The Devil is in Our House

✌️The hills are alive with the sound of music,  and those who were seen dancing were thought insane by those who could not hear the music... A filmmaker I admire was once quoted as stating that to achieve artistic success, we must leave small-town 'loserville' behind and stop competing with the 'losers' who dwell there. I disagree with him because, as creatives, it does not matter if we live somewhere affluent, gentrified, or trendy. If we choose to reside in a place that challenges our view of the world and our role within it, the success we aspire to as artists will be within our reach because our creativity will be informed by our community of choice.  When I returned from university to live with my family nearly a decade ago, I received such a challenge because I didn't need to relocate to Los Angeles or Paris. For someone like me, to endure the character growth I am referring to, I need not look any further than the community from which I originate. To make a l...

✌️The hills are alive with the sound of music,  and those who were seen dancing were thought insane by those who could not hear the music... If you close the door, the night could last forever.  Leave the sunshine out and say hello to never.  All the people are dancing, and they're having such fun -  I wish it could happen to me.  But if you close the door,  I'd never have to see the day again.  If you close the door, the night could last forever.  Leave the wineglass out and drink a toast to never.  Oh, someday, I know someone will look into my eyes a nd say,  'Hello, you're my very special one.'  But if you close the door  I'd never have to see the day again. Dark party bars, shiny Cadillac cars  and the people on subways and trains l ooking gray in the rain as they stand disarrayed.  Oh, but people look well in the dark a nd if you close the door, the night could last forever.  Leave the sunshine out and say h...

✌️ The hills are alive with the sound of music,  and those who were seen dancing were thought insane by those who could not hear the music... There will be no curiosity, no enjoyment of the process of life. All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always— do not forget this, Winston— always there will be the intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. At every moment, there will always be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on a helpless enemy.  If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face— forever. ~George Orwell, 1984 I came of age in Canada during a time when I witnessed our nation, and society more broadly, gradually arrive at a sense of acceptance for members of the LGBTQ community. This period is best illustrated as occurring between 1996 and 2005, when queer people attained protected status in various federal and provincial human rights codes, and when gay marriage was ultimately legali...