The Squamidian Report – Dec. 21 / 13
Issue #604 Including: From Lauren, Greetings from Regina From Carol Greetings From Sue The Ontarion Hi All, It is old news now that Canada Post is planning to cut service and raise prices. Ending door to door deliver of mail is perhaps inevitable whether its necessary or not. I know that when we lived on Hidden Valley in Kitchener we had a private rural style mailbox out at the end of the lane and I would have preferred our mail be deposited into a more secure PO box or community 'super mailbox' setup simply because we did have our mail tampered with on several occasions. I was running a business at the time and that created some real problems. Out here where we are now our mail gets as far as the local postal outlet where there are indoor postal boxes right on site. Its right beside the grocery store so it is not at all an inconvenience to pick up the mail when picking up bread and milk. I kind of like the way it works. So the fact that door to door delivery will be phased out does not impact me directly and therefore I don't really even have an opinion about that aspect. I certainly understand that anyone who still gets their mail delivered right to their door will be inconvenienced, and any postal carrier who will be out of work will certainly be inconvenienced. What gets me about the whole thing is that Canada Post is responding to market and competition pressure the same predictable way all crown and / or public companies seem to do, and totally opposite to the way most private, non-crown corporations would do it. When a private business is faced with declining revenues and market challenges, they usually respond by LOWERING product prices in order to attract more business, and by INCREASING customer service in order to keep their existing customers. Not so with crown corporations. They tend to respond by INCREASING what they charge for their product and DECREASING the level of service they provide. Just look at any business anywhere in this country that is government owned, arm's length or not. Case in point, BC Ferries. They keep reducing service and cutting routes while increasing ticket costs. They continue to drive away potential customers while punishing those that have no choice but to use their services. All the while they continue to issue huge pay raises and bonuses to the upper management that got them into their fiscal mess in the first place. Canada Post has been part of this country right from the beginning and needs to continue as an important component. But, it also needs to figure out how to stay current in a fast evolving business world. It needs to figure out how to increase business, not start pushing customers away. There are lots of very competent courier companies just waiting to pick up the pieces. End of sermon! *
Hey, remember that little yellow radio controlled airplane I
talked about a few weeks ago? Well, I've been having a blast flying the
thing down at the ball field. Wind conditions need to be at or very
near calm because it is so lite, any tiny little gust qualifies as
major turbulence for it. But when calm or close enough to it, it soars
around beautifully. I've reached the point where take-offs and landings
are smooth and fun. Once its in the air and the throttle is trimmed, it
just cruises around looking really cool. A low, slow fly-by right past
my head at arm's length away and at eye level is really cool too. It
took me a while to get the hang of turning smoothly. I finally figured
out that just the right amount of back pressure on the 'stick' is
needed. Otherwise, it enters a nose dive. Makes sense when you think
about it because its a 3-channel control system, throttle, elevator and
rudder, no ailerons. On real planes, and 4-channel R/C's, it is the
ailerons that initiate a turn, you roll into it and roll back out.
Rudder is used for coordinating the attitude of the plane through the
turn. So, when you turn with a 3-channel system using rudder it forces
an un-coordinated turn that results in a dive unless you counter with
some up elevator. However, once your thumbs on the control stick learn
the movements it becomes automatic and fairly smooth letting you enjoy
the flying.I've had to do a few little repairs. I once had to land when the wind started to pick up and it cartwheeled on the gravel parking lot. The same cartwheel would have not caused any damage at all on grass. The bit of damage that did happen was to crease the thin Styrofoam tail fin on one side. Easy fix, some clear packing tape, that stuff that looks like gigantic scotch tape, stuck over the crease stiffened it right back up. I've used the same tape to reenforce a few other areas that have been stressed and it works great. Doesn't add any appreciable weight at all and doesn't effect the aerodynamics. The little Hobbyzone Champ just keeps on flying. I find I fly on about 20% throttle which means I get very impressive flight time on each battery charge. At 50% the plane will climb almost too fast. I've only used full throttle for takeoffs and once she's climbed a couple of meters that much power is no longer needed. I guess the bottom line of this is that anyone running out of time and desperate for a store-bought Christmas gift for any kid between the age of 12 and 120, these little Champs are under a hundred bucks including taxes and anyone can learn to fly them inside the confines of a ball park as long as no one is around that might complain. And there are lots of 'how to' videos on U-tube to help anyone get started which of course I didn't watch until I'd crashed a few time. Typical. Incidentally, these come in a box that is intended for and perfect for storing and transporting the plane. They also come with everything needed to fly, including the batteries for the controller and for the unit that charges the flight battery. My advice, purchase a second flight battery so you can get back in the air when the one in use runs out of juice, and purchase a little USB charger for the flight batteries instead of using the included battery powered charger. Just use it for charging when you are away from a USB port because it charges a bit slower and it uses AA's to charge the LiPo. And here's a bonus, the tiny LiPo 150mAH flight battery that the Champ uses is the same flight battery that my little R/C helicopter uses. Convenient. *
Well, here we are...twas the Squamidian before Christmas and all through the house...Not a creature was stirring... they were all busy reading this Email. I tried to come up with some sort of rhyme but that took too much energy. Have a great Christmas full of friends and family everyone.
