#Quebec...Canada...#Language police...#freedom

Wow! I must say this is ridiculous, almost comical if it weren’t so serious. Nearly unbelievable at best. And this in the year 2014!

Eva Cooper, owner of a women’s clothing store in Chelsea, Quebec has a Facebook page...in English. Now those turkeys from the language police are demanding she translates her messages into French. If she doesn’t by March 10 she will face a fine. This smells of dictatorship, censorship, and violation of basic human rights. These guys are surely on some kind of power trip.

I live in Manitoba, Canada. I’m a Canadian. The last time I looked we still had freedom of speech (as limited as it may be in certain circumstances), and I can say what I want to say in any language. Be it on the street, at home, or on the Internet. If I had a business I could have a sign outside of my place written in English. As it happens, I write everything in English, but I could also put messages on my blog or Facebook page or Twitter in German, should I decide to do so. Or French or any other language. We have that freedom in Canada. People in many other countries that don’t speak English can do so also. I’ve been to Latin American countries where Spanish is spoken and I’ve seen many signs in English.

You can’t do that in Quebec. They have a language police! That’s right, you read that correctly. If you live in Quebec this doesn’t come as a shock. You’re living with them. Looking at the map, it appears that Quebec is in Canada, which makes the people living there Canadian Citizens...with all the rights Canadians are privileged to enjoy.

Everyone knows that every government on this Earth is trying to control the Internet. It irks those who want to control us that people all over this planet are able to communicate with each other, without being censured by some power-hungry politicians or even some giant Corporation. To some extent they have already managed to infiltrate the Internet and are spying on people, checking their emails and postings on media sites. As is evident with this case in Quebec. We all are aware of the big scandal a few months ago when some guy spilled the beans about the US government spying on leaders of other countries and the American citizens by listening in on phone calls and monitoring activities on the Internet.

This whole thing with the language control in Quebec is almost unbelievable in this day and age...in a so-called free country. If you run any kind of business, you want to reach as many customers as is possible. If you can expand your advertising using many different languages, you have a much greater reach and a larger base of potential customers. The Internet is a wonderful medium to reach people all over the world. Eva Cooper should be able to advertise in Chinese or Russian with her advertising. It is called FREEDOM. That’s what it means to live in a free country, to be able to do choose what you say and write in any way and language you wish.

Even though Quebec is a Canadian province, Quebecers are not enjoying the freedom that is the right of every Canadian.

Shame on the politicians in the Quebec government!

And to the person who complained to the language police about the website of Eva Cooper, I’d like to say: Shame on you also. You are a meddler, a troublemaker, and a jerk. It is because of people like you that the world we live in is in such sad state. Think about that! But you’re probably too stupid to even realize what you’ve done and what you’re doing and you’re probably feeling really smug right now for causing such havoc with another person’s life. Get a Life yourself!

On a more positive note, it looks like March is coming in like a lamb. Unfortunately, it means it will go out like a lion. I’m really looking forward to that ☺.

To my faithful readers: Sorry for ranting again. Have a nice day, call a friend or send them an email and tell them you love them. The world is still full of good people who mind their own business and we must not get discouraged by the morons and would-be dictators who live among us. Those people who want to ruin our lives by fulfilling their own sick desires, without caring about the feelings of their fellow human being.

Come back soon.

Our Valentine's dinner

Today I want to write about something nice. Okay, the Olympic Games in Sochi are over and we, as Canadians, are quite proud of our athletes, who did so well. Third position among all those participating countries isn't bad. We have 10 Gold, 10 Silver, and 5 Bronze medals. Our hockey teams, men and women, kicked butt. And Jennifer Jones from Winnipeg brought home a Gold medal in Curling. We do have something to be proud of. Even though I had nothing to do with anything, I still am proud to be a Canadian. I can say that, because Canada is my adopted country. I honor the laws and the customs and I accepted them as my own, unlike so many newcomers these days. Oops, something negative did slip in. My apologies.

I know I'm a bit late with this one, because Valentine's Day is gone nearly a couple of weeks, but I just transferred my pictures to the computer today and remembered.

