Thursday Tidbits
Posted on August 5, 2021 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet
Inverness Beach. August 3, 2021
Warning: I’m tired and cranky. Incoming rant.
Things are finally opening up across Canada. After many, many months of hibernation, we are finally able to come out of our caves, meet friends and family, go out to dinner and (gasp) actually hug someone we love. We can go to a dance (for those who don’t have two left feet like me!), attend a wedding or a reunion and finally get to grieve the loss of a loved one properly by attending a wake or funeral. Yes, things are indeed looking up and despite my eternal optimism, I see a few dark clouds.
What could possibly spoil a summer of beer and lobsters? An election. No, two elections. We are in the throes of a provincial election in Nova Scotia, and it appears that we are only a few days away from a federal election. This rhymes with another word that I was soooo tempted to use!
Would you rather have a root canal, suffer from dengue fever, have a tic embedded in your arse or suffer through endless loops of empty promises by provincial and federal candidates? I mean no disrespect to those seeking office. It is honorable that you would dare put your name forward in these hostile political times.
History will record these events as the pandemic elections. Politicians of all stripes, federally and provincially, are banking of the warm fuzzies of coming through the Covid 19 crisis in pretty good shape. They are hoping that all we will remember are the soothing press conferences of chief medical officers and politicians followed by analysis of infectious disease specialist. Isaac Bogoch could probably become Prime Minister if he chose to, but he is too smart to do that.
I also believe that most sensible and informed politicians (is that an oxymoron?) know damn well that this opening up of the economy is a temporary reprieve before we’re hit with a fourth wave. They know that respite care for weary Canadians is essential after 18 torturous months. They also know that by relaxing restrictions, it is only a matter of time before those nasty variants rear their ugly heads in large numbers. I hope I’m wrong but if we let Jason Kenny and the likes of Mad Max Bernier have their way, the pile of manure out behind the barn will look like cotton candy.
You see, Maxime Bernier, the leader of a federal political party (PPC) refuses to get vaccinated. Pandemic leadership at its finest. And cowboy Jason Kenny has let all the horses out of the barn and left the doors wide open. Should you be an Albertan, you have the luxury of getting Covid 19 without having to self- isolate. And forget about those pesky contact tracers. The wild west lives again. Secretly, I think Jason and the Gang (sounds like a disco group), want to become the 51st state south of the border.
Why are you so cranky and cynical today, Len?
As I mentioned in my opening, I am tired as I write this piece, but it is a good tired. Is there such a thing??? For the second time in 7 days, I have circumnavigated the Cabot Trail… by car! If you are new to my website, you might not get the inside joke. Two summers ago, I walked the Cabot Trail, all 300 kilometers of it. I am very happy to report that the easing of restrictions across the country can be seen on the Trail. Last week, there was very little traffic, and the restaurants, motels and gift shops were virtual ghost towns. The switch was flipped this week and things almost looks normal. The restaurants were busy, there were tons of vehicles on the road, and the beaches were filled with giddy sunbathers and swimmers.
The latest tour with family members was a marathon 16.5-hour affair. The weather was outstanding, and we got to see just about everything that we had hoped to see. We were mildly disappointed that the entrance to Mary Ann Falls was blocked off. I was hoping to get in there to retrieve the car keys that I lost 40 years ago, that sit on the bottom of a deep swimming hole at the falls.
Even though fatigue was setting in, we were determined to get to the final item of our “must see” list. We arrived at Inverness Beach (pictured above) about an hour before sunset. The sky was absolutely electric. While the others swam or walked the beach, I stayed in one spot, utterly transfixed and mesmerized by the changing skyscape. I kept taking pictures every minute or so and no two looked the same. It was the proverbial icing on the cake to a wonderful day.
Sorry to all my political friends running for office.
I didn’t mean to take a jab at you!
Have a great weekend.
P.S. Just a reminder that my four children (The MacDonald Family) will be performing at Piper’s Pub tomorrow evening (August 6th) from 6-9 p.m. There is no admission. Come and have a beer and a bite and enjoy some old classics. Hell, if you sit with me, you’ll be sitting with an old classic!
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