It is that crispy but glorious time of October when Jack Frost comes nipping, the geese are flocking, the plump pumpkins are ripe for the carving, and there are multi-colored piles of leaves to be patiently raked and bagged, or left for the kids to romp and roll in. While the wicked winds of winter will soon be blowing, the rich rewards of the harvest are all safely packed into the bins, and the ‘icy sports’ are now in full swing.
Meanwhile, our wanna-be politicians are out and about on their final campaign swing, with hopes that they have collected enough support to earn them a spot on the Town of Ponoka and County of Ponoka Councils and School Boards for the next four years. Bottom line is that the Municipal Election that will go a long in establishing our future is set for Monday, October 21st. If we really care about our communities and where our taxes are being spent, we need to get out and vote for a new set of leaders....which is participating in our right of freedom and fair choice.
Sneaking back to our childhood
I am quite sure that all of us as grandparents really look forward to occasionally babysitting our children’s children, but this weekend adventure in patience is a whole lot easier when the weather is nice and you can let them loose outside. At this time of the year the outdoor pools are closed, the lakes are too cold, it gets too dark way before their allotted bedtime, and that same old question always pops up......What are we going to do now, I’m bored?
So now for this last week-end sleep-over we put together a new plan to keep them busy come rain or shine. Friday night I was allowed to sneak away to a hockey game while grandma and the boys played monopoly, which was a win-win situation for my wife, the banker. By the time I got home they were all tucked into bed, then early Saturday morning they agreed to go grocery shopping, as long as they got to push the cart and could pick out a treat. Everything went really well until the youngest grandson touched a humungous double stack of toilet paper packages, which immediately started to topple onto to the floor, much to the amusement of other shoppers, while grandpa’s blood pressure began to rise. Somehow we got them all put back together, took the groceries home, and sat down for a stiff shot of coffee. Meals are always real easy for these boys, because what they like most are....hotdogs, chicken and fries, tacos, egg whites, rice crackers, ice cream, and apple juice.
In the afternoon we were able to go for a walk, and then let them wear themselves out at the playground for a couple of hours. After watching a couple of kid’s movies that we have seen at least ten times they wanted to try the game of Scrabble, which yours truly hasn’t played for years because I don’t have the patience and have been a terrible speller since grade school. This turned out to be a real blast, as they invented new and weird words that broke all the rules of the legendary game, we travelled all over the big board, and everyone was the winner of a treat of their choice.
Sunday morning we were off to the swimming pool for the ‘toonie swim’, which consisted of the boys going up and down the slides and frolicking in the wave pool while grandma and grandpa relaxed in the hot tub. The only mishap was when they tried to empty the flow-bowls in the little tots section with pails and ended up dousing several disgruntled mothers who were watching their children. Then it was home for a nice lunch, after which mom and dad arrived, packed up the clothes and toys and headed for home, after which our condo suddenly became quiet, and we took a nap. Like all of you, no matter how old we get, we will always look forward to babysitting our grand or maybe even great grandchildren, as long as you have a plan, and lots of treats available.
The C.E.O. with the big ego
The owners of a steel company felt that it was time for a shakeup so they hired a new Chief Executive Officer, who immediately went on a rampage and was determined to rid the company of all slackers. On a tour of the facilities the new boss noticed a guy leaning against a wall doing nothing and as the room was full of workers he wanted to show them that he meant business. He asked the guy “how much money do you make a week?’, and a little surprised the young man looked at him and replied, ‘about $400.00 a week...why?’ The pompous CEO disappeared, returned with $1600.00 cash and loudly announced, ‘Here’s four week’s pay, now get out and don’t come back.” Feeling pretty good about himself the new boss looked around the room and asked, ‘Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?’ From across the room a voice replied.....’He’s the pizza delivery guy..’
Please don’t forget to vote, and have a great week, all of you.
— Hammertime