Oh my, did my birthday rant bring out the passive aggressors. Just as well.
They say living in New York City is tough. What a load. Toronto is really tough; because there is a pervasive undercurrent of insecurity which curtails sharing visceral emotions and undermines the resulting connections. You can understand it if you are an empathetic American living here as an expatriate. After all, Canadians are raised in the shadow of the US---the culture, the business community, the sensibility. They are insecure because they are not citizens of their own culture. But it is disturbing to see the shallow nervousness expressed by people my age. Nobody has opinions to express---exposes too much vulnerability. Combine that with the overwhelming selfishness of the present and you have a deadly recipe.
So many thin skins. So much 'honesty'. Everybody is so full of self-loathing that they can "fire" lifelong friends casually. The chill in the air isn't just the winter weather, it is the stultifying lack of passion.