2018: Annus Horribilis?

I've seen a lot of news articles online debating whether 2018 was one of the worst years ever. Here's a sampling from USA Today, the Guardian, and Time Magazine.

Why are many so glum?

• For those on the traditional "left", there is the ongoing Trump saga, the election of Doug Ford as Premier in Ontario (who some claim is a Trump-lite), Brexit in the UK and the spread of populism everywhere.
• For those on the "right", there is political correctness gone amok, the attacks on free speech, mass migration, and Brexit again (both sides appear have reasons to be glum about this one!).

And that's not to mention all the urban/rural (gilet jaune anyone?), religious/secular, and east/west tension (which has an international dimension [think China vs. the West] and a Canadian one [Alberta/Saskatchewan vs. Ontario/Quebec]).

Everywhere there seems to be anger. At least by "everywhere" one means everywhere reported on by the news.

One of the reasons I like to write this blog is to remind myself that there are still places where life consists of mundane activities like holding the occasional election, and simple pleasures like going for a haircut, enjoying restaurants, and watching your children growing up. I am sure there is anger and despair here too. But there is also a lot of joy, laughter and hope.

2018 was rough. But the world moves on and from what I see around me there are lots of reasons not to give up on it just yet.

Anyways, here is what I am going to try and do in 2019 to keep some perspective:

• Read less opinion and more news. While some opinion pieces are quite well written, I find they often preach to the choir. I am going to make a concerted effort to find out what the "other"side is thinking and reflect upon it. Be willing to change my mind.
• Volunteer for at least one local cause I believe in (food bank, city environmental clean up day, etc.).
• Eat more ethically-produced food.
• Kiss my girls' (Ms. Glosette and Ms. Margot) every night and thank my lucky stars.
• Not take myself too seriously and be silly once in awhile.

...and continue to appreciate nature (this snap taken from "Baird Trail"). Happy New Years!

A Very Big City Christmas

Glosette Girl, Margot and I don't really have a routine when it comes to Christmas day. I don't mean the build up to Christmas - we always do certain things in the month leading up to the big day:

• Put up Christmas lights around the house about a month before Christmas.
• Put up a Christmas tree a couple of weeks before Christmas.
• Go see the Aylmer Christmas parade.
• Watch Margot in her school Christmas concert.
• Attend a kids' "midnight" (i.e. 4 pm) Christmas church service.
• Watch cheesy Christmas movies (Glosette Girl has a soft spot for Home Alone, I'm more of a Rankin/Bass person myself)
• Listen to way too much Christmas music.

But when it comes to Christmas itself, we're all over the map. The same goes for New Years. Last year we jetted off to El Salvador immediately after Christmas. In 2016 we were in Costa Rica. In 2015 we were living at our old home in Hull, Quebec. That was the year it was almost 17 degrees Celsius on Christmas Eve. The next day we went for a "winter" walk in light jackets. Hard to believe when you look out at the snow blanketing everything now!
 
There are a couple of reasons for this seasonal excitement. First, Glosette Girl is a teacher (her students call her Ms. Glosette) so Christmas is one of the times that are easiest for us to travel. Second, my family lives in Toronto so we try and make a point of visiting them at this time of year. And that's where we were this year on Christmas day. Here are some snaps from our urban Christmas 2018!

#1: Skating under an elevated highway

#2: Visiting the most castle-y house in Toronto - Casa Loma!

#3: Enjoying Toronto's version of "snow" (it's warmer here than Ottawa - white stuff falls but it doesn't stay on the ground!)

Honestly, I'm just super grateful to be able to share all these cool Christmas experiences with my family. And Margot takes everything with stride. Let's listen to her opine about our latest adventure:

Chat you later!

Christmas Tiggly Winkles

It's here: the last week before Christmas!

This time of year is always a bit hectic due to all the parties, events and shopping going on. It can be fun but also a bit overwhelming. Breathe! Breathe!

Fortunately, Glosette Girl and I don't have to do any last minute Christmas shopping. Our last stop, last week, was to the local toy store, Mrs. Tiggy Winkle's where we picked up some gifts for my nieces and nephews.

