Occupy Toronto, Occupy Everywhere

Yesterday, I went to the protests in St James Park.  There I saw many people concerned of the way things are going.  The signs were so much fun.  The internet references made me laugh.  There was a medic tent, an open library set up, and a food bank giving food to all the hungry people staying overnight (a bank that supplies you with something of value?  Who knew such a thing could exist these days!)


The news reporters were there, and chatting with the people.  The police were there, constantly on patrol, but they seemed to be pretty calm.  The scariest thing I saw was this black unmarked van with tinted windows, and what appeared to be a boat rack on the roof.  I almost took it for just a normal vehicle, but when I looked at the rack closely, I saw that it had a huge dark camera built into the top.  It was pointed right at the middle of the protest.  It was just then that I realized I could see into the dark windows: two men, in black suits, black ties, and black shades, staring me down.  It honestly freaked me out quite a bit.  I bet they were getting payed hundreds of dollars an hour to be there.  Tax payer's money, of course.

What I do not pay for - a manifesto

As a student without a job, I have a hard time making ends meet, and when I have to pay for something, lots of stress works its way into my mind.   Focusing on all the things I do buy makes me freak out, so I've created this list of items that I can be proud of for being able to resist.  When temptation strikes, this list helps keep me on track.

Keep in mind that I am not against using all of these things.  There are quite a few items on the list that I'll happily accept or try to get for free.  Some examples: someone buys me a game as a present, the news is readily available on the internet, or I find a copy of a textbook I need online.