I'm Dreaming of a Rain-free Christmas
Excuse me for not blogging while waiting for one of my two delayed flights on my way home from Ottawa on Friday. I suppose I was too busy catching up on sleep or resenting the poorly-timed blizzard that backed up airports from Edmonton to Ottawa.
In spite of the snow, my stopovers in Winnipeg and Edmonton and having access only to cookies and pretzels all day (both planes I was on were out of pay-as-you-eat sandwiches), my first experience with WestJet was a positive one. The fact that they recognized my 'special needs' as a tall traveler at the check-in counter without my having to make any special request was impressive, but the fact that I could reserve my seat in the emergency exit at the same time was even better. Moreover, the flight crew on both my planes were cheery, the complimentary satellite TV in each seat was a nice option, and legroom was plentiful (mind you, this may pertain only to the emergency exit and bulkhead, seats you won't usually have access to unless you're pregnant, disabled or have to duck when entering the plane).
On the other hand, there's got to be a more efficient way to de-ice planes. I heard that Toronto has a car wash style system that can accomodate a number of planes at the same time, and that sounds like a great idea. The smaller airports, which apparently include Ottawa, Winnipeg and Edmonton, still rely on the single-plane method, one that inevitably leads to delays getting off the runway as it's time that doesn't appear to be factored into the flight plan. Economies of scale, people, economies of scale.
In any event, I made it to rainy and relatively cool Vancouver in one piece and have spent the last few days trying to unwind from the last month of mild academic insanity. Unfortunately the snow up at Whistler and on the local mountains has so far prevented any decent skiiing opportunities, so instead of cutting fresh lines in alpine powder I've been visiting the dentist, doctor and attempting to brave the last-minute Christmas shopping crowd downtown.
I've come to the conclusion that I enjoy Christmas shopping in crowded malls as much as I enjoy being branded with a hot cattle iron. You could say that it's something I try to avoid, but that's not easy when time's running out and you still haven't found something for your 25 year old sister. The search, and a much-need Christmas vacation in Vancouver, continues...
Election campaign update from the West coast: What election campaign? The closest I've come to noticing the 8 week marathon is still chugging along since leaving Ottawa was by reading the front page of the National Post this morning. It features pictures of four "hot, young Canadians" - including Niki Ashton, a NPSIA classmate running for the NDP in Churchill, Manitoba - and an impressively lengthy article on the efforts of the all the under-30 politicos in each of the four main parties to make their voices heard across the country. Actually, the Post uses 40 as their cut-off age for 'young candidates', which to me is about 10 years too old, considering that the youngest of the same group of candidates is 18.
While I think it's a great idea for people like Niki to jump into the race, not to mention highly respectable when it includes deferring your Master's degree indefinitely, when there's a chance to when the seat like there is in Churchill, I'm still somewhat cynical about those who know they have no chance and are only using the opportunity to build their resume. In those cases, it seems to me that it'd be more effective for those candidate, mostly students, to volunteer for a candidate in their riding and exert influence from the inside rather than remain on the periphery of the debate throughout the campaign.
I don't think I'm taking a defeatist attitude here, but when matched up against the financial resources, the experience of MPs in non-swing ridings and the stigma of idealism and inexperience attached to student-candidates, working for a candidate rather than as one seems like the more realistic option to pursue. Nevertheless, I'll still be awaiting the results of the efforts of the U-30 crowd featured in today's Post - one of the few interesting and motivational news items since the beginning of the campaign - with considerable anticipation.
In spite of the snow, my stopovers in Winnipeg and Edmonton and having access only to cookies and pretzels all day (both planes I was on were out of pay-as-you-eat sandwiches), my first experience with WestJet was a positive one. The fact that they recognized my 'special needs' as a tall traveler at the check-in counter without my having to make any special request was impressive, but the fact that I could reserve my seat in the emergency exit at the same time was even better. Moreover, the flight crew on both my planes were cheery, the complimentary satellite TV in each seat was a nice option, and legroom was plentiful (mind you, this may pertain only to the emergency exit and bulkhead, seats you won't usually have access to unless you're pregnant, disabled or have to duck when entering the plane).
On the other hand, there's got to be a more efficient way to de-ice planes. I heard that Toronto has a car wash style system that can accomodate a number of planes at the same time, and that sounds like a great idea. The smaller airports, which apparently include Ottawa, Winnipeg and Edmonton, still rely on the single-plane method, one that inevitably leads to delays getting off the runway as it's time that doesn't appear to be factored into the flight plan. Economies of scale, people, economies of scale.
In any event, I made it to rainy and relatively cool Vancouver in one piece and have spent the last few days trying to unwind from the last month of mild academic insanity. Unfortunately the snow up at Whistler and on the local mountains has so far prevented any decent skiiing opportunities, so instead of cutting fresh lines in alpine powder I've been visiting the dentist, doctor and attempting to brave the last-minute Christmas shopping crowd downtown.
I've come to the conclusion that I enjoy Christmas shopping in crowded malls as much as I enjoy being branded with a hot cattle iron. You could say that it's something I try to avoid, but that's not easy when time's running out and you still haven't found something for your 25 year old sister. The search, and a much-need Christmas vacation in Vancouver, continues...
Election campaign update from the West coast: What election campaign? The closest I've come to noticing the 8 week marathon is still chugging along since leaving Ottawa was by reading the front page of the National Post this morning. It features pictures of four "hot, young Canadians" - including Niki Ashton, a NPSIA classmate running for the NDP in Churchill, Manitoba - and an impressively lengthy article on the efforts of the all the under-30 politicos in each of the four main parties to make their voices heard across the country. Actually, the Post uses 40 as their cut-off age for 'young candidates', which to me is about 10 years too old, considering that the youngest of the same group of candidates is 18.
While I think it's a great idea for people like Niki to jump into the race, not to mention highly respectable when it includes deferring your Master's degree indefinitely, when there's a chance to when the seat like there is in Churchill, I'm still somewhat cynical about those who know they have no chance and are only using the opportunity to build their resume. In those cases, it seems to me that it'd be more effective for those candidate, mostly students, to volunteer for a candidate in their riding and exert influence from the inside rather than remain on the periphery of the debate throughout the campaign.
I don't think I'm taking a defeatist attitude here, but when matched up against the financial resources, the experience of MPs in non-swing ridings and the stigma of idealism and inexperience attached to student-candidates, working for a candidate rather than as one seems like the more realistic option to pursue. Nevertheless, I'll still be awaiting the results of the efforts of the U-30 crowd featured in today's Post - one of the few interesting and motivational news items since the beginning of the campaign - with considerable anticipation.
posted by Per at 2:34 p.m.
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