Posts
 |
Bari: This large standard bred poodle came to our family via my two older brothers who rented a house in London Ontario when they were starving students. As I recall the owner of the house rented the place on condition that they look after the dog while he was away. Bari's name had some connection to the owners' Polish Roots. We somehow got this dog and it was adopted immediately by my sister. Bari and I had issues!
I was the one designated to take Bari to his final trip to the vets because in my sister's eyes I hated Bari.
Bari hated thunderstorms and one day he was left in the garage and one of those mighty thunder cracks boomed and Bari came in to the basement via the window landing on my Boney M album that was perched to play on the stereo below. It was not a pretty scene as I prepared to send Bari to his maker while my sister pleaded for his life. Only my wise mother could bring the situation under control by saying Tim - It's only a record. That was probably 35 years ago and maybe that was the seed for my "Shit Happens, paydays on Thursday, whaa F'n whaaa " saying I use at times. Sometimes it is best to save your energy for real issues. I also found that Hate is a very strong word, I didn't hate Bari. Seeing his helpless eyes as I loaded him in the van I found strength to finish the ride and forgiveness I think.
Boney M: You see I loved the Boney M album - Rah Rah Rasputin was my favourite - to me it spoke of my heritage - My grandfather and his brothers came to Canada to escape either the revolution or the poverty in the Ukraine at the time. My Grandfather was on the Mount Temple the night the Titanic sunk (another story). I have always been more interested in my Ukrainian heritage than my 3/4 French Canadian mix. Ukrainian Easter eggs and peroghies are much more exciting than pea soup and tourtiere. Bobby Farrell the front man of Boney M passed away on Dec 30th. Apparently his voice was not on the albums and most of the concerts were lip-synced. Not to discredit his success but it serves to remind me that we meet many charlatans as we wind our way through life. "Beware of False Prophets" is mentioned many times in the Bible and it never hurts to be your own Devil's Advocate. Caution here - Beware of Paralysis by Analysis.
Bolsheviks: I remember visiting my Aunt Lupka in her small house by the tracks in Windsor - In her kitchen there was a wooden plaque with Lenin's face on it - Lenin's eyes would follow you in the room and they seemed to pierce your soul. Lenin's rise to power was in my opinion more due to the economic times than any ideological shift by the general populace. Change was what the people wanted and change is what they got and history has shown it was and continues to be a bloody mess. In my business experience when tasked with fixing a problem, I have found that most folks really do not like change and will settle for the discomforts of the status quo rather than embrace a new way of thinking and doing. Even the managers that hired me would question the things that need to be done. They understood why, but would rather await a magic wand, than a man on a white horse. There are no magic wands, only hard work and hard thinking can work the magic against the powerful force of the status quo. The secret is to engage people, trust them with the information they need to make their jobs better and to give them the tools to do it. Lenin's dream failed because he reached for the same quick fix that the Czar had used, being brute force. Our democratic system relies on votes and the brute force is the spin created in backrooms that build up the perception of the political leaders and works to tear down the opposition. Popularity beats Platform as I have found out in politics. I am sure that Lenin, Harper and McGuinty are really nice people but sometimes power corrupts actions. I am sure that there are more disgruntled folks than just me but maintaining the status quo can be more painful than the work required to make things right. Perhaps it is time for a revolution.
I'll end this blog with the words Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet over 400 years ago
This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell, my blessing season this in thee!
Cheers
Mit
