Just Wondering ??

After recently resigning from the local Royal Canadian Legion; I got to wondering who is actually supporting our Legion and the Legion members in the current times.

As all veterans are more than amply aware, there are getting to be fewer and fewer members that would be classed as 'veterans of the World Wars'. Heck, there are getting to be fewer and fewer veterans of the Korean War conflict. Age is just catching up to all and sadly, old age is taking our 'World War' veterans from us at a very quick rate. That is not to say we don't still have military veterans that are still needing our assistance and help.

I did find it very frustrating, that an older person who was a member of the military during World War II who actually never left his home and served for a maximum of 5 years (usually less) in the Armed Forces, is treated with a way more respect than a member of the more recent Armed Forces who spent years in Bosnia, Cyprus, Vietnam, Israel, etc and has served for close to 20 years year in the military. Now I'm not taking away anything from the older 'vets'. They were willing to go, but just were not called up for one reason or the other. But the younger military person is/was also ready 'to go' where his country desired and into some very dicey situations. Some of the postings the newer members of our Armed Forces have been sent to are certainly no walk in the park, yet until recently, the general public has had no real respect for our military.

It is only recently when our military members have been killed in action in Afghanistan, that the people of Canada are taking a closer look at our military members. I'm sorry, but our military has been serving in very hostile spots since the Korean War, just the average Canadian has no idea or information on their service. Try a nice 3 year transfer to the city of Moscow (or Berlin or Saigon) in the early 70's. Do you think this would be an easy place to live with what was going on with the Cold War at the time? These people lived in 'hell' at the time, but no one worried about them. How about manning the barricades in Cyrpus (the Congo, Israel, Somalia, etc) in the steaming heats for months at a time with no contact with your family. Just a cake walk as at least there was no snow! Then we did get to a spot in Bosnia where our soldiers were actually involved in fire fights,etc. Many of the soldiers of the time ended up with PTSD and other medical problems, but of course it wasn't recognized as a real medical problem, so they ended up with no help. There are numerous places that our military members served with no real recognition and suffered more than most can even imagine.

So now we get to a point in the 'real world' where the Royal Canadian Legion's are trying to help our 'veterans'. Up until recently the recent military members were not even a blip on the Legion's radar. However, at least we had some former military members involved in the Legion to bring our current vets problems to the forefront. Sadly, as more and more veterans pass on or give up their interest in the Legions, the Legions are turning to Associates and Affiliate members who have no prior military background. Some of these people have no idea of the trials and tribulations our military members have gone through during the years. Sadly some are involved in the Legion just for the social element and have no thought to help our veterans. Now don't get me wrong, there are many, many Associates and Affiliates members that are doing a super job of carrying on the tradition of the Legion and their mandate. But, there are getting to be more and more that are just in the Legion for the social aspect of the organization or to put on a show that they 'give their all for the community and our veterans'. Sorry, but the sham shows through to those veterans and others that actually put their lives and careers on the line for their country.

From all I have read, eventually the Royal Canadian Legion as we know it, will be no more. There will be no more veterans of the World Wars left. The current veterans of conflict are not joining the Legion ranks to any great degree. So who is left to carry on the traditions and the usefulness of the Legion? The Associates and Affiliates and current military members, that's who. The only problem is that the majority of these people have no idea what a real military member (then or now) goes through to protect Canada and our allies or they don't have any inclination to be a part of the Legion (ie former military members). Certainly the un-military can read a bit and talk to a few veterans, but to actually 'walk a mile in a veteran's shoes' is what is really needed. Hopefully, the world will be able to settle our conflicts without having declared or undeclared wars. If that is the case, then eventually the 'reason for the existence of the Royal Canadian Legion' will cease (ie to assist our Veterans).

At that time, the 'wanna be's' will have to find another organization they can join so they can say they care and are there for our veterans. The only problem is that the military will still have veterans that will need our help (probably more than we now have). They just don't require a place to have a beer or two and a place to socialize. They need real help in a hospital or out patient for PTSD or other medical problems that the average Canadian has no idea even exist or existed. The ordinary citizen of Canada has no real interest in their problems or even care to be associated with a 'trained killer' from the Canadian military. They want to say they are helping our military members, but they don't even recognize the new military let alone help them.

What a crock :(

So what I was wondering about, is what happens to our military members of now. How do we look after them in the future when they can no longer serve the country due to sickness, infirmity, etc. Hopefully the Legion will be able to change and move towards helping these people as they have so aptly done for our veterans of the World Wars and Korea and the past. And hopefully the military members of today will accept the help of an organization such as the Royal Canadian Legion to assist them in their future trials and tribulations of life.

I/we can only hope.

RJ and the Boys #1

James had his camera working overtime at the recent appearance of RJ and the Boys at Bud's on Broadway. I have uploaded one of the videos to YouTube with two more to go. These are very large files to upload so it takes a while. Here is the first one for your viewing pleasure.....




