Toronto is a city full of potential. Every once in a while I decide not to take the highway and realize how absolutely HUGE and diverse the place really is. There is so much to love about it and no real reason for why it should be so absolutely base.
In truth, somehow with all of its potential it is a constant disappointment. It's like a really clumsy person trying to hit a nail on the head and banging up their own nails instead. How else can you explain the constant questionable choices for Mayor?
Rob Ford... really? Wow.
There is definitely something to be said for getting what you ask for. The front runner against Ford is Smitherman. I still can't forget the diaper incident. It is a shame that he didn't go through with his offer to wear one. If you are stupid enough to need to conduct a scientific experiment instead of just logically understanding that subjecting grown adults who deserve much more than this in their aging years you should get to feel some diaper rash. These are the people who used to change our parents diapers and now we can't offer them even an ounce of compassion. Revolting. Go Smitherman!
I still remember the Bare Naked Ladies not being allowed to perform for Barbara Hall and the hell that was raised because Mel dared call in the army to help dig out the city. If they aren't off fighting a war why can't these dudes help dig out the city? Was that really so wrong? Young able bodied men and women helping the community. Shameful! I can't imagine what he was thinking. He was probably the best Mayor the city has had in ages and they still talk about the stuff he did to put us on the map.
And what about David Miller? Not once. More than once. They'll never learn. At least he did the right thing and not run again after the garbage strike. Why isn't waste disposal and essential service? Really?
Toronto should be the kind of town that is always buzzing, always alive regardless of the time of night. Just like Manhattan. It has so much potential. But it is boring and full of ignorant people who keep electing the most dysfunctional people they can find.
Of course they should elect Rob Ford. He is a prime example of the kind of moral leader that should help determine the future of the city and help revitalize the business community. Help stem the population drain and pull it out of its financial woes. Here is a man who can pull together a council divided.
Bravo Toronto. If it weren't for you there would be absolutely no hope for growth and development in the surrounding areas.
Thanks to your wise decisions places like Brampton, Milton, and even Caledon have a real chance at taking advantage of economic growth and development. We will gladly take your refuse (those being the truly wise business leaders who see the potential in the 905 and really can't stomach the stupidity that prevents Toronto politicians and voters from understanding that it is a city that should do what it can to welcome SME business and home owners with open arms rather than encouraging them to leave as quickly as possible).
Monday, October 18, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Put down the camera and just look
So the truth of the matter is that every once in a while there isn't all that much to say. This isn't a question of writer's block. It is the revelry in all things silence.
There is this calm state of being that can only be achieved when you don't have to go home or call anybody or do anything and can actually just enjoy where you are.
This is true freedom. Standing at the top of the hill and looking down at Firenze through the fog and thinking there is no way that my camera will be able to capture this moment so I might as well just look at it.
Sometimes, you go on a journey and try to document each moment so that you can tell a story. Then, you come home to the people that love you and want to go through each photograph, frame by frame and tell them each reason for the snapshot and they just don't want to listen. What then?
If you think about it, there is a whole part of life that is missed every time you look through the camera lens instead of straight ahead.
There is this calm state of being that can only be achieved when you don't have to go home or call anybody or do anything and can actually just enjoy where you are.
This is true freedom. Standing at the top of the hill and looking down at Firenze through the fog and thinking there is no way that my camera will be able to capture this moment so I might as well just look at it.
Sometimes, you go on a journey and try to document each moment so that you can tell a story. Then, you come home to the people that love you and want to go through each photograph, frame by frame and tell them each reason for the snapshot and they just don't want to listen. What then?
If you think about it, there is a whole part of life that is missed every time you look through the camera lens instead of straight ahead.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
A writer puts down her pen
The title to this post sounds so final. I know it.
We have all heard the old adage, write what you know. But I've realized something lately. If all you do is write then you won't have all that much to know. It's a lot like doing all the talking and none of the listening.
For too long I have been neglecting all those little things around the house. Maybe I have even been doing a bit too much ignoring of the little things that pitter patter around the house, as well. So, this past weekend I decided to (gasp) not turn on the computer.
We got so much done. I almost feel satisfied. Still, there is a lot left to do. But for the first time the kids found something to play with amongst the multitude of toys that they have because when there is order the clutter makes all the thousands of dollars spent on gifts and playthings turn into one big blurr of junk.
