It's really too bad that most of my readers don't get to see the cheesy ad for the new made-for-tv-movie called "Plague City: SARS In Toronto". First of all, I'll be the first to admit that Canadian television just isn't that good. That's not to say that we haven't turned out some fine shows that I have myself enjoyed, but where there has been a successful show there have been hundreds of duds.

Anyway! I get a good chuckle when watching the ad for this particular movie because it's trying to give a feeling of drama and high suspense. Ooh! SARS!!! I guess it's strange to me that someone would actually play UP on the events that happened when we as a city tried so hard to play DOWN what was happening since the press was having a field day and making it sound like we were all dropping dead in the streets. I am reminded of how angry Israelis get by how the world sees them as a war zone thanks to how the media portrays them, just as travel advisories were issued telling people to stay away from Toronto and it's cooties or you could die. It has taken us years to recover from it and have tourists come back. And let me tell ya, I took my first trip to Israel during the SARS scare and I had a sinus infection at the time. It was a real picnic having to fill out SARS forms at every airport when they realize you are from Cootieville and look and sound sick as a dog. Realizing this would be a problem I had gone to my doctor in advance to get a note explicitly stating that I did not have SARS.

So no, I am not much interested in this movie, and yes, I am glad that likely no one outside of Canada will see it.

In other news, I have a sudden interest in the Indy 500 thanks to one Danica Patrick. I normally don't give a crap about idiots who decide to drive around in circles at high speeds, but I AM interested in the flap this girl is causing in a clearly male-dominated field. The big news of course is that a few of the other drivers in the race have their shorts in a bunch because they say she has an advantage because she is smaller and therefore lighter. This means that her light weight would gain her a fraction of speed over her heavier male counterparts. The rules of the race state that a vehicle must weight at least "x amount" but it says nothing about how much the driver should weigh, and thus the feud. I say more power to her! Do you see jockeys in horse races bitching because one jockey is lighter than another? The horse races are a very clear example in which weight makes all the difference, thus the tiny little men they pick as jockeys. Perhaps this will bring about an evolution in car racing.... I shall be watching to see how this turns out.

And with that I shall go back to yet another weekend of junk purging/clutter removal in my apartment. I am almost done and I am so very thrilled with my results. As I see it, I will be moving some time this year... either to Israel for 5 months or in with a new roommate, and by doing this major cleanup and getting rid of junk I will never use, I have my possessions nicely streamlined down to the bare essentials. That will save me some stress and grief down the road when I may feel the pressure of a deadline.

Thanks to all of you for your support this week, it's been much appreciated. Some crazy events have had me on an emotional rollercoaster this past week or two, but I have been dealing with it. Purging junk out of my home and life has been *immensely* liberating, and I did 3 hours of meditation this morning with my group and I feel calmed and centered. I hope this week turns out better than the last two....

Have a good week, folks!