A New Frontier

I'm starting the new job tomorrow. I don't know what I'll be doing, and hence I have no stress. Unemployment has its benefits.

Another frontier of sorts, I hiked at Rattlesnake Point yesterday with three of my brothers-in-law. Very nice.

A Haiku on the Occasion of my 29th Birthday

Turning twenty-nine
I feel completely unchanged
How uncompelling

OK, that stinks. I'll try again ...

As the years roll by
I can't help but wonder if
I'll ever grow up

Wow. Perhaps you, the reader, can find something deep in those. Come on, try harder.

Employment

The end of my current job is fast approaching. It's a strange time. It was stressful when nobody knew and I had to drop the 'resignation bomb'. Now everyone knows I'm leaving. Some seem to understand completely, others seem to think I'm nuts. It's hard to keep working as if nothing has changed, yet I still have responsibilities until Friday. And then there's all the wondering about what the new place will be like. I've met several people in the last while with good things to say about the new place. That's encouraging. It will be hard to leave five years' worth of friends.

My Birthday

I am truly blessed. In the last three days I have been treated to three wonderful meals first by my family, then my wife, then my in-laws. And a bunch of great presents too. I couldn't have it any better.

A Comment!

After all this time and the immense (well, maybe not immense) volume of work tirelessly invested in this bastion of free discussion, it has actually become .... a discussion! Someone commented! I am crying (on the inside).

Thank you, anonymous.

Reader Feedback

One of my many (ha!) readers has informed me that my blog restricts comment-making. I think I have fixed this now. Please let me know. [Although that's kind of like telling you my phone is broken and asking you to call me]

Perhaps it was this problem that forced my wif .... er, an anonymous reader to send her comments about the blog in general to me via email. I wouldn't want the other readers to miss out on these insightful words of wisdom.

You're a complete nut. You definitely need more to think about. It's like your brain doesn't have enough stimulation, so the neurons are just firing off random weirdness to keep you from slipping into unconsciousness.

So be inspired! Comment!

Quitter

I quit my job yesterday. I've never done that before. It feels a little strange. Am I insane? I hope not. It's not that I hated where I was (and am until Feb 27) - or that I desired to drop such an unexpected bomb on my various supervisors - it's just this other job kind of came up and I found it very attractive. What's that saying about the grass being greener ..?.. anyway, I think it's a great opportunity. It's weird to leave such a major part of my life behind. This was my first 'real' job. It's kind of exciting, too.

I miss Mel

In the wake of the unveiling of Stephen Harper's cabinet - which contains some old Mike Harris ministers - the CBC talked this morning about the sour relationship that the former Ontario Premier had with cities in general, and Toronto in particular. Current Toronto mayor David Miller seems optimistic about the future relationship (despite his actions during the campaign).

And then they played a soundbite from former Toronto mayor Mel Lastman. The memories flooded back. Don't get me wrong, I don't think he was cut out for the job (to put it gently) but he was always entertaining. He basically said that Mike Harris won't run this city, because "Everything Mike Harris touches turns to crap." I laughed out loud. You just don't hear stuff like that from politicians these days. I miss him. I don't want him back, but I miss him.