A few things...

A round up of some random things in my head:

1. Why is there no way to find out what the official rules are for The Amazing Race? I know this is a departure from my usual topics, but seriously, why? As an avid traveller I watch the show and spend a lot of time thinking that I could kick all of their butts if it weren't for the whole being physically fit and having no gag reflex thing. For example, at the start of a leg of the race they will open up their little envelope and say "oh wow, we have $xxx for this leg of the race". What the hell does that money go towards? I mean, we see them pay for cabs and such, but in countries where you have to negotiate the cab fare we never seem to see them do that, they just seem to throw money at the driver at the end of the ride (although I did see a terse exchange one time at the end of a ride). If they are only given $xxx for the leg, how does that affect them when they get a cabbie that takes them to the wrong place first? With the limited funds they wouldn't have enough to get to their final destination. What about food and water, is that provided? When are they allowed to ask strangers for help and when can't they? Obviously they ask people for help on the street for directions, but when they are doing a task for example the other day when they were trying to look things up in the library card catalog why couldn't they ask for help? So many questions! I have not been able to find this information online and it drives me a little crazy.

2. Why are we even talking about raising the speed limit on certain streets? As in, why is it even up for discussion? Two lanes in either direction separated by a boulevard should be 60km/hr, no brainer. Regarding the section of Pembina (figures 6.2 & 6.3) anyone who has ever driven it, and especially those who have gotten a ticket can tell you that it's bizarre that it's so slow. It's a total of 4 lanes, with fields on either side and a big old boulevard in the middle. If you have chosen to live on a major thoroughfare then you should expect that traffic will flow accordingly.

3. Gas prices in Churchill, MB - Yes, it sucks that gas is so expensive there. However as such a remote community it can't be entirely unexpected. In Churchill you can also get a special Remote Area registration, which I do believe costs substantially less (I couldn't seem to find actual costs on the MPI website) for residents of Churchill who will only be driving their vehicle in and around Churchill. If a resident doesn't have that type of plate, it would likely be because they take their vehicle on the train down to Thompson or wherever else it is that they need to go, and I imagine that just as those of us from "down south" do when we cross the border to the USA they fill their tank before they head back home.

4. LITE annual Wild Blueberry Pancake Breakfast. I love this event for so many reasons. Besides the chance to see people I might not see as often as I might like AND have a delicious breakfast, it is (or at least has been the past 3 years) an environmentally responsible event. There is a huge focus on recycling and composting, and all of the cups/plates/utensils are compostable. It is an excellent demonstration of leading by example. There is also an opportunity to purchase some great locally made crafts and foodstuffs. Hope to see you there! 45 Robinson St., Indian and Metis Family Centre (corner of Dufferin and Robinson, in between Main and Salter).

I am an evil genius

Okay, first, lets get this out of the way - I'm sure someone has touched on this, as that's the kind of crowd you are, but I missed it if you did, so please enlighten me: if the new gas tax that was added last Monday was 2.5c/litre, why did all the gas prices go up 2.SIX cents??? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Now, I am nowhere near the caliber of these guys, who took extreme advantage of a program that American Airlines offered, getting millions of dollars in value out of a one time, albeit fairly hefty, investment. I also can't believe that they seemed to earn points in the loyalty reward program on top of unlimited "free" first class flights. For those of you that think flying is a chore and who would want to do that anyway, let me tell ya, as someone who has been lucky enough to fly just Business Class (not First) it no longer really becomes a chore. The ability to check in basically as late as possible, then any of that pesky waiting time is spent in a room with any amenity you might want for free (no $15 bland sandwiches here folks) and especially now as airlines are reconfiguring their planes, any long haul flight will almost certainly have a lay flat bed to rest your pretty little head. Oh and bad airline food? Not really - first class folks get food that you can identify, and as much of it as they want. -->This girl<-- got real Haagen Dazs ice cream bars when the good folk at Cathay Pacific were good enough to bump me up. The only real downside to this whole thing was that they were flying a North American airline rather than and Asian one. Seriously, if ever given a chance always fly an Asian airline, the stewardesses and counter staff are actually kind of... what's that word... oh yes, FRIENDLY (note, this is more a slag at United and Air Canada rather than WestJet, who are generally quite pleasant, however have limited international destinations).

One last side note before I get to my real point, I've added flying "Upper Class" on Virgin Atlantic to my bucket list, ideally departing London Heathrow. They send a car to pick you up, you check in from the car, you get a separate security channel to whisk you behind security to their Clubhouse. Their Clubhouse offers anything you could possibly want, a fully stocked bar with real cocktails not just ________ and Coke. Hungry? Order whatever you want to eat, no cold buffet here like in the Star Alliance lounge. What's that? Need a haircut? Manicure? Maybe a massage is more your style? Seriously, check out all the wonderful things on offer. If I have any mysterious benefactors out there who would like to help me indulge in this I would be forever grateful. Maybe Richard Branson needs a Canadian reviewer???

So moving on to things that are attainable. The Aeroplan Star Challenge. I was sent a nifty little email telling me that up to 16,500 Aeroplan miles were up for grabs this month. After reading the fine print (someone please feel free to read it and break my heart or confirm my dreams) it seems that all I need to do is make 33 purchases over the next month to get my 66 stars (I have an Aeroplan Visa so I get an automatic 5 stars). Now, further to that, it seems as though there is no minimum purchase required for any of these transactions. Which means that I could buy 33 one dollar items at Rexall, go to Sobeys 33 times and spend two bucks (Sobeys points convert at two to one) or as part of my goal, purchase, ahem,  23 separate 45's off eBay, signing in through the eStore first. So basically, if I didn't have the financial card, I would need to make 35 purchases, which in theory means that for $39.92 ($35 plus taxes, the dollar needs to be pre-tax I think at Rexall) I could get 16,500 Aeroplan points, which is enough for a flight to Toronto!

