I was grocery shopping late this afternoon, and I went to the section with fruit juices. As I grabbed a jug of orange juice, I gazed longingly at the Tropicana Ruby Red Grapefruit juice. I thought, "I miss having grapefruit juice. I love grapefruit juice". But I couldn't have any for years because there's something in grapefruit juice that messes with modern anti-depressants. Then it struck me.
I'M NOT ON ANTI-DEPRESSANTS ANYMORE.
I haven't been on them for almost two months! I CAN HAVE GRAPEFRUIT JUICE! I laughed out loud as I put a container of the stuff in my cart. I laughed with glee all the way to the register. The checkout girl said, "how are you today?" I grinned as I replied.
"I can have freakin' GRAPEFRUIT JUICE!"
The checkout girl laughed out loud.
I opened up that container the second I got home and took a swig. Oh, man, was that ever good. Sometimes, life is sweet. Sometimes, joy can come in the form of something simple you missed. Sometimes, happiness comes in one liter containers in the juice aisle, and all you need to do is just grab some.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
It's Just Money
Until recently, I have been stressed out about money. It began in earnest a couple of months ago, when my ex-wife wanted me to pay for my daughter's summer day camp. I have no problem with being asked to cover that, I was just stressed out about where the hell I was going to come up with almost $1,800.
Then money problems like that became a full-blown catastrophe. The car I'm driving has required several expensive repairs (front wheel bearing for $360, for example), and now needs its suspension replaced. Great. Another $900 or so. I've bought my own car, but that bad boy's going to need at least $400 to get it ready to drive. There's a bunch of other little things I won't bore you with. I did some math, and the bottom line is I need about $3,000 that I don't have, and I need all of it soon. This means going back into debt, not that long after finally getting out. Crap. I was intensely depressed about this until I realized that it's just money.
I thought about it, and realized that if I have to get a friend to co-sign another loan, and I have to make small monthly payments for two years again, so what? Who cares? It's just money. It comes, it goes, I have to pay the bills just like everyone else, and if I'm left with $200 at the end of each month, what difference does it make? It would be nice to be able to save up some real cash or contribute to an RSP, but in the end, I have the big, important stuff.
I have my health. Sure, I'm no spring chicken anymore. I have a few aches and pains and I don't heal as fast as I used to, but other than insomnia, I have no terrible, chronic health problems. Since ditching my anti-depressants, I've lost 15 pounds, so I even look okay. I still struggle with depression sometimes, but I have learned to do things to combat it, and most of the time, I'm okay. Much better than just a few years ago.
I have a lot of great friends, and I enjoy hanging out with them. I have my share of fun, good times and laughs with my friends. I have a wonderful daughter who's smart, sweet, and is developing a twisted sense of humour, just like her old man. I get along with my ex-wife and her husband (for the most part), and I know a few people who don't. Sure, some of the members of my immediate family suck - I'm talking to you, Dad - but most of them don't, and I have some really cute nieces and a nephew who's adorable.
I'm not loaded with cash, and I don't have a lot of assets, but my refrigerator isn't empty, my bed's pretty comfortable, and I have a job. I often find myself wishing I had money to travel or for cool sports cars, but it's just money. I'll get by, one way or the other, and gettin' by is what matters. Things could be a lot worse.
So I've decided to stop worrying about money or letting myself get depressed for not being rich. I've decided to do my best to stop complaining every time something expensive happens, and to try to stop being envious of others. As long as I have the important stuff, I'll be okay.
Then money problems like that became a full-blown catastrophe. The car I'm driving has required several expensive repairs (front wheel bearing for $360, for example), and now needs its suspension replaced. Great. Another $900 or so. I've bought my own car, but that bad boy's going to need at least $400 to get it ready to drive. There's a bunch of other little things I won't bore you with. I did some math, and the bottom line is I need about $3,000 that I don't have, and I need all of it soon. This means going back into debt, not that long after finally getting out. Crap. I was intensely depressed about this until I realized that it's just money.
I thought about it, and realized that if I have to get a friend to co-sign another loan, and I have to make small monthly payments for two years again, so what? Who cares? It's just money. It comes, it goes, I have to pay the bills just like everyone else, and if I'm left with $200 at the end of each month, what difference does it make? It would be nice to be able to save up some real cash or contribute to an RSP, but in the end, I have the big, important stuff.
I have my health. Sure, I'm no spring chicken anymore. I have a few aches and pains and I don't heal as fast as I used to, but other than insomnia, I have no terrible, chronic health problems. Since ditching my anti-depressants, I've lost 15 pounds, so I even look okay. I still struggle with depression sometimes, but I have learned to do things to combat it, and most of the time, I'm okay. Much better than just a few years ago.
