A Child Lost

Today is the anniversary of the day our family lost our

beloved Shirley.  Too soon, too young.

It was so long ago, that awful day,

When the voice on the phone called to say,

Your little girl has passed away.

Your tiny body was so twisted and frail,

With dark hair up against skin so soft and pale,

And big blue eyes that would light up without fail.

Your auntie said to me these words a while ago,

It's because we're selfish that we don't want you to go

But God knows better when you are hurting so.

He called you home to be with Him,

And took away all the pain and suffering,

And set free the spirit trapped within.

The days come and go, year after year,

But the pain and grief is still hard to bear,

And the memory of that day always brings a tear,

Even though you are no longer here with us,

It comforts me to know you are there with Him,

So let your spirit soar and always be free.

Your memory will forever live within me.

Love, Mom

Gone forever, but forgotten never. 

Shirley Ann    Nov. 17, 1961 - Sept. 29, 1978

Time For Change?

I read an article the other day about the war on drugs and the problems and opposite effect that has been created as a result. The prohibition of drugs in the last number of decades has failed miserably at achieving what was intended and at a great cost to society.

Almost daily the news has reports of another drug related shooting somewhere.  Some of these shootings involve mistaken identity or innocent bystanders.  About 25,000 people have been murdered in Mexico in the last three years and bodies are being found piled up hundreds deep in old abandoned mine shafts or in remote areas. Some people are being tortured and beheaded or hanged to send a message to other gangs or police.

Now we have authorities on both sides of the border involved with the drug trade or aiding gangs for cash kickbacks. The prison population is up 45 per cent in the last ten years. In the US, ninety per cent of prisoners incarcerated is for drug related offences. Many young lives are ruined over drugs and with jail time training to become better criminals, destined to a life of crime.

Billions of dollars are being spent each year to combat the problem, but with no impact as the drug trade numbers are increasing.  The police admit they stop only a small amount of drugs hitting the market and the ones they do get are small fish with the top people too clever to be directly linked to the drug trade.

All that money and all those years and what have we achieved?  Where the police are tough on drugs, it pushes the price up, making it more attractive for organized crime, who now make bigger profits.We have managed to make a product that is worth a dollar, sell for $10 because it is illegal, then we have items worth $100 being stolen and sold for $10 to cover the cost of the drug. Wouldn't it be cheaper and better for all to treat the disease?

Maybe it is time we considered other options.  Anyone of us could go out into their small towns or cities at any time and find almost any recreational drug they cared to. Decriminalizing drugs might mean more people try them or it might make them less attractive as they would then be freely available.

It would allow addicts to get the treatment they need.  Petty crime would be greatly reduced and organized crime would have to look for other sources because the river of green would soon dry up.  Sending drug offenders to jail has not worked.  Drugs in jails are readily available and a huge problem.  It has been reported that each prisoner costs the taxpayer about $100,000 per year.  It would be cheaper to give them welfare and benefits.

Prohibition of alcohol did not work, the anti smoking campaign has had little effect and the anti drug educational ads directed at our youth don't seem to be getting through either. Our tax dollars are being wasted on this lost cause when we have a huge problem funding our other social systems, like health care and education for example. 

Time for change??  Maybe so.

Quote

Like a bird singing in rain,
      Let grateful memories survive
            in times of sorrow.   
                  Robert Louis Stevenson

Thinking Of You

Today's post is dedicated to my niece Bonnie who lost her father this morning, and to her family.
Death leaves a heartache that no one can heal; and love leaves memories that no one can steal.

I thought I saw your face today, in the sparkle of the morning sun.
And then I heard the angel say, "Their work on earth is done."


I thought I saw my broken heart, in the crescent of the moon.
And then I heard the angel say, "Rest is coming soon."


I thought I heard your voice today, then laugh your hearty laugh.
And then I heard the angel say, "There's peace now, here at last."


I thought I felt your touch today, in the breeze that rustled by.
And then I heard the angel say, "The spirit never dies."


I thought that you had left me, for the stars so far above.
And then I heard the angel say, "They left you with their love."


I thought that I would miss you so, and never find my way. 
And then I heard the angel say, "They're with you every day."


The sun, the wind, the moon, the stars, will forever be around,
Reminding you of the love you shared, and the peace they've finally found


Author Unknown

Canadian Song

The first Canadian song to sell a million copies was written by a Vancouver nurse. Her name was Carmen Elizabeth Clarke, and in 1947 she worked at what was then called the Hospital for Sick and Crippled Children, at 250 West 59th Avenue.

She was very fond of the children. There was one little boy there who noticed a sparrow that kept hopping down onto the windowsill next to his bed. So she wrote a poem about it.

When Elizabeth Clarke sat down that rainy evening to write the poem out, she already had the first line ready: "There’s a bluebird on your windowsill." In six hours she had finished.

