Posted on January 8, 2018 under Monday Morning Musings with 2 comments

Ubiquitous storm chips

 

Some of you who read my column religiously are not Facebook users. Facebook users: almost sounds like an addiction!? Last Thursday, I posted a cheeky piece about the hype surrounding storms. I wasn’t overtly criticizing weather forecasting but merely pointing out that all news, even when it’s weather, is so filled with drama. I mean, is every piece of news “Breaking News?” It seems that every time a ‘nor easter is brewing; it is being touted as “the storm of the century.” I have a theory on this.

Collusion.

I believe that “storm hysteria” is created by the potato chip industry that have a vested interest in bad weather news now that “storm chips” have become as essential as water, candles and matches in one’s storm prep. I haven’t checked but I’m guessing that with some digging, you might find out that a potato chip company is the major sponsor of The Weather Network!

My post touched off a mild frenzy with readers weighing in on storms, storm procedures and storm food. While I wasn’t pointing any fingers, it seems that school closures are a source of angst for many people.

So here goes. A few thoughts on school closures.

First of all, full disclosure. I can claim the following: I was a school aged student once; I was a parent of four young children who attended school; I was a school teacher; I was a school principal and was a member of the school board. And now, I’m a grandparent of  school aged children… the best role in the education chain.  I think it is safe to say that I understand all sides of the debate. I even learned to drive a school bus in rural Northern Alberta (as a spare driver).

So, let’s start off with all the nostalgia stuff. I bumped into a retired school principal who reminded me that school was never called off back when dinosaurs roamed the earth. There were town schools and there were county schools in the days before that charming architectural structure, the J.H. Gillis Regional School was erected.

Those children in the town, who cared to wade through waist high snow drifts, could go to school. (Parent’s decision). Invariably, they would be met by a very small number of their peers. Of course, it turned into a fun day. In the county, it was ultimately the decision of each individual (parent, teacher, bus driver) as to whether they would try and get to school. Most times, nobody was able to make it to the county schools rendering cancellation a moot point. When I taught in the Peace River country, buses were not allowed to run once the temp got to -40. Of course, the motors wouldn’t turn over at that temp… another obvious redundancy.

Many of the comments I received were from people close to my age who remember storm days fondly. Many people had wood stoves so keeping warm and cooking weren’t problematic. Candles were lit. Books were read and you might also get trounced in cards by granny!

I wouldn’t dare try to comment on the dicey and oft times emotional debate on school closures in 2018. The dynamics at homes and in schools have changed so radically that trying to make any comparison, between “then” and “now” would be ludicrous.

Think I’ll grab a bowl of chips.

Do you have a sense of humour? Would you like to become rich and famous?

I am in the throes of writing my India book. I need a title… something unique and catchy. Please private message me or send me an e-mail with your suggestion. If I choose your title (drum roll….), I will acknowledge it on the inside cover of the book, assuring your immortality. You will also receive an autographed copy of the first book off the presses. You’ve heard the expression “Go west, young man”? My daughter suggested that I call the book “Go east old man.”

“Silence and smiles are two powerful tools. A smile is a way to solve many problems and silence is a way to avoid them.” ( Unknown )

Have a great week.

Posted on January 1, 2018 under Monday Morning Musings with one comment

Product of the year 2018?

 

I report, with a great deal of pride, that I ushered in the New Year for the first time in recent memory. I’m normally a “no show”, having neither the stamina nor interest in staying awake for the countdown.

When our children were small, staying up until midnight was a myth as sleep took precedence over just about everything else. As the kids got older, they shamed us into staying up. Frequently, we would go to bed and then get them to wake us at 11:55. We even went out to a few New Year’s Eve bashes, usually house parties. But you get the picture. We were never super keen on New Year’s Eve.

So yesterday afternoon, I started the countdown at 2:29 Atlantic Standard Time. Huh? With a 9.5 hour time difference, I celebrated the New Year with my friends in India at 2:30 (12:00 a.m.  IST ) sharp… bright eyed and bushy tailed!

Did you get a “Fitbit” for Christmas? They’re all the rage you know and this gadget will calculate just about anything, anytime, anywhere.

I did NOT get a Fitbit. However, after my eating spree, I’m thinking about marketing a new device next year called the “ Fatbit.” It charts the calories you consume during the twelve days of Christmas. This puppy is not one bit interested in the amount of calories burned. No, this is a shaming device trying to do the impossible: calculate the gargantuan number of calories that you consumed while eating and drinking like a drunken sailor during the holiday season.

