Monday, April 18, 2016

Is Summer Coming Soon

Wow, maybe as high as 80F today.  It's only April.  Incredible!

I saw this on "theweathernetwork" website. It is absolutely amazing: 

"Wednesday, April 13, 2016, 6:48 AM - Congratulations, Ontario: You’ve made it through yet another winter.  

With the early April snowfall melted into a distant memory, temperatures will be on the up and up once more across the province through this weekend, resulting in a return to double-digit temperatures and those sunny blue skies that we all love. 

Ontario-wide, daytime high temperatures are forecast to be in the 10-20oC range Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with abundant sunshine and generally light winds – a stark contrast to the first two weekends of the month." (Brett Soderholm, Meteorologist, The Weather Network, April 13,2016) 

Except, this could apply in our area in the near-term, especially where I live now: 

"If you find yourself close to one of the Great Lakes this weekend, you may find it significantly cooler than you’d expect, with a brisk wind coming off the lake during the day. This phenomenon is known as a lake-breeze, and is particularly common in springtime and early summer." 

From 14 April and going forward, our temperature will always be in the 2 digit range according to some forecasts I have seen. Forget any snow falls. And while it may rain and be cloudy on some days according to the weather forecasts I have seen, the temperature should also rise into the low 20Cs.  How nice that will be!

I have to admit that I did enjoy the winter this year but it was getting tiring for me to see the temperatures so low for so long into the spring. Thank goodness we did not get very much snow throughout our winter season, however I'm also very glad that our temperatures are going to be rising so much higher very soon. 

Given my condition after my horrible medical experience and recovery I went through for most of 2015, I'm very happy about the winter this year. Last year, because of my recuperation from my hospital stay and my disease, I really was unable to go outside until almost the end of April and early May because I had so much difficulty in walking. Even though I can walk a lot now, I am so pleased that we did not see very much snow falling this year in wintertime. As you may remember, my wife, Marsha, and I moved into a Tecumseh Condo where we have an outside snow cleaning service that did very well in cleaning up when it actually did snow here. 

That low snowfall was the prediction that I saw before the winter started. However, I think the temperatures were actually quite low for a large part of our season even though we also had a very high temperatures during several time periods, almost spring-like. That made it difficult for me to go outside for a walk.

Fingers crossed from a medical point of view because, so far at least, I did not suffer any illnesses during our winter. I was very careful how I dressed and when I actually went outside even when it was just to take a short walk.  It was very chilly here. Of course, there were many days regardless of temperature when we had to do shopping but because of our ability to drive to the facility fairly easily from our condo unit and just to be outside for a very short period of time to load and then unload our vehicle with our groceries, I did not pick up any illnesses because of that.   

The only significant change I made with my clothing over the winter was buying a new hat that I pointed out previously in one of my Blogs. It covered a good part of my face and my ears very well. I was happy that I had it but I only wore it a relatively few times over the past winter because I chose not to go out in the coldest of days. In the days that I did go out, I could manage the temperatures so I did not need the big, bulky hat.

I certainly expect to have a good time in the spring and then the summer. Oh sure, I expect to repeat my summer season last year when I was able to walk around for almost several hours per day. That put me into one of the best physical conditions I ever had in my life which I absolutely want to continue to have. The warmer temperature makes it so much easier to spend so much time walking around on the outside in the area. It is just so much fun to look at everything as my wife and I walk around the neighbourhood. 

Of course, I won't have to do very much of the flower gardening or grass cutting around my unit because it is covered by the service that our Board arranges to look after for our condo properties. It means absolutely no need for me to have a lawnmower for grass cutting! However, I expect that I will be allowed to water the grass a few times on my own when it is needed. I did do that last summer. I might also be able to fill up some containers with flowers and still comply with the regulations that are the rules of our Condo Corporation. Who knows, I might even be allowed to trim some of the condo flowers to make sure that they are wonderful to look but of course I will have to get the permission from the Condo gardeners for that one.