She called the poem Bluebird on Your Windowsill and later set it to music. There isn't too much you can write about a sparrow, so she had changed it to a bluebird.

Mrs. Clarke is quoted as saying, "I didn’t intend to write it—it just came." And she added that she still felt like crying whenever she heard it. She sang her song to her little patients. After it became a hit they called it "our song".

Friends and co-workers kept telling her the song was a good one, and so she eventually sang it on CKNW. Requests began pouring in and she realized that people really liked and wanted it.

Empire Music, a New Westminster company, published it in 1948 and that same year Aragon Records, a Vancouver company recorded it, sung by Don Murphy. Elizabeth Clarke paid to have that record made.

Slowly, steadily, surely, the song began to take off.

A number of versions were done by country and western singers, but when the song crossed over to the pop side in the US, it really began to break out.

The Andrews Sisters and several others covered it, but when Doris Day and Bing Crosby recorded it, 38 year-old Elizabeth Clarke found herself the author of a monster hit. 

The various versions of the song topped a million copies in a day when that was rare.
In 1949 the March of Dimes chose Bluebird as the theme song for its 1950 national fund-raising campaign.

Elizabeth Clarke donated every dollar she got for the song to children’s hospitals across Canada. It was an act of extraordinary generosity.

Newspaper stories show that Elizabeth Clarke wrote other songs, but none had the impact of that little tune inspired by the rainy-day visit of a sparrow to a sick child.

In July of 1960, at the age of 49, Elizabeth Clarke died at Altamont Private Hospital in West Vancouver.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzaBAgCaRHo

Why???

Did you ever wonder.......
Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin?

Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?

Why don't you ever see the headline 'Psychic Wins Lottery'?

Why is 'abbreviated' such a long word?

Why is it that doctors call what they do 'practice'?

Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dish washing liquid made with real lemons?

Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?

Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?

Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?

Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes?

Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?

You know that indestructible blackbox that is used on airplanes? Why don't they
make the whole plane out of that stuff?!

Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?

Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?

If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?

If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?

1943

That's the year I was born!  It was a cold winter day in north eastern Alberta, in a little rural town called St. Paul. I'm not too sure if I was born at home on the farm or in a hospital, but my Mom had a very difficult birth with me and experienced substantial hemorrhaging. She told me a number of times in a less than endearing tone how she almost died having me. When I was a little older I had mixed feelings of guilt for almost killing my Mom and feeling unwanted at times. But, here I am!  I'm a few months old in this picture.

World War II was well under way and times were tough.  Money and supplies were scarce.  Dad didn't have to enlist because he was a little older then and some men were needed to work the farms and keep things running at home.  Mom had already lost one brother at the beginning of the war and would lose another just before it ended.  Farming was not easy either.  Dad did mixed farming.  Growing grain and raising livestock, etc.  The work was hard labour and the machinery old.  The wind and the weather was always a battle to be fought or hardship to endure.  No wonder people were much tougher back then.
This is a photo of enlisted men marching and the next one is threshing grain on the farm.

Here are some popular ads and momentos of 1943.

Smart Girl!

A lawyer and a blonde are sitting next to each other on a long flight from LA to NY. The lawyer leans over to her and asks if she would like to play a fun game. The blonde just wants to take a nap, so she politely declines and rolls over to the window to catch a few winks.

The lawyer persists and explains that the game is really easy and a lot of fun. He explains" I ask you a question, and if you don't know the answer, you pay me $5, and vice-versa." Again, she politely declines and tries to get some sleep.

The lawyer, now somewhat agitated, says, "Okay, if you don't know the answer you pay me $5, and if I don't know the answer, I will pay you $500," figuring that since she is a blonde that he will easily win the match. This catches the blonde's attention and, figuring that there will be no end to this torment unless she plays, agrees to the game.

The lawyer asks the first question. "What's the distance from the earth to the moon?" The blonde doesn't say a word, reaches in to her purse, pulls out a five dollar bill and hands it to the lawyer. Now, it's the blonde's turn.

She asks the lawyer: "What goes up a hill with three legs, and comes down with four?" The lawyer looks at her with a puzzled look. He takes out his laptop computer and searches all his references. He taps into the Air phone with his modem and searches the Net and the Library of Congress.

Frustrated, he sends E-mails to all his coworkers and friends he knows. After over an hour, he wakes the blonde and hands her $500. The blonde politely takes the $500 and turns away to get back to sleep.

The lawyer, who is more than a little miffed, wakes the blonde and asks, "Well, so what IS the answer!?" Without a word, the blonde reaches into her purse, hands the lawyer $5, and goes back to sleep.

Dinner Out

We celebrated our "official" wedding anniversary the other day. We have been together and married for just over twenty years, twelve years common law and eight years officially. Craig says it's all still married and I agree with him.  We got a little cleaned up and went out for dinner to celebrate our special occasion.