As already mentioned, we had our traditional duck for dinner. It tasted great. My wife sure knows how to make a duck. It needs to be roasted slowly and the fat has to be broiled out of the skin to make it crunchy. We had potatoes and savoy cabbage. And a glass of wine (or two?). Anyway, everything was delicious and I can't wait until next year's Valentine's dinner. Why-o-why do I have to wait that long? Why-o-why? The Universe can be so cruel.

Waiting to be carved

Waiting to be eaten

The Four Horsemen

A few days ago we watched the movie 'The Four Horsemen'. It isn't really a movie but a documentary. The theme is the economy and how we are being manipulated and screwed by the banks and the big companies.

It is scary to watch something like that and it makes you angry that we are all just pawns in somebody's chess game, mainly the rich and powerful.

It explains why our economy is in such a mess. The big banks and the big investors on Wallstreet are the great danger in this world and a threat to mankind's future. They are responsible for where we are today, for people losing their houses, their pensions, and everything they worked so hard to accumulate.

The interviewed people are people who are former bankers, brokers, and people who know what they are talking about.

One thing they stressed is the fact that a few decades ago the principle that is behind all money has been abandoned by the governments. This is the principle of having gold as the backup for a country's money. Now the banks are creating money out of nothing. They print it and they create it by giving clients credit. And that is one of the great problems: Credit. Is is easy to get, because of the low interest rates. People buy houses they can't afford, they max out on their credit cards. Demand for things creates inflation. House prices have literally gone through the roof.

The big banks and super-investors get richer and richer. Not  through honest work, but by speculating. They sell stocks that have no real value to unsuspecting small investors. They always make money, while the regular people lose theirs.

When I went to School in Germany, we learned about this problem not having gold as backup. Hitler tried it. He printed money when he needed it. Inflation was rampant. Money lost its value faster than people could earn it. People got paid every day. A loaf of bread cost 1 million Marks (not a misprint) one day, and 2 million Marks the next. We are heading in the same direction.

They also talked about terrorism. What actually is terrorism? The people we call terrorists call themselves 'Freedom fighters'. The terrorists attack the Western World and create havoc, but what are the Big Banks and the super rich doing to them and us? Robbing the people who put their money into investments, hoping it will grow, only to lose it. That is a form of terrorism.

People who have no jobs and nothing to eat, will follow anyone who promises them a better life. That's how Hitler came to power in Germany. It was during the Great Depression in the 1930s. The German people had no jobs. The ones who worked got paid very little by the rich company owners. Hitler created jobs, he built the Autobahn, created the VW company (the motto: a car for every German citizen at an affordable price!). He built up the Military. Not exactly a good thing, but it did create jobs. But then things went sour. I don't want to get into that here. It has to do with politics and is a dangerous road to follow, and this thing about freedom of speech is a myth. Anyway, Germany was thrown into a two-front war, which was never intended, but it happened. Hitler's government started to print money and so on and on. And, as they say, the rest is history. Not quite correct in many ways, but the victor writes the history of the world.

To watch something like 'The Four Horsemen' surely opens your eyes and scares the living daylights out of you. A recommend film.

There is no excuse for Rudeness

Strange, how some people are just rude. I found that quite a few handicapped people seem to have a chip on their shoulder. They seem to blame the world for their problem, they think the world owes them something, and they treat other people with rudeness.

This is not about bashing handicapped people. You never know when you maybe suffering the same fate. Accidents can happen and in moments you can end up crippled; sicknesses can change a person’s life forever. Getting older sometimes means life changes, like having trouble getting around because of arthritis, back problems, bad knees, and all kinds of other maladies. So, no, this is not about talking ill about handicapped people.

This is about rudeness.

Yesterday I parked in a handicapped zone. I shouldn’t have, but there wasn’t a parking spot available, so I parked near one of the signs. My wife just wanted to drop in quickly into a store. Since my back was aching, I decided to stay in the car, so I figured it will do no harm to park in a handicapped zone for a short time. Should a handicapped person come along in a car looking for a spot to park, I would move. That was my intention.

I have to add that I don’t approve of healthy people, who can walk, parking in a handicapped zone, especially if they have a sign hanging from their mirror, but when they get out of the car they have no problem walking. Obviously, they are not the handicapped person.

