Nuit Blanche : Guelph Style

Last night was a busy night for taxi drivers. Not only was it Orientation week, it was also the Jazz Festival AND Nuit Blanche and just as an added bonus, it was also a full moon! Downtown Guelph was packed with students, artists and patrons of the arts all taking in the vast array of entertainment.

There were free music shows all day and all night at the Jazz Festival Tent, as well as in various locations around downtown. There was funk in an alley, a brass band in the square and improvised jazz in City Hall. The art installations were also at least as good as anything I saw in Toronto's Nuit Blanche last year. A drum set being played by water dripping from IV bags, paper butterflies hanging in trees by the water's edge, and a video showing how children see the world accompanied by apples and penguin crackers for snacks. Even the gimmicky stuff was cool - an advice booth, an artist drawing portraits through verbal description alone, and fire-breathing buskers.

It was quite a spectacular night to behold and though I wasn't able to do or see everything, I was constantly entertained and amazed by the creativity coming from this great city. I greatly look forward to next year's round of installations and who knows, I might even join in!

Election 2011

The results are still rolling in, but so far it looks like we're going to have another Conservative government with an NDP opposition. Many people seem to be upset about this, but to be honest, I think it was a good step forward.

Now, let me preface this by saying I am no political expert. I didn't really read much of any party's platform and most of what I know is hearsay, but it seems to me that this outcome isn't half bad. Time and time again, the winner is always either a Conservative or a Liberal. It would be nearly ludicrous at this stage in Canada's history to have thought that any other outcome was possible and I for one would not be content with Ignatieff as Prime Minister. My confidence in the Liberal party has been pretty shaky for a few years now and a Liberal government would make me sad.

As for NDP as the opposition, I think that's awesome! I've been a student up until a week or two ago, so as you can imagine, I'm fairly in favour of the NDP. Gaining official opposition status is a huge leap forward for the party and allows for Canadians to conceive of them as a big player in future elections.

I'm glad that the Green party has lost its hold on the uninformed and I'm even more glad that the Bloc Quebecois has lost its footing as well. Especially in times of crisis, Canada needs to be united and a separatist party is in direct conflict with that goal.

So yeah...I think this is possibly the best case scenario for this election while remaining in the real world.