There’s a fearsome thunderstorm blowing in, and it could very well knock out our surprisingly fragile electrical supply. Let’s see if I can post before the power goes out.

We went on a family outing to Heeman’s Strawberry farm today and it was an informative trip for me. I didn’t learn a thing about strawberries (not that I expected to) but I did get a lesson in ethical business.  Out front of the building there was a charity barbecue, raising funds for the Terry Fox Run, and every employee was wearing a ‘Run for The Cure’ t-shirt. With a very simple and cost-effective effort, the good people at Heemans were taking part in the community around them and giving back to it. And for the last two weeks, Heemans has donated a field of their pick-your-own strawberries to Community Harvest. The berries were picked by volunteers, and those berries were shipped out to the food bank and other front-line services in town. What a simple way to make things better.

I’m more ambitious than informed right now, which I think is a normal stage for someone looking to help out.  It turns out that there are already good, ethical businesses who love their community and want to make it a better place for everyone. I have to remember to be patient and learn about the community before I rush off trying to save it. There’s no need to re-invent the wheel.

In other news, my little dude serenaded the wife and I yesterday with a rousing rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ for our country. There is nothing better than hearing a cheerful 3-year-old belt out “happy birthday, dear Canada!”. And during bedtime tonight, he decided that he would tell me a story about yesterday. You see, after we read a few books and turn off the lights, he usually likes to hear a story. The story must be a factual retelling of the day’s events, with no silly business. But tonight, after I began the story of today’s trip to the strawberry farm, he stopped me and said that he wanted to tell the story of Canada Day. He clarified that he wasn’t going to tell the whole story, just the beginning, and after that point I would take over. This is how he began it:

“One day, somebody had a birthday. But they weren’t people like you and me, people with skin. It was Canada’s birthday”. So there you go. No skin on Canada. That boy is something else.

Will there ever be a Sunday that I feel compelled to blog AND have a cohesive theme to expound upon? All signs point to No. Instead, it’s a parade of leftovers and remnants from the week.

Independence! The little dude has taken sudden and surprising steps towards autonomy this weekend, and I am just not sure how to feel about this. He went for a playdate on Saturday, and it was notable as the first time we have sent him out the door in the care of another parent. He cheerily hugged the playdate mom and hopped into the car seat. I stood at the door waving goodbye as they drove off for mystery and adventure that didn’t involve me or the wife. Sniff. And as an encore to that display, today he was at his friend’s house with my wife, and once they were settled in he told her “okay mom you can go now”. She lit out of there like a bat out of hell and came home for an astounding 2-hour, uninterrupted nap.  We when came back, he was cheery and having a blast. He even liked the suggestion of a sleepover, but I am nowhere near ready for that. Of course, it is the beginning of the summer, which means I won’t get the school time break every Tuesday and Thursday, so I may quickly become amenable to shipping him off for the night.

Different topic: Sales! I’m sure you’re all wondering how my one-man commercial fiction empire is progressing. I haven’t made a million bucks, or broken even for that matter, but bit by bit, my friends and family are showing me how supportive they are, and it’s fantastic. I’m learning to accept this deluge of positivity and compassion without freaking out.  And, even people I have never met are buying copies from my champions out there in the field. So thank you, supporters and well-wishers!

A topic about topics: I fear sometimes that I might alienate some of you, my wonderful readers, if I delve too deeply into certain topics. There are some people who want to leave the room in a rush when the topic of politics comes up, and I really don’t want to chase anyone away from the blog with my ill-informed political opinions. On the other hand, my posts are better and more interesting when I’m passionate about my current topic, and trying to stay in the safe middle-ground does a disservice to any readers who like the challenge of complicated topics. And what about my occasional post about a topic I am woefully uneducated in (AKA the “I am not an expert” posts)? Do people like watching me wander blindly into the intellectual minefield in pursuit of my harebrained theories?

Parting unrelated thought: It’s all well and good to bite the bullet and make peace when someone upsets you, but think it through. You can’t verbally acquiesce but continue to feel slighted and hurt. After you call the truce, any leftover hurt and emotional baggage is your concern and no one elses. And yes, this sucks, but it’s what grownups have to do.

Well, I’m more rested. I guess there’s that. I’m also scatterbrained. And full of avocado and cheese whiz, but that shouldn’t affect my writing. enough with the short sentences: let us begin the ramble. Tonight’s topic is Social media! We’re in a distinctly different phase of human conversation and communication then we were just a decade ago. None of the popular social media technologies are absolutely novel and brand new to this age. They build on the history of bulletin board systems (BBS), internet relay chat (irc) and probably dozens of other technologies that I don’t remember. Nerds have been using these methods of building alternate communities for a long time, but the difference is mainstream adoption. When your mom has a facebook page and chats with you and your friends, you’re mainstream. And it doesn’t get more mainstream than the inevitable flood of businesses trying to leverage social media to sell their wares. What’s really interesting about Facebook’s popularity is the perception that is somehow is a private place, when it’s much more like a virtual public commons. We saw a small group of very dumb and sad young men learn that people pay attention to Facebook. People like police officers. These foolish lads thought that the rules of society were relaxed during the riot, and so they smiled widely for the many cameras present. Imagine their forlorn surprise when those same pictures were circling the world and bringing the brunt of societal disapproval and legal ramifications home to roost. They really didn’t think that you could be held accountable for the things posted to Facebook. Oops. You could choose to focus on the dumb young men who were at the centre of the Vancouver riot, but the more compelling outcome of the riot was the almost immediate community response. Through Facebook, local Vancouverites were able to voice their outrage, and more importantly, come together to plan a cleanup effort for the very next day. The message sent from those concerned citizens was one of cooperation and community spirit, and it was an uplifting event. There will always be people who seek out opportunity to make a mess and create chaos: you can mitigate their actions, but dummies will be dummies. But, we’re reaching a point where the digital community is wide-spread enough and cohesive enough that they have a clear voice. I think that’s an exciting development. We have to hold each other accountable for our actions, and these citizens did just that. Important proviso: I do not in any way support harassment or persecution. The rioters should feel the collective scorn of the community, but they should still enjoy the rights and privileges afforded to every Canadian by the charter of rights and freedoms and our laws. Rules are rules.