English Class

 Since sometime in high school, I wanted to be a writer. Ideas came and just flowed out of the end of my pen. It really was not a struggle at all, it just happened. I enjoyed my English classes, at least early on. In grade eight, I had an English teacher who liked everything that I wrote and went so far as to say, "Have you ever thought of being a writer?" Well, yes I had. I advanced into a grade nine English class where the teacher just could not believe that an immigrant boy, who was also a football athlete, could write such stories. My homework would come back covered in red ink - source?; where did you get this?; is this your own work? A little off-putting to say the least.

Our guidance counsellor at the time was of little help. Mr. Sniffles we called him as he had a perpetually runny nose. Allergic to students, I think. When I revealed to him, in a guidance one-to-one, that I wished to be a writer, his immediate response was "Oh, you can't do that". Well, darn. I thought that I could.

Advance to grade 10. Our English teacher was like a little martinet, although quite friendly. He always wore a corduroy suit and wore a flat cap when cruising around outside. At the end of that school year, our family had planned a trip to Finland, the first since we had immigrated to Canada. The problem was that the charter flight left from New York City and we would have drive across the continent. This necessitated leaving before the school year was quite finished. I approached my teachers whether I could pull out early and still get a passing grade and all assured that was fine, including my English teacher.

To my surprise in the fall, I discovered that I had passed everything but English. It seems the teacher had forgotten our discussion and refused to pass me. The English classes that I had enjoyed now became least favourite and steered me in a different direction. My total high school English experience blasted me into Sciences instead. Instead of being a positive, uplifting, engaging experience, it became a burden to bear. As a result, I didn't graduate with my cohort but with kids who had started school a year later.

It all ended well though since I knew all those kids anyway. In order to get all my English classes since I repeated grade 10, all my other classes were grade 13 in my grade 12 year. When I started university, I was already beyond first year classes. Bonus. A few years after leaving high school, I ran into Mr. MacKenzie, our principal at the time. He enquired what I was up to and since I was a little undecided he declared that I would become a teacher. It took a few years for that prophesy to come true. However, high school put writing right out of my head until I reached retirement. Now I dabble. 

Letter to the Editor

 Letter to the editor by Peter Dascavich. 

News Advertiser, March 9, 2022.

A false flag operation . . .

Driving north into Penticton on a fine sunny Saturday the mood was soured by a convoy of cars and trucks bedecked in Canadian flags heading to Osoyoos to jam up the border and disrupt the lives of people living in that small town under the pretense of freedom.

What I find most infuriating is the way this small bellicose crowd of science deniers, far right fart sacks, willfully ignorant mouth breathers and credulous conspiracy consumers pretend to represent Canada by flying the Canadian flag.

They have taken the beloved Maple Leaf, the flag our soldiers fight and die under, the image that our athletes tearfully wrap themselves in on the Olympic podium, the symbol Canadians proudly attach to their luggage when travelling abroad and besmirched it in a tawdry display of selfish intolerance. Even hanging it upside down on a statue of Terry Fox, a national hero who believed in science.

These convoys have nothing to do with the Canadian government mandating vaccines for truckers who cross international borders. There is only one border by land from Canada, and the U.S. requires vaccines to cross it. The Trudeau government has zero control over that. End of story.

These faux patriots, either through choice or the luck of the birth lottery, live in one of the greatest countries on earth, a place where hundreds of millions dream of immigrating because it is a global bastion of freedom and opportunity and one of the world's oldest democracies. Yet for reasons few faux patriots could articulate, they advocate the overthrow of the duly elected government, replacing it with a committee of their choosing.

What could go wrong, Canada?

First off, in a democracy, the majority rules. This is a plain and simple fact that every child learns early in their schooling. The majority of Canadians want vaccines and mandates, another simple fact even the most obtuse mouthbreathers should be able to grasp.

This is not taking away freedom from a minority, this is fulfilling the will of the people who elected the government. This is the way democracy works.

The majority of Canadians want drivers to have a license to operate motor vehicles and to obey the rules of the road. They do not want our streets and highways to become deadly free-for-alls for anyone with access to a vehicle. We accept this because it is sensible.

Similarly, the government requires people to show I.D. when purchasing liquor or marijauna or upon entering a bar or strip club. This is because the majority of Canadians think protecting children from the temptations of the adult world is the right thing to do.

Our kids require vaccines to attend public schools because the sensible majority believes in science and sees the benefits of eradicating diseases like smallpox.

