The Squamidian Report – Oct. 18 / 08
Issue #334
Including:
North Nova News
A Note From Ewan
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Like most people across this country, we gathered our family and/or extended family in for Thanksgiving dinner. In our case that meant having Warren and Janice down from their mountain, and Ryan and some of his friends. Ryan had just picked up a friend from the airport who had just flown in from Australia and who was jet-lagged beyond belief but managed to stay awake long enough to chow down some turkey. The other friends he brought were Shannon and her Ryan who have just moved here from Toronto. Both have been hired by the company our Ryan works for. Our Ryan has known Shannon for years so it makes it good for all of them. Ryan’s Australian friend is also a sound tech and is coming back to work here so that will take some of the work pressure off of Ryan.
Our biking friends from up the street came down for desert and we all had a good visit afterwards. Once most of them left, Warren and I dragged out the instruments and did some jamming. That’s just what we do when we get together. Some families drink or argue or play games, we make music. Must be in our genes I guess.
*
The company I work for does a lot of sub-contractor work for the large international construction firm that is doing the highway upgrade from Vancouver to Whistler. We often find ourselves running new water mains etc to make room for road widenings, that kind of thing. At the south end of Whistler just before Function Junction, the highway is being moved a bit to avoid some bad hilly curves and to make crossing the railway line safer. To accommodate the re-alignment several hydro poles had to be moved and that meant moving some underground hydro as well as some fiber optics. So we were sent up to do the underground stuff. No big deal and that’s not even what I’m writing about.
What I am writing about is the fill material that the company doing the highway work used to build up the road base for this new section of highway. They had removed the soils and organics and then bulldozed in tonnes of rubble to build the base up about 10 ft. We were working just off this section so I had to cut an access trail down to our site. As I cut through the fill I noticed that the rubble was mostly quartz. They had blasted through a quartz vane somewhere and trucked the material in to be used as fill. Now as you know, quartz is often white or some other light colour and glassy looking. Quartz also can indicate the presence of gold. When the quartz was injected as molten rock into cracks in the existing rock, it often brought gold and other minerals in with it.
As we had a bit of time to kill while waiting for the hydro people to get out of our way, we started turning over some of the smaller chunks of rock. Low and behold, we found a chunk with a small seam of gold running through it. Now that was cool. Just a seam of flakes but still very cool. Unfortunately we didn’t have the time or resources, or the right, to pull their whole road apart looking for more but we did get our little sample.
Check it out at: http://www.thedougsite.net/F&F/Pictures/Misc/goldquartz.htm
*
The election is now history. Worst turn out EVER!! I just don’t get it. Voting is not just a right and privilege, it is our duty. In some countries people get shot for trying to vote yet here we can’t even get people out to exercise their democratic responsibility. And to make it worse, the ones who didn’t vote will be the ones that complain the loudest about every little thing they don’t like. Go figure.
doug
****
We've been having trouble lately with a bear visiting the area. A week or so ago I noticed my big green bin knocked over and all the compost all over the ground. I didn't think a racoon could do that and I was almost blaming Bo (our neighbour's dog) but he has never done that before. Anyway the next time it happened I discovered more evidence. My car was fairly close to the bin and as I was cleaning it up for the second time I noticed two big smudges on the passenger window that looked like paw prints that were covered with compost. Luckily there were no scratches on the paint but I wonder why the bear needed to look into my car. Also near my clothesline and where the hot tub used to be (Michelle had bears on her porch and I had claw prints on the hot tub cover?) was a big poop with berries and apples in it. So it definitely was a bear!!! I told Ward about these events and he said the bear had been rolling and possibly staying the nights in his sawdust pile over on Dad's property where Ward makes his log benches. Also more poop on Dad's lawn. Ward figured if I cut the lawn and drove over it I would get stuck!!
To discourage the bear from coming to our place I put the compost bin at the end of the driveway and kind of jammed it up against the garbage box. There's not much left in it now since it had been dumped twice. I'll leave it there until the garbage truck comes and empties it. I have been wrapping up my compost in newspaper and taking it to work where I have another green bin. I also gathered up some leaves to put over the compost to disguise the smell. There have been many reports of bears lately in the area so I guess it may be something we have to get used to. Ward said Bob (our neighbour) is carrying mace in his pocket just in case he meets up with one. I am just hoping there is nothing around here to attract it anymore. I hope its not the sawdust pile. That must be a comfy bed.
