Merry Elexmas!

I took this from the Rick Mercer Report webpage. also featured, Canada's best shed. Maybe one of these days I'll actually get around to watching the show!

171 yes 133 no

The government has fallen in an historic vote of non confidence. Today we are in a federal election and it promises to be an entertaining 8 (!!) weeks. Although not determined officially until the Prime Minister meets with the Governor General later today, the most popular E-day put forward has been January 23rd, with a short break at christmas. I do not envy the volunteers out canvassing in January.
The vote of non confidence has been in direct relation to the Gomery Report released recently which "clears" Paul Martin of any wrong doing while putting most of the blame on past Prime Minister Jean Chretien. I hope Canadians are paying attention for this one. It will be even more difficult than usual to make an educated decision on which direction to cast your vote. If they bother to vote at all.

Here is what Warren Kinsella had to say on the topic. I think I agree.

Can a political party win by
losing?

In the election campaign that effectively begins
today, that is the question many Liberals are asking themselves. And, in quiet
moments, many of them are concluding that losing power – not for a long time,
but long enough – would be a good thing.
As a former senior Liberal cabinet
minister told me just last week: “We need renewal. We need new people, we need
new ideas, and we need the kind of things that can only come with some time in
the penalty box. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we need to lose.”
It is
not an exaggeration to say that the Liberal Party of Canada is broken. Beset by
a paucity of ideas and energy, struggling with mounting debt and scandals, riven
by infighting and division, despairing of an ineffective cabinet and a dithering
leader, the formerly great party of Pearson and Trudeau and Chrétien is great no
more. Its soul is lost.
No better recent example of this can be found than in
the sad drama that unfolded in the past few days in the Toronto riding of
Etobicoke-Lakeshore. For more than a decade, the riding had been ably
represented by Jean Augustine – an honest, respected woman of colour who would
have easily won re-election in 2006. But last week, as Ms. Augustine cried in
the national Liberal caucus, disbelieving Members of Parliament learned that she
was “stepping aside.” Having endured nearly two years of bullying by Paul
Martin’s aides, few believed that Ms. Augustine was doing so willingly.
This
week, Liberals in Etobicoke-Lakeshore witnessed the astonishing spectacle of
hard-working local Grits being excluded from the process – literally denied
entry to party headquarters, whilst Mr. Martin’s minions inside ignored their
pleas to open the doors. And, shortly thereafter, the locked-out Liberals
learned in the media that Ms. Augustine’s successor had already been decided – a
white man and foreign resident named Michael Ignatieff.
The Globe and Mail
and a few members of Toronto’s brie-and-chardonnay chattering classes have been
championing Mr. Ignatieff for many months, now, talking him up as a successor to
Mr. Martin. Despite the fact that Mr. Ignatieff has not lived in Canada for more
than two decades – despite the fact he supports George W. Bush’s illegal war in
Iraq, opposition to which remains one of Jean Chrétien’s most popular legacies –
Mr. Martin and his bunkered circle of advisors were undeterred.
Mr.
Ignatieff, a Harvard University professor and author, arguably possesses an
impressive curriculum vitae, as do many of the other rumoured aspirants to the
Liberal Party crown – among them former New Brunswick Premier Frank McKenna,
former Minister of Justice Martin Cauchon, or former Ontario Premier (and former
NDP member) Bob Rae. All of these impressive men (no women among them so far,
another telling indicator of the Liberal Party’s state of disrepair) would be
laudable candidates for leadership.
But – and I say this as one who possesses
no enthusiasm whatsoever for Mr. Martin’s leadership nor the insular group
around him – what the Liberal Party needs is much more than a leadership race. A
leadership race will not attract the sorts of things the Liberal Party of Canada
desperately needs: new ideas, new approaches, new people and a new generation of
leadership. What Liberals need is not just a new leader – what Liberals need is
a new Liberal Party.
Power, which Liberals have been privileged to wield
since 1993, tends to have a corrosive effect on political parties. Cabinet
ministers and Parliamentary secretaries start spending more time in Ottawa than
in their ridings; senior staff and Parliamentarians socialize with deputy
ministers instead of local mayors and community leaders; the opinions of
national media columnists take on a greater significance than the voices raised
in town hall meetings and church basements.
In time, Liberals (and, before
that, Conservatives) find that they have lost touch with the people they were
hired to represent. They start to make mistakes, as they did again in
Etobicoke-Lakeshore. They become, in effect, what they were sent to Ottawa to
change.
Thus the Liberal Party of Canada, circa 2005 A.D. Dispirited,
disliked and divided in much of the country – and spared the loss of power only
by the fact that their principal adversaries are (for now) distrusted by many
female voters. Too many Liberals confuse the Conservatives’ continuing inability
to win an election with enthusiasm for the alternative. One day – and one day
soon, I believe – the Conservative Party will attract the support of enough
Canadians, and Liberals will bitterly rue the day they forsook renewal.
Some
Liberals, and all of Paul Martin’s sect, will dismiss all of this as the carping
of an exiled Chrétien-era Liberal, naturally. That is their way. Their
cloistered arrogance – their near-total inability to make out the country that
lies beyond the Parliamentary precinct – led to the loss of Mr. Chrétien’s
majority and, a few weeks hence, will further reduce the dimensions their
listing, listless minority government. Their opinion, at long last, counts for
nothing.
For the rest of us, however – for a majority of Canadians and, I
believe, for a silent number of traditional Liberals – we know that an election
loss would be a good thing. For the country, and for a once-great political
party, too.

