Tag: British Columbia

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Hummingbird….

As we sat on our little deck amongst the trees, sipping a glass of wine, a multitude of hummingbirds were diving, fighting and playing around us.

This guy seemed to be the boss though….

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/24362859]

Seemed like a good opportunity to test out the HD video on the little Canon Elph300 we just bought, so I sat patiently just by the feeder, as a number of hummingbirds hovered so close to my face, I could feel the draft caused by their wings.

Expect more of the same, should I remember to have the camera to hand, now I know how to use it….

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Garbage….

Oh, marvellous…. and there was me thinking I’d left all this behind….

Big Brother Interested In Your Garbage (Castanet)
Read Article @ http://tinyurl.com/28sszbm

Kelowna Council will be asked Monday to pony up approximately $1.50 to $1.70 per household per year for on-board computers, software, data collection and data hosting services not included in the initial phase of the project.

In his report for council, Utility Services Manager Don Degen says along with collecting basic data, the system makes it easy for collection drivers to gather additional information that may result in further contact with the customer, or constitute an offence such as an illegal item in the cart, a cart in a bike lane or an overloaded cart.

Er…. “illegal items” in the cart?

Now, assuming they are still going to be unlocked allowing them to picked up and emptied, and they are still left at the roadside, what happens when someone walks down the street and decides to put something in the nearest bin, being mine, for example, not intentionally, but nonetheless “illegal”? What happens? I’m fined? It’s happening in the UK, so please, get your head out of the clouds….

Also, when you tell me it’s for all our benefit, making life “easier”, bear in mind that’s also what you told me when the radio transmitting water meters were installed, only to find out a couple of months ago that there were after all, ulterior motives….

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Best Pals….

Found Merlin fast asleep on the floor, after a hard days mousing….

Best Pals....

Blogging has been a bit light. Not much has been happening….

Although, the big news, I’ve been “selected” to be the assistant football/soccer coach for the boy’s U14 team this year. We’ve had a couple of training sessions and a friendly, exhibition game against the U15 girls team…. who came out ready to take no prisoners….. but we managed a 1-0 win, with the boy scoring the only goal. The season begins proper in the Spring, when the league play begins leading up to the provincial finals in June, which we hope this year to through to.

Other than that, “work” has taken hold, websites have been built and some music has been made.

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Scuba Diving….

Miss has reached 11 years old and the age old question arises, “What does she want for her birthday?”….

So, I suggested scuba diving….

Diving Mermaid

It went down a treat. She loved it. After getting over the initial nervousness of being in a new environment, she was hooked. I saw her go under at 7pm and she didn’t surface until 7.30pm!

Diving Mermaid...

Diving Mermaid

Diving Mermaid

Next time you’re looking for something to get your kids, or grandkids, or even your friends kids, forget the usual gadgets or crappy item that’ll be forgetten the day after and go for something memorable, that they’re going to remember for life. The lesson cost $50, or 25 quid for UK readers. A DVD is nearly $30 if you get a new one, and books here in Canada are nothing short of extortionate. A trial piano or drum lesson, a painting class, a scuba diving session, or even a flying lesson is not going to break the bank, especially if you all club together, whatever. It doesn’t even need to be something they ever do again, but it’ll be something they remember. It may even be the unlocking of a lifetime hobby or passion, which will always be worth more than a new iPod or cellphone, trust me.

Do it. They’ll thank you for it.

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Two Brush Fires, in Kelowna….

So, after we had the Peachland fire a couple of days ago, an ominous plume of smoke strated rising on the horizon, on the opposite side of the lake, about half an hour ago….

Kelowna Fire

Kelowna fire department and Ministry of Forests crews are at the scene of two separate brush fires near the end of Lakeshore Road at the border of Okanagan Mountain Park.

Forestry has sent one attack crew and two helicopters.

The fires, described as rank two out of six, were called in shortly after 1 p.m. They are in the area of the 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Fire.

The nearest home is several hundred metres away, however, residents in the area are not being allowed to access their homes.  Residents that are in homes in the area are being asked to leave.  RCMP have set up roadblocks on Lakeshore Road at the entrance to Bertram Creek Park.

Winds in the area are relatively calm, coming out of the south at 17km/h with gusts to 37km/h.

