Jee shucks RBC, you shouldn’t have!

I went by the apartment today to drop off something for my tenant and pick up any mail that may have accumulated. I noticed there was a sticker on the mailbox indicating a delivery, so I went by the concierge and signed for it.

Imagine my surprise when I open the small envelope and see not one but two RBC Visa gift cards from Michel Savoie (see previous post)! Included was a note that reads:

Hello Saima,

Just wanted to send a little extra thanks for being an RBC Client! Should you ever have any other issues, don’t hesitate to contact me directly. Have a happy holiday season!

Regards,
Michel Savoie

As I mentioned in my previously, I was really happy at the attention I received from Michel at RBC and his attempt to resolve the matter. Getting a personalized hand-written note in the mail (along with gift cards) shows a real dedication to customer service. Thanks RBC, I’m going to go out and buy another pair of boots all because of you!

Update on RBC Customer Service Situation

After writing my nasty entry on Tuesday, I fired off an edited version of the text to RBC (I did not direct it to any particular department, just used the simple form on their website). Not expecting any sort of response, I was surprised to receive the following email in less than an hour:

Hello Saima:

My name is (omitted for privacy) and I'm very sorry to hear about your experience. As an RBC client, you deserve much better than this. While the poor service you experienced is unusual and not the standard of our centres, there's no excuse for this kind of attitude on the part of any of our employees.

Holds can be placed on any negotiable item at each branches discretion. In general, hold periods are:

- For cheques and other negotiable items in Canadian or U.S. currency, drawn on a Canadian branch of a Canadian financial institution: 5 business days
- For cheques and other negotiable items drawn on a U.S. bank: 15 business days
- For cheques and other negotiable items drawn on non-U.S. foreign banks: 25 business days

You can find out more on our hold policy on our website, at:

www.rbcroyalbank.com/products/deposits/hold-policy

Your business is important to us, Saima. We hope you'll give us another chance to serve you.

Thank you for taking the time to express your feelings about the service you received. We appreciate hearing from our clients-your comments are vital in order for us to continue improving our service.

We'll be happy to help you again if there's anything else you’d like to discuss.

If you prefer, you can call us at 1-800-769-2555. Also, look for the option to chat live with us on select pages on www.rbcroyalbank.com.

Sincerely,

(Omitted for privacy)
Customer Service Representative
Royal Bank of Canada

Not only did I receive the email, this morning I received notifications that @RBC and @MichelSavoie were following me on Twitter but didn’t pay much attention; it is not incredibly difficult to set up an auto-follow based on certain key-words in the world of Twitter. However, I revisited my previous entry this afternoon and saw that Michel Savoie had read my entry and offered an explanation of his own. You can read it here. Looks like I was wrong.

But was I really? Now my biggest pet peeve is that the CSR on the phone gave me completely different information than what the Teller and internet CSR relayed. Please sort out all company policies before allowing people to communicate with customers.

At the end of it all, I’m a big softie. I’m astounded at not only the attention given to my little blog post, but also the speed at which the people over at Royal responded to it. RBC, I hate you you are forgiven. I’m back to loving my blue debit card.

RBC Customer Service Fail

My family and friends tell me when I get really angry, I can be a very mean and nasty person. I certainly hope so, at least in cases where a person whose main responsibility is customer service fails to do so.

As I mentioned earlier, I have finally found a suitor for my lovely apartment. The tenant handed me two bank drafts (or money orders) last night for his deposit. Now, let’s pause here and re-read what I just wrote.

Bank drafts.

Also known as money orders.*

Those things that banks charge you $6.50 for. Each. Oh, and the money is already accounted for once those drafts are made.

Now, my tenant actually works for Bank of Montreal so I assume he has some credibility behind the documents he hands me.

Moving along, I went to the RBC branch at University Avenue and Dundas Avenue this morning to cash in those money orders and transfer the money to my dad. The teller promptly said that he would have to put a hold on both of them for five (5) business days to make them clear. When I asked him why, he said it’s just the way it is, it would be different if I was depositing cash (no shit, Sherlock). He said they were unverified and it takes five (5) business days for them to get cleared by the other financial institution and to make sure everything is legit.

