By the River

Whatever happened to Spring? I was born and raised in what was then called Metropolitan Toronto and always enjoyed the four seasons. Somehow our climate has morphed into a two-season one. We no longer enjoy four distinct seasons. We are now cursed with only two… Awful and Nice. Unfortunately Awful season lasts throughout the majority of the year. Nice is the short season spanning mid-May through early October. Five measly months of nice weather versus seven months of awful weather. Snow, ice, cold, ice rain. At this pace, why not throw in a hurricane, earthquake, and who-know-what else?

This matter is made worse for me by the fact that I have many close friends who live in other countries… countries where they are enjoying sunshine, flowers, and beautiful weather while we huddle under dark clouds or seek shelter from precipitation.

It is time for me to consider leaving my place of birth. I would like to live in a country where the weather is nice for the majority of the year. I love my country, but I need nice weather. I really crave nice weather especially since 2016 when I started training outdoors. I love to run, speed walk, hike, or cycle outdoors. I spend my days in a grey office and like to spend my non-working hours outdoors.

Toronto is a fantastic city during the summer. People from all around the world come to visit during these months. The weather is usually nice and pleasant. There are countless festivals to attend during the summer.

During the cold months, Toronto is a boring place to be. Everyone simply goes to work and then seek shelter after work. The streets tend to be bare except for people hustling to and from work or restaurants/bars. The feeling in the air is gloomy and depressing. The city does a terrible job maintaining sidewalks when there is snow or ice on the ground.

During the summer, the streets of Toronto come alive. It really is a great place to be, as long as the weather is nice. If I move to a country with a better climate, I will make sure to visit Toronto every summer for the diversity in people and cuisine.

I really hope that spring arrives this year. I have a terrible feeling that it will not.

The meaning of life. The answer to this question is often sought. I will not sit here and lie to you by claiming to know the answer. What I will tell you is the stark truth.

A life without meaning is a dangerous situation.

He or she whose life contains no meaning, no reason d’etre, no purpose, tend to be the most dangerous of all beings. What have they got to lose?

Those who have no friends, family, loved ones, or even a roof over their head are one spasm away from endangering others or themselves.

Life is not fair. Life has never been fair. Some people live quite enjoyable lives. Some lived tragic lives. Some live long lives. Some lives are cut short.

I do not mean to rain on your parade, and to be quite frank, if you are indeed parading on this cold, wet Tuesday evening in early April, you deserve to be rained on… Hard.

But reality is reality. What I speak of is the truth. For every smile, there is a frown. For every tear shed, there is a shriek of laughter. Ying and Yang. Up and down. Left and right. Canadian and everyone else.

My point is, try to live your life to the fullest. Remember that whatever situation you are in at this very moment, there are countless others who are experiencing either worse or better conditions.

How on Earth do we end up using these over-used phrases and expressions? Back around 2009-2010, I often heard people say, “at the end of the day…” or “it is what it is.” in 2017, I could not help but notice that people were saying, “I get it” way too frequently for my tastes. Now we have another… “literally.”

It boggles my mind how such terms become so widespread in use. They seem to come and go like fads. The scary thing is that it seems to be subconscious. I do not believe that there are people out there thinking I should start saying “literally” because everyone is saying it. I am inclined to believe that these habits are formed subconsciously.

A mere three months since posting this article, I am sad to announce a new phrase which has infected my workplace and elsewhere – “yeah-yeah-yeah.”

I first noticed it being said on a regular basis by one of the managers in our office. It has since spread to one of the juniors and now another veteran employee. I hear this phrase dozens, if not hundreds, of times each day. I have gone on to hear it on radio, podcasts, and in public.

What on Earth is happening here? To be honest, this new “yeah-yeah-yeah” phrase sounds ignorant to me. It sounds like the person is brushing off whatever the other person has said, although in our office, I know this is not the case.