Outta the way!

This, and other photoshop hilarities can be found at Rick Mercer's blog.
Rat tat tat...Go Jean go!

Was that so hard?

I, like any good Canadian, have a special spot in my heart for our war veterans. My interests and studies have heightened my perception of what it means to be a veteran--what kinds of sacrifices, what kinds of things, good and awful, a veteran may have been exposed to. Those kinds of scars don't just go away. These, now old, Canadians have carried them around all these years so that we could live the way we do today.
That brings me to this article from today's Star.

Too bad Kingston needed a little push from its community in the first place--but lucky them to have such thoughtful residents!

66 years later, vet given bus pass
Nov. 23, 2005. 11:30 AM
FROM CANADIAN PRESS
KINGSTON - The wheels on the bus finally look set to go round and round for an 89-year-old war veteran in Kingston, Ont.
Seems like Ambrose Kirkpatrick, who was a city bus driver, was promised a free bus pass when the Second World War broke out and he enlisted in 1939.
He says he was told all drivers who signed up for service would be given a free bus pass when they returned.
Two months ago, Kirkpatrick had to give up his driver's licence because of failing eyesight, so he asked for the pass and was turned down.
After strong responses from the community, the city's new veterans committee is now recommending council grant the request, which should happen Dec. 6.
Two weeks ago, Kirkpatrick found 80 bus tickets stuffed in an envelope left inside his door by a woman who read about his ordeal in the newspaper.
And three Queen's University staffers wanted to buy Kirkpatrick three months' worth of passes.
Also, the honorary consul for The Netherlands in Kingston gave him a six-month supply of bus tickets and a Thank You Canada war medal.

Fiddy

In a recent Globe and Mail article, Toronto MP Dan McTeague suggests that one of the ways to handle the recent violence in Toronto is to ban 50 cent from the country.
I think we have seen this story before. Eminem, Marilyn Manson...etc etc. It is easy to point fingers but as usual they are in the wrong direction. I highly doubt that the 69th person--young person, no less--gunned down in Toronto, died at the hands of a person hopped up on a message from 50 Cent. that goes for the other 68 too.
To all Torontonians: Please stop shooting each other.
I'll save the rest of my comments for my private, locked diary. *sigh*.

