Another Set Of Stories

I am doing a bit more walking outside these days. Even a little bit more is a huge change from the fact that I did not do a single outside trip this entire winter. I just found it too cold to be honest.

Sure, in past years, winters were quite chilly but they seemed to warm up nicely several times for a few days. I immediately went outside and walked for as long as I could just get some exercise to help me overcome the problems that I had when I was recovering from my severe illness. Obviously then, it was disappointing for me to be forced to stay inside for so long.

I did have some alternatives though to help me get along.  I made it a definite task to make sure that every day I did my set of exercises before each meal. I also completed the exercises that I had learned before to keep me in good shape. Luckily as well, I took on a whole bunch of new exercises over the 12 week VON program. Putting it all together kept me in better shape.

One of the biggest issues that I have to tell you about, dear reader, is one of the negatives with exercising. I think that I may have written about this before. Nevertheless, I want you to know all about it again because it is very important. I am quite surprised in fact that I have not been told this by any of my exercise leaders in advance.

Just to let you know, right after you start exercising seriously, feeling stronger, and seem slimmer, you make a huge mistake as I did in going onto the weight scale. Why wouldn't you go on it you may wonder. When you do, you will find the answer! In fact, your weight has probably gone up a pound or two higher than it was before you started and you have not lost one single ounce. That was so distressing for me that I did not know what to do.

Just to tell you how extreme it was, I thought that I was eating too much and started cutting back on the food that I was having each day. That certainly did not help me out at all either.  In any event after a period of honest weight increase distress, I finally learned that I was in much better shape and that the extra weight was not "fat" but new muscles that I was building. I finally could relax and start eating back to normal again to feel better.

There, I hope I remember this next time I put on some weight without having more food. I hope that you will remember this as well when you start taking off some excess weight but put on lots of muscles.

Now let me tell you about some stories that I have seen recently.

FORD CANADA LUCKED OUT

I saw this in the news:

"Ford is basically giving up on US car business, and GM is not far behind" (Robert Ferris, CNBC, April 26, 2018) 

No, no, no… These 2 companies are not going bankrupt. Rather they are changing their business dramatically:

"Ford said Wednesday it will only offer two new cars in North America over the coming years — its iconic Mustang and the Focus Active, a rugged-looking hatchback that has already debuted in Europe, and somewhat resembles the Subaru Crosstrek or the Buick Regal TourX.

GM is moving along the same lines...

"Virtually eliminating Ford's NA car portfolio makes a lot of sense, in our view," said Adam Jonas, an analyst at Morgan Stanley. "No more Fusion. No more Focus. No more Fiesta. No more Taurus."

Whether this makes sense or not in the future, I have no idea. Sure people may want a different type of vehicle today but will they want to go back and drive cars tomorrow? What happens then?

Whatever it is that they may have to do later, today the car companies have to meet their market requirements. The changes will be very dramatic. They will have to manufacture the new style of vehicles that their customers want. They will have to meet the Government requirements to make sure that the vehicles run in a very environmentally friendly way and at a cost that most purchasers can still handle.

At least Canadian Ford employees should not be concerned that they might be losing their jobs very soon. It looks like they are in a very good position now especially after the latest negotiations in their union-company labour negotiations finished satisfactorily.  The employees are not really in the "car" business any longer:

"Ford’s decision to discontinue almost all of its car models in North America within two years will leave its Canadian operations intact, since they are focused mainly on sport utility vehicles and light trucks.

The car segment of automotive sales has been shrinking since 2012, while sales of sport utility vehicles have grown over the same period — a trend that’s expected to continue.

“So, we are focusing our efforts on vehicles customers prefer,” Ford Canada’s Lauren More said in an email Thursday." (Canadian Press, April 26, 2018) 

It should remain all right for Ford in Windsor hopefully. Here is what was said by Jerry Dias, national president of Unifor:

"Also, if I take a look at our Windsor engine plants . . . I think we should be all right there as well.”

Here we go again. A whole new business that needs to be dealt with right away especially in our area.

WHY CAN'T THEY RUN A BRIDGE PROPERLY

If you got stuck in a huge line-up trying to cross over the border between Windsor and Detroit a few days ago, then I am sure that you going to be blaming the Ambassador Bridge Company for being a crummy border operator. Can you imagine, they still want to be in control of a major crossing between Canada and United States and yet they had a huge backup at their bridge between the Canadian and American cities.

