I Lost

   Just a quick update on our in-house bar-b-cue sauce competition. I went head to head with GX94 Morning man Danny Ismond for the right to represent the station next Friday at the Ducks Unlimited "Saucy Duck" sauce competition.
   And as was the case last year, it was extremely tight. But I'm happy to report Danny won with his entry over my Asian-style sauce. The 5th and deciding vote went his way (3-2), based on the kick at the end of mine, which is from Asian peppercorns.
   Regardless, I'll be at the banquet, cheering Danny on. Well played, and I'm going to get the saucepans out and start planning for next year very soon.

TTFN

Bring It

   It is that time of year again. Time for the annual Ducks Unlimited "Saucy Duck" Bar-B-Cue competition, and I'm once again facing stiff competition. GX94 mornbing man Danny Ismond and I went at it head-to-head in an in-house competition to see who's sauce would represent the station at the May banquet. I won last year's in-house AND the main competition, albeit by very slim majorities, garnering the "trophy duck"

   I'm fully expecting Danny's going to be after me with all guns blazing when we hold our show-down Wednesday, and quite frankly, I'm waiting to see what he's been cooking up. I'm doing something a little different than last year, but I won't say what until the votes come in.
   But win or lose, it really doesn't matter, so long as GX94 wins the overall competition, which would make it 3 of 4 years since it's been held. That would give us a 'Duck Dynasty' to quack about.
   The winner will be revealed Wednesday!

TTFN

A Tough Year For Musicians

   2016 really has been a terrible year for deaths in the entertainment industry, specifically musicians. It's only April 22nd, and we've lost (to the best of my knowledge) 29, with Prince the latest on the casualty list.
   I don't know if the Grim Reaper is putting together a band, but he's got a helluva lot of talent. Prince is just the latest on the list which includes Lemmy Kilmister (who actually died December 28th, 2015), David Bowie, Glenn Fry, Dale Griffin, Paul Kantner, Signe Anderson, Maurice White, Sonny James, Merle Haggard, Keith Emmerson and Frank Sinatra Jr.  And he's got a great producer for any all-star album in Sir George Martin. And that's just 13 on the list of 29.
   We've also lost some acting greats: Alan Rickman and Abe Vigoda just to name 2, along with former WWE female wrestling champion turned adult film star Joanie Laurer, better known as Chyna.
   So, 2016 has been a bad year so far, and there are still 7 months to go. Hopefully, we won't loose too many more talented people.

TTFN

A Trifecta Of Losses For The NDP

   That's Brian Pallister. He's the newly elected Premier of Manitoba, as he and his Progressive Conservatives were swept into power last night. They took 40 of 57 seats in that province's legislature, and ended 16 years of NDP rule. It's been a rough month for the NDP, with federal party leader Tom Mulcair being ousted at his party's convention, and Saskatchewan leader Cam Broten losing his bid for re-election in Saskatchewan.
   Manitoba leader Greg Selinger did win his home riding, but stepped down as leader right after his party's loss, winning just 14 seats, mostly in Winnipeg.
   The result is not a surprise, given a very unpopular move by the NDP in 2013 to raise the Provincial Sales Tax (PST) a full percentage point to 8 from 7. Then, there was a fractured caucus which saw 5 cabinet members stage a revolt against Selinger, triggering a leadership convention which he won by just 33 votes. But by and large, it was just the electorate wanting change.
   With his party's ouster last night, Alberta's Rachel Notley has the only socialist leaning government in Canada.

TTFN

It's (Another) Scam

   Back on March 15th, I blogged about a fax we got in our newsroom that turned out to be a scam (see blog entry):

   Well, it's happened again. We got another fax yesterday, this time supposedly from South Africa, letting us know the sender had 35 million dollars he wanted to invest in our country. I hope you can read the rest:

      I know there are people who unfortunately fall for these scams. I'm not one of them. I guess almost 36 years doing what I do for a living has left me a little jaded and cynical. So no, Mr. Martin Sipho, I will not be taking advantage of your kind offer.

