Go Jets Go!

In April of 1996 I went to what has been the last Winnipeg Jets hockey game. After a fifteen year hiatus profession hockey is returning to the Manitoba capital.

Winnipeg is not the same city as when pro hockey left. There is a definite sense of community in Winnipeg. There is a definite love of hockey there too. I think the Jets leaving the city made people realize they need pro sports to make a sense of community.

There are some upsides. Winnipeg already has a better team than Edmonton. It is easier to get excited about hockey if you have a local team. It's fun to be part of a team.

I don't know if I will ever live in Winnipeg again. A lot of me friends do and I'm happy they get a team again. Who knows what the future brings but it will include NHL hockey in Winnipeg.

Food And Music

I love food and I love music. There is no surprise that they have something in common, they are both ruined by a cold. When you eat you don't get the smells and the flavor isn't right. When you can't hear the same in both ears, music doesn't sound right.

Everyone knows that a cold will ruin your day. That's what they do. It makes no sense why we have to suffer through a cold. It doesn't kill you it just slows you down. It makes your life more difficult. You have to be careful when you fly. You can be off balance. It's just annoying.

Normally I don't treat the symptoms. If you let it do it's thing, your body gets rid of it sooner. There are exceptions. If I need to hop on a commercial flight I'll take some medication.

As I suffer through my latest cold, I wonder why I am forced to live through the experience. I realize it will go away in a couple of days but if you are going to complain about anything, a cold is one of the better things to feel my wrath.

Rolling

I have been working in Ottawa for just over six months. Last week-end I had a couple of friends in town and rad to drop them off at the airport before work this morning. It made the most sense to just drive to work after dropping them off. It worked out fine.

Because I drove to work that meant I had to drive home after work. With the work being done on Rideau Street and it being closed to traffic except busses and taxis, I had to take Laurier to get across the canal.

As I have mentioned in previous posts it takes me about 30 minutes to walk to work and another 30 minutes to walk home. Today it took me 23 minutes to drive home.

All this makes walking to and from work to look even more attractive.

I didn't get my morning walk and it took longer to get going once I arrived at my desk. I didn't get my afternoon walk and wind down from my day.

From this experience I have confirmed that the walk to work is a very good thing in my life. The fresh air and exercise make my day better while only adding about seven minutes to either trip. If I catch a couple of lights while walking it adds even less time as I have been able to walk in as little as 25 minutes.

I'm not saying everyone is in a position to walk to work or would even care to but I am a convert. It is one of the best parts of my daily routine and you can't argue with fresh air and exercise.

Outrageous Gas Pricing

With the recent spike in gasoline costs there has been a lot of chatter about outrageous gas prices. There is an impact to higher fuel prices. The cost to transport goods must increase as one of the primary cost drivers of the transportation has increased. The cost to travel to deliver services has increased for the same reason.

Despite all of that, people are feeling the pressure because of choices they have made.

If you live in a city and work in an office you do not need a truck to get to work everyday. You do not need to live in the suburbs if you work in the city. You can live within walking distance of work. Remember, walking distance is a lot further than you think. I live 2.7 kilometers from my office. It takes me about 30 minutes to walk to work. About 5 minutes of that is waiting for a stop light.

Because I walk to work I have only purchased 3 tanks of gas since arriving in Ottawa three months ago. I don't feel any pinch from rising gas prices. People need to understand that driving is a luxury, there are other ways to get around. They can be cheaper and better for you.

The other great argument is the oil companies are making too much money. Oil companies are all publicly traded so if the profits are unreasonable you too can get in on the action. Just buy some shares and you can benefit from the runaway prices.

I understand how people can feel a pinch when gas prices go up. If you have no slack in your system, any increase can put you over the ledge. The key is to make choices that allow you to live comfortably.

Rebate Cheque

Earlier in the year the Manitoba Public Utilities Board determined that Manitoba Public Insurance overcharged by 45% in the 2009-2010 insurance year. Forty-five percent is a lot to over-charge.

A couple of years ago I wrote a blog entry about how Manitoba Public Insurance is lazy and wouldn't help me when I was out of province.

Today I received my rebate cheque for my overpaid premium. I'm glad it made it to me but in no way does this improve my personal opinion of MPIC.

The good part is the Public Utility Board told them to give the money back. The bad part is they were not even close to what they figured they were going to need. Since MPIC is a regulated monopoly, competition cannot regulate prices. Ratepayers didn't get any interest for having their money tied up for two years. At least they got it back.

