Some of your comments on my last post got me thinking about more things as to what information is on the Internet about us. As you know from my last post I have been spending time looking for information on some class mates that I was with 54 years ago. For a few there was lots of detailed information. For some there was nothing. For some there was just the possibility of a phone number.
Some of the information about us is securely locked away in government or private business computers. My son works for a company that produces, sells, installs and services security systems. These systems are meant to keep your personal, government and private business very secure. Yes, there are hackers. They seem to get pretty high up the ladder in their search for information. Most business things can be done via the Internet. I can file my income tax return on the net. I can buy and sell things by using my credit card. I can do my banking right from home. My bank did inform me one time that a disk with some information on my business and many others had been lost. They of course had this backed up and no bad guy has been able to use the information. the disk is probably still lost.
But most things out on the net are pretty basic. The first half dozen entries are phone numbers. I don't know why it takes a half dozen websites to distribute your phone number and say that you may be on face book or some other social net working site. Some things are sort of fly by entries. Yes, I seconded a motion at a library board meeting. Yes, I'm named in my Dad's obituary. Once I accidentally found my application to teach for the Canadian government overseas. I've tried to find this again but no luck. Sometimes other people say things about us. It seems that there are many genealogy sites that include a few things.
Bloggers leave a huge trail behind them. We usually start our blog with a profile. Each entry we make is out there as a separate piece of information. I also write on another blog and find that those posts are listed separately one after another. Much of our material is picked up in searches. Somebody googles something and our site is included and listed. If it's on the first page someone may take a look at our post.
So yes, there can be quite a bit of information about us out on the Internet. I can hardly wait for the comments to fill in all the things I've missed or don't know. My curiosity is killing me!
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Pleasure in Internet Search
In 1957-58 I took a one year teacher training course. There were 400 in the class and the course was intense as we were expected to take over a class room and teach at the end of the year. So 400 young people met, worked and played for a year. Many good friends and acquaintances were made.
I came from a small one teacher high school. For me to be thrown in with 400 other people was terrifying. My home village only had 235 people! I survived and probably learned a thing or two. I got a job and could sort of teach. I was eighteen years old and if you think about an eighteen year old they are great but not very ready to teach.
I left the teachers' college and began a career. I saw about six of my former classmates since that time. I left the area and at times lived far away So recently I became curious as to what happened to some of these people. Fifty five years have gone by. I wonder what has happened.
So off to the Internet to have a little look. One of the first names I Googled I found the person had died. I thought a bit and said well , since most of us are up in our seventies it might not be a bad idea to search obituaries. Fortunately, I found only one more obituary.
I did find some interesting results. One guy became a school superintendent. Another a Lutheran minister. Another went back to the farm and farmed with his family. Another went back to his home town taught, farmed and wrote. He wrote columns for the CBC. He then put his columns in two books. So the results so far have been interesting and surprising.
One challenge is that most of the women married so I don't have a name for them. The class was 75 % women.
So since I am curious and have some time I practise ( Bugs me that spell check doesn't know the difference between practice and practise) my Internet search skills.
I came from a small one teacher high school. For me to be thrown in with 400 other people was terrifying. My home village only had 235 people! I survived and probably learned a thing or two. I got a job and could sort of teach. I was eighteen years old and if you think about an eighteen year old they are great but not very ready to teach.
I left the teachers' college and began a career. I saw about six of my former classmates since that time. I left the area and at times lived far away So recently I became curious as to what happened to some of these people. Fifty five years have gone by. I wonder what has happened.
So off to the Internet to have a little look. One of the first names I Googled I found the person had died. I thought a bit and said well , since most of us are up in our seventies it might not be a bad idea to search obituaries. Fortunately, I found only one more obituary.
I did find some interesting results. One guy became a school superintendent. Another a Lutheran minister. Another went back to the farm and farmed with his family. Another went back to his home town taught, farmed and wrote. He wrote columns for the CBC. He then put his columns in two books. So the results so far have been interesting and surprising.
One challenge is that most of the women married so I don't have a name for them. The class was 75 % women.
So since I am curious and have some time I practise ( Bugs me that spell check doesn't know the difference between practice and practise) my Internet search skills.
Friday, October 26, 2012
All Old Guys should Walk
All old guys should walk daily for exercise and good health.
A few nights ago I did my walk and wrote on Face Book that I had just got in from a refreshing walk. One of my friends replied in a joking way "sick." That got me thinking a little more seriously about walking.
Once cycling season ends for me I start a nightly walking routine. Sometime in the evening I do a 30 minute walk. It's thirty minutes because that's what my route takes. I try to go out even when the weather is rather nasty. If I get a little soft then I tend to stay in so I keep on walking.
Walking is always considered to be an excellent form of exercise. From walking you get some conditioning and strength building. Walking is very safe and has a low rate of injuries. After that you get fresh air and a whole lot of tension relief.
Walking can be suited to each individual. I walk by myself most of the time so I can set my own pace. I walked this afternoon because there's some ice on the sidewalk and you can't see it at night. I happened to notice an awful lot of sea gulls flying over. I stopped and watched . There were literally thousands of birds that flew over. It appeared that they were mostly young of this year or from last year. So my point is you can do different things on a walk. I also stop for geese, swans and chickadees! Once in a while I do walk with people and it is pleasant.
Since I've lived in the same neighborhood for many years I like to stop and visit with people. Unfortunately, very few people walk. So I always say, "It's only me and the bad guys out there." I believe that if people are out on their streets it makes for a much safer community.