Last week a moose was sighted roaming the walking trails that start at the DeCoste centre in Pictou and go under the causeway towards Lyons Brook. The authorities were called (because of the danger to the highways and people) to remove the animal to a safer location. Well that all went wrong. Finally after many hours they were able to tranquilize it and then wrap a sling around it and hoist it up with a helicopter. The strap broke and the moose fell to the ground killing it. It makes you wonder if that would have been a person and why is the equipment so poor. Another incident in Pictou was a small bear that had roamed in to town looking for food. With all the noise and excitement it ran up a tree and stayed there probably scared out of its mind. The police thought it was a real threat so it shot the bear. They couldn't wait for a tranquilizer gun to arrive. They were highly criticized for their actions. In the Pictou Advocate the Letters to the Editor section was overflowing with everyone's opinion on what should have been done with the bear. Heaven help the poor defenceless animal that enters the human domain. Obviously we are not prepared. With all the clear cutting and the population moving further into the country the wild animals are losing their territory.
As usual just before hunting season the deer are very visible and extremely plentiful. We've been seeing herds of them in the fields around here. Also in areas you wouldn't expect. I don't like hunting season but I guess it keeps the population down and driving becomes very dangerous when deer are jumping out of ditches in front of you. They are not smart when it comes to traffic. Instead of running away from a car they prefer to run into you. We've only had one accident with a deer thank-goodness but had many close calls. We tried those deer whistles you put on your car but no one is completely sure if they work. My strategy is to always look for them and expect them. It seems to work.
Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
****
Hello
all!
First
off I have to say thank you to Russ and Barb, Doug and Greg for some great reading.
I really enjoyed it. I also enjoyed some of the political stuff. That part
might have been more fun in person.
I get
jealous when I hear about all the fun you've been having, so I've decided that
I'd like to retire. It might be a while before I can afford to do that, but I'm
working on it. Whenever I hear about your road trips on motorcycles or in
sports cars I wish I were doing the same thing. But it's funny for me because I
hate driving. But I can see how it would make a difference, riding a beautiful
bike through the mountains with your wife on the back, rather than pushing
through Toronto traffic alone. It is apples and oranges, clearly. I do enjoy
driving occasionally, but it's never anywhere near Toronto. But believe it or
not I actually enjoyed driving in Toronto for the first time! Hopefully it
won't be the last.
I
should say that the Gardiner is a perilous little highway at the best of times.
It's like an elevated, open topped concrete tunnel with little to no shoulder.
Naturally most of the time people drive like maniacs, when the traffic is
moving at all. Also, just for fun there are a few visual distractions. For a
while now the CN tower has been lit up in various colours. The patterns shimmer
up and down it, spiralling around and changing colour as they go. When they
were testing the new system they would have it flashing really crazy patterns
and colours. It's hard to miss. Also when the CNE is in town it looks
interesting from the road as well. Not that I notice when I'm driving.
However
on one particular day none of these things mattered. On the Saturday of Labour
Day weekend I was driving back home on the West side from my girlfriend's place
(UU) by the Don Valley. Naturally I was in a great mood, and the weather was
wonderful. I just wanted to get home so I could get out of the car to enjoy it.
The radio said that the Lakeshore was packed, predictably, but that the
Gardiner was moving well in the direction I was headed. The Don Valley Parkway
was moving well too, and the whole valley looked beautiful. Usually I don't
listen to one of my favourite albums when I drive, "Exit Planet
Dust", because it makes me want to go too fast. I save it for running or
other exercise. But I was in such a relaxed mood that I knew it would be good.
So I
have to say that I was already enjoying the drive more than any other time in
Toronto. As I got on to the Gardiner I was surprised at how few cars I saw. It
was almost eerie. There was one car ahead of me, in the middle lane. Even
though the road was wide open, he was cruising along at the 90 limit. I fell in
behind him, not too close. The view of the city is great from that spot, an
impressive skyline. The other cars were not passing, everyone just stayed in an
orderly line, not too close. This was because everyone was looking up at the
Snowbirds roaring just above (and between) the skyscrapers.
They
would zoom around the CN tower while doing their show, it was impossible not to
be impressed. I kept one eye on the road and the other on them. They must have
heard me because they were roaring along to the music. The whole city was like
one huge machine, working at optimum performance. Everything was humming along
even as it was being built and augmented. The core of the city by the lake is a
growing forest of tall buildings now. In between them I could see Lake Ontario,
filled with sailboats and other craft. I went by the CNE which was also in full
swing, wheels turning and flags streaming. I continued to catch glimpses of
Snowbirds here and there.
I came
off of the Gardiner on to the Lakeshore. There is a dangerous spot where people
coming off of the highway need to merge through people lined up to get on.
Through some luck an SUV was parked on such an angle as to momentarily block
two lanes completely, which was more open road for me. Then I got to Humber
Bay, one of my favourite spots anywhere. I feel like I'm coming home when I get
there. The beautiful people rolled by on their bicycles and roller blades. The
view is great there, and I never get tired of it. I drove along High Park on
the way home, and by then I was dying to get on my bike.
