The Cosmopolitan Blog

So my european experience continues… on the tube… aaaah, the british tube!  Actually, i’ll be honest, it took me a while to remember, it wasn’t called the subway like in NYC, it wasn’t called the metro like in Montreal, or the T like in boston. it’s the underground, or the tube in good ol’ England.

I remember hating it when i was growing up here. I remember thinking the stations were dirty & old looking, the trains were run down, and i just remember wishing that something, anything! would change or get updated.

I got to montreal & thought, waow, now this is nice. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m starting to draw a mighty big list of cons, when it comes to technology. Surprising, considering it’s the field i work in… or not… i hear those who work in chocolate factories never want to eat another piece of chocolate ever again, so….

For something that’s supposed to make us more productive, have u ever counted how much time you spend fiddling with, fine-tuning that technology for it to ACTUALLY do what you want it to do? Settings new systems up, figuring out how to make them better, fixing something that doesn’t work, installing product updates, rebooting, watching progress bars… UGH. I’d love someone to actually study this and tell us if we’re actually more productive or if we’re just more… well… busy…

We complain that the computer is making jobs obsolete, but what about all those jobs created to make sure that technology actually works?

Today, as i continue my european experiment, i realize one thing… technology takes your attention away from life. When you’re watching tv, it’s time you’re NOT spending outside taking a walk, when you’re surfing the Read the rest of this entry »

So here I am. England. London. I grew up here. And i’m back, staying at my mom’s, taking care of her as she recovers from a knee operation. Translation: i have NOTHING to do for a week. And i’m not a tourist here. And i don’t particularly love this city (long story)… so what does one do? Return to my blog, for 1. But i had an idea for an experiment, you know me, ever the sociologist.

Let us compare european and north american cultures for a week. I grew up in the former and couldn’t deal with the laissez-faire attitude, I longed for the hyper-productive, go-go-go attitude of the latter, so i moved there. A decade later, and i look back at the other side of the pond and wonder if these europeans hadn’t actually figured something out. 5 weeks vacation is the norm. Good food. Historical patrimony and traditions. Sidewalk cafés…. hmm….

So this is my goal this week. Compare. Not to draw conclusions, after all, seeing the sizable population living in each, i’m thinking there’s no clear winner or looser. But to understand. Stay tuned…

A friend asked me the other day what my creative outlet was, and I realized i don’t really have one. I mean, i love to write, but I don’t even blog that often. I love to cook, but i only cook creatively once in a while (the rest is just auto-pilot-gotta-fill-the-fridge-and-use-the-ingredients-i-just-bought). I love photography but don’t make time for it, even in the fabulous city i live in (it only seems to come out when i go on trips). I don’t paint or draw because i think i suck at it. i give speeches occasionally but struggle with the creative “finding a topic” part which reduces the number of speeches I do actually give.

So last week, this seed was planted and i couldn’t ignore it. Read the rest of this entry »

Peace is the antonym of war, right? The word ‘peace’ and the word ‘anti-war’ mean the same right? Because obviously, if you’re anti-war, then you’re pro-peace, right?

WRONG.

Mother Teresa once said “I was once asked why I don’t participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I’ll be there.” My hero Greg Mortenson said “If you fight terrorism, that’s based in fear. But if you promote peace, that’s based in hope”.

If you’re trying to stop wars, then all your doing is focusing on those wars and conflicts, and the more you focus on something, the more it perpetuates. If your focus is peace, however, then your mind and your heart is thinking, feeling, visualizing peace.

That’s all folks. No lengthy drawn-out conclusion, let the giants speak. Have a good weekend!