So I left not wanting to give up the drafts because, though I didn’t know much about bank drafts, this sounded a little odd to me. I headed over to the BMO across the street and asked them what their process was. They informed me that unfortunately I could not cash the drafts with them, however any financial institution would just be able to call the branch where the draft was created to verify the account holder’s funds.

After this, I moseyed on back to work and decided to do a little online research about what the reality was. RBC’s website wasn’t too helpful but provided with a phone number I could call. I called Customer Service, not releasing my name or account information, and pretended to be a customer inquiring about what the process to get a bank draft made would be.

The CSR was very polite and told me that most drafts act as guaranteed money and can be cashed by the receiver immediately. If there is any issue, the receiver’s financial institution would call RBC to verify the account holder’s funds. He also mentioned that he personally answers various calls of such a nature on a daily basis. I asked him if there would ever be a situation where the draft could not be cashed immediately and why. He responded by stating if the receiver’s account had any flags from previous transaction, the draft may be held for two (2) business days only.

Hearing this, I told him what had just happened with me at the RBC branch and asked if my account had any flags. After getting my account information, he cleared me for being able to receive bank drafts of the monetary value I had disclosed to him, and stated there should be no problem when I returned to a branch.

I head back over to RBC after hearing this (hopping mad by this time) and spoke to a different teller, outlining the situation. She not-so-politely informed me that the draft would be subject to a five (5) business day hold. I told her what the CSR had told me and she did the following:

1) Asked me for his name
2) Said the Customer Service reps don’t know what actually happens at branches
3) Things have changed

Nevertheless, she went to speak with her manager and returned to tell me that they would process the drafts for me just this once but in general, it was a rule that they had to put holds on them. I snidely said that maybe RBC should have better training and education, to which she laughed sarcastically and agreed with me.

Then she went on to say this:

“Bank drafts are basically the same as personal cheques.”

I looked at her in disbelief and asked her why the website would state otherwise. She had no answer, getting pretty upset with my snooty attitude by now (in my defense, I had to spend a good portion of my lunch hour to get this sorted out). She reiterated that I would not be able to enjoy the same privileges of same day deposit again and to please have a good day.

Now, RBC, please explain to me why I should remain a customer to a bank who even though has excellent customer service otherwise, treated me with such disregard in this instance. Forget about me, why does RBC charge $6.50 for a money order or a draft that it itself will not accept as a secure payment method?

I have been a loyal customer since I started depositing the meager earnings of my babysitting job when I was 14 or so. Through high school, university and now my first job, I have stuck by RBC and boasted about your excellent customer service to all. It seems you just don’t care about me the same I did about you.

* RBC distinguishes drafts and money orders by monetary amount attached. Other Canadian banks don't distinguish between them.

Bye bye apartment

Finally signed a lease renting out the apartment tonight...so sad about it. I know I had moved home already but it was still something that was my own for a whole five years of my life. I just hope my new tenant has as much fun as I did in my old home.

Sniff sniff.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone

Still alive

I'm still alive! Life's been a little crazy lately what with the engagement and life in general. I shall post something substantial soon!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod Touch

Of conferences and such

This year, I decided to get involved in an annual conference organized and run by Ryerson ITM students. I never participated in any such activities while being in school, and looking back I think that was a huge mistake. Conferences like these are the breeding grounds for new ideas and innovative thinking. It's conferences such as this one that have the brightest minds of our generation as it's leaders and organizers.

That may have been one of my main reasons for volunteering to be a part of this year's event. The head guys are two of the smartest people I've ever met in the industry, including all the professionals I've worked for during my co-op placements. Their thought process and formulation is so beyond what most people our age are capable of (is that too harsh? meh); I'm hoping by spending some time with them and being exposed to their way of thinking, I'll be able to become a little more academic as well.

I really miss mom and Shaista.

I know I know, it’s really dorky because it’s only been like 10 days and they are coming back in 16 days (yes, there IS a countdown going!) but the house feels really empty without the two of them. At least we’re coping (kinda sorta, yay for Baj cooking for us!) but Dad seems so lost and lonely hehe. He denies it, but we all know that he really misses mom and being able to tease her like he usually does when he’s home. He kinda wanders around the house, plays his solitaire (like always), sleeps at odd hours, and complains about the food. I do know he is already thinking of ways to bug mom when she comes back though – he seems to be compiling a list of ways to get her aggravated upon her return!

