Now that the secret is out about my upcoming wedding, I thought I would post some details regarding my whirlwind wedding experience so far. First up: becoming engaged. I must admit that I didn’t know much about this process except for the fairy-tale stories passed down to me through books, movies and other romantic exaggerations. In truth, becoming engaged is like joining a very exclusive club. At first, you can’t wait to be a member; you want to slip on that giant sparkler and yell, “Yes! Yes!” at the top of your lungs. Then… you have some reservations about membership… you ask yourself all the questions that shiny diamonds had initially banished from your mind: What will happen to your friendships with those fab girls who have not yet been invited to join? Are you ready for a lifetime commitment to membership? Are you ready to give up your strong, single, independent ways? What other sacrifices will you have to make to earn your place in the club: Frightening in-laws? Feuding families? Closet space? In truth, the transition is much more of an emotional one than society allows us to discuss, and much less of a Cinderella fairytale. Planning a wedding is a lot of work, and not always fun, shiny and beautiful. People will tell you this in a very superficial way, but let me explain it as plainly as I can: this experience will be a true test of your relationship. When things get tough, what will you do? When you disagree on the guest list or food choices, how will you resolve it? When you get stressed and overwhelmed, how will you react? Will planning “the most important day of your life” ruin it? That, my friends, is up to you. I’m just here to warn you that the wedding planning process will test you as a couple, and if you can make it to the wedding day and still want to take that walk down the aisle then you’ve passed. Be kind to each other, try to fight fair, kiss and make up, and most importantly remember that you’re in it together, for better or for worse. I can’t help but wonder… why aren’t there any classes for life’s most important tests?

Happy Monday! Today, in honour of Earth Hour's passing (despite my protests) I have chosen to display some incredible photography taken by Rune Guneriussen. I think the beautiful lights in the darkness of nature is quite poetic. Enjoy!

Today I take a small break from ranting and leave it to the professionals. Christopher Hume of the Toronto Star wrote a very poignant article about Earth Hour 2008 in Toronto that I would like to share with you. http://www.thestar.com/article/407471 I realize that although I protest (in a previous post) that Earth Hour seems to be a waste of time and resources, I still believe in the message: Save the Earth. I still plan to turn out my lights; no television, no laptop, no cheating. For me, I take this statement to heart, and my concern is that I may be alone in this, or at least in a very small minority. This small action does not seem to incite the desired awareness, change, or have any impact on the population at large. I want to see results, not just feeble attempts, and it seems that the only way to turn out those lights is by force, like in the Blackout. Despite all of this, I have a small, but burning hope that we will see a darkened skyline tonight at 8:30. I can’t help but wonder… will hope burn out if the lights stay on?

Hey Canadian government! Remember me? I was born here! I have numerous forms of identification to prove it, not to mention an entire extended family that also lives here and countless friends who can vouch for me also. I should have prefaced this rant with the facts. First, I am getting married this summer. Second, in order to make the marriage legal we need to obtain a marriage license (sounds simple, right?). Third, in order to escape for some romantic relaxation on our honeymoon, I need to renew my passport. Following so far? I hope so. Apparently I have lost our government in this process, and they have forgotten that I exist. For those who have not made the right of passage into married bliss, let me explain. In order to obtain a marriage license you require a birth certificate, passport (or driver’s license) and for one of you to apply in person. Oh, and you also need to fill out an application form containing all of this information as well. Somehow between my passport application (which also requires birth certificate, driver’s license, witnesses and a guarantor) and my marriage license application the government has gotten confused. The result of this is that I have to produce all of this information repeatedly over and over again. I feel like a monkey dancing for the pleasure of a sadistic tormenter. Let me ask you, the intelligent public, a simple question… I have a passport, obtained using the above mentioned identification and hoop jumping, can I please have a marriage license if I show you my passport? Logical response: “Yes, of course! Congratulations on your impending nuptials, we wish you all the best. Go Canada!” The Government of Canada’s response: “NO! You must be some sort of illegal immigrant! You must have stolen that passport, and we don’t care if you have a wallet full of matching identification and have lived in Canada for your whole life. We need to see all your information AGAIN. We need to see your original birth certificate, AND your passport, AND we need you to fill out this form with all of your passport information and birth certificate information, AND you need to show up here in person so we can question you and ask you all of this information AGAIN. Only then, will we be able to verify that it is in fact you (insert slap in the face here).” I can’t help but wonder… what’s the point of having identification if it can’t be used to identify us?

First let me start by saying that I’ve been a fan of Britney Spears for ages… since the very beginning. She’s beautiful and more importantly smart. She’s managed to use the talent that she possesses to establish a career, which has sent her straight to the top of the charts and into the hearts of millions. I have to admit that for a little while I lost my faith. How can such a strong woman with all the resources in the world fall apart so completely? But then I realized that we all fall down, and as our parents tell us, the important thing is to get back up again. That is what Britney is doing, and the public and media could not be less supportive. After seeing Britney in concert last week, my love and admiration for the pop-star has once again been renewed. She looked amazing, sounded amazing (although pre-recorded) and put on a fantastic show. Taking into account her tumultuous personal life I am even more impressed with her than I have been in the past. It takes a lot of work to rise to the top, but much more to rise from the ashes. As a strong woman myself, who has experienced her fair share of crazy moments, I can relate to Britney’s trouble, although admittedly not to the same extent. However I didn’t have to get through it all with the entire world watching me. For Pete sakes people, have a little compassion! In the entertainment world, the media can go hot or cold in an instant and will pounce on any hint of human pain and suffering that it can exploit. I can’t help but wonder… will the media finally back off when Brit hits (#1 on the charts) baby one more time?

Earth Hour is approaching; On Saturday night we're going to shut off the lights between 8:30 and 9:30 PM. This will signal our vote for action against climate change. Now I must first mention that I would consider myself to be an environmentalist. However, I see this one hour as more like a statement than an actual call for change. How many people will continue to shut off all the power in their homes every night at 8:30? How many will install programmable thermostats and buy energy efficient light bulbs? Would it not make more sense to have a statement that will result in lasting change? Like Energy Efficient Bulb Day where you must turn off all the lights in your home that do not use energy efficient light bulbs. Then the lights on would make a statement. When this day is over, most will go back to their old energy wasting ways, and realistically, why shouldn't they? A normal family cannot live in the dark everyday, so what does a one hour power outage really tell us about our energy use? People need to have their eyes opened to how small changes that they make in their everyday choices can impact the planet. Encouraging them to make a change that will make a difference seems like a much more valuable use of time and resources that asking them to make a statement that will not yield tangible results. I can't help but wonder... how many of us will continue to live in the dark once the lights are turned back on?

After a marathon of blog name checking, I have finally arrived. I am now a fully inducted member of the blogosphere. My first issue is along these lines... why are all the good blog names taken by people who have only ever posted one comment, if that? Talk about commitment problems. People, please give up your blogs if you are no longer using them! Eventually we will run out of names all together, and in the meantime your blog could be used by someone who actually wishes to make a contribution to society and the internet at large. I'm sure many other bloggers have experienced this problem when trying to start their own blogs. With the environment and sustainability in the forefront of everyone's mind these days, should we not apply these concepts to technology as well? I can't help but wonder... should there be a time limit on how long you can hold onto a blog name before it is recycled?