The video is quite large, so you may have better luck actually viewing through YouTube. The link is:RJ and the Boys #1

The Quiet Was So Nice

I was awakened at an earlier hour than I normally want to be awake on a Sunday morning. Someone wanted some work done on their computer so decided to call at 8:40 a.m. to enquire when they could bring it over. Of course Sunday is the only day of the week that I get to lay back in bed and just roll over and log a few more zees. Not today though.

While I was up and waiting for the computer to arrive I thought it was a downright great looking day so I figured I might as well hit the links for a game of golf. I gave James a call and we were set for a 10:00 a.m. tee off.

There was a slight breeze but just enough to keep the mosquitoes away and to keep a person cool. So it was very enjoyable. But what really got me hit me on the 6th hole when I looked around and could see probably 10 other people on the course. The real nice thing was there wasn't a motorized golf cart to be seen. Everyone was walking with their carts. For some reason it just seemed to be so much more peaceful. You could hear the birds singing away and you didn't have to put up with the mechanical noises.

Nowadays a lot of motorized carts are electric so there is not a lot of noise to them. For awhile there all newer carts were electric, however, in the last while I have seen a few more gas ones showing up. Of course they are a bit noisier and stinkier than electric carts. Some folks figure they are better because they can go faster and what not. As for me, I prefer to walk as I'm out there to relax and not just tear around from one hole to the next. I'm also in it for a bit of exercise and you don't get too much exercise by sitting in a cart zooming around. Too each their own though.

All in all it was a nice comfortable round of golf. Not a terrific score, but I didn't embarrass myself either. James and I actually ended up shooting the same score which is nice in that neither one bettered the other. Just a real nice way to spend a Sunday morning that was wrecked with the early call :)

One Knock Against Small Town Living

What follows is a made up situation that in no way should point towards any person in our community or any community I'm familiar with. It is a 'what if' or 'what could be' situation only that could happen in any town or city.

We all know how in small towns everyone knows everyone else (or just about so). The one problem with this is the rumours that can and are started on a daily basis. Let's say for example that a couple of guys decide to head over to the local watering hole to have another wobbly pop (of which they have had a few already). As they are sitting down, one of the fellows looks around to ensure that the pair have no one around and tells his mate of the the latest rumour he has heard or wants to make up. 'One of the local ladies is having a go around with one of the local men when her hubby is away working' They are joking of course and mean no harm in a little harmless talking. Now of course the fellow cautions his mate that this is just a rumour and not to repeat it to anyone else. The other fellow agrees and they finish their refreshment and move on.

You just know of course that there was someone else listening behind the corner (behind the door or wherever) or the mate just can't keep it to himself and the rumour starts to take on a world of it's own. The next thing you know you hear that the lady in question had a 'sleep over' with said man as his truck or car was parked outside her house all night long a couple days ago. Her husband was away working and wasn't able to get home for the night. Of course there was a very valid reason why the vehicle was parked at the house, but that is never revealed. This goes on and on and on. The next thing you hear is that the lady is pregnant, it is a wife swapping exchange, divorce, yada yada yada.

In small towns the local cafe is where most folks gather and swap tales. It would probably take about 1/2 a day for the above rumour to hit the local coffee circle. Of course every time it is told, the story is embellished upon. The next time the lady in question, her paramour or the husband/wife enters the cafe the conversation just dies. You have to wonder what they were talking about?

Now getting back to our original two thirsty gents . . . They finally wander into the coffee circle and hear the latest rumour only to be totally aghast as this is the one they started with each other as a joke or in jest. It just can't be, we meant nothing by it and we all know that the people in question would never get involved in something like this. It is just wrong. So of course they offer their apologies to the people involved and all is well again? This would be not the normal as usually no one knows where a certain rumour starts or who started it.

In a real world this would be the end of the story, however, as with most rumours it is not the end . . .

The trouble with this is that the rumour is out there and folks that have nothing better to do will just keep it moving and enlarging the rumour over and over and over again. Sure some folks will just mark it down as rumour but there definitely will be some that take it very much serious and think it is the gospel. Quite likely the reputation of some very nice people have been ruined by a stupid comment amongst just a couple of thirsty guys with nothing better to do. Once there is a question mark put on the morality of a person or the person's particular character, it is very, very hard to get it back.

The above scenario can certainly happen in a city as well as a smaller town, however, in the city your chances of someone actually knowing who the heck you are, who the people in the rumour are or really caring what the heck you are even talking about is very minute. Whereas some in small towns just live for a such good juicy rumour.

As I said when I first started this story, it is just a 'story' and there is no reality to it that I know of. It is not meant to point to anyone in particular and is only written about as one of the harsher living conditions of a town compared to a city.

It is definitely a wake up for those folks that start rumours or pass them on. You are not just having a bit of fun, you are hurting real people.

To my thinking, living in a Town has a way more positives than negatives, however, you do have to realize that there are some negatives out there as well.

