The Squamidian Report – Feb. 17 / 07
Issue #247
Also in this issue:
A Note From Ewan
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Oh groan!! Its tax time again. Even living here where I can hide in the deep mountain valleys, I still have to fill out my tax crap. Back home when I was still in business I used to have my accountant do all that stuff for me, and for the wife and kid too. Now I have to do it all on my own. So when we moved here I started purchasing the yearly tax software that is prevalent in all the stores around now. It gets the job done fairly painlessly as long as you can figure out the answers to the questions, and then you either print off and mail in your return, or you E-file it. It gets it over with and that’s all that matters. But you still have to find any paperwork that you never got around to properly filing away and you still have to sit down and actually DO it. Hardly seems fair when you think about it. Income tax was a temporary measure brought in to cover the cost of the First World War, it should have been dropped long ago.
But now it’s too late. Whole cities are built around the government tax industry. Whole tax industries are build around managing the tax issue for the masses. Basically, it’s a false economy employing countless thousands just to collect and control and police the results of our hard earned incomes. Income taxing could not be stopped now no matter how much we wanted it to be. The economy would collapse because those countless thousands would be out of business. Just like the GST. Most of P.E.I., Sudbury and Surry would be unemployed if it were to be discontinued, so it can never happen. So now we all struggle to get the damn thing done and hope we don’t have to pay more than we already paid. We all hope to get a refund back. But you know, that’s wrong too. Because if we are getting a refund, it means the government has had the FREE use of our money during the tax year. And you sure won’t see them paying you interest on it. Never going to happen. So the best result is to come as close to breaking even on your return as possible after you’ve gotten every break that you deserve.
*
We had to do some rather tricky water-main tie-ins this week. All part of the road rebuilding in the Industrial Part that got started too late last Fall. And as per usual, whenever we need to excavate where there are overhead wires, underground gas lines, water lines, sewer lines and the kitchen sink, I seem to get the assignment. To add a bit more to the mix, surface elevation is at about 3.5 meters above sea level. The main we had to tie into sits at about .5 meters. That makes for a 3 meters deep dig that punches through the water table and on into the shmoo.
The excavations had to be wide enough and stepped so as to be safe, which is the way it should be. But with existing utility poles still in place and the curbed edge of the road in the way, it was a challenge. Then at various depths we encountered that gas line, those new hydro and telephone ducts, and everything else imaginable. In one of the holes I even ran into a very large old stump sitting right where the new hydrant had to go, left over from when the area was being logged decades ago. There was no way the stump was coming out as it was still very, very hard and strong, and its large roots ran under the gas and other lines. We needed to have the engineers OK moving the location of the hydrant we would install a few feet further along the main. No other choice.
The taps into the 12-inch main were being done hot, meaning under full pressure with the water valves that control that section were being left turned on so local businesses etc would not be disturbed. There is a company in the city that has special equipment that lets them mount the saddle and service valve, then drill through the valve opening while keeping a water tight seal. The drill is then pulled back, the valve closed, and the drill fully extracted. Pretty cool, no mess no fuss, no flood. Of course, because we were below the water table, we had to have each hole lined with drain rock and a 4-inch pump running full time. Once the services were in place we needed to backfill. New problem. Because it was raining (big surprise on the west coast) all the material I had dug out of each excavation had turned to soup. So it needed to be trucked away and new structural material trucked in. Then you fill in lifts, run a compactor over each lift and you are done. On to the next thing, no rest for the weary.
*
Like I mentioned last week, I pick up the Thee Musketeers (Lorne, Vivyan, Cindy) this coming Wednesday at YVR. They fly in from the Hamilton airport after a rather early start to their day. They’ll be pretty tired so I probably won’t have to do much entertaining that day, just bring them up there to Squamish where they can relax and unwind. But maybe we can get them involved a bit in next weeks Squamidian.
doug
****
Hello all,
I hope you have been keeping well, it's been too long. Winter finally got here and it seems about right for February. It's nice to know that winter was half over before it started! I enjoyed reading Doug's views on global warming and pollution. As soon as it got cold again the people who have priorities that change with the weather are no longer concerned about global warming or pollution. In my opinion those are two different things, but they have slowly been lumped in to one ball in the media. People had pretty much given up on debating whether or not pollution is a problem, now they can debate about global warming. The trouble with real problems is that they demand actual solutions, as opposed to just wasting money and pointing fingers. At least we can all sleep easy knowing that some of our tax money will be handed to the provincial governments to solve the whole crisis. I'll sleep well tonight!