We have a freezer nicely filled with food, fish and meat especially, that we will barbecue once the outside temperatures get a little bit higher. Again, it is a way that I like to live in the warmer temperatures and I just know that I'm going to be the "chef" again for a good part of the late spring and summer time periods. Of course, I'll be very careful what I do eat to ensure that my weight does not increase and that I do not eat the wrong foods.  What I experienced the few times that I did barbecue last year was so much fun that I expect to do a lot of it this year. I expect that a number of my neighbours will get invited over to enjoy some of my BBQ cooking. I'm not so bad at it! 

I'm looking forward to a warm spring and a hot summer. Of course, I'll be calling our furnace people to come over to make sure that everything will work properly in the summertime. Even though we did not use the air conditioner a lot last year, I have to make sure that it works when needed. We have an interesting location it seems to protect our house quite a bit even when the temperature outside goes very high. Last year, we barely had to turn on the air conditioner except for a few times when it was very warm outside. Let's hope that it is the same way again this year. 

Of course, I have to make sure that I have the proper sized bathing suit since, with the hot weather, I expect that I will be doing a lot of swimming this year. Last year, I really didn't do any because I did not feel that I would be able to do so because I was recovering from the physical problems I had at the time. Now, I expect that they are gone and I will be able to swim in the pool easily. 

Anyway, I think that I had better go now and start preparing for our warm temperatures that are coming shortly. I just can't wait to put on my shorts and a short-sleeve shirt to do some strolling to help me feel a lot better.  I can just feel the warm summer temperatures already.

Sunday, April 17, 2016

Horrific Earthquake Tragedies

Please excuse me for posting a story on Sunday. It is really not something that I do or want to do.

However, what has happened in two separate countries world-wide is so terrible that I just wanted to let you know about it. I dread the fact if something similar happens over here in our part of North America.  All of this is so mind numbing to me and so terrifying as far as I'm concerned. 

It just seems to me that we can't tell anything anymore. How many tragedies have we seen in other parts of the world. And who knows what negative events could take place in our area at some time in the future. Are we prepared for it?

Take a look at the stories that happened over the last few days. I just wonder if there's any connection even though the problems occurred in different parts of the world: 

"Powerful, 7.8-magnitude quake hits Ecuador's central coast
Canadian Press  

QUITO, Ecuador — A powerful, 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook Ecuador's central coast on Saturday, cracking buildings and rattling homes as far away as the capital of Quito. 

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered 27 kilometers (16 miles) south-southeast of Muisne, Ecuador, in a touristic area of fishing ports. It had a depth of 19 kilometers."  (Canadian Press 8 hrs ago)
 
Then there was this one: 

"Japan earthquakes: Authorities evacuate nearly 250,000 people from homes amid worsening weather  

Japanese authorities have ordered nearly a quarter of a million people from their homes after a deadly earthquake struck a southern island, and the search for survivors went on into the early hours of Sunday amid worsening weather conditions.  

A 7.3-magnitude tremor struck early on Saturday morning, killing at least 32 people, injuring about 1,000 more and causing widespread damage to houses, roads and bridges. 

It was the second major quake to hit Kumamoto province on the island of Kyushu in just over 24 hours. The first, late on Thursday, killed nine people. 

There have been 347 aftershocks of at least level 1 on the Japanese scale since Thursday's shock, broadcaster NHK reported." (ABC News 12 hours ago)

Here's something that happened a few years before in Japan according to that story: 

"Japan is on the seismically active "ring of fire" around the Pacific Ocean, and has building codes aimed at helping structures withstand earthquakes. 

A magnitude-9 quake in March 2011, north of Tokyo, touched off a massive tsunami and nuclear meltdowns at Fukushima, contaminating water, food and air for kilometres around. Nearly 20,000 people were killed in the tsunami."  

I'm not going to talk anymore about what happened in these 2 countries. I only wanted to let you know, dear reader, about it.  The fact that these events happened so close together and on such a large scale is extremely troubling to me. 