You know I wonder if that is why I never or very rarely stop at the local coffee shop and instead drive the 30-45 minutes to the city to have a cup of java at one of the A & Ws. Naw, it must be that A & W has such great coffee :)

What A Nice 'Fall' Day

As I headed outside first thing this morning, the weather was just not very nice. Very overcast and cool with a temperature of 4 C. The wind was down though so at least that is a plus. The last while has been crazy the way the wind has been so strong and of course coming out of the north. The only problem is that it is now June 6th and not November 6th. It just seems we can't get 2 warm days in a row and we can't get spring started let alone summer . . .

Oh heck just think in a short two weeks the days will start to get shorter :)

Smells So Nice . . .

I just returned from my morning paper rounds and all during the hour walk it drizzled rain. The first couple of steps out of the house and you could just smell the difference in the air. According to my gauge we have had about 1 millimetre which isn't much rain, but what a difference even this little bit makes.

In my mind it could drizzle all day long and it wouldn't bother me. However, for those in the farming industry that are not finished planting they may disagree. But in reality I think most folks would like a good rain as it is just so dry out there.

We'll see, but for now I'm just enjoying the fresh smell as the rain comes down . . .

Brrrrrr

The weather sure has been horrible this spring. Cold and windy all the time. It just doesn't want to warm up and give us some good old sun. Here it is May 30th at 6:55 a.m. and my darn furnace just cut in.

I just returned from doing my papers and during my walk I certainly did find it cool. In fact I should have had on gloves. It wasn't quite togue time, but darn close :(

A Saga Ends

Thank goodness the Town decided to end their dealings with the man who said he would bring prosperity to 'small town Saskatchewan' before they got in too deep. The fellow was not charged over anything he did Hanley, but it would appear he carried his aspirations a little too far on the national stage.

Gordon Carl Summers - Prison Sentence

The thought of Vigor BioPharma Inc and curing cancer is certainly a great thought, however, it appears their 'frontman' was overstepping a bit.

He'll now have a few years to reflect on his course in life.

Curling Just About Done

Today the Seniors had their last curling day of the season. It has been decided to close down the plant after this coming weekend and the Mixed Curling Bonspiel. The Parks and Recreation have an auction slated for April 4th and they are going to hold it in the curling rink (on the ice surface). Now it takes a good 10 days to get the ice out and the cement cleaned up before the auction can be held. Hence the closing down of the curling plant this coming Sunday evening/Monday morning.

Now I'm not sure if I'll be curling in the Square draws on Tuesday or Thursday this week. If not, then that will be all for my curling season. One nice thing is that today I was handling the Skip job and we actually went out on a winning note. We were tied up coming home with the other team having last rock. I threw my first rock and missed a takeout, but on my second rock I hit what I wanted to hit and had a bit of a roll behind cover. The opposing Skip was narrow on his takeout attempt so we ended up counting 1. Overall, I curled 11 games in the Seniors league and had 7 wins and 4 losses. This was the first year I curled as a Third so I was happy with the outcome.

It is interesting talking to a few of the curlers after today's game though. A lot of the people are getting up in years, so their comment normally is whether or not they will be taking part next year. One due to availability (ie live or dead), and another is if they can due to knees, legs, etc. I haven't reached that limit yet (thank goodness), so hopefully I'll be able to get my weekly dose of exercise in about 9 months :)

What a Bad Blogger I Am :(

I have had so much on my plate of late, I just haven't been able to get my fingers around the keyboard to put up much on this blog. . .

I got involved with the beta of the new Windows 7 and have it installed on one of my computers. Then I decided to pick up a new computer (8 GB RAM, 1 GB video card, etc), so then I had to try and transfer all my files etc to the new computer and get Sam set up on my old one (the one with Windows 7 on it). There was a learning curve for Sam as she had recently been using the XP system. So she missed Vista and the new 7 is very much based on a Vista computer. Actually if I read correctly, anyone upgrading to the new Windows 7 and using XP, will have to format and do an install. There is no upgrade available from XP to 7. If you are using Vista, then you can upgrade to 7 though. Now I'm not certain of the XP thing, but that is what I have read a few times. Anyhow, computers have been taking up a bit of my time of late.

Then because my days are not busy enough as it is I was convinced to take on a new task of creating a website for the Town of Hanley. The Town wanted to get their presence out on the Web. I did some work on the site and now the powers to be have to decide if they want to go ahead with the site or just what.

I also created and run another blog for the Hanley Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion and it decided to get corrupted the other day. So I have been frantically trying to get it back up and running. I tried and tried, however, I couldn't retrieve previous posts so I just started over. The feeling is that I'd rather get the blog up and running and I can always try to recover previous posts later on.

Add to the above, I have been very busy with computer repairs of late. Lot's of new customers which is nice.

Of course I'm also into curling at this time of the year. Predominately I enrolled in the Senior curling for Monday's. But then I was used as a spare on Tuesday evening and on Thursday evening on a fairly regular basis. So lots of time has been spent at the curling rink.