Just before we left I noticed the plant by the arbor gate in the front yard had blossomed and I wanted a picture of it.  So when we returned home I got Craig to go do that for me.  Well, he didn't take it from a very good angle, so I got my own little camera and went and did it again myself.
I have left the picture taking up to Craig this past number of years, so I have been practicing and experimenting to take better shots. While I was out there, I took some shots of the pretty flowers still in the front yard and on the deck. The pink one (I can't remember what it is) is very fragrant. I'll have to look it up. Anyway, here are a few of the photos I took.

Smells Soooo Good

Rose Of Sharon

Purple Petunia

Delicate Daisies

Little Potentella Flower

Strength And Courage

It takes strength to be firm and courage to be gentle.
It takes strength to stand guard and courage to let down your guard.

It takes strength to conquer and courage to surrender.
It takes strength to be certain and courage to have doubt.
It takes strength to fit in and courage to stand out.

It takes strength to feel a friend’s pain and courage to feel your own pain.
It takes strength to hide your own pains and courage to show them.

It takes strength to stand alone and courage to lean on another.
It takes strength to love and courage to be loved.
It takes strength to survive and courage to live.

Author Unknown

Canning Beets

We spent the afternoon yesterday canning beets. We got 12 pints and 2 quarts of pickled beets.  They are a bit of work to do up, but well worth it.  We just finished our last jar.  Boy, is my back and my leg ever sore. Anytime I stand for a long time, that happens. We were supposed to take them to Louise and Ron's to do them there, but one of us forgot to put the beets and jars in the trunk of the car. One of us was not me. Oh well, they are done now and we are looking forward to enjoying them!  And here is the one of us now, holding up a jar of our nice pickled beets!!!

Life's Treasure

ALWAYS KNOW THAT..

Your presence is a present to the world.
You are unique and one of a kind.
Your life can be what you want it to be.
Take the days just one at a time.

Count your blessings, not your troubles.
You will make it through whatever comes along.
Within you are so many answers.
Understand, have courage, be strong.

Do not put limits on yourself.
So many dreams are waiting to be realized.
Decisions are too important to leave to chance.
Reach for your peak, your goal and your prize.

Nothing wastes more energy than worrying.
The longer one carries a problem the heavier it gets.
Do not take things too seriously.
Live a life of serenity, not a life of regrets.

Remember that a little love goes a long way.
Remember that a lot … goes forever.
Remember that friendship is a wise investment.
Life’s treasure are people together.

Realize that it is never too late.
Do ordinary things in an extraordinary way.
Have heart and hope and happiness.
Take the time to wish upon a star.

And do not ever forget
For even a day,
How very special you are.

Author Unknown

The Plus Sign

A ten-year-old Jewish boy was failing math. His parents tried everything from tutors to hypnosis; but to no avail. Finally, at the insistence of a family friend, they decided to enrol their son in a private Catholic school.

After the first day, the boy's parents were surprised when he walked in after school with a stern, focused and very determined expression on his face. He went straight past them, right to his room and quietly closed the door.

For nearly two hours he toiled away in his room - with math books strewn about his desk and the surrounding floor. He emerged long enough to eat, and after quickly cleaning his plate, went straight back to his room, closed the door and worked feverishly at his studies until bedtime.

This pattern of behaviour continued until it was time for the first quarter's report card. The boy walked in with it unopened - laid it on the dinner table and went straight to his room. Cautiously, his mother opened it and, to her amazement, she saw a large red 'A' under the subject of Math.

Overjoyed, she and her husband rushed into their son's room, thrilled at his remarkable progress. "Was it the nuns that did it?" the father asked.

The boy shook his head and said "No."

"Was it the one-to-one tutoring? The peer-mentoring?"

"No."

"The textbooks? The teachers? The curriculum?"

"No", said the son. "On that first day, when I walked in the front door and saw that guy nailed to the plus sign, I KNEW they meant business!"

Sibling Memories

Yesterday I was talking to my 'older' sister on Skype. (Tee hee hee. I can hear her now. What! I'm not older!) Actually I am the oldest sibling, but she is my oldest sister, so I finally get to say older about one of them besides myself.

Anyway I was going over with her which old pictures from Mom I didn't have and then we were going through who was who in them and where and so on.

I had one picture of us when we were younger and I didn't know some of the kids in the picture, so I was showing it to her in the webcam. She knew right away who everyone was and began relating times and experiences involving some of the kids in the picture.

She rekindled a memory that had left me long ago about the old car with the rumble seat in the back. This old car belonged to Gail's family and some of us got to have a ride in it. I don't remember riding in it, but I do remember the car.

I find it so fascinating that memories about the same times and places while we were growing up are so different for each of us.

