence that I have heard far too often over the course of my life: "You're too nice."

What does it mean to be too nice? How can you even be too nice? I've never quite understood exactly what was meant when being told this. It's been said to me, as mentioned, numerous times and under a variety of different circumstances. For example, I've lost partners who had only this very line as a reply to why things were ending. I was too nice for them...personally I think that that is nothing more than a cop out for someone who isn't mature or respectful enough to be honest.

Another popular context I get is when someone asks, or doesn't, for help and I offer what is needed and more. People generally tend to say it then, though I usually interpret it as a compliment in this case. I enjoy being kind and nice to others so when I hear them thank me and use this line as well, I reassure them quite sincerely that really, it wasn't so much nice as it was thoughtful; if I needed assistance under the same circumstances I would hope to receive the same kindness from others.

And then there is the third most popular one; again this one revolves more around relationships but are not limited to romantic ones. People who get mad at me, shy away from me, become bitter towards me or just generally bothered by my kindness and say it as an insult. This one, truly, I do not understand. Is it because you lack kindness in your life? Have you been hurt so often and so deep that there is no love left in your life at all? I really don't get it.

And that goes for every circumstance, except maybe the middle one, that this sentence is used. How can I be too nice? Would it be preferable to be indifferent, not care or extremely, be mean? Personally, you can go to hell if that is your solution and you can continue disliking me and my kindness for eternity; I like being nice. Have you any idea what the consequences are for being nice? No? Let me share just some of the many I've 'endured':

1) 'You saved me; I'd have been lost without you.'
2) 'I don't know how I would have gotten through this.'
3) 'You are an inspiration.'
4) 'I was about to give up but then I remembered how amazing and positive you are even when you are faced with bad things.'
5) 'Thank you.'
6) 'I just want to thank you for all your inspiration; it really helps me.'
7) 'I wish I could be as happy as you seem to be all the time.' (You can.)
8) 'Thank God there are still people like you.'
9) 'You are one of the strongest, optimistic and happy people I have ever met.'
10) 'You're a good person John. Don't stop.'

Now these might sound a little egoistic but they are not my words. I, like anyone, love to share accomplishments that are fulfilling to me but I try to stay away from arrogance and it should really be stressed that these are the words shared with me from the people I have done nice things for; nice things that I don't consider to be anything extra-ordinary but in a world full of fear, chaos, anger and hate, sometimes the ordinary becomes extra-ordinary.

I'm usually the first person to ask for forgiveness when making mistakes and I do my best to be the first to recognize my own; I also apologize for my mistakes. You will receive no apology from me here. I love being nice; I love the feeling others get from my kindness; I love that the people who've received my kindness are now more likely to extend kindness to someone else. In a sense I guess I see being nice as being the positive change for the future I want to see.

My life isn't perfect; far from it. I have mostly good days but I am only human like the rest of you. I get upset, I get angry, I get frustrated; I am hardly what one might called harmonized or balanced but I am happy. I am happy with myself; I love the person that I am. This is the secret, the big mystery behind why I am so kind:

I am...a nice person. Thanks for reading and may love and happiness be ever in your heart.