Sunday Musings

My apologies upfront.

Although really too much for one lonely musings post, there are just too many ideas bumping around inside my little pea-brain to give each of them their own post. That just ain't gonna happen.

So you have this instead.

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Looks like I mislabelled that post about the Kit Kat's dance recital.

She hurt her foot quite bad two weeks ago. you see - we actually thought she might have broke it, but fortunately the x-rays were clean. Still, the whole outside of her right foot remains bruised and swollen. I had serious doubts she would make it through the ACR, let alone the dance recital (which involved three shows over two days).

She made it through both though. Who knows, perhaps some of that preaching I'm so good at about sticking with your commitments might actually be sinking through. At any rate, it occurred to me as I was saying good night while she moaned about her foot last night that I really should have titled the post "Dance Like A Flamingo".

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And yes, I agree. That kid has been taking up waaay too many of my weekends lately. Hey, it's not like she drives herself to three dance recitals, you know.

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To be filed under the category of Pet Peeves ... as if bicyclists who seem incapable of following the rules of the road aren't bad enough, now we're suppose to deal with them all nakkid?

Apparently they're concerned about their exposure. To cars, that is. Which, in that case, perhaps I should start driving naked, considering one of the fully-clothed (I-pod included) variety just about struck me last week. While my vehicle was stopped. In traffic. As in, not moving.

Just toodling down the middle of a main Halifax thoroughfare in rush hour traffic, weaving between vehicles at his leisure while apparently looking everywhere except right in front of him (somewhat of a problem given that he was riding on my side of the road heading straight toward me) ... he just missed plowing into the passenger side of my vehicle. Suddenly awaking from his trance, he hit the brakes and turned away at the last second, mouthing "Sorry". To which I mouthed "Idiot" to his retreating back.

Here's the thing. I have no problem with cyclists. As long as they follow the rules. Meaning, if you're on the road, you are actually obligated to follow the rules of the road. You can't pretend you're a vehicle one moment and then act like a drunk pedestrian in the middle of the road meandering wherever the mood strikes the next. At least not if you want any sympathy from me when someone flattens you.

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Seems like we haven't talked much politics lately.

The thing is I thought it would be a bit more exciting to actually have a NDP government in Nova Scotia. And yet, it doesn't feel like much of anything at the moment, one way or another.

I wasn't sure what to make of that until I read Laurent Le Pierres' piece in the Chronicle Herald on Friday entitled "So Why Doesn't It Feel Like History?".

As Le Pierres points out, when an unassuming fellow like Darrell Dexter assumes power, just like everybody assumed he would, something seems to be missing. Le Pierres references Joe Clark's [more commonly known as Joe Who?] line:

We will not take this nation by storm, by stealth or by surprise. We will win it by work.

Perhaps that's what's at work here.

... Tuesday evening was the culmination of 10 years’ hard work for Dexter and his disciplined crew. Through his steady, studious and ambidextrous approach — an ability to use the left and right hand with equal ease — Dexter succeeded in turning the New Democrats into the new normal. In fact, he was so successful that their ultimate victory was somewhat devoid of shock value.

The Dexter majority is a minor quake on the Richter scale...

A little anti-climatic, perhaps?

Le Pierres considers the NDP ready to govern now, in a way they most definitely were not in 1998 when they shocked the Province by winning 19 seats and tying with the Liberals. One more seat then and how different history would be now. For better or For worse, according to LePierres.

As much I would have loved to have seen a NDP victory at the time, I must say that I'm not completely broken up that it's taken until now to happen. Because as much as I tend to agree with their policies (at least provincially), I'm glad they've had the time and the chance to do what they've done, to influence government policy as much as they have, from the other side of the aisle.

Today, no one is more conscious than Darrell Dexter’s NDP of the importance of getting it right. They understand that they have been handed a historic opportunity, and that the trust of Nova Scotians must be handled with care. On Tuesday night, many voters, especially in rural areas, cautiously tiptoed into the NDP camp.

If Dexter can keep them there in four years, he’ll truly make history. If not, he’ll be history.

To which I can only add ... Hear, Hear.

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Speaking of politics, my thoughts turned back to one of my favourite Lex quotes (yes, I admit it, I do have the occasional Lex quote) when I saw this picture followed by this headline today.

The Lex quote in question being

I believe that choices are actions, and that actions have consequences. If you didn’t pick up on this growing up, you weren’t paying attention.

I believe my grandmother's rendition might have been something closer to "Think before you speak" while a good friend of mine is always working on teaching her children to "Stop. Plot. Think. Do." Personally, I prefer "Put brain in gear before engaging mouth".

But however you choose to word it, the point remains ... actions do have consequences. Oh yeah, sorry, I guess that line is already taken. Too bad someone hadn't pointed that out to the Pres.

But never fear, Hilary is here.

Hey, it could be worse ... it could be Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano.

Oh wait, I guess Hillary isn't much better, is she?

Woe is us...