Today I canvassed the GO Station from 5:30 am, put up (and repaired) signs, canvassed a retirement home and some rather scary apartment buildings, did a debate on Rogers, met representatives of the Ismaili community, did phone canvassing and then joined a team to put stickers on pamphlets to fix a printing error.
I can barely remember this morning.
I don't remember if I ate.
Through it all there is a curious sense of disconnectedness. You just plod through what needs to be done and get it done.
Everything is delegated -- you focus on the urgent and, sometimes, the important. If someone else can do it, let them. But if you need to pitch in (as in stickers on pamphlets) you do it. No time for pride or ceremony.
Emotions ebb and flow -- a good word seems to energize and yet bad words are all around. Another vandalised sign upsets far more than it ought. Those who dislike your Party make their views blunt and everyday brings yet another call from someone with barely concealed rage about something -- and the blame falls to you.
To keep going requires the hide of a rhinoceros. And yet keep going one must.
I assume it is like this for all candidates.
But now it is the day's end. Time for sleep. Tomorrow is for literature drops... .
9 comments:
You didn't do all this. You paid someone to do it. You're just another fatcat Marxist living on the money you stool from poor working people.
Wow! That was harsh.
I've been following your posts from a local riding where I'm helping to elect a Liberal Morton. We actually shook hands and met at the Iggy rally in Scarborough. Having gone to school at UOIT, I have to say I'm really proud of the fight you're putting up in Oshawa. Going into neighborhoods that politicians never canvas is not only smart, but shows your compassion and pride in all of your riding. Keep fighting the good fight.
Hey James... I'm amazed you still have the energy to blog. Good on ya. You must have a lot of energy. Wish you all the best.
PS: Stuff Knut, or not?
You're running a better campaign than the last Liberal, that's for sure. Unfortunately, last time should have been an easy win for us, this time you have your work cut out for you.
It's been interesting reading your posts on the amount of work that goes into an election. I wish you luck.
Anon 10:27 sounds like need some help with anger & maybe civics 101
"and some rather scary apartment buildings"
Morton is a racist?
That is clearly a racist statement.
Morton is a racist.
Actually I better deal with the last post. As it happens, in the scary building I saw not a single visible minority -- I did see some people (all the same colour as me) but what was scary was the needles in the stairwell, the condoms in the hallways (in the hallways!?!) and the general decay in the building itself. There were some elderly people living there (or they seemed to live there) with mobility challenges and I was struck with how rough it would be to be elderly, have trouble getting around and have to live in such a place. As for race itself, as far as I can see (and it is hard to see the subtle racism if you are not a visible minority yourself -- the negative glances and the like are easy to overlook if they are not directed at you), is not an issue in Oshawa. Mixed race couples are common and no one pays the slightest attention. There is bias, there can be no doubt, and I was told of real problems when I visited one of the Muslim institutions, but I think (on bigotry)we are going in the right direction.
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