I just wonder to be frank how much care our Government people can provide to us both before such a calamity takes place to warn us of it and what steps they can take after it happens to protect us from the disaster that could occur.  I do hope that someone wakes up in our Governments' Departments both federally and provincially to start working on a solution before a tragedy might happen.

Friday, April 15, 2016

Some Good News Being Reported

 


That was how I looked last summer when it was so nice and warm out.  I think I need to report some good news to start off our summer soon.

After all, we need some good news stories published here to warm us up now after all the problems that we have seen reported recently. For our good luck, some interesting stories were published in the Windsor Star News sections recently that I thought I would report to you. Finally some good stuff being published that should make everyone feel excited again. 

HIPS, HIPS, HOORAY 

It's good to see that one of the Windsor hospitals will be getting some good publicity overseas about what it is doing in the hips area. 

The hospital has been able to achieve some good results for its patients: 

"Dr. Abdelrahman Elashaal, chief of the hospital’s orthopaedic department and vice-president of professional staff, will be leaving Sunday for the International Forum on the Quality and Safety of Health Care in Gothenburg, Sweden to give an address on the hospital’s exceptional results in treating hip fractures. 

“It is important because we want to show the work we did as an institute here,” Elashaal said. “We want to show the co-operation in different services from the LHIN to the leadership in the hospital and the CEO and the group of orthopaedic surgeons in the hospital who work as a group. We were able to achieve these good results.” 

Windsor Regional ranks first in Ontario in wait times for people who present in the emergency room to the time that surgery is performed, which is 48 hours." (Chris Thompson, Windsor Star, April 8, 2016) 
 
I find it quite exciting than one of our local hospitals is leading hospitals in Ontario on some emergency room matters. I would imagine that the local patients are pretty excited and especially overjoyed as well! 

UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR DOES WELL TOO 

It's nice to see that this time the University of Windsor is not making a mess of things but is becoming a leader in the field. How many problems have been disclosed recently in which they have been involved? Now it is good to know that they are taking positive steps as well as in this matter to solve any that exist here: 

"University conference leaves CSI in the dust

At the University of Windsor Friday, what looked like nothing more than teenagers making faces at a computer screen is technology that would make law enforcement agencies green with envy. 

Emotions biometric analysis was one of the technologies on display at the Trends in Forensic Sciences Conference. Paired with sensors that detect involuntary skin and muscle responses, it not only makes for a sophisticated lie detector, it makes the University of Windsor a leader in forensic sciences. 

The university played host to about 300 high school students, teachers and police officers for the third annual forensics conference. The event, put on in collaboration with Wayne State University in Detroit, is the only university conference in forensic sciences in Canada. 

Windsor and Wayne State universities are setting up a joint master’s degree in forensics. Wayne State currently offers a post-bachelor’s certificate in forensic investigations, said Peter Frade, chairman of fundamental and applied sciences at the Detroit university. If approved, the joint, international degree offered at Windsor and Wayne State would be the first master’s program in forensic sciences available in Canada. 

“There is no end to the fields of forensic sciences,” said Shashi Jasra, director of the forensic science program at the University of Windsor. It’s one of the fastest-growing programs at the university, offering 16 courses this fall. Students pursue combined degrees, pairing forensic sciences with studies in other disciplines."  

Just so that you know what the word "forensic" means, here is a definition: 

"Merriam-Webster dictionary-----Simple Definition of forensic: relating to the use of scientific knowledge or methods in solving crimes." 

It would be great if the University could set up more programs like this. It is vital if it is to survive well that it has special programs that train people about new areas of dealing with matters that impact the general public positively. Obviously, it gets a lot of students interested as well to attend this University rather than go somewhere else for a university education.  And increasing student population is vital for the University of Windsor these days. 

BOOSTING OUR DOWNTOWN 

To be honest, I'm not sure how good a program the hockey tournament that just took place is for Windsor's downtown economic growth.   

