Will it looks like another year is over and this New Years Eve we will be working once again. My wife and i work with adults who are developmentally delayed and tonight like many other nights they will be staying with us. Were workers in the Home Care Sector of NL and like many other home care workers we hope in 2007 to become part of NAPE. It might sound a bit cynical but this year like others in our field we won't be holding our breath waiting for it to happen. We have felt disappointed every year hoping it would happen. Like our clients we can only dream that next day will be better.
Of course things could be worst! Some will never see the New Year and its new wonders. Some fell from grace and swung from a rope in Iraq like Saddam. Others closer to home like poor ol Ed got axed from the executioner. I know,I know, im being cynical again! Will, the next big holiday after New Years is Easter and who knows by then some of the dead might be resurected. Small fry like myself will just try to survive and hope to survive another year without being part of the out-migration. So many of our family and friends have already headed west and at times we actualy feel a bit guilty about it all. Hell, rumor has it that this guy might be heading up to Ottawa in Canada to try and better himself sometime in 2007.
I know,I know! Will,Happy New Year from some small fry in Cape Ray NL and thank you all who viewed my blog and responded in 2006.

While reading the VOCM News today and i saw an article on the British passengers stranded after making an emergency landing in St. John's over Christmas. Some of the passengers reported to the Daily Mail that their Christmas dinner at the Fairmont Hotel consisted of leftovers and the hotel was sub-standard! That made me chuckle and i decided to check out the Daily Mail story to blog about it. Scanning quickly through the Daily Mail i came upon this little story {Three-year-old blogger's inspiring chemotherapy diary} and that made me reconsider the whole thing. Samantha the three year old child has a blog and i hope all who view my blog the next few days can also use the link to view hers.
The story really touched me because just a few short weeks ago our community lost a four year old child to cancer. The family kept our community informed of the little boys progress and his setbacks. In a community of just 300 people we pretty well know much about everybody. That family half a world away is no different then the family in my community,Cape Ray. Derby, England has a quarter of million living there and i doubt if a fraction knows of the little girls condition. I dare say those that do, care. For the folks on the stranded flight during Christmas,cheer up. Life could be worst. Be thankful your not in the situation like the young family in Derby or endure several years of hardship like the young couple in my community. Today i'll even practice what I preach. Im thankful also. Best wishes little Samantha Hughes from a place called Cape Ray,NL.

Movie Plot: A star appears on the Eastern Avalon during Christmas 2006. Yadda.....yadda.....yadda, the liberal prophecy foretold this event back in Yadda.....Yadda...Yadda. No wisemen are available at the time because they're on Christmas break shining up their gold rings,Yadda.....Yadda....Yadda. The people of the southern shore of Newfoundland seek out frankincense and myrrh knowing the re-born already has gold,Yadda...Yadda....Yadda. ...............................

Movie Review: Fellow from Cape Ray: Looked more like a sequel! found it boring and a waste of time. I kept cheering for King Herod and hoped he would slay him during the first 5 minutes of the movie. Rather give the movie a finger then a thumbs up.



FROM VOCM:
John Efford says he'd like to get back at being involved in provincial poltics in some capacity. Efford says he's taken the last year off due to his diabetes and now that it's back under control his political juices are flowing again. He says how he'll be involved will depend on his health.

Efford says he has talked with two individuals about his possible return to politics.

Efford says he's spoken with Liberal Party President danny Dumaresques and more recently with Leader Gerry Reid.

I don't know who will be named newsmaker of the year for Newfoundland & Labrador in 2006. If i had to pick someone newsworthy or in this case noseworthy. It would have to be our Auditor General,John Noseworthy. The mission statement of his office states.

The Office of the Auditor General serves the House of Assembly by providing independent examinations of government and its entities.

As legislative auditors, we audit financial statements and other accountability documents, evaluate management practices and control systems, and determine compliance with legislative and other authorities.

Our purpose is to promote accountability and encourage positive change in the stewardship, management and use of public resources.

Mr. Noseworthy is doing just as he was appointed to do so. So far Noseworthy's audits have found that an unauthorized $1,586,573 was paid to five politicians Liberal Percy Barrett, Tory Ed Byrne, Liberal Wally Andersen, New Democrat Randy Collins and former Liberal MHA Jim Walsh between 1998 and 2006.

His reports have also found that about $2.8 million was paid to four companies for trivial things such as fridge magnets, pins, gold rings and so called keepsakes.