Or so you may think unless you read this story:

"Commercial vehicles were lined up leading to the Ambassador Bridge due to an issue at the border.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the bridge company Thursday they are experiencing some national system issues and are doing everything that they can to minimize the impacts." (CTV Windsor, April 26, 2018) 

It is not the first time that this has happened. Just for fun, dear reader, you might want to do your own Google search on Bridge traffic problems to see how many are caused by Government failures.

THIS ACTION SCARES ME DRASTICALLY

I certainly hope that you have read the story because I find it very troubling. I am certainly glad that I do not live near a nuclear plant. The consequences of something drastic happening are quite shocking. It would not surprise me to see people who have read the story and who happen to live in the area decide to sell and move away:

"The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit and the Town of Amherstburg will be starting Potassium Iodide pill distribution in the primary zone near the nuclear generating station...

In the very unlikely event of a nuclear emergency, KI pills would help to prevent the long term development of thyroid cancer." (CTV Windsor, April 26, 2018) 

Now it may be that people who live near plant know about this already. Here is why I say that. I saw it on this website https://preparetobesafe.ca/:

"About KI Pills

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) — the federal agency that monitors the safe operation of nuclear stations — now requires that all homes and businesses within 10 km of a nuclear power station receive a supply of potassium iodide (KI) pills. The pills have been available free of charge at select pharmacies, but will now be sent by mail due to increased safety standards.

In the very unlikely event of a nuclear emergency and a release of radioactive iodine to the public, KI pills will help prevent the development of thyroid cancer, and are especially effective at safeguarding children's thyroid glands. It is important for each household to have a supply of these pills because they are most effective if taken just before or soon after exposure to radioactive iodine.

The distribution of KI pills is not due to any change in the risk of a nuclear emergency and is not meant to cause alarm. We believe that staying safe means being prepared, even for the most unlikely of events."

Yet, I saw this which would suggest that this has not happened before in this area nearby us:

"If you live directly across Lake Erie from the Fermi nuclear power plant, you will be offered a pill that blocks radiation.

On Thursday, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit released details of the plan to educate residents of Amherstburg about potassium iodide pill distribution for those living in the 'primary zone' of the Enrico Fermi 2 Nuclear Generating Station in Michigan." (CBC News, April 26, 2018) 

I know nothing at all about this issue probably because I do not live near that plant. All I know is that someone is rather worried about it right now for some reason about which I know little. Here though is the reason it probably took so long to happen here:

"Town officials last year complained after Amherstburg had largely been left out of the Ontario government’s nuclear safety and emergency planning since Fermi II is located across the border." (Dave Battagello, Windsor Star, April 26, 2018) 

I have to admit that I wonder whether there are other risks about living near a nuclear station that need to be dealt with now, in advance. If so, I wonder when they will be exposed and what will be done to minimize them.

More Stories For You To Read

[Sigh] It is still cold outside. 

Oh I remember that I am not supposed to be writing so much about the weather these days, but I saw a story that said that our area probably won't see the real "spring" weather until early May. Now normally that would seem to take much too long. However, I remembered that fall took forever to end last year. It just seemed that leaves did not fall off the trees for a very long time so the late spring may not be all that surprising. Anyway, that is all that I will be talking about today about the weather.

There are lots of things for me to think about these days. Clearly, I have to get myself prepared for all those long walks that I am going to do. As you may recall, in the summertime when it is pleasant to walk outside, my wife and I will try to go out several times a day for a walk in total for over an hour. Oh sure, it is a bit tiring at first but it makes us both feel so much better as summer goes forward.

While I like to look summer-like with a nice suntan, I am also well aware that this can be dangerous because it can give rise to skin problems. It is not very pleasant completely covering up, especially in warm weather, but one has to be careful not getting a bad burn. I also have to admit that I don't like putting on suntan lotion all that much, but it is something that I will have to keep on doing whether I want to or not. One of the things that seems to make a lot more sense to do with this matter is to be careful where one walks in the first place. As an example, in the morning, we walk in an area where the trees block a good part of the street with their leaves so that the sunshine does not fall through.  That means our risk of being sunburned is reduced significantly. Accordingly, another of our tasks is to find good routes to walk to eliminate potential skin issues.

Fortunately, our condominium complex has a nice swimming pool where we can go. I have to admit that I do not do a lot of swimming these days. In fact, last year, I did not go at all because the summer temperatures were not all that high I felt to make swimming desirable. After all, I like very warm water! I am hoping that this year changes with warmer weather so that I can do a bit of swimming this year to allow me to exercise to help myself feel better. Even if I cannot do a lot of swimming, I would also like to be able to suntan myself better by staying at the pool and getting the right amount of sun on me. That is something about which I will make sure that I am careful.

