Life and Other Passions
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Enjoy!
On my way home today, I saw a young man at the bus stop, shirtless, flexing his muscles, then running along side the bus to impress us ladies. Sure he was in good shape, but it is not sexy. It was -9 Celsius today, with a wind. Women look at this guy and think “He’s an idiot.”
Ditto for when I am at the gym. Those guys who peel off their shirt thinking the ladies will swoon at their pecs and six packs, will only get eye rolls from the opposite sex. The guy next to me on the treadmill sweating buckets but fully dressed, who stopped to retrieve my dropped towel, is a million times more sexy because he was kind.
Guys, get this please. We don’t want to see your naked body. Not in full, or even in part. No we don’t want photographs of your parts either. Ew. We are not impressed.
A well dressed man is sexy. A well dressed man with manners more so. A well groomed but maybe not so well dressed man who is intelligent, polite and compassionate is sexy. Think James Bond for the way he dresses or Volodymyr Zelenskyy who is extremely intelligent, has high morals and standards and is compassionate. Sexy off the scale.
But don’t get me wrong. A well dressed, groomed guy who is a jerk is not sexy. As soon as you open your mouth we no longer see the outside anymore.
Men with their shirts off, or worse, with their butt crack showing is not sexy. We may buy calendars of beefcakes but it is because it makes us laugh, not because we are aroused.
Men, work some more on who you are and less on your body.
I have not felt like posting anything lately, nor doing much of anything actually.
It’s a combination of doing school work (coding UGH! I hate it!), the absolutely s****ist winter we’ve had for decades, and of course – trump.
I have a lot to say about trump and all of what is happening. But I won’t. My sanity is at stake and let’s face it. I am a coward. I reserve my rants for my poor cats’ beleaguered ears.
The answer to our trouble with the south is in the hands of the people, mostly it is up to Americans to decide the fate of their country, and unfortunately, ours and the whole entire world as well. If they don’t step up to plate and deal with the dictator and oligarchs and other crazies, well, that is that, as they say. They know what to do. We have to wait for them to do it. But we will wait rather loudly I think. We have strong voices. Canadians are a hardy lot!
I don’t for a microsecond believe trump will get even a hairs width sliver of Canada, as we are united and we know how to fight – elbows up and all.
But it is exhausting and I don’t have a lot of energy left.
I think I’ll just go for a walk and freeze my face off.
Buy Canadian!
Life is not all about making deals. There are many things we do in life that are not mere monetary transactions. Life is way more than that.
I find ‘the art of’ not paying your bills and taxes and then demanding that everyone pay you for anything you give them is a stunning hypocrisy. It is not something to be proud of and proclaim to all the world you are some sort of hero because you stiff everyone. (There are better words to describe you). On the most basic level it does not even make sense. You pay your bills and taxes because you receive goods or services that cost someone else to provide. This should be pretty evident. A person, economy and society cannot survive otherwise. Money has to flow. It cannot be hoarded by one individual or country, otherwise everything comes to a standstill.
I also find negotiating charity absolutely absurd, if not insane. There is no expected payback for compassion and empathy. Charity is not a deal.
I knew a woman who demanded her daughter pay her back for the great life and education she gave her. She even insisted that girl give her 10% of her wages in pay back. I think that mother very unclear of the concept of being a parent to say the least.
Life is not a series of contracts and transactions. It is not a business. There are aspects that are, but JC, surely we have more depth than that.
To expect someone in need to pay you back for helping them is the height of hypocrisy. And to demand the world award you for helping the helpless is nauseating and disgusting.
At the global level, the idea of reciprocity can be a thin veneer for out and out theft of one over another. I think some countries are very unclear of the concept of aid. Allies not helping each other on the world stage is reckless and dangerous. It is cruel and unfathomably shortsighted. Politics is a lot more than pro quid pro. It can be alarmingly FAFO.
If you adhere to these ‘art of the deal’ attitudes, you are nothing short of a monster.
The most successful people, business, countries and institutions are those who genuinely care and understand that many things in life you do for love, moral and ethical obligations, and adherence to democratic law. You do certain things for the betterment of all, humans, animals, the world and the environment. Not just for yourself.
I find it shocking that I even have to write about this and remind people to think more globally and less singular.
Our world is teetering on the brink of World War Three because some believe things are all the art of a deal, that everyone owes them.