Anyway, as I sat there listening to music, a car pulled up behind me, a woman gets out and bangs on my window. “Do you have a permit?” she yells. And I mean yell. I said, “No, I don’t.” Then she made a sign signalling for me to move my car and muttered something I didn’t catch.

Now, I don’t respond well to being yelled at and gestured at. If she would have asked politely for me to move I would have done so, because that had been my intention all along. Her rude behavior prompted me to ignore her and stay.

Maybe the fact that the car next to me backed out of its spot might have something to with me not moving. I don’t know, but the main reason was this woman just pissed me off.

She pulls into the vacated spot. She gets out and bangs again against my window with her fist. Then she yells, “Shame on you!” and makes a rude sign.

I yelled back, “What is your problem? You have a parking spot.”

She walked on toward the store entrance, a little slow and with a slight limp. Actually, she walked as slow as I walk when my back acts up and when my knees hurt. No, I don’t have a sign in my window. Fortunately, I don’t need it...yet. Neither did she.

Rudeness and screaming at me never gets anyone far with me, but politeness will do it every time.

Is homosexuality normal?

 Another athlete came out of the closet proclaiming she’s gay. Whoopee! What exciting news. Just what I was dying to find out, and because there is no other news. As a straight man who is attracted to women I thought Another beautiful girl lost to some what could have been lucky man.

By the way, this article is not intended as gay-bashing. These are just my thoughts on the subject.

I don’t really care if someone is gay or straight. A person’s sexual preference should never even come up in our daily interaction with each other, except when a sexual situation arises. It’s nobody’s business what people do in their bedroom, and that’s where it should stay. I get annoyed when I watch TV and a big deal is made over the fact a guy is a homosexual. These days you can hardly watch a TV show without some reference made to somebody’s sexual orientation. And I don’t approve of ‘Pride Day’, where men and women dress up (or undress) to showcase that they are gay.

What’s this thing about ‘Proud to be gay’ anyway? That’s like saying I’m proud to be white, or black, or whatever. Why would one have to announce that they are proud of the fact they were born that way? The only reason to be proud of something is when it is earned or achieved, like a Gold Medal in the Olympics. Now that is something to be proud of. (Silver and bronze are okay, too ☺). There are plenty of other accomplishments a person can be proud of, like getting straight A’s in School, or getting a driver’s license.

This phenomenon of so many gay people coming ‘out of the closet’ has got me thinking. To be sexually attracted to the same sex is not normal, no matter what the media and other groups of interest are trying to make us believe. The whole business of having intercourse was designed by Mother Nature (I’m using the word Nature here. This is not about Religion!) to propagate a species, which means intercourse between a male and a female. Period. Okay, certain scientists or ‘make-believe-scientists’ will say you can impregnate a female artificially, or some life forms will multiply by cell-division or other means. Again...this is not about biology either. I’m talking about higher evolved animals...like humans. Some people will argue about humans having evolved, but let’s just assume it is so. ☺.

The following account is how this whole thing could have happened:

Had I been Mother Nature and designed a concept like that, I would have asked myself, “How can I make them join their bodies to produce offspring? Aha, I have an idea. I’ll make them feel good about it, really good. In fact I will create hormones that will make the male to be attracted to the female.”

The system worked really well, in fact so well that males and females had sex all the time, even when they didn’t want to produce children. (I know that some churches are trying to tell their member they should not enjoy sex. It is a dirty word, but that is food for another article).

The whole thing worked fine as long as there were not too many people on this planet, but, unfortunately, like with anything, there are two sides to every coin. A good side and a bad side. Suddenly a new danger appeared: Too many offspring. Too many people. What to do?

Illnesses and plagues would be a good thing to get rid of some people. Conflicts, accidents, crop failures, catastrophes like floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and anything else I can throw at them should do the trick. But it didn’t work. Unfortunately, these little bastards were still multiplying at an alarming rate! They managed to survive all those things and still made babies. What else can be done?

There is only one thing to do. I will change their genetic makeup. I will make males to be attracted to other males and females to other females. That should work.

Just a theory, but who’s to say I’m wrong?