My Tuesday mornings have been taken up with the Seniors Center and playing pool. There is about 7-8 fellows who go down and shoot 3-4 games every Tuesday morning. I missed as I was so tired after papers I went back to bed. They called me and insisted I come down for a few games. So if I'm home I try and get down for 9:00 a.m. and keep my shooting skills up.

Of course I'm still delivering the Saskatoon Star Phoenix every morning. Thankfully that usually only takes an hour or so. The bad part is that the papers are supposed to be deliver prior to 7:00 a.m. Monday to Saturday. I usually get up between 5:30 a.m. and 5:45 a.m. and get them done. The cool weather has not been nice lately, but at least I do see a warm up in the weather forecasts to come.

Then just because; I also was convinced to take on the caretaker position of the Centennial Hall effective today. The person currently in the position wanted to move on as they had held the position for quite awhile and their life was getting so busy. The feeling is that it should only take me 15-20 hours a week out of my time. Of course that is once I get used to doing what I have to do on a daily basis. Then when there is something going on for the weekend (ie curling spiel, etc) I'll have a few more hours. I'm not really sure of the time commitment, but I'll definitely give it a go and see what I can do.

So all in all, I just haven't had a lot of spare time to actually sit down and compose something for the blog. Lot's of thoughts, but just not the time to get it submitted. Hopefully my time will start to slow down just a bit as it seems like I'm running out of steam just about every day.

That is not what retirement is supposed to be like, is it? Hope not anyway . . .

Road Information

Quite a few people travel back and forth to Saskatoon via Highway 11. In the winter months, you are always worried about travelling through the Blackstrap valley. The Department of Highways takes good care of the roads through the valley, however, it does take them a bit to get to the area to sand and plow. So it would be nice to have a bit of advance knowledge.

Yesterday I was advised of a tool that can be used to check out a part of the highway right in the valley. This is a camera and it is streamed online. The camera also updates every 30 seconds, so you can get a basic idea of what is happening in the valley at any particular point in time. Of course it can't show great detail of the road, so you can't actually see black ice, but you can see snow, blowing snow, etc. As well you can see the vehicles travelling through the area.

The camera can be watched at the following web address:

Blackstrap Camera

Used in conjunction with the Highways 'Road Information', you can make up your mind whether to travel through the area or not. The Department of Highways road information can be found at:

Saskatchewan Winter Road Conditions

Check it out. . .

PS: There is also a camera being setup at Davidson, however, it is not operational as of yet. The link for this camera is:

Davidson Camera

Do Not Call List

Canada's new 'Do Not Call' list doesn't appear to be doing what it is supposed to as reported by Global TV on January 14th, 2009. Surprise, surprise.

I did register my phone on this list and I do think that my calls have gone down.

However, as a general rule what we follow in our household. We just don't answer any calls that show 'Unknown Name' or 'Unknown Number' unless we recognize the number only. I realize that a lot of people don't list their cell phones when they call, but if they call me they just very may end up with my message manager. If they leave a message I'll give them a call back, but don't expect me to answer the call. As a matter of fact you can have SaskTel block your telephone for you and the caller with 'Unknown Name/Number' gets a recording stating that the caller doesn't answer calls with unknown details. You need at least a number to get through. Now some of the telemarketers are using bogus numbers to get through to this setting. That's why I just don't answer the darn things unless I recognize the number. If you are a friend or acquaintance and you only show a number you'd better hope I have a good memory. The wife answers absolutely zero of these calls as well.

The same goes for '800' numbers or numbers with area codes that we don't normally get calls from (ie any code other than 306). We just don't answer the phone and 3 rings later the caller gets our message manager. They can then leave a message. If the caller doesn't leave a message, I just delete the call and forget about it. If there is a message and we are at home, I'll listen to the message and if warranted, return the call. No message, no talk to me.

I was getting calls from an 800 number that looked like it was from Sears (according to a look up on the Internet). I do deal with Sears, however, they showed 'Unknown Name' so we didn't answer the call as it could very well be just a telemarketer. The same number called almost every day for a couple weeks and not once did they leave a message. Now we seldom receive calls from this number any longer. My thinking is that any reputable company/business would want to advertise their name. If they don't, then don't expect me to answer on spec.

Now whether it is just a coincidence that our calls have decreased after the implementation of the 'Do Not Call List' or our refusal to answer these unknown calls; all I know is that the number and frequency of the calls have drastically declined and that is a good thing :)

Idiots Out There

I made it through the morning papers and the drifts of snow. Then it was off to the curling rink for the morning game. Due to some sickness we were short a player, however, we recruited a 2nd from another rink and got the game under way. Sadly, we ended up with a big 'L'. Oh well, there is always next week.

After the game we headed for home for a quick bite to eat and then headed for the city for Sam's INR check up. After last nights semi blizzard the roads were actually in decent shape. The passing lane had a bit of snow and ice, but really not that bad. I was able to travel near 100 to 105 Kph.

