1. I have no less than two draft posts saved on the fiasco that is the new Access to Information legislation which the government of Newfoundland and Labrador just passed, but I wasn't happy with either of them and put them away, figuring I would go back and make them better. Yeah, didn't happen and now it reads as awfully dated.
Not helping was the fact that there was already a lot of excellent commentary coming out on almost a daily basis ripping it apart. So rather than try to replicate what they produced, I instead recommend you go and read what Ed Hollett, Russell Wangersky and Geoff Meeker have to say about it. They pretty much smack it out of the park.
It's a bad piece of legislation and one that I think the government badly misjudged the level of opposition to. Will it sink them in three years time? Not on its own. But when they're listing the reasons this government lost, it'll be on the short list.
2. Meanwhile, back in Nunavut, it's a couple of days until Summer Solstice and the bay is finally starting to show signs of breaking up. They're have been no snowmobiles on the bay in a couple of weeks and there's now some open water showing. Granted, there's no way all this ice is going to be gone by the end of the month, so I'll get to go on vacation and be able to tell people there's still ice in the bay. That always manages to freak out southerners. The downside is it will soon start to throw off the sealift boat schedule, which is always a nuisance.
I'll post up a pic of what the bay looks like in a couple of days. I have an idea for a picture of the bay at sunset on the 21st. Just to give you an idea of what the first day of summer looks like in Iqaluit.
3. But in the meantime, here's another picture for you.
There's a fun group on Facebook called the Iqaluit Auction Bids, which is pretty much what it sounds like. They've cracked down on some of the junkier stuff recently, so pretty much everything there is northern crafts related. You can find some very nice stuff there. For example, if you happen to need a pair of polar bear pants (the seller promises they are very warm), well, you're in luck because there's a pair being auctioned right now.
I found the above on the site and managed to win the auction. What we have here is an ulu, which is the half moon shaped knife, and a men's carving knife. The knives are steel, the base is made from a caribou antler and the handles are made from muskox horn. It's the last detail that really caught my eye because muskox are not native to Baffin Island. They're both really nice and quite sharp. I almost feel bad that I have nothing to use them on right now. But who knows. Anyway, they're a nice addition.
Also, anybody can sign up for the auction site. A lot of people from Ontario have and tend to snap up kumiks (boots) to the point where insane price wars have broken out. Give it a look.
4. And finally, because I have been remiss, let's all leave a few nice comments for my lovely wife Cathy, who got her marks back yesterday and graduated with her Masters in Special Education. That alone would be enough, but she managed to do that while getting straight A's. It's a hell of an accomplishment and I'm insanely proud of her.
Last Five
1. Meeting across the river - Bruce Springsteen
2. Babylon - David Gray*
3. Rockville - REM
4. I didn't know that you care - Lloyd Cole
5. The charging sky - Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins
Not helping was the fact that there was already a lot of excellent commentary coming out on almost a daily basis ripping it apart. So rather than try to replicate what they produced, I instead recommend you go and read what Ed Hollett, Russell Wangersky and Geoff Meeker have to say about it. They pretty much smack it out of the park.
It's a bad piece of legislation and one that I think the government badly misjudged the level of opposition to. Will it sink them in three years time? Not on its own. But when they're listing the reasons this government lost, it'll be on the short list.
2. Meanwhile, back in Nunavut, it's a couple of days until Summer Solstice and the bay is finally starting to show signs of breaking up. They're have been no snowmobiles on the bay in a couple of weeks and there's now some open water showing. Granted, there's no way all this ice is going to be gone by the end of the month, so I'll get to go on vacation and be able to tell people there's still ice in the bay. That always manages to freak out southerners. The downside is it will soon start to throw off the sealift boat schedule, which is always a nuisance.
I'll post up a pic of what the bay looks like in a couple of days. I have an idea for a picture of the bay at sunset on the 21st. Just to give you an idea of what the first day of summer looks like in Iqaluit.
3. But in the meantime, here's another picture for you.
There's a fun group on Facebook called the Iqaluit Auction Bids, which is pretty much what it sounds like. They've cracked down on some of the junkier stuff recently, so pretty much everything there is northern crafts related. You can find some very nice stuff there. For example, if you happen to need a pair of polar bear pants (the seller promises they are very warm), well, you're in luck because there's a pair being auctioned right now.
I found the above on the site and managed to win the auction. What we have here is an ulu, which is the half moon shaped knife, and a men's carving knife. The knives are steel, the base is made from a caribou antler and the handles are made from muskox horn. It's the last detail that really caught my eye because muskox are not native to Baffin Island. They're both really nice and quite sharp. I almost feel bad that I have nothing to use them on right now. But who knows. Anyway, they're a nice addition.
Also, anybody can sign up for the auction site. A lot of people from Ontario have and tend to snap up kumiks (boots) to the point where insane price wars have broken out. Give it a look.
4. And finally, because I have been remiss, let's all leave a few nice comments for my lovely wife Cathy, who got her marks back yesterday and graduated with her Masters in Special Education. That alone would be enough, but she managed to do that while getting straight A's. It's a hell of an accomplishment and I'm insanely proud of her.
Last Five
1. Meeting across the river - Bruce Springsteen
2. Babylon - David Gray*
3. Rockville - REM
4. I didn't know that you care - Lloyd Cole
5. The charging sky - Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins
3 comments:
Congratulations, Cathy!
Congratulations Mrs. Townie Bastard! What an accomplishment!
Good on ya, Townie Lady! Now you can pull rank on the bastard. That big knife looks good for chopping onions - good rocking motion. That is, if you could afford onions.
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