Oh sure, thousands of people came here to play hockey and to spend lots of money during the hockey conference events timetable because they are all living in our hotels and spending money in various restaurants and entertainment places downtown. I will write about it some more in another article but I wanted to let you know about how good it was for us as well: 

"As the downtown learned once again this week, it’s also good marketing for the city, and a lot more fun than begging Ottawa and Queen’s Park for grants, or chasing automotive plants that seem to move to Mexico despite our best efforts... 

But this grassroots hockey tournament obviously worked like a charm. Did it spin off $15 million worth of economic activity for the region as organizers claimed? Who knows. 

But it was very, very good for downtown Windsor. I saw it with my own eyes from my window-side perch at the corner of Ouellette and University avenues — dozens of teams in their national colours filling the sidewalks all day and night for a week: There go the Russians. Here come the Finns. And oh look, the Norwegians are visiting their favourite restaurant again. 

Downtown business owners said the city’s hospitality industry hasn’t enjoyed a week like this in many years. It almost felt like the early days of Casino Windsor, when visitors were on every sidewalk at all hours of the day and night, and the downtown felt lively and fun."  (Chris Vander Doelen, Windsor Star, April 8, 2016) 

There are a few other comments by the Columnist that do question the real value of this tournament that I will write about in another column. However, what is revealed here, even though we don't know exactly how much money was spent, has to be good for our City considering how many people participated in it. 

SENIORS EMPLOYMENT 

One has to wonder really whether it makes good sense to allow people who are over 65 years of age to continue to work and even find new jobs. It means that it is taking this work away from people who are younger and who may need cash that they would receive as a salary rather than someone who is "retired" probably. 

Nevertheless, it is exciting for a person who is older and who may have given up his/her job for some reason to find a way to get back into the employment market and to get back to enjoy his/her life and to make a few extra dollars as well. 

Here is what I mean: 

"Seniors want to keep working in 'unretirement'

"A few times a week, 66-year-old retiree Ditmar Rufenach spiffs himself up, dons an orange apron and lives out a little fantasy: he works at Home Depot. 

Rufenach is part of a growing number of seniors who have discovered retirement isn’t what it was cracked up to be, and decide to keep working either because they have to for financial reasons, or because they want to. 

The former BC Housing employee took early retirement at 61, and settled in to enjoy his golden years.

“I did a lot of work around the house, but then it got kind of boring,” said Rufenach. The dog was happy, but he was not. “The reason I went back to work is that I missed the regularity I’d had for my whole life. You start sleeping in, you’re having a long shower, you go online and then it’s 12 o’clock and you haven’t done anything. I had a sense of wanting to accomplish something, and that’s a hard habit to break.” 

Rufenach, an avid home handyman, applied online to Home Depot, and within two weeks he was in the orange apron, sharing his years of experience in home renovation and all-around tinkering. 

“It’s really kind of cool,” he says, in part because his bosses are several decades younger than him, and often come to him for advice. 

It isn’t the kind of salary you’d want to depend on, but that’s not what Rufenach is there for. “Meeting people, chatting, sharing information, it gives you a sense of worth.” 

It is interesting to note that the salary is not particularly "exciting" but that is not really the reason why the employee is enthusiastic about the job or the reason is given to him/her. It gives the person a great reason to continue working even though the salary is not in this while this provides to the Employer a nice way to save money!

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Another News Stories Blog



It really is a lot of fun for me to do news stories about various matters that I see happening around me. The stories I find to be quite fascinating about subjects that I want to know more about and assume that you may want to know more about them as well.

There are so many articles to comment on that.  What I do is not create a long article on each of them but rather take out a key point of the article for which I write to let you know about it.  In this way, I'm hoping to have given you the opportunity to read about a very interesting story so that you can form an opinion as well. 

I hope that this gives you something to think about. Make sure that you read the article as well to gain more details especially if you want to know more about the subject. 

WHEN WILL THE CANADA-US GOVERNMENT BRIDGE OPEN 

I am sure that you see that the expectation is that the Governmental bridge will open in 2020. Of course, I don't see how that is possible considering the litigation outstanding now and to which new lawsuits will be added I am sure in the future. 