It is also quite amazing what happens when you actually do hang up all the laundry and suddenly realize that they have outgrown all their long pants just in time for winter.
Well, enough writing and off to replenish their wardrobes.
We have all heard the old adage, write what you know. But I've realized something lately. If all you do is write then you won't have all that much to know. It's a lot like doing all the talking and none of the listening.
For too long I have been neglecting all those little things around the house. Maybe I have even been doing a bit too much ignoring of the little things that pitter patter around the house, as well. So, this past weekend I decided to (gasp) not turn on the computer.
We got so much done. I almost feel satisfied. Still, there is a lot left to do. But for the first time the kids found something to play with amongst the multitude of toys that they have because when there is order the clutter makes all the thousands of dollars spent on gifts and playthings turn into one big blurr of junk.
It is also quite amazing what happens when you actually do hang up all the laundry and suddenly realize that they have outgrown all their long pants just in time for winter.
Well, enough writing and off to replenish their wardrobes.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Inspiration for new book
There are hopes and dreams and thoughts and then there is reality. The reality of wanting to write a book and either not having anything to say at all or not knowing where to begin. Either is harsh and unfair.
After all, with self-publishing so easy to do, there really is a plethora of books out there that are uncensored and unedited. Each, in their own right, believes theirs worthy of readership.
For me, I do it because I need to. Not for the money, and not for the fame. This is a pure case of inner drive. Once done it would be nice to have it read but this is not an essential component. Perhaps because one day I believe it will be. Maybe after I'm dead. Who knows. Mine is just to output.
My favorite is when I gift a copy of Broken Axle Spinning Blind to somebody and they don't expect anything of it because the author gave it to them. There is a stigma around getting the author's work from the author. Then, there is the usual reaction. Shock and disbelief that it's good.
Poetry isn't for everybody and not every piece in a volume will be your favorite but it is good because it is personal and unbridled. It is raw and pure and something almost not intended for others to know. Therein lies the justification. That look of shock and truly not expecting to connect with something that somebody gave you. Beyond that it is a matter of time. Just waiting to be discovered.
Some things you have to market and work at getting out there. Some you just have to plant. This I planted. It's a seedling.
With each person who reads it, it grows. But it is not enough to read and to connect. It is meant to be shared. Shared with others and shared with me. This is the difference between standing in a dark room full of people and taking off all your clothes and feeling safe and then having somebody flick on the lights.
Decide if you are the one standing bare or if it is me. Perhaps we are nude together and in this way completely robed.
After all, with self-publishing so easy to do, there really is a plethora of books out there that are uncensored and unedited. Each, in their own right, believes theirs worthy of readership.
For me, I do it because I need to. Not for the money, and not for the fame. This is a pure case of inner drive. Once done it would be nice to have it read but this is not an essential component. Perhaps because one day I believe it will be. Maybe after I'm dead. Who knows. Mine is just to output.
My favorite is when I gift a copy of Broken Axle Spinning Blind to somebody and they don't expect anything of it because the author gave it to them. There is a stigma around getting the author's work from the author. Then, there is the usual reaction. Shock and disbelief that it's good.
Poetry isn't for everybody and not every piece in a volume will be your favorite but it is good because it is personal and unbridled. It is raw and pure and something almost not intended for others to know. Therein lies the justification. That look of shock and truly not expecting to connect with something that somebody gave you. Beyond that it is a matter of time. Just waiting to be discovered.
Some things you have to market and work at getting out there. Some you just have to plant. This I planted. It's a seedling.
With each person who reads it, it grows. But it is not enough to read and to connect. It is meant to be shared. Shared with others and shared with me. This is the difference between standing in a dark room full of people and taking off all your clothes and feeling safe and then having somebody flick on the lights.
Decide if you are the one standing bare or if it is me. Perhaps we are nude together and in this way completely robed.
Caledon West _ SouthFields Village Voice
Okay so there is this little magazine that has been stirring up some trouble around Caledon and getting some feathers ruffled. That's what happens when you have a new kid on the block.