Just one other matter that I wish to discuss.  Perhaps this year we will take some trips out of town to take a look at a lot of different locations.  Yes, I'd like to see what some of the towns look like just by walking around them.  Who knows, perhaps we might have a lunch in one of the places or just enjoy an afternoon tea to make our trip a very pleasant one.  This would be quite an accomplishment for me since it would be the first time since I was very ill for me to take any kind of a trip away from my home.  It would be an accomplishment for me because it would give me confidence that I have recovered quite well from the horrible situation that jeopardized me so much.

As you can see, dear reader, I am looking forward to a wonderful summer this year.  I would love to be able to accomplish something so exciting now to feel that I am doing very well from a personal perspective.  So come on, warm weather.  Get over here already and warm up the area to make this one of our best summers forever.

Here are some stories that I hope will keep you interested about some interesting matters.

UNEMPLOYMENT ROSE AGAIN

The Windsor Star reporter made this comment about the increase in unemployment.  As you know, the percentage rate of unemployment went up from 4.9% to 5.2%:

"Windsor's unemployment rate inches up to 5.2%

Windsor’s unemployment rate crept up in March but remained below the national average." (Dave Battagello, WindsorStar, April 6, 2018) 

Sure it's not too big an unemployment rate compared with how it was in the past.  However, if you do a bit of math, you will find out that percentage increase in the unemployment rate was about 6.1%.  That is a quite a big step in my opinion which I hope does not happen again.

OUR NEW TRAIN TRACKS

Finally, an "official" announcement has been made.  Frankly, it does not say very much.  Rather, in my opinion, it is nothing more than to help out the Liberal Government in Ontario get some Queen's Park seats at the next election which is coming up shortly:

"Premier Kathleen Wynne says a high speed rail line is on track to carry passengers between London and Toronto by 2025 with the help of an $11 billion investment from the province.

It’s the single biggest investment in the Liberal government’s 2018 Budget, Wynne emphasized." (Liny Lamberink, 980 CFPL,April 6, 2018) 

Well, here is an interesting matter in this that should be considered by any elector with respect to the spending of the money:

"The project’s environmental assessment and related planning and design work are well underway, and are expected to take three years, said the Premier."

Oh, it really is not going to be a lot of spending for the next 3 years at all.  In fact, it would not surprise me if this time period took an extra year to complete which would bring this matter close the next provincial election.  The Government at that time should be able to make all kinds of announcements about the project starting that should get them good publicity to help get them elected at that time as well.

Again, I felt that this line was rather hilarious because it confirms again to me that nothing will be built west of London:

"Phase two will eventually extend south to Windsor, with a stop in Chatham."

I wonder when "eventuality" will actually start since no timeframe was set out in the newspaper article.  In other words, no excuse yet not to vote for the Liberals here since they are still committing to build a new rail line to this part of the province.

MICHIGAN CENTRAL STATION PROJECT

I sure hope that the Michigan Central Station project does go forward soon.  I am not going to say what I think the best approach is going to be.  In other words, it does not matter to me whether the Moroun Family sells out its interest in the property completely or whether it still maintains ownership but leases it out for a very long period of time to Ford or some other organization for their usage.  It just has to happen already!

Here is what was said many years ago about the difficulties around this project:

"Mr. [Mickey] Blashfield said his company was not interested in demolition, but needed an anchor tenant or at least “a critical mass” of businesses or government agencies before it could pay for any renovation. And that is the hard part; grand and varied plans have been proposed over the years, with none coming to fruition." (Susan Saulny, NewYork Times, March 5, 2010) 

The history of this building is an interesting one.  Take a look at this article by Dan Austin of HistoricDetroit.org and especially these specific comments:

"In 1995, Controlled Terminals Inc. of Detroit acquired the building, by then already hit hard by scrappers, and erected a razor wire fence, but the building has been far from impenetrable. The company is owned by billionaire Manuel “Matty” Moroun, who also owns the Ambassador Bridge and a network of trucking companies. He bought it with the idea that it might hold future value with his rail yard...

“I hate being associated with that,” Moroun told the Detroit News in December 2008, said of MCS. “What the hell am I supposed to do with it? I can’t sell it, and I won’t give it away for a dollar. I can’t redevelop it. Who would want to go in there? Nobody. There’s no reason. That’s throwing money to the wind. Can’t tear it down, it’s an historic landmark...

