Blog or white ... because it never is.

I would give anything to trade my curling sweater in for one that has a maple leaf on the back.  Chelsea Carey and her team frequently tweeted and posted how privileged and honoured they were to be Team Canada.  They said every time they put on the maple leaf it was always a thrill.  Watching the emotion of Kerri, Val, Shannon, and Brianne you know that they will be wonderful representatives of Canada. Curling has always been the sport of sportsmanship.  During curling season, hundreds of game are played everyday in every corner of our country without an official.  Win or lose, you usually go for a beverage with your opposition.  In the rural community that I grew up in, the curling rink was the social hub.  First regular game of the Brier and in the third, a member of Team Canada referred to the event as "amateur hour" when the official was coming out to do a measurement.  I understand emotions get high at a national championship, but if you are frustrated enough to kn

A couple of summers ago, this rest and recharge area "popped up" downtown.  It was such a beautiful oasis where you could sit and relax or play a game.  The plants were fragrant and it was just a great place to hang out.  I made a point of hanging out there for a little once a week.  I may have written a couple of blog entries there.  For some reason, I was usually the only one taking advantage of this pop-up.  It was hard to understand why other than maybe people knew I was coming. Regardless, this is what I like to think of Winnipeg.  A bunch of little jewels that I have yet to discover.  That is what I choose to think but sadly I also have to face reality.  Horrific things that I would like to think only happens in large places in "the States" are happening here.  I have reluctantly accepted that we have a real methamphetamine crisis in the City.  It is not in certain areas, it is everywhere.  Theft, vandalism, and petty crimes doesn't surprise me.  The a

My blog is dedicated to social justice.  Sometimes when I tell people about my blog, they stop me and say they are not interested in hearing anything more.  I don't really know why social justice is a difficult concept for some.  It simply means that everyone should experience the world in the same way.  Some people think my blog is just my way of complaining about things that don't go my way.  Well, it is true, I do complain a lot and sometimes I am tired of that, too.   But, my purpose is to highlight when I see that people are having a different experience based on a demographic.  My goal is introspection and change so that we can all have the same experience.  A couple of years ago, I wrote an entry about poor customer service while donating blood.  I know there are so many restrictions to giving blood that I think if you are able to donate blood, you should.  But, instead of being a wonderful experience for me, it no longer was.  I sent my entry to Canadian Blood Servi

The historical Chiefs of the Wet"suwet"en are meeting now with federal and provincial officials.  The meetings are expected to last two days.  Neither side is optimistic and neither side is even articulating the goals of the meeting.  It seems to be that the historical Chiefs have inspired a movement and it is much more than about a pipeline.  Given the incredible "spirit" of the protests across the country, it seems that the Prime Minister should be at the table and not just issuing statements that the situation is "disturbing".  Yesterday was an "uncomfortable" day in Winnipeg.  I have an aunt who is one of the most amazing people I know.  Within two years, she will turn 90.  She became a widow shortly after her marriage in her early 20s.  That tragedy didn't stop her from having a successful career with the RCMP.  She was the type of person who always has taken on extra responsibilities.  Once she had more times when she retired, she

I have grown to appreciate and like The Winnipeg Sun.  I was reluctant to read the Sun for years due to their provocative headlines and tabloid look.  But, I was offered a deal that was impossible to pass up so I tried the paper.  Once that deal ran out, I was offered an even better deal, and a few years later, I have become a loyal subscriber.  I have come to appreciate the newspaper, especially their coverage of local sports.  A week or so ago, they had a full page picture of Peter Nygaard on the front page with the headline, "Is he our Jeffrey Epstein?"  It is going to take me a long time to forgive that unfortunate cover.  Cheap sensationalism.  t I am more than a person who reads newspapers.  I am also a trauma survivor.  Now, of course, I was not a victim of Epstein.  However, I know what it is like not to get the justice that you think you deserve.  His multiple victims never got to tell their stories in a Court of Law.  What might have been an important aspect

1.  The victory of Kerri Einarson and her team of Val, Shannon, and Brianne was amazing.  Very deserved champions and they clearly won as a team in their sophmore year.  The win, and the opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf for a year, will be team-changing.  They also earned their spot at the next Olympic Trials.  2.  I haven't been a big fan of Bryan Mudryk.  In my opinion, he just tries too hard.  However, in my opinion, when he interviewed Kerri moments after her win he crossed a line.  Kerri was still highly emotional and was trying to gain her composure when he asked her about her dead brother.  That's below the belt.  Yes, she endured a tragedy as most of us have.  It was five years ago and she clearly lists her priorities as a mother, a wife, and a curler.  Of course, she misses her brother.  My sister passed 10 years ago and I still miss her.  By bringing this up in her post-victory interview was tasteless and designed to elicit a cheap emotional response.  Cheap sho

Free advice from me to Curling Canada.  The curlers are not representing themselves and their sponsors.  Therefore, they need to mindful that they are representing their provinces/territories or Canada.  Not only is curling supposed to be the most sportsmanlike sport, but Canadians are known for being kind and generous.  I hope Curling Canada issues a strong reminder to the curlers that hundreds of thousands of curlers would give anything to play in a Brier.  They should also remind all curlers that they are always serving as role models for hundreds of thousands of young boys to inspire them to take up the sport of curling.  Using swear words or criticizing how the event is run will not advance the game in any way and should be strictly prohibited. 