Of course, wasn't the new Government Bridge supposed to open back in 2013 and of course never did.

When you take a look at this comment that I saw in a recent news article, I hardly think that the Government has any interest in trying to find $5 billion plus for new Government Bridge in the next few years.  That amount is so outrageously high that I don't see anyone putting up that kind of cash at all either. My expectation would be that the annual fee to pay off that loan may be substantially higher than the revenues that come so that the investor would probably go broke very quickly. 

Here is the comment: 

"There was no national auto strategy or new dollars to advance the Gordie Howe International Bridge project...

The Howe bridge was mentioned in the federal budget by noting how the project’s Request for Proposals designed to decide the winning contractor among a short-list of three finalists will be issued this spring.

“The new crossing at the site of the most important international land crossing in North America will contribute to the economic growth and continued prosperity of both Canada and the United States,” said the budget document. 

But there were no new funds in the budget behind that bridge commitment. 

The previous Harper government budgeted $630 million to get the project started. A $50-million “early works” project to prep the site on the Windsor side started last summer, while property acquisition is in full swing on the Detroit side. 

The federal government’s goal in this budget was to first identify a massive pot for infrastructure across Canada – $12 billion over five years – then in the upcoming months make announcements on where the funds will be allocated, Freeland said. 

“We are determined to get it right and spend carefully,” she said. “We are definitely committed to working on (the bridge). It is definitely an important project in the minds of cabinet. We will be putting together a full infrastructure plan that will include ports of entry.”  (Dave Battagello, Windsor Star, March 24, 2016) 

It's all a big joke on the Governmental side. The real question will be when they have a meeting with the Ambassador Bridge Company to settle this matter. 

PERHAPS THE CITY GOVERNMENT SHOULD SPEND CITY MONEY ON LOCAL WINDSOR EVENTS 

How many times has the City of Windsor refused to spend a few dollars on some function set up by a private organization who needs financing assistance? That seems to be what keeps happening to someone who asks for cash to help their organization out. 

Yet, it still doesn't always take place. Here is what I mean: 

"Big jerseys used to promote Windsor's bid for the 2017 Memorial Cup 

Windsor is hoping the third time is the charm in its quest to host the 2017 Memorial Cup. 

On Thursday, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens and Spitfires business manager Steve Horne signed two larger than life jerseys which will be apart of their April 18 presentation to the Canadian Hockey League in Toronto. 

It is the third time since 2009 the city has put in a bid... 

Windsor doesn’t yet know what other teams, if any, are vying to host the 2017 event. All that is known is it will be in Ontario. Windsor will be spending close to $30,000 on its bid. Dilkens said that when London hosted the cup in 2014 it reaped an economic benefit over $14 million. 

“This will put us on the map,” he said. “We know we are a hockey town, so getting behind the largest hockey event in the nation and trying to bring it here should not be a surprise to anyone.” (Kelly Steele, Windsor Star, March 24, 2016) 

THE MUSIC BUSINESS IS CHANGING DRAMATICALLY 

One thing that is very interesting about our society these days is how so many matters change because of the new technology that is around. It happened so quickly and so dramatically as well. Here is another interesting matter that is taking place now: 

"In Shift to Streaming, Music Business Has Lost Billions 

There is plenty of good news in the music industry’s latest sales report released this week. Streaming is up. Vinyl has continued its unlikely renaissance. And did we mention that streaming is up? 

But a closer look shows that the big sales numbers that have sustained the recorded music business for years are way down, and it is hard to see how they could ever return to where they were even a decade ago. 

Revenue from music sales in the United States has hovered around $7 billion since 2010, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. For 2015, the number was $7.02 billion, up slightly less than 1 percent from 2014. 

Within that steady total, however, have been drastic shifts in listener behavior. CDs and downloads have been gradually abandoned as streaming has become the platform of choice... 