More news, as we get it….

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Peachland Update 3pm’ish…

So, checking the news channels, I’ve got this for now….

Ministry of Forests and Range say fire is 18 hectares in size and is contained below the highway. 14 firefighters, 5 helicopters and one piece of heavy equipment are on scene. Calm winds are slowing fire behaviour.

The plumes of smoke have certainly dissipated, (I think that’s the right word!) and is nothing more than small’ish white cloud of smoke.

So, for now, we’re kind of out of the woods, as they say…..

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Peachland Fire, 11am…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCJHeBcK5eg]

The word is that the fire is now at 15 hectares, so it’s still growing.

And to make matters worse, some people are taking the logging roads to try and get round the Hwy 97 closed route….. then getting lost, stretching the RCMP resources further.

More news as I get it….

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Peachland Fire, 2010….

Peachland Fire, 2010

Peachland Fire, 2010

I don’t see any planes, or "water choppers", so it would appear, from our view, that it’s under control for now…. it’s been very hot and dry for a few days now though, so, we wait and see. We have had some serious winds over the last 24 hours, but fortunately, they have died down a little for now, which will help….

Fire crews are currently battling a wildfire that is burning in the Drought Hill area just south of Gorman’s Mill.

The fire, which appears to have started near Seclusion Bay has crept up the hill close to Highway 97.

Reports indicate people are being evacuated from Seclusion Bay Road. Evacuees are being taken to the Westbank Community Hall.

There are reports the fire has crossed the road, forcing some residents to go back to the lake.

Rescue crews are evacuating residents by water utilizing two rescue craft.

Air tankers from the Ministry of Forests have been called in.

Weather conditions are extremely gusty. They appear to be out of the west.

The forecast for Monday is calling for winds gusting from the southwest at 50/km an hour.

Traffic is stalled southbound on Highway 97 at the Okanagan Connector.

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Monster Beast found in Ontario….

Er….

Bizarre creature washes up in small Ontario town….

Locals in a small Canadian town have been stumped by the appearance of a bizarre creature, which was dragged from a lake. The animal, which has a long hairy body with bald skin on its head, feet and face, has prompted wild internet speculation that it is a more evolved version of the famous Montauk Monster. The creature was discovered by two nurses in the town of Kitchenuhmaykoosib in Ontario, Canada, while out on a walk with their dog. When the dog began sniffing in the lake, the two women started investigating, before the dog pulled the dead animal out.

After taking some photographs of the odd animal, the nurses left it alone. When locals decided to go back and retrieve the body, it has disappeared. The photographs have now been posted on a local website, with an explanation which reads: ‘This creature was first discovered by Sam the Dog, a local dog.

‘It was discovered first week of May in the creek section of town, hikers noticed Sam sniffing something in the water and they approached to see in what the Sam had detected and they noticed the creature in the water face down. ‘The dog jumped in the lake and pulled the creature to the rocks and dragged it out for the hikers to see and these are the photos they took.

‘The creature’s tail is like a rat’s tail and it is a foot long.’ There has been much speculation about what kind of species the animal is. The body of the creature appears to look something like an otter, while its face – complete with long fang-like teeth, bears a striking resemblance to a boar-like animal. Even the local police chief Donny Morris is baffled, saying: ‘What it is, I don’t know. I’m just as curious as everyone else.’

Read Full Article @ http://tinyurl.com/23jacn3

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Full-body scanners are waste of money, Israeli expert says….

Genius….

Thanks for asking if we wanted them, government of Canada and thanks for doing the homework on them before you forked out the cash, OUR cash. Let’s hope someone kept the receipt….

Full-body scanners are waste of money, Israeli expert says

A leading Israeli airport security expert says the Canadian government has wasted millions of dollars to install “useless” imaging machines at airports across the country.

“I don’t know why everybody is running to buy these expensive and useless machines. I can overcome the body scanners with enough explosives to bring down a Boeing 747,” Rafi Sela told parliamentarians probing the state of aviation safety in Canada.

“That’s why we haven’t put them in our airport,” Sela said, referring to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport, which has some of the toughest security in the world.

Read Full Article @ http://tinyurl.com/384jrob

Oh well, it’s not like we need the cash is it. I mean, who needs skool buses anyway….