See. Evil Genius.

If I paid half as much attention to the stock market as I do customer loyalty programs I would be a very very wealthy woman. Over the years I have taken 15 free flights, including Business Class to South America and tickets to London and Central America all with Airmiles and Aeroplan.

Reasons to leave the house in winter

Hmmmm... this could be my shortest post yet based on my feelings about winter!

Actually I just thought I'd highlight two upcoming local events, one with a fascinating tie-in (you'll have to trust me and keep reading).

As many of you know, okay, perhaps mostly Christian over at West End Dumplings, I was pretty obsessed with the story of Fraidie Cat, the second of two cats at the St. Paul condo fire (Wyatt, the other cat was a miracle survivor story). Although Winnipeg has seen WAYYYYYYYY too many fires this winter that have left many many people homeless, knowing someone so close to that particular situation made it a lot more "real" for me. Throw in the animal angle and I was hooked.

So the first event I will encourage you to attend, even though it happens after the event that I'm going to mention next (but that story needs to wait - it's how I'm keeping you intrigued) is a "Deductible Party" for the cat owners. Some might argue that since they were "lucky" enough to have insurance that they don't need help. I don't know that everyone who has insurance would have the money at the drop of a hat to pay their deductible, would you? Now I don't know the cat owners Jason and Alix personally but via the Paypal link I made a donation - think of all the socials you've gone to over the years where you barely know the folks but you fork out for the ticket anyway all so that they can indulge in one lavish day. Well worth ten bucks to help these folks out.

Next is an event for someone I actually DO know - Ms. Demetra Penner. Demetra is the cover girl on the current edition of The Uniter. I've heard via Demetra that tickets are close to being sold out, so best to buy in advance rather than hope for tickets at the door. How do I know Demetra? So glad you asked! Demetra is actually central to my best ever "small world" travel story.

I worked with Demetra up in Churchill probably about 5 years ago (clearly since that began her love of the North it was a far more rewarding experience for her than I!). That winter after "bear season" we both went to warmer places; I believed she was going to Thailand and she thought I was going to South America. Enter best ever small world travel story.

I had just gotten off a long bus journey from Pokhara, Nepal to the major city of Kathmandu and followed a fellow traveller to this little hidden gem of a food stall located in what can only be described as a back alley. While waiting for my order of chips (for whatever reason while travelling I eat more fries than I ever do at home, they are the ubiquitous backpacker food) I turned around to see this girl staring at me with a crazy look on her face. Not sure exactly what I had done to anger/amuse/offend/??? this person I grasped for context. Standing next to her was another person that we had worked with in Churchill - and that's when the lightbulb came on! Of course, the girl was Demetra! It's funny the way our brains work - I had been trying to figure out if I had come across this person on my trip somewhere, there was no logical reason to think it was someone I knew from anywhere but that trip. This was especially true as both of us thought the other was travelling in another country.

So, yup, in a back alley in Kathmandu, Nepal, I ran into people that I had met in Churchill, MB. What are the odds of that?? An interesting side note is that after a mini catch-up and plans made for later, we went our separate ways and as I was walking back to the hotel the other traveller I was with, he noticed them across the street, about 5m away, and I didn't (if you've every been to a chaotic developing world city this would make sense to you!). It just shows that I was *that* close to being in a very foreign place at the same time as people that I knew and not even knowing it.

Well, that's it for now, and might be for a while actually; in 5 more sleeps (because I count like a small child does apparently) I will be headed off on my next adventure, Nicaragua and Honduras. So if you don't hear from me for a bit two things: first don't count me out of the blogosphere, second, if I get kidnapped or something I will retract all of my hatred of socials if you hold one to raise the ransom.

And this is why there are no strangers in Winnipeg

We've all heard it expressed before that Winnipeg is one giant overgrown farm town, and that everyone knows everyone, but I just had one of my strangest experiences to date. So while browsing the MLS (as one does. Right? Everybody does that right?? I mean, that's how I found this place, which is still for sale, with a $10,000 price drop from the time of the original post) I came across this charming little place on Selkirk Ave.

After reading the wordy description, which I of course liked, as I have, ahem, been known to be a bit wordy myself, I decided to click through to the pictures to see if it would better jog my memory as to which house this actually was. And what did I find? Well gosh darn it if I didn't find a piece of original "artwork" designed by Winnipeg Girl herself! Seriously. What are the odds of that? Now, of course you're all wondering if I'm actually some sort of high profile artist that you've seen in a gallery (okay, maybe one of you is wondering) and that of course then it wouldn't be odd to come across my works occasionally in Winnipeg homes.

The MLS link will go dead after the house sells so here it is.

What if I told you that it was a piece I decorated back in the day (well, more like the middle of the night actually) when I used to get home from late night restaurant shifts and needed to do something to unwind while watching Law & Order reruns at 2am? What? There were no blogs then. Plus, I lived in a non descript concrete construction apartment block in River Heights so there wasn't really much to blog about. Don't judge.

So, I called (okay, texted) the friend who had bought the chair from me at my yard sale only to find out that she had in turn sold it in a yard sale a few years later. So my admittedly primitive piece of "art" went from a yard sale in the North End to a yard sale in St. James and ended up back in the North end on Selkirk Ave. And then I saw a picture of it on the internet. To think that people actually wonder how it is that everybody knows everybody by three degrees of separation or less.

It also makes me happy that it is nicely displayed and not shoved in a corner :)

Sofa King many things I could say about this...