Seriously, I personally believe that it doesn’t matter what the sexual preference of a man or woman is, as long as they don’t constantly rub it into my face. Same goes for Religion. (I had to get it in somewhere ☺)

Judge a person not by what they are but by what they have accomplished and how they conduct themselves. (Herbert Grosshans).

What's with certain people?

We drove to Winnipeg this morning to babysit.  A couple of nights ago it snowed, about 10 - 15 cm. Our driveway had more than that. The highway we used had already been cleared. However, the passing lane was still a little slippery.

The right lane, which was traveled the most, was not bad. I drove around 82 km/hr. Speed limit is 80 km/hr, but there were quite a few drivers who passed us. Some must have been going over 90. Like I said, the passing lane was still slippery.

Then we saw one woman driving at that speed and using her cell phone. I guess the $200.00 fine if caught, isn't enough deterrent. I hope she never ends up in the ditch or worse, causes an accident and injures herself and others because she is so stupid. Maybe ending up in the ditch would be a good thing for her, though.

Yesterday, there were quite a few accidents again. They always blame the road conditions. Of course, it's the road condition, but that only means SLOW DOWN, IDIOT!

I am baffled. Are people really that stupid? Don't they watch or listen to the news? Many accidents can be avoided if drivers would slow down and drive according to road conditions. One can always only hope that those drivers don't involve innocent people who use sound judgement when on the road.

That's my rant for today. I wish I had something good to write about. Oh, right, it is Valentine's Day today.  I have something nice to say.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.

Something to laugh about

I got this in an email yesterday and I had a good laugh. I want to share it here:

Hello -- I have questions!

Why isn't the number 11 pronounced onety-one?

If 4 out of 5 people SUFFER from diarrhea...does that mean that one out of five enjoys it?

Why do croutons come in airtight packages?

Aren't they just stale bread to begin with?

If people from Poland are called Poles, then why aren't people from Holland called Holes?

If a pig loses its voice, is it disgruntled?

Why is a person who plays the piano called a pianist, but a person who drives a racecar is not called a racist?

If it's true that we are here to help others, then what exactly are the others here for?

If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, then doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked, and dry cleaners depressed?

If Fed Ex and UPS were to merge, would they call it Fed UP?

Do Lipton Tea employees take 'coffee breaks?'

What hair color do they put on the driver's licenses of bald men?

 Why do they put pictures of criminals up in the Post Office? What are we supposed to do, write to them? Why don't they just put their pictures on the postage stamps so the mailmen can look for them while they deliver the mail?

Is it true that you never really learn to swear until you learn to drive?

Whatever happened to Preparations A through G ?

 

 ******

Why, Why, Why do we press harder on the remote control when we know the batteries are getting weak?

Why do banks charge a fee due to insufficient funds; when they already know you're broke?

Why is it that when someone tells you that there are one billion stars in the universe you believe them, but if they tell you there is wet paint you have to touch it to check?

Why do they use sterilized needles for lethal injections?

Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

Why did Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?

Whose cruel ide a was it to put an "s" in the word "lisp"?

If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?

Why is it that, no matter what color bubble bath you use, the bubbles are always white?

Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?

Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will have materialized?

Why do people run over a string a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it and then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

Why is it that no plastic bag will ever open from the first end you try?

How do those dead bugs get into the enclosed light fixtures?

Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that's falling off the table you always manage to knock something else over?

Why, in winter, do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?

How come you never hear father-in-law jokes?

Do you ever wonder why you gave me your e-mail address in the first place?

The Olympics in Sochi

We watched the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Very nice and impressive. The Russians sure put a lot of effort and money into this.

The Olympic games exist to bring countries from all over the world together in peaceful competition and it is something good. Of course, there are always those who have to bring politics into it. I don't even want to mention the terrorists who are trying to create chaos in the whole world in their fanatic obsession with their religion.

I'm talking about the gays and lesbians. Okay, so Russia doesn't tolerates them, but the athletes, be they straight or gay, are welcome. No politics here and no sexual preferences. The homosexuals are flying rainbow flags all across Canada. I have to agree with the Mayor of Toronto on this one. He said the Olympics are about the Olympics and nothing else and demands the rainbow flags to be taken down. Only the Canada flag should be flown at this time.