Streaming — whether through paid subscriptions to Spotify or Rhapsody; Internet radio from Pandora; or even videos on YouTube — now makes up 34.3 percent of sales, edging out digital downloads as the industry’s biggest source of revenue. (Ben Sisario and Karl Russell, March 24, 2016, New York Times)  

TOBACCO AND NFL FOOTBALL 

A rather dramatic story in the New York Times about football in the United States and health issues: 

"N.F.L.’s Flawed Concussion Research and Ties to Tobacco Industry"

With several of its marquee players retiring early after a cascade of frightening concussions, the league formed a committee in 1994 that would ultimately issue a succession of research papers playing down the danger of head injuries. Amid criticism of the committee’s work, physicians brought in later to continue the research said the papers had relied on faulty analysis. 

Now, an investigation by The New York Times has found that the N.F.L.’s concussion research was far more flawed than previously known. 

For the last 13 years, the N.F.L. has stood by the research, which, the papers stated, was based on a full accounting of all concussions diagnosed by team physicians from 1996 through 2001. But confidential data obtained by The Times shows that more than 100 diagnosed concussions were omitted from the studies — including some severe injuries to stars like quarterbacks Steve Young and Troy Aikman. The committee then calculated the rates of concussions using the incomplete data, making them appear less frequent than they actually were. 

After The Times asked the league about the missing diagnosed cases — more than 10 percent of the total — officials acknowledged that “the clubs were not required to submit their data and not every club did.” That should have been made clearer, the league said in a statement, adding that the missing cases were not part of an attempt “to alter or suppress the rate of concussions.” 

One member of the concussion committee, Dr. Joseph Waeckerle, said he was unaware of the omissions. But he added: “If somebody made a human error or somebody assumed the data was absolutely correct and didn’t question it, well, we screwed up. If we found it wasn’t accurate and still used it, that’s not a screw-up; that’s a lie.” 

These discoveries raise new questions about the validity of the committee’s findings, published in 13 peer-reviewed articles and held up by the league as scientific evidence that brain injuries did not cause long-term harm to its players. It is also unclear why the omissions went unchallenged by league officials, by the epidemiologist whose job it was to ensure accurate data collection and by the editor of the medical journal that published the studies. 

In 2013, the N.F.L. agreed to a $765 million settlement of a lawsuit in which retired players accused league officials of covering up the risks of concussions. Some players have appealed the settlement, asking for an examination of the committee’s concussion research. 

Some retired players have likened the N.F.L.’s handling of its health crisis to that of the tobacco industry, which was notorious for using questionable science to play down the dangers of cigarettes."  (Alan Schwarz, Walt Bogdanich and Jacqueline Williams New York Time March 24, 2016)

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Why Do I Blog?


That is an interesting question that I often ask myself.  I believe that there are several reasons why I blog that I might share with you. 

Of course, some people may wonder why I started my new Blogspot in the first place. After all, I stopped writing for such a long time after my horrific illness that came out of the blue on to me at the start of 2015. There was no certainty early on to me that I would be mentally in a position to be able to do so given how tough my situation was after I gained consciousness at home. Yet, after several months when I started feeling better, I started writing a little bit and then towards the end of last year I started up my new website "TecumsehCityBlog."  Thankfully, I was able to use it and am writing on it now quite often. 

I'm so pleased emotionally that so many people go to take a look at what I write. However, what this really means to me is that it gives me a very strong reason why I should spend some time during the day working so that I can communicate on this website. It provides a strong incentive for me to make sure that my brain is operating and that I have something important to do in this area. It would be terrible for me just to sit around doing nothing. 

I started up the website again because I have been a writer on the Internet for many years before both on my own Blogsite and on the one where a number of people wrote with me and attracted the attention of so many Windsorites. It was so enjoyable for me to do so. 

As you know, I left that website literally a few days before I became so ill with an unknown, very serious disease because I just felt that I did not have the energy to continue on with all the work and writing that I did because of my role on it.  I just thought that I needed time to relax and to participate in taking on new matters in my life.  Unfortunately, my kind of "relaxation" in which I have been "participating" until fairly recently is not exactly what I expected to happen! 