Still, the Moroun family has spent a decent chunk of change in recent years cleaning the depot up, doing asbestos remediation and adding landscaping and architectural lighting. Seeing it lit up at night is truly a breathtaking sight. It instills hope for both the city, and for saving this architectural marvel.”

Given what is going on now, are people in Detroit hopeful that a deal will finally take place?  Or will this just be more talk about a wonderful project that might happen, as in the past, resulting in another failure at the end?

We will just have to wait and see.

Just Keeping Busy

I really enjoy being a writer. It provides me with a wonderful opportunity to let people know about matters that interest me. Of course, this does not mean that my position is exactly the same as that of my readers but that's okay. I just am pleased letting people know how I feel about different subjects.

Right now, let me write a few stories about matters that are of interest to me. I hope you enjoy reading them.

MARRA NOT RUNNING

How sad.  

Bill Marra is not running again for Council whether it is being elected as a Councillor or even as the Mayor for the City of Windsor. Although this may be a disadvantage for Windsor, I believe that this is a wonderful experience for his family!

I do not think it is necessary for me to write a very long and detailed article about Bill. I have no desire to do so anyway. I just want you to know, dear reader, that I have dealt with him for a considerable number of years on City matters and, more importantly, other issues. What we have talked about has always been very helpful as far as I am concerned.

It is a shame to be quite honest that he is not running to become Mayor of Windsor. I think that he would be a wonderful person to be in charge of this City and I think he would help make it prosper quite well.

If you want to understand the political importance of Bill, then just read this small line in the Windsor Star story about him:

"Dilkens has yet to announce whether he’ll seek re-election, but Marra’s decision leaves the route largely free of obstacles." (Brian Cross, WindsorStar, April 23, 2018) politics

It just tells you how powerful Bill has become in Windsor!

HOW BAD WINDSOR'S NEW HOSPITAL WOULD BE

I just don't understand how the Province could build a new Hospital in Windsor. Isn't it supposed to be a 500 bed hospital?  I frankly do not understand how it could be even considered to be that small with a bigger population expected when it is being constructed. What is the total number of beds in our existing 2 hospitals? Could it be around that size now or perhaps even slightly larger than that? What would happen in the future when the population grows?

I just saw this very interesting story about London, Ontario and the hospital there. It really makes me quite nervous about the future for a new hospital in Windsor which I think is going to be too small for this region.

Here is what was said:

"After years of being squeezed by Ontario’s government, London’s largest hospital is so chronically short of funded beds it’s created rules for moving patients into hallways for treatment.

The new “hallway transfer protocol” will take effect May 1.

“(Too often) there is a state of total congestion in our (emergency departments),” Julie Trpkovski, a vice president at London Health Sciences Centre, told The Free Press Friday." (Jonathan Sher, WindsorStar, April 23, 2018) 

Frankly, expect this mess in Windsor even with our new hospital constructed. Or perhaps something even worse if it only is a 500 bed hospital when our population is larger:

"While it may seem shocking that the London hospital has been forced to make hallway medicine part of what it routinely does, other Ontario hospitals have been forces to do so too. “(London Health Sciences Centre) is not the only hospital (affected by gridlock). We’re seeing more and more of this because our system is stretched from a capacity perspective,"

Here is truly how disgusting the situation will become in our area in the future with only one 500 bed hospital when it is so bad even now:

"The new protocol by LHSC doesn’t limit patients to rooms and hallways. Staff will be allowed to place a patient anywhere that can accommodate a bed, or a stretcher will be used, so long as it is deemed safe and doesn’t impede the necessary movement of people or equipment. Off-limit places include stairwells, in front of exit doors and near potentially hazardous items such as oxygen tanks, according to the protocol, a copy of which was obtained by The Free Press."

As far as I am concerned, our 2 hospitals in the Windsor area ought not to be replaced by just one hospital in total but rather should be built up to meet the needs and the increasing population for this area. In addition, it may well be that there is a need for a 3rd hospital because, after all, we had more hospitals at one time in this area. We probably need another higher number again!

CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS RESULT

Considering what may happen, and assuming that he is elected, Windsor's Councillor,  Rino Bortolin, who is running for the Provincial Liberals for a Queen's Park seat in Windsor might become the head of the Party at least in the Legislature in Toronto!

Here is a most absurd prediction of what could take place in the next Provincial election which, in fact, might happen:

"PC Super-majority on the Horizon 

If an election were held today, we project a PC majority government with 94 seats.

The NDP would serve as official opposition with 23 seats, while the Liberals would secure only 7 seats, one too few for party status in Ontario’s legislature." (Forum Research, April 20, 2018) 

Who knows, the Councillor might feel he might lose too and might now think about another alternative.  How about him running for Windsor Mayor later instead of just being a mere Councillor again. 