So mommy, Shaista, this post is for you guys. We miss you guys =\

All good things come to an end, our good times ended a long time ago

Main Entry: friendship
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: companionship
Synonyms: accord, acquaintanceship, affection, affinity, agreement, alliance, amiability, amicability, amity, association, attachment, attraction, benevolence, closeness, coalition, comity, company, concord, consideration, consonance, devotion, empathy, esteem, familiarity, favor, favoritism, fondness, friendliness, fusion, good will, harmony, intimacy, league, love, pact, partiality, rapport, regard, sociability, society, sodality, solidarity, understanding

Antonyms: enmity, hate, hatred

I ran into a recent acquaintance last night and the topic of severed friendships came up. We have both attempted to salvage a relationship with a particular person but have both more or less given up. I think to others who are close to situation, it appears as though I simply don’t care anymore and am being hateful by giving up; I disagree. I see how venomous I can become and would rather remove any element that would enable me to act in such a way from my social surrounding. I do not want to be spiteful, and if I continue my relationship with this person, I would undoubtedly become more aggressive (more so than I am already haha).

J. K. Rowling wrote Sirius Black as saying: "We've got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are." I know who I want to be and I am not going to get there without making changes.

Day 1 of the hands-free law in Ontario

Why is it that people are prepossessed to be opposed to any new idea instead of accepting it? Far from any valid data collection, I’ve been observing people in Toronto for the past few weeks and it’s astounding the amount of energy people put into resisting change.

Toronto’s hands-free law came into effect today, preventing drivers from using their hands to answer/place calls, texts, emails, watch videos, use GPS devices, etc. while driving. The discussions surrounding the new law have been plentiful in the past months. My friends and family are included in the group of people who are pretty horrible drivers when they text/talk on the phone while driving, yet insist they can handle any situation that arises. One of my friends from university actually claimed that he didn’t mind the fine and would gladly pay the maximum of $500 if that meant he could answer his phone. WTF? Who the hell do you really think you are? It is this sort of ridiculous of thinking that encourages dangerous and reckless driving that can lead to disastrous events occurring on the road.

It broke my heart to read about the jackass who was driving (impaired) at a speed of 200 km/h by Jane and Finch. (http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2009/10/20/11458696-sun.html) His stupidity killed three people, with one more fighting for their life. His actions affected many more. He has single handed ripped apart families and destroyed the lives of so many affected. Why? Why do people have this notion of their actions not affecting anyone else? Why do people always think that it will not be them who ever gets into any type altercation. Just yesterday, I was in the car with a family member who remarked “don’t worry, nothing’s going to happen…you’re wearing your seat belt right?” I hate when people jest in such manner about such serious matters. Why do people assume that distancing yourself from such a possibility will make it any less real?

Back to the cell phone ban in Ontario, this article talks about drivers who still refuse to comply, whether it be for selfish reasons or because they didn’t know about the new law (bullshit!). The interesting thing is, shouldn’t a human being cognitively realize that multitasking in such a manner (especially by texting and/or emailing while driving) can take away from the act of driving itself and distract you greatly?

Listening to CBC radio in the morning, I heard about a study found that 20% of drivers thought they were exceptional, 60% thought they were above average, and 20% thought they were average. No one wants to believe their driving skills are below average, yet distracted drivers run amok in our society causing irrevocable damage to the people in it. Why are people so opposed to change when it’s being made to benefit everyone?

Mercatto - 15 Toronto Street

BM, UR and S head to Mercatto on 15 Toronto Street last night for an early dinner. I ordered the Gnudi, which was absolutely divine! There was some spinach and cheese goodness baked in there, and the whole dish was drizzled in some light tomato sauce. Anyhows, the company was great and the conversation (once we got past the other three talking about their work) was very stimulating. It is nights like this that I miss the most after having moved back home.

Still, I’m glad I got out yesterday to meet up with a few very interesting people.

Of writing breaks and more...