The most obvious reason I'm writing again is because I like doing so. I really do write to express my own perspective on an issue. This may sound silly but when I write an article, it is to express my own personal point of view. I express what I believe the facts are and give what my opinion is by setting out my reasons. To be honest, while I hope that people agree with me, it does not matter to me if people are supportive or not. My logic is that even if not supportive, people will appreciate what I am saying and why.  I do try to write as clearly as possible and set out the reasons why I am taking my position. 

Why this makes sense to me personally is that it is forcing me to use my brain. After what I went through medically, I just find that what I'm doing now makes my brain work again. That is so important for me as I try to recover from the illness that I suffered. As I have said on here several times before, even the medical people in this City don't know very much about this illness given the few times that it happens to an individual in this area in any year. As you know, dear reader, I have recovered so well so far and am so pleased about it. Clearly then, this is a very important reason why I am writing at this time. 

Naturally, this role has helped me keep my friendship with a lot of people and to develop new ones with so many more. Oh sure, I've known many of my readers for many years for a variety of reasons. This website allowed us to maintain our friendship. With some of them, we have worked together before in the past on very specific issues over the years. For others, we had commented together on many issues in the past.  For others, even if there was disagreement, they joined with me because of what we were able to share together. However, and this is the important part, a number of the people who are reading what I write are those whom I have helped by just giving them something to read. They just happened to find my website and liked to read it.  

It is interesting that when I started writing so many years ago I had relatively few readers in the beginning. Yet, that number had grown to a very large one. The real surprise to me, my appreciation to all, is the large number of people who read my material every time something new is posted on here. It really is a very good personal feeling for me to be quite honest about it and provides a good reason for me to use my brain power which helps to make my life feel so much better. It provides a strong reason for me at this time to continue what I enjoyed doing so much in the past and to appreciate that so many people are still supportive of me!

Monday, April 4, 2016

Even More Stories



I really do enjoy writing a whole bunch of articles for one big Blog file.  It just feels being so productive to be able to do that. After all, I read something interesting and I just feel like sharing it with so many people who look at my website. 

So here come a whole bunch of new stories and my comments for you to consider. 

BIG COST INCREASES 

I really should no longer find it strange that the cost for building a construction project is extremely high. How many times have we seen that the estimated cost of a project is a lot less than what the bid prices are from the various bidders. 

Here is just another example of the awarded cost being a lot higher than what the estimate was. 

"River Canard bridge to undergo $500,000 rehabilitation 

The county will spend almost $500,000 to keep the historic bridge over River Canard in tip-top shape...

Because the bridge is located near provincially significant wetlands that require “significant dust control measures,” bids came in significantly above the engineer’s estimate of $400,000 for the work."  (Julie Kotsis, Windsor Star, March 16, 2016)

WHAT OTHER WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE 

This ought to scare everyone. Does it mean that one ought to expect a whole bunch of other work be done on this underground tunnel because of its age. We have already seen massive amounts of work that are taking place at the Ambassador Bridge because of its aging: 

"The Windsor-Detroit Tunnel will be closing overnight five days a week beginning in August for replacement of its original concrete roof. 

“It’s a scheduled project and if you look at tunnels in the United States and Canada they have a lifespan, just like the roof on your house has a lifespan, and so this is just a scheduled replacement,” said tunnel president Neal Belitsky... 

This will be the first time the tunnel will be closing for work since 1993 when the road was resurfaced." (Chris Thompson, Windsor Star, March 16, 2016) 

It will be an interesting project. One can only hope that it is handled smoothly. After all, such a project has not been handled for a very long time at the Tunnel: 

"This will be the first time the tunnel will be closing for work since 1993 when the road was resurfaced." 

IF ONLY THE GOVERNMENT MICHIGANDERS KNEW THAT THEY ARE NEVER BUILDING A BRIDGE 

Or maybe a whole bunch of them know that already! 

