Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Mixed Reactions; The New Years' Bash, Warm Weather and Defections

I am back to earth, kuba we survived a road accident whilst driving to my cousin’s family get together party (on new-years’ eve) in Windsor, Ontario. I must say, God was with us that day. Imagine traveling at 140 km/hr on that busy 401 West highway and emerging from the wreck unscathed, GOD IS GREAT.

All this commenced with a fierce knock at the rear, then violent shakes before skidding off the highway. On disembarking we realized in horror that both rear tires were “kaput!!” It turns out six other cars had skidded off the same lane with bust tires, probably something we run over. All in all, this close call was a manifestation of his presence.



Hopes Standing at the scene (like nothing happened) 45
minutes after the accident. I refused, categorically, to have
my snap taken with what would have been our coffin.


Anyways, we made it to Peruth’s home intact and had a wonderful time mingling with all these cousins most of whom were on holidays from Africa. The house basement hosted the party as Chameleon & co. club music mix blared fiercely till morning. It was a wonderful day for me.



Feliste encouraging the troops to trump on.

Btw, I have just learnt that I did not do the Acute Care & Traumatic Condition exams well. Unlike Quantitative Methods which I barely passed, I was certain of a super mark in Acute Care and I am still wondering what went wrong. I do not have to re-write Acute Care exams though since it does not seriously affect my GPA, but a C grade does not cut it with anything dealing with Pharmacology (QM) in a Nursing program. So I am back to the drawing boards, cutting out slacking time to make sure I am sure of a better grade in QM this time around.

Last week Liberal MP of a Toronto area riding of Mississauga-Streetville, Wajid Khan, crossed the floor to Harper’s ruling Conservatives in fashion thus affecting the balance of power in the House of Commons. This is not the first time defections are happening and I am sure not the last time. People like David Emerson crossed from the Liberals to the Conservatives, Belinda Stronach from Conservative to Liberal, Scott Brison from Conservative to Liberal, David Kilgour from Conservative to Liberal, Jack Horner from Conservative to Liberal, Paul Helyer from Liberal to Conservative et al.

The question is, how ethical is it for an MP to defect from one party to another without consulting his constituents? Most voters cast their ballots for a party and expect the person entrusted to represent them in upholding their beliefs, values, principles, ideas, or policies on party lines. Wajid Khan breached the trust the electorate in the Mississauga riding had in him by seeking personal gain over their values. Enough said.

It is January and here I am bedecked in a springtime coat! Mother Nature is still holding her weather cards tightly close to her chest with a poker face on. It seems that the days of long, cruel, cold winters are long gone, but with that poker face, who knows what the future holds?

I have mixed feelings towards this bizarre occurrence. With a black X-mas of a high 10°C in Hamilton (the term black Christmas refers to a Christmas without snow) it was not a surprise that many Hamiltonians directed their anguish, shaking their clenched fists towards the barren sky for all the wrong reasons I would imagine.

A warm winter has finally rejuvenated our financial standing. Gas is as cheap as it comes owing to the low demand for heating fuel and the municipality’s snow clearing. This means many households and indeed corporations are breaking even with a double cut on automobile gas costs, heating costs, miscellaneous expenses (i.e. frozen batteries or fuel lines in cars), a break on tax and fewer potholes on our roads this spring.

However, for that we pay a price. Cold weather usually kills infectious germs and their couriers. This warm winter is helping roaches, pests, rats, snakes et al. to thrive through a normally tough season and as a result the city is expecting a higher population of these rodents this summer. Farmers are not particularly pleased with a snow less winter since the soils need this snow for water and the plants need it to protect their roots from summer’s harsh winds and heat. Wine producers for instance are preparing for huge financial losses, leaving many winery jobs exposed to lay offs. This is a common phenomenon with many other snow dependant industries like ski operations et al.

Finally, I thank all of you that passed on encouraging and uplifting comments on my last post and to Eddie, I wish you a year flowing with milk and honey. Right there, just translated (for you) the Nyaru greeting in my previous post.

Ciao.