I haven’t blogged in a while, whether it be on some of my public blogs or on my private one. I’ve had a lot to say, just no drive to put those thoughts into words. I didn’t think about it too much until I came across this post. I used to be very proud of my writing skills when I was younger, acing all my essays and creative writing pieces throughout high school. When I started university though, those abilities have fallen behind. I prioritized organizing my thoughts better and making my point – because who in technology actually cares for how the written word is structured?

I think it’s time to get back to improving my writing though. Becoming better at being more understandable and writing posts that people enjoy reading; becoming more of the person I used to be before university.

In that light, I suppose it’s time to face my greatest failure in the recent past. Meeting with a group of people and finding out that you really aren’t as impressionable as you like to be is a blow to the ego that I had to experience to realize that I need to bring my life back on track. I have certain short-term goals and aspirations, but simply talking and fantasizing about them will not yield any results. Any level of success needs a stable and actionable plan, which I have started to formulate. The next steps are to research and decide which path is best for me, and then start to follow it with all I have.

Sushi Island, Little Italy, Toronto

AA and I head over to Little Italy last night to try out the infamous Sushi Island for their all-you-can-eat special. He got the Salmon Skin roll and the Green Dragon roll, and I ordered the Salmon Teriyaki roll and Fire & Ice roll. We also got a plate of yam tempura for the table. AA said he didn’t really like his food too much but he isn’t much of a sushi connoisseur to begin with; on the other hand, I had very high expectations for this place. The two rolls I got were very unconventional and had a distinctly non-traditional flavour. Because both he and I had been fasting all day, we really couldn’t each that much and effectively wasted the all-you-can-eat option. I think I’ll revisit it with S who loveees sushi as much if not more than I do, get the sashimi and stick with the traditional rolls.

After having dinner, we head back to my building and hung out on the terrace to enjoy the night view of downtown Toronto. The buildings, the people, the noise...I'm really going to miss this place when I move out.

Can't Wait

I know how sad it is that I miss my sister, but I really can't wait for S to come back to Toronto tomorrow night! I've missed having someone to go out and have dinner with. Sigh. Less than 2 days now!

Commensal - 655 Bay Street

I tried out Commensal with AB and SS last night after walking around Elm Street a little bit. It's a vegetarian restaurant on Elm that has a lot of variety for those looking for an alternative to the meat eateries out there.

The concept is pretty simple, there's a cold and hot buffet to choose from, as well as a dessert line. Make sure you are prepared for steep prices though - they charge by weight and it can add up.

Funnies and TIFF

I absolutely love Google Reader. Some of the feeds I’ve subscribed to are great, always posting random things that make me smile. My fave’s have to be ‘What’s Hot in Google Reader’ and ‘WebUrbanist’. The following are some pretty nifty things I found because of those two subscriptions:

The Matrix running on Windows: Funny parody, must watch it!

Genderanalyzer: Analyze any website to see if it’s been written by a man or a woman!

Finally, Toronto International Film Festival (or TIFF) is planning on having numerous free TIFF screenings at Yonge-Dundas Square this year. Head over to their website to check out the schedule.

Straight Talking by Jane Green

I just finished reading Straight Talking by Jane Green today. The synopsis, taken from the back cover, is:

Are you Tasha – single and searching?
Are you one of her three best friends?
Andy, hooked on passion;
Mel, stuck in a steady relationship with a bastard;
Or Emma endlessly waiting for her other half to propose?

Do you know an Andrew – suauve, good-looking and head over heels in love…with himself?
Or a Simon – allergic to commitment and dangerously treacherous?
Or an Adam – handsome, kind, humourous, but too nice to be sexy?

Follow them all in their odyssey to find fulfillment and the RIGHT kind of love in this novel that is very funny, painfully honest, sometimes sad but always on the button.

Though I can understand why some women will not be able to connect with the protagonist in the novel, I found this book thought-provoking and even liberating. The style of the prose was one I felt comfortable with, even though the language was a bit too crude for my liking (especially the descriptive sex scenes). Tasha uses the book as a way to talk to her readers and show them the realities of how a single 30 year old feels, and why she does the things she does.

