Economists say the fallout will only deepen as federal cuts to spending and the civil service begin to ramp up
  • Arcanepotato@crazypeople.onlineEnglish
    3·
    29 days ago

    Ottawa is such a confusing place. I do work there sometimes and it’s so…hollow? I know ‘goverment towns’ exist, especially capital cities but they usually have more idk, flair?

    (Ottawa folks please tell me I’m wrong and tell me something cool about your city it’s the closest city to me now and I’m desperate for something to like about it)

    • Cracks_InTheWalls@sh.itjust.works
      2·
      29 days ago

      I’m curious what you mean by hollow. I like Ottawa because of all the green space (when it’s not fuckin’ frozen), cool if comparatively small music scene, decent museums (love having the National Gallery here), etc. That people can be a little cold in public, and many of them retreat to the suburbs immediately after work, and our transit system is a joke are my only real complaints.

      We aren’t very showy for a national capital though, I can’t argue with that.

      • Arcanepotato@crazypeople.onlineEnglish
        2·
        29 days ago

        I’m sure a lot of it has to do with not being “from here” and having only lived in one city (although in many different neighborhoods). I think that’s making me expect my experiences as normal where they might not be. I’m also probably doing a lot of projecting based on not knowing Ottawa that well.

        But to actually answer your question I do think a lot of it has to do with people retreating to the suburbs at night. I’m used to seeing parks full of people sitting around and enjoying the weather when it’s warm and sunny. I haven’t seen that here.

        I love the National gallery! I’m missing art events! I used to go to the AGO after work all the time (I was a member) including First Thursdays and the ROM for ROM After Dark when I could get tickets, lol. I probably wouldn’t go as often because as you mentioned, the transit in Ottawa sucks. I’ve been to Saw Gallery a few times and it was great, but very empty of other patrons.

        I’ve got to a few VegOttawa events but there were very few vegans and also a lot of cops??? I went a Criminalization and Punishment Education Program event and that was cool - but I felt weird going to a university event. I probably need to get over myself.

        Where do all the (old) weirdos hang out???

        • Cracks_InTheWalls@sh.itjust.works
          1·
          28 days ago

          Where do all the (old) weirdos hang out???

          There’s two answers to this:
          A. “If you find out, let me know. I’ve been hanging with younger weirdos, and my does it get weird.” (We have an underground afterhours club scene, apparently. This caught me quite off-guard, haven’t been able to stay up late enough to see it in person yet but it’s on my ‘do it once then never again’ list).

          B. Real talk? Fetish community and their adjacent activities (board game meetups, crafting sessions, etc.) I honestly don’t know what it is about kinky folks and board games. Beyond this, some maker spaces, poetry/lit scene events, art galleries or related spaces (some cool af people with studio space at Enriched Bread, for instance), many outdoor related activity groups, etc. Most of the people at these others things aren’t that weird, but some try. Oh, and the Ottawa burner contingent that goes to satellite events like Sideburn (putting aside larger concerns about Burning Man, the folks who party near Napanee every year are wonderful and bizarre creatures. It’s often older folks who build/bring the really cool stuff too). Also live music venues (Red Bird, Irene’s, and Rainbow in particular re: older folks). Also pinball arcades, depending on the night (that crowd definitely has some characters but is generally pretty chill).

          I will say re: people hanging out in parks, nice weekends at places like Dow’s Lake/The Arboretum, Mooney’s Bay, Britannia Beach, Westboro Beach, the greenspace by the MUP along the river, Stanley Park, various spots around the canal, etc. can get pretty busy.

          Idk - I feel like there’s a lot of stuff to do here and a lot of interesting characters, but you have to poke around to find them a lot more than places like Montreal or Toronto.

          Note to self: If I remember where I saw someone discussing a nug exchange group for growers, send deets to arcanepotato. Know it exists, and I imagine you’d probably vibe with the kind of folks involved, but I only remember seeing one mention somewhere and literally nothing else.