Toronto (2)

There’s a thing called the Internet where we can sometimes… surprise, surprise… shop for stuff and then hope to receive it at our homes with as much ease as it is described and promoted on the websites selling the stuff. That much I’ve understood.

Or, let me cut through the chase and get straight to the point (for once on this blog, eh?)

I order stuff on the internet frequently to save time and money tremendously, as compared to what’s available at brick and mortar stores. Nice and easy, and a painless procedure which takes minutes.

Tough economic times mean tightening belts. Governments are scaling back financial commitments and consumers are holding back unnecessary purchases. Even kids are having their allowances cut.

Of course, these are all boilerplate clichés. In real life, human nature compels us not to miss out on a great deal — something the marketing industry will continue to reap rewards with, and the marketing industry will happily tag along (I should know, I used to be in such a business during my pre-Canadian career-gifted life.) But I digress.

By Brooke Wilkinson

Why did you want to leave your home country?

For a better life in a freer country.

Why did you decide to move to Toronto?

Because a family member lived here.

What family members or friends did you leave behind?

The recession and financial crisis have put tremendous pressure on the Canadian job market even for ‘real’ born-and-bred Canadians. Of course, for immigrants, that means ever more pressure to find employment and choosing a career when even during hunky-dory times they faced such scarcity of work — their high educational and professional backgrounds notwithstanding.

If there’s one thing here in Toronto, Ontario which makes toiling through its winters bearable, it’s the arrival of the summer, the season of summer and the return of summer.

Let me say it again if you’re missing the subtle point here: Summers here are what makes the winters bearable. Period.

It is indeed hard to believe, when one looks at the cityscape in summers, that just a few weeks ago, everything was covered deep in snow, ice and all that the winter leaves behind. It is really an experience for someone not used to all this during the better part of his previous life.

Much is being made of the cold weather “alerts”, as they’re called here. These remind me of those almost-Orwellian efficiency ‘campaigns’ at government departments when suddenly saving a bunch of paper-clips becomes top priority just because a ‘green week’ is being celebrated — when it really should be standard practice.

But if braving Canadian winters (as blogged earlier) in a previous suburban neighbourhood seemed a little getting used to

If you ever require a referral to a specialist, you first need to have a family doctor who could refer you to one. Fair enough.

However, I had no idea that getting yourself a family physician in Toronto, Ontario would be a task next to impossible – no, I think I’m being impolite here. Let me rephrase: it is impossible for someone new to get a family doctor here.