I agree and all I have to say is the world does not turn around homosexuals all the time. There are still plenty of straight people out there and they are in the majority and they are getting annoyed with this constant bombardment. I don't care if they fly their flags whenever they want to, but not during the Olympics. Trying to create a disturbance and constantly hanging out their sexual preference doesn't help their cause to be accepted.

Just my observation.

To be or not to be on a diet

Most of my life I never worried about gaining weight. I was always thin, because my job was physically demanding and I was constantly on the move, climbing ladders and things like that.
But now I'm retired and not moving so much anymore I have to watch my waistline. That extra little spare tire around my middle is hard to control. And it seems once you have it it's there to stay.
I love food. My wife is a good cook and she makes delicious meals. Being originally from Europe, we still love the European food. Of course, we also love our steak and potatoes.

Today we had Sauerkraut with boiled potatoes and pork shoulder done in the Dutch Oven. Hmmm...like a meal in Heaven. The Sauerkraut was made by Hengstenberg in Germany. The brand is Mildessa with wine. It is not as sour as some. And the can is packed with Sauerkraut and very little empty space. A beer rounds up he meal.

We just finished eating and I know I ate too much. That is the problem when food tastes so good. So much for being on a diet.

I was already told that tomorrow would be a meager lunch to make up for the glutton I was today. Who knows what supper brings. We had stir-fry (chicken-breast with Chinese cabbage) yesterday and there were leftovers. It was good also. We'll probably have that. There wasn't much left so it will be okay diet-wise.

Why is it that everything that brings you pleasure is also not good for you? Why...why...why?

In less than two weeks it's Valentine's Day. We usually have Duck with white cabbage. Just thinking about that makes my mouth water. I can barely wait until then...

The hunt is over

Hurray! We finally booked. We're going south. We compromised a little but we are happy with our choice. Different day than we wanted, but it might even be a better day. At least there will be no snow and it will be warm.

Reviews of Resorts...good or bad?

Before we book we read the reviews. If the majority of reviews are negative, we won’t go to that particular resort. And that could possibly be one of our problems. The question comes up: How true are those reviews?

I write reviews and I try to be as truthful as I possible can. Of course, I will write from my own experience. Other travelers may have had a different experience on the same resort. Usually, I dismiss comments about how friendly or unfriendly the people working at the resort are. Travelers who encounter unfriendly maids or servers may possibly have themselves to blame. I’ve seen guests behaving rudely toward the staff, expecting they come running when they wave to them or call them over with, “Hey you. I need another drink.” No wonder they get the cold shoulder. The people working on these resorts are on the whole working hard for little compensation. Don’t always expect a smile on their faces.

I also dismiss people complaining about having no internet. You can live without that for a week or two. I go on holidays to relax and to get away from my computer for a couple of weeks. Also sand fleas on the beach or mosquitoes on the resort don’t bother me. We have lots of mosquitoes in the summer where we live. We are used to them.

Most vital for us is the beach. As long as there are no rocks or corral. Also, there should be no problems with the beach chairs.

Accommodations are also important, mostly the bed. To be able to get a good sleep is essential.

Food. I think most people, including us, sometimes lose perspective when it comes to food. For instance, at home for breakfast I have a bun with honey, yogurt, grapefruit in the winter, and a cup of tea. I only eat ham and eggs with hash browns on Saturday. Why would I suddenly expect to eat omelettes, sausages, and all kinds of other foods every day on a holiday?

For lunch I eat a sandwich at home. Do I really need a full course dinner at the resort? Same goes for supper. I’m happy with a bowl of lettuce, a steak and a baked potato and one beer, or sometimes just a can of beans with a sausage, or a chicken breast with mashed potatoes and boiled broccoli. Sometimes I have desert, perhaps a pudding.

Why would I need a five course dinner when I’m on holiday?  People expect choices of potatoes, pastas, different hot vegetables, different kinds of meat etc. For desert cakes, puddings, cookies and more.

We shouldn’t expect lobster and steak every day. We don’t need to drink beer and wine until we can’t walk anymore just because it is included, but it seems that what vacationers expect.

