The Queen of Mean

Everyone leaves some kind of legacy behind them when they die. Its probably something that most of us don't think about until we are to old to effecively do something about it. But that legacy is usually going to fall into one of three categories, either positive, negative or neutral.

I've known some people who fall into the neutral category which may be the greatest indicator of a wasted life. Mostly because it indicates someone who never had any time for anyone but themselves, remained isolated and went through life with no passion or involvement, the best that can be said is they didn't do any damage, but then they never contributed either. There is a parabble in the bible about that its the people that were given talents and one decided to bury theirs and do nothing with it.

Unfortunately I know to many people whose legacy is negative. Lots of those people can be outgoing and pleasant to be around, but when it comes down to it they will have made the lives of others miserable. Adept at political correctness they are worse than those who make no bones about it and are plain unpleasant to people. One marchs down the street amd carries a banner and trumpet making the world aware to keep your distance or I will make you sorry. The other in sheeps clothing lulling everyone into a false sense of security but waiting for the opportunity to slyly spread their special kind of misery around.

I love to surround myself with positive people, those who honestly have a true sense of obligation and compassion for those around them. These people will have slips from time to time but its easy to forgive them because you know they have a good heart.

I hope people remember me for the good things I have done.

Leona Helmsly who recently died at the age of 87 will be remembered as "The Queen of Mean". she was given the tag name during her trial for tax evasion for which she went to prison. Even though she was a legitimate billionaire her true nature was so strong she couldn't help but try and put one over on the IRS. It was revealed that her style was to terrorize the people who worked for her and who needed a job. In the last few years of her life she tried to rectify things by giving away about $30. To little to late though, the "Queen of Mean is what her legacy will be, she should have thought about it earlier.

Fucking Canada Revenue Agency!!!!!!

For three days I have been calling 1-800-959-5525 to get a business registration number so I can send them monies due for payroll deductions for a new Company I recently formed. This 3 days of concerted affort follows intermittent failed calls over the past 3 weeks.

It is impossible to get past a busy signal. So finally out of desparation I tried the http://www.gov.pe.ca/ website to see if I could register online. Whoopee there is a site and instructions on how to register. So I assemble all the information I need SIN's, addresses, Corporation # , Corporation Registration Date, contact info for directors etc.

Its a nice easy to use site so I type away for a while and finally get to the end and submit. I am greeted by the following message.

Your Business Number Registration Summary

Registration limit has been exceeded for use of Business Registration Online. Please call our toll-free CRA business enquiries line at 1-800-959-5525 if additional business numbers are required. State Information Code 1002

WHY THE FUCK THEN DID IT ALLOW ME TO WASTE ALL THAT FUCKING TIME ONLY TO TELL ME IT ONLY CAN DO A LIMITED NUMBER OF REGISTRATIONS.

Some days I want to go down there with a stick. Only that wouldn't do any good since you now are not allowed to talk to anyone because they are all hiding behind the wall they built. But in the interests of public service there are phones where you can waste your day away dialing 1-800-959-5525 and listen to the busy signal in air conditioned comfort. So thats what I do, go down to the local Revenue Canada office. The girl who collects me the money directs me to a cubicle. There is a big laminated sign lying on the desk that gives me the 1-800-959-5525 number, I dial and listen away to the busy signal for a good two minutes. There is no one else in the office so I complain to the girl who then tells me that if I just dial the number 1 on the phone it will connect me direct to an agent. Good news I dial away and sure enough after about 10 rings someone picks up the phone. We talk and he tells me a couple of things, first I cannot get the business number over the phone and secondly he will have to make an appointment for me at the earliest tomorrow. Also I will need to bring down the articles of Incorporation, he tells me to wait and he will set up the appointment, I hold on the line for approximately two minutes at which time the line goes dead.

Being a persistent soul I call back and I am connected to an agent named "Joseph" who proceeds to register me online and issue me my Business, Payroll tax and GST Number all in less than three minutes. I was so pleased with him had he been closer I would have given him the tongue.

The high pitch of his voice hinted he would have liked that.

Turning Back the Clock

When I would visit my grandparents as a child there was a truck that would come around everyday in North Battleford with a big tank on the back. It would pull up to the houses on its route and fill a barrel that was located in each house with drinking water. Water for washing was collected in either a cistern located in the basement or in a 1000 gallon tank connected to the downspouts on your house.

This was the same in both town, and in the country on the farm where my other grand parents lived. My grandmother on the farm had it really easy because she actually had water in the house. My grand father had dug a well beside the house and had installed two hand pumps with a sink in the kitchen. The one pumped drinking water and the other connected into a big cistern in the basement. You didn't drink from the cisterm pump though, I remember when I was quite small being held by my feet and lowered into the cistern with a pail and a long stick to fish dead mice out.

As I was returning from downtown today there was a big truck blocking the street, as we passed it I noticed it was full of racks with big jugs of water. He was delivering drinking water to offices on the street. Struck me as kind of funny how we have progressed.

Photo Radar and other Annoyances

So city council in Charlottwtown voted to try and get the Provincial Government to approve the use of photo radar to catch speeders.

Sometimes I think I must be living on another planet when I read this nonsense. Like virtually every other Islander I am only vaguely aware there is such a thing as a speed limit. I always drive at a safe speed , if there is no traffic on the road I speed up a bit and if weather or heavy traffic is a factor I slow down. It is so rare that I see someone driving dangerouslyI feel its almost non existant. And if someone wants to drive like a nut they are usually paying attention to where the police are. After 40 years of driving I got a speeding ticket about a month ago for doing about 105 KPH on the Trans Canada when there was no traffic going my way, on a clear Sunday morning on our way to church in our van, from a mountie who was so close to a car coming the other way I couldn't see him. So I got my chance to be a statistic and some snot nosed cop had me waiting on the side of the road with my wife, daughter and 3 of my grand children for over 20 minutes while he ran every check available to make sure he didn't have a terrorist or escaped felon on his hands. I was annoyed over the ticket but it was his complete disregard for the fact we were late for church that bugged me more. Don't they give some profiling lessons in cop school, you wouldn't think 2 older people and 3 children under 9 with their mother fit anybodys notion of a dangerous crew.

Will my driving habits change, no, am I a danger on the road , no. Its political correctness at its worst, believe or not all speed cameras in a place like this will do is create an animosity towards the police and I am guessing they would cause more traffic accidents that it would prevent. It wouldn't take long until everyone would know the location of every speed camera and would be extra slow when going past them. But once out of sight would speed up excessively to make up for the lost time, creating a dangerous situation Should you speed , of course not but this isn't the answer. Want to spend some money productively. Put a few more drug detectives on duty and solve more of the break and enter, assault and theft that takes place daily.