doug **** Greetings from a very cold Regina... Not only am I far away from home, but this is also my first time writing anything for the “Squamidian”! I am currently at the end of 10 long weeks of UNPAID training at the RCMP Training Academy at Depot in Regina. I am not here to train be a “Mountie”, but rather as part of the new and improved “Correctional Training Program” for CSC (Correctional Services Canada), which will now take place at Depot for the next 20 odd years. The funny part is that CSC does not pay it's recruits for training, but the RCMP pays it's cadets ($500 per week), and we both belong to the Federal government! Kind of ironic isn't it? It has been an interesting experience to say the least...we are under strictly enforced RCMP rules, which means we live in co-ed dorms (with curtains instead of doors), communal showers with no shower curtains (that was a huge deal for most of us, but we adapted and made shower schedules), mess food (learning to eat your entire meal in 5 minutes or less), drill practice and parades, marching everywhere on base, no walking on sidewalks, no walking on grass, saluting officers, mandatory gym five times per week etc. The list goes on, but I am sure you get the point! It was a huge culture shock at first, as I did not expect our training to be as paramilitary as the RCMP's. But after a few hard weeks, I and my fellow recruits settled into a routine, and basically ran around like headless chickens from one class to another, while trying to fit in meals, gym, drill and sleep into our very busy schedules. I do have to say that I have a completely new respect for the RCMP. Their training is 6 months, and unbelievably hard. They eat, sleep and breathe the RCMP. I do not envy them at all, nor would I ever want to be one! The camaraderie on the base is quite amazing though, we were welcomed with open arms, and spent a lot of time socializing with the RCMP cadets outside of work hours. I have met some really nice people who will go onto be great RCMP officers. It has been an experience which I will never forget, and I am quite honoured to have had the opportunity to train here. It's going to be hard for me to adjust to seeing an RCMP officer in a real-life situation outside of Depot and not thinking it's a cadet in training! On the plus side, if I ever get pulled over by one, I'm hoping that by mentioning my training experience at Depot, they might go easy on me and not give me a ticket! I have been working in BC Provincial Corrections for a little over 6 years, and have been trying to get into Federal Corrections for quite some time. It took a little longer than anticipated, but here I am. I will be working at Fraser Valley Institution in Abbotsford, BC as a CX-02 or “Primary Worker” with female offenders. I'm no stranger to this line of work as I previously mentioned, however the only difference is that I will be working in a Federal Institution where sentences range from 2 years to life. It has been very hard being here, as I have missed Ryan and Kyra very much, however I was fortunate enough to go home for Remembrance day long weekend. Coming back to Regina was harder, as I did not want to leave them again. I'm now at the end of my training, I officially finished today (Thursday), graduate on Friday, fly home on Saturday morning, and start my new job on Sunday night! I'm looking forward to going home and spending Christmas with my loved ones, which to me, is more valuable than a material gift! Merry christmas everyone!