My “ Fatbit” finally gave up the ghost on the 11^th. Day of Christmas as I single handedly tried to eradicate all the sweets in the house before January first. Come on, admit it. You’re doing the same thing. You know that you must curtail if not eliminate your sugar intake come January 1^st and the only way you’re going to do this is to remove every vestige of sweets in the house, even if you have to do this on your own. You know you can do it. You did it last year and the year before.

Yes, those last few days before the New Year are not something I’m proud of but I AM pleased to report that there are no sweets in the house as I launch a new year of unfulfilled promises. I’ll go “cold turkey” for the month of January to give my vital organs a well-deserved rest. I will eat fresh fruits and vegetables as if they were the greatest gifts of the magi. I will eat arugula salad with avocados. I will flush my system with 64 ounces of water daily and pee like a racehorse all day long. I will show restraint in portion sizes. I will avoid going to the Maritime Inn lest I be tempted by their bread pudding.

February will come and I will acknowledge my hard work by moving my belt buckle back one whole hole. My sugar craving will have passed and I will allow myself one dessert every two weeks…. Ever the disciplinarian.  By spring this will have eased into once a week and by next December, I will be full throttle again.

Fatbit. Don’t leave home without it!

Happy New Year!

Posted on December 18, 2017 under Monday Morning Musings with 10 comments

 

“Now I’m a broken man on a Halifax pier.”

Barrett’s Privateers – Stan Rogers

Leave no stone unturned.

Unless of course it’s a kidney stone and it’s lodged in your ureter and too big to “pass” the normal way. Then you can have it blasted or surgically removed.

A surprising (?) thing has happened to me lately. I seem to be unearthing all kinds of nagging medical issues. First it was an abnormal bowel screening test followed by a colonoscopy. And on the heels of that procedure, I discovered (while writhing in pain), that I had a kidney stone. By the way, a nurse at the hospital in Truro where I had my ureteroscopy last Friday told me that a fellow nurse has both delivered babies and kidney stones and claims that kidney stones are more painful… and difficult to deliver.Tell that to a mother who has delivered a 10 pound baby. I won’t!

I also have found out that I have a couple of other issues that require further tests. Now, I don’t want to turn my twice weekly column into a medical menagerie. But these days, it sure feels like I’m that broken man on a Halifax pier. I believe they call it aging.

Do you remember the old grade 11/12 biology books that had the pictures of the human body with several plastic sheets that you could lay one over the other to see where all your organs were located? Reminds me of the late Terry Chew whom some of you will remember from our AHS days. Lately, I have familiarized myself again with several of these organs. They are not playing a happy tune.

I won’t bore you with the details of an ureteroscopy… especially in mixed company. The procedure is slightly different for men than women. Look it up if you’re really curious about how they get the scope up to the ureter.

I did have several light moments while under the expert care of the Colchester Regional Hospital. My “navigator nurse” was Carol and she was a consummate professional. She undertook all of the pre-surgery protocol including a long list of medical questions along with do’s and don’ts. I expressed chagrin that I could not wear any of my piercings or makeup.

When I woke up in recovery, I was understandably groggy from the anaesthesia. My throat was sore from the tube and my mouth was bone dry. I was also still wearing an oxygen mask. And there was some discomfort in my nether regions. I summoned Carol with a wave of my arms. She hastily came to my bedside and wondered if I was in distress. I removed the oxygen mask and asked her the following: “Is it a girl or a boy?”  I thought she might be the one who needed the bedpan.

We are SO fortunate in this part of the world to have such great health care despite many of the inherent challenges.

And I am also most fortunate to have my pal Bill Van de sande who has been my chauffeur for many medical appointments, trips to the airport and my sidekick on a cross country trip to deliver a car to Victoria.

India unplugged.

It’s official. I will not be going back to India this winter. I still haven’t received my visa and as fate should have it, I’m fortunate that it didn’t come sooner. While India has an excellent health care system, everything is easier when you’re in your home country. I would not be wanting to deal with all these issues, half way around the world.

There was a notable retirement last Friday. Carolyn Grant, a long term stalwart at the Bergengren Credit Union has called it a day. But don’t think for a moment that a person like Carolyn with smarts and energy will simply put her feet up. She will be helping many people take “the road less traveled” as a travel consultant. She will be sorely missed at BCU.

A postscript on “Miracle on 34^th. Street. “There is a move afoot to make this Christmas classic an annual affair at the Bauer Theatre; such was the reaction to this year’s performances.

I was glad that many of you enjoyed a chuckle with “Christmas Tirade.” The only way I will show up at a large department store this week is in shackles.

Fasten your seat belts. Christmas is 7 days away.

Have a great week.

Reminder. Christmas book sale. Three books $25.00 + shipping. Regular $55. Value. Message me or send me an e-mail at lenpdmacdonald@gmail.com