"As long as the red dice are in the air, the gambler has hope. And hope is a wonderful thing to be addicted to.”
- Norm Macdonald
It’s funny how small our lives can seem in retrospect.
All the big, unknown anxieties that cloud our futures look so harmless and unassuming when viewed in reverse—often leaving us to wonder what the hell we were so anxious about anyway.
I’ve always found something romantic in the preservation of personal history, and the nostalgia it invokes—even if I sometimes take my own personal documentation to near obsessive-compulsive lengths.
Case in point: In the final week of 2022, I took a scrap piece of paper and charted out the year ahead in Pique issues.
Once finished, I was left with a structured, empty outline just missing the specifics.
On the left was each issue number for the year ahead, separated by months. On the right, a long list of potential ideas for editorials.
Sitting there on the cusp of 2023, that blank sheet of paper represented in my mind near-limitless potential and possibility. Fifty-two weeks of stories to tell; questions to pose; criticisms to level—the sublime, solitary moment between when the dice leave your hand and settle their faces upside on the table.
The graph became a fixture in my files for the next 12 months; an oddly satisfying ritualistic reflection of the year in progress, filled out week by week.
Fifty-two weeks later, the mental roadmap is complete, ready to be archived away for future reference and nostalgia.
Without further ado, here are just a few of the themes and topics that defined the Opening Remarks page in 2023.
CHALLENGE ACCEPTED
Like any other year, 2023 came with plenty of adversity.
Canada’s cost-of-living crisis only worsened, as Whistler’s local housing woes seemingly reached new depths—two topics that made multiple appearances in the editorial pages of Pique.
In the bubble, it was also a year marked by struggles with male mental health and grizzly bear management, and an ongoing conversation around growth and overtourism.
Expect all of these topics to stay relevant in 2024.
HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL
But Whistler had much to be thankful for in 2023, too.
The Whistler 360 Health Collaborative made wildly impressive strides this year, connecting hundreds of locals with a new family doctor, and the resort managed to avoid any noticeable impacts from B.C.’s worst-ever year for wildfires, as officials make progress on building wildfire resiliency.
And, unlike many municipal councils and local governments in B.C., Whistler’s mayor and council operated in relative harmony—something we should not take for granted.
HALL OF SHAME
With that said, council’s friendly cooperation does not exempt it from criticism.
In 2023, we took issue with the Resort Municipality of Whistler’s spending and lack of efficiency, its double standards around its own development projects, and council’s decision to limit public input at council meetings, among other things.
What’s going to grind our gears in 2024? Pick up the next 52 Piques to find out!
GUIDEPOSTS
In a more intangible sense, the graph offers personal context for the year that was.
It reminds me of vacations, and how I spent my time off; marks the point of departure for two dear friends and colleagues, Brandon Barrett and Megan Lalonde; and provides valuable insight into my frame of mind at any given time—and at least some sort of vague guidance telling us where we might be headed next.
So—as we reflect on the past 12 months, did we live up to the promises of December 2022? Could we have done more?
Does it even matter?
Not really. We take stock of our wins, reflect on our losses. Pick up any pieces worth carrying with us, and move forward.
The graph is going to get filled out whether we’re paying attention or not—might as well stack the odds in our favour as best we can.
As December comes to a close, I pull out a new blank piece of paper, carefully lining its left side with all the issues to come in the months ahead.
Fifty-two weeks from now, it will represent accomplishment. History. Context. A quick-and-easy reference guide for future editorial content.
For now, it represents possibility. Potential. A clean bill of health and an unblemished criminal record. Hope.
The dice are in the air, no telling yet where they’ll land—and hope is a wonderful thing to be addicted to.