Let's start with kudos for the juvenile joke in the name - I amuse easily, so points for that. If you do not have the sense of humour of a 13 year old*, say the title of my blog post reeeeeeeeeeal fast. However, you would think that the Sofa King, would sell, oh, I don't know.... sofas? The sign went up on this Selkirk building a few months ago and a bit of busy work seemed to happen, but now all has grinded to a halt.

Selkirk Avenue could certainly use some real storefront retail businesses, and a furniture store would be an alright addition I guess. I mean, there's Gill's in the old ice cream place on Salter just south of Selkirk and still two side by side furniture places on Main (the old Kern-Hill store and the space next to it, incidentally owned by the same people as Sofa King, based on the website address) so we don't really need another one, but I suppose at least it's not a social service agency.  Windows and doors (as the Sofa King claims to sell)? Well, since the majority of the population in the immediate neighbourhood are renters, I don't know how useful that is either.

Do you know what I wish for on Selkirk Ave? Sofa King many other things besides another storage space for a business that has an amusingly inaccurate website. No really, go to www.oxfordwholesale.com - it is a far cry from the reality of their retail space on Main. I think they spent Sofa King much money on the website that depicts a furniture store that exists only in their mind that they are Sofa King broke that they don't have much money for Sofa King's castle on Selkirk. I'd be Sofa King mad if I were the Sofa King.

Oh, one last thing and then I'm Sofa King done this post, it's the long weekend and I have things to do, people to see (ok, not really, but it sounds better than saying I'm repainting my rental). I'm Sofa King confused as to why if the Sofa King is a window and door place that they have broken old windows. Just saying.

*Note to readers: Winnipeg Girl is not actually a 13 year old boy who spends all of his time looking on the internet for dick and fart jokes, she just seems that way today.

Solving the public transport issue

I've done it. I figured out how to increase bus ridership in Winnipeg. Nope, it's not the much hyped rapid transit. I don't really pay attention to that since I don't generally take the bus. Near as I can tell, all that's going to do is get people to the U of M faster, which I suppose is an okay concept, don't fully understand why anyone who isn't a university student would care, but whatever.  Moving on.

So, yestertime, I had me occasion to head to The Forks (I had one of my fancy Groupon things - two smoothies from The Smoothie Bar for $5) so I rounded up the roommate (as it would have been poor form to drink them both myself) and off we went - in the car.  Now, I don't live particulary far from The Forks, and being a nice summer evening, it would have made for a nice walk, but there were other things to be done that night so time was an issue. I could have taken a bus, I think from what little I do pay attention to buses that the 38 heads there from less than a block walk from my house.

Why didn't I take the bus then? Well, for the two of us it would have been $9.40 round trip, and I already have a perfectly good car (ok, a few) that is insured and paid for and parking is free - even if parking wasn't free, for what I would spend in gas to get there + parking would still be less than taking the bus. So what is my my wild and crazy idea?

Give the registered owners (with active insurance) of vehicles a bus pass. Now, of course there are still some people who will never ever use the pass, and would probably try to sell it, so we would use our newfangled drivers licenses and their unused magnetic stripe, as the bus pass. Ideally there would also be a way to work in some sort of "buddy pass" to this system, as in order to truly maximize bus ridership it's probable that cars are shared between spouses and the like. So maybe a highly discounted bus pass for the spouse, and if they were to travel as a family maybe up to 3 others could travel all at the same time, with the primary owner "swiping them in" when they got on the bus.

So why would they do this? Well, I'm guessing that there are a number of statistics regarding the population and the number of accidents in private vehicles vs. on buses, and that the savings realized by xx% increase in bus ridership blah blah blah so Autopac might be able to chip in.  There would be some loss of revenue to the government for less gasoline purchased, although I suppose if my master plan comes to fruition, then they might need a few more buses on the road, so at least a little of that revenue would be recouped.  There would likely also be some substantial savings to be had from less wear and tear on the roads.  And just think of what development might happen when all those ugly surface parking lots are no longer needed!

Ok, so my idea might be a little far-fetched in terms of just how well it might work, but I sincerely think that it might help to change how Winnipeggers feel about using public transport.  We mostly all have cars, and we aren't going to give them up anytime soon, so how can we change how people use their cars? Maybe a twist on this could instead be that when you swipe your drivers license to get on the bus, based on the amount you take the bus in a month you would receive a discount on your insurance - maybe it could cover the cost difference between all-purpose and pleasure insurance, since the vehicle would possibly not being used to go to/from work in this scenario.

Now keeping in mind that I am a think tank fueled by Slurpee's and not the best and brightest minds from across the country that would need to be paid millions to come up with this plan (given in its most bare bones format here), but what do we think? Would you take the bus more if it was "free"? I'll admit, I would be slow to take advantage of it in its fullest, but since I came up with it, I'm pretty sure I would, and I'm a pretty die-hard car girl.

*Pats self on the back* Next: World Peace

Since you asked...

The internet fascinates me. I marvel on pretty much a daily basis as to what information is now at our fingertips. Back in the day (you know, like the 80's) Winnipeg was XX years behind in fashion trends because it took that long for the ideas to trickle down to us, now, we can all know what everybody on the other side of the world is wearing *right this minute* with live cams, twitter feeds (I don't personally understand the point of Twitter, but that's another post) and checking out the facebook profiles of everyone we've ever met and their friends. That being said, I hear we're still a little behind in fashion, but I blame winter for that one; you try to be fashion forward and warm at the same time!

So, further to the internet impressing the heck out of me, Blogger is good enough to tell me what countries all of my page views come from, and boy oh boy are they varied!





Those countries are, in no particular order....