I seem to recall that at some point I intended to be less sarcastic, I'll try to keep that in mind. For what it's worth, I'd rather take my chances with global warming over nuclear power. I was sort of hoping that we could come up with a way to not have to pay for either of them.
Off and on since college I've been reading various books on history and mythology, particularly Celtic and Scottish things. Sometimes I see things in the world that remind me of similar events that happened a very long time ago. Global warming made me remember something that I read that took place a couple of thousand years ago, maybe in Galatia? You can guess how my history marks were in school! Anyway, some people were suffering and blamed their neighbours, which was at least partially justified. Those in power at the time sort of shifted the blame that had come their way towards the neighbours also, and more specifically at their gods. Many negative aspects of life were attributed to those enemy deities. Ultimately there was a war, and the neighbours were conquered. Naturally, many of the negative aspects of life that had been pinned on the offending "false" gods remained. All this sounds very common and familiar, but the one detail about the story that I remember still stands out. The enemy gods were pronounced false, and ceremonially denied. That particular branch of religion was snuffed out in that area. The trick was that with that the problems that had been associated with them also disappeared. Of course none of the negative aspects of life had changed much, and in fact life was harder after the loses of the battle. But the perspective had changed. Problems were subsequently based on fallout from the war, or whatever they had been blamed on before. But somehow the people felt as though the problems were solved. In their minds much of their suffering disappeared with the false gods.
I hadn't thought about that in a long time. But all the global warming talk that we have been hearing recently made me remember it (at least the gist of it anyway). A person imagines an invisible bag, then mentally places all their problems in to the bag, then disbelieves the bag. Aside from the physical details of actual climatic change I think that's pretty much it. No one uses the word pollution any more. Pollution is just a euphemism for poison anyway, and I couldn't applaud Doug's use of that word more. Few people would deny that the cars that we drive, and in general the world that we have built and try to enjoy creates nasty poison. So instead of getting on with how to turn that around properly, society boils it all down to global warming so we debate whether it's even a real threat or not. There are plenty enough problems that we can all agree are terribly real.
Oh well. What can we do? If the Rogers stock continues to go up I'll be able to afford to buy a good, reliable car to get me to work so that I can pay for the car and all. It was a fun ride while it lasted!
*
I've been having mixed feelings regarding my new position at Rogers, but I'll grumble about that another time. Most years I go to the "Rogers Gala" which is usually a semi-formal work party in Toronto. Some years I look forward to it, other times I skip it. It's usually actually pretty good. I had a great time last year with UU. She works at Rogers Wireless, which means that she was officially invited. I was skeptical this year though. It was no longer a dressed up event at all, and the venue moved down the street again. That didn't make me too suspicious, but the fact that the tickets were half price did! They went from being $20 / person to $10. Ten bucks won't buy much of a night out in the city in this day and age! I know the company pays for a good portion of it, but I was picturing loud dance music, bad acoustics and a line for hot dogs. This is my view of how things tend to change!
