For years I wondered when I'd turn into my parents and complain about everything or most everything the cool young kids are in to. OK, my parents didn't complain about everything but when you're young it just seems like it.
Of course the biggest thing was the music I used to listen to. I could appreciate and I enjoyed the oldies that they liked. In fact I can recall dad and I sitting by the radio when I was just a kid listening to the Sunday Night Oldies on the radio. I don't recall the station but it was the music of the late 50's and the 60's.
Buddy Holly
Did I say crap? I mean music. No...I think I mean crap. Now I know I'm old.
It's not all music today that I don't like but to be honest, since about the mid-90's there hasn't been a lot of great music to choose from. I'll admit I'm not a fan of most Rap or Hip-Hop. By the way, for those of you even older than me, Hip Hop is not something the Easter Bunny does.
It also seems like every song that comes out has to have foul language in it. I don't know why today's musicians feel they have to swear to sell records. They say they're just being "real" and speaking from experience. I say they're just showing how poorly raised they were and how disrespectful they are. I don't care how much money they make or records they sell, there are plenty of other words that rhyme with "duck", "stitch" and "trigger".
There are some songs that have come out today that I enjoy but it's usually in the Adult Contemporary or Rock and Alternative categories. The odd dance song also grabs me from time to time but not too often. I don't go out too often anymore to the bars and certainly not the dance clubs of my youth but I will frequent a pub on a Friday night after the hockey game with my buddies and there's a small dance floor there where the 20-something girls are gyrating to some of today's biggest hits. Oddly enough, I don't mind that at all.
My all time favourite music comes from the 80's. I can listen to almost anything from that decade and I love it. Honestly; for me; that was the best decade of music. Who can forget bands like A Flock of Seagulls, Alphaville, Van Halen, The Cult, Kajagoogoo, Mr. Mister, Scritti Politti, Wang Chung and Depeche Mode? Or solo artists like Jackson Browne, Eddie Money, Howard Jones, Kim Carnes and Peter Schilling?
Kajagoogoo
So maybe you don't remember all of those or any of those great artists from the 80's but trust me, they were awesome.
No, my musical choices are an obvious giveaway that I'm getting older. Plus I don't even listen to my own music very loud anymore. I'm so uncool.
You may have noticed I haven't even talked about country music. There's a reason for that. I can't stand country music. My dad's a Johnny Cash fan and I can tolerate a little Cash from time to time but I'll only listen to country music if I'm forced to.
The only time that seems to happen is when I'm driving in my brothers truck in Florida since he's a redneck good 'ol boy in the south. He and his wife just built a new house and I'm sure it won't be long before he has an old Ford truck on blocks in the front yard and a swimmin' hole in the back where his future youngin's can swim when they're not whittling knives to kill the local wildlife. Yee Haw!
The one thing Country music is good for is some creative song titles. Here are a few of my favourites (these are real):
- Get Your Tongue Outta My Mouth 'Cause I'm Kissing You Goodbye
- Her Teeth Was Stained, But Her Mouth Was Pure
- I Wish I Were In Dixie Tonight, But She's Out Of Town
- She Got The Ring And I Got The Finger
- You're The Reason Our Kids Are So Ugly
- She Got The Gold Mind And I Got The Shaft
- My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend, And I Sure Do Miss Him
- If My Nose Were Full Of Nickels, I'd Blow It All On You
Now those are Country songs I can enjoy.
Can I send a bill to the city for my car repairs? No really, I'd like to know because I'm pretty sure their lazy attitude and poor response in resurfacing the roads in my neighbourhood has cost me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars over the years.
I keep saying I'm going to drive down my street and count every noticeable bump I roll over. There are so many places where they've ripped up the street and tried patching it, or spots that have sunken over the years I'm sure I'd lose count.
I'm amazed each year how my street avoids being listed on the CAA website for Ontario's Worst Roads. I guess I need to vote more than once.
According to a poll on the CAA website, 89% of those who answered said the Ontario Government should dedicate a portion of the $3 Billion in gasoline taxes it collects from Ontario motorists each year to local road repairs. I'd agree with that.
My street is by far one of the worst in the city. In fact there are two streets I have to drive on to get out of my area and onto one of the major roads in town and both of those roads shake, rattle and bounce you all over the place. I can literally hear my springs and shocks saying, "Stop driving through a field you bonehead."
It's really quite embarrassing when the posted speed limit is 50 Km/h and if you go any faster than 30 Km/h you risk bottoming out and having to replace the muffler and everything else under your vehicle. It's pretty sad when you need a 4X4 truck just to drive to the corner store.
