All is quiet on the northern front

I'm a bit torn as to whether I actually believe Murphy's Law exists or not, but to be on the safe side, I'm going to knock on wood before this post, just in case.

As I've mentioned before, I live in the North End - in fact I've just survived celebrated 5 years of living here. I've seen the residents of a few "bad" houses come and go and similar to raespace over at adayinthehood, I always wonder if the new folks that move in will be an improvement or not.  It seems as though some definite movement took place earlier in the week; I never saw a moving truck but the autobins sure did get full.

The house that I've considered to be the worst offender within my line of sight had the tenants seemingly disappear in the middle of the night. I hope they took their dog with them and that's not just because it barked so loud and so often that I called the City to complain - they were awful to that dog (outside all the time on a short leash, well, until the City made them bring it in) and I hope that poor thing hasn't been abandoned inside the house.

I'm really looking forward to spring, the feeling in the air is so full of promise. I'll pick up the garbage that has accumulated on my boulevard, give everything a good sweep and get ready to talk to my neighbours again instead of doing the hurried run from the garage to my front door while trying to ward off frostbite.  There is a duplex going in on a property quite close to mine and I don't even think I'm apprehensive about it. Yes, it will mean more people vying for space in the autobin that I usually use, but it will also mean much needed quality housing for some new people.

As I read more and more of the Winnipeg-related blogs, I continue to have it confirmed for me that we have one heck of a great city to live in, with some fantastically interesting people. The Winnipeg blogging crew seem to generally have far more knowledge and interest in politics than I will ever have so I won't even try to capture all of the same readers that they have, but I hope you will continue to stop by for my version of Winnipeg (even if you all like plain black wheels on your cars, you crazy-practical people!). For all of you who have been patiently waiting for my picture of the ladies urinals at The Bay downtown, I tried to find it earlier tonight (oh yes, I have that kind of excitement in my social calendar) but as it was taken before the digital era I'm having a bit of trouble tracking it down, but fear not, I have not forgotten.

...and remember, help control the pet population, have your pet spayed or neutered

So I think my niche will have to be to provide a lighthearted and quasi-informational view into my version of Winnipeg; my complaint about the house with barking dog reminded me of a fantastic program that is run by the Winnipeg Humane Society. The SNAP program subsidizes the cost of getting your pet spayed or neutered. I think that pet ownership can be a very important part in the quality of life for people and unfortunately there are many folks who have the best intentions to be responsible pet owners when they first get that adorable ball of baby fluff but by the time it comes time to fork out well over $100 to get it fixed... So, if you know of someone who might be hoping that their pet is part of an abstinence pact, and they could perhaps benefit from this program let them know. Sometimes people just feel powerless and since information is power, go on and share a little and help control the pet population.

Have a great weekend!