Here's a Little Movie

This a little movie I did using iMovie,
on the new iMac. It's from a group of
photos I found in some old photo album.
It only took about forty minutes and
was a lot of fun.

Going Postal

For the past few days I've been meaning to sit down write about the 'Mail Service.'






It's not that I don't appreciate Canada Post but really what are they doing?

After hearing on the News about postal rates going up I felt I had to comment.

First though I am going to back track a bit before getting right to the issue. When my Mother died I had to send some items back east. Photo Albums, Framed Photos and small Artwork pieces which I carefully packed up into 9 parcels. Seven were going to Scarbeerea in Ontario and 2 to Calgary Alberta. Each of these parcels weighed about 27 pounds. I used UPS, not my favourite courier but reasonable. I figured why not, it was getting closer to Christmas and I was pretty sure Canada Post would be clogged up and just as expensive.

Here's the deal, the 2 packages that went to Calgary weighed almost 50 pounds and cost about $27.00. They were delivered to the door within 10 days going ground.

Here's where it gets interesting, Norm and Helen sent our girls a little package about 6"x4" and 5" high. The little parcel contained a couple of gift cards and really nice luggage tags and weighed at worst 1/4 pound. They were charged $11.50 by Canada Post. This parcel was small enough to actually fit in our mail box at the end of the street. It could also have been placed in the parcel box. Did our through rain, snow or sleet people do this?

No, the lazy bugger just scrawled a door knob hanger and stuck into our mail box with the other mail. This meant we had to drive into town to pick it up.

Here's the rant. Canada Post is going to raise the postal rates for two Reasons. This is what it boils down to...."Canada Post is delivering less mail to more addresses, so rates have to go up."

What the heck does that mean? There are more addresses in Canada than before...Okay, the nation is growing. Canada Post is delivering less mail than before because people are using UPS, FEDEX and Purolator because they are faster, cheaper,as well as pick up and deliver to your front door.

Here's the first question....How do you deliver less mail to more locations? Here's the second question...How is less mail going to more locations justify a hike in postal rates?

Did we just get screwed again by the Post Office and more so by the powerful Postal Union.....?

Less for more, great concept maybe we should go into work and ask for a raise and less work to do.

Sorry, I'm a bit confused...........

A New Year

Well here we are in a New Year, New Decade and possibly New Adventures.

There's a couple of things I would like to see cleared up this decade.

No it's not the obvious, of course not I'm the one writing this blog.

Leading up to and including the Christmas Season, which is the traditional time of giving and generosity, I almost went mental with demands from Charities that bombarded the TV Airways.

We should give to Charities, but really can't they possibly give a slightly more positive spin on what they do. They should be able to show the work they are doing and how it is positively effecting the lives of the children, families and animals they claim to help. Instead they bombard us with sad faced children, sad faced animals, dirty, fly encrusted visions of the creatures they want us to help. In background Sarah or Somebody else moans a sad song. (by the way even when Sarah sings a happy song it sounds a bit sad, thank God it isn't Jan singing we'd all write cheques and then slit our wrists)

Here's a weird and wild concept, why don't you Bureaucratic Driven Charities show some of the positive work you have done! Show us how our donations have help put smiles on these kids faces, clothes on their backs, water in their cups, and food in their bellies. Show us how the SPCA has helped heal some of the abuse a dog has endured. How these animals have been adopted out and become happy family members.

I have been surrounded this holiday by 3 rescued dogs, that now live happy well fed lives. They get all the water they need and get to go out and free range poop all over my driveway. That's what these guys have to show!

Sorry readers but I really have had it with these charities! My Mother was a victim of their advertising technique. Twice a month she was bombarded by the SPCA, WWF, WIF, Blind Baseball Players with Lukemia Association, The Lame Lawyers of BC, The Almost Deaf Fire Fighters Society, American Society to Save the Fucking Red Woods, The Canadian Society to Save Maple Trees and the Really Conservative Party of Canada.

Show us what you can do, what you have done and then maybe we will feel good about sending you a yearly donation. Make us believe that we are not feeding your bureaucratic machine.