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Top 5 Reasons why I will NOT vote for King Ralphie. (Also on the Calgary Herald Q: Blog)5. He lives in a glass house and he throws more rocks than a kid at a lakeside. I don't look like I have a pounding migraine most of the time, but secretly it doesn't go away. Mom doesn't look like she is missing � of her lung due to lung cancer, but she lives in physical pain almost every day. He shouldn't be looking so down on those who have disabilities and who need AISH assistance. If I seem to remember, he had a drinking problem back a couple years ago. Drinking in excess can be a silent disease. Oh but he didn't look like he had anything wrong with him- did he? 4. Never knows when to shush up. Do I ever feel bad for the person who writes his speeches prior to when he talks. I can just see him/her standing in the back of the room grimacing each time Ralph opens his mouth. Each time I see an interview on the six o'clock news with Mr. Klein in it, I know full well he is going to make a comment which is going to make people shake their head. Each freakin' time I see one, I shake my own head. Just driving down McLeod Trail and seeing the monstrous billboard with his noggin on it makes me shake my head. 3. Broken word at the Young Life Carwash - 1996 Personal memory: It was a fundraiser for summer camp and we were washing cars for free (the kind of "free" where donations are hugely encouraged). While my friends and I scrounged the parking lot looking for unsuspecting people who would later come and get their car washed - who should enter the parking lot but Mr. Ralph Klein himself. We were shocked, awed, wowed. So we went over and asked him if he wanted a free car wash. He said, "Yah of course! I will be right over there as soon as I pick up the clothes from the drycleaners". We ran back to tell everyone and just as we turned around to point where he was, he was gone. Just like that. He lied to us. Still haven't forgiven him for that. 2. He is way too comfortable in his seat as political figure for Alberta. After how many years of him winning the race I am sure his chair at the legislature is more than comfortable. 8 wins should mean too many. I don't understand why our province elects him in each term when all they do for that term is complain about how rude and arrogant and selfish he is. When is enough enough? (Hint hint: vote for someone else this race- you won't be sorry you did). 1. Just because. Posted by Bella at 5:56 PM# Catherine the Great. (also found here on the Calgary Herald Q)One of the reasons I enjoy reading the Calgary Herald so much, is because of Catherine Ford. Not only is she probably one of the most controversial writers for the Herald, but with her up front, no bullshit kind of talk- she makes me want to be just like her. After a gazillion years of being a writer, she has thrown in her hat and called it a day. This is the kind of lady I really admire. I had the chance to meet her at John Gilchrist's book launch for his, "My Favourite Restaurants in Calgary and Banff" back last fall. She was standing across the room from me and just as I was heading over to meet her, she was on her way out the door. Unfortunately our paths did not meet, but I did send her an email telling her that I wasn't sure what I enjoyed reading more; her pieces in the paper or the letters from the readers to the editor after she published something. I received an email back from her saying, "Megan: It is to blush. What lovely words to a total stranger. Thank you, thank you. Catherine Ford" Ms. Ford had never gone to school for journalism. She landed her career by not what she knew, but who she knew. 40 years later- look at where she is. Definitely a place I would love to be. Some quotes taken from her controversial pieces included: - "Admitting a liking for politicians is like eating liver - it results in some strange looks and choked comments from friends." - "I'd rather be wrong than wishy-washy." - "Women are suppose to be done when leaving the house. Major facial repairs and the inspection and cleaning of dental work don't belong in public. Men look ridiculous priming unless they're making a lifestyle statement. Snip your fingernails, clean the wax out of your ears and comb your moustache at home. Anyone paring his toenails in public needs more help than I can possibly give. Perhaps a few days at the zoo would be of assistance." Thanks for your words Ms. Ford. I will be missing them deeply. Posted by Bella at 4:16 PM# Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier - Colin Powell In the first of my many interviews, this is Mike Pal, the University student who ran for Mayor in our latest civic election. Take a look at his answers... this guy just might have been a better choice for Mayor.Q: Considering the mean age of Calgarians, and how you're, well, quite frankly, you're way below that- were you in any way worried that you might come across as leading some kind of youth takeover? A: I don't have the actual demographics with me