It could be a problem for him as an elected Liberal if the election turned out that badly with so few seats.  Just to repeat what was said above: 

"one too few [seats] for party status in Ontario’s legislature" 

No prestige for him then.

A Few More Stories For You To Read

I want to get something out of my system. I had the need to buy some articles that I required but had a lot of trouble trying to find them in a store around this area where I could do so. To be direct, I just could not find the products I was looking for at all. That made no sense to me. Moreover, it was quite annoying because I knew what I wanted and had been able to buy them in a local store before.

I have to admit that it seems to me that we are all going to be experiencing something similar as time goes on. We just seem to be having fewer retail stores out there and the ones that do sell to the public do not seem to carry as big a supply of products that stores did in the past.

It is not very exciting to me to go to some store website online to look for a product to purchase. Oh sure, a proper photograph and description of the product may make it appear to be extremely wonderful to buy. However, once it is delivered to you, then you might not be all that happy to receive something that is not as good as what you thought it was. Moreover, isn't it better to be able to actually touch the product and to hold it in your hands to make sure that it really is something that you want to buy before you take out your money to do so. I would think so.

Fortunately, this time I was able to find the products that I was interested in buying at online places of purchase. It is quite easy to do so because one can post the name and/or description of the product and the search tool points out the websites where one can go look at the product. Of course, one can go to a number of different "stores" so much easier and quicker than if one was actually going from place to place "physically."

The sellers moreover were legitimate ones that I had dealt with before and would be prepared to take back products that were not acceptable and return my money. As well, it is quite easy to find a place to purchase the product since one could tell the purchase price for each of the sellers very easily. In my case this time, the product prices were quite low since they were on sale at very nice discounts at the places where I wanted to buy them.  They should be here according to the delivery timetable that I received within the next week or so. That is a pretty good time frame as well.

Like it or not, dear reader, this is a system that you and I will have to learn how to deal with, especially because so many retail stores seem to be going out of business.

Of course, this Blogsite is also important for you, dear reader. It is now the way I expect that you will be looking at stories in the future about matters that may interest you from writers that you enjoy reading. Here are some for you to enjoy reading now.

AN ARTISTIC PRACTICE

This gentleman has made his practice as an artist a very difficult one for himself. One that could cost him a lot of money if he is charged and convicted of an offence:

"This man painted a bridge to spark a conversation about public art" (Chris Ensing, CBC News, April 9, 2018) 

What he did was paint a CP rail bridge on the overpass at Walker Road and Grand Marais.  It seems to me that he may have known that what he did was illegal:

"Mendoza's colours could come with a fine of up to $5,000, according to the Graffiti Control Act.

"Is it worth it? Absolutely it's worth it because I am starting the conversation," said Mendoza, who thinks it cost about $200 to put together the piece.

"It makes people reconsider: maybe this is illegal right now, but maybe we should reconsider what we're doing with our empty spaces."

It would be very interesting for me to know what my readers think about what was done. Should this gentleman be prosecuted and be forced to pay up as big a fine as possible for acting in an improper manner because, after all, he knew about it? On the other hand should he be treated in a different manner completely and not be prosecuted at all or, be prosecuted and found liable but not be punished at all because what he did may have good reason about it?

It should be interesting to see what the police do given this comment:

"On cases like that we're very complaint-driven and if we do get any complaints they are investigated," said Staff Sgt. Steve Betteridge, when asked about potential charges related to this.

He said it would likely be investigated as mischief or property damage."

Has anyone acted to get the police involved by now? Presumably, yes considering what happened. If so, it will be interesting to know who filed a complaint.

"Artist reacts after his illegal splash of colour on Windsor bridge is painted over

CP Rail said the act was illegal and dangerous but will not comment on possible charges (CBC News, April 12, 2018) 

A rail bridge that crosses Walker Road has lost its colour after the artist who painted it went public about his work to spark a conversation about art in public places.

Eugenio Mendoza said the bridge was painted brown within 24 hours of sharing his story with CBC News on Monday."

It should be interesting to see if any charges will be laid and, if so, what will happen if he is prosecuted based on what he said:

"Was it worth it? Absolutely. Would I do it over again? Absolutely," said Mendoza."

EMPLOYMENT IN OUR AREA

It really would be worthwhile for someone to provide some good information about the unemployment situation in our area. On its face, we seem to be doing very well here with respect to people finding jobs and not being unemployed any longer. Yet, some people makes comments that are disturbing given the success that seems to be going on.