UU wanted to go though, and I'd go just about anywhere with her and have fun too. So she picked up a couple of tickets. I guess she knows a good deal when she smells one! It turned out to be a great time after all. There were a lot less people, but that didn't turn out to be a bad thing at all. It was indeed a little to loud, but my complaining ends there. It never ceases to amaze me that it's almost always too loud for me. I used to go to Metallica concerts when I was a teenager! Apparently every where must necessarily be as loud as a Metallica concert. But they must have really shelled out. The people at the top must be raking it in! To all of you who actually pay Rogers for stuff - thanks! UU and I will bring you next year if you want to get some of it back! Instead of serving meals at prearranged tables they just had areas where people would just keep making small dishes. People were walking around offering drinks and snacks. The food was actually good and it was all you can eat. The drinks were actually handled responsibly. It was on a Thursday night and people weren't going too far. It wasn't an open bar, but there were more tickets around than what we really needed, as well as some free drinks. I heard one guy paid for a mineral water, and there was some tipping but that was it. Anyway, it was good and it didn't feel like a scam to get us to pay and pay. No hidden fees from Rogers?!
The entertainment was good too. Although the band was overly amplified they were great. Most people danced out of their own free will. They also had a couple of acrobat dancers. They always have some kind of surprising entertainment, but these two were the best ones that I've seen. The venue was down near the CNE grounds again, but in a different building. It's some kind of night club, with fancy couches, elegant bar and generally nice atmosphere. Over the dance floor there is a very high glass domed ceiling. From it were suspended two very long, narrow, red curtains. They looked thick and velvety, maybe 2m (six and a half feet) wide by 12m (40 feet) high.
We were having a lovely time snacking and sipping when the music started. It was sort of like up beat opera, and the dancers came out with ridiculous outfits and poses. They each started up a curtain, sort of like a pole dancer (if you don't know what that is… it's Polish!). They twisted and turned and used the curtains in beautiful artistry along to the music. They climbed almost to the top and started getting gasps and applause from us below. They would wrap the curtain around their feet and extend their whole body out, twirl and even drop. They'd drop down a fair bit before somehow slithering back in to the curtain, coiling themselves so that they stopped again. Gymnasts often astound me, and these certainly seemed almost superhuman. One plus to the loud music was that it limited the chit chat with my co-workers, which left nothing left to do but dance with UU! Those of you who were at Emily and Ryan's reception know perfectly well that what I do can not rightly be called dancing. But it was fun!
*
I should also point out that this is an excellent time of year for cloths shopping. I do not enjoy this generally. But the cold weather and the gap between boxing day and spring makes for some motivated stores. Yesterday's fashions half price! I don't mind wearing a grey sweater or a pair of jeans a year out of style! Frankly, I try to avoid anything that could even be style, because to me that means that it likely won't ever be too far out of style either! The trick is to go in the middle of the season. If you go to early they won't be desperate to unload enough, but by the end they'll be pushing cloths out of the store with a snow shovel! But at that point it's all been picked over and you need to have some odd measurements to find anything good. For those of you who hate shopping and are as cheap as me get it over with now! Just keep in mind that we'll all be bigger by next winter. Oh, and don't buy any warm weather cloths now, wait until August!
My favourite is the price tag that tells a story. The first price was obviously only marked so high so that they could cross it out immediately to something way less but still too high. Then it's marked down again to something approaching reality. Then when it doesn't sell it's marked down to a reasonable price. Then it goes to the rack that says 50% off, with tiny letters that say "up to" or "on some items." Then it gets moved to the rack that actually is 30% off. But right at the end they start to realize that they only sold about half of them, so the whole area or store goes another chunk off. Then, and only then can I even stand to be inside the store. Only at that point will I even try to get past the toxic crisis known as the perfume area. I've heard of men who fell in those dire regions, overcome by the noxious gas. While it does get way too hot in there, the danger is the pollution, not the heat. This is where I started rambling so this is where I sign off!
Ewan
****
Hello
everyone!
Well,
we’re one more week closer to spring and the winter’s getting worse every day.