Lauren **** From Carol Hello fellow readers, In the paper today there was an article about an atheist group who spent big money to place a digital ad in New York’s Time Square. The ad read “WHO NEEDS CHRIST IN CHRISTMAS? NOBODY” with CHRIST crossed out. The writer of the article said that at first he was appalled because he knows if it was any other religion under attack the atheist group would be charged with a hate crime. On further reflection the author thought that perhaps this will make us sit up and start thinking reflecting about what our faith really means. We have let commercial interest hijack Christmas for years. For example, I tried very hard to find Christmas cards this year that mentioned Christ or at least showed the nativity scene with no luck. I went to many stores, even a Christian store, but they only had individual cards, not boxed sets. On the other hand not have a pre-printed message mentioning Christmas instead of “holiday greetings” meant that I needed to do more then just sign my name. The article continued “In an increasingly violent world where hope and joy, peace and goodwill seem to be in short supply, the message is just as refreshing and filled with hope today as it was over 2,000 years ago. What part of comfort to the fearful, good news and hope to the hurting and oppressed and joy to all people are we opposed to? And not just at Christmastime, but each day of the year.” He answered the question in the ad with the answer “everybody”. Of course, even for us who are practicing Christians, Christmas has come to also mean more then the celebration of Jesus’ birth. It is also a time to celebrate family. We remember the magic of Christmas in our own childhoods and try to recreate that magic for our children & grandchildren. The magic wasn’t just in the presents (although that is part of it for a child) but in the laughter of children, the multi-generational gatherings, the reconnection with family not seen in awhile, the kindnesses of strangers, the lights, the music, the sense of joy that permeates the air when we gather to share the special Christmas feast. In our family the knowledge that we could bring anyone to that feast and know they would be welcome also adds to the joy. My parents have always been willing to make room for any unexpected guest at their table, no matter the occasion. I was lucky enough to watch Vivvy’s kindergarten pageant yesterday. They had memorized a surprising number of poems and songs. They were mostly winter songs, not Carols, but the little ones were adorable and the one song about hands and hearts evoked the feelings of Christmas. Vivvy also appeared in a dance recital and sang with the children at church so I’m a proud and happy grandmother. Years ago I gave up the pressure of buying gifts for anyone other then the grandchildren. I make my homemade truffles and candy and the packages of them are my gifts to everyone (which takes weeks of work but not fighting through the stores trying to be inspired and I believe people are counting on getting them just as we count on the family calendar from Gale). And I still give Christmas cards and will continue to do so despite the difficulty of finding Christmas cards as opposed to holiday cards – and despite the Grinch, Canada Post, who will be raising the cost of stamps. I read another article earlier this week in the paper, this time about the top 14 signs that a person has hit “middle age” as decided in a poll in England. Naturally I fit most of the signs, but then I’m 63 which is well past middle age. The reason I bring this up is because on Monday Ewan hits the big 40 but I am not ready to concede he may be facing middle age yet. Nothing ages us more then our kids, nephews & nieces starting to face middle age. Well one thing can make a person feel older and that would be your child officially becoming a “senior citizen”. Poor Mom & Dad, their second child will be old enough to collect old age pension on Christmas Day. Yes, Doug turns the even bigger 65! So Happy Birthday Ewan and Happy Birthday Doug. Hope you have many, many more. Al & I wish for each of you that your Christmas be blessed with peace, hope, joy & love. Carol
**** Greetings From Sue As we get closer to Christmas, I have been thinking of Christmas’ past. We miss the celebrations of Christmas in Ontario greatly. Starting with Gale’s annual birthday party for Ewan and continuing with the fun on Christmas Eve at Lorne & Vivyan’s place. It was always a huge party at the “Homestead” with all the kids and grandchildren, tons of favorite foods and great company! During the years when our kids were little, the poor tree couldn’t even hold all the presents. I have always loved the calendars that Gale makes for all of us as well as the special truffles Carol would make. It was a terrific family time together! I also miss not having a houseful for Doug’s birthday on Christmas Day. It was always fun when there was lots of snow to have GT snow racer races on our terrific snow hill on Hidden Valley. I just found out last year that Doug would have always preferred a birthday pie instead of the homemade Chocolate Chiffon cake I slaved over, early every Christmas morning for the last 4 decades. We are planning a fairly quiet BC Christmas for 2013. It has been so much fun to see Kyra’s reaction this year. I think Doug has told you previously that Squamish residents go crazy every October with Halloween decorations and lights. Starting in late November and continuing thru December, many houses put up exceptional light displays for Christmas with LED bulbs that seem to sparkle so much more than the old style use to. We have taken a number of evening drives to show Kyra the lights and as a result, Kyra thinks that Santa Claus has something to do with Halloween. Kyra loved the whole process of decorating our tree. She explored each box of treasures, carefully examining each babble for the tree. She got to hang all the soft ornaments at the bottom of the tree after Grandpa hung the lights and glass balls. She is fascinated with the musical snow globes and ran around wearing Willow's jingle bell collar. She finds tinsel to be amazing. Warren & Rochelle have invited us up for Christmas Eve at their house and will join us for dinner on the 25th. With Lauren coming home today from Regina and starting work tomorrow night, the kids will arrive on Christmas Day morning. Wishing everyone a happy love filled Christmas.
Sue **** THE ONTARION CHRISTMAS REPORT Hello everyone! Well, here we are just a few days from Doug’s birthday and oh yah, Christmas too! It sure is nice of half the world to celebrate Doug’s birthday with so much pomp and circumstance isn’t it! I hope he appreciates all the attention he gets every year at this time! LOL! I always wondered why the little baby in my mother’s nativity scene had a mandolin leaning against his manger, now I know! It was his very first birthday gift from the angel that visited the baby Doug that night in Bethlehem or was it on a farm in Ontario and I’m sure she’s been watching and listening to him play beautifully ever since! I’m sure she’s as happy as we all are that he’s still making recordings with talent she bestowed upon him WAY BACK THEN in the Olden Days! Thanks for the great tunes Doug! *
Christmas is a wonderful time of year and with a little
effort and a few kind thoughts directed at others we can all feel the
love in our hearts. Every year when December is approaching and the
weather is turning a little cooler, Carole gets the itch to have me dig
out the decorations for both the outside and inside of the house. I
manage to hold her off for a while or we’d have the decorations glowing
in late September! LOL! Just kidding of course but we do tend to get a
tad earlier each year. I’m sure it’s just the knowledge that it’s
easier to decorate in the nice weather than in the snowy cold of
December! SO we have been making sure to put up the decorations while
the sun is still shining and the temps are still in the 40’s or 50’s at
the least! This year we did it in the 55f weather and it was indeed
much easier and more comfortable than other years when we’ve goofed and
waited a tad too far into the colder times of the fall/early winter.