UK, Iran, Belgium, Estonia, Australia, Russia, Germany, Malaysia, Singapore, Italy, Vietnam, Cayman Islands, Paraguay, Uruguay, Netherlands, Slovenia, Trinidad and Tobago, South Korea, Poland, Brazil, India, Taiwan, Denmark, Turkey, Qatar, Philippines, Ukraine, South Africa, Belarus, Iceland, Sri Lanka, France, Algeria, Macau, Mauritius, United Arab Emirates and Spain.

From these far and away lands most of my visitors have of course ended up on my blog from following a link from one of my fellow Winnipegger's blogs. However, a fair number have used our good friend Google or some other search engine and have hoped to find the answers to questions like:

Where is there a black and white photo booth in Winnipeg?
I think there might be one at the airport, and one at Polo Park. But they may have all switched to colour ones now. I hope not. I thought there used to be a place you could rent an old school one from, but my own Googling skills led me only to here and here, neither of which is what I would be looking for if that's what I had been searching for a black and white photo booth, I'd want it old school. 

hai yo mak slurpee
I had to try Googling this one myself because I thought maybe I was missing out on something. Google just suggested that perhaps I meant "How you make slurpee" which does make a bit more sense.  My answer is don't make it, 7-11 does it best. 

lovemelovemywinnipeg.blogspot.com
This has been searched a few times and it just strokes my ego. Yup, if that's what you put into the search engine, you were looking for ME!! Hi there :)

good place for mpi painting winnipeg
That's a toughie, I mean, if I suggest a place and you go there and it sucks when you go, I'll have a hater. I did take my car to Intercity Auto Body and they were awesome for helping me to not have my car written off in a "marginal" claim. Although, if they haven't already, they need to change their radio ad, it's a bit dated; their jingle claims they are across from MPI, well, MPI moved I think about a year ago.... This one is a North Ender too so it gets points for that.

the bay downtown winnipeg washroom ladies
I have decided that this one is also one for the ego boost category, I'm sure we've all done it - seen something we liked on a website but couldn't remember exactly what site so searched out the term that seems most unique. So either someone was looking for my post about the ladies urinals at The Bay downtown (as that has shown up as a referring link a few times too) or perhaps they have some fetish for public bathrooms in department stores. Hmmm, I suppose that could go either way actually....

rubber chicken winnipeg
I would try Gags Unlimited, Party Stuff and Spencers. Let your fingers do the walking and call first.

winnipeg to meet a girl

slutty winnipeg girls
Now, I have no way of knowing for sure if this was the same person searching, I sure hope not. For slutty Winnipeg girls I would try any of the dance clubs, about half hour before closing, before the lights come up. As for coming to Winnipeg to meet a girl, man, that's a good question. Apparently all the super cool chicks are writing blogs (check the blogroll gents, there's a few of us ladies on there!) so you probably won't run into them in the streets. I'll let you know right after I figure out where exactly to meet a guy, seems logical that they are the same place (of course I think they ended up here because of the Meet Winnipeg Girl this weekend post, mixed with my rant at some point about slutty halloween costumes).

So, these are just a few of the ways people end up on my little blog about Winnipeg. If you're from far and away, don't be shy, send me an email or make a comment on my posts, I'd love to know how you ended up here. Oh, and my fellow Winnipeggers, what are some of the strange things that have drawn people to your posts?

Spring cleaning

Has anyone else ever wondered why a jug of windshield washer fluid has about *thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis* much too much liquid in it based on the size of the reservoir? Now, being human, procrastination is deep seeded in my veins, which means that I usually remember to put in washer fluid right about the time I hear that horrible dry pumping whir coming from under the hood when I pull on the lever.  I then purposely drive near puddles in an attempt to clean my windscreen until I get to a gas station and purchase some overpriced stuff; despite the fact that I remembered to stock up the last time Canadian Tire had a sale on the stuff and it's sitting in my garage

Why is it not in my car you ask? Because inevitably it would have tipped on its side and leaked out all over the car, leaving a lingering stain and smell. Those caps SEEM resealable, but let me tell you, not so much, heck, even new ones have leaked in my car! So instead, I find myself, glaring at my car with about 1/8 of a jug of washer fluid in my hand, wondering who came up with this design anyway!? My solution? Well, if a frustrated Winnipegger ever thrusts you a bit of washer fluid at a gas station and tells you that you might as well use it, that might just be me.

'Tis also that time of year for spring cleaning, an annual (ok, I attempt for annual) tradition of going through the house, room by room and either cleaning or getting rid of crap previously cherished items. Well, this year as you and your friends and families conduct this laborious, time consuming cleansing ritual may I pass on a suggestion or two as to where you bring those unwanted items.

Ideally, one day, I'd like to compile an extremely comprehensive list to distribute the the masses, but here is my personal short list (feel free to add your suggestions in the comments). I have often offered to pick things up myself from friends just to keep it from going to Value Village. There are two main reasons for that, neither of which being a dislike for Big Brothers & Big Sisters or Canadian Diabetes (the charities that they support).

It is my understanding that Value Village essentially buys the donated goods from those two charities (different charities are supported in different regions) and then sells them - for profit. I have read (see this link, read down to the comments section - a reply by someone named Jeff Smail who claims to be a regional director for VV), but have never have been able to verify personally (as these things seem to be kept hush-hush) that they pay the charities by weight, which would make sense - they win some, they lose some. If in those donations are things that are broken, stained etc., VV can't sell them, they suck it up and take the loss. On the other hand, if you donate Grandma's entire estate to the Canadian Diabetes Foundation because she died of complications due to diabetes and you think that you are giving to a cause dear to her, you might not be doing as much good as you had hoped.  For example, lumped into Grandma's things was some costume jewellery that everyone in the family thought was hideous, but it turns out that it was a bunch of signed pieces that are worth hundreds of dollars.  So, Canadian Diabetes gets maybe a dollar (exact amount unknown, that's extra hush hush) and the large multi-national chain gets hundreds.