but I have taken a brief look at them. Calgary is a relatively young city. I acknowledge your point however, and I see where your question is going. I found a number of people didn't take the campaign seriously. I suppose they either had some stereotypical view of young people, or they were reliving their own experiences. After all, most people our age aren't running for political office. Whatever the reasons, the backlash was mild. I had an older guy laugh in my face at his door one night, and I got a few emails telling me I didn't have the ?life experience' they thought was necessary. I definitely had many more comments and emails urging me on. Ironically, most people placed some value on my fresh approach to local government. Q: Were you surprised by the voter apathy? Could you use that next time? Secretly win only 12% of the voters and effectively capture 55% of the popular vote? A: I wasn't surprised, but I was disappointed. With the low turnout and now the allegations of mail-in voting irregularities, democracy is certainly not healthy in this city and we aren't headed in the right direction. Without trying to finger point or be a sore loser, which I am not, I attribute the apathetic attitude of Calgarians to the media. They would lament about voter apathy on one page, and on the next page tell people the local election was 'a snooze'. You raise an interesting angle, and I think it's one Dave used in his campaign. It seemed to me that his entire campaign strategy was to ride our apathy all the way back to city hall. I don't think that would work for us. We wanted people to learn the facts, to compare the candidate's apples to apples, and to vote accordingly. Our team outsmarted Dave Bronconnier, but not many people knew about it because we couldn't generate the enthusiasm in the media, and we didn't have the money to tell everyone ourselves. Q: What does Calgary need to do to avoid becoming the sort of tangled ball of dysfunction and anarchy that Vancouver at least seems to be? We've got a million people driving on a map that was drawn up for 300,000 people. A: The question that needs to be asked by Calgarians is who runs city hall? It's not any of the obvious choices - the mayor, city council, or the civil service. If we take a look at Dave Bronconnier's financial disclosure of his 2001 campaign, we see that all the major housing developers are contributing thousands and thousands of dollars each to his campaign fund (and I expect to see more of the same in February). We can also easily figure out that the majority of the land surrounding the city is owned by these same developers. What do they want in return for their contributions come election time? Urban sprawl. As long as developers are padding the pockets of the mayor, the city will continue to grow outwards, and the associated transportation and infrastructure problems will grow along with it. Q: How do we talk so many SUV and luxury sports car drivers into climbing on a bus or a train to get to work? A: Invest some money into Calgary Transit to make it a feasible alternative to driving. No one wants to wait 45 minutes in the cold to get on the bus, and no one wants to squish onto an overcrowded train and ride to work 2" from their neighbor who has a cold and can't stop coughing on you. Public transportation needs to be a priority in the mayor's office and it isn't right now. Best example being Dave's 'tourist attraction' agenda for the $100M in federal GST rebates. In the same week as he announced his plans for the money, council had to reject a contract to purchase $57M in new LRT cars which would have significantly eased the congestion because they didn't have the money. Q: Are young people really optimistic? A few years back when the G8 rolled into town it seemed like everyone under 20 at least dressed up like the disillusioned and the disenfranchised. Are we all closet keeners or one big write-off pile of slackers, or something in between? A: Colin Powell said that "perpetual optimism is a force multiplier." Those are the words I lived by throughout the course of the campaign. More often than not I would encounter young people who didn't care about the election, but I also met a number of young people who were completely engaged, and many of whom ended working closely with me on the campaign. Q: There's a seniors home by Millennium Park who want to close that site down. It's sort of symbolic of the real differences in values and agenda of the next wave of voters vs the, well, frankly, outgoing wave. How do we get them all to share Calgary? Besides flowery blab about caring community and happy bunny posters and choirs. What POLICIES can the civic government really put into action to change that? Or can they? A: I don't want to sound too idealistic, but municipal government needs to involve all Calgarians in the decision making process. Young people are just as "Calgarian" as the older folks, and vice versa. In terms of specific policies, a few of the things I proposed were involving the communities