A Recycled Story?

People who live in Saskatchewan can look forward to a number of things every spring. No, I am not referring to spraining your ankle in a gopher hole, nor seeing the mountains of dog pooh that are revealed by the melting snow, courtesy a winter’s worth of lazy dog owners. Nor am I talking about the dust bowls on all the streets that sandblast you until July, because it takes that long for the city sweepers to get to them.

I am talking about the debate over curbside recycling pickup. You see, Saskatoon is one of the few jurisdictions in the civilized world where there is no curbside recycling program. This is by choice, as every year it seems, city residents vote down proposals to institute a recycling program that would cost a few dollars a months per house. Instead, a majority of citizens vote no, and choose to continue to throw all their glass, plastic, and paper products into the trash to be hauled away to the landfill. The alternate is for residents to drive to a recyclable drop off site, most of which are located on the outskirts of the city. Neither option is very green, even if your Pontiac Sunfire has emerald flake paint.

What me worry?

Loyal fans of this blog will remember me covering this topic in an earlier post. Well, the debate is back and citizens are once again up in arms, with a vigour that would make Louis Riel shy away. You see, to most Saskatchewaners, recyclables are GARBAGE, pure and simple. Accordingly, who in their right mind should have to pay to sort their GARBAGE and put it in a blue box on the street corner for all to see? I mean, really, who can be bothered having to sort GARBAGE! Well, not these fine commenters on the Star Phoenix website.

STOP MANDATORY RECYCLING 1:33 AM on May 7, 2011
These things will undoubtedly land in the landfill: *** GLASS, STYROFOAM, LAUNDRY SOAP CONTAINERS, SHAMPOO/CONDITIONER, MARGARINE & YOGURT CONTAINERS, etc. are still going to the landfill AFTER You put it in your recycling container! WHAT A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY!
****Also many community gardeners would appreciate Yogurt & Margarine type containers for their gardening, so they are at least reused and nearly decomposed after years of reuse!
I AGREE!
"I pay property taxes for garbage collection and I pay to use the landfill."
"I do not get paid to sort garbage for the City!"
"If recycling is so economical then why is the city not PAYING me to recycle?"
****MEMO TO CITY COUNCIL****
WE ARE ALL ALREADY PAYING MORE THAN WE SHOULD BE FOR LACK OF GOOD SERVICES!
Keep your hands out of OUR wallets!

anon148658090 10:54 PM on May 6, 2011
I pay property taxes for garbage collection and I pay to use the landfill.
I do not get paid to sort garbage for the City!
If recycling is so economical then why is the city not PAYING me to recycle.
For example, Sarcan PAYS for recycled cans because it is cheaper to make cans from recycled aluminum.
Memo to City Council - I am paying more than enough already for crappy service! Keep your hands out of my wallet!

Rick951 5:05 PM on May 6, 2011
I sure hope that there will be an opt-out for people who choose to go with services like Loraas. I will be livid if the city expects me to double pay when I will not be using their service. I have no garage and no room in my house to sort garbage, so I will definitely stick to Loraas.
On top of that, the city's ridiculous "every second week" garbage pickup in the winter makes me loathe to give them any more money to run another waste program.

anon148658090 11:39 AM on May 6, 2011
So, the City is going to hire more unionized workers to collect and sort our garbage and stiff us with the bill!
Privatize the garbage collection!
How stupid are Saskatonians anyway. We need new bridges, new roads and repair of our old crumbling roads.
But, we have a 58 million dollar art gallery, a 5 million dollar windmill, and bike paths in a city covered in snow for 6 or more months of the year.
I will rest easy knowing that the City can't balance its budget, but at least no expense has been spared on my garbage!


Alas, maybe it is I who is short sighted. After all, the Blackstrap ski hill was created from a giant mound of garbage in the middle of a field. Again, the subject of another previous blog post. Maybe the opposition to a recycling program is actually part of a long-term plan for Saskatoon to develop a new provincial-class ski resort. Saskatoon Winter 2022 Winter Olympics anyone? Talk about deja vu!