Here is what I mean:

"Justin Falconer, who leads the Local Employment Planning Council for Workforce WindsorEssex, said the area has been hovering for months near the five per cent unemployment mark that economists consider full employment.

 “The job market remains hot in Windsor Essex,” Falconer said. “Typically, we’re seeing 2,500 job vacancies each month.” (Dave Waddell, Windsor Star, April 12, 2018) 

Yet, Mr. Falconer also made this comment which is quite depressing:

"However, Falconer said there remains a significant number of people who aren’t participating in the workforce.

“We’ve got jobs with no people and people with no jobs,” Falconer said. “We’re trying to dig into that and find out why.

“We’ve got to try and get more of these people back into the workforce.”

Could this job's issue be due to the fact that people have not yet been trained to carry out the various tasks that will have to be done? I think that is probably one of the main reasons. Take a look at this article written by Dave Battagello of the Windsor Star on April 13, 2018.   In it, you will note how efforts are made to make sure that there are people around who have the skills required. That should help people get back into the workforce:

"Want a job building the Gordie Howe International Bridge? Become a heavy equipment operator, fleet mechanic, iron worker or welder, says Workforce WindsorEssex...

“To some extent it’s getting a bit late to get into a program and graduate,” said Justin Falconer, senior manager at Workforce WindsorEssex. “But through apprenticeships there will definitely be a lot of people getting involved with bridge work...

Hundreds of direct and indirect jobs will be created on each side of the border once the project kicks into gear.”

Here though is something interesting that you may want to consider, dear reader. What happens if the Governments never build their bridge? Does it mean that all of this is for nothing because people will not get a job? Of course not. Just remember that the Companies who build the 2nd Ambassador Bridge will need people to complete the jobs.

In the end, once the Governments and the Bridge Company resolve their problems and decide to work together, expect them to work together to get people trained to complete the tasks required.

Why I Write The Way I Do

Quite often, when I am writing my Blogs, I have the need to find some material to start off my Blog articles.  My intention has been to make personal the beginning of my written piece involving matters that impact me and which you might find of interest to you as well.

Naturally, if you don't like that kind of written material, all you need to do is pass it by and start reading my comments further down in the material on various matters about which I want to let you know. That is the more traditional type of writing that I used to do before and which I do in the rest of my Blog.

I do try to write about matters at the beginning that I think are useful, to me at least. They may seem rather small in importance in what I am discussing otherwise but you should understand me as well by now.  Even though they are something that happened in my life, these matters have a much broader outlook as far as I am concerned. I feel that they may be of interest to you as well whether it is because of what you are doing in life or someone whom you know.

One of the things I do like to point out is all of the generous actions that people have taken to help me since I have been so ill. What is so wonderful about it is how much others have tried for so long to make sure that I am well.

It was something that I started thinking about also. Based on how well my life has become, it is now something I do try to do when I start writing. Sometimes, especially if I think it is an issue for others, I let readers know what has caused me a problem and what I have done to try and eliminate it. Other times, I am happy to let you know what has pleased me so that you might enjoy a similar experience as well.

Anyway, dear reader, I have explained a little bit about my writing style in this Blog. Now I had better start writing some stories about why you come here.

IS THERE A "NEW" CHINA NOW

I really know very little about China even with lots of stories in the press these days.  For how many years has it really been closed off to the public in this part of the world.

What I am seeing now is quite a surprise to me.  I must admit that I hardly ever heard before about this gentleman at all. I am referring to this man as set out in Wikipedia:

"Xi Jinping is a Chinese politician currently serving as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, President of the People's Republic of China, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. As Xi holds the top offices of the party, the state, and the military, he is sometimes referred to as China's "paramount leader"; in 2016, the party officially gave him the title of "core" leader."

Here is one of the big issues that he is trying to achieve in China:

"China's ruling Communist Party has proposed scrapping term limits for the country's president, the official news agency said Sunday, appearing to lay the groundwork for party leader Xi Jinping to rule as president beyond 2023

The party's Central Committee proposed to remove from the constitution the expression that China's president and vice president "shall serve no more than two consecutive terms," the Xinhua News Agency said." (CBS, February 25, 2018) 

He interested me recently in this article that I read in CNBC on April 9, 2018: "China's Xi announces plans to 'open' China, including lowering tariffs on imported autos" (Everett Rosenfeld, HuilengTan, CNBC, April 9, 2018 ) 

I am not going to quote very much of this article but suggest you go and read it yourself as soon as you can. What interested me so much is the way he wants to see the Chinese Government operating. Here are just a few matters that seem quite positive to me considering the Chinese Communist background:

-open up the Chinese economy

-lowering import tariffs for autos, decreasing duties on other products, enforcing the legal intellectual property of foreign firms and improving the investment environment for international companies

-countries should "stay committed to openness, connectivity and mutual benefits, build an open global economy, and reinforce cooperation within the G-20, APEC and other multilateral frameworks

-encourage normal technological exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and foreign enterprises and protect the lawful [intellectual property] owned by foreign enterprises in China.