I love my siblings very much and look forward to and enjoy all the times we get to spend together and cherish the stories about memories of when we were all growing up on Twigg Island. I often think how lucky we are to have such a close relationship with each other.

Smart Radio!

The lexus and the president....

A lady bought a new Lexus. Cost a bundle. Two days later, she brought it back complaining that the radio wasn't working. "Madam", said the sales manager, "the audio system in this car is completly automated. All you need to do is tell it what you want to listen to and you will hear exactly that!" She drives out , somewhat amazed and a little confused. She looked at the radio and said, "Nelson". The radio responded, "Ricky or Willie?"

Soon she was speeding down the highway to the sounds of "On the road again". The lady was astounded. If she wanted Beethoven, that's what she got. If she wanted Nat King Cole, she got it.

Stopped at an intersection, her light turned green and she pulled out. Off to her right, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small sports utility vehicle speeding toward her. She swerved and narrowly missed a collision. "Asshole.....", she muttered. And from the radio.....
"Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States....

Look What I Found!

I found this while surfing the net looking for old photos of where we grew up in the 50's. This is an artists illustration of the garage, auto repair shop and store at the top of the road where we lived. The people in the photos are relatives of the owner and the Bougie's that owned most of the other side of the street we were on.
Click on the link below and check it out.
http://www3.telus.net/bougieblog/Twigg_Island.pdf

Misunderstanding

There is a factory in Northern Minnesota which makes the Tickle Me Elmo toys. The toy laughs when you tickle it under the arms. Well, Lena is hired at The Tickle Me Elmo factory and she reports for her first day promptly at 8:00 AM.

The next day at 8:45 AM there is a knock at the Personnel Manager's door. The Foreman throws open the door and begins to rant about the new employee. He complains that she is incredibly slow and the whole line is backing up, putting the entire production line behind schedule.

The Personnel Manager decides he should see this for himself, so the two men march down to the factory floor. When they get there the line is so backed up that there are Tickle Me Elmo's all over the factory floor and they're really beginning to pile up. At the end of the line stands Lena surrounded by mountains of Tickle Me Elmo's.

She has a roll of plush red fabric and a huge bag of small marbles. The two men watch in amazement as she cuts a little piece of fabric, wraps it around two marbles and begins to carefully sew the little package between Elmo's legs.

The Personnel Manager bursts into laughter. After several minutes of hysterics he pulls himself together and approaches Lena. "I'm sorry," he says to her, barely able to keep a straight face, "but I think you misunderstood the instructions I gave you yesterday..."

"Your job is to give Elmo two test tickles."

These Guys Are Amazing

These guys are something. Listen to this youtube video and see how many songs are written with the same four chords.

Axis Of Awesome - 4 Four Chord Song (with song titles)
- Watch more Funny Videos at Vodpod.

Catholic Heart Attack

After suffering a heart attack and having quadruple bypass surgery, a man woke up to find himself in a Catholic hospital with nuns taking care of him. As they nursed him back to health, one of the nuns asked him if he had health insurance.

"No," he replied, "No health insurance."

"Do you have any money in the bank?" asked the nun.

"No. No money in the bank."

The nun asked, "Do you have any relatives you could ask for help?"

The man replied, "I only have a spinster sister, who is a nun."

At this the nun became irritated. "Nuns are not spinsters. Nuns are married to God!"

"OK, then," said the man. "Send the bill to my brother-in-law."

Luckiest People Ever

What is Maturity?

I read this today and thought I'd share.

What is maturity? Maturity is the ability to control anger and settle differences without violence or destruction. Maturity is patience.

It is the willingness to pass up immediate pleasure in favor of long-term gain.

Maturity is perseverance, the ability to sweat out a project or a situation in spite of heavy opposition and discouraging set-backs. Maturity is the capacity to face unpleasantness and frustration, discomfort and defeat, without complaint or collapse.

Maturity is humility. It is being big enough to say, "I was wrong." And, when right, the mature person need not experience the satisfaction of saying, "I told you so."

Maturity is the ability to make a decision and stand by it. The immature spend their lives exploring endless possibilities; then they do nothing.

Maturity means dependability, keeping one's word, coming through in a crisis. The immature are masters of the alibi. They are the confused and the disorganized. Their lives are a maze of broken promises, former friends, unfinished business, and good intentions that somehow never materialize.

Maturity is the art of living in peace with that which we cannot change, the courage to change that which should be changed -- and the wisdom to know the difference.

Pet Store Purchase

After many years of marriage, the husband has turned into a couch potato, become completely inattentive to his wife and sits guzzling beer and watching TV all day. The wife is dismayed because no matter what she does to attract the husband's attention, he'd just shrug her off with some bored comment.

This went on for many months and the wife was going crazy with boredom. Then one day at a pet store, the wife saw this big, ugly, snorting bird with a hairy chest, powerful hairy forearms, beady eyes and dribble running down the side of its mouth.