Mrs. Tiggy Winkle's, like most brick-and-mortar stores is usually more expensive than online competitors like Amazon. But there is something magical about going into a toy store at Christmas time, what with all the knick knacks and doo dabs buzzing about. You literally breathe in joy! I'm willing to pay a little bit more for that experience.

Full disclosure: I did a large portion of my shopping at "big box" stores like Walmart or via online shopping, but I'm glad I was also able to support a local business (extra bonus - what we we were looking for was on sale at Mrs. Tiggy Winkle's so I scored on the money side too!).

Amazingly, Margot didn't ask for anything for herself on this visit and she remained focused on our goal of picking out gifts for her cousins.  It was cute to see her burrow her forehead in concentration as she thought about what Calico Critter or Beanie Boo (we call them "Big Eye") stuffie will make her cousins happy the most - you can't take these things lightly!

I really do like these moments when she thinks about other people first. She can be a hell raisin' son-of-a-gun (wait, that means I'm the "gun") so it's nice to see that in these literal kid-in-a-candy-store moments, her less selfish side comes out. One more point for getting on the "good list"!

Go Sens Go!

I'm not really a sports guy. It's not that I don't like sports - I love World Cup soccer, for example. It's just that I have a hard time justifying spending $150 (at least) to go see guys chase a ball or puck or whatever around a field for a few hours when there are so many other things I could spend my money on.

This past weekend though, my employer threw me some premium hockey tickets in recognition of some hard work I've been doing. At first I wasn't going to go but when I saw how good the tickets were I couldn't pass them up. I called up my friend "Big D" and off we went to my first NHL hockey game in ...7 1/2 years.

 

How do I know it's been 7 1/2 years? Because amazingly the last time I went to see a hockey game I blogged about it. And who do you think was my guest at that game? You guessed it: Big D!

Me and D circa 2011

Me and D today! Except for a few "Dad" wrinkles I don't think we look too shabby!

Anyways, this time it was the Ottawa Senators versus the Boston Bruins in a high stakes game for the ages! Well...not really. Both of these teams kindof, well, hmmm how shall I say this politely....stink like wet dogs. It was also a low scoring game (2 to 1 for the Bruins) and there wasn't too much excitement overall.

Ottawa is a tough market for sports. It's full of Government employees who aren't really prone to lavishing money on luxuries like hockey. And living where I live (in the city) it just isn't that easy to make my way out to the 'burbs where the Sens play (thank you D, for driving this time). So it'll take some convincing for me to get out there again.

Still, it was fun. We scored $1 hot dogs before the game (and washed them down with $14 beer) And unlike last time when, we sat in the nosebleed section of the stadium, this time we were only 15 rows from the front. So maybe I won't wait 7 1/2 years for the next visit.

What Kids Worry About

As an adult I find there are so many things to worry about: global warming, politics, poverty, current hot button issues like immigration, the list goes on and on.

As an antidote to the age of cynicism and pessimism I find we are increasingly living in, it really helps me to put all these "big picture" issues aside and concentrate on what directly affects my family. And a good way for me to do that is is to talk to Margot and listen to what keeps her preoccupied.

Increasingly she talks about the trials and tribulations of dealing with boys (ah! that's another blog post) but another big issue for her is birthday parties.

This past weekend she went to the birthday party of her friends E and S. The party was held in the east end of Ottawa at a trampoline place called Flying Squirrel, which is an indoor trampoline park. It was pretty sweet seeing E and S rush up to Margot and give her a big hug. They moved schools last year but it looks like the friendship is still going strong.

Luckily for Margot, going to parties doesn't appear to be an issue (she gets invited, she goes - case closed!). The bigger concern is Margot's own birthday. Even though it isn't for another six months, Margot confided to me on the drive over to Flying Squirrel that she doesn't know who to invite to her next birthday. She seems to be "friends" with a lot of girls in her class and she feels an expectation to invite everyone. I use friends in quotations because, reading between the lines, I think the real issue is that she feels pressure to invite a lot of girls as they are cool or popular even though they may not be the nicest kids.

Big worry? Looking into Margot's eyes and pensive expression I can definitely say "yes it is!" Although I am sure she could eventually sort all this out herself I love how she freely talks to me about this. If I can play a small role in calming her fears along the way, I think that's pretty cool. I can't help solve all the problems of the world but I can help solve this.

Loot Bag Joy