I will let you consider, dear reader, what you think the result of these offerings would be if in fact arrangements were made between China and many of the Western countries involved including the United States and Canada.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if fantastic arrangements were entered into between China and all these other countries! Should we consider it to be a wonderful opportunity that absolutely must be followed? Well, perhaps we should. However, based on my own education in school, I remember this which happened many years ago involving Russia and Western countries:

"The gradual accession of Stalin to power in the 1920s eventually brought an end to the liberalization of society and the economy, leading instead to a period of unprecedented government control, mobilization, and terrorization of society in Russia and the other Soviet republics. In the 1930s, agriculture and industry underwent brutal forced centralization, and Russian cultural activity was highly restricted. Purges eliminated thousands of individuals deemed dangerous to the Soviet state by Stalin's operatives." (Glenn E. Curtis, Russia: ACountry Study,  GPO for the Library of Congress, 1996) 

Hmm.  Could that be what was planned in China and what might happen in the future to any "free" economy that might be set up today!

IS THE HOUSE MARKET NOW FINISHED

I saw this story which is rather troubling about the house market in our area:

"Residential house sales were down 25.21% in March, compared to the same time one year ago according to the Windsor-Essex County Association of Realtors...

Home sales for the year are also down  compared to last year with 1,145 sold for the first three months, compared to 1,522 for the first three months of 2017." (Liz Thorne, Windsorite.ca, April 9th, 2018)

Here is a good graph that shows you what this looks like

Here is what is very interesting. It is something that is hard to understand I would think but it is what happened.  The average sales price of a house in March increased by 7.31% while it increased in year-to-date by 11.82%.

HAS THE NUMBER OF BRIDGE BIDDERS BEEN REDUCED 

All that I am going to tell you is to follow the stories to see whether the number of bidders for the proposed Government bridge between Windsor and Detroit has to be reduced and quickly.  Or, will Canada be afraid to do so because it might hurt its relationship with China when China seems to want to do more dealing with Western countries.

There is a reason for it:

"A company that’s involved in bidding on the Gordie Howe Bridge has come under scrutiny for its ties to a Chinese conglomerate.

Questions are being raised about whether Aecon, one of the three short-listed consortiums vying to build the new crossing between Windsor and Detroit, should remain as a bidder on the Gordie Howe International Bridge project since it is in the midst of a takeover by a Chinese conglomerate." (DaveBattagello, Windsor Star, April 9, 2018) 

It will be tough to be a Government official who has to make a decision in this case as you can see here:

"I won’t speak to speculation regarding a possible change in members in any of the short-listed proponents’ teams,” said Mark Butler, spokesman for the bridge authority."

Some Photos I took

Please excuse me, dear reader, but I just have to post several pictures that I took early this morning.

No, I am not a great photographer but I do like to take photos of matters that interest me.

I just happened to look out early this morning in my back area and saw what happened to the small tree here. It got completely iced up as a result of the change in weather in this area. The rain that fell on it was completely frozen and a large and smooth covering of ice completely became part of. It absolutely looked magnificent.

Believe it or not, I have never seen an iced tree before. The way it looked just stunned me. I just took a few photographs and thought that I would post them for you to take a look at as well.  

Of course, as the day wore on and the temperature increased slightly as the rain started falling, the ice melted and completely disappeared.

Here are the pics:

The bush in my backyard but there is something strange about it

What? Could that be ice? Frozen on the bush?

It sure is ICE!!!! Frozen on the bush. 

It is the FIRST time I have ever seen this and been able to take photos of it

Staying Inside Even More

I am sure that you know by now that this is been a very difficult winter and early spring for me. I am not going to write a lot about it again because I have written about this subject quite a few times already over the last few months.

It is now mid-April and it still does not seem like this winter is going away quickly this year. I looked at the weather forecasting recently and it showed rather cool temperatures until early May when it is to get a bit warmer. Even then, I am not so sure that I will want to go out for long walks as I have done in the last few years. Before I do so, I just want to be able to enjoy my walks as I look around and see the flowers starting to grow.