The shopkeeper, observing her fascination with the bird, told her it was a special imported "Goony bird" and it had a very peculiar trait. To demonstrate, he exclaimed, "Goony bird! The table!"

Immediately, the Goony bird flew off its perch and with single-minded fury attacked the table and smashed it into a hundred little pieces with its powerful forearms and claws! To demonstrate some more, the shopkeeper said, "Goony bird! The shelf!"

Again the Goony bird turned to the shelf and demolished it in seconds.

"Wow!" said the wife, "If this doesn't attract my husband's attention, nothing will!" So she bought the bird and took it home.

When she entered the house, her husband was, as usual, sprawled on the sofa guzzling beer and watching the game. "Honey!" she exclaimed, "I've got a surprise for you! A Goony bird!"

The husband, in his usual bored tone replied, "Goony Bird, my foot!"

Embarrassing Moments

Everyone has experienced a very embarrassing moment or so in their lifetime I'm sure, but in my case, three come to mind quickly.
When I was in grade seven or eight, I was pretty shy and not too self assured. The teacher asked a question in class and I knew the answer, so feeling confident, I put my hand up.
No one else had their hand up so I was called on for the answer. "Chopin" I said, but I mispronounced it (choppin). The teacher responded with the correct pronunciation (showpan).
Well, of course everybody laughed and I turned beet red and was wishing I was invisible!

The next incident happened when I was in grade nine. I loved English, Math and Physical Education and excelled in all of them getting mostly A's. I was going to say PE but I don't think they call it that anymore.
My most favorite teacher of all time was Ms. Moore, my English teacher and I was her pet student.
One day during her class, some of the boys were cutting up and flying paper airplanes around when she had her back turned at the blackboard. One of those planes landed on my desk. I didn't want it, so I picked it up and flew it back. That was when I discovered my aim was not so good. That plane veered off toward the front of the class and hit Ms. Moore in the back of the head.
She whips around and demands to know WHO DID THIS? Instant quiet. Not a peep from anyone. Well, after what seemed like an eternity, my hand slowly creeps up as I sink down in my seat.
"YOU?" she says with a look of total shock on her face.
Oh, how I wished the floor would open up and swallow me. I got my first detention ever for that one.

On this next occasion, I was very pregnant with my girls and we had splurged and gone to the Ringling Bros. Circus.
We were sitting for quite awhile and I had become uncomfortable. In those days, which is fifty years ago, the maternity clothing was nothing like it is today. The skirt had a space cut out of the front for your belly and it tied around your waist. So after awhile I untied the skirt as it was tight around my stomach.
Then intermission came and we were going to stretch our legs and so on. I had forgotten that my skirt was untied. I stood up and my skirt fell to the floor. That skirt hardly had time to land and I had grabbed it and pulled it back up. Of course the first thing you do is look around to see who saw you. I was so embarrassed. Good thing I had a full slip on underneath, and wasn't really bare ass'd.

Say What?

The bank manager noticed the new teller was terrible when it came to counting money and adding up figures.
“Where did you get your financial education?” he asks.
“Yale,” replies the lad. The manager is sure he’s misheard the man, so he asks his question again and the man again responds “Yale.”
That can’t be right, thinks the manager. He decides he’s going to check it out online.
“And what’s your full name again?” asks the manager.
“Yim Yohnson.”

Invitation To The Cariboo

A couple of weeks ago, we drove to Ron and Louise's for a few days of visiting and to celebrate the occasion of a great lady's 90th birthday, who is in pretty fine shape for her age and looking great.

Louise and Ron also hosted a great dinner and we all enjoyed a visit and lots of laughs with them, Heather and Al, Jim, Karen, Don and Rhonda.

Jim was having a problem with a loose screw, so everybody had a turn helping him out with that. I should mention it was his eyeglass frame that had the screw loose.

Anyway the screw flew out of the tweezers, so grown people were crawling around on hands and knees trying to find it. Good luck!!! And it's still lost.

The birthday celebration was held at Al and Heather's place this year, which was a great setup for everybody. A lot of work was done getting it ready and it looks great. Check out Boot Hill. Just click on the picture to enlarge it.

There was lots to do, yummy food as usual and games and activities going on all weekend. One of the games involved putting a nylon with a tennis ball in it over your head and then swinging it around without hands to tangle and remove your opponents nylon. Very funny!

We had a great time and enjoyed ourselves very much.

Goats

This is a list of things that get my goat.

Able-bodied people that park in handicap spaces (Lazy is not a handicap)

Proving you didn't steal anything when leaving a store

People who don't pick up their dog's doodoo they leave in my yard

Turning out in front of me on the highway when no one else is coming behind me

People who park diagonally across 2 spaces

Telemarketers phoning at supper time.