So when it comes to food, we are not that fussy, as long as it doesn’t come from a can and is served warm and handled in a clean environment. The last thing anyone wants is to get sick. One lobster dinner would be nice. And some shrimp once in a while. We had all that when we were in Varadero a couple of years ago. The rest of the food wasn’t great, but it was okay.

Most people complain about the food, but the food seems to be the one thing that is a problem in most resorts. In Cuba, for instance, it doesn’t matter if the resort is rated a five star or a one star, food is one of the items vacationers complain most about.

Reading all the reviews from different resorts in different countries, be it Cuba, Mexico, or Dominican Republic, I found I can read the reviews for one resorts and then just change the name, the review would fit.

You wonder when you read one review that is headlined: Best Vacation ever. Paradise on Earth. The next review of the same resort says: Worst Vacation ever. It’s not even a one star.

Were these people at the same resort? Why is one so positive and the other one so negative? Who do I believe?

And that is my dilemma right now. I missed good deals because I couldn’t make up my mind after reading the reviews.

There is something else I ponder. Is it to my advantage to even write a positive review? What if I get a terrific deal on a resort and I just love it. It write a raving review. So will a few other reviewers. Next thing I know the 3 star resort is considered a 4 star resort because of the reviews and the price goes up. Did I do myself a favor?

This morning I went on the internet again and checked out prices and read reviews again. We finally decided to book with one resort. The reviews were a mixed bag of bad and good, but we figured it was the best for our budget, even though the tax was now $35.00 higher per person since last week and $20.00 up from the base price. A hike of $55.00 per person. When I went back to the site to book, guess what: The price had changed since I looked at it (15 minutes before). They added another $30.00 per person to the base price. I can’t believe this! Are they playing games? Not with me. Suddenly the price is not attractive anymore for what the resort offers.

The hunt is still on.

Hunting for a Spot in the Sun

These last three weeks I’ve wasted hours upon hours on the internet looking for a deal and a suitable place for a holiday in the sun. Last year we were in Cuba. We booked our holiday already in November with Red Tag Vacations, believing we’d get a better deal if we booked early. What a huge and costly mistake that was. Had we waited we could have saved about $1,000.00. Unfortunately, Red Tag Vacations didn’t make any effort to compensate us. I don’t believe I will book with them ever again.

So now this year we figured if we wait long enough we’ll get a good deal. Again, we made a mistake. It seems we outsmarted ourselves. We waited too long. Because of the cold winter  more people seem to be booking a holiday south. And the prices are not favorable to vacationers. The worst are the taxes. Now they charge about $416.00 taxes for the Dominican Republic and the same for Mexico on a single ticket. Cuba is fairly ‘cheap’ with $316.00. Taxes are nearly 40% of the cost of the ticket on the lower-priced resorts. I consider that outrages. An additional cost in Cuba is still the airport tax which is 25 Cuban Dollars, that’s about $30.00 Canadian per person. Our low Canadian Dollar doesn’t help either. It seems taxes and fees are rising to a point where people may finally say: We’re not paying that. We’ll stay home and go away in the summer with our car. That’s the way I feel right now.

We missed a couple of deals only by a few hours. Monday, I found one in Cayo Coco, Cuba, a new resort, and it was reasonable, but we waited for the price to go down more. When we made up our mind to book in the afternoon it wasn’t available anymore. An hour later it was available again with a price drop of $100.00. We started booking but got the message: Sorry, this product is not available.

Then we found one in Varadero, a five star resort that is regular $ 1,700,00 on sale for $669.00 for 2 weeks. That’s right $669.00. We checked out reviews and there were the usual negative things. But then we said we’ll book and guess what: The price was now $1,550. Then I found it for $775.00 a couple of days earlier departure. I went up for supper and we decided to book. Well, you guessed it, that one was also $1550.00. That’s where it is right now. I hate playing games like that. I didn’t sleep all night, blaming myself for hesitating and not acting immediately. Now we are waiting for another one or the same one to go down, but I have no hope. It is getting too late. We don’t want to go in March. Even then prices are too high. They added another fee of $35.00 per ticket at the end of January. So we might just stay home this year.

