RIP Jack...

To be honest, I cannot think of any time in my life that I've actually been affected/upset at the death of a politician. I think that speaks to Jack Layton's character, and that he was much more than a politician, which in my mind, had been a dirty word for nearly the last decade. I think it was that he came across very honestly, and more believeable than most in his field, and his convictions were strong. You sensed that he cared, even when he wasn't at work or there weren't media covering him.
Someone on the coverage today compared his 2011 campaign and fight with Cancer to another Canadian who we all celebrate every September: Terry Fox. He too made a courageous stand against the horrible disease, and Candians strive to uphold his wonderful example. I would venture that, maybe not today, but years from now, people will still be talking about Jack, and that he deserves a place amongst influential Canadian figures, who showed courage in the face of such a tough fight.
I don't want to speculate on the future of the NDP, but I have to echo Peter Mansbridge, who said that the NDP success this year really was because of Jack, and many voted for Jack, not necessarily the NDP. He was just such a likeable guy who seemed so sincere, and the positivity which he brought to the campaign this year made me so pleased, as opposed to the usual crap you have to deal with come election time.
My only Jack Layton story took place in the summer of 2008, I was working my first government contract in downtown Ottawa, and came in to work one morning, pushed the button for the elevator, waited, and when the doors popped open, who should walk out but Jack and a couple companions...he gave me a smile and kept on walking, but I remembered thinking at the time, how nice it was to get that smile, when I'm sure 99%of other people wouldn't have even noticed someone was there.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2011/08/22/pol-layton-last-letter.html

Of everything, I will miss your smile Jack, Rest in Peace, you will be missed.

4 more years...

Well there it is...by the time Steven Harper comes up for review again, I'll be 35 years old.
Congrats to Jack Layton, but the Catch-22 is...you handed him Carte Blanche....
Iggy, you should have had the class to fall on your sword here, instead you're going to make them fire you...not cool.
No more Bloc? I'm OK with that.
Elizabeth May has a seat...that's nice...but what do you do with 1 seat?

I suppose time will tell.

Eating the Dinosaur - Chuck Klosterman

I just finished reading Chuck Klosterman's Eating the Dinosaur, and, much like every other book he's written (aside from Downtown Owl, which was a novel) I tremendously enjoyed it, and had to force myself to not read it all in one night. I really enjoy reading, and unfortunately, studying History at Queen's destroyed my enjoyment reading, and made reading more of a process of trying to soak up as much information as possible for later use in conversation or essays. Luckily, after university, I got back to reading for fun, and have found I enjoy it more now than ever, and I think the university style reading still affects how I read, as I find myself wanting to further research things I read within books. Back to the book itself, a collection of previously published essays, a couple I had read, but most I hadn't. I find this to be a good way to break up a book, so that you can read piecemeal, and not lose connection with the story if you put the book down for a few days or weeks. As with all his work, I found myself readily agreeing to much of what he wrote, and the ideas made for great philosophical discussions, or chatter with friends. It's funny, because I remember reading SPIN magazine when I was in high school and university and absolutely HATING his articles...I think maybe he's evolved as a writer, and I've evolved as a reader/thinker. This is great, because it makes me feel smarter, like I somehow 'get it' now, whereas I didn't earlier...or maybe he just was a shitty writer back then. (probably not, I should go back and reread some of his stuff). It doesn't make sense to get into everything this book covers, but suffice it to say, if you read this book and couldn't find something to be interested in between the covers, I'd be very surprised. Sports, Music, Culture, Politics, Philosophy, Society, it's all there. I think what I really like is that it makes Pop-Culture seem like it's actually important, and a worthy field for intellectuals, and not just people who've got nothing better to do. Highly recommended.

Moving Sucks

OK, early April and I'm all done moving into our new apartment. If I have to move again in the next few years I'm going to have a shitfit. Thanks to the help from friends I was able to finish with minimal bruising for the small cost of Pizza and Beer. Whoever invented the exchange rate of moving help = pizza & beer payment is a genius.

Unfortunately, the previous renters had a cat, and the cat hair/dander is everywhere, so I've been walking around with half shut eyes for days now.

Other than that, not much to report...Federal Election campaign is 10 days in or so? I'm already disgusted by it and most everything to do with it. Doesn't mean I won't vote though. After seeing how much people are willing to sacrifice for the chance to vote, I get sick when people tell me they couldn't be bothered 'Cause there's no one good to vote for' Hell, there's the chance to vote period. Vote for the least dislikable then. Just VOTE.