Example of expensive jewellery that also looks like it could have bought at the dollar store (ok, maybe Claire's)

My second major dislike for VV is because of their prices. Seriously, $7.99 for a used Old Navy shirt? $12.99 for a pair of jeans that were originally from Giant Tiger?? They do know that this stuff isn't new right?? I remember back in the day when VV really was a good deal, now it seems as though if they recognize the brand it is instantly double the price of something without a label. Of course, I have gotten the odd deal there, even in recent years - I got an amazing coat that retails for $400 at boutiques like Cake and October (I saw one of the brand once at Winners and it was still $289!) for $34.99 and it was only a year old (Google knows everything). Clearly it was because it was an obscure brand that I lucked out. So sure, it's handy to bring your stuff to VV, they have long hours and through their "partner" organizations they will even pick up but that warm fuzzy feeling that you're getting from the donation is akin to feeling loved during a one night stand.

If you would like to feel a little less cheap and dirty after your spring clean out, here's my shortlist and a little blurb/link as to what they'll do with the proceeds (if any):
M.C.C (Mennonite Central Committee): Beside all of the work that their thrift stores support, I would in particular direct you to the store on Selkirk Ave - as I believe all of their stores are, it's staffed almost entirely by volunteers who put things at a price point that makes it very affordable for some of Winnipeg's most disadvantaged families.  In particular at the moment they could use some nicer furniture, bric-a-brac and housewares. Go to 511 Selkirk Ave or call 204-586-2527 - They may be able to pick up.
Goodwill Industries - Furniture/Clothing/Housewares - Locations on Portage Ave (near Unicity), Regent Ave (past Plessis), Downtown (Princess St.), Pembina Highway (near Tony Roma's) and St. Annes (just south of Fermor).
Salvation Army -Furniture/Clothing/Housewares - Various locations, personally not a huge fan of giving there due to their fairly high prices. Yeah, it likely goes to a good cause but they could help more people by having lower prices and helping those folks clothe themselves even cheaper. Plus, I'm pretty sure in our over-consuming society they are hardly likely to run out of clothes to sell.
Andrews St. Family Centre (clothing), North Point Douglas Women's Centre (clothing),  Oyate Tipi (clothing/furniture/housewares) - some of the many organizations in the North End that have a clothing room where people can get items they need. Of course, if you have mens clothing both Main St. Project and Siloam Mission would probably appreciate them the most.

A special shout out if you have a recent female grad or maybe even past bridesmaid - Gowns for Grads doesn't seem to have any details available about the program yet for this year, but I imagine a phone call or two could help you find those frocks a fantastic new home.

So, go on, start sniffing the Pine-Sol and bring that stuff down to somewhere where it can do some good! Oh, but if what you were getting rid of includes old arborite kitchen tables or furniture made of fiberglass or acrylic maybe send me a message first... I'll take it off your hands :)

Neighbourhood revitalization funding cuts = bad

Wow, take a few weeks off and see what life piles up for you - and here I thought that life paused while I was on the beach! I will attempt to get back into the blogging of all things Winnipeg/random with increased frequency as it's a personal pet peeve of mine that as soon as you start looking forward to reading a blog, the blogger inevitably stops posting as much.

So the bee in my bonnet today has to do with City Hall.  Last week, at the Standing Policy Committee on Property and Development meeting, Councillor Russ Wyatt made the following motion,

That $500,000.00 be allocated from the Housing Rehabilitation
Investment Reserve to the Home Renovation Tax Assistance Program, with the intention of
increasing the maximum allowable credit for the Home Renovation Tax Assistance Program by
50% and the understanding that the expenditures of the balance of the $500,000.00 in the
Housing Rehabilitation Investment Reserve are to be referred to the Winnipeg Housing Steering
Committee for recommendation to the Executive Policy Committee.

See, not cool (more on why a little further down). Now, Councillor Mike Pagtakhan wisely asked to have it recorded that he voted against this motion. Good man. Now for those of you who have never heard of the Home Renovation Tax Assistance Program, let me give you a few details. First, let me say, I happen to think it's a very good program.

The gist of the program is this, if you pop down to the permits office and get permits for your renovation project you can get a percentage of the money you spent back, as a savings on your property tax. Almost all projects are eligible:

• Standard Renovations – Generally, the following standard renovations are eligible for a 15% tax credit:
  • Renovating kitchens, bathrooms and unfinished basements.
  • Building an addition to a home that will be utilized as a year-round living space.
  • Installing, repairing or upgrading a plumbing system or electrical system or a ventilation system, but not including an air conditioner.
  • Reinforcing or repairing a foundation or basement, including weeping tile, excavation and related landscaping.
  • Home security alarms
  • Installing or repairing exterior sheathing, roofing, shingling, soffits, fascia, eavestroughing, doors or windows (excluding skylight windows).
  • Installing or repairing a water or sewer system, including excavation and related landscaping.
  • Purchasing and installing a low flush toilet.
  • Modifying a home to accommodate a disabled person or renovating for reasons of safety or occupant health.
  • Repairing a home to ensure or maintain compliance with the Maintenance and Occupancy By-Law.
  • Constructing or repairing a deck, verandah or garage.
• Energy Efficiency Renovations – Generally, the following energy efficiency renovations that meet or exceed Manitoba Hydro Power Smart guidelines are eligible for a 25% tax credit:
  • Renovating an unfinished basement with insulation to the walls and floors.
  • Upgrading a primary heating system.
  • Upgrading an electrical system.
  • Upgrading a ventilation system.
  • Insulating walls and an attic.
  • Upgrading and insulating doors and windows