About half way into the city I looked in the rear view and saw a car coming up quite fast. There was a single occupant in the vehicle. As he zoomed by me I just had to shake my head. The idiot was reading a book or magazine as he was driving. He had the magazine situated in the steering wheel and was reading and changing pages. I would estimate his speed at somewhere near 130 to 140 kph so he was in quick order out of sight.

It is hard to believe someone would be so stupid to travel the roads in the conditions we had. I can only speculate what this guys response would be if he either had an accident or caused an accident. Likely something like, "gee, I was just driving along minding my own business". Yah right, and you don't have one clue :(

You just have to shake your head at the stupidity of some people . . .

Time Just Flying

It appeared that I just got over the Remembrance Day ceremonies and then I was getting prepared for the Legion bonspiel on January 2nd, 3rd & 4th. Trying to get bartenders lined up (impossible task), ordering the liquor & beer, picking up the orders, purchasing items at the store, etc. etc.

Before I knew it, Friday the 2nd was here. I started going just after lunch and picked up all my orders and got them delivered to the Hall. The fridge stocked up and got everything ready to go for 5:00 p.m. This year I really didn't want to curl as I just run out of time as it is. Having to curl at least 3 games only impacts the time shortage more. But, because of the weather for the weekend, I did indeed end up curling. We had hoped for 32 rinks, but had to settle for 24 (ours included). This is still a respectable number of rinks though. I did hear that a town east of Regina also had a bonspiel scheduled for the same weekend as Hanley. They could only muster 7 rinks. It certainly is hard to run any kind of a bonspiel with that few rinks.

Back to our spiel though. At 5:00 p.m. we got the bar open and everyone was getting ready to curl. Our team had to hit the ice at 7:00 p.m. so I got a couple guys to man the bar and out I went. Of course we got our butts kicked, but we scared the other team for the first couple ends when we scored. After that we just were not strong enough to keep up. Go figure :)

Then it was back to helping out in the bar area, picking up more beer, etc. All in all I got home at 3:45 a.m. Saturday morning. My head hit the pillow at 4:00 a.m. and I tried to get some rest. At 5:45 a.m. my alarm went off and I was up and at em to do my papers. Of course it had snowed and blew overnight and the temperature was sitting near -55 C when I headed out. Slogging through the snow just about did me in. Within 3 blocks my legs felt like they had lead weights on them.

However, I did manage to get the papers delivered. Got home and took a few hours of rest and hit the hall again near 11:00 a.m. We curled once again and of course got severely beaten. That meant we had to curl again at 9:00 p.m. Saturday night. We were able to get in a great roast beef supper though. This was in between watching the bar and sitting at the door selling tickets. But the supper was delicious.

The team headed out for our 9 p.m. appointment and immediately felt we were in away over our heads. Chalk up another loss. That's three strikes (games) and your out. So it was back to the hall and watched/listened to RJ & the Boys. We got to close the place up earlier than Friday though and we were home by 3:30 a.m. The nice part was no papers on Sunday so I got to snooze a bit longer. Even so, we were back at the hall shortly after 11:00 a.m.

Throughout the whole weekend, the cold was just brutal. I really appreciated all the people that came out and curled, watched, or just visited. Without them, the bonspiel would not have been a success at all. Sandra and I made it home right around 9:00 p.m. A whole lot tired, but not overly so. As I said earlier, it had blew and snowed all weekend and of course I did not find the time to shovel or snow blow the driveway out. I was dreading trying to plow through the drifts when we got home. To my surprise, one of my great neighbours had snow-blowed the sidewalk and the driveway, so it was clean driving into the garage. You just have to love super neighbours like that!

Monday morning of course is the senior's curling, so I was up early doing the papers, then down to the rink and some more curling. At least I ended up on a winning rink for a change. Prior to heading off for curling I had already received 8 computer repair calls though. After lunch I returned my supplies to the various stores and fixed up two computers. Then I got to rest at home for a bit. Of course I had laundry to do, but heck that is just loading up the washer and then folding after drying. Nothing too tasking other than time.

Onto Tuesday and off we went to the city so Sam could get her INR checked. I also had a computer to look at in the city and a new HD TV to hookup for a fellow. Got that all done and home by supper time. Success both with the TV and with the computer.

Wednesday I got a couple more computers done and not much else. Thursday the same.

Then the weekend hit and I could hardly believe it that here I sit typing and it is already January 11th. Half the darn month is just about gone.

Seeing as today was a nice quiet day I got back to doing my normal laundry today, and decided to clean the oven. It had gotten a bit dirty from cooking over the holidays. Of course yesterday I finally got around to taking down the Christmas tree and putting the decorations away. As I was pulling down the tree, I must of turned the wrong way or something as I must of stretched something in my back. It hurts like all get out. Every time I rolled over last night in bed I woke up from the pain. It almost seems like a 'stitch', so I'm hoping I can work it out. And actually after reaching in and doing the oven it does feel a bit better. Hopefully that is a good sign.

