of parks and the need to breathe

I have the habit of taking a walk every day on my lunch hour, simply to get some air and not suffocate in my “cube farm”, affectionately nicknamed by my fellow co-op student. Just as smokers need a cigarette every now and then, I’m addicted to fresh air. Mmm.

One of the difficulties I have found, however, is resisting buying stuff/window shopping while I walk. I don’t work in an area that has lots of park space, and so all I see are shops, restaurants, and cafes when I take my strolls.

I choose not to take my wallet with me when I leave the office, as I know that there won’t be anything that I “need”…but I do get frustrated with the fact that I don’t have anywhere to walk other than streets filled with options to buy and sell. I suppose the landscape of modern day consumerism is hard to avoid, but it leaves me with the question:

Where are all the ad-free public spaces at?

I recently found out that Pigeon Park and Oppenheimer Park will be closing down temporarily, and it just shocks me how spaces where people are able to freely be (without the pressure of enacting “purchasing power”) are increasingly being shut down. In a neighbourhood where parks are some of the few places in which folks can take a break and be with each other, priority should be given by our city to keep them available for use.

Public spaces are a vital part of our democracy – it is where community building happens, where people are allowed to be citizens rather than consumers, and where, for a brief lunch hour, I can forget about Wendy’s “The Baconator” or when CTV airs Grey’s Anatomy…