I guess what resonated with me the most was how Tasha described her life; she said her group of friends were ladettes – those girls that had more guy friends than girl friends in their 20s because that is who they connected with. Those girls who searched their lives for a stable, loving relationship but never really found it. The fantasies about passion and love, even though appearing on the outside as not really needing it in their real life.

I read the book and found many parallels to my own life – in my 20s now, I do have more guy friends than girl friends because I simply do not how to act around girls. I appear on the outside as not wanting love and passion, but dream about it for hours on end. I think that most girls want to end up with a nice guy (like Adam) but crave the attention and thrills of assholes that treat them like crap.

I think the book is pretty trashy but one that people should read if they identify with the characteristics of being a ladette. There are times when I wanted to scream and yell at Tasha because of the crap she was doing, but I realized by the end of the book that it is always easier to reprimand the actions of others but much harder to be objective when it comes to one’s self.

Furqan Muhammad-Haroon's 15-seconds of fame (and idiocy)

I am so frustrated with recent “fake” abductions.

Consider this a warning, this is a long and lengthy post, poorly organized and more a rant than anything else.

Does anyone remember the story about a New Brunswick woman being forced at gunpoint to drive a man 17 hours to Toronto? I read it first here when news broke out that Marcia Simmons was car-napped and told to drive to Steeles and Don Mills from her home in New Brunswick. In case that link is dead, check it out here.

There was initial shock about how something like this could occur in broad daylight. As more facts surfaced, Simmons recanted her story and admitted to it being false. In case that link is dead, check it out here.

After that came to light, I was astonished at why a person would fake their own abduction and case so many people anguish and despair. When another such story broke the headlines in the past week, I did not even stop to think that the abducted, in this case 22 year old Furqan Muhammad-Haroon, would try to fake his own capture. His “kidnapping” was chronicled by Toronto Star from the beginning to end, which you can find here with links to original Toronto Star articles (or just Google him and read for yourself).

Hours after his alleged abduction, a Facebook group was created to help find him; I joined because I truly felt bad for him and his family to be suffering in such a way during Ramadan. Add to that the expenses his family incurred due to flying back to Toronto from their vacation and the grief in his father’s voice when he pleaded for his son’s return, and I was a goner for this cause. At last check (meaning, when I left the group in disgust) the member count was at over 1,000 people. This morning, the group had disappeared, likely deactivated because of his friends being ashamed at Furqan’s behavior. Unfortunately I did not take any screenshots of the things people were saying on this discussion board about everything that has come to be (the wall was deactivated. Surprise surprise); his Facebook profile is still open for people to see though, so I thought I would nab some pictures before that is locked away as well:







Okay, now let’s step back shall we? I don’t want to judge this man before he’s had a say in court (can’t wait to read about that in a couple hours) because we all know media loves to sensationalize everything. However, this is what I’ve been able to gather so far:

1) He was abducted from a road in Scarborough in broad daylight (so he says), on the day he was supposed to fly out to meet his vacationing family.
2) A group was formed on Facebook asking for his return; this group urged people to email a TorStar reporter with stories about his character but to please refrain from mentioning his financial troubles. This is where I started to get a little uneasy about everything.
3) His parents and brother flew back from their vacation to beg for his return.
4) The public is made aware that Furqan was fired from IBM recently because of theft for under $5,000. His court date was set for mid-September.
(Let’s pause. He’s flying out when he has a court date scheduled? Is that even legal?)
5) Apparently not. The police start to suspect that there was no actual abduction.
6) An anonymous call was made and Furqan Muhammad-Haroon was located in St. Catherines, Ontario safe and alone. He was taken into custody and charged with public mischief. A court date was set for 10am today (August 26).

Assuming what the media is saying is true and the man did fake his own abduction, it begs the question Why? Why put your friends and family through this ordeal? I can almost picture him planning this out, thinking it would be alright. Someone must be truly desperate to hide something like a theft charge from their parents to even begin to think this could work. He is going to lose (or has already lost) the respect of many classmate, friends, and colleagues. What’s worse though is how this will affect his family. The Muslim/Pakistani community is a very tight-knit one that is prone to a lot of gossip. People are always looking for a new scandal to talk about; I can’t imagine what his parents are going through right now knowing that (even if there is some modicum of truth in all this) their family’s name and reputation has been tainted for good.