including young people, in identifying problems, issues, and solutions for their problems and getting their participation in planning, implementation, and evaluation of city programs and policies. Q: Four or five years from now there's another election. Could you, even against the rules, start some kind of a grassroots campaign now? A: I was lucky to have been surrounded by the fantastic team we assembled. At our election night party, when it began to become quite apparent we wouldn't be catching a cab straight to city hall, the planning for October 22, 2007 started. I have also been urged on by a flood of emails from ordinary Calgarians. One read: Mr. Pal, I want to offer my condolences on your recent defeat. I also urge you to start preparing for the next Municipal election now. I suspect that there may be some significantly different numbers next time. I was truly disheartened by the complete apathy that Calgary had for this past election. You had my support as well as my wife's and I think you would have been a good Mayor so I challenge you to stick with it. I'm not entirely sure if municipal government is where I want to be in three years, but I do know that if it is decided, there will be a solid team waiting for me and at least 5000 dedicated voters. For now, I'll keep a close eye on Dave Bronconnier and make note of every controversial misstep. Q: Favourite Coffee Shop in Cowtown? Planet Roasters 2212 4th Street SW http://www.planetroasters.com/ Q: Favourite Shopping Mall or place to shop? A: I don't do much 'pleasure-shopping' but I do like to go shopping at the TD Square mall downtown once in a while. Q: What street do you really not like driving down and why? A: I hate driving down Memorial Drive. That's where I saw the first "Join Dave" billboard this year and whenever I pass the spot I relive the horrifying experience of seeing a 30' Dave Bronconnier. During the election I didn't like driving down my own street either. Dave had a 3.0 square meter (the largest allowable) sign on my neighbor's lawn. It was quite an eyesore, made of rebar and a 2x4 superstructure frame. I didn't tear it down but I certainly thought about it more than once. I had a feeling they might guess what happened to it? Q: A day in the life of you would consist of? A: - Reading the news (skipping the entertainment section) - University lectures - Answering emails (I still get about 10 every day) - Writing papers, doing assignments, studying for midterms, etc. - Sleeping Q: Favourite thing to do in your spare time? A: What spare time? ;o) Q: Where do you want to be 7 years from now? A: Somewhere much warmer. Q: Response from students since your run for Mayor? Has it been positive or have you received any ass comments? A: I stopped short of gaining celebrity status on campus but there are at least a couple strangers who recognize me and say hello every day. If you want to see some of the emails I received let me know and I will share. I did get one email that was a bit 'ass-ish' after I politely answered someone's email question about what political party I belonged to: We don't need any more CONSERVATIVES!!! Why don't you join the US army and go to Iraq instead of the typical social conservative thinking right now of sending others to kill innocent civilians and also discrimination of gay Canadians. Why do conservatives claim they want less government on our back but they want to control peoples lives right down to who they can marry??? Civil politics do not need conservatives We have plenty in this area of the country. If God wants war and this is what you must believe then seriously, don't waste your time debating me or loosing badly in a civil election, join the U.S. army. It's what your God wants from you. do it. Don't be a coward politician, you tried that and have lost badly. Don't use school or family as an excuse like the vice president or even that you're a Canadian citizen. If people like you ran this country we would be sending our army to Iraq as well, so you have no excuse, join the U.S. army now! What are you waiting for? Don't finish reading this e-mail, don't waste any more time. Do what God wants from all of us; go risk your life to kill others. Oh, if you are still reading this, why? brilliant. wow. Definitely words to be taken with a grain of salt, and certainly not a member of the majority of thinkers. I'm not sure if he was a student but he was a terrible speller. I actually got good reviews from Gay Calgary Magazine. Go figure? Q: Was there anyone in particular who helped you out financially with your campaigning? A: We didn't get one single contribution from a business throughout the entire campaign. Not from a lack of trying either. We sent out CD-Rom contribution packages to all of Richard Magnus' 2001 biggest contributors. We did manage to collect about $1200 from the grassroots citizens, mostly in contributions of $10 or $20. Q: Secretly, deep down inside, why did you run for Mayor? A: I had a friend named Aaron Shoulders who was killed in front of a nightclub on 1st