There are of course a few types of things that are not, also listed on the HRTA page of the City website, my personal favourite being the wallpapering exclusion. All in all, if you meet the criteria,

• The resident’s home is used solely for residential occupation.
• The resident’s home must have been built before January 1, 1985.
• The resident’s home and land on which it is situated has an assessed value not exceeding $192,000.00 in 2010.

it's well worth looking into. What I particularly like about the program is that even if you are doing a project that doesn't require a permit, you can still benefit - so if you're dropping a bundle on re-doing your roof or putting in some new windows you can just sort of get some bonus cash back on your property taxes. You just have to go down and "apply" for a permit (free, since you didn't actually need one) so that they can register your interest or something in the program.

Now, like any good program that involves "free money" it of course runs out. This particular program runs until December 31st, or whenever the funds run out. According to the website, it appears as though they didn't run out until December 3rd. It would appear then that this was almost perfectly adequate funding. So why then does Mr. Wyatt want to move funding from much needed inner-city area revitalization over to this program?

Of course, inner-city residents are more than welcome to take advantage of the HRTA program, however there is one thing that sticks out in my mind as a major barrier. In order to max out the savings they would need to spend $10,000 on regular renovations or $6,000 on energy efficient ones.  The people that are needing the funding from the HRIR to go to the Housing Improvement Zones generally don't have that kind of cash to throw at a renovation.

So where does that leave them? Oh yeah, needing the full million dollars that is usually put into the funding for their neighbourhoods. A press release put out by the various Neighbourhood Renewal Corporations puts it far better than I could hope to explain it, but this does a pretty good job of summarizing why this funding is important:

The HRIR is used by five neighbourhoods with aging housing stock, derelict and boarded buildings, and lower incomes. The neighbourhoods are William Whyte, North Point Douglas, Centennial, Spence, and West Broadway. HRIR is a flexible fund that levers funding from other levels of government and private sources to be used for rehabilitation, infill and exterior fix ups for homeowners and landlords. The current allocation of $1 million dollars towards inner-city renewal is a mere 0.1 % of the operating budget, so already this is a modest investment towards revitalizing our city’s core areas.

But what does it all mean you ask? Well, here's a real world example, me. A few years ago I was in desperate need of eaves troughs, the ones I had were falling off the house and certainly not keeping the water away from the foundation. Because of a modest exterior fix-up grant that was available in my neighbourhood I was able to get them replaced. At that time, I didn't have the money to do it on my own, being a single person and first time homeowner of an 80+ year old property it wasn't a matter of what needed to be fixed, but more what DIDN'T need to be fixed.

So how does this benefit anyone but me in that story, you ask? Well, my increased pride in the appearance of my house helped motivate a neighbour to spruce up their property. How do I know that? Because I feel invested in my house and my neighbourhood, I talk to my neighbours. Was that grant the only reason I talked to my neighbour? Of course not, don't be silly, but it's a piece of the puzzle that will help create a better community in the long run. This funding to the HIZ neighbourhoods is a critical part of revitalizing them and a corner puzzle piece to the Our Winnipeg Plan and it's desire to have complete communties (more about that another time, it's late.)

Wow. What a serious post from me. To lighten the mood, here is a video of perhaps my all-time favourite song. It doesn't really relate to the post at all, except it has the word "Home" in it, but the random train of thought reminded me of another song of theirs entitled "Political" which, to be honest, I have no idea if relates to the post either and I didn't really want to have to find the lyrics and then see if they fit blah blah blah, so instead, have a fun song to make you wiggle your bum a little in your chair.

(The nostalgia tag is because I can't believe how old this song is now!)

Winter rims look stupid. Discuss.

Yes, I'm back. I've been back for a few days and just haven't had a chance to get back in to the swing of everything (so my fledgling blog was near the bottom of the list). Just before I got home I thought I should again check up on some of the things happening in our great city. Sadly, the topic that topped the list was the genius of a judge who felt the need to add his two cents on how women basically invite rape by how they dress. Never mind the whole "no means no" idea, or the fact that it was a sentencing hearing and that the jackass had unequivocally been convicted of the crime. I think Ms. Martin over at nothinginwinnipeg sums it up better than any one else with her post here. It blows my mind that this guy didn't lose his job. Immediately. I hear they are going to have some sort of review of the incident or some other b.s., but here, in reality, people get fired for making comments that might be mildly insulting to someone, let alone basically telling all women that they deserve to be raped if they dress a certain way.

These are the same rims the car I pass has in summer

Moving on. So, on my twice-weekly commute from my "real job" to my part-time restaurant job I pass this VW GTI with winter rims. Now, the rims that this particular car has in the summer are hideous in my personal opinion, but that is somewhat besides the point. The winter rims are even worse.

Typical winter rims

Now, going out on a bit of limb here, but in a city where winter tires are required for at least 33% of the year (if  not more) why would you not invest in a nicer set of wheels? Or at least hubcaps? Yet there they are, all over the city, vehicles with ugly ugly plain winter rims. It just makes the car look so unfinished. Okay, so perhaps some people might have an older car and don't want to invest in a nice set of wheels for their winter tires - how about looking on kijiji or calling the Hubcap Man to see if you can't dress them up just a bit. For those out there with a nicer car (including that stupid GTI that I pass all the time, or the Audi TT I've seen cruising around town) - spend the cash and buy a set of nice winter rims. It's like if you were to meet a really attractive girl but she had broccoli in her teeth and had a European attitude towards shaving. She's still really pretty, but now she's just a little less desirable.

