Bright lights; a city makes

Dundas Square: After

Something went wrong in Dundas Square. Its like someone decided that a light-induced sensory haemorrhage was the right thing to do. That this gawdy attempt at Times Square would automatically legitimise Toronto as the Canadian ''Global City''. I could spit out my great distaste for this square if I didnt think that a) it would just end up stuck on the pavement until the rain washes it off or it dries off. Where did the green go? Its a square dominated completely by grey. The only colours come from the retina searing neon lights emitted by the billboards.  b) its nasty even to spit on public property even when its garish public property surrounded by equally garish private buildings. Though its not illegal. Spitting and littering is illegal in Hong Kong as well as in other Asian countries. We are just too good to care about the city.

Armchair environmentalists

If you could get by with just watching documentaries on the plight of having too many things and then calling yourself an environmentalist - you'd be watching this:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/category/environment/page/3/
Shame I wouldn't have the time - too busy saving the whales and sorts.  BUT Design:e2 is a nice series of 6 short documentaries. Narrated by Brad Pitt. And if you want more - Sustainable Cities follows the interesting theme of architecture and environment. No narration by Brad Pitt.

Asian teaching...

Some kids are born with it. Asian kids have it beat into them (no...not literally...not often anyways). Whether this is truth or myth - it still makes for a funny video. Yes. Asian parents are overzealous about education. It is the Chinese style.  But, for individuals coming from places that have or are experiencing strife, famine, or poverty, education is THE free ticket. Education means ahem ''lawyer, doctor..'' making money.  For most first generations, it is difficult to imagine the difficulty of finding the next meal when we already have an abundance of 24-hour convenience stores, snack carts, grocery stores, and fast food chains.  Actually, to put this dichotomy in perspective: ''The hunger of 800 million happens at the same time as another historical first: that they are outnumbered by the one billion people on this planet who are overweight''. Just think of that and try not to cry onto your cupcake. 

What would happen if I stopped wanting more things?