The Honored Fallen

They say, "lest we forget", and yet it seems that all to often we do. In recent years, I've noticed l lack of recognition of the many people who have given their lives in the service of this country. Many young people in this country don't even know what remembrance day is all about.

At the end of the first world war, it was decided by all the allied nations that November 11 would forever after be a day of remembrance. A day on which we remembered the people who died for this country. That was back in 1918, 90 years ago. The world has changed a lot since then, but one thing remains the same. Nations send out young people to fight and die for one reason or another.

When the world pledged to never forget, they had just buried 20 million soldiers. It was still fresh in their minds. Most of the people remembering had lost someone close to them. It's hard to forget when you can still smell the blood. But time passes, memory fades.

When I went to Western Canada High School,(the oldest high school in Calgary), their was a large mural on one of the walls in the main foyer. Inscribed in the mural were the names of every student who had left school early to go and fight in two world wars, the Korean war, and several other conflicts. I remember looking at their pictures and thinking that they didn't look like heroes, they just looked like ordinary kids like me. I guess that's all they were, really. Their country called them to arms and they answered the call and never came back.

Now, 90 years after remembrance day was first established, things have changed. Every employer I've worked for has convinced us to trade in Remembrance Day for an extra day at Christmas. That's it. That's how we honor the heroes of this country. Just another work day, like any other. No ceremony, no bugles, no services, no flag raising,no 21 gun salute, nothing. So much for the national day of remembrance.

They say "lest we forget", but it seems like we have done just that, forgotten.

I hope it's not going to take another world war to remind us.

Back in the Saddle

Okay, so after nursing a frustrated heart back to health, I'm once again an "eligible" bachelor. Note the sexy pic of me....LOL. I've once again created a profile on the Plentyoffish internet dating site, and I'm up and running again. Funny thing is, I couldn't use my old user name, so I had to come up with something other than Kevawesome. I meant to call it kevawesomeone, but I spelled it wrong, and the site won't let me change it.....(Doh!!!)

I've learned a bit about the whole internet dating scene, and now I'm a bit more experienced at the whole game. There are a few tips I have for anyone considering trying internet dating.

1. Don't bullshit. On the internet, you can be whoever you want to be, but if you plan on meeting them in person, then they're going to see the real you. If you're not what they expected from your bogus profile, you're not going to like their experience.

2. Be careful. There's a lot of really nice people on these site, but there's a lot of not so nice people too. Wolves in sheep's clothing. Especially if you're a woman, make sure you meet them in a public place, and keep it that way for at least the first 2 dates.

3. Don't have more than a drink or 2. If you really want to turn a woman off, sitting there and getting drunk on your first date is a sure way to do it. (Unless she's a drunk too.)

4. Be realistic. Remember that a personal profile is like a resume, they're only going to tell you the nice things about themselves. It's guaranteed that they're going to be only human, no matter how great they sound from their profile.

5. Don't agree to take her to an expensive restaurant or anything that costs lots of money until after you've met her. Just meet for coffee or a drink or something. Meet her first. You might totally connect over the internet, and then when meet in person find that you're totally uncomfortable together. Either the chemistry is right or it's not. There's now way to know that over a computer dating site. Just meet casually at first. Within an hour or so, you'll know if it has potential, and you haven't commited yourself to an expensive dinner.

6. Don't get upset over the wierdos that contact you. If it's as free site, then there will inevitably be a number of perverts and total losers. Just delete, block and move on. Don't respond to them or send them an angry email. Don't even acknowledge them. They're not worth the effort it takes.

7. Don't take rejections personally. You have to be patient. The odds against the first one being the right on are pretty slim. It's going to take time and a lot of meetings. Just have fun, and when it doesn't work out, just let it go.

Good luck, and don't forget to have fun.