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Morning Show BlogThursday, May 17, 2012 Dan's 529
Get Ready, They're Coming!Orillia and all parts of Lake country are bracing for the start of the "tourist season". Tourism is a major part of the economy here. Those who come up from the concrete jungle at the bottom of the 400 are looking for some fresh air and a break from the rat race. They are easy to spot, they dress a little differently, are usually in a big hurry, and can be everything from a little impolite to downright rude, plus they bring all that big city angst and rat race mentality with them. Of course all tourists are not like that. We must forgive their sometimes less than ideal behavior, because they are only here for a vacation and when that vacation is over, they must return to the place where rudeness and boorish behavior meet at the interesection of no patience and fewer manners. I think it's partly a survival mechanism required to get thru each day in a big metroplis. I have lived both sides of the big city, small city coin and I much prefer things on the small city side. The key to tourism is to make those who visit feel welcome and comfortable and to provide them with an experience they will want to do again. That's all it is, and we have an abundance of that to offer so get ready, they're coming. They're coming to take our parking spots, fill up our restaurants, gas up at our marinas, stock up at our grocery stores, stay at our campgrounds and enjoy our festivals. Should you encounter one of them with that big city narcissistic attitude remember this, they are only here to get away from there, and eventually they'll have to go back. Now lets take a big breath and get ready for summer! Wednesday, May 16, 2012 Dan's 529
My Dog Tries His Paws On LineWe are all creatures of habit and routine. Of course some of us have bad habits, and routines that seem absurd to others around us, but as I like to say, different strokes for different folks. Our morning routine was thrown into chaos this morning when Leslie's alarm didn't go off. By the way we have 2 and both are battery powered so if one doesn't go we should still be ok, right? Wrong, when my alarm goes off, I simply shut it off because it's set to go after Leslie's, sort of a back-up. When Leslie's alarm goes off at 2, she gets up and the dogs follow her to the kitchen, where she puts on the coffee and then puts the dogs outside. They do their business, come back in, get their morning biscuits, then Leslie hit's the shower, about then I get up, grab a coffee and head down stairs to my bathroom. At that point Major heads back to his doggie bed and Lola goes down stairs to her kennel and waits for me to finish up in the bathroom for her coffee. Yes my coffee is part of her routine. She stays in the kennel till Leslie comes down with a couple of milkbones, when Major hears the Milkbone box in the kitchen, he comes out of the bedroom and heads downstairs to the kennel to join Lola. This morning because the routine was off, Lola stayed up stairs and Major went downstairs where I found him, in my office. He had turned on the computer, I kid you not, thank goodness he didn't know how to log on. So after work today we're getting new batteries for Leslie's alarm clock and I'm changing the password on the computer to kitty litter, he'll never figure that out! Tuesday, May 15, 2012 Dan's 529
Sentencing Another MonsterAnother sensational murder trial concludes today with the sentencing of Michael Rafferty. Rafferty was found guilty last Friday of first degree murder, kidnapping, and sexual assault causing bodily harm. He'll get 25 years with no parole and the family of the little girl he killed will get a chance to read impact statements at today's sentencing. Victoria Elizabeth Marie Stafford was a precocious eight year old walking home from school in Woodstock when she was snatched 3 years ago last month. 21 year old Terri-Lynne McClintic confessed to luring the little eight-year-old girl with the promise of seeing a puppy and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. She is serving life in prison. The trial lasted 10 weeks and lurid details that were never included in the actual trial were on display in the media. Rafferty and his twisted sidekick Mclintic will now experience some their own predatory medicine because even in prison there's a limit to what is acceptable, and killing little kids is right at the top of that list. So while the government spends thousands of dollars over the next 25 years feeding them and housing them, and helping them to rehabilitate, there is some cold comfort in knowing the inmate population will be waiting around every corner, every minute, every day for a chance to hand out some genuine punishment. Make no mistake even though we don't have capitol punishment, when kid killers go to jail they are for all intents and purposes on death row, exactly where they should be. Monday, May 14, 2012 Dan's 529
Charity ClarityFor just pennies you a day you can feed a child, make sure they have a safe place to sleep, clothes to wear and clean water to drink. We've all seen those heartbreaking pleas on TV. I have been tempted to pick up the phone and I feel guilty I haven't but you know something, I am suffering from charity fatigue. I am all tapped out. I like my dollars to be spent locally. I already support the Orillia SPCA, the local Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Soldiers Memorial Hospital, the Canadian Cancer Society and the Sharing Place food bank. I just don't seem to have enough to really support the United Way, World Vision, The Heart and Stroke Foundation, The Salvation Army, UNICEF, the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, Then there's breast cancer, prostate cancer, MS, ALS, the Red Cross, as a matter of fact there are about 80 thousand registered charities, employing 2 milllion Canadians. Almost half of all dollars donated go to religious organizations, yet the largest number of donations is given to health care organizations. There are companies who make alot of money from fundraising for charities. A good example of that are those big dream lotteries where you can win a house, cottage, or fancy car. We really shouldn't have to but the Better Business Bureau recommends you do you research before donating a charity. It's hardly worth donating a hunderd dollars if only 98 actually gets to the charity you want to help. Canadians gave over 8 billion dollars to charities last year, the question is, how much of that goes to the actual charity. It's up to you to find the answer. Friday, May 11, 2012 Dan's 529
A Close Call In ColdwaterHe's a guy that talks the talk and walks the walk. He works hard, has an infectious smile and does an awful lot for Simcoe County and yesterday we almost lost him. But we didn't and that's something to be thankful for. He was saved by something every house should have, a working smoke detector. He was taking an afternoon nap before a busy nite of appointments, I wondered why we didn't see him last at the official opening of the Port of Orillia. Too many times we've heard the tragic tale of Canadians taken from us too early because of a fire and it's usually smoke inhalation that's the cause of death. Well over half the time it's the smoke that kills. When I was a kid hardly anyone had smoke detectors and one nite the furnace caught fire while everyone was sleeping. It was about 2 in the morning and somebody driving by noticed smoke coming from the house and called the fire department, it was a pretty close call but if that person who called the fire department didn't drive by at the right moment and made the call, I still get an eeerie feeling today whenever I think about it. Today we don't need to rely on luck, or at least we shouldn't and although Garfield Dunlop may think he is lucky, it was that smoke detector that saved his life. There was quite a lot of damage to the house but he and his wife Jane will repair it, it's where they've called home in Coldwater for the last 35 years.
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