Street SW in the summer of 2003. It was a known 'problem area.' There had been many killings there before, and there have been many killings there since. The mayor still won't admit there is a problem. The day Aaron was killed was the day I realized that local government does more than erect streetlights and collect garbage - the decisions made by the mayor affect people's lives. I knew Dave Bronconnier wasn't smarter than me, and I knew I could do a better job. Q: If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently if anything? A: Although they will vehemently deny it if you ask them, I think privately Canadians are fascinated with American style campaign mud-slinging. It's what makes the news headlines. We had a number of credible 'bits of information' passed along to us, one documented a blatant conflict of interest, that we choose not to utilize in our effort to take the moral high ground. Next time I would play no holds barred. Q: What do you think you had more of than any other candidate? A: I'm tempted to give my standard answer - heart, but I think I was also quite a bit more intelligent than the other candidates. I was the only opposition that had actually thought through a logical plan to govern that didn't have anything to do with Jews, or Nazis, or jet engine turbine power generators. A reporter emailed me a sound clip of an interview with another candidate who was asked about fluoride in Calgary's water. He said we needed it because "things like the slaughterhouse would put milk and blood into our drinking water." Q: Favourite song and band at the moment? A: Favorite Song: Jet - "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" Favorite Band: Simple Plan Q: Anything else you want to tell me? A: Anything you want to know. Posted by Bella at 9:39 AM# Something new. Alright. So in my travels, I have met some fascinating people. Some who are my friends, some who are people I work with, and some who make news in one way or another.Every person has a story- and I think most people want their story to be heard. So I am going to start telling their stories through this site. If there is anyone you want to know more about, let me know. I have my ways- I'll find them. -meg Posted by Bella at 9:08 AM# Happy 200th Blog Megan! Oh, why thank you! You shouldn't have... :)Posted by Bella at 7:36 PM# You kept asking, so I caved in. This one's for you, Mike.And no, no one else is supposed to understand this. Posted by Bella at 10:56 AM# "You have helped shock and amaze some of the troglodytes in our community..." If anyone has ever heard, or better yet, used this word troglodlytes, you are officially one of my favorite people. When I read this today in an email the Calgary Herald sent me, I was startled. I didn't know what to do. I have never heard or see this word before.Ok so I don't get out much and little things amuse me. Posted by Bella at 8:03 PM# Remember that 1984 song by Band Aid? For those of you who remember the voices of Bono, George Michael, Paul McCartney, and David Bowie all singing from the same song-sheet back in 1984, we are going to get another modern day dose of that. Now, you may know by now how much of an uber dork I am- and yes, I will prove it again.This song, "Do They Know it's Christmas?" is played at my house, in my car cd player, and on Winamp on my laptop every Christmas. I love this song. Love it. I am completely overjoyed that new acts have joined board and have decided to redo this song. From the likes of Coldplay, The Darkness, Noel Gallagher, Dido, Robbie Williams, and others- this Christmas we are getting another dose. This band, Band Aid, was a supergroup of over 40 artists and in 1984 they raised over $18.25 million for charities. And for those who loved the sound of the song the first time round, some of the original acts will be predications on this album as well. Mind you, nothing can replace the sounds and voices of the original- this third go about it is going to be fantastic. Can't wait. CAN'T WAIT! Posted by Bella at 11:11 AM# Just when you guys didn't think I could get ANY cooler... I go and get my bio and snapshot up on the Calgary Herald website.Dork. Dork. Dork. Dork... Posted by Bella at 4:16 PM# Jerry Springer Society I fell at work last year and tumbled down a flight of stairs only to get up and realize I busted my wrist which left me in a cast for a while. This was not something I blamed on the Board for (although I put my two cents in and let the building maintenance dude know that the stairs were slippery) but also took ownership myself and realized that wow- maybe I shouldn't have been wearing 6 inch heel boots to work the day of a snowstorm.People sue MacDonalds for making hot coffee which they spill on themselves, people sue tobacco companies for giving them lung cancer and people sue fast food joints for making them fat. If you hurt yourself playing a sport- it is not the fault of the umpires or the company that hosted the event. That is just retarded. A little ownership wouldn't really hurt. Blame yourselves for stupid things that happen and don't try pinpointing the event on someone else to get a little moola in your pocket. Posted by Bella at 1:05 PM# The race to find the "Greatest". This post is also found on the Calgary Herald website.So the race is on to find Canada's Greatest. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to pick out the great ones in this country. Although, the great ones I would pick don't necessarily have the limelight shone on them all the time. The great ones, I believe, are some of the people I come in contact with every day. Some of the 'official' nominees are inventor Alexander Graham Bell, tree-hugging David Suzuki, all round super courageous and strong Terry Fox, puck shooting Wayne Gretzky, and all-round annoying hockey commentator Don Cherry. Anyone notice that not one nominee on that list was a woman? How the heck did Don Cherry get into this pack and for that matter how did Wayne Gretzky get in there too? I agree Mr. Gretzky may be one of those great hockey players but up for Greatest Canadian? Negatory. Being good at your job doesn't equal greatness. A Great Canadian, to me, should be someone who has made an actual difference to and for Canada. And by making a difference I mean opening up the eyes of society and has changing the way we look at ourselves, at each other, at our Country. This person, in my eyes, would be Mr. Terry Fox. Mr. Fox started his run from St. John's, Newfoundland in April of 1980 and was forced to end September 1st outside of Thunder Bay' after 5,373 kilometres of running. This young man's journey was something most Canadians will never forget, for that matter neither will many around the world. Because of his strength and ambition to raise awareness about cancer patients and try to raise money, his foundation has raised over $360 million dollars and an untold number of spirits. Mr. Don Cherry can take his motor mouth annoying hockey commentator self and sit in the basement of his enormous mansion and pretend it's still hockey season. Any Canadian who truly thinks this sideshow is the Greatest Canadian should go back to history class, or show up at next year's Terry Fox run. Editors Note: Think about it, who would you think Canada's Greatest is? Posted by Bella at 9:33 PM# Apparently St. Francis Xavier University rocks... My good friend Greg Markey says so. And no one can mess with Greg- he is the school mascot. Go to this site, and click on "watch video" under where the big blue mascot is.Ha! That is all I have to say. But wow- there would never be a better person for the job as school mascot as Greg is. Yay Greg! Posted by Bella at 8:42 PM# 10 Myths Women have about Men. 1. Men are not interested in what women have to say.Some men I know will only pay attention to me if I say the words "sports", "sex" or "beer" in the same sentence. Although not many sentences I speak have those 3 words in them. 2. Men want somebody who is just like their mother. I hope not. I can't cook as good as she does. I can't iron like she does, and I definitely can't bake chocolate chip cookies like she does. I'm hooped. 3. Men only think about sex. I am sure there are plenty of women who think about sex 24/7 so really, we can't give men a bad rap for that. But I do know a lot of guys who ONLY talk about sex? 4. He's spoiling me, so he must have plenty of money. Spoiling someone doesn't have to be only monetary. Surprise visits, extra tlc, just random emails or voicemails are always super fun. Flowers are also cool if you're into that sort of thing that is? 5. If I sleep with him on the first date, he won't respect me. Meh. If I don't sleep with a guy on the first date, then the date went really well. How about that for an answer? 6. I can change him. Why change someone who you should be attracted to in the beginning? Men aren't like Mr. Potato Head where you can take off his nose and give him a better one and put different shoes on him if you don't like the original ones he came with. 7. Men are interested in my dating history. Well fine. I am probably just as interested in their dating history. So take that. 8. Men don't like women who make the first move. So I shouldn't be the first to plant one on him? Shucks. There goes my whole thing. 9. Men prefer inexperienced women. Inexperienced women how? Inexperienced in the kitchen? 