I have a deep passion for all things curling.  It has almost been a deal-breaker with my partner.  He is so embarrassed by how I worship most curlers.  Some how, he has managed to make his peace with this.  Regardless, I am a proud fanatic.  So, I was really looking forward to the hour program on TSN "Curling Day in Canada".  The hashtag was trending, they told me, so this had to be good.  It wasn't.  It was very disappointing.  My parents met in a small curling rink in rural Saskatchewan.  I feel like I grew up in a small curling rink in rural Manitoba.  Small curling rinks in rural Canada were the pulse of small towns all over Canada.  Many of them are now struggling.  Curling fees are becoming more expensive and out of reach for beginning curlers.  The whole hope of other sports having their Day in Canada is to give a burst of energy, and funds to small towns in support of their sport.  In this hour, there were two segments that made fun of curling in terms of

In the last two weeks, Prime Minister Trudeau missed a deadline for filing something to do with his personal holdings.  Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer commented that this was unethical and inappropriate.  I think that is one topic that he should have refrained from commenting.  How could be possibly comment on anything ethical given that he misappropriated six figures of his parties funds to pay for his children's private schooling.  Yesterday, someone asked me why Andrew Scheer was so out of touch with Canada's role in advancing reconciliation with Indigenous people.  I said that the question should have been why is Andrew Scheer so out of touch with Canada.  Either way, it is the same answer.  Apparently, when you meet him in person, he is not creepy, but, when you watch him on television he has a very creepy vibe.  He only connects well with a small demographic of Canadian society.  It is a group of white privileged men who are fundamental Christians and have more t

I refer to Tim Horton's as the Evil Empire.  I used to blog about this almost weekly.  I got tired of the negative energy so I have stopped.  Also, the rest of the consumer world has woken up to this corporation that is now owned in the Caribbean yet still tries to claim they are Canadian. Sales keep slumping.  It helps that their products are void of taste.  Regardless, I can't overlook one of their latest commercials.  They are advertising their breakfast sandwiches.  A couple are eating these sandwiches in their kitchen.  (Believe it or not, that is not the most shocking aspect of the commercial.)  They toast their neighbour with these sandwiches while their neighbour is shoveling their sidewalk.  It is described as a "win" for the couple.  I think this is one of the most tone deaf commercials ever.  Snow shoveling is hard work and if your neighbour is kind enough to do your sidewalk, you should pay it forward and do something nice for them in return.  You

I was fortunate not to experience bullying while I was in school.  Maybe it happened behind my back, but I never felt bullied in the school system.  My first experience with bullying happened when I became a consumer.  It seemed very odd to me but I was treated badly by salespeople.  When I was in Junior High school, when my mother and I went shopping at the Dauphin Marketplace Mall, we would stop and have a treat at the Woolco Cafeteria.  Since my mom was buying me things, it seemed the least I could do was pay for her coffee and pie or whatever she wanted.  She would sit and I would go through the line and this one cashier always treated me with indignation and condensation.  One time, she didn't give me a receipt but I knew I was over-charged.  I asked my mom to handle it for me and she replied, "you have a mouth, learn to use it."  I went to the bully and didn't win the battle, but I think I won the war.  She never bullied me again.  That is one way to handle a

2020 started out pretty awful for my partner and I.  We were both physically ill with different ailments.  We were so ill that we both hit massive walls of depression, him on a Sunday and me on the following Tuesday.  The only positive thing about the first two weeks in January was that we never turned on each other.  When you are feeling so awful, it is easy to lash out on one another and we didn't.  As we will be celebrating our 10th anniversary of being together this year, this was a real sign that we are strong in our relationship.  One day, after spending several days in my pjs, my partner suggested that he wanted to make me smile.  He told me to get dressed and we were going for a drive.  I had no desire to go for a drive but I am blessed with a man who wants to make me smile.  We drove to a store.  This wasn't going to make me smile.  He said this wasn't our final destination but there was something on sale that he wanted to get.  I went in with him and the sal

Roll up the Rim is coming back in March.  No cars this time.  One of the major prizes is Airmiles and I will be sharing my displeasure with that organization for getting involved with the Evil Empire.  This year, they apparently are thinking about sustainability.  Don't be fooled.  The Evil Empire is the ultimate narcissist and only think of making profits.  However, this year they are giving you a reusable cup during the first week only, or something like that.  One of the ways that you can tell a corporation is healthy is by how they communicate with their employees.   I know that the Evil Empire is unhealthy but I wanted to prove it for myself.  Last evening, I put on my Cross and had my garlic cloves with me and I went to five different locations of Tim's.  I asked the cashiers to explain the new Roll up the Rim promotion given that it has two phases.  Three cashiers had no knowledge of Roll up the Rim.  And, after not providing me any information it was a loud Next w