I have a lot of great friends, and I enjoy hanging out with them. I have my share of fun, good times and laughs with my friends. I have a wonderful daughter who's smart, sweet, and is developing a twisted sense of humour, just like her old man. I get along with my ex-wife and her husband (for the most part), and I know a few people who don't. Sure, some of the members of my immediate family suck - I'm talking to you, Dad - but most of them don't, and I have some really cute nieces and a nephew who's adorable.
I'm not loaded with cash, and I don't have a lot of assets, but my refrigerator isn't empty, my bed's pretty comfortable, and I have a job. I often find myself wishing I had money to travel or for cool sports cars, but it's just money. I'll get by, one way or the other, and gettin' by is what matters. Things could be a lot worse.
So I've decided to stop worrying about money or letting myself get depressed for not being rich. I've decided to do my best to stop complaining every time something expensive happens, and to try to stop being envious of others. As long as I have the important stuff, I'll be okay.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
GOD BLESS AMERICA
Today is the Fourth of July, and since it is an American holiday, I would like to take this time to remind Canadians how great our neighbour to the south is.
God Bless America.
I'm serious. Hating the USA and making fun of Americans seems to be Canada's national pastime, and I am sick of it. Canadians forget which side their bread is buttered on, or who we have to thank for our continued freedom. To paraphrase Jack Nicholson from "A Few Good Men", Canadians go to sleep every night under the blanket of freedom that America provides, and then they use that freedom to criticize the manner in which it is provided. Few countries in the world have been so helped by the United States, and few countries are less grateful for it. America buys more than 70% of our stuff, provides us with countless jobs, patrols our coastline, and sticks up for us when the rest of the world hangs us out to dry, and how do we thank them? By making fun of them and treating them like crap.
Too many Canadians think we have it so bad living next to America. Think again. We share the longest undefended border in the world. Our government and citizens can criticize America, but Americans don't respond by bombing our cities or rolling the tanks in. Ask the people of Tibet how much fun it is living next to Communist China. People around the world wear "Free Tibet" shirts, in the hope that one day, the Chinese might stop their brutal repression of Tibet. Nobody has to wear "Free Canada" shirts, do they? Ask the people of Chechnya or Ukraine how much fun it is living next to Russia. Chechnya elected a president who was openly critical of Russia, and the Russians responded by invading Chechnya and ousting the democratically elected government in favour of one that was prepared to kneel before their Russian masters. The Ukraine elected a government that wanted more independence from Russia, and Russia responded last winter by cutting off all natural gas shipments to the Ukraine. Meanwhile, Canada regularly gives the USA the finger, and the worst we have to endure in retaliation is strong words.
I'm not saying America is perfect, or that they've never done anything wrong. Certainly they deserve their share of criticism. We've had trade disputes with them, and they've been guilty of unfair protectionist rules. But let me tell you what the good ol' USA is like when the fucking chips are down. Too few Canadians remember, or even know, these stories.
Last year, our government decided that in order to continue our mission in Afghanistan, we would need some of our allies to provide some troops to back up our guys. Don't give me the argument that "Canada shouldn't be there". The argument is irrelevent. Whether we "should" be in Afghanistan or not does not matter. The cold, hard fact is that we ARE there, and we need to deal with the fact that our troops need help. Our government asked our European allies for help, and they all came up with excuses as to why they could not commit any combat troops. We asked the USA, and what did they do? They sent us 12,000 marines immediately, with another 10,000 to be deployed over the next year. They sent us helicopters, unmanned flying drones and night vision equipment to make patrolling the countryside more efficient and less dangerous. They did this without hesitation, conditions, or demands for compensation. The rest of the world sat in the dugout, and America went to bat for us. Candians forget this, don't they?
In 1994, the 50th Anniversary of D-Day, some rat bastard French hotel gave away the rooms our veterans had reserved to Swedish tourists. When our government complained, the French government said they couldn't interfere in the business of a privately owned hotel. Fortunately, America stood up for us, threatening to cancel the whole ceremony if something wasn't done. Under pressure from America, the French government forced the hotel to give the rooms back to the men who fought to liberate their ungrateful asses from the Nazis. Once again, America stands up for her friend Canada, and once again, Canada forgets the whole thing five minutes later, and goes back to taking pot shots at the country that may be her only friend in the world.