People standing next to public building entrances while smoking

People who park their grocery carts in the middle of the aisle

Drawers and cupboard doors left open

Talking in theaters while the movie is on

People that give their children weird names

Phone calls where nobody speaks

Cats turning my garden into their bathroom

Aggressive drivers that have to be in front only to be sitting at the next stop light as you arrive behind them

Doctors that overbook the same time slot

I'm all out of goats, for now!

Out Of Place?

Walking through Chinatown, a tourist is fascinated with all the Chinese restaurants, shops, signs, and banners. He turns a corner and sees a building with the sign, "Hans Olaffsen's Laundry."

"Hans Olaffsen?" he muses. "How does that fit in here?" So he walks into the shop and sees an old Chinese gentleman behind the counter.

The tourist asks, "How did this place get a name like 'Hans Olaffsen's Laundry'?"

The old man answers, "Is name of owner."

The tourist asks, "Well, who and where is the owner?"

"Me ... is right here," replies the old man.

"You? How did you ever get a name like Hans Olaffsen?"

"Is simple," says the old man. "Many, many year ago when come to this country, was stand in line at Documentation Center. Man in front was big blonde Swede.
Lady look at him and ask, 'What your name?' He say, 'Hans Olaffsen.' Then she look at me and say, 'What your name?'"

"I say Sem Ting."

Well Worth A Read

This is an editoral written by Paul Willcocks

It’s not really Ida Chong’s fault. She’s a cultural victim.
The minister for health living and sport ran into a storm of criticism when the Times Colonist reported she claimed almost $6,000 in meal allowances last year – while living a few miles from the legislature.
All MLAs can claim a $61 a day for meals when the legislature is sitting or they are in Victoria or Vancouver on government business. (If they live outside the capital, they can also claim up to $19,000 a year to rent or buy a place in the capital.) The capital city allowance, it’s called.
Chong, the public accounts revealed, claimed $5,921 in meal expenses — about 98 days worth. Even though she lives about 10 kilometres from the legislature. And the legislature only sat for 60 days out of the year,
Pack a lunch like the rest of us, angry voters said, especially when your government is cutting programs and telling people belt-tightening is needed.
Chong argued all MLAs collected similar amounts. (Unfortunately for her, Murray Coell, her neighbour and fellow cabinet minister, undermined that defence by claimed $1,321.)
And she said, correctly, that the meal claims were within the rules.
Which raises two underlying issues.
First, the rules are remarkably generous. Most employers reimburse reasonable expenses when people travel on business. But they don’t usually give you $61 for food if you have a long day at the office. MLAs don’t have to provide receipts. If they buy a $6 sandwich for lunch and a $10 pizza for supper, they can still claim the full $61.
It’s not just the expense claims. MLAs have increased their base pay by 34 per cent in the last five years to $99,000. Most get extra money for various roles. Cabinet ministers, like Chong, are paid $152,000.
But the average wage in B.C. rose about 12 per cent in the same period.
MLAs also voted to give themselves a generous pension plan, with taxpayers picking up a large part of the cost.
But only 25 per cent of British Columbians have any workplace pension plan. The majority of taxpayers are paying for a good pension plan for MLAs while they have no plan of their own.
The gap between the rulers and the ruled has widened.
The examples are striking. MLAs think they need up to $19,000 for a part-time home in Victoria. But the government expects a disabled person income assistance to find accommodation for less than $4,500 a year. Perhaps MLAs need nicer places than someone with a disability — but four times as nice?
Chong’s $6,000 in meal claims is twice the income assistance provided to a single person for all living expenses, except rent, for an entire year. It’s five times the monthly income of someone working at minimum wage.
The disparities suggest MLAs have a high opinion of their value and importance — and a low opinion of their constituents’ worth.
Second, MLAs’ sense of entitlement is showing. Just because the rules allow a $61-a-day claim doesn’t mean they have to grab the money. MLAs could submit expenses that reflect what they actually paid for food. At incomes of $100,000 and up, they could opt to pay for their own lunches.
Chong is not an exception. Her claims were revealed because cabinet ministers’ expenses are reported as part of the public accounts.
The five New Democrat MLAs from the capital region have rallied around Chong and — appallingly — refused to say how much they claimed for expenses. Taxpayers are paying the bills, but according to the New Democrats, it’s none of their business what the cost is.
Which suggests that the claims are high and raises real concerns about the kind of accountability and openness an NDP government would provide.
No one should begrudge MLAs an adequate income. But many people are rightly angry at this casual excess.

