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Something That Popped Into My Head

All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts…
William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), “As You Like It”, Act 2 scene 7



I would like to modify this quote to fit these modern times more appropriately…



All the world’s a stage,
Where most act like nothing is wrong,
Some think the show’s end is fast approaching,
While to others the finale is nowhere in sight…

Thinking About Guests

Thinking About Ideas

Yesterday a friend suggested that I should perhaps make a book comprised of haiku and my photographs. I’ve actually thought of this before, but I didn’t think it had any merit.

What are your thoughts on this, audience? Do you think it would be a successful venture?

I daresay I am not really strapped for ideas in terms of writing haiku, so I could always match the haiku to the picture, or just have the pictures there as something nice to look at.

Of course, in the end, this is all just an exercise in holding my breath. I don’t really have any contacts in the publishing industry.

So, throw me some ideas, folks. Let me know what you think!



Guest Fig-tionary Writer

Due to the ridiculous number of Hai-Kuul requests, I have decided to dole out some writing responsibility to someone who I trust immensely with my life, and blog (of course). Allow me to introduce (again) Dave!

You probably remember him from such stories as Zip and Tuck, and the ever-popular Rafting Adventure.

Dave has immensely awesome writing skills.

He will do us proud here at Barking Space.

Dealing With a Dilemna

The Aircraft Dilemna

I was cruising around the other night on Spaces, just checking out (at random) new people’s blogs using the Updated Spaces window you can find on some people’s blogs. I always read a few entries and leave comments. I am obsessed with commenting (They say that admitting you have a problem is the first step).

I came upon a young man’s blog. He was quite young. Fifteen, I think. His life was full of problems, and he wrote about them with unabashed honestly. The thing that struck me about this fellow is that he seemed to be more concerned about his best friend.

I wont get into specifics, but an analogy will bring light to my point. Imagine a person has been poisoned, and they have a limited amount of time to live. They are running to the hospital, but yet they stop to help another person pick up a bag of groceries they just dropped. It’s rare to find that kind of fearless selflessness these days, especially in the young.

I left a small comment that I hope he will take to heart: It is important to help yourself before you can help another.

It’s important to remember that if we are not in the right frame of mind (or body), it’s tough to help someone else. Certainly it can be inspiring, and probably perceived as a bit selfless as well. However, the less we take care of our own needs the less time we will be able to help others. It’s a simple fact. Perhaps an analogy is in order…

If you have ever flown on a large aircraft, you will probably remember the safety presentation at the beginning involving decreased cabin pressure. Oxygen masks are supposed to drop from the ceiling for your use. If you have children they tell you to put your own oxygen mask on yourself first, and then put one on your child.

I remember the first time I saw this. It was counterintuitive to me. Upon deeper inspection, though, it made a lot of sense. That few extra seconds that you spend on helping yourself may cause your child to lose consciousness, but then they’ll have the mask and all will be fine.

The alternative is that you put the mask on your child, and then you lose consciousness. If your child doesn’t know how to help you, you are out of luck. Your child will be robbed of a parent.

This simple logic applies to everyday life.

It’s good to help others, but make sure you are in a position to do so. Helping yourself will make you strong enough to help out others in a more effective manner. It’s not selfish. Nor is it wrong.

Take care.

Knockbacks Get You Here

Knockbacks In Toronto

Last night I had the pleasure of meeting fellow blogger/Orkutian Ian (The Haligonian). It was a great time.

We met at the Duke of York which is a pub located at the North end of Downtown Toronto, just north of the University. It’s a great place. The atmosphere is warm, and the food is all right (worth mentioning, even though we were only there to drink).

I got there a little late due to some Subway problems. I waited outside, and then wondered if maybe Ian was inside or on the patio. Good thing I checked, because there he was finishing off a pint of Guinness.

I sat down and we had an enjoyable couple of hours chatting about everything and getting to know each other. Funny how it was almost like a catch-up session than a first meeting. The wonders of the internet!

At some point early in our drinkfest, Shellie called us from Boston, to make her presence virtually known. The phone was passed back and forth between Ian and I, and all three of us laughed and had fun.

Of course, the end of the evening came too fast, and we each had to go our separate ways. Ian will be coming over for dinner in a few weeks, and we are putting the hard sell on Shellie to come up to have dinner with us (and bring her hubby-to-be along, too).

I’m glad I’ve made such good friends.



You Get What You Give

Ian and I are a lot alike. We can make fast friends anywhere we go, and we get along with a huge cross-section of people.

One thing that stuck with me after our meeting was how Ian described Toronto as being a very friendly place.

There are quite a number of people who hold the opposite view.

Why is this?

I thought about my own experiences. Usually, I find that wherever I go, people tend to be friendly.

I think that unfriendly people who expect to be treated in an unfriendly manner will not be disappointed. You probably know which type of person I am referring to. The person who is in a rush, and who doesn’t have the patience for people in their way. Or how about the person that walks around with a permanent scowl? Bleah.

I, on the other hand, tend to have either a neutral look or a slight smile on my face most of the time. I also greet complete strangers and I try to be polite. “Excuse me” or “please” and “thank you” are not uncommon for me to say to people.

I think that it would be a worthwhile practice for people who deem a place unfriendly to try and be positive about being there at the outset. They might be pleasantly surprised.



What Brought You Here?

Here is a search that brought someone to my blog…

AOL Search
generous people (3rd on the list – No clue about this)


Weird.

Think About This…

Shoulda Coulda Woulda…

I was reminded the other day of the negative power of certain words.
A friend of mine was blogging about how she felt as if she was missing something out of life. This something could be broken down into several social conventions that have become unspoken rules.

This can be a problem to those that may not necessarily adhere to these conventions. Who is to say that a person must fall in love in a certain time? Is it unacceptable for a girl to ask a guy to marry her, instead of the other way around? Is it a crime to be single?

Social rules are one thing, but some of the conventions that go along with them are not really applicable to everyone. People toss around the word should a lot. And this is the actual crime.

Should I not be happily married by the time I am 30? Do you think I should ask her to marry me? What do you think I should do?

A lot of people have told me about the negative power of this word. I have also read and heard similar dialogue from various intelligent people in the media.

We give too much power to the thought of doing what everyone expects us to do that we forget what will make us happy. Certainly it is no crime to buck the conventions that we grew up with. That’s called progress. Without people deviating from the norm, we wouldn’t be fighting for racial and sexual equality or for marriages for all orientations (to name a few). We would all be the same. We would all be dwelling in mediocrity.

Even social rules can be changed over time. So why plan your life according to convention?

If you are always wondering what you should do, you’ll never actually do anything.