21:43 - 30.04.05
News
Yesterday's post was pretty wooden wasn't it? Happens when you have a fever that makes even seeing difficult.
My youngest must be reading my diary again. He wandered through the kitchen a couple of days ago with the observation: "So, maybe you're better off just working in an all female environment for a while". I allowed that might be so, although after raising six sons, I really don't see myself as having a bias. It's just that when I attend work that is the only reason I am there. I have just as much trouble with women who see it as their own personal social club or political arena. They can be just as miserable as any male. Just leave me out of the games. I work to live. That's the only reason. I'd much rather be doing volunteer work in the community that makes a difference to people's quality of life. Problem with that choice is it would remove all my family's opportunities for same.
My youngest and I had one of those generation specific debates yesterday, when I was conscious and semi-coherent. I've tried to emphasize that keeping the house clean with so many cats as co-habitors is critical, just from a health point of view. When I've walked in the door after work on several occasions, my comment has been "It doesn't smell any cleaner in here". To me the logical and only response is to remove the source of the odour. Stinky litter boxes mostly, although we also seem to have acquired a couple of "secret sprayers" in to the mix. He has heard the word "smelly", without linking it to the word "clean". Ergo he came up with a different solution to the problem. Quite often he orders the groceries on line. One run, he obviously decided to purchase several types of products "that make your home smell fresh". He said he had researched their effectiveness, before he made his choices. "Effective with respect to what?" Eliminating the smell. "How?" Watching the ads on TV. "Um well yes, how does that get rid of the source of the smell." "Well it doesn't, but it was the smell you were complaining about."
The reason I caught on to what he had decided to do was that I've been home the past few days - with severly compromised lung function. He pulled out one of the products and sprayed it over an offending spray from one of the male cats. My lungs started to shut down completely. I started to become somewhat stressed at that point, since I really hate not being able to breathe. When I asked him what he thought he was doing, that was when the explanation came out. Well anyway, hysterics are really hard to do when one can't breathe, but I must have done a creditable job of turning blue or purple or whatever, because he hurried to clean up the source of the smell, instead of resorting to his original solution. In the meantime, I gathered up all the offending chemicals and pitched them outside. I had explained to him several times that he couldn't use them when I was in the house, because their effect was poisonous to me. Canary in the mine, I guess. I guess, too, that he forgot. Doubt he will again.
I really thought that this travel article about The Land of the Midnight_Sun was a great piece. Accurate and balanced about the pros and cons of travel in nature. Then there was this piece about the environment in the Rockies south of our borders. When it comes to environmental issues, there are no political boundaries anyway. I found the comments from our Premier (Canadian for Governor)about not buying in to long term deregulated energy Contracts fascinating. Given the guerilla efforts of our provincial government to impose it against citizens' will given what we were witnessing south of the border and hearing the best advice from our own economists one had to wonder "Qui Bono". Enron would be a first good guess along with it's octopus arms of networked allies. As for the politicians who gained - there are two publicly traded company subscription services that let any one with a few free hours figure that out - wasn't our Premier, though. Even better is the library - free, unlimited access, y'all. All of that information was or is public knowledge, but why pay attention to flaming red flags - right? Then there is the on-going saga about the allegations about interference by high ranking officials at the Alberta Securities Commission on behalf of certain "protected" companies. Qui Bono (who benefits) two. One little side note in the business pages today let me know that the shenanigans that were attempted at the company I had to walk away from last October didn't succeed. Can't link to that without breaking a confidentiality agreement, but it made the stress almost worth it - maybe. Another story seemed to point to the one neighbour I've cited who uses their position for exploiting their position and invading their most vulenrable client's privacy being at it again. I don't see how some reporters can talk about privacy issues, when they break those laws themselves. No link again for obvious reasons.
Right now three cats are dancing on the keyboard - guess I'd better go put out some food before they get naughtier.
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