Two cents of compilation, views, digression with gab

With the near total shutdown of the urban landscape lately due to COVID-19, there hasn't been much to document for social activities. So this post is just some observations of the last two weeks.

I had already booked a short vacation to visit family in Ottawa. With the postponement of a concert by Men I Trust for Sunday and the numerous shutdowns over the week-end, I decided on Monday to move my trip up to Wednesday. A good idea as VIA Rail cancelled a large number of trips. This revealed the patchwork technology that even a large company couldn't manage. First, refunds and trip changes were free because of the situation. But their online booking still enforced the $25 fee so I had to contact customer service for a manual update. Second, I had to get reprinted tickets from an agent at Union Station since neither their email service can resend e-tickets nor their electronic kiosk can issue paper ones from telephone bookings. Finally, I still received an email informing me that my (previous) booking has been cancelled by VIA and I could receive a full refund.

It was a sparse train where everyone got a free bottle of water and a granola bar. This went over well with those on board since you normally pay for sandwiches, juices, and snacks.  Reviews for Porter Airlines always included raves for the complimentary food and drink in their airport lounge and on the planes. So it baffles me that companies cut back on such low-cost boosts to customer goodwill.

I finished out my work week in Ottawa amid a background of increasing bad news and drastic measures. The financial hit to my personal investment and the larger economy made me re-assess my goals and plans. Email newsletters from Yoga studios tracked their switch to virtual classes using Zoom meetings. By the week-end, social distancing came to grocery stores. A short, but well-spaced, line-up greeted me at the nearby Your Independent Grocer. But luckily it was due to restrictions on the number of shoppers inside instead of panic buying.

My week off didn't have any personal visits. I kept in touch with relatives via phone and organized a virtual Skype lunch with some friends. This app had head-scratching quirks and behaviour. Is there no technology that works as expected? Digital newspapers kept me abreast of the global meltdown because I avoid talking heads on any platform. I had an argument with my mom where I opined that inclusion of a camera didn't make it different from someone who talks to themselves on a park bench. It was a steady diet of books, Netflix shows, and the occasional afternoon nap.

Artistic groups like theatre companies and performers began to offer live stream shows. I watched a few including a long-time absent Sarah Harmer, an album debut from Basia Bulat, and a showcase with Jacquie Neville (The Balconies). Musicians are usually gear-heads or at least they understand the need for quality instruments, pedals, monitors, and other paraphernalia. So it's a puzzle why they use poor equipment like their (slightly better) phones to stream to Instagram and their (definitely worse) laptop for Facebook.

As the week wound down, my thoughts kept returning to the various proposed government subsidies, the financial straits many people find themselves in, and the topic of rent. All corporations and businesses large and small, investors, share-holders, and notably workers have suffered loss of revenue and income. Yet both commercial and residential landlords expect that the current crisis must not impact their rental income. It isn't surprising that "rent-seeking" and "rentier" are used as pejoratives. I wonder if the new book by Thomas Piketty examines this ideological viewpoint.