The spiral’s just begun!
Posted on September 29th, 2009 –
Someone recently noted that TCL seemed to be written by a “young man just a bit on the frustrated side” and that I needed to find “something that excites you, something you can be passionate about and, write about it.”
Frustrated? FRUSTRATED?! OF COURSE I’M FRUSTRATED!!
You’d be frustrated too if you had a day job like mine. But what keeps me going is the thought that maybe, one day, Toronto City Life could be more than just a little blog. *sniff*
Why?
What’s not to love? The walking dissolves the fiery disappointment of the day into a manageable lump of smouldering coal for the evening. So that’s good. And I like what the pictures do. They let me look at the places I’ve been in their moment, seeing everything I couldn’t possibly see at the instant I was there.
So that’s good. And you know, there are so many people downtown that inevitably you always bump into someone interesting. Sometimes they’re people you’ve seen before and feel you’ve kinda glimpsed a bit of who they are. Take this lady, for example:
Note, she’s not panhandling. In fact, I don’t remember ever seeing her panhandle. She’s always been stone-cold sober and more alert than me most of the times I’ve seen her. She’s strong, lugging around all sorts of stuff all day. Lucid and entirely there. And although I’m sure she lives on the streets, she takes care of herself. Now she’s got a story! Always something interesting. So that’s good.
And you know, when you need a breather, it’s nice to get closer to the lake and just enjoy the breeze and the views.
Ahhh, the blissful Gardiner. The only problem with all of this is that it sometimes leads to late nights. Late nights with full bladders require entrance to some strange places. But so far even these have proven to be gold:
Note the garbage bags on the dock belonged to a gentleman who, I believe, would be residing there that evening. He also appeared quite sober and built himself a cardboard shelter behind the cage. Unfortunately, he didn’t understand the requirements of long exposures, and so he’s not pictured. But again, interesting. So that’s good.
As one final piece of evidence, I give you … Chinatown:
I dunno. It sounded poignant, but I’m not sure where I was going with it. Maybe that I’m no artist, so pictures like this simply couldn’t exist in any other medium. Except maybe as stick figures. I can draw that guy with the fingers and teeth biting the horizontal line pretty well. I even add a little hair twirl for effect, sometimes eyebrows! However, I can’t get much more complex than that; the oranges would lead to tears and broken pencils.
But photos just need me to stand there and annoy Chinese people with my camera. I mean, I could try to draw something but my intention is to express enthusiasm, nor horror.
So you see, TCL is both an attempt to share some of my interest in this town, and a fairly thorough lack of skill to present it. And it’s written by a bitter, disappointed guy. I’m not an alcoholic yet, but I’m willing to try. The spiral’s just begun!
So that’s a good thing.
... with pictures
... with sounds
... with videos
... with opinions
... that's shorter
... that's longer
September 29th, 2009 8:33 pm
From the looks of these photos and previous ones you have posted, I would say you are excited passionate about your city.
I think we are all frustrated with something that is going on in our lives. The fact that you choose not to rant incessantly about it is quite refreshing actually.
September 30th, 2009 9:13 am
Thanks, Inge. As usual, you're 100% correct! :D Truth be told, I don't mind the ranting thing — those are some of my favourite blogs. I just try not to dwell too much on it; not when there are so many other things I can distract myself with.
September 29th, 2009 11:15 pm
wow I wonder when I can go there
September 30th, 2009 9:15 am
You can go there any time you like, Sugar Cribs. Except Chinatown … that's my hood, and there's the matter of protection fees to discuss first!
September 30th, 2009 3:08 pm
ooooo china town. nice pics. when I want to see toronto, I come by and see what you have cooking. btw, I enjoyed that Tour. next time think of start at the train station and the king edward sheraton. or maybe show us more of Kensington Mkt. more unknown areas I think.
September 30th, 2009 5:10 pm
EXCELLENT suggestion, Gal! I was planning to go to Kensington in the morning some time when the shops are opening. Great minds do thing alike :)
My only problem is the morning part of that equation.