What bugs me even more than that is how this story will negatively impact all Muslims. No one discussed Marcia Simmons’ religion when her story broke, but people continuously referenced religion in this case, which may have been a huge mistake. Furqan was hailed as a “good Muslim boy” with strong values and morals who would never do anything wrong. Nice. Good morals and values eh? When was it Islamic to steal from their workplace?

Finally, what irritates me the most is how events like those surrounding Marcia Simmons and Furqan Muhammad-Haroon can impact future abductions. When people are actually in trouble, the public may believe that this is simply another hoax by someone. The chances of dedicated support and service to those individuals may be compromised (however unwillingly) by the actions of these people. Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.

Dundas Square/Toronto Life Centre

I love Yonge-Dundas Square/Toronto Life Centre.

S and I headed over to the Futureshop located on Yonge Street (just north of Dundas) to check out their super duper crazy exciting customer appreciation day deals. Didn’t find anything that crazy or exciting actually. I was really hoping that they had some kind of special on this DSLR I’m looking into getting for the family (just in time for wedding preps) but no deal. They did have a 500gb hard drive and a 1tb hard drive that looked so tempting (I LOVE all things storage) but had to remind myself (repeatedly) that I had enough of it at home (and no computer to speak of).

Speaking of computers, every time I would wander into the laptop/Apple computer section of the store, I would be hounded by numerous salespeople looking to “help” me out. That’s great and all, but leave a girl alone! I just wanna play on the shiny machines before making a decision on something. The ratio of employees to customers who wanted to be helped was skewed!

After spending a little bit of time there, we headed to Dundas Square to wait for D so we could go catch a movie at the AMC. I absolutely love love love Dundas Square. Just sitting there and observing the hundreds of people who pass through it is soothing and relaxing. The multicultural mix of people all coming together seems a bit surreal. I think it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to just go sit in a public space and enjoy being without having to worry about explaining your actions or thoughts to anyone. For all the daydreaming I’ve been doing about moving to a small, remote community (preferably in the north) I sure do love being in a large city where you are just one of a few million, where you blend into the sidelines and remain a quiet bystander watching the world pass or you can meet hundreds of people every day, all with interesting tales to tell.

So we hung out there until D showed up and then headed to AMC to watch Post Grad. One word. AWFUL. That movie had all the elements of a somewhat pleasing romantic comedy: cute leads, interesting premise, and a dribbling of humour. What it lacked was good acting (Alexis Bledel, how can you suck that much?), direction, and originality. It seems the crew wanted to squish as much as they could into this movie and failed to build any one theme properly. I would definitely not recommend anyone watch that, be it in the theatre, your home or a horrid version on the internet. That is 1 hour and 45 minutes of my life that have been wasted with no redeeming factor (okay fine – Zach Gilford mmm).

Following the movie, S and I headed to Doner or Doner Kabob House (don’t know if that’s the official name). It’s on Yonge Street, just south of Gerrard Street next to the Big Slice. This place has the best chicken and rice with garlic sauce combo you will find in downtown Toronto. Their hot sauce is pretty awesome too, but be ready for some heartburn if you aren’t used to it. I love the family that runs it, always cheerful and who always remember my order. The lady often asks me about my: day/mom/work/school. It’s a staple in my diet, and one of the things I’m going to miss most about living in the heart of the city.

Box 1 and 2

I'm dreading the move out of downtown.

So I was able to pack one large tote box of clothes and a small cardboard box of personal books and DVDs to bring home yesterday. It was pretty sad packing everything and moving the stuff back home, to say the very least. S and I were both feeling kinda down about the prospect of packing up everything else in the next two weeks and moving it all back home. Sigh. I'm going to miss living in downtown.

On another note, S and I went down to Gerrard Street (Toronto's India Bazaar) with AB and an few out of towners last night. We decided to eat at Lahore Tikkah House (why we still go there is beyond me) and were coaxed into trying their new Ribs. One word. Awful. I ended up spitting out most of the meat because it had been overcooked. On the plus side, the side of potatoes that came with it were pretty yummy.