The things my father taught me

 

Today is sort of an anniversary. 31 years ago, February 1, 1983, my father passed away. He was 83 years old. A nice ripe age, but as I get older it doesn’t seem that old anymore. People live much longer these days. To be 100 years old isn’t such a big deal any longer.

As I reflect and remember my dad, I have certain regrets. I never told him that I loved him. He never told me he loved me. It wasn’t done in those days when I grew up. I know he loved me; he never said so in words but by the little things he did. He gave me his best pocket knife. I was probably around ten years old. He gave me the one with the two blades, a large one and a small one. It also has a little file. The knife he kept for himself had a broken small blade. I still have that knife and I cherish it. In fact, I also have the one with the broken small blade.

I grew up after WW2. My parents lost everything they had in the war. Opportunities for advancement were non-existent where we lived. We didn’t have much. It was tough to feed a family, but we survived. I heard my dad say once, “If I have to go naked, that’s okay, but my children will never go hungry.” He couldn’t always keep his promise, but we didn’t starve.

My dad never played with me, but he took me along when he went digging peat moss to make bricks to be used in the stove for cooking and heating. He stacked up the bricks in a pyramid to let them dry. Once they were dry he picked them up with his bicycle and brought them home.

I enjoyed those trips. He erected a small tent for me where I would be protected from the sun and he told me to be careful and not wander away. I explored the area looking for sticklebacks and frogs. At lunchtime we ate sandwiches, and they always tasted delicious. Those are the memories I treasure, because they are special to me.

He taught me how to make a knot. He called it the ‘Russian Whip knot’. Actually, it is known under the name ‘Clove Hitch’, and not the most secure knot to use, but it is functional and easy. I still use it to this day.

He had many sayings, but one of my favorites was (translated): The way you call into a forest that’s the way the echo comes back. You could use ‘canyon’ instead of ‘forest’ to make more sense, but basically it means to gain love and respect you have to show love and respect. That phrase stuck with me and I have tried to live by his teaching.

He was strict and he spanked us when we did something wrong. We always deserved it. He never lashed out in anger, never beat us to inflict pain. He used a belt on our butts. It hurt but did no damage. It didn’t damage our ‘tender’ psyche either. He taught me to respect people and things and to appreciate what I have. He always cleaned and polished our shoes. It was important to him. “You judge a person by his shoes,” he used to say.

There doesn’t seem to be much of respect for anything around these days. There is this false idea that you’re not supposed to punish your children. You might just curb their natural development. Teachers aren’t allowed to teach discipline for fear of being sued by these ill-advised parents.

So many young people have no respect for their elders and the law. And that is directly the fault of their parents and our educational system, and those who push their views on the general populace. And it is the fault of the government.

A few years ago we had problems on the beach where we had our cottage with young people behaving unruly, getting drunk and throwing empty glass bottles into the water. Somebody called the RCMP. One of the officers was a bit overweight. Those young punks showed no respect at all. Instead they called him a ‘fat pig’ and other nice names. And there was nothing he could do about it. That would never have happened when I was young and where I grew up. Nobody would have dared to talk to an officer of the law in such a way. They would have thrown the book at a punk like that.

But that is today’s youth. No respect. I’m not saying all are like that. There are still plenty of young people who are smart enough to realize that rude behavior and disrespect is wrong and doesn’t get them far in life. As I said, much of the blame can be put on the parents. First of all they have to lead by being a good example. Unfortunately, many parents don’t behave any differently. How can you teach manners to a child if you don’t have any yourself?

I wouldn’t let my kid sit in a restaurant with his hoody pulled over his head, or wearing a baseball cap. Never mind having the shield facing sideways or toward the back. And I would not condone having their arms and neck disfigured with ugly tattoos or having a son of mine wearing rings in his ears, lips, or nose. Only a bull gets a ring in his nose.

I could go on, but I realize I’m ranting again. This was just supposed to be about remembering my dad. But in a way it is. Because some of what the taught me shaped my future and my outlook on life, and looking back, he did okay. I did okay. My children and my grandchildren will be doing okay also, because I tried to pass on what my father taught me.

I love you, Dad.