Tomorrow, we have curling in the morning and then as expected we have to head back to the city for Sam's INR. With last weekend being so screwed up, her levels are out of wack, so we have to go in and get it checked again. Hopefully they are back in sync once again after a more normal week.

I normally don't make any New Year's resolutions as you just never seem to keep them up, however, I do want to try and hit the blog a bit more often this year. I have been trying to set up a new blog for the Legion (which seems to be working fine) and a web page for the town. The town still hasn't decided whether they want to go with what I set up or not. If not, then maybe we can get something else set up for them. I told them I was no pro, but I would do what I could for them. We'll see.

Even with the month tearing by, I do seem to be finding a bit more free time. Heck, I actually sat back and read a book for a couple hours the other day. That doesn't happen too often as I just don't seem to get the time. So maybe we are on a roll and I'll find a bit more free time to spend on the blog.

Hope so :)

Is It Cold Enough?

The last week or so delivering papers in the morning has not been the greatest. Of course it has been cool outside, but I dress warmly and the cold doesn't bother me that much. Actually the temperatures have not gotten that bad yet either. Heck, I don't think it has been down to -40C (with the windchill) yet. Once the temperatures hit -60C then we'll be talking on the cold side :)

What really does peeve me, is when I'm out doing my morning walk and I'm dressed appropriately. That means wearing a balaclava and some kind folks decide they want their diesel to warm up so they crank it up and let it run for a couple hours while they are slurping their morning coffee. Diesel fumes stink and really bother my breathing.

I don't remember the problem being so bad when I lived in the city, but then maybe I just got used to all the junk in the air. However, since moving out to the small town I really do pick up on odours a lot quicker. While walking in the morning, I actually can smell someone out on their back porch having their morning smoke when I'm 2-3 houses away. For some reason the odours just are more noticeable in the cleaner (?) air in town.

Now when I'm walking and I have to deliver the morning paper to a house where they have their diesel vehicle gobbling up fuel and just sitting there getting zero miles per gallon, I try to hold my breath. Especially if there is no wind as the cloud of diesel smoke just hangs around the vehicle. Of course I have to breath and for some reason the smell gets lodged in my throat and I almost gag. The reflect is to try and cough it out but with a face mask on, it is hard if not impossible. Then you have to try and lift your mask with your gloved hands that have a hard time picking up anything as there is no feeling in the fabric of the gloves.

I'm thankful when I get past the house and get to walk in the cleaner air once again. After a few nice deep breaths of the air I'm usually okay to go again. But then I really truly appreciate the fellows that decide they are going to check every street in town bright and early in the morning. They drive up and down the streets to make sure our town was safe overnite and/or to warm up their vehicle which is better than letting it just sit there getting 0 mph. Of course they tend to drive a diesel and the vehicle exhaust just hangs in the air over the streets they drive.

My only recourse is to try and breath through my mouth, but then I'm back to trying to lift up the ski mask with my clumsy gloves on. Then my face starts to freeze over because it has been in behind a face mask and now is nice and moist and warm from my breathing. The ice usually eithers starts to form immediately or if there already was ice, then it starts to melt. Either way, it is not a very comfortable feeling.

Wonderful, just wonderful :(

Vigor BioPharma Update

After almost a year and a half since the Town severed their ties with Vigor they are back in the news. It appears that the RCMP's Commercial Crime Section out of Saskatoon has charged Mr. Summers with fraud and other charges. Mr. Summers was the frontman for Vigor BioPharma in the summer of 2007 when he was trying to setup a business in the Town of Hanley. Ultimately the Town decided to sever ties with the man and his plans.

Summers faces fraud charge

Of course these are just charges and the man is to have his day in court to prove his guilt or innocence.

Slippery Out There

This morning I headed out to check on my papers at 5:30 a.m. and it was clear as a bell out there. The papers had not been delivered so I headed back inside and was just getting comfortable on the couch when I saw the lights of the delivery person's vehicle.

I headed back out to greet the guy and get the papers and it was just starting to snow. The delivery man said this was the first snow he has seen all night and thankfully he only had about an hour to go and his day (night) was finished.

I took the papers inside and sorted them out for carrying and was back outside in about 10 minutes. Was the snow ever coming down. The nice part was there was no wind whatsoever but visibility was sure limited with the snow. Within a couple houses I was completely covered in snow as it was sticking to the fur on my hat. It didn't stick on my jacket or gloves too much, just mainly my hat.

As I trudged off delivering the papers I quickly found out that it was darn right slippery under this new blanket of snow. I was being extra careful throughout the hour walk and yet I slipped and fell 3 times. Thankfully I didn't fall hard or awkwardly and came through with no injuries. Fresh in my mind was the fact that it was only last week that the son Craig was out shovelling a bit of snow on his driveway and he slipped and broke his wrist/arm. Of course he now gets a holiday for about 3 weeks from work, but I'm sure it isn't much of a holiday with your main arm immobilized in a splint/cast.

