12.19.2009

Uh Oh...

I hope the planet lasts long enough for Pea to realize her own dreams.

I am not a vocal climate champion.  I'm not the one speaking loudly about what we can do to prevent or reverse global warming, I am not protesting or blocking the Olympic Torch's progress across Canada, and I do not consider myself to be a 'green' guy.

Mind you, I'm not a non-believer either.  I do my part in small ways... recycling, carpooling, etc. because I believe our planet is headed towards significant peril.  But I'm no Greenpeacer, so to speak.

That's a little bit of context for what I am about to say next.

I'm deeply saddened and disappointed that a comprehensive deal wasn't reached during the Copenhagen climate talks of the past two weeks.  Sure, some progress seems to have been made, but the outcome of this Summit is woefully lacking what the world needed from its political leaders at this time.

The main outcome of this Summit, from what I can glean, is that developed nations worked hard to protect their livelihood, generally at the expense of developing nations.  And Canada's failure to influence change and set a strong example is, quite frankly, a national and potentially long-lasting embarrassment.

So significant is our collective failure to agree on a course of action, that I fear this Summit will be marked in Pea's history books as a major turning point in our inability to protect her environmental future.  I honestly believe that we will look back on this one Summit 20 to 30 years from today much the same way we look back on the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand when we study World War I.

The fact is that politics have once again trumped the well-being of mankind.  My only hope is that the so-called deals of Copenhagen will be further strengthened and some significant change will be put in place.

At least the oil sands are safe.

I may not know what I want my Pea to become, but I hope the planet lasts long enough for her to realize her own dreams.

12.18.2009

Blocks, and not the kind with letters on them...

I hope Pea never gets bogged down by "The Block."

By now, most of my faithful readers will know that I've taken a second home at urbanmoms.ca.  My blog, Father Knows Best?, has been a lot of fun to write and my musings have been read and commented on by an entirely new audience, which gives me heart. 

At Father Knows Best?, I've had a fairly easy time coming up with topics to write about... being the only Dad and male blogging on a website targeted to current, soon-to-be and veteran Moms kind of gives me a unique perspective and allows me to frame my experiences in a new light.

Sure, the malcontent in me admits that they haven't all been gems, but I've had some fun ideas and I've tackled topics I never before dreamed possible. 

Like sex.  Yeah, that's right.  Sex.

While things with Father Knows Best? are going well, I've clearly been having a much harder time with what.will.you.be,Pea

For some reason, I can easily speak to my experiences as a Dad but coming up with thoughts from the perspective of a regular guy have been much harder to come by lately.  I'll likely regret letting this out of the bag, but here are a few golden nuggets I've considered writing about lately:
  • The Blue Jays trading Roy Halladay
  • Traffic
  • Putting up the Christmas lights in the frigid cold
  • Weather in general
  • The fact that most of my Christmas shopping is already done
You still there?

I've been writing for a long time.  As a guy who communicates for a living, I've come to understand that writer's block, while painful to go through, is a passing problem.  When I can't find the words I need at work, a night's sleep usually does the trick... and if that doesn't help, the pressure of getting fired usually jogs the mind just enough to create passable work.

So I'm not worried.  This too, shall pass.  But I didn't want any of you, who've supported me since March, to think I'd gone for good.   

Until I get back into a rhythm here at what.will.you.be,Pea, be sure to check out Father Knows Best? and also check out some other great blogs writen by friends near and far.  coffee with julie and sarahcasm are two of my favourites, and the gals in charge always have interesting things to say.

I may not know what I want my Pea to become, but I hope she never gets bogged down by "The Block."

12.06.2009

Handy Manny, Wilmer Valderrama and a puddle of drool

I hope Pea never forgets December 6th, 2009.

This was a pretty good weekend.  A friend of ours hosted a Christmas party for our kids yesterday and I got to see 7 toddlers battle it out for attention, steal each others toys, and injure each other in new and unique ways.  Today, I spent the afternoon hanging out solo with my little girl.

Here' a rundown of this afternoon's agenda.
  • We danced around the house together.... Pea actually cranked up the volume on the stereo when she heard Muse's latest single.  
  • We took an hour to eat a single banana.  
  • We ate Premium Plus crackers that were 20 months passed their expiration date... and we called TeleHealth Ontario to make sure we'd survive.    
  • We watched 15 minutes of Handy Manny and discovered that Manny is actually Wilmer Valderrama from That 70's Show.
The best part of the day though, hands down, was the 30 minutes Pea spent laughing uncontrollably at a bear of hers that repeatedly emerged from a house the Pod made out of an old diaper box.  He'd scream HELLO! every time she opened the door and this was clearly the funniest thing she'd seen in a while.  In fact, she drooled on the coffee table because she couldn't stop laughing.

I don't want to go to work tomorrow.  If every day could be exactly like this one, I'd be an eternally happy guy.

I may now know what I want my Pea to become, but I hope she never forgets December 6th, 2009.

Meanwhile, back at my other blog...

I hope Pea doesn't mind me promoting my other blog on the blog I built for her.

In case you missed the announcement, I'm not a blogger over at urbanmoms.ca.  Here are a few of the topics you've missed if you haven't been checking our Father Knows Best? since I started a few weeks ago.
Give 'em a read... post a comment... let me know you're out there.

I may now know what I want my Pea to become, but I hope she doesn't mind me promoting my other blog on the blog I built for her.