Well, now that I've covered one of the hot button topics of modern life (clearly the issue of the winter rims) I think I will go back to trying to read and catch up on all of my favourite blogs. Oh, and I have buy winter tires by next winter, so if I put them on ugly rims you have permission to slap me with a rubber chicken.

Paddlewheel at the Bay, Queen of my heart

Big announcement today assuming you are part of the senior set or in your thirties with a bizarre sense of nostalgia.

Paddlewheel Dining Room

They are going to close the Paddlewheel restaurant at the Bay downtown, this makes me more than a little sad. When I was younger my mom worked downtown, in Eaton Place. As a special treat, every now and again she would let me play hooky from school and she would take me downtown and we would have a day on the town. Because of this I have many fond memories of downtown, the giant chess board in the basement of Eaton Place, the magical teeny tiny little bottles of pop that they had in the basement of Eaton's (the whole smell of the basement of Eaton's actually), a stop at Orange Julius or at the Malt Stop in the Bay were for special drinks and lunch could be had at the Paddlewheel. In Jr. High the black and white photo booth in Eaton's basement was always a must-do.

I love The Bay downtown almost as much as I loved Eaton's. How, as you take the escalators up they get skinnier and skinnier and look like antiques by the time you reach the top floor. I wish I could spend some time in all those back rooms and hallways at The Bay - all those windows that you can't see out from the inside must have a view! As the absolute most random thing you will hear all day, did you know that the ladies bathroom on the second floor has ladies urinals??!! Well, I hope they are still there, back when I was a teenager that bathroom when on forever - there was a section of toilets that went all the way to the outside wall, those were the first to get blocked off. Then, it was the middle section that got blocked off - that's where the urinals are. Now I think there are only like 3 stalls left, although the rest of the bathroom is still big enough to play a game of football in.  Being the strange girl that I am I did actually get a photo of the ladies urinals (and may have snuck a guy friend into the ladies room when I was in high school because he didn't believe me, and it was waaaaaaaaay before the days of the instant gratification of digital photos) and I will try to remember to scan it one day so you'll all believe me too.

While I'm going down Bay memory lane, at some point in Jr.High we had some loss prevention officer (or something, who the heck remembers exactly now) come to scare educate us about the evils of theft or overpriced clothing (seriously, just wait a week and it'll be 25% off all --------------) and told us how at The Bay they had secret rooms with two way mirrors where they watched for shoplifters. Now, perhaps not the best thing to tell a bunch of teenagers, but whatever... it didn't encourage me to shoplift but it did become a game to try to find them all.

I haven't been to the downtown Bay store since they added the Zellers, I don't think I'm quite ready to say goodbye to the old Groceteria yet - the memories are too fresh. I hope the Malt Stop is still there.

Recycle this, 10% Tuesday

Today was recycling day in my own little part of the city and I'm not going to lie, I was worried. Dragging the recycling to the back lane in the throes of winter is not my strong suit. Most of it went out last week, but not all, in part because I think there was 3 weeks worth to go out last week. So I've been making the effort over the last week to drag the random cardboard boxes full of recyclables to the back lane. I'm lucky in that the garage next to mine isn't being used right now, so I was able to start stockpiling my boxes there, eagerly awaiting Recycling Day 4.

It arrived. Well, actually, first last night arrived. I pulled into the garage, looked next door, was please that the local scavenger guys have learned that there are no beer cans in my recyclables, thus there is no need to empty the boxes all over the ground, and then I remembered that the actual blue box itself was still inside. I don't know if you were out last night, but it was freaking cold. There was no hope of me going into the warmth of the house and then coming back out again. Fast forward to this morning. I'm pulling out of the garage and see the big pile of recycling. Craptastic. Well, I'm certainly not pulling back in the garage, turning off the car, unlocking the garage door, unlocking the house and then dragging the blue box out to the back lane. So, I figured that it would just have to sit there another week.

*sound the angels* Well, miracle of miracles, they still took it all away!! Hooray!!  I was fairly certain that there was some bizzare rule that involved the colour blue and if the blue box or a blue bag wasn't also out there, they wouldn't touch it. You know, in case the multiple cardboard boxes full of plastic and cans  and more cardboard weren't actually meant for them.

Sadly, I am one of only about 4 people in my back lane that recycles (we'll save the "is recycling really worth it when you factor in how far they ship it all etc etc" discussion for another time) and I give absolute credit to the guys in the truck for remembering that I'm one of them and possibly breaking protocol to pick up my stuff. A genuine thank you. Now who wants to bring my blue box out for me next week?

Today was Customer Appreciation Day at Safeway - now, since I have a steady diet of mostly cereal, this isn't a day that normally does much for me. However, today was an exception; I even remembered to bring my reusable bags.  I won't bother to tell you what I bought because it just makes me look like a crazy single woman who lives with her cat* but I will tell you that in an effort to not frustrate others I used the self-checkout so that I could be obsessive and pack everything into my bags and not hold up the line behind me. Of course my plan backfired somewhat.  You see, this is because I also had coupons, 10% Tuesday just wasn't good enough for me (I am a Winnipegger after all!) and if you have coupons you need the self-checkout monitor.

The employee who had the thankless job of monitoring all of us self-checkout folks (which really isn't self-checkout by the way, bloody machine rejects you every time you use one of your own bags and you have to wait for them to override it) claimed she had never seen so many. She clearly needs to watch that extreme couponing show. I only had 16 coupons, and 13 of them were the same. I did get 40 bonus airmiles (coupon), and saved an extra $15 off my 10% Tuesday shopping trip.