After I finished delivering the papers to the far south end of town I was on my way home and just enjoying the peacefulness of the town with the snow still coming down heavily. The coyotes in the area must have sensed my thoughts as they started to howl over on the north west end of town. I haven't heard them for awhile now, so I was wondering where they had gotten to. Not that I'm crazy about having them around when I'm out in the morning with no one else around. I know a couple times I felt like they were following me in the trees at the edge of town. I've only come face to face with one of the pack when we both decided to turn onto the road at the same time. We were about 30 feet apart and we both saw each other at about the same time. Both of us looked to see which was the best way to run. Thankfully the coyote headed the opposite direction that I was going to go. I was out on the far edge of town (actually the last house in town) and of course no one else was out and about at the time. The old hairs on the back of my neck were standing out for sure.

But it is sort of special when they decide to howl and the sound carries for miles in the quietness of the morning. Just as long as they stay away from my particular place in town when I'm out and about by myself :)

Remembrance Day

I finally get to take a breath once again after the November 11th Remembrance Day ceremony is over. You would think as the President, I should get to sit back a bit and have others take care of the business. Of course in a small town Legion Branch this just doesn't happen. We need all the members we can to work towards putting on anything we do. Normally, there is a core of 10-15 members who do the majority of work and then a few more that will jump in and help at the last minute. It would appear that many of the same people are working at the various events over and over again. It does show that some of members are getting a bit tired and would like 'new blood' to take some of the load. Heck, I've only been a member of Hanley Branch for 4 years and I already feel a bit of that. Just think of the members that have been doing it for 15-25 years. Of course the veterans are not getting any younger and so it is hard for them to take up much of the load. They have had their time, now the torch is being given to the younger members. The trick is to get these members to take up the torch.

The ceremony did go off without too many glitches. Well, at least glitches that the local citizens would recognize. But all in all it did go over well. This was my first opportunity to be the chairman of the ceremony and of course I had a few anxious moments. Our member who was running the sound system was sort of impressed that I had no problem with the microphone. Some members are a bit shy of speaking into the mike, etc. I explained to him that after 30 years of yapping on radios through a microphone, I most definitely was not intimidated by them.

The local RCMP Detachment did not have anyone present at the ceremony (nor was there any contact with myself regarding my enquiries). However, we were very fortunate in that a member who was originally from Hanley was home for the service. As luck would have it she showed up in her red serge and after I approached her and plead my case, was more than willing to serve as our Canadian flag bearer and lead in our colour party. Thank you Bobbie Jo, you made our day.

The amount of local military members were a little shy this year as well. It would seem that most of the Dundurn establishment went to the Saskatoon ceremony. You can't blame them in that it was billed as the 2nd largest indoor Remembrance Day ceremony in Canada in the city. We did have 3 members show up, with two of the members having their families along. The third member's family travelled into Saskatoon for that ceremony.

The guest speaker was Lew Dudridge who was a long time member of the Hanley community who has now moved to BC to the warmer climate. He served in WWII as a pilot, is a former mayor of Hanley, a writer and a successful businessman. During his talk he drew from his experiences in the war and related it so there was a local flavour. Everyone I spoke to was more than happy with his talk (albeit he was a little long winded). The thought that he had a tendency to go over his allotted time is nothing new for Mr. Dudridge. He is well travelled, well spoken and more than willing to expound on many, many matters. After all, a fellow that is pushing 91 has many a thought to pass on to the younger crowd :)

After our service we had the Frank Ball orchestra come in and entertain the folks from 3:00 pm until 7:00 pm. The crowd was a little less than last year, but those that were present tried to make up for the shortage of people with their dancing. In an estimation we likely had around 100-125 people in attendance for the dance.

At 7:00 p.m. the Ladies Auxiliary put out a scrumptious ham, baked potato and all the trimmings supper. There was a small decline in folks attending supper as well. I believe there were 138 plates that were used where normally it is around 160 or so. Part of the decline would be because of the wintery conditions that were prevalent on November 11th in our area. Freezing rain, blowing snow and just blustery weather does not make for a very conducive driving situation. Of course a lot who normally attend are getting up in years and with conditions such that we had it is understandable they didn't tempt the highway conditions.

A final count hasn't been made, but it does appear that we didn't go in the hole for the ceremony and may have made a few dollars. Not as many as some years, but then this has never been a ceremony where we were out to make money. The thought is to honour our veterans (old and new) and have a ceremony to 'remember them'. I do believe we accomplished what we wanted to do.

'We Will Remember Them'

New Hound

It looks like there is a new hound in the family...

Pat & Ron returned from Alvena with a new addition to Craig's house. The name is something like 'Jamongie' (but don't quote me on the spelling as I just don't watch too many kids shows anymore). Thanks to Julia for the name :)

Here a few pics of the new critter . . .

