July 30, 2004
books on the brain...
borrowing a term from steph's webpage, i'm going to blog about the books that i've been reading recently, not a review like the previous time i blogged about books, but just an update, to inform you about what you're missing, if you're not an avid reader already. i just finished the passage, by connie willis, and it's a pretty good read. it's kind of a science fiction book, but not really... hard to explain but worth your time to pick up. most of you know i finished banana boys, by terry woo, and that was also quite amusing. family matters, by rohinton mistry, is spectacular. mistry is unbelievable. he can portray human emotions in writing like few else can. he's established himself as one of my favorite authors. finally, i'm working on 100 years of solitude, by nobel prize winning author gabriel garcia marquez. this is probably the most bizzare book i've ever read. the only way i can describe it: humourous, yet tragic extreme social commentary in the form of a fantasy/science fiction novel. thumbs up so far. the new york times claims it's "mandatory reading for the human race". you're human, aren't you? | July 22, 2004
i am bored...
i figure now is as good as time as any to blog, seeing as i can't sleep. i personally blame it on all the coffee i drank at around 10pm. went to old mill for dinner, and i must say it was an amazing relaxing time with friends. i haven't had a dinner like that in a while, and it felt great. it helps that old mill felt really... rustic.... like we escaped the busy downtown Toronto life and escaped into the country for a good meal, good music and good times. on the way home from work today i bumped into two people. first, sarah bajurny, my really good friend from blue mountain camp, whom i haven't seen in years. and second, professor evans, my supervisor from last summer's work. it was cool talking to sarah because it was a throwback to my camp days, days that sometime feel like they never happened... those two summers have a dreamlike quality to them. it was also nice talking to prof evans because it was like talking to friend and not a prof. you gotta love that about chemeng at UT, i doubt you get that feeling of talking to a friend while talking to your prof in too many other departments. | July 11, 2004
why we all love Canada...
i was sitting in the subway on the way home on friday, reading Maclean's magazine. there were two articles, one titled Canada's True Hero and another called Home Sweet Home. the first one was an article about the heroics of Terry Fox and the second, was a series of quotes by Canadian artists, writers, athletes and journalists as to why they love Canada. these two articles were so beautifully written, that back to back, they moved me, almost to tears, right there in the middle of the subway. there are so many things in our lives that we take for granted everyday. our country is just one of many, but the openess, diversity and love of Canada incorporates itself into so many aspects of our lives that taking for granted Canada is like taking for granted a million other things. when Mark Starowicz, a broadcast journalist was asked what he loved about Canada, he responded by saying: "I like sitting in a St-Denis Street cafe in Montreal listening to Vietnamese and Haitian girls speaking in pure Quebec slang; I like passing a schoolyard in Toronto at recess during winter, and seeing Chinese and Somali elementary students bundled in snowsuits and parkas." comedian Maggie Cassella said: "When I'm here, I feel like people actually give a shit about other people. It's like having money. I know this sounds corny, but I feel rich inside when I'm here." finally, Douglas Coupland, the writer of the Terry Fox article, ends the article by referring to the over 100 000 cards, letters and posters sent by Canadians to Terry Fox during his run for hope. he talks about the emotions he goes through when he first walks into the vault that is covered from top to bottom with letters of love and encouragement for our national hero: "I don't think I've ever felt as safe as I did for that brief, one minute window on a Vancouver weekday, surrounded by the good-will of so many Canadians. Collectively, those names testify to something divine - our nation, our home and our soul." | |
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