23: I Survived The Death Of All Romance
Sous-titre:(And then there was one...)
Another year past, another script played out, another book to write.
One of my least favourite things about my large extended family is having to listen to everyone's well-intentioned but ultimately pointless advice. Case in point:
a) When I was first heading off to university everyone said how much better it was that we were in Canada as opposed to Greece since I wouldn't be conscripted to the army.
b) Now that I'm at the point where I can see the end of school and turning a year older, how at the age of 23 they were married and expecting their first child and how an engineering degree is useless without a Masters/PHD/MBA because their cousin's fiancee's sister's friend can't find a job.
You never hear the story of the distant cousin who is just doing alright; who is just living a life that I can see myself living. It's either horrible disaster or unreal success. (Note: These are real comments from the past few days.)
"He got a degree in Civil Engineering and couldn't find a job; he should've stayed in school. Now he doesn't have any money and he's not married. Is that why you're not going to stay in school because you're getting married?"
OR
"He stayed in school for 9 years getting a degree in this and then that and now he's making $500 000/year and he's a member at Granite (some pricey golf club. First I had heard of it). You should stay in school so you can become a member there too. And his house, oh, it's four times bigger than yours now."
It seems that getting a good job, living a tidy life and staying in the 416 is no longer an acceptable thing to strive for. It's got to be the moon and anything less is disappointing to everyone. It's got to be the best job, the biggest house in Aurora/Woodbridge/Newmarket. Added pressure points for being the first-born of the new generation.
I quickly resolved the hamster situation on Monday night by dropping off the overly aggressive black male and the overly passive teddybear female off with Peter's sister so that she could take them into PJ's Pets so they could be resold to a loving family who will hopefully not stick them in the cage with another hamster. The remaining hamster has settled into a much more peaceful existence without the clamour of two other cagemates.
I got the Coachella DVD for my birthday; it can be reviewed as one of two things.
1) A brilliant marketing maneuver. Getting people to pay for an informercial of the product that you're trying to sell them.
2) A way to keep the memories of a brilliant trip alive. From the fun of watching unpegged tents rolling around on a Friday night, to the mountains and palm trees all in the same view, to the sight of tens of thousands of people are coming to have the same yet unique experience. And the music, of course.
It's both. And worth it. I get the chills watching the Arcade Fire performance.
I will be back next year.
Another year past, another script played out, another book to write.
One of my least favourite things about my large extended family is having to listen to everyone's well-intentioned but ultimately pointless advice. Case in point:
a) When I was first heading off to university everyone said how much better it was that we were in Canada as opposed to Greece since I wouldn't be conscripted to the army.
b) Now that I'm at the point where I can see the end of school and turning a year older, how at the age of 23 they were married and expecting their first child and how an engineering degree is useless without a Masters/PHD/MBA because their cousin's fiancee's sister's friend can't find a job.
You never hear the story of the distant cousin who is just doing alright; who is just living a life that I can see myself living. It's either horrible disaster or unreal success. (Note: These are real comments from the past few days.)
"He got a degree in Civil Engineering and couldn't find a job; he should've stayed in school. Now he doesn't have any money and he's not married. Is that why you're not going to stay in school because you're getting married?"
OR
"He stayed in school for 9 years getting a degree in this and then that and now he's making $500 000/year and he's a member at Granite (some pricey golf club. First I had heard of it). You should stay in school so you can become a member there too. And his house, oh, it's four times bigger than yours now."
It seems that getting a good job, living a tidy life and staying in the 416 is no longer an acceptable thing to strive for. It's got to be the moon and anything less is disappointing to everyone. It's got to be the best job, the biggest house in Aurora/Woodbridge/Newmarket. Added pressure points for being the first-born of the new generation.
I quickly resolved the hamster situation on Monday night by dropping off the overly aggressive black male and the overly passive teddybear female off with Peter's sister so that she could take them into PJ's Pets so they could be resold to a loving family who will hopefully not stick them in the cage with another hamster. The remaining hamster has settled into a much more peaceful existence without the clamour of two other cagemates.
I got the Coachella DVD for my birthday; it can be reviewed as one of two things.
1) A brilliant marketing maneuver. Getting people to pay for an informercial of the product that you're trying to sell them.
2) A way to keep the memories of a brilliant trip alive. From the fun of watching unpegged tents rolling around on a Friday night, to the mountains and palm trees all in the same view, to the sight of tens of thousands of people are coming to have the same yet unique experience. And the music, of course.
It's both. And worth it. I get the chills watching the Arcade Fire performance.
I will be back next year.