And we will all pay for this.
A message to our leaders. Here are the proper responses to a world in trouble:
To a war ravaged country. We will help you rebuild.
To a people in crisis. We will bring you aid.
To those who have lost much. We will help restore your land, your possessions, your livelihood, your autonomy, your freedom.
We are here to help.
We are here to help – NOT to take advantage of you, conquer, displace, disrupt, condemn or kick you to the curb.
Or subject you to pro quid pros.
I love my country. We are a nation that is strong on community. We care about one another, the world and our environment. I know that we prefer to be friendly and accommodating, but we are being forced to take a stand and protect ourselves against a bully.
I was bullied as a young girl, so I know that you must fight back, especially when no one is going to help you.
I spent part of my life in the hippie generation, and another part in the punk rock generation. Both had the same values of justice, peace, love and happiness, but approached these in radically different ways. The hippies were laid back and mostly held peaceful protests, the punks were in your face, loud and aggressive. But we all wanted the same thing – to be heard, and our grievances be taken seriously and acted upon. We wanted justice, fairness, equality and all the things that make us a community.
I carry those same values to this day, but I see that we need to blend the peaceful with the aggressive and find a non-violent way of fighting for our values and ultimately for the preservation of our country.
I ask that whenever you can, buy Canadian products. Even if it means giving up a favourite brand for a while, or trying something new, or even purchasing used. It is not an act of vengeance against our neighbours. It is preservation.
A strong economy protects a country against threats. Without that we cannot even defend ourselves militarily.
Focusing on what it means to be Canadian will strengthen us, make us more resilient in the face of threats and change, and much more independent. We are a great country. We must make a supreme effort now to stay that way.
I followed a trail of scattered, tattered cardboard fragments to my cat’s scratchboard, picking up and vacuuming up the remains, and sighing heavily. This is a daily ritual.
Sam goes through a lot of scratchboards because I cannot clip his unfathomably long, harpoon like weapons that he keeps retracted like a turtle in its shell should I try to unsheathe and clip them. A process that also involves a lot of bloodletting – my blood that is. So I gave up.
But as I examined the worn torn scratchboard it occurred to me, that, hey, this is exactly what scratchboards are for. Who wants a pristine scratchboard collecting dust, unless of course, you collect them for some reason.
It reminded me that there are so many things in life that are sitting around and not being used, or admired at least. Not to mention the mere act of being alive. When was the last time you really enjoyed that? Or used the fact you are living to do something with it?
Cats can never be accused of not using things, except expensive toys. The more you spend on toys the more likely your cat will snub them. And the more something is of value to you personally, the more chance that pusscat will destroy it.
Cats are zen.
We get angry when something we are using wears out, when, duh, that is what is suppose to happen. In fact, things will wear out even if you don’t use them.
I, being a passionate advocate for living life to the fullest, say to you, don’t lock up your life. Use it. Be in awe of it. Even sit back on occasion and admire it. Before your cat chews it to shit, destroys it, or just ignores you completely. Before life wears out all on its own, or suffocates from the decades of dust that settle on it.
I almost forgot what my blog is about until today and fondly looking at that scratchboard.
I had a lot of errands to run this week and since it is -25 degrees celsius with the windchill, I searched the weather network for a warmer day to go out, you know, maybe something above -20.
When you have to stand outside and wait for buses that might not come until next year, it is important to be out for less than 15 minutes. Especially when you are in a place where even the polar bears stay inside.
I discovered I have to just shut up and do what I have to do, because it is not going to warm up until April.
Here is what winter is all about for me.
I never wanted to visit the Canadian War Museum, or any war museum for that matter, but I found myself doing just that on New Years Eve.
No, there wasn’t a party going on there. I had to do some research for my next novel.
I tell you, seeing your ‘research’ up close and personal is definitely a lot more, uh, terrifying than seeing it in books or on the internet. Just walking around those tanks pictured above was humbling.
I admit, I am puzzled by war and why it makes such great fodder for stories.
Especially my stories!
Anyhow, this is not something I want to drag out on my silly little blog.
You can watch my latest little rant below.
Yep, I finally got my latest novel published!
My usual fun and crazy stories – this time about tigers, plutonium and stealth jets. Yep, only I could put such things together and make it all work.
Just click on the image or you can check it out here on Amazon.ca