sriracha

i like that traditions are things that develop over time. to some extent they can be planned in advance, but for the most part the best traditions are those that come from natural origins.

so brendan's best bud has entered politics. at 23, robb is the new provincial green party candidate for the area, and we feel pretty darn proud of him. sure he's young, but he didn't enter this position lightly, and has been working with the green party for last few years - so he's very well informed. AND on top of all that, he's a super & smart guy. i read an article about in him the whig today. it was pleasant, and on the encouraging side of neutral. i was a little annoyed that it said that tuition fees is an issue close to robb's heart, since it implied that since he's young and directly impacted by it, it draws more of his attention. that's a false assumption. he's a well-rounded candidate and understand all the issues quite well. plus, i'm quite certain that the concern he has over tuition is not personal but rather a result of the exclusivity and how it impacts the broader picture. that being said, if robb specifically stated that tuition fees is an issue close to his heart than i take back my annoyance. as in my usual method of self-torture, i scrolled down and read the article comments. they were split down the middle between encouraging and spiteful. in fact, the very first commenter only said that he disagrees with everything robb stands for. which made me laugh out loud. how could someone possibly know EVERYTHING that another person stands for simply from reading a short 350 word article. brendan always tells me not to read the comment section of articles because they always upset me. he says anonymous comment sections are where the world goes to be mean. they're like verbal septic tanks. this time, i decided to comment in response. nancy is always saying that people would be less crule if they couldn't hide behind made up identities. so for the sake of being honest and transparent, upright and accountable i used my actual name. i have mixed feelings about this. stating any opinion leaves one open to attack, but you know... robb had an entire article written about him, and is entering a life of politics, so compared to that my online comments are a walk in the park.

today is brendan's last day of work at startek. while it feels like the last 8 months has flown by, it also feels like ages ago when we discussed the idea of him working at startek back in snowy january. i'm proud of him for what he's accomplished. for sticking with it even when it was not enjoyable, and for finding many things he did enjoy about working full time. in a lot of ways, no thanks to startek, i think it was a very changing experience for him.

sometimes it seems to me that humans are what ruins humanity.

you are not alone in this.