It is so silly now. Michigan is not going to build a "second," new bridge a couple of miles away from the Ambassador Bridge. At least, that is my opinion. If I'm right, then there was no need to publish a story like this: 

"State wants Moroun trucking terminal for Gordie Howe Bridge 

Another dispute is building between the State of Michigan and Manuel (Matty) Moroun involving the Gordie Howe Bridge; this time, it's the state wanting to take some of the Ambassador Bridge owner's property in southwest Detroit. 

The state says it needs a portion of a 42-acre trucking terminal Moroun owns to build an approach to the new Gordie Howe Bridge, a project the trucking and shipping magnate has strongly opposed because it will rival his Ambassador Bridge...  

“Obviously, we got to have it,” said Mohammed Alghurabi, a project manager for the Michigan Department of Transportation. “If you’re going to build your river-crossing span, you have to connect it to your approach.” (Joe Guillen, Detroit Free Press March 14, 2016) 

Just relax, Mohammed. As far as I'm concerned, the road for the 2nd bridge, right beside the existing Ambassador Bridge, is practically finished now so there is no need for a new approach. Why do you think that this road has been built in first place!  

Seriously, why would a Government want to spend $5 billion plus for a bridge across the River when one can build the Ambassador Bridge 2nd bridge for about a 10th of that cost i.e. for only around $500 million.

As I read in a different article, do you really think that there would be a whole bunch of people who want to invest in a big project. This quote ought to help you: 

"Canada Pension, like many other large global investors, would rather acquire mature infrastructure assets than finance new projects because they’re safer, Wiseman said." (Scott Deveau, Bloomberg, March 16, 2016) 

DO WE WANT EXPENSIVE HOMES IN WINDSOR 

Of course we do, right!  We buy a house at a low price and then, as its cost increases rapidly, we make a fortune.  Absolutely perfect, right.

Well, consider this that suggests prices being reasonable makes a lot more sense: 

"Windsor has become an attractive destination for Syrian refugees living in more expensive regions of Canada because of its affordable housing and its multicultural community 

Omar Farzat recently arranged for his cousin's family to move from Toronto, largely because of inexpensive housing. 

"They can get settled easier," he told CBC News. "They can get a cheaper house, cheaper stuff, so it's better for many aspects..." 

Officials in Windsor do not have the number of refugees who have moved to the city from other regions in the country, but it happens regularly, according to the New Canadian Centre of Excellence." (CBC News, March 23, 2016) 

When you get people from other areas who want to succeed in the new one that they have found, then everyone here prospers.  That's my opinion anyway! 

MORE OF MY REVIEWS  NEEDED

I better start writing more ASAP. 

Why? Here's a note I received from "tripadvisor" about an article I wrote for them: 

"You're in the top 25%   

With 5,309 readers, you're one of the most popular reviewers in Windsor. Keep those great opinions coming. Plus, each review gets you closer to your next level with TripCollective, our contributor recognition program." 

DOWNTOWN PURCHASE INCENTIVES 

Wow, I did not realize that the City of Windsor might help people buy their homes downtown soon. Gee, if I had known that, why would I have moved to Tecumseh even if it is such fantastic property in this part of the Province. 

Nope, I could have stayed downtown and allowed the City to help the finance a new home there and offer all kinds of incentives. I could have shopped at places that the City would help finance as well: 

"Study looks at boosting downtown Windsor residency 

The city is looking at offering tax incentives and home improvement grants that would encourage people to move downtown. 

A study is underway, examining how to boost residency and business operations in an area that hasn’t seen a lot of growth. 

“We’re anticipating that at the end of the day, it will lead to a community improvement plan that will allow for financial incentives,” Neil Robertson, the City of Windsor’s manager of urban design, said Tuesday. “It would be safe to say we’re going to end up with some incentive program around encouraging residential development to attract people downtown, and probably a retail component, too.” (Craig Pearson, Windsor Star March 22, 2016)

Sunday, April 3, 2016

March Sales Stats

From The Dennis DesRosiers Automotive Reports email  sent  out:


You can see better how well the number of cars sold in Canada are doing so far by clicking on the drawing!