After having dinner, the five of us decided to walk around for a bit and were able to catch the end of a street festival happening there. Yesterday was a group of singers (may have been Rajasthani) accompanied by a female dancer who entertained with traditional songs and dances. The girl danced first with multiple clay pots on her head (or Matkas), balanced later on nails, and then performed the cobra dance. Pretty fun to watch. The whole week is supposed to have interesting live events for the people of Toronto to enjoy (check out the details at: http://www.festivalofsouthasia.com/schedules.html)

Finally, Ramadan Kareem to all those Muslims celebrating the start of the holy month of fasting today. Hope it's a good and safe one for all those partaking in it =)

Toronto Thunderstorm

I hate storms.

I was never really scared of them when I was a kid, always enjoying the feeling of playing in the cool rain and seeing the random streaks of lightning light up the entire world. Those feelings have obviously changed in the recent past. The crazy storm we had last week was one of the worst I've ever experienced and I was hoping not to experience that again. One comforting thought during that storm was that I was able to shepard everyone (okay force) into the basement for any just-in-case scenario. Today, I'm stuck in the apartment alone, listening to the howling winds outside tear at the city.

I guess I should do something to take my mind off things, so I've put on a movie that is silly/stupid enough to entertain. Here's hoping the distraction works.

Who Am I?

Everyday that passes brings me one day closer to moving back home with the parentals. It’s not that I hate my family or have some sort of repressed issues with them, I think I’ve just grown to the freedom and independence of living as a single unit away from the politics of family life.

It’s not just about having the freedom or mobility to just up and meet whoever I want to meet and do whatever I want to do, it’s about having someone to answer to. I’ve gone the past five years without having to tell someone why I am doing something, where I am going and when I will be back. I have spent quite a few days alone, reading, writing or watching tv in solitude because I enjoyed doing so. I have gone out when I wanted to. I have never had to answer for my moods. This was all change once I move back home.

The moving part is inevitable I suppose, and honestly I’ve had five wonderful years filled with experiences that will last me a lifetime. If I am being honest with myself, what bugs me the most is realizing that my life is progressing a lot faster than I want it to. All through my formative years (aka middle & high school), all I wanted to do was grow up and be taken seriously. Once I hit grade 12, I desperately clutched at the passing days of my final semester in fear of how different life would be in university. I cried, kicked a fuss and threw tantrums with my ego, hoping to convince myself that university was not the place for me and to take a year off to find myself.

In the end, responsibility prevailed and I ended up joining university, where I had the most amazing time of my life. Each day I met with new challenges which ultimately made me grow as a person. Living alone was a huge plus, but meeting a diverse group of people at school was the best lesson I could have learned.

I went through my days at school not realizing what I had, looking forward to completing each course and getting a decent grade. I made friends effortlessly, sometimes losing them just as easily. I experienced lust, deception, jealousy, courage, betrayal, heartbreak, and true love. I met some people who I paid little regard to, others who I held too high in esteem. I treated some people with excessive love and respect, others with none whatsoever. I met those people that have stood by me through all the troubles in the recent past, and have never judged me too severely for the questionable things I have done.

All this I realize now, not even six months after graduation. I long for the days I was a scared freshmen heading to the first day of my class. I want to go back in time and experience everything all over again. Because, though I’m trying to avoid doing this, I’ve had to take a look at my life and I have no idea where I’m going or who I’m supposed to be.

Hello World

I live in Toronto and have a tendency to overthink.

I analyze everything that happens, from the overly exciting to the ridiculously mundane – hoping that my careful examination of passing events/conversations/happenings will somehow reveal the answer to all of my questions. With all that analysis, my brain sometimes goes a little neurotic (poor thing doesn’t expect to be worked this much) and there is no place for my jumbled thoughts to go. The most obvious answer I’ve been toying with is to write in a public blog of my own, and by publishing this my idea has finally come to fruition.

I'm a 20-something living in the heart of Toronto, the best city in Canada. I love meeting new people, going out, doing stupid things, eating out and experiencing new things. I have recently graduated from Ryerson University, successfully completing the Information Technology Management (ITM) co-op program there and currently work as an analyst in the public sector in downtown Toronto.

Till later then.

Toodles