Footnote: The latest pay and benefit increases followed the recommendations of a three-person review panel appointed by the premier. But the trio included a senior labour relations lawyer, a former B.C. Supreme Court justice back in private practice and a University of B.C. business professor. Their average income was likely north of $250,000, shaping their perspectives.
For more than 20 years, the State of Washington has had a 16-person salary commission to deal with pay for elected officials. A member is selected at random from the voters' list in each of nine geographical areas. The politicians appoint five members — one each from universities, business, professional personnel management, the law and organized labour. The state's HR department and universities get to name one person each.

So......
How come?
*Citizens get taxed to death because of the poor economy
*Government officials get huge raises, enormous pensions and have insane expenses
*Campbell gets a 53% wage hike and according to rumors a $2 million per year pension
*Government ministers got a 29% wage hike
*Government gets to throw our money away and we don't even get a say
*We get to pay more and more and they get paid more and more
*Our political officials think belt-tightening doesn't apply to them
*The NDP is rushing to Chong's defense (because they are feeding from the same trough?)

Ohhhh! I know, I know!
We pay them to make the rules. Boy, how stupid are we?

Memories Of Mom

It has been ten years today since we lost Mom.

She had congestive heart failure and died of a heart attack. She was probably terrified not knowing what was happening to her and not having any of us there with her at the time. She was 82 years old. She was one of nine children and the last of her siblings to go.
Mom was twenty-four years old when she married and raised four of us kids.
She only had a few years of schooling as in those days you helped out at home if needed. She could not read but could pick out words from the newspaper. She had beautiful handwriting as she would copy the letters even though she didn't always know what they said.
Mom lived a simple, no frills life. She never knew much about the world around her. She didn't like talking on the phone and if you were far away, she thought she couldn't hear you very well.
She had no concept of distance. Our family didn't have a car and didn't travel when we were young. When us kids were older and leaving home, they did have the opportunity to travel some through us or friends.
Cooking was not Mom's best attribute, but every Sunday, we would have a big meal. It would be roast beef or chicken with potatoes, gravy, vegetable, a simple salad and probably pie. She did the best she could, I'm sure and none of us ever starved.
Mom loved to have fun. She was quick to laugh and giggle and loved to tease and be teased. She enjoyed having attention and people around her. I remember her always looking out our front window, just watching people and what was going on.
Mom would never leave the house without lipstick and her hair fixed, even to go to the corner store up our road.
When we were older, Mom would want to go out for a beer and dancing, but Dad didn't want to go so she eventually just went without him. She could be found many a Saturday night at the local pub having a good time.
Mom really enjoyed music. When we were younger she had a squeeze box and would play that thing for hours, just making up tunes as she played. The music was in her bones and the songs in her head.
Mom absolutely adored babies and would always gravitate toward them as if they were magnets. Mom had other passions as well. She would quite often play solitaire or do jigsaw puzzles, but her biggest one was bingo. I think at one point, before they moved away from the coast, she would go to bingo almost every night of the week. After they moved to the interior and she got older, she didn't go as often.
Mom was very mobile for her age as well. She walked a lot, probably because they didn't drive. Then when she was in her seventies, she slipped on some sand on a curb and broke her hip. She never walked again after that without a walker. She was afraid of falling again. Mom went into the care home and never left there. We thought she wouldn't be happy there, but she liked being waited on and came to expect it, until the staff got her doing some things for herself.
In her later years Mom loved watching game shows on TV (she had her favorites), looking at photos, going on outings and watching the world go by out her window. Rest in Peace, Mom. We love you.

Movin' In

Every morning when I get up, I come down stairs and I go over to my front window and look out.

The other morning, there on top of our rock sign, sits a Cedar Waxwing. I was amazed to see him, because just the other day I happened to see a photo of one and was reading about them. It was quite a coincidence.

His mate was flitting about in the dwarf lilac tree by the front corner of the house. There is an old robin's nest in there and she was landing on it, then off and on. Then the mate joined it in the tree and was doing the same thing.

It seems like they had plans to do a little renovating and settle in. Short lived plan though.

Along comes the neighbor from hell's cat, slinking along the front flower bed. They caught sight of it and took off across the road to a bigger tree.

I chased the cat away and the pair of waxwings came back briefly, but they must have sensed the cat nearby and changed their plans.

I saw them off and on the rest of the day across the road, but they haven't been back over here since. Anyhow, the front lawn now has a cat bed imprint in it.

When I looked out my front window this morning, there is that cat in her bed, relaxing and looking up at me. Seems like the decision to move in has been made.

Maybe I'll let her stay, but I really don't want her chasing all my birds away or using the garden for a potty. I'm not sure if it's a him or her, but we'll see how it goes.

If it becomes a problem, I will have to issue an eviction notice!

Duck In The Bar

A man walks into a bar with a metal box under one arm and a duck under the other. The man walks up to the bar and asks the bar tender "if you give me a free bottle of beer, I'll show you my dancing duck".