10. Men are strong. No. Men need tlc too. Just as much as ladies do. I love a softie. Love being able to bring him chicken noodle soup when he's sick. Posted by Bella at 10:28 PM# "People always lie about sex - to get sex, during sex, after sex, about sex." - Larry Flynt Have you ever driven down the highway and mistakenly driven towards the centre line of the highway and ended up driving on the centre line grooves? You know, the ones that shake everything in the car and give you a quick thrill?Last week was an interesting week in the news. Oprah told us how to distinguish guys who are "just not that into us", a study was done on the effect homosexuality was having on birth rates, and Canwest News reported that more than one third of couples use toys in the bedroom. This was an entertaining week for sure. Where to start. Oprah, my favorite. A panel of men gave away their secrets on how to tell if a guy was really not all that interested in a woman. If a guy sleeps with you one night and doesn't call you for months after that- all signs pointing to negative. If a guy has been with you for the past 8 years and still doesn't want to commit- egad woman let go. Most excellent show. And even more excellent knowledge. Let me tell you- 6 simple words has never opened my eyes like they did while watching Oprah. "He's just not that into you". Next. OOoh.. This is an interesting Darwinian dilemma. I can see where this study might have had its merit. Sure, ladies getting it on with ladies and guys doing guys will for sure screw up the birth rate. And yah, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell you that the birth rate will fall. A team of top rate professors found that female maternal relatives of homosexual men seemed to have more children than female relatives of heterosexual men. There was no difference with female paternal relatives. This finding was based on about 4600 people in all. To sum it up: it implies that homosexuals should be more common in societies with declining birth rates. Yikes. And for the finale... Over one third of Canadian adults own sex toys. I am not sure how to take that actually. I was sent an entertaining joke the other day: There was this couple that had been married for 20 years. Every time they made love the husband always insisted on shutting off the light. Well, after 20 years the wife felt this was ridiculous. She figured she would break him out of this crazy habit. So one night, while they were in the middle of a wild, screaming, romantic session, she turned on the lights. She looked down... and saw her husband was holding a battery-operated pleasure device... a vibrator! Soft, wonderful and larger than a real one. She went completely ballistic. "You impotent bastard," She screamed at him, "how could you be lying to me all of these years? You better explain yourself!" The husband looks her straight in the eyes and says calmly: "I'll explain the toy . . . you explain the kids." Funny eh? What was even better about this survey, is that 61% of the people who responded to the survey about their sex toy usage, were between the ages of 45-55, so that joke really wasn't too far off then, eh? A quarter of Canadians reportedly take photos and make videos of their acts. This number is however slightly behind the Brits and Danes. Canadians have also been proud to report of their sexual activity in a year: we have sex on average 108 days a year, (the global number is 103 and it ranges from the randy French (137) down to the repressed or maybe exhausted Japanese (46). Only 29% of Canadian adults do not use porn or toys or furry handcuffs which puts our love of bedroom technology ahead of the rest and ranks us amongst the top in the world. Durex reported the sexiest findings us ladies think about men: grey-haired, retired professor with no money over a rich young blond with a great body every time, as long as the professor had the right personality. Who ever completed that survey must have been old... that is not attractive to me. Maybe if I was over the age of 50- but by that time I am sure Brad Pitt and Mel Gibson will be about that. Canadians picked attitude ahead of everything. We find a great personality, humour, caring, and an all round stand-up person to be sexy. We find that to be better than youthfulness, wealth, and hair colour- even breasts! I love this freakin horny country. Posted by Bella at 10:21 PM# Good God it's Sunday and I haven't posted since Wednesday. What will you do? Well I know. Why don't you leave a comment and let me know who you are. And if you can't comment because you are not a fellow blogger, send an email to meganepratt@mac.com and let me know.Posted by Bella at 10:15 PM# The year's best headlines. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Saysno, really? Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers now that's taking things a bit far! Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over what a guy! Miners Refuse to Work after Death no-good-for-nothin' lazy so-and-sos! War Dims Hope for Peace I can see where it might have that effect! If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile you think?! Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures who would have thought! Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges you mean there's something stronger than duct tape?! Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead I certainly hope so! Posted by Bella at 3:11 PM# You gotta check these guys out. Funny story.Aaron brought over a cd the other day and said, "you have to listen to these guys". Ok. So we stuck it into the ol' cd player and let it play. Catchy tunes came out of these guys. Out of curiosity, I looked on inside cd cover and lone behold- I knew two of the guys in the band. I actually went to Europe with my choir numerous years ago and met up with the Vancouver Boys Choir- and two of these guys, Tom and Zach. I think it's super fun. I think Aaron was jealous. So my recommendation to you? Check out their website and listen to their tuneage. Posted by Bella at 1:25 PM# Sports strip away personality, letting the white bone of character shine through. It is Day 28 today of the NHL lockout. Today would have been the 88th NHL season opening night. Oh and how I wish it was. Calgary would have played Anaheim. Vancouver would have played San Jose.I wish I was gearing up to go to some sports bar or to some pub to watch the game tonite (preferably between the Flames and the Canucks). I wish I was waving my car flag out the window (the Canucks one of course). And I wish I could look forward to seeing good ol' Kelly Hrudey on tv doing the between period show. Oh- and I guess of course Ron McLean and Don Cherry too... All I have to say is how dumb this still is. From what I have read, the players, the owners and the managers are still not talking. Um... could this get much more childish? After a while we are going to get use to there not being hockey and turn to baseball (heaven forbid) or NFL football since the CFL sucks so much ass. When will enough be enough? The staff from these greedy teams are left with a 40% pay cut and most only work about 3 days a week now. The concession workers at these venues are without jobs. But these players who want more, are living bittersweetly on their mounds of cash (ex. ex-Flame Mike Vernon who is building a 8000 sq ft house in Elbow Park). With any luck, the underdog players such as the Calgary Hitmen will become the superstars of the game. Kids will trade their playing cards and wear their jerseys. With games being played at the price of between $8.50 and $10, why would anyone not go cheer these guys on? Their heads aren't big enough to charge more. Or maybe it's because they actually enjoy playing for the love of the game. Posted by Bella at 9:41 AM# Useless Calgary Civic Election. I am over 18 years of age.I am also a Canadian citizen for the past 22 years and have lived in Calgary for about 15 years. On Monday October 18, I have from between 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. to mark two "x's" on a ballot. One x of which will have no real affect on me as it has to do with a public school trustee. And come to think about it, the mayor vote probably won't affect me either. For the past couple years that Mayor Dave Bronconnier has been in office, I can't actually think of one thing that he did which made me proud he was mayor. That probably isn't a very good thing. I am sure he has built a couple roads, opened a few offices by cutting a ribbon, and honoured some people with the big white cowboy hats. And yes, I do realize the mayor is not out to make just me happy. My mom has decided to exercise her right not to vote. I might do the same. No one really, I feel needs to have my "x". We all know who is going to be mayor. And go ahead Aaron, give me your devils advocate speech. Posted by Bella at 8:23 PM# My piece was published on the Calgary Herald website! So excited right now. Holy cow. SO excited. I am such a dork.Go read it! http://www.canada.com/calgary/calgaryherald/q/story.html?id=03051e89-22f9-4eb7-a4ff-394f0ce99bc6 Posted by Bella at 4:29 PM# Another tale of a serial wedding soon-to-be attendee. My best friend Lindsay called me last Thursday with some more than exciting news."Megan, guess what Ian just did?" Of course the first thing I was thinking was that he was hurt- so then I freaked out in my head. I was like, "Uh- what?". "He proposed". I screamed, she screamed, my dog howled. It was great. My best friend is getting married. We have been best friends since grade 7 and as if I can remember how old I was. What I do remember is that we both had huge crushes on her homeroom teacher, Mr. Jones. We also both had an intense infatuation with Brad Pitt and would often stay up late watching Brad's movies at each others houses. We went to summer camps together, winter camps, and all other outings in between. We would walk around the mall aimlessly for hours just checking out guys and buying random trinkets. We have been through literally everything together. And this is the icing on the cake. My last and best girlfriend gets married. Damn men taking all my girlfriends from me... I am SO excited that she is getting hitched. And it couldn't be to a better man. And oh my God- I cannot wait to go to her wedding and to see her in a wedding dress. Man- then the kids which I think she already told me she was going to call all "Megan". Yay Lindsay and Ian. Posted by Bella at 1:11 PM# "Today we made history. Today, we go to the stars." So they can send a dude up in an intergallactic aircraft up 377,591 feet into the atmosphere at Mach 4, but they can't find a cure for cancer or send a little food over to a country that needs it.There was a $10 million prize reward handed out to the one