Not a bad piece of work, though still young. Only second issue in but it looks like it is building a following. Definitely worth keeping an eye on. Next issue is suppose to come out in December and a little birdie tells me that it's going to try and ruffle a few more feathers.
I say anything that gets people thinking is a good thing. Current issue of SouthFields Vilage Voice is online now so you can check it out.
Not a bad piece of work, though still young. Only second issue in but it looks like it is building a following. Definitely worth keeping an eye on. Next issue is suppose to come out in December and a little birdie tells me that it's going to try and ruffle a few more feathers.
I say anything that gets people thinking is a good thing. Current issue of SouthFields Vilage Voice is online now so you can check it out.
Poetry
There is something to be said about cycles. After a few decades of walking the earth I think I've got a bit of a grasp on mine. Creativity flows with blood and that makes it easy to plan around.
It is just plain good business practice to apply the 30-30-30 rule. Spend 30% of your time managing current projects, 30% seeking new projects, and 30% creating the deliverable goods. So, if you can't control a muse but know when she is likely to roll around you know that you'd better free up some time around then.
Not sure how that works for post menopausal women. Then again, I was writing before I hit puberty so I should be okay.
A liquid state
A drunken state
A state of utter bliss
He comes to me
He comes at me
Who am I to resist
No words but 'yes'
Inactive state
Agreed upon submission
Too long I wait for one more time
Desperate and dry
Asleep, alive, and free
His gentle snores
One floor below
Oblivious and vain
Instead of me
Hockey tonight
Though missed through blissful dreams
It is just plain good business practice to apply the 30-30-30 rule. Spend 30% of your time managing current projects, 30% seeking new projects, and 30% creating the deliverable goods. So, if you can't control a muse but know when she is likely to roll around you know that you'd better free up some time around then.
Not sure how that works for post menopausal women. Then again, I was writing before I hit puberty so I should be okay.
A liquid state
A drunken state
A state of utter bliss
He comes to me
He comes at me
Who am I to resist
No words but 'yes'
Inactive state
Agreed upon submission
Too long I wait for one more time
Desperate and dry
Asleep, alive, and free
His gentle snores
One floor below
Oblivious and vain
Instead of me
Hockey tonight
Though missed through blissful dreams
Thursday, October 7, 2010
I'm writing a new book
For those who truly know me this will come as no surprise: I am writing a book. The working title is "Me". This is a work that has been frothing up to the surface for the past 21 years but I just didn't know where to start.
It starts like this: "I spent my teenage Saturday mornings in the bowels of the Art Gallery of Ontario, taking art lessons at the Anne Tanenbaum Gallery School. Instead of watching Saturday morning cartoons I was drawing naked old men and nude pregnant women."
The Caledon Public Library has bought a couple of copies of Broken Axle Spinning Blind for its collection and it is available for purchase on Amazon. Though it would be lovely to sell thousands of copies I just want people to read it. There are so few times in life when you can truly feel satisfied with what you have done and I am satisfied with it.
People don't usually expect poetry to be good so when I give them a copy they take it expecting it to be bad and then they start to read it. The reaction is best described as confusion because now they don't know what to think. If an author gives you their work somehow it means less than if you found it yourself.
That's the thing about written work, people like to discover it for themselves.
So, discover it. I challenge you. Get a copy of Broken Axle Spinning Blind, by Freyda Tartak and see for yourself.
It starts like this: "I spent my teenage Saturday mornings in the bowels of the Art Gallery of Ontario, taking art lessons at the Anne Tanenbaum Gallery School. Instead of watching Saturday morning cartoons I was drawing naked old men and nude pregnant women."
The Caledon Public Library has bought a couple of copies of Broken Axle Spinning Blind for its collection and it is available for purchase on Amazon. Though it would be lovely to sell thousands of copies I just want people to read it. There are so few times in life when you can truly feel satisfied with what you have done and I am satisfied with it.
People don't usually expect poetry to be good so when I give them a copy they take it expecting it to be bad and then they start to read it. The reaction is best described as confusion because now they don't know what to think. If an author gives you their work somehow it means less than if you found it yourself.
That's the thing about written work, people like to discover it for themselves.
So, discover it. I challenge you. Get a copy of Broken Axle Spinning Blind, by Freyda Tartak and see for yourself.
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