Places to Remember

I was thinking today how places connect us with people. They remind us of someone, something or a time in our lives when we were happy or sad. Recently I found out that one of my regulars at work died from cancer at the age of 37. 37. Way to young. Apparently it was quick, she found out she had cancer and within 6 months she passed away. Her and her husband use to come and have drinks at this small-“home-town” bar that I work in. They always seemed like they were having such a good time and were so much in love – absolutely loving their lives’. She passed away on a Monday, and on Friday he was in for a couple of beers. Everything seemed normal, but at this point I had no idea. He just sat there with his beer alone in a place where you use to come with his wife, a place where they had fun. There’s no doubt in my mind that he was thinking about her while he was there. I wish I would have know. I wish I would have said something or bought him a beer. But maybe that’s why he came into the bar that night. He came in because he knew he could be left alone if he wanted, or he could talk to someone if he wanted. Whatever he needed my co-worker and I, and the other regulars, would be there for a shoulder to lean on.

Sometimes I really want to the bar. But, then moments like these happen when someone comes in and remembers all the amazing times they had with a special person, and they can know that the people around them are there if they want them – that’s something you can’t find to many places.

A look at a town's history

For documentary class, my friend and I produced a doc about the crumbling limestone kilns in Stonewall. The kilns are more than just crumbling, the history of Stonewall is crumbling with it. It's amazing how something can be a symbol of a place's history, and once it's gone a lot of that history is gone too. The doc examines what the limestone kilns mean to this small Manitoban town, and how a small group is trying to save them.

I'm just going to keep saying it

Did anyone watch the leader’s debate tonight? I did, and it was honestly the first time I watched an ENTIRE debate. It reminded me of when a group of friends does nothing but tell inside jokes as other people look on without any clue of what’s going on. Sure I watch the news and read the paper, so I know some of what they’re talking about but ultimately I don’t think they were talking about much of anything.

Do debates like this get young voters interested in the election? I don’t think so. I tuned in because I was interested in what they had to say, because, like I’ve said before, it’s important to vote and express our opinions on how our country should be run. Honestly, I just wanted to turn on a movie, but I’m trying, I’m trying really hard to be engaged in this election.

I read this really interesting article online today, which talked about young voters and how very little of us VOTE. The article quotes a study that found if young voters didn’t vote when they first had the chance the likelihood of them voting in future elections is slim to none. So please, read the article and prove this study wrong.  We have the opportunity to have a say so use it. If you don’t you might not regret it now but you probably will in the future, and by then it might be too late for a change.

Have your say, vote in May

It’s seems as if the media here in Canada is doing more to encourage Canadians to get out and vote than the political leaders and their parties.  Every night I turn on CBC’s The National there is tons of news about the election, but if the news didn’t cover it would I hear anything the candidates have to say?  I don’t know if I would.

I’ll vote because it’s my right.  Millions of people in other countries are fighting for democracy.  Thousands of people are dying in Libya, hundreds of people died in Egypt and countless people die in countless countries because they want the right to vote but don’t have it.  But Canadians don’t vote.  In the last federal election in 2008, only 58.8% of Canadians voted.  Holy crap, does any one else think that’s that ridiculous?

But why don’t we vote?  Is it because all the parties are pretty much the same, so really who cares?  Is it because Canadians are so not interested in politics we don’t even take the time to learn about what each party, each candidate stands for?  Or is it that neither of the parties makes us care about them?

I think it’s a combination of all of these things.  So where are the leaders?  Why aren’t they reaching out to the public more through Facebook or Twitter? Sure, they travel around the country holding town halls, but how many of us actually go?

CBC is trying to get Canadians interested in the election through an online poll they’ve created called Vote Compass.  The poll asks you a series of questions regarding important issues and calculates which party most aligns with your values.  The poll is super simple.  Fill out a bit of information, and then clip through a series of questions – literally it took me 5 minutes.  As of the other night, over 800,000 Canadians had been on Vote Compass.  Hopefully this is a sign that more Canadians will turn out to the polls this year to make their choice.  Go on to Vote Compass, and find out which party most aligns with your values.  Then scroll through the Election 2011 information to find out more.

We have this great liberty to vote, so let’s use it.  You decide whom you want to make a change in our country, don’t let the rest of the country, or 58.8% of it, decide fore you.  The 800,000 people that have gone on Vote Compass are only a small portion of the 33 million people in this country.  Make your vote count this time.