As I am sure that you understand, dear reader, my life is so much different now. I certainly do not have the need to be a "worker." I have been employed for so many years before. Moreover, my illness, from which I have made quite a recovery, still has made it somewhat difficult for me to carry on the way I did, even relatively recently. Accordingly, I have been required to look at everything going around in my life in order to stay well. I have done so and honestly have enjoyed what I have found and carried on these days.  Sure it is a lot different, but I have learned how to change my life to deal with it.

Perhaps you do not find what I am writing about on this particular matter all that interesting, dear reader. That of course is not a big surprise for me. However, I do like talking about it quite a bit because I am hopeful that what I am writing about will help you if you ever get into my kind of condition one day. 

Now, let me talk about some of the interesting stories that I have seen recently.

NEW WINDSOR TAX HEIGHT

Oh my, the taxes have gone up a lot higher than expected for homeowners:

"What was announced in January as a tax increase of just under one per cent, when council approved Windsor’s 2018 budget, has almost doubled for homeowners.

Thanks to a redistribution of taxes approved by council Monday night, the 0.9 per cent increase jumped to 1.7 per cent for residential property owners." (Brian Cross, Windsor Star, March 27, 2018) 

The reason for this is the following:

"Under pressure from the province, council agreed to reduce the tax rate for apartment buildings (classified as multi-residential properties), which means owners of other types of properties have to pick up the slack."

It will be interesting to see what landlords do. Will they reduce the tax rate for their tenants, and the money to be received from them, or will they somehow just leave it at the same amount even though their tax rates will be reduced?  They can probably make the argument about how much money they lost over the past years and it only would be fair for them to make it up for today.

HOW TO FORCE MOROUN TO ACT FAVOURABLY

It really is quite funny. I am sure that this is a technique being used by the newspaper writer in the US to get the Moroun Family to do what he wants. Clearly, he wants them to sell immediately the Michigan Central train station to start up a major project in Detroit.

His column is designed to force them into doing so and in the way that he and others want them to act or else to be afraid if they have any reason whatsoever for not doing so:

"I’ve long argued that as long as this ghoulish edifice sits there empty and blighted, Detroit’s comeback will remain uncertain. It is by far the toughest redevelopment challenge.

Bringing the train station down or bringing it back to life will be the signature event in the city’s turnaround, proof that this revival has reached the point of inevitability, and that from here on nothing is impossible.

It will also signal Detroit has stopped clinging to its past, stopped revering the obsolete remainders of an era that will never return, and is focused instead on building a city that makes sense for its future." (Nolan Finley, Detroit News, March 31, 2018) 

Strange, isn't it. The new technique is now to focus on this building rather than the 2nd Ambassador Bridge. This seems to be huge big issue perhaps because the Moroun opponents know that they have already won the rebuilding of the Ambassador Bridge. Here again is what the writer wrote:

"If this plan doesn’t come to fruition, if the Morouns refuse to cooperate, it should be the end of the line for Michigan Central. Detroit has reached the point where it can no longer tolerate speculators holding onto decrepit structures that hold back the city’s progress.

If the Morouns won’t sell, and if they won’t rehab Michigan Central themselves, the city should use its building code to make their obstinance very expensive. Paper it with violation tickets."

Nothing like putting pressure on them to do what other people want them to do with respect to the rebuilding in Detroit. 

I wonder what will really happen. Will the Moroun family still remain involved with the old building or will they sell it at a very nice amount of money after holding on to it for so many years.  One thing that has to be remembered about them is that they are not in the same real estate business the way other developers have been acting. They are prepared to buy property in an area that they think will be valuable one day and hold onto it as an investment for as long as it takes to do so.  They have held this real estate property on now for over 20 years, so it should be interesting to see what they do shortly and how much money they make.

WHO WOULD VOTE LIBERAL IN WINDSOR NOW

It really does not make sense at all if one lives in Windsor as far as I am concerned. I hardly think that this is going to make people who are going to vote be friendly with the Liberal Government and re-elect them.

Here is what I mean:

"Windsor area sees scant funding for roadways in 2018 Liberal budget" (Julie Kotsis, Windsor Star, March 29, 2018) 

If that happens, does anyone really expect the Liberal Government to arrange for a new road to be built between here and Toronto or to even have a new Hospital built here. I sure don't. All that I see happening is a nice political game that is being played to try to get votes for the Government before the election to help them win majority seats. They would try to get these votes without changing their plans on these 2 complexes until after it is all over with them as the victors.