I checked the 5 day forecast and they say by next Monday we’ll be into rain and
+8c temperatures. I’ll believe that when I see it! LOL! I’m hoping we’ll see
the prediction of Wiarton Willie come true and spring will arrive early. We’ve
been so lucky this year with regards to the severity of our winter that I’m
almost afraid to hope for an early end to what we do have. We got approximately
8” of snow on Wednesday and were lucky at that. Poor Hamilton got almost 75cm
dumped on them from the winds off Lake Ontario. That translates into around 50”
of the white stuff and that was within 24 hours. Oh the joys of living between
two of the Great Lakes! Hamilton can have it! What we get is quite sufficient
and allows the replenishment of the water table for summer use. Heck, the Grand
River Conservation Authority is even talking about the possibility of flooding
in the region this spring if the thaw comes too quickly. Let’s hope that
doesn’t happen and things get back to normal weather wise with the close of
winter.
*
I just
found out that Thursday was “Flag Day” in Canada. It was 42 years ago on the 15th
of February that Canada (actually, the Liberals) finally agreed on the design
of a national flag. I remember favouring the “Red Ensign” over the single red
maple leaf at the time. However, within a short time the bright red and white
flag grew on me and I’ve been proud of its significance and looks ever since.
There’s something to be said for the prolific patriotism that is exhibited by
the citizens of the United States. When you travel through the US you can’t help
but notice their flag flying in pretty much any direction you look. Here in
Canada unless you’re passing a school, a fire station, or some other
governmental building you’d be hard pressed to see a flag flying high and
proud. Why is it that Canadians are not as flag oriented as our neighbours to
the south? You might say that the Americans are too much “in your face flag
wavers” but I don’t subscribe to that observation. I think there is a lot to be
said for having great pride in your flag and country. That is not to say that
Canadians aren’t proud of their country but I really do think we could be more
patriotic. There are those among us that would say they are patriotic and just
don’t want to appear as garish as the Americans. I don’t think of them as garish
in their efforts to show their pride, just open and honest. There’s something
to be said for a show of pride in one’s flag. I tend to think that the American
enthusiasm for the Red White and Blue spurs them to work together to make their
country THE super power of the world and one of the most desirable countries in
which to live. Like it or not, the US is a strong and for the most part
prosperous nation. Any country that size is bound to have it’s problems but the
freedom that they fight for every day is admired by the rest of the world and
if waving their flag keeps it united and free, I say don’t knock it. We of
course don’t have to mimic the US and that’s not what I’m touting but the flag
waving certainly does promote unity and Canada could use a shot of National
Pride any time. I’ve heard many people say that they admire the patriotism of
the US citizens and that’s not a bad thing. In fact, I feel a sense of pride
when we fly the Canadian flag on our flagpole. I was fortunate enough to be
gifted the original flagpole from what was the Head Quarters station of the
Waterloo Fire Department when I retired. The Deputy Chief offered the pole to
me when I enquired about its fate after they had installed a new pole about a
month before my retirement. I lugged it home on the roof of my Jeep and planted
it in the back yard the next day. I guess I really should keep a flag on it
year round but our winters kick the hell out of the flags so it only flies
about 8 months of the year. If you’re interested in acquiring an official flag,
all it takes is a phone call to your local MP’s office and they will see that
you are sent a flag free of charge. Of course you pay for it inadvertently
through your taxes but you don’t have to put out any cash upon submission of your
request. If you don’t get a flag sent to you by asking your Conservative MP,
try your closest Liberal MP office. Hell they’ll be only too happy to send you
one from the thousands of boxes of them “you” bought when they were in power
and trying to buy votes in the last election by sending them to anyone and
everyone! LOL!
Regardless
of how you feel about being compared to the US when it comes to patriotism it
wouldn’t hurt us to show a lot more love of Canada to the rest of the world.
Enough of
the soap box speeches for this week! I’ll call it a day for now. Thanks for
tuning in and I look forward to talking to you all again next week in The
Ontarion Report!
Bye for now… Greg.
PS:
Something To Think About>
There are
enough pennies sitting in piggy banks in people’s houses to pay off the
national debt!
PPS: Hey
Sus, I saw on this mornings news that your neighbour videoed a UFO over Pictou
Harbour. Have you seen any out there yourself?
****
The Family and the Squamidian sites:
http://members.shaw.ca/doug_b/ and http://www.thedougsite.ca
Have a good one..
the
doug
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