The weather has been as I predicted last week. I said it would be dry and windy until April 20. I am not totally right because now we have some showers in the night Friday. It is still windy. I have nothing marked for next week, but I expect usual spring weather, some sun, some wind.
On the home front, it was a short week for Jaco and Quinny. Quinny had his own things to do Monday, so he was not at work that day. They worked on the elevator Tuesday and Wednesday and then Jaco wanted time off to study for his English test. He wanted Thursday and Friday off so he could study. I gave them both days off. Jaco is wanting to get landed immigrant status so he has to do an English test. There is nothing wrong with his English but he is definitely stressed about it.
When Jaco first came here, he understood English fine except for the Saskatchewaneze farmer English and slang we use for different tool and things. These expressions are not found in any book, so he can’t know it until he uses it. A pipe wrench is a pipe wrench in western Canada. In England, South Africa and Australia it is a spanner. Even in Canada things are different. A pair of plumbing pliers in Ontario are called adjustable spanners. I learned that one year when I had a fellow from Ontario working for me. He is my cousin fifth removed or that is what I called him. If you go back far enough my great-great-great-grandfather and his are the same person. One spring I had a trainee from England and a fellow from Australia. They both spoke English but I couldn’t understand either one of them. While it was interesting to host trainees from all over the world sometimes it is struggle to communicate.
In hockey news, the Edmonton Oilers have won the lottery and their name came out of the hat as the team that could draft first in the Junior Draft. The thought is they would be able to draft Connor McDavid, the top prospect. There are 28 teams in the league and 27 teams are more deserving of that than the Edmonton Oilers. I could fill the page with the names of players Edmonton had and were traded or moved on. Players that were game changers, but could not make it in Edmonton. Edmonton does not need another forward as good as Connor McDavid. They need a good tough defenceman. They have enough of these guys who play only with the end of their sticks. You know, don’t hit anybody, don’t hurt anybody and if we lose, what does it matter, we all get paid. What a joke. When is Edmonton bringing up Darnel Nurse? He was good for Team Canada in the juniors. The way it is now we have opposition players coming out from behind the net or cut right in front of the wing. They do so with impunity as the current defencemen will only stick out their stick to stop them, I was Dave Basko trained and I believe that any players that do that should be lying on their backs behind the net checking the ceiling lights. You only have to do that once or twice and they wouldn’t try it again. When is Edmonton going to get a guy like that? Good old time hockey as Don Cherry calls it. Then there are the Edmonton star forwards. When are they going to come back hard, back checking? I wish Conner McDavid well. I just hope he is not glued to the bench like a lot of other young guys.
In my travels, I talked to one fella who said 10,000 people have left Lloydminster area and have gone home. I think that number may be a little high, but there are lots of people who have lost their jobs in Lloydminster. One of the worst things is the government treatment of the temporary foreign workers. The way they are being treated is shameful and a disgrace. I am not very proud to be a Canadian when my government treats people like that. These people were happy to be here, pleasant, good dependable workers and we are rewarding them by sending them home to nothing. Most of them would stay and get permanent residency, but before they can get through the red tape their two years is up and they have to go home. If the person is computer literate and they can make their way through the rules and forms, then the government changes the rules and they must start all over again. I think this is just a bureaucratic socialist conspiracy To deprive Western Canada of its workers is just another form of the National Energy Program. Eastern Canada hates to see Western Canada get ahead. It is too bad they have to put Western Canada down by destroying the lives of poor people.
In Ottawa, every day is another day in the trial of Mike Duffy. Every day more evidence comes out. Mike Duffy charged the Senate for his manicure and a person who he hired as a personal trainer. What next? Put this guy in jail.
Joke of the week from my grandson Santy (8): Why did the soccer ball quit his job? Because he was tired of being kicked around.
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