I wrote a post about a year ago titled common (non)sense. Again, I find myself frustrated with people telling me that my ideas or concerns are contrary to “common sense” — as if that’s a good enough reason itself to do (or not do) something. Read on »
Today, Council received a letter from a citizen frustrated with the parking situation in her neighbourhood. She lives in an apartment building that doesn’t have enough parking spots to accommodate all its resident vehicles. Read on »
After writing yesterday’s post, I remembered a letter to the editor a couple months ago ridiculing my apparent “myopia”. They were objecting to my concerns that Council was missing a great opportunity to support its heritage initiatives and draft Tourism Strategy. Read on »
It never ceases to amaze me how many people assume that the amount of attention an issue gets in the news reflects the amount of time I spend on it. Read on »
from my computer’s dictionary:
listen |ˈlisən|
verb [ intrans. ]
give one’s attention to a sound : evidently he was not listening | sit and listen to the radio.
• take notice of and act on what someone says; respond to advice or a request : I told her over and over again, but she wouldn’t listen.
• make an effort to hear something; be alert and ready to hear something : they listened for sounds from the baby’s room.
• used to urge someone to pay attention to what one is going to say : listen, I’ve got an idea.
There is this pervasive and persistent belief in the community that I was not listening during the town centre debates. I’m trying to understand how it could be that I took notes during the discussions, wrote articles and dozens of emails in response to questions and comments… yet, somehow they say, I did all that without listening. Read on »
Wow. It’s been 4 months since I’ve written a post on this site. Putting together the Spirit of the Sea Festival was a heavy and time consuming responsibility. And it seems like it’ll never end. There are still bills rolling in, errands to run, website to update, records to file… Read on »
When emotionally upset, people cannot remember, attend, learn, or make decisions clearly. As one management consultant put it, “Stress makes people stupid.” – page 149, Emotional Intelligence.
I wonder how this would apply to people who feed off their assumptions or rumour and arrive fearful or angry at public information meetings? Read on »
You know why this floor is like this? Because the offices down below, by code, have to have a certain amount of light. And the only way we could get it and to have this balcony was to make it a glass floor.
– Frank Gehry, from Sketches of Frank Gehry
Read on »
Perhaps that’s a little harsh, but why is it that I get complaints so often about the quality of design for new buildings in the city, yet when there is an open call for members to the Advisory Design Panel, not one responds? There seems to be no problem finding the time and energy to complain and write nasty letters, but not enough to be a part of a solution. If you have something to say about what the new buildings about your community look like, why not apply? Why not share your thoughts in a way that actually makes a difference? Why not help solve the problem rather than just complain about it?
Community isn’t about the government doing stuff for you, it’s about what everyone contributes to our shared experience. If complaining is your contribution, what kind of community are you creating?
If you think buildings in our city should be nicer looking, help make that happen. Apply to serve on the Advisory Design Panel.
I sincerely want to know.
My site tracker tells me that there are people who spend time reading this website even though almost nobody leaves comments. I don’t mind that at all, but for this one, I’d really like to hear what you have to say.
Climate change, drug addiction, over-burdened health care system, affordable housing, …
These have each been hot topics lately. Lots of time has been spent discussing them in the media, among strangers on the sidewalks, between friends at the pub or in your living room.
There is surprise at the scale of the problems. Blame is assigned. Obvious yet epiphanic solutions offered. Resignation to the unmovable realities.
I have been hearing a lot about what laws and regulations government should be putting in place to force us to do the things we already know we should be doing. I find this curious.
If I know the solution to a problem and I choose not to act on that knowledge, is it fair to blame government for not forcing me to do it? Is it reasonable to refuse until everyone else does it too?
Communities, societies, governments, corporations are all simply collections of individuals. Together, the choices these individuals make each contribute to form a shared purpose, action, consciousness.
So, on the consequences of those collective choices, my question to you is, what choices are you making to contribute to moving toward a vision of a safe, clean, healthy community? As you’ve read or heard more about these issues, what choices have you made? What are you doing different?
I’d really like to know.