*I really do only have one cat and no rocking chair.

ANGRY and Arnold Schwarzenegger

Forgive me folks, this is not exactly a Winnipeg related rant. Well, it is and it isn't - it involves snow, so I suppose it's Winnipeg related in that way...I will also throw in something random regarding Arnie's visit if you stick with me to the end.

I live in a lovely 1 1/2 storey home. I also happen to own an almost-identical-to-my-own-home, rental property.  Last year, I paid a BBB rated ("A" level rating) company to replace the roofs on both homes, due to leaking issues. I was very specific as to where the leaking was and very specific as to the reason that I was replacing the roof(s).

Well, last fall, the roof on the rental started leaking during a rain storm. Ok, not exactly no problem, but sh*t happens, we're all human, maybe it was a very simple error that needed to be corrected. I called the company and they seemingly fixed the problem - not without the head of their roofing team being a complete condescending jerk to me, but seemingly fixed in any case.

Enter yesterday's balmy temperatures and bursts of sunshine (I still don't like you Environment Canada - what good is a nice day on a work day??). I was doing my best to enjoy what I could of the unusually warm day until I got the call. When you have a rental, and your tenant calls, it's almost never a good thing. The call went something like this, "uh, yeah, the living room ceiling is dripping, I have buckets all over the place". Insert several choice curse words from me *here*.

Now, of course this phone call came at pretty much EXACTLY the moment that the office of the company I had hired to do the roofing was shutting down for the day. So, after finishing up at my full-time job, off I went to my part-time job, not exactly in a great mood to say the least. I finally get home, after a nice 13 hour work day, shout a hello to the roommate and think about a nice hot shower to wash the angry off. I'm delayed though, because she needs to show me something.  Oh yes, that would be the two buckets under the drip in MY living room.

After a tossing and turning filled night, I called the company first thing this morning - after all, I have a 5 year warranty on the workmanship.  Lucky me, that same jerk of a head roofer is still with them and he told me it was my fault. Yup, my fault. After all, what did I expect, I have a 1 1/2 storey home and it's because of the ice damming. Well, Mr. Snarky Roofing Man, one of the two houses has no ice damming (it's insulated, see also, insulated) so why is it leaking?

Further to it being my fault, can you believe that I have also allowed there to be SNOW on my roof? In winter? The nerve of me. Now, to make me seem slight less irrational and ranting, let the record show that I am fully aware that over time, ice damming will shorten the longevity of my roof (which is why I was replacing a ~17 year old roof in the first place, I doubt I will ever get the 25-35 years out of a roof, no matter what the shingles are rated).

According to his logic, every single house with snow on the roof (with or without ice damming) would experience leaking on a regular basis. Which would mean, that my roofs have OBVIOUSLY leaked every year for the last 80 years (which clearly they haven't) and I certainly can't expect something like a NEW ROOF to stop a problem like this. Obviously.

Thank you for those who read all the way to the end of my rant. Now for what you've all been waiting for:

"Politicians are afraid to fail, that's why they vote 'no' all the time. It's easier. That's why they're girly-men. If you cry, you're not a girly-man. If you fail, you are not a girly-man. But if you are afraid to fail, you're a girly-man," he said.

Ok, so I clearly just took a quote out of the Winnipeg Free Press, but it's a pretty funny one if you read it aloud in your best Arnold voice. Now I'm going to go and re-read a few favourites from Winnipeg Cat to cheer myself up. Oh, and I think I will rename Mr. Snarky Roofing Man, Mr. GIRLY-Snarky Roofing Man.

Screw you Environment Canada

Yes that's right, YOU, Environment Canada (*somewhere a sad lonely meteorologist sheds a tear). Now, sigh, I suppose in the interest of full disclosure, this tale of woe is at least partially my fault, but that would make the story far less interesting.

Picture it. Friday, January 21st, 2011. I was sick as a dog, awake a total of perhaps 6 hours all day. Now in that six hours I think I must have heard various media outlets tell me about 17 times that Sunday was looking for a high of -4C. In fact, even on Environment Canada's own website -4C was the forecast high! This is where my possible error comes in, I was so dosed up on cold medication that I allowed my search for the magical number to be the end of the weather story. It may or may not have mentioned the horrible horrible wind that would be whipping the bejesus out of me today.

So, -4C conjures up all sorts of warm and fuzzy images (well, for January anyway) I used those thoughts to help carry me through the sickness and drudgery of the rest of Friday and Saturday. Sunday finally arrived and what did we end up with? Well, at 7pm, we finally reached the NEW, but not improved, forecast high of -13C, not to forget the horrific windchill that has kept us closer to -30C all day.

So long rant made shorter, today was supposed to be a nice day outside. It wasn't. I did leave the house, for only a few hours, long enough to remind myself that I want snow tires and that I still hate winter. I still feel like garbage, although I am on the mend and I refuse to get excited about the forecast high of 0C on Thursday. Mostly.

You have to be kidding me.

I was on one of my many many trips to 7-11 (Slurpee addiction) and I noticed in the little chilled sandwich and overpriced fruit section they now have SUSHI. Does sushi from 7-11 seem like a good idea to you? I admit that I have a strange love of 7-11 hotdogs - it's the plastic squeezy cheese and maybe meat chili that win me over; but hotdogs seem like an appropriate "food" for such a place, sushi does not.

While on the subject of 7-11, does anyone know of one that currently has Root Beer (Mug/Hires, not Barq's) on tap? Dr. Pepper is thankfully now a staple flavour, but if I'm going to mix things up Root Beer makes for a good change but it's more rare than scoring a genuine deal on boxing day. Bottoms up!