There are some instances that regulated monopolies can work, insurance isn't one of them. There is no high infrastructure costs. there is no motivation to keep prices down. It's easier to pay back years later than come up short.

I'm glad I have my rebate cheque from Manitoba Public Insurance but if I have my choice I will never deal with them again.

Have You Ever Seen The Rain?

It was a raining day yesterday in Ottawa. It looks like it will be a rainy week. I much prefer the thunderstorm method of rain delivery. Not only do you get all the excitement of the thunder and lightning but you also get a quick shot of rain and you are back to sunshine.

I realize it is annoying to get caught out in a thunderstorm. It can be scary if you can't get to shelter and hail can hurt as well as being destructive but I will take that over days of continuous rain.

I finds several grey rainy days to be a bit depressing. I admit, it gets to me. Now that I live in Ottawa and tend to walk many places as well as spend time outside, I find rainy days bother me even more.

All that being said, you can't change the weather so my only option is to live with it. Besides, if rainy days are my biggest complaint, life is pretty good.

It's Easy To Hate The Right Wing

As part of the fallout of the Canadian Federal Election it has become apparent that a lot of people hate right wing policies. It's easy to understand why. The right wing believes in less government. They believe that you are generally responsible to take care of yourself. I can see how that can be unpopular with a lot of people.

Less government means the provision of fewer social programs. There are people who rely on social programs and limiting or removing them can cause hardship.

Right wing policies tend to reward those who take risk and generate productive economic activity. Because of that the rich have a tendency to get richer. I see how a lot of people don't like that.

The left wing tends to provide programs to ensure no one is left behind. They try to ensure no matter their situation, everyone has a roof over their head and food on the table. I can see how this can be very popular.

In Canada we have universal health care. Some people believe we have free health care. That is not the case. We must pay a lot of taxes to have health care that everyone has the same access to. It's important for people to understand that one out of every four tax dollars collected is used to pay for health care in Canada. Canadians choose to have universal health care and we choose to pay for it. Despite the cost, I can see how universal health care is popular.

There are a lot of good things from the left. Unfortunately, social programs tend to diminish motivation in a significant portion of the population. If you have a reasonable level of comfort and you are using more social services than you are paying for, the motivation to improve your position is greatly diminished. For whatever reason this doesn't seem to be unpopular with a lot of people.

I realize and embrace that different people have different experiences and beliefs. For a society to function, it is important to have varying opinions. I can see how social programs can be popular. That being said I prefer a system that rewards hard work. If you put more in you should get more out. Sacrifice should be rewarded.

That's my opinion, and I don't mind that some others have a different one.

Ramblings On An Election

Yesterday there was an election in Canada. As always there was winners and losers. Since there was losers people were disappointed. This is to be expected as it happens whenever people are unsuccessful.

For me, democracy isn't perfect but is is better than everything else. Only through free democratic voting does the will of the people be heard. Only with democracy does everyone have an equal say in how they want their nation to be lead and managed.

Democracy can leave a lot of people disappointed.

In Canada we elect a representative for our riding to go to Ottawa and represent our concerns. The party who has the most sitting Members of Parliament form the government. Because your vote is for your local candidate the party that forms the government may not receive the majority of votes. Thus can lead to frustration but it is how the system is built.

Voter turnout can be a huge source of consternation. Because voting is not mandatory not everyone chooses to vote. If you are good with numbers you can calculate that not a lot of people may have voted for the winners. Just remember that even fewer voted for the losers. It's important to remember we all have an equal say if we choose to vote.

It can be frustrating to a lot of people but democracy works. It's not perfect but I look at Libya as an alternative.

Back Home

I spent the last few days in Winnipeg. I have lived Herr most of my adult life and I don't miss the city. What I really miss is my friends.

I think most good people can say they have good friend. I have good friends. It was great to see so many but that's to be expected.

I think the best part was seeing people I didn't expect to. I rani to a lot of people who I really had no expectation to see. Some of them didn't know that I was going to be in Winnipeg and everyone I saw looked happy. It seems the people in my world are moving the right direction. It seems that life is getting better for a lot of people. It seems that life is pretty good.

When you look at the circle of people I live within the best thing is they are genuine and awesome. I have great friends who make my life, along with many others awesome.

I know that sounds sappy but sometimes you have to say great things.