I've lived in this town trying to be a city long enough and know that nothing will change in the near future. After another winter when the road gets worse and the dips drop even further, the best we can hope for is six well paid city workers manning one shovel and a truck full of hot asphalt deciding which canyon to fill next.
In the meantime, a copy of my next repair bill will be in the mail to city hall asking them to reimburse me. I won't hold my breath of course.
Christmas seems to come earlier every year and this time around it's no different.
Here it is the middle of November and I've been seeing Christmas lights and displays in stores and at homes in my neighbourhood and around town.
I have nothing against people getting into the spirit of the season. In fact, I actually enjoy the holiday season...well, everything except the shopping. I like seeing the pretty lights, decorations and people seem to be in a better mood overall. It truly is a joyous time of year.
However some people seem to get carried away with the whole decorating process. I've always felt there's a fine line between tasteful and gaudy. I don't have any problem with people who put up a lot of lights on their house or in their trees or around their decks. Heck, go ahead and add some ribbons and bows if you like. These are decorations I can enjoy.
The decorations or eyesores that absolutely drive me batty are those damn inflatable monstrosities that have become popular in the last year or two.
OK fine, buy one and put it on your lawn and hope the neigbourhood kids don't poke holes in it. That is acceptable. Maybe a nice Santa or Snowman could do the trick. But don't be one of these people who feels the need to buy 10 or more of these abominations and fill every square centimetre of your yard. It looks bloody awful and your family, friends and neighbours are just too nice and too afraid to tell you about it for fear of hurting your feelings.
So that's why I'm telling you now. It looks stupid! Don't do it. Save your money for some salt to melt the ice when winter gets really bad in January and February. If you really need to buy something you can inflate, try winter tires or wait until the summer and get one of those bouncy castles for the kids to bound around on.
Have you heard the old saying, "Less is more"? It's as true today with this issue as it was in the past. Do us all a favour and just don't do it. Please.
Have a Merry Christmas.
I'm not usually a political person, however with the recent Municipal election I did pay a little more attention to things.
I'm the type of person that believes that no matter who is in power in politics you're never going to be happy any way. That doesn't stop me from voting. I also believe if you don't vote then you don't have a right to complain.
I have to admit that I wasn't really thrilled about the latest local election because there weren't a lot of choices that interested me. It was more with the council that I had trouble making a choice. The choice for mayor was obvious to me as I felt it was time for a change and I'm happy to say my choice was elected. It's not that I have anything against the previous mayor but I just think change can be good.
What also made it somewhat difficult was the fact that I knew all of the candidates personally. At some time in the past I had interacted with each and everyone of them. In the end I made my choices and not all of them were elected and a few of the same boneheads were reelected much to my chagrin. I know it won't make much of a difference any way because the real power isn't with council but the old boys network that pulls the strings and keeps things going to benefit themselves.
The things that need to be done and should be done to make our city grow and prosper won't happen because it might hurt their bottom line. I'm sick of hearing about the downtown and how it is hurting. Well I'm sorry that they're having a tough time but you can only visit so many banks and dollar stores in one day.
Some of the people in this city aren't motivated either. We have third and fourth generation welfare families. These people are simply satisfied living off the government and doing as little as possible. Lets not forget the teenage baby making machines that seem to congregate here. Once again, they get money for having these kids and it all seems to easy for them. What a nice image our city has as people drive through town and see society's uneducated misfits roaming our streets at all hours. But that's an issue for another day.
The city needs to expand and make use of its two major assets. It sits on a beautiful body of water and to sail into our city there is nothing worth stopping for along our river banks. In fact, I know several boaters have been told to just sail on by without stopping. Improve the appeal of the waterfront would be one priority. How about a hotel by the water. No, instead we have a factory on one side and the backside of a grocery store on the other shore. Just lovely.
The second asset is the world's busiest highway which travels right by our city and there's nothing out there to draw people in. You drive past our city and all you see are a few factories, a couple hotels, a Tim Horton's and an airplane on a pedestal. Not a lot of incentive to pull the car over is it? We need to develop that land adjacent to the highway with things that will encourage people to stop. Suggestions would include a shopping mall or big box stores like Best Buy, Lowe's or perhaps a restaurant or two.
I'm not a city planner or someone who gets paid to create traffic flow but when I go to other similar sized cities and I see what they've done I see the potential for our city to grow. This growth can even happen in the beloved downtown as well with some specialty stores and variety.
Perhaps this new council will remove the blinders, turn a deaf ear to the "old money", grow a set of "balls" and bring my city into the current century...but I'm not counting on it.