TTFN

My Life Is Ruled By Cats

   Don't get me wrong. I love my 4-legged friends. My wife and I have been owned by several during our years together, and we can't imagine life without them. But lately, they've been getting in the way.
   When I try to wash my hands:

   When I try to sit down at my home office

   When I try to sit down on the couch

   Even when we try to go to bed

   Again, we love 'em, and wouldn't want to live without them. But a little room every now and then, huh?
   I also hear people say " why don't you just get a dog". We'd like to, but our schedules (and the fact we have a very small yard) mean we really can't, since dogs do take a little more work than cats do.

TTFN

Another Political Departure

   Yesterday, I blogged about the ouster of the leader of the federal NDP, Tom Mulcair, after his party's convention.
   The Saskatchewan NDP will also need to hold a leadership convention, following the departure of Cam Broten, who had held the reigns since 2013. Mr. Broten was not ousted by the provincial wing of the party. He was ousted by voters. As mentioned in a previous post, Broten and the NDP were soundly trounced in the provincial election last Monday, with Broten losing his own Saskatoon seat.
   He could have stayed on as leader, asking for another MLA to step down and triggering a by-election. He chose not to do so. In my opinion, he had no option but to step aside.
   The party had hoped to make inroads into the SaskParty's majority. They failed. Had Broten retained his seat, this post would be a moot point. He did not.
   The 37 year old was first elected in 2007, and took over as leader in 2013, after the party was decimated at the polls, with then leader Dwayne Lingenfelter also failing to secure his seat. No word yet on an interim leader, or when a full convention will be held to choose his successor.

TTFN

The NDP Vote For Change

   The federal New Democratic Party has ousted leader Tom Mulcair at their weekend convention in Edmonton. There was no leadership contest, but a slim majority (52%) of delegates voted against him continuing as leader, a position he's held for just over 2 years.
   I'm not a huge political watcher, but I will say I'm not overly surprised, given the smack-down the party was dealt in last fall's election, when the party lost almost half the seats the had, and falling from official opposition to 3rd party status.
   Not having attended the convention, I'm not going to 2nd guess the reasons for his ouster, although the (supposedly) mediocre campaign the party ran was a huge factor in his defeat.
   What happens now? The NDP will hold a leadership convention in the next 24 months, and Mulcair will stay on as leader until then. So far, no one has stepped forward declaring his or her intention to seek the leadership spot.

TTFN

4 More Years

   That's what voters in Saskatchewan handed premier re-elect Brad Wall and 50 other members of the Saskatchewan Party Monday night. It's the 3rd consecutive term for Wall and party, and a 2nd consecutive overwhelming victory. The only other party picking up seats was the New Democratic Party, with 10 of the 61 up for grabs.
   Going in to last night's vote, the SaskParty had 49 seats, the NDP 9. 3 new seats were added to the legislative assembly for this election. It's a reaffirmation, if any was needed, about just how popular Wall is with voters. His approval rating is consistently over 60%, making him the most popular premier in Canada.
   Not that he didn't face challenges. Thanks to low oil prices, the economy isn't performing well, and Wall says there will be a deficit in the budget. He also had quite a few veteran Members of the Legislative Assembly who decided not to seek another term. Obviously, that did not impact the Green Machine.
   The defeat at the polls for the NDP was a doubly disappointing one, as their leader, Cam Broten, lost his re-election bid in his Saskatoon riding. The party had hoped to pick up 4 or 5 seats last night. They got just 1.
   Of course, there were other candidates in other parties. In fact, a record 268 people had their names on ballots across the province for the SaskParty, NDP, Liberals, Green Party, Progressive Conservatives, and Western Independence Party. 5 people ran as independent candidates.
   Win or lose, all candidates should be thanked for stepping up and running a campaign.

TTFN

Ready To Rock

   Back in January, I blogged about finishing my guitar build (see "It's Done", January 22). GX94 morning man Danny Ismond wanted me to bring it in to work, so I did yesterday. He even got me chatting about it during our morning conversation.
   As you can see, he also wanted me to "strike a pose" to have something to put on our facebook page. I told him (as I mentioned in my earlier blog post) I was quite a played of 'note' more than 30 years ago. I can still play that note (g), and even remember 1 or 2 more.
   I'm thinking I'll head out on tour sometime in the future, when I get better at playing. Maybe in 10 or 15 years. I'll call it the "Hip Replacement" tour. Judging from my stance, it looks lile I'll need at least one done!
   Happy April!

TTFN