One of the companies was controlled by Bill Murray, who was suspended this summer as director of financial operations at the house of assembly. I myself make trivial things such as fridge magnets and so called keepsakes to sell every summer in local craftshops around my area. I do it to help supplement my income. The wages of a home support worker in this province is not that great and anytime i can earn a few more dollars it helps us pay the bills.We do not receive Gold Rings in our line of work and if we have travel expenses we have to submit the proper paper work before any money is given out.Home Support workers in my area receive 22.5 cents per kilometer when taking a client to work,hospitals,appointments,etc. In 2006 this barely covers the fuel expenses. We have tried to be unionized under NAPE for over a decade but our government refuses to recognize us. Maybe if the Auditor General continues to dig deeper and complete his mission statement and promote the so called accountability he seeks then the positive change in the stewardship, management and use of public resources might go to help groups like the Home Support Workers.The buying of Gold rings and trinkets is at least on hold for now. Yes Mr. Auditor General,you are indeed newsmaker of the year for a lot of us who have no say in the matters of NL.

It's not looking like a white Christmas in my nick of the woods with the latest 5 day forecast.I might seem a bit like Scrooge but i say that's darn great! My wife and i spend quite a bit of time driving on the Trans Canada Highway and poor weather conditions cause each of us to worry about the other when were out there. It's 20 kilometers to the work place and less than 15 minutes driving in ideal conditions. In less than ideal we just might have to spend a night stranded somewhere in between the work place and home,in the car. We have been more then lucky with just one winter accident in hundreds of thousands of kilometers driving over the years. That accident spoiled our driving record and caused our insurance premiums to stay high for six years. The damage to the car was less than $2,500.oo and im sure in those six years we more than payed for it. That's my little rant for today.

Our provincial Auditor General John Noseworthy has released another financial report this morning. One more of our MHA's name has made it to the list.
This makes five on the list,four current and one former member of the house. Ed Byrne's total has been increased to $467 thousand, Randy Collins to $358 thousand, Wally Anderson $344 thousand and former cabinet minister Jim Walsh $298 thousand. In Percy Barrett's case the amount is $117 thousand. The sum total so far is $1,586,000.oo and im sure if Noseworthy keeps digging it'll climb much higher. With a provincial election less then a year away and for the first time since i became eligible to vote in an election im wondering why i should even take the time to do so. My wife and i are home support workers and the pass few months have been seriously thinking of leaving to find a better living in Alberta. We looked forward to each provincial budget day wondering if we would actually gain a small raise to help us survive another year on this island. Most years were disappointed and try to cut back on our expenses. The price of fuel,insurances and electrical power increases all to soon while our wages stay the same. We see our tax dollars wasted by those we elect and just shake our head in disbelief! For the pass 17 years i have worked in the home support system of NL.My work week is usually 72 hours at several different jobs and my wife picks up extra work when she can. We find the time outside that work to volunteer in our small community while watching it fade into oblivion much like our tax dollars. I just can't see us walking into a polling booth in NL next fall and casting a vote. In the pass we voted (for different candidates at times) for those we thought would represent our interests the best. When the day comes for us to vote for the one we less suspect to steal our hard earned tax dollars we contribute to our province then i'll just drive pass the polling station. Maybe the next MHA to represent our interests will be in another Canadian Province.

Had my surgery back on the 23rd and today seems like the first day i can actually say i have little or no pain. I got out of the operating room around 5:pm on the 23rd and several hours later i was home in Cape Ray. They call it a day surgery here and practically kick you out the minute you wake from the surgery. The next morning my wife drove me 200 kilometers back to the hospital to see the doctor. I then found out i was not nearly as tough as i thought i was . The doctor had some sort of object embedded in my eye socket and removed it. He had to grip it and tug real hard and the minute it came out, i passed out for a few seconds. I also blacked out later in the hospital lobby but luckily my son was there to catch me from hitting the floor. Few days ago i returned to see the doctor and he inserted a conformer in my eye and it'll remain there until i get fitted for the artificial eye. I'll be seeing the doctor again next week for a check-up and have a surgical bandage removed from my hip. They grafted some fat from my hip in the eye socket The hip incision lies beneath the underwear or bathing suit area. The fat is trimmed and implanted into the sunken appearing upper lid (sulcus) making a 1-inch long eyelid skin crease incision. A pocket is made for the fat graft, which is then implanted followed by skin closure. If everything goes well,i should have an artificial eye in place by late January.