Saskatchewannabes!

Hands off Saskatchewan. Yeah, I’m talking to you, Brad Wall. Ed Stelmach, take note. The Canucks are BC’s team (being in the Best Place on Earth has its perks).

Two of these things are not like the other...

Yeah, I know Saskatchewan has no NHL franchise – just those WHL Blades – but that doesn’t mean any old Saskatchewannabe can just waltz over to BC during the playoffs, don a jersey, and become part of Canuck towel power. Not even if you're the premier.

Instead, stick to doing what Saskatchewan does best – wearing watermelons on your head while getting hypothermia.

GO CANUCKS GO!!!!

One Less Reason to Love Saskatchewan

Damn you, Canwest. And damn you, Saskatoon Star Phoenix. If it wasn't for you, I could actually purge all memories of Saskatchewan from my brain. Instead, I get random newspaper feeds about Saskatchewan through my local news affiliate. This one particular story from the Star Phoenix online caught my eye:

"52 Reasons to Love Saskatchewan"

Of course, anyone who has lived in Saskatchewan will immediately be struck by such a statement. 52 reasons to love Saskatchewan? Are there really 52? Maybe they left out the decimal. Yes, 5.2 reasons sounds like a more appropriate figure. Clearly, the writer has not weighed the positives against the hundreds of reasons to hate Saskatchewan, so carefully noted in this blog.

But let's move beyond the numbers. Does everything on that list truly count as a reason to love Saskatchewan? This particular entry, #5 on their list, raised my eyebrow:

Woah. Stop. "Sculpture Garden?" That's what they call it? That empty field by the university full of creepy unfinished looking blobs of white cement? I must have walked by that place hundreds of times. It always struck me for three reasons:

1) The creepiness of it. That giant white hand with black nail polish coming out of the ground is just plain creepy. Just walk by it at night. The other sculptures range from slightly disturbing to full-on heeby-jeebies.

2) The waste of space. It was apparently built as a temporary display for an art show in 1993 and it's been there ever since. Why haven't they at least removed the sculptures, let alone developed the land, which is prime riverfront property. They could build student residences there to address the ongoing student housing shortage that one hears about every fall.

3) The sheer ugliness of it. I know taste in art is a subjective thing. But I've made art. Art is a friend of mine. Star Phoenix, those sculptures are no art.

Art to some; a giant pooh to others

If this is #5 on a list of 52, I can't imagine what other gems the Star Phoenix have in store for us. Stay tuned.

I HATE BC

NOT! Actually, if there ever was a reason to hate my new home, British Columbia (The Best Place on Earth, in case you haven't seen the license plate), it was because of this recent blast of cold weather that blew in from Saskabush. Yes, BC got quite the dump of snow this week, followed by chilling winds.

Shit Happens

I've begun to notice things like dog pee in frozen snowbanks and people walking around the mall in gum boots, which have reminded me of one thing... actually two things... 1) Saskatchewan, and 2) this terribly neglected blog.

I really care about one of these things so I've cobbled together a short post highlighting the differences between BC and SK when it comes to wintery things:

Wind Chill
BC: Wind what?
SK: The difference between wearing 3 or 4 layers of clothes

Snow
BC: A day off work! Sweet!
SK: Better shovel my walk before the city fines me

Ice
BC: What you see when you look out your window
SK: What you see on the inside of your window

Environment Canada Weather Warning
BC: You take your umbrella going to work
SK: You take your life into your hands going to work

Coarse Salt
BC: Used for seasoning fine food
SK: Used for seasoning fine driveways

Winter
BC: 3 months you don't have to mow your lawn
Sask: 7 months of your life you'll never get back

Hold Your Nose When You Do It

Those helpful folks at the StarPhoenix are launching an informative new online restaurant guide. They are asking for your help for a readers' choice category on favourite places to eat. I’ve decided to post, for my loyal readers, my submission to the survey. Bon appetit!