It
took about five minutes for me to park, get upstairs, changed and on my way. I
took nice back streets to the park and started to enjoy one of those last sweet
drops of summer at the end of the glass. I went down to Humber Bay and crossed
in to Etobicoke. I like the green peninsulas that reach out in to the lake. I
thought that would be a perfect spot to watch the airshow next year.
So it
is possible to enjoy driving in Toronto. Hopefully I'll get to see many of you
very soon, and the rest not too long after that.
Ewan
*****
Hello
everyone!
Well it’s
over and things are “Back to business” in Ottawa. I sincerely hope the minority
government can accomplish what it needs to do to keep our country from falling
apart financially like the US seems to be doing. Let’s keep our fingers crossed
that the official opposition is mature enough to cooperate with the ruling
party (Conservatives) and get on with managing our government in the best
interests of the people of Canada. If the Liberals are hurting from the kick in
the pants they just got then they should realize they have a lot of work to do
to prove themselves worthy of better support in the next election. They’ve just
been handed an opportunity to stop whining and make something of themselves. It
would bode well for them to show that they are thinking of the people of Canada
rather than their own careers when asked to work with Mr. Harper and his
government to keep Canada on stable ground both here and worldwide. Let’s hope
this minority government proves capable of keeping Canada afloat and is
successful in improving the general well being of our economy and the people
who elected them!
*
Enough
political crap for another couple of years!
So far
this fall, our weather here in KW area has been holding well and the sun has
been shining almost every day. We’re experiencing a bit cooler temperatures now
but the skies are still blue and the sun is still up there! When you take a
look around and see the beautiful colours of the trees in Ontario it makes you
appreciate the beauty of Canada. I have a friend that lives in Texas and he
just visited us a week or so ago and commented on the amazing number of trees
we have here in Ontario. I said “What? You don’t have trees in Texas?” His
answer was that yes they do have trees but they are small and few and far
between. I guess that brings us back to “The wide open spaces” that Texas brags
about so readily. I think I’d rather have our forests and landscapes than their
extremely hot basically flat barren plains and dust storms! From what he told
me about Texas there isn’t much to be desired there. He said you can’t walk
through their natural area parks without being concerned about poisonous snakes
and many other animals that like to feast on humans. Not my kind of
surroundings for sure. They live in the Denton area which is a suburb of
Dallas/Fort Worth. Their back yard abuts a nature park area and from what I’ve
been told if you stray off the established pathways of the park you are
literally putting yourself in danger. They are always having to call the animal
control people to remove wild animals from their yard and have to keep an eagle
eye on their two little dogs lest they be scooped up by some wild critter. What
a way to live! Not my cup o tea! They are originally from Kitchener and would
like very much to move back here. They’ve been in the US because of his job but
the company is thinking of moving him back to Ontario. He’s keeping his fingers
crossed that they do move him back. The one big thing that is bothering both he
and his wife is the lack of health coverage in the USA. He was out golfing a
couple of months ago and slipped on some mud and was impaled on a steel snow fencing
stake. It pierced his right thigh as he fell and pulled back out as he rolled
away from it. He drove himself to the hospital about a mile away and before
they would even listen to what was wrong with him, they demanded he pay a
$75.00 administration fee. Then, he said they would listen to what was wrong
with him. He showed them the wound and then was asked if he had insurance. Once
he said yes and proved it, they treated his problem which took 11 clamps to
close the gash. He said by the time he left the hospital, he had to pay $275.00
out of his pocket and his insurance company was billed an additional $600.00.
They handed him a bag with a roll of bandage in it so he could change the
dressing and then charged him $25.00 for the roll. He had to get another roll
of the same bandage the next day and bought the identical item at the local
drug store for $3.00. He’s not happy with the healthcare situation in the US at
all. He and his wife are our age, late 50’s and are afraid that their health
might start to deteriorate and they’ll lose everything to paying medical bills
out of their pockets. Their health coverage right now is paid by the company
and he has to pay an additional $190.00 every two weeks to improve what they
pay for and even then it’s sadly lacking in what it does cover. We are SO LUCKY
here in Canada that we have OHIP and other provincial plans. Move to the
USA….??? NO THANKS!
I’ll stay
right here in this beautiful country, the best country in the world!
That’s
about it for this week!
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>
Oktoberfest
is almost over and we haven’t had any rain during the festival this year! Isn’t
that amazing? LOL! The onset of Oktoberfest is usually the onset of miserable
weather!
****
Have a good one..
the doug
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