The Squamidian Report – Feb. 14 / 09
Issue #351
Including:
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Used to be a time when getting rid of old electronics was fast and easy. You just took them out to the dump and threw then onto a big pile of similar stuff. Not so easy any more. You can’t just take any old garbage out to the dump. Turns out they don’t want garbage at the dump, they just want certain items at certain times and under certain conditions. However, there is a place in town that will take and dispose of old electronics, but only at certain times and under certain conditions.
We had a whole pickup truck load of old electronics that needed to be disposed of. Someone had given us a colour TV that had come out of one of the Whistler hotels. Those hotels replace their TVs every couple of years and simply give away the old sets to their employees. An employee that we know (she rides a Harley so she can’t be all bad) took about 10 of them and distributed them out to anyone she knew who might have use for one. Turned out this particular set worked just fine but the colour was terrible making it not worth watching. Our 20+-year-old set we brought out here with us was and still is a much better TV. So when we purchased a new set, our old one went into that spare bedroom that has a cable outlet, thereby rendering the hotel set redundant. The hotel set had to go.
Then there was the old stereo system that had not been used in years and was just taking up space and collecting dust. Now-a-days all our music is on our computer hard drives and can be played either through the main computer’s sound system or through the living room entertainment system. No need for dusty old out of date stereo systems anymore. So it had to go.
Stuck away in an upstairs closet were two CRT computer monitors from days gone by. A 15-inch and a 17-inch. Both still work fine but absolutely no one wants the old TV style monitors now that the nicer LCD units are so available and inexpensive. So out they had to go. Also hidden in that closet was the computer that had been our backup system when we moved here. It had started off as an early 486 that I had upgraded numerous times all the way to a low level 586. Would you believe it still had a working ‘B’ drive. You know, one of those original 5.25in floppy drives that took those soft cardboard floppies that were actually floppy. I’ve still got some of those cardboard floppies and they still have some old Q-Basic and Lotus files on them. Not much use to anyone these days but kind of nostalgic if you are or were a Geek. They all have to go.
I’ve still got some serial mice and a couple of ATX keyboards hidden away but I think I’ll just leave them hidden for now.
Well, it turned out that the place that takes unwanted electronics is only open a certain times and will only take certain items. Once I found just what certain times they were open I was able to truck my load of electronics to them, but it was only then that I found out that while they do take TV and computer equipment, they don’t take radios, stereos and speakers. Go figure, I just don’t see the difference, at least not at a technical level. So while I was able to get rid of most of the stuff through the proper channels, the old stereo and its speakers will have to go out to the dump. The very place that doesn’t want them!
doug
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Hello everyone!
Another week’s gone by and guess what? Most of our
snow in this area has gone with it! LOL! What an amazing change from day to day
when I look out at the amount of snow on our front lawn. I’m sure you’ve all
noticed it too but it’s still a shocker when you think of it! The people in New
Hamburg and other towns along the Nith River are keeping their fingers crossed
that their homes won’t be on the news floating down the river with the rest of
the debris picked up by the flood waters. If I were living in one of those
“Flood Plain” towns I’d be talking to a good real estate agent come summer. I
can’t for the life of me see why anyone would put up with this flooding
situation year after year and not want to get away from it! On the other hand,
why would anyone buy a house in that situation in the first place unless they
were duped into it by some unscrupulous real estate salesperson that failed to
disclose the “flood plain” situation to them? I guess there are people like
that out there and like they say in legal circles “caveat emptor” “buyer
beware”. I’d say this is one BIG reason to have a professional “home inspector”
check out any piece of property you might be interested in buying. It’s
certainly something to keep in mind if you’re shopping for a house!
*
As we inch closer and closer to Spring we tend to
find ourselves feeling the itch to get outside. Carole and I attended a
production of Drayton Entertainments “Caught In The Act II” at the St Jacob’s
Theatre on Thursday evening. This was the debut performance of the Waterloo
Regional Police Service’s second production of a musical to raise money for
local charities. We missed last years show but most certainly won’t miss any
more. We attended opening night and were amazed at the talent of the members of
the cast. They are all either members of the WRP Service or are civilian
employees of that service. This year’s production is a tribute to the Canadian
Forces members and veterans that served in WW I and WW II as well as the Viet
Nam war. The performance began at 8pm sharp and ended at approximately 11pm. Of
course there were many of the usual “cop” jokes dispersed throughout the
performance but the majority of it was musical and very well done. They have a
former Canadian Opera Company member that is now a police officer that has an
amazing voice. He thrilled the audience with his spectacular tenor voice. I’m
sure he could make a good living singing on a soap box at the Farmer’s Market
on weekends! LOL! Just kidding! He was terrific as were the other singers in
the show. What a fun evening it was and I would highly recommend you make an
effort to attend and support this event if you’re looking for an evening out.
The WRP association managed to raise enough money to
allow them to donate over $50,000.00 to local charities last year and I’m sure
they’ll surpass last years quota this time out! They could use your help if you
would like to get out of the house for a night of fun and entertainment over
the next couple of weeks. I spoke after the show with Ray Massicotte. He was
head of the Regional Police Drug Squad for many years and was tough as nails.
He surprised me all to heck when he danced and sang like a pro during many of
the spots in this year’s production. He’s now head of the police association
(union) for Waterloo Region and has 31 years on the job. I told him he should
retire to a life on stage and he thought that was pretty funny. I guess once a
cop always a cop! They all did a tremendous job with this year’s production and
I hope they raise more money this time than they did last year. The certainly
have worked hard to put on a very entertaining show!
Well, its tax time once more and I hope you’re all
going to get some back this year! Don’t forget to file on time!
That’s about it 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>
How many cops does it take to screw in a light bulb?
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Have a good one..
the doug
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