who could spur civilian spacetravel. Wow. Winning the X Prize with SpaceShipOne is only the beginning for these people. Why can't this Prize be dished out to the person who finds a cure for one of the diseases who claims thousands of lives a day? Where are our priorities? Posted by Bella at 8:54 PM# Mr. Speaker, Peter Milliken. Wow.What a job.Get this: - Mr. Milliken gets his base MP salary of $141,000. - Mr. Milliken also gets an additional $67,000 just for being the speaker. - Mr. Milliken also receives his own driver and car allowance. - And don't forget the lavish apartment in Centre Block and oh- the 5000 square foot residence on a 1.74 hectare Kingsmere Farm. Wow. - On top of all that, he receives a $708,000 travel budget which he has used to go to such places as France, Hungary, Austria, etc. Why does a speaker need to go to these places? If anyone was to question this, he could laugh in their faces as he is the Chair on the Board of Economy and therefore can yay or nay the committee spending. What the hell am I doing in Communications for Realtors when obviously I can make way more money in government doing nothing? Posted by Bella at 7:52 PM# Oh Big Rock. Saturday morning, I was up and out of the house by 11.30 a.m. en route to the University of Calgary along with Aaron and his friend. Aaron had won 4 tickets to the football game up in Edmonton from the University. I had been prewarned that this day might get rowdy and that there would be a lot of drunkeness. I had no idea just how right he was about to be.About 25 university students piled on to a bus at the U of C where we were whisked away to Big Rock Brewery for beer, food, and a tour of the brewery. Now, this day was compliments of Big Rock Brewery. That was the first thing not many people could get their heads around. After only being in the presence of beer for about 15 minutes- you could already see the effect it was taking on people. After the tour of the plant, we were brought back for more food, and more beer. By this point, one petite girl had already just about passed out. We were put back on the bus where 19 flats of cold beer awaited us. Holy bajesus I had never seen so much beer for so few people. We then drove to Edmonton. These people were soooooo funny. Before, I have had a rather bias towards drunk kids. I had just never really enjoyed being in their presence. But Saturday- was one day I will never forget. The improv on the bus with one token dude, rocking out to am radio, asking for beer- myself- to put into a backpack for later consumption, and the numerous times the fact was brought up that Big Rock was supplying us with what seemed to be an endless supply of beer. This was a thought no one, not even I, could fathom. The football game was cold, but Calgary won which made the trip just that much better. The drive home in the bus was full of tired intoxicated students. What I couldn't believe though was how much beer was still being consumed. Thanks again Aaron for inviting me. Although I only had about 2 sips of beer at the brewery, the free water was awsome. I most enjoyed the fact I didn't spend a dollar the entire day. Posted by Bella at 8:49 PM# I am beautiful. According to a recent study, only one percent of Canadian women think they're beautiful. Tell me about it. I was in the 99% of those women until recently.I have actually stopped reading magazines like Cosmopolitan simply because they use models who are all size 3, and who have flawless skin, top of the line clothes on and who don't actually look happy. What right does Cosmopolitan have in telling me what is beautiful and what is not? Unfortunately I think ladies have allowed the fashion and entertainment industry tell us what the perfect lady is, and how to achieve it. If I walk around thinking I am not beautiful, then what sort of image am I displaying? Would I be hunched over, with over sized ugly clothes, and without a care in the world what my hair looks like? Um no. Being beautiful to me is not a size 4. It is not a make-up caked mask a girl is wearing, and it is not super tight clothing which doesn't flatter a body. It's the glow the girl radiates. And it's as simple as that. I am an overly excited size 10 with hips. I have big lips, which I have grown into since my awkward days of junior high school. And I like to pride myself with nice clothes because they make me feel good. I think if more women were to listen to what guys said about them, we would all be better off. I know so many men who are so complimentary of women with their looks, their personality and just the way they present themselves. I know a lot of men who already consider their girlfriends and wives, and even just friends, more beautiful than the supermodel on the front of any magazine cover. Jeez- why wouldn't women think they're beautiful? I check out other girls all the time simply because so many of them are so good-looking. I hope more women start realizing their beauty. It has a fun ring to it actually... "I am beautiful". Posted by Bella at 8:46 PM# |