Now that the snow is falling or should I say rain at the moment, we can
enjoy the look of the decorations on our house as well as those of
other homes around us. The neighbourhood is looking very festive this
year and it’s nice to see so many people enjoying the spirit of
Christmas! I’ve gotten all my shopping done early this year and so has
Carole. It’s another reason to feel so good about the Christmas season.
Carole made a discovery this year that we have taken advantage of and will I’m sure for as many years as we continue to put up a Christmas tree in our home. She found an electrical device in the Home Hardware catalogue on line. It’s in the shape of a large (about 4” in diameter) silver snowflake and it hangs on your tree just as any other ornament does. There is a single wire that plugs onto the snowflake and then plugs onto a cube at the other end of the wire. You then plug the cube into a wall socket and then, plug your tree lights into the cube! When you touch the “Snowflake” with one finger, the lights come on and when you touch it a second time, the lights go off! After bending over each night at midnight to try to unplug the tree lights without pulling the tree over it’s a blessing to be able to just touch this snowflake and have the lights go on or off! What a great invention! I imagine it’s the same technology as the table lamps that you simply touch to turn on or off but it sure is easier than the old “Pull the plug” way! Whoever decided to use this idea for working the Christmas Tree lights is either a genius or they pulled their tree over on top of themselves one too many times! At any rate, we will be eternally grateful for this invention! Even after 41 years together we still love the look of a nicely decorated Christmas Tree and as long as we’re able, we’ll be decorating a tree in our house at Christmas! Every year when Christmas is approaching Carole sets up the kitchen and gets everything ready to bake her Christmas cookies! She has about 10 different styles of cookies that she bakes and we have a supply of them well into the New Year since she doesn’t only bake a few of each. She usually bakes four or five dozen of each type and style and I get to sample each batch as they come out of the oven! Of course being diabetic, she doesn’t eat very many cookies or sweets at any time of year. I of course love her baking and have been a “Cookie Monster” all of my life! I’m diabetic too and shouldn’t eat sweets or cookies either but how can I resist? I just make sure I don’t eat more than a few at a time and that’s why they last well into the New Year I guess! LOL! Every year while baking her cookies, she has a small TV in the kitchen that also has a video player in it. She has about six or eight classic Christmas movies that she’s collected and she loves to have them playing all day long as she bakes her cookies and watches here classics! We’ve watched these classics over and over for as long as we’ve been married and I must admit, I still enjoy these cornball hokey classics too around this time of year. We went to the St Jacob’s Theatre on Thursday night to see their production of Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” and it was thoroughly enjoyable as a live performance! The singers were indeed very talented as they sang and danced their way through their two-hour production. We really had a nice evening and the only thing that would have topped off the night would have been a nice gentle snowfall as we left the theatre to drive home. Instead, we were subjected to a light freezing rain and had to be very careful driving as the temperature hovered around the freezing mark. We made it home safely and settled in front of the fire with a nice cup of tea to finish off the evening once we were home! It’s been raining here in KW for the past two days and is supposed to keep on raining for another two days or so. I sincerely hope that it stops and we have some more snow for Christmas Day and evening! It’s always nice to have the right outdoor atmosphere to go along with the right indoor spirit over the Christmas Holidays. I’m sure the weather will turn in the right direction and all will be Merry and Bright for the 25th! *
We’ve had a very good year of Squamidian and Ontarion
Reports for 2013 and I’m sure we’ll continue with this tradition for
another good one to follow! Thanks to those who contribute along with
Doug and I and please enjoy the Squamidian and Ontarion with us in the
future!That’s it for this week folks and Carole and I want to wish each and every one of you in the Squamidian Family a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR FOR 2014! GOD BLESS YOU ALL and thanks for tuning in for the past 600+ weeks! I’ll look forward to talking to you all again next week in The Ontarion Report! Bye for now … Greg
Something To Think About> Do or say one nice thing to someone every day for the next year! I’ll bet you’ll have a better year yourself! Ho Ho Ho! And MERRRRY CHRISTMAS! ****
Have a good one.. the doug The Fine Print! The articles in these issues are the sole property of the persons writing them and should be respected as such. |