Do... I... have... to... eat... this?

1. What is your favourite overall restaurant in Saskatoon?
Does going back to complain about getting food poisoning count as a return visit?

2. Why is it your favourite restaurant?
Oh, that’s easy. McDonald’s. Because the food is prepared a continent away.

3. What is your favourite sports bar in Saskatoon?
Well, I’d say there are plenty of good sports to see at any bar in Stoon. Go to any place during a Rider game and you can see brawling, vomiting, face-planting, public urinating, beer shotgunning, and countless other competitive sports in SK.

4. What is your favourite lounge in Saskatoon?
I used to like to lounge in this one place after eating out in Saskatoon. They had a stomach pump and “ER” on the door. It was really clean (a nice change) with very comfortable couches—highly recommended!

5. What is your favourite restaurant deck in Saskatoon?
Any, but only in August. Otherwise you run the risk of hypothermia before your first drink arrives.

6. What is your favourite pizza place in Saskatoon?
Well, I once knew this funny guy with raging hormones in grade 9 who… oh wait! You said PLACE.

7. What is your favourite fast food place in Saskatoon?
Fast food in Saskatoon? By this do you mean your food arrives in under 20 minutes? LOL! Good one!

8. What is your "Guilty Pleasure" food item at any restaurant in Saskatoon?
I’m not sure about the “pleasure” part, but I certainly feel guilty after eating out in Saskatoon. Ask my plumber.

9. Which restaurant is your "Guilty Pleasure" food item from?
Your honour, I'd prefer to plead not guilty.

Is “Visit Saskatchewan” on Your Bucket List?

OWW! Does my neck ever hurt. It’s from the double take I did when I read a headline from the Regina Leader this week.:
“Aussie travels to Regina to strike No. 23 from bucket list.

An Australian, Sebastain Terry, apparently visited Saskatchewan to complete an item on his bucket list. I think I speak for all of civilized Canada when my response to reading that was, “Bucket list? Saskatchewan? SAY WHA?!?!”

When I read further, it began to make sense. He didn’t have “visit Hell” on his bucket list but rather, had put down “deliver a baby” on it. He happened to be able to do this in Regina, which is why he came to the city. Personally, I’d rather leave the delicate task of delivering a child to a trained doctor, but clearly not everyone in Sask thinks the same. Maybe they thought he was a doctor. He does, after all have a funny accent, just like Dr. House has (in real life).

It’s amazing so how little goes on in SK, that the local paper reports on this kind of triviality. This guy clearly is looking simply for media attention, less so to experience the gift of life. I mean, look at the shirt he made up and is wearing. It reminds me a bit of the guy who traded a paper clip several times and eventually traded up to a house in Saskatchewan. Personally, that story was interesting enough to deserve a headline. I guess the main news item from both stories is that people would want to come to Saskatchewan. An extraordinary factor clearly must be involved. Now that’s news.

Unfortunately, visiting SK is not on my bucket list. If it was, it’d be somewhere between become a John Tesh concert roadie and play leap frog with a grizzly bear.

Please Pass the Fantuz Flakes

I'll admit, Andy Fantuz is a pretty good football player. I actually like him, even though he plays for the wretched Riders. Do I like him enough to eat his flakes? Ummmmm….. I think I’ll leave the honour of doing that to the crazy fans known as the Rider Nation. They love them and apparently can't get enough of those scrump-diddilyicious Fantuz Flakes. They're sold right out of them!

"Hi, would you like to taste my Flakes?"

What the hell is a Fantuz Flake anyway? Did the janitor who cleans the Rider locker room find them in the shower and say, "Hey, I can make some money off this!" Actually, never mind. I really don’t want to know.

So what tasty treats can we expect next from team that can't count to twelve? Durant Drops? Lucas Lumps? Clermont Crisps? Bagg Bags?