Just A Bit Peeved :(

I'm normally a fairly understanding person and usually take the middle road in most things.

This last Friday, October 31st, was the first day of the local Poppy campaign for 2008. Here in Hanley we have a group that sells wreaths to business people, companies, and individuals. We normally have 3 teams that take care of our community and area. They are usually chomping at the bit to get out and sell poppies and wreaths for our Remembrance Day ceremonies and are very dedicated.

So on Monday morning my Poppy Chairman comes to me and advises that all is going well with the exception of the local RCMP Detachment. The members responsible for the RCMP tried all day Friday and all day Saturday at the Detachment to contact a member with no success.

I informed the fellow that we don't have any normal business hours for our local Detachment any longer as the RCMP has cut the Detachment to only two members and right now they are short one member. Of course this member works mainly nights when the request for service are the most. The Poppy chairperson asked that I attempt to get a hold of the Detachment and see if they wanted to purchase a wreath this year for our Poppy campaign.

Monday morning I called the local number for the Detachment and after numerous no answers I finally let the call go through to Saskatoon (knowing that member normally works nights). I explained to the clerk who answered who I was and why I was calling. She appreciated the call and replied that normally the Detachment does purchase a wreath, but I should talk to the member at the Detachment. The clerk then gave me the local number (duh I just called it a bunch of times) and also the cell phone number of the member in the area. She also advised that the member was working this evening and to give the Detachment a call after 6:00 pm. when the member came one duty.

I waited til about 5:55 p.m. hoping to catch the member before he hit the road. No answer. So I called at 6:00 p.m., 6:10 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. with still no answer. So the next call I made I let go through once again to Saskatoon and was answered by a member in the Detachment in Saskatoon. He assured me that a Hanley member was working this evening and just must be busy and to try my call again.

So I waited for an hour and tried the Detachment again. Still no answer (which is understandable if the member is out on a call). I then gave the cell number a call that the clerk had provided and actually got an answer from the member. I identified myself and the member acknowledged who was calling and then the phone went dead. Hey, this is a cell, so bad coverage etc, etc.

I thought that the member would give me a call back as he knew my name and must have my number from call display or a phone book to look up the number. After 10 minutes and no call back I again called the cell. It rang and rang and rang and no answer. I re-tried thinking maybe I had a wrong number, but nope, ring, ring, ring and no answer. So I thought maybe the member got tied up and would give me a call later. After a couple hours I again called the cell and just received a ring, ring, ring with no answer.

I then waited for another hour or so and tried again with still no answer. So I then tried the Detachment again and still no answer there. Then all of a sudden the police truck heads out of town past my living room window. I think that of course the member is heading out on a call so I don't expect him to give me a call for the evening and that he must have been busy.

The next day I tried the Detachment and cell again and still no answer at either number, yet a few minutes later the police truck drives past the house heading out of town. So I call the members cell phone again and I still don't get an answer.

Being an ex member I figure the member is heading to a call and is tied up and has no time to give me a call back so I send the Detachment an email message with a request for a confirmation on there attendance at our Remembrance Day services. A couple days later and still no answer.

So today I tried the Detachment again and still no answer on the local phone. There is no sense in going through to Saskatoon as they just tell me to keep trying the local number. Getting a bit peeved here by this time :(

I typed up a letter and faxed it to the Detachment this afternoon hoping that when the member comes to work he would at least check out his fax machine. I received nothing back this evening, but I figured that maybe the member is on days off now and won't likely see the fax until probably Friday.

What I really hate is that when I have to get up in front of a group of 20-30 people and tell them I have had no luck in contacting the local RCMP and everyone shakes their head and agrees with me and say this is normal. Ashamed just doesn't cut it.

I then think that maybe I should tell these folks to just call 911 as numerous of our folks in the province do and that way an incident is created in Regina by DOCC and a member always gets back to these people as a complaint has been generated and the member is more or less compelled to do something.

Sorry, I just can't do that after sitting in DOCC and hearing the sad tales on the 911 line that a person's 12 year kid won't go to bed and she requires the police attendance to make the child go to bed, etc. A bit later I then hear the member booking 10-23 (at scene) of the caller. Just a bit of disgust on my part on hearing this. But better that than continually calls to 911 complaining about lack of police attendance.

Gosh I wish I could get my kids tucked in by a $70,000 + per year police officer whenever I wished :(

I do realize that this most definitely is not an emergency call, but there are still many, many calls to the police that are just a routine complaint/request for service that eventually end up in something more serious or need to be answered. It would appear that either the member(s) are so overwhelmed with the calls in the area that they just do not have the time to return calls or they just don't care. If it is the previous then the Force should be definitely looking at getting more members in place. If it is the later, then the Force should be looking for a better Detachment for the member rather than a small town Detachment.

For our local Remembrance Day ceremony, if the member shows up great, if not then we'll just go on with our service without them. The sale of one small wreath certainly is not going to break our bank.

It just is not a very satisfactory method of doing business in my mind though. . .