"Belogging" Again.

A few friends have pointedly asked me why I'm not blogging since my facebook updates have taken a blog-like bent of late. The facebook updates I dislike the most are the spam-type messages that are selling a person, product, thing, or poolitical point of view.  ...ok, those and the chain-letter ones. I once said I'd never do that to my friends and family, but I made one this evening. So here I am to post it instead here in my dusty little corner of blogspace...

My son Mark's death in 2010 pretty well derailed both my writing and my blogging, but I'm finally ready to follow my last post.


...in my next one.

Moose in my back yard

Woke up last Monday morning to the sight of two moose in the back yard. The neighbors told us about all the wildlife we'd be seeing when we moved out here a year ago, but this is only the second time we've seen Moose. Our place is only a few miles outside of Edmonton City limits.

One wag asked me why I hadn't shot the Male, as I would be able to 'get away with it' with my Metis status. I had to tell ol' 'Hunts at Safeway' that I'm too damned citified to do all the bloody, heavy work involved in gutting and dressing a moose all by my lonesome. As for the shot, I'm as proud of my marksmanship as the next guy, maybe moreso, but there's a safety issue because of all the houses just the other side of the trees behind the Moose, and probably a violation of local ordinances to boot.

Besides which, I don't consider myself a subsistence hunter at present.

Spread it around

Found this while surfing. Spread it around.

101 People Screwing up Canada

Kudos to SPINK for creating the list, "101 People who are Screwing up Canada, and 10 who aren't."

Like Spink, I had read Bernard Goldberg's "100 people who are Screwing up America," picking it up on sale for $2 or $4 after Chapters/Indigo dumped it's copies into the discount bins (probably for not being Anti-American enough -it didn't quite fit in with the other books on the 'Anti-American Table' that usually has a prominent place in my local Chapters). I found the Goldberg book hugely entertaining. I'm really pleased Spink was able to compile his own list, and amply justify his choices, without turning it into one of those lame, 'Canadian-Version' sort of things we wince at and have come to expect from the CBC and the rest of the 'government-sponsored Canadian-Culture industry.

Unlike Spink, I didn't think to make a Canadian list. It was a good idea, that was well executed and worth your time to read.

do not call lists

Since joining the CRTC's federal do not call list last September, the number of calls I receive has increased. The big difference however is they are all originating from the United States, where the CRTC has no jurisdiction.

I am especially offended by they way they try to pretend that I am already a customer or am somehow already associated with them, and their telemarketing call is a legitimate form of contact. They all include a notice to press a number (like zero) if you do not want to be contacted again. I have done this, and yet the calls persist. Clearly, pressing the indicated number to be automatically removed from their call list does not guarantee they'll stop calling you.

It's frustrating, so now I never push the number. The bastards are going to phone anyway. Instead, I push the number to speak to a live agent. If they can call and interrupt my day, one of their employees is damn well going to get his/her day interrupted back. Like Today. I just received a call from OHIO and I pressed the number to speak to a live agent.

Then when the live person comes on, I say I'm on the do-not-call list, and tell them to FUCK OFF.

The cathartic effect on my emotional state is amazing. I mean, how often can you tell someone to fuck off and it has a chance of bettering our society? It's my deepest heartfelt hope that the unlucky employee I spoke with will quit their job and the telemarketer will have trouble filling the position.

(happy grin)