The barman is surprised, but gives the guy a Bud and asks the man to show him the duck dancing. So the guy puts the metal box on the bar, and stands the duck on top of it. A few seconds later the duck starts to jump around, as if he's doing an Irish jig.

Everyone in the bar is now watching this duck dancing, and the barman offers the guy $50 for the duck and the box. The man accepts, and the pub is filled day and night for 3 days with people watching the amazing dancing duck.

So, 3 days after he sold the barman the duck, the guy walks back in to the pub and sees his duck dancing on the box on top of the bar.

The barman sees the guy and offers him a bottle of Bud on the house. As he gives the guy the Bud, the barman asks, "Could you tell me how you stop the duck from dancing on top of the box?"

The man replies, "Oh that's easy, you just take the hot coals out."

Number 39

Today is my baby's birthday. He hates it when I call him that, but he will always be my baby, cause he was born last. This is the boy that refused to be born 'til the sun shone. We had weeks of rain and a yard full of sloppy mud with boards thrown down just to get across from the driveway to the house. We were all waiting for his birth, especially me, as he was long overdue. Then the sun finally came out and so did he!!
Happy Birthday Steve!!

Camp-A-Long Visit

The weekend after we got back from Creston, Wade and family all drove up to Penticton for some R&R.

Too bad the weather wasn't cooperating. They were going to go back Saturday, but it was the best weather day since arriving, so they stayed an extra day and went back Sunday instead.

Being experienced campers, they had tarps protecting everything so they were nice and dry, but the temp was a little on the cool side.

They invited us out for a visit and supper, so I brought my blanket and we had a nice visit and enjoyed a good meal together.

We had marinated chicken done on a charcoal bbq, an asian salad and new baby potatoes, and it was really good!

Who's That In The Pool

It's me! Gulliver finally talked me into the pool today. It was 82 degrees, so I thought it would be OK.

A little cool when first getting wet, but the water did feel nice and warm.

I stayed in my lounger and paddled around for about half an hour and my hands and feet didn't get cold, so that's a good sign.

Maybe tomorrow I'll go for a swim.

First Swim

Yesterday, Craig went for the first swim in the pool this year. We are a little later this year because of the stupid weather.

With a tease of nice weather here and there, summer was a long time coming.

The pool was 80 degrees and I was going to go in too, but the sun got the better of me and I don't think the air quality was great either.

Roger And Val's Visit

A couple of weeks ago, after a long day on their trip from the island, Roger and Val arrived at our place.

They then transferred all their stuff to the trailer to be ready for the second leg of their trip to the Kootenay's in the morning.

They treated us to dinner at a nice restaurant down on the lake, not too far from our place.

Then we all relaxed and got ready for the drive to the Hal and Jeanette's the next day.

We left in the morning and took our time travelling. Roger drove most of the way, getting the feel of pulling the trailer and did just fine.

We arrived at Jeanette and Hal's in the late afternoon, just in time for a good visit and delicious dinner.

Jeanette had a treat waiting for Craig as well. Yes, he got his apple pie!! Of course we all got to enjoy it as well.

Touring Around Creston

The next morning after we arrived at Jeanette and Hal's, Roger and Val carried on with the truck and trailer on their way down to Montana for a long bow shoot he was competing in.

We stayed behind a had a good time with Hal and Jeanette while they were gone.

They toured us around all over the place, looking at nice houses and local scenery.

We kept seeing these bushes with white blossoms and wondered what they were so we stopped and had a look. They are mock orange bushes and they are everywhere.

Very fragrant flowers and pretty too. We had planted one in our yard earlier this year.

We saw a few really neat looking old cabins and took a couple of pictures, also a yard with a miniture truck in the front yard. Very cute!

A Day At Kootenay Lake

Hal and Jeanette took us out to the RV at the lake for the day. So we packed up some things and some food and away we went.

The RV park is a very nice little place with grass, full hookups and it's just across the road from the lake.

These little tree frogs are everywhere up there and when they pulled out some extra chairs, out jumped two of these little fellows. They aren't very big.

We enjoyed a happy hour, meeting everyone, a nice lunch and a watermellon seed spitting contest between Craig and Jeanette.

New Pool and Farmer's Market

We took in the first Farmer's Market of the year. There weren't a lot of booths set up yet and not a lot of produce to be had.

We did see some interesting stuff though. I saw some planter pots made of hypertufa, so I'm going to give that a try.

I went on the internet to see how it was done, so now I just have to round up some things I can use for molds and get at it.

After we were done at the Farmer's Market, we went to check out the grand opening of the new pool at the recreation complex.

It is very nice and they have done a good job of blending the old and new together.
They are still doing some updating on the hockey arena and the curling rink, and the parking lot is huge.

Long Bow Shoot

Here are a couple of pictures of Roger in Montana at the long bow shoot. It was a very good turnout they said, and a lot of folks travelled from far and wide.