Your Birthdate: November 15

You take life as it is, and you find happiness in a variety of things.You tend to be close to family and friends. But it's hard to get into your inner circle.Making the little things wonderful is important to you, and you probably have an inviting home.You seek harmony with others, but occasionally you have a very stubborn streak. Your strength: Your intense optimism Your weakness: You shy away from exploring your talents Your power color: Jade Your power symbol: Flower Your power month: June

What Does Your Birth Date Mean ?

PMS

Nature is sometimes a little confusing. It doesn't seem right that at the time the female body is meant to be receptive to reproduction, she becomes a repellent monster no one wants to be within 10 feet of.

There are apparently 150 symptoms associated with PMS. Good lord.
Here's what I found after a quick google...This is from Woman's Health Channel.

"The symptoms vary from woman to woman and cycle to cycle. *Super. Unpredictable AND Disabilitating* For some women, the symptoms may be mild or moderate, and for others, they may be so severe as to be incapacitating. Common symptoms include the following:

• Mood-related ("affective") symptoms: depression, sadness, anxiety, anger, irritability, frequent and severe mood swings
• Mental process ("cognitive") symptoms: decreased concentration, indecision *Should I get the chocolate? What about my figure? Which one? Ah forget it...*
• Pain: headache (e.g., menstrual migraine), breast tenderness, joint and muscle pain
• Nervous system symptoms: insomnia (sleeplessness), hypersomnia (sleeping for abnormally long periods of time *This was so me last weekend: I clocked a solid 15 hours one night.*), anorexia, food cravings, fatigue, lethargy, agitation, a change in sex drive, clumsiness, dizziness or vertigo, paresthesia (prickling or tingling sensation)
• Gastrointestinal symptoms: nausea, diarrhea, palpitations (rapid fluttering of the heart), sweating
• Fluid and electrolyte symptoms: bloating, weight gain, oliguria (reduced urination)
• Skin symptoms: acne, oily skin, greasy or dry hair

My list includes all of the above with the following making regular appearances: Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde type moodswings, relationship risking temper tantrums, migraine headaches with the added bonus of puking and oh yeah, I get the odd zit.

I hate to use PMS as an excuse for anything. But lately, it has been unbearable! My normal self is stuck inside my doppelganger and becomes a tiny voice that is no match for my monthly monster. It is as though I am watching this total bitch ruin my life and there is nothing I can do. The contrast, once the PMS has subsided, is just heavenly. It is GREAT to be a nice person again. Back in love with my boyfriend, back in control of my job, and hell, even sleeping better.

meooow

Rain rain, go away

Umbrellas: I suffer from an odd idiosyncrasy involving our wet weather friends. That's not entirely accurate. I actually can't stand the people who carry them. They only look out from under the umbrella about 3 feet, therefore forcing everyone in the oncoming to move out of the way; probably into a puddle. These human bulldozers annoy the hell out of me and I strive not to emulate them. Today however, faced with a wet walk to work, or a dry one offered by a borrowed umbrella, I caved. I become one of those people. I tried to lead by example. I kept to my side of the sidewalk. I kept my view reasonable, and I didn't force any oncomers, umbrellaless, into puddles. It was still a pain in the ass to walk with my arm at 90 degrees and the wind made things difficult, although I was never tulipped. a good umbrella I guess. All in all, I guess it was repeatable. But for all you bulldozers out there, shame shame. You're ruining peoples' mornings.

The Grid Game

My top score is *now* 1415.

Beat that!

Fun with Bubbles

This came from a friend today: use your mouse to control him, up and down. try not to have too much fun.

Another blog is born.

Hello, and welcome to my second contribution to the world of blogdom. the first, kristenlake.blogspot.com aka "Far From Home" was an exercise in travel writing but with a definite beginning and end. This is less so...this is where I will post whatever I find interesting, aggravating, funny, sad...actually it is a waste to try and categorize it. it is what it is.