In short, a democracy functions because people respect the will of the majority even when it goes against their personal beliefs.

This is not to say people do not have the right to protest if they don't like a particular government policy. This is the unalienable right of people living in a free society, a cornerstone of democracy that we all cherish. Have at it.

Honk your horns. Hold hillbilly tailgate parties. Howl at the moon. Just do it somewhere where you are not infringing on the rights of other Canadians to go about their lives. Don't harass health care workers or children at school. Don't intimidate employees at stores and restaurants who are working to keep the system going. And don't do any of it under the auspices of the Canadian flag.

You do not represent Canada. You are a national embarrassment, a tiny minority having your 15 minutes of fame giving the finger to the majority, who in your paranoid conspiracy-addled world you imagine look down on you from positions of privilege.

You revel in the size of your Trump-inspired rallies, citing the thousands who turn out as an indication you have a lot of support. You stand proud of your stupidity. The truth is if the tolerant majority runs out of patience with your continued belligerence and perceives you as a real threat to our cherished democracy, you will be swamped in a sea of millions of righteous freedom-loving Canadians who will send you scurrying down conspiracy rabbit holes with your bunny tails tucked.

The support you are getting from right wing extremists in the U.S. and throughout the world should signal Canadians to be on guard. When Ted Cruz is on your side... well, enough said. The Canadian flag is a proud symbol of our multiculturalism and our national tolerance of diverse viewpoints. It should never be dragged into politics or be flown at rallies rooted in hate advocating the overthrow of our elected government. It should never be seen in the same picture as the Swastika.

Tolerance is one thing, but history tells us that allowing extremists to flaunt the law without consequences never ends well.

Short Course in Buying a Boat

 Short Course in Buying a Boat

Buying a boat, more than buying any other thing, is a matter of mind over heart. Falling in love with a boat is easy but it could be very difficult to undo a "blinded by love" purchase.

The first step is viewing a boat from a distance. Does it look "right". Does it have a nice smooth sheer or is it hogged (the bow and stern droop).

If the boat is on the hard, what does the bottom look like. Glass reinforced plastic can have blisters and delaminations which show up as pits and bumps. Steel might show patches where rust scale has been chipped away and been painted over. Aluminum may have had holes patched or dents hammered out. Wood could have soft spots; caulking could be starting to fall out; rust from fasteners could be leaking through the paint. All of these are a proceed with caution notice.

Climbing aboard, check for tell tale signs of any fittings to the deck having moved or lifted. Is the deck spongy when you walk on it. Does the rigging look old and worn out. Is the dodger or bimini worn out by the sun and wind; are plastic dodger windows all yellow and hazy. Are the binnacle instruments all yellow and hazy or are they well covered.

On a sailboat, how many sails come with it; is the stitching and cloth in good shape.

Going down below, follow your nose. If it smells musty and moldy then water is sitting somewhere, causing a problem. Does the bilge smell nasty. Does the ice box or fridge smell nasty. Bad smells can have bad causes.

Check the bilge for water, or worse, oily water. Where are the bilge pumps. Is there more than one. If the engine is rusty and nasty looking, it hasn't been looked after internally either. The engine should have an hour meter, anything under 2,000 hours for a diesel is acceptable (the lower, the better).

In the engine room, is the wiring neat and workman like or is it haphazard with house wiring added in. Are the fuel filters a mess. Are hoses a mess or are they tidy with the ends double clamped. What do fuel tanks, water tanks, sewage tanks look like.

Does the boat have a main circuit board for both AC and DC. Is the wiring neat and workman like.

Now, you can begin to look at the accommodations. Is the paint up to date. Does the paint show signs of water leaks. What does the head look like. Smell like. Does it have a sewage holding tank. Does the shower have a separate stall. Do the bunks look comfy. Do they come with mattresses. Are the mattresses musty.

Is the stove alcohol, oil, or propane. Does the propane have a solenoid shut off. Is the propane bottle in a locker on deck with a drain overboard. Is the stove gimballed.

Final Word. If the boat that you are looking at, looks clean in all areas then it is likely that it has been well looked after and deserves to be looked at further. For a boat that you like what you see, it is always good to engage a marine surveyor to check the boat out. The surveyors report will let you know what areas you have to fix over time or what areas need immediate attention. The report may also be a document with which you can bargain on the price of the boat. The report will also give you some peace of mind.