I read the lengthy statement from Coach Dan Carey after his Team Canada lost to Team Manitoba.  He apologized profusely for his comment to the official and indicated that this behavior was his alone and his team should not be judged by his comment.  It was quite a profuse statement.  I watched that game and I didn't see anything untoward so I had to find out more.  It turned out he had told an official to "shut up".  Really.  I am not defending his comment, however, have you heard some of the men's comments while playing?  Last year, I wrote a blog post indicating that I thought Curling Canada should fine Ben Hebert.  He is the worst offender, in my opinion.  I understand a "sh**" or "da**" out of frustration when the rocks don't cooperate.  But, he, and other male players have used the "f" word and have insulted entire events.  We have seen male players display really disappointing behavior.  Yet, my blog post was not well rece

I can't help it, I love curling.  If it wasn't for curling, I wouldn't be here.  My parents met in a curling rink in Biggar, Saskatchewan.  Growing up in Dauphin, curling was my parent's social life and led to many life long friendships.  My mother was probably one of the worst curlers to step on to the ice, but she was prolific in her enthusiasm and her off-ice antics.  Back in the day, the curling rink was my baby-sitter.  At the time, it was appropriate for parents to supervise their children from the ice.  My curling days are behind me but I still think I am very competitive for the title of Uber fan.  I would never say anything negative about Jennifer Jones.  After all, she is probably the best clutch shot curler ever.  However, sometimes, I have felt she has called really difficult shots for the players ahead of her rather than the simpler shots which have set up the hero shots that she usually makes.  Maybe that is just me that thinks that.  Regardless, she h

Two Winnipeggers face drug charges after police raided a Crestview home and a storage locker linked to the two.  At the Crestview home, police seized an ounce of cocaine, $30,000 cash, a half ounce of meth, ammunition, and drug packing material.  In their storage locker, police found a kilogram each of fentanyl and meth, as well as 20 ounces of cocaine.  It must be so frustrating for those fighting the war on drugs.  This seems like a significant amount of drugs to me, yet it only made page B3.  The male charged with many crimes also faced charges for violating probation orders.  So, this was not his first tangle with the law.  The police must sometimes feel like they are playing whack-a-mole.  They take some drugs off the street and it emerges elsewhere.  The aspect of the story that shocked me was that it occurred in Crestview.  That is virtually the same neighbourhood where they are constructing the Bruce Oake Recovery Centre.  I had been led to believe, by those in opposition

The Province has announced that Dauphin Jail will be closing and about 70 jobs will be displaced.  There have been a lot of closings around the Province under the Pallister government.  Many closures have been vigorously fought by citizen groups. I think the most vocal one was protesting the closure of Concordia ER.  The citizens of Dauphin are vigorously opposing the closure.  My money is on Dauphin.  The people behind this closure have well reasoned arguments and they literally are fighting for the town they love.  The love that people have for Dauphin is a passion that can not be measured.  These passionate people are fighting for their City of Sunshine.  They think if these jobs leave, it will lead to more jobs leaving, etc, etc. I love Dauphin and I worry about its future as well, and I can tell you Dauphin is definitely worth saving.  One thing I can tell you about Dauphin is that if you grow up there, you definitely believe that anything is possible.  For one thing, when

Change is the only constant in life.  We used to say that the more things change, the more they stay the same.  We rarely hear that one anymore.  Modern technology tells us that our world is now fundamentally changing once every seven years. Apparently, poker is a part of the universe because changes are happening in the Manitoba poker scene. A couple of years ago, there were two "thriving" poker rooms at the two major Casinos in Winnipeg.  A smaller casino opened downtown and poker was tried and quickly nixed.  Two smaller casinos outside of the Perimeter have opened.  One had a dedicated poker area which was popular on weekends and then closed.  The other casino is smaller and apparently does get poker going on weekends. When poker was eliminated from McPhillips Casino, there was great hue and cry that the players would never go to Regent.  Out of all the players who swore they would never go to Regent, I can only think of one player who kept his word.  It is too ba

It is a new decade and no one cares about my comedy laurels from 2006.  It is time to get back in front of an open microphone and see what happens.  So, I am developing some new routines.  The first one will be based on my rack.  Not the one in my closet, the one that keeps my spills from reaching my stomach.  Of course, I've got the softball one already queued.  The one that I saw that I was on an elevator at Richardson Building and I had to slap the man standing next to me for pinching my boob.  Then, I quickly had to apologize to him.  It turns out, he hadn't pinched my boob, he had stepped on it.  So, if you have any hilarious booby jokes, please send them in private message.  You will be helping keeping my dream alive.