I thought we should have a new thread for 2020, even if not much is happening at present.
I saw the Snowbirds fly over today in Ottawa. They’re doing a sequence of flights all across Canada, with formation flyovers of all the major hospitals. We’re close to General Hospital complex and saw them almost directly overhead going low and slow in their 9-plane diamond display. They also flew over the National War Memorial in honour of the 6 helicopter crew killed in a crash a few days ago.
I tried to check their location on my flight tracker app, to get an idea of when I needed to be outside to see them, but no sign of them. I guess military flights aren’t uploaded for public info for security reasons.
Thanks for starting the new thread Bookkeeper. It’s interesting that some provinces are cautiously, slowly, and incrementally starting to open some areas and businesses.
Rightfully or not, I’m feeling less concerned than I did six weeks or so ago. I must say that people here, in Ottawa (well Kanata), have been great. When I venture to grocery stores people have been so polite and courteous that it warms my heart.
The factory I’m working in is running 24/7 and again, people are very considerate.
We have Wascana Park, one of the biggest green spaces in North America, with open spaces all along the Creek as it meanders North, so we’ve always had jackrabbit sightings.
But this past month, they‘ve. been everywhere. I’ve seen them while walking to and from work, running down our neighbourhood street, in the parking lot at Safeway. I think because people aren’t driving as much, they’re bolder and willing to spread out from the Park.
The one business that has been booming during all this shutdown is the Sask Liquor Store. I’ve heard from reliable sources that their year-over-year from mid-March onwards is up about 20%.
Heck, the deer are coming up out of the coulees (river valley) and into neighbourhoods. Mostly, they’re wandering through the park behind my house, but I’ve seen them on the street a few times.
Fellow Ottawa-ians. Whatever the correct demonym is, I don’t know it.
The Tulip Festival is still on, but with people encouraged to not take pictures–or at least use common sense–to avoid people clumping up. I’ve been tempted to go because I’m starting to go rather stir-crazy.
Also my condolences about Montreal. I have family there, and the atmosphere feels a bit… fraught. Are they opening schools in Montreal, or just elsewhere in la belle province?
They won’t open schools in Montreal for another couple weeks, I think? that’s the plan anyway, a plan that many don’t like.
I wish I could go to Ottawa. Went there last June. Saw an awesome concert by Stars, one of my favourite bands.
Heck, I wish I could just visit other areas of my own city, but in Montreal you’re not supposed to venture too far from home. I’m not whining because I want to go places - I know it’s for everyone’s safety.
I wish I could go visiting. I am starved for human touch. I haven’t been to Toronto since December or January; the rail blockades and lots of overtime at work messed that up.
It all changed in the third week of March. That week, it went from “There will probably be mandatory overtime on the weekend” on Monday to “Here’s your pink slip” on Friday. Then the lockdowns hit.
Fortunately, I am living with friends. But this whole social isolation, I mean physical distancing, thing has essentially suspended any dating or partying I might do. I was planning to go to TCAF. I was planning to go to the Pride parade. I was planning to go to the big Esperanto conference in Montreal. All gone.
I’ve been rereading old threads and wishing I could reconnect with people…
75% of the active Covid-19 cases in Canada are in Quebec; most of these in Montreal.
New Brunswick, PEI, Newfoundland, Yukon, NWT have all gotten to the point where they are having one or zero new cases per day. They are still remaining cautious.
Yet Quebec is already making re-opening plans, even as they are JUST now starting to see signs of only having stopped the increase in the number of new cases per day. What they heck? What are they thinking? It seems a very, very dangerous path to take.
I’m having to remind overseas friends that when they see the numbers of new Covid cases in Canada, this mainly reflects what is happening in Quebec, and I am thousands of km away, in in province that is doing much, much better.
I know. It’s ridiculous. The reason Quebec wants to open things up is because they care more about money than human lives. But thank you for reminding me that your area has it better.
“Fuzzy”, the official Tulipmobile, has been parked down the street for the last week. It’s a Honda Element covered in artificial grass with dozens of tulips stuck all over it.
I went by my sister’s yesterday to drop off a DVD of hers and pick up some tools she was returning. Did it the right way, wearing masks, putting the stuff on the porch and stepping back for the other person to pick it up. We were talking after and she mentioned she wasn’t feeling well, maybe coming down with the flu, then reeled off a list of symptoms right out of the province’s Covid-19 self assessment list. Between me and my other sister on the phone we finally convinced her to call her doctor’s office, and the doctor told her to go get tested, so we’ll find out in 24-48 hours if she’s infected.
In the meantime, used lots of hand sanitizer back in the car, washed very thoroughly, not stepping out of the house, and left the tools in the car for a few days.
If you are feeling sick during all this, people, at least consider that it might be something other than “just the flu”.
Stephen Harper appears on PragerU and rants about “leftwing media” led conspiracies and censorship. Yes, Harper claiming he was censored…(his attack ads were “not allowed on air”).
Some news sources might be biased, but many are just in favour of the truth.
It’s hot where I am today. Bad enough that this area is ravaged by the virus, now we’ll have heat problems like we did two years ago. Vulnerable people without air conditioning are at risk (especially in long-term care homes.)
Harper describes being muzzled (how so laughable and ironic) by lamenting that his communication director couldn’t steer the 2015 election because “Fox News North” collapsed? Quel dommage! Certainly this leftwing media censorship didn’t stop Harper from buying every newspaper endorsement as the Tories have done since the start of time immemorial.
The fact is that Harper ran a classic paranoia infused campaign based on fear, while Trudeau captured Canadians interest with returning to a functional government not at war with: itself, the supreme courts, the national press, its own senate members, and isn’t going to throw our country into one constitutional crisis after another out of fits of arrogant fancy/gamesmanship. Harper is lucky to have gotten 9 years out of the chaos, hatred, and secrecy he conducted out of his PMO.
To see him shelling his time to American ring-wing nutters like PragerU complaining that he was unable to game EVEN MORE years is laughable. Always pushing the envelope without any sense of irony. Remember how in 2015 he banned all Tories FROM CAMPAIGNING? 0 debates. 0 interviews. Only a couple of high profile Tories were allowed to talk. Amazing.