It's true that Americans don't know much about Canada. I understand that it annoys Canadians when America doesn't pay much attention to us. They have said and done things we didn't like over the years. Well, so fucking what? In the big scheme of things, America has been a pretty good neighbour. We don't live in fear of an American invasion, the way Chechnya lives in fear of Russia. Canadians don't live under brutal oppression, the way Tibet lives under the Chinese jackboot. When MP Carolyn Parish said "damned Americans, I hate those bastards", America didn't respond by massing tanks on our border and threatening us with violence. America buys our goods and raw materials, and overall is pretty good to us. A lot of Canadians have jobs because America is our biggest trading partner. So I, for one, say "God Bless America". I love them.
The bottom line for me is this: when the shit hits the fan, America has our backs. Maybe it's time we had theirs, too.
God Bless America.
I'm serious. Hating the USA and making fun of Americans seems to be Canada's national pastime, and I am sick of it. Canadians forget which side their bread is buttered on, or who we have to thank for our continued freedom. To paraphrase Jack Nicholson from "A Few Good Men", Canadians go to sleep every night under the blanket of freedom that America provides, and then they use that freedom to criticize the manner in which it is provided. Few countries in the world have been so helped by the United States, and few countries are less grateful for it. America buys more than 70% of our stuff, provides us with countless jobs, patrols our coastline, and sticks up for us when the rest of the world hangs us out to dry, and how do we thank them? By making fun of them and treating them like crap.
Too many Canadians think we have it so bad living next to America. Think again. We share the longest undefended border in the world. Our government and citizens can criticize America, but Americans don't respond by bombing our cities or rolling the tanks in. Ask the people of Tibet how much fun it is living next to Communist China. People around the world wear "Free Tibet" shirts, in the hope that one day, the Chinese might stop their brutal repression of Tibet. Nobody has to wear "Free Canada" shirts, do they? Ask the people of Chechnya or Ukraine how much fun it is living next to Russia. Chechnya elected a president who was openly critical of Russia, and the Russians responded by invading Chechnya and ousting the democratically elected government in favour of one that was prepared to kneel before their Russian masters. The Ukraine elected a government that wanted more independence from Russia, and Russia responded last winter by cutting off all natural gas shipments to the Ukraine. Meanwhile, Canada regularly gives the USA the finger, and the worst we have to endure in retaliation is strong words.
I'm not saying America is perfect, or that they've never done anything wrong. Certainly they deserve their share of criticism. We've had trade disputes with them, and they've been guilty of unfair protectionist rules. But let me tell you what the good ol' USA is like when the fucking chips are down. Too few Canadians remember, or even know, these stories.
Last year, our government decided that in order to continue our mission in Afghanistan, we would need some of our allies to provide some troops to back up our guys. Don't give me the argument that "Canada shouldn't be there". The argument is irrelevent. Whether we "should" be in Afghanistan or not does not matter. The cold, hard fact is that we ARE there, and we need to deal with the fact that our troops need help. Our government asked our European allies for help, and they all came up with excuses as to why they could not commit any combat troops. We asked the USA, and what did they do? They sent us 12,000 marines immediately, with another 10,000 to be deployed over the next year. They sent us helicopters, unmanned flying drones and night vision equipment to make patrolling the countryside more efficient and less dangerous. They did this without hesitation, conditions, or demands for compensation. The rest of the world sat in the dugout, and America went to bat for us. Candians forget this, don't they?
In 1994, the 50th Anniversary of D-Day, some rat bastard French hotel gave away the rooms our veterans had reserved to Swedish tourists. When our government complained, the French government said they couldn't interfere in the business of a privately owned hotel. Fortunately, America stood up for us, threatening to cancel the whole ceremony if something wasn't done. Under pressure from America, the French government forced the hotel to give the rooms back to the men who fought to liberate their ungrateful asses from the Nazis. Once again, America stands up for her friend Canada, and once again, Canada forgets the whole thing five minutes later, and goes back to taking pot shots at the country that may be her only friend in the world.
It's true that Americans don't know much about Canada. I understand that it annoys Canadians when America doesn't pay much attention to us. They have said and done things we didn't like over the years. Well, so fucking what? In the big scheme of things, America has been a pretty good neighbour. We don't live in fear of an American invasion, the way Chechnya lives in fear of Russia. Canadians don't live under brutal oppression, the way Tibet lives under the Chinese jackboot. When MP Carolyn Parish said "damned Americans, I hate those bastards", America didn't respond by massing tanks on our border and threatening us with violence. America buys our goods and raw materials, and overall is pretty good to us. A lot of Canadians have jobs because America is our biggest trading partner. So I, for one, say "God Bless America". I love them.
The bottom line for me is this: when the shit hits the fan, America has our backs. Maybe it's time we had theirs, too.
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