So I jokingly say "guys" but I would never forget the gals. The same thing goes for everybody. Walking is very beneficial.
A few nights ago I did my walk and wrote on Face Book that I had just got in from a refreshing walk. One of my friends replied in a joking way "sick." That got me thinking a little more seriously about walking.
Once cycling season ends for me I start a nightly walking routine. Sometime in the evening I do a 30 minute walk. It's thirty minutes because that's what my route takes. I try to go out even when the weather is rather nasty. If I get a little soft then I tend to stay in so I keep on walking.
Walking is always considered to be an excellent form of exercise. From walking you get some conditioning and strength building. Walking is very safe and has a low rate of injuries. After that you get fresh air and a whole lot of tension relief.
Walking can be suited to each individual. I walk by myself most of the time so I can set my own pace. I walked this afternoon because there's some ice on the sidewalk and you can't see it at night. I happened to notice an awful lot of sea gulls flying over. I stopped and watched . There were literally thousands of birds that flew over. It appeared that they were mostly young of this year or from last year. So my point is you can do different things on a walk. I also stop for geese, swans and chickadees! Once in a while I do walk with people and it is pleasant.
Since I've lived in the same neighborhood for many years I like to stop and visit with people. Unfortunately, very few people walk. So I always say, "It's only me and the bad guys out there." I believe that if people are out on their streets it makes for a much safer community.
 |
| Not today's walk but I've included the birding part |
So I jokingly say "guys" but I would never forget the gals. The same thing goes for everybody. Walking is very beneficial.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Pointless Politicians.
As one who has had a long interest in current events, I find the present behavior of our politicians to be extremely disappointing. First, I would like to point out that I am Canadian and the conditions I'm commenting on refer to Canadian politics.
The level of debate in our parliament seems to have dropped right off the edge of the earth. Speeches that are logical and well researched are completely lacking. Policies that are well developed and reasoned are not in existence. Instead we get brief talking points which are responses given whether they are on the topic or not. These inane responses are repeated many times. So debate with someone else does not happen. Talking points limit the actions of the individual member of parliament to use his/her own ability to express their ideas and support their party's platform. Members do not get an opportunity to be leaders.
The present government has to take most of the responsibility for such low level of performance. The govt. is very loathe to give out any information. The public, press, opposition and any researchers are blocked many times from accessing public information. The govt. is fearful of releasing information for which they may receive negative publicity or criticism.
Rules of procedure are treated as something which is made to be broken. For the last election robo calls were used to pass out false information to discourage voters from voting. One party compiled a list of opposition supporters and used the robo calls to tell these people misinformation so they would not vote. Some candidates overspent the limits of campaign spending set by law. In some cases the winning margin was small and spending extra money probably bought the election for them.
Why have our politicians become such lunatics? Parties want to win so badly that they employ tactics which are most despicable. Attack ads are crafted and used. Many of these ads are very remote from the truth. Tactics to divide citizens are used so that less votes are needed to form a majority. With these tactics solid policy and debate go out the window.
I for one, would very much like to see political parties concentrate on developing sound policies that they stand for and promote. Then the voters can evaluate policies and elect who they think will do the most good. Why don't politicians think of the good of their country and be principled about it?
Most of all I would like to see some sanity return to our politicians! We are part of the process and have to come up with some strategies that require politicians to perform in a manner which follows rules and results in the success of the country.
The level of debate in our parliament seems to have dropped right off the edge of the earth. Speeches that are logical and well researched are completely lacking. Policies that are well developed and reasoned are not in existence. Instead we get brief talking points which are responses given whether they are on the topic or not. These inane responses are repeated many times. So debate with someone else does not happen. Talking points limit the actions of the individual member of parliament to use his/her own ability to express their ideas and support their party's platform. Members do not get an opportunity to be leaders.
The present government has to take most of the responsibility for such low level of performance. The govt. is very loathe to give out any information. The public, press, opposition and any researchers are blocked many times from accessing public information. The govt. is fearful of releasing information for which they may receive negative publicity or criticism.
Rules of procedure are treated as something which is made to be broken. For the last election robo calls were used to pass out false information to discourage voters from voting. One party compiled a list of opposition supporters and used the robo calls to tell these people misinformation so they would not vote. Some candidates overspent the limits of campaign spending set by law. In some cases the winning margin was small and spending extra money probably bought the election for them.
Why have our politicians become such lunatics? Parties want to win so badly that they employ tactics which are most despicable. Attack ads are crafted and used. Many of these ads are very remote from the truth. Tactics to divide citizens are used so that less votes are needed to form a majority. With these tactics solid policy and debate go out the window.
I for one, would very much like to see political parties concentrate on developing sound policies that they stand for and promote. Then the voters can evaluate policies and elect who they think will do the most good. Why don't politicians think of the good of their country and be principled about it?
Most of all I would like to see some sanity return to our politicians! We are part of the process and have to come up with some strategies that require politicians to perform in a manner which follows rules and results in the success of the country.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
A Preoccupation With Records!
Since Felix Baumgartner made his historic jump the other day, it has got me wondering about our preoccupation with records... the biggest, the fastest, the heaviest, the tallest, the oldest. You get what I mean.
Baumgartner went to tremendous planning and expense to set up his record breaking jump. He carefully picked the best place on the planet to make the jump. All kinds of technology was used. How many cameras were set up to record the event? A balloon made of plastic close to saran wrap thickness carried him to the outer edges of the atmosphere. The balloon...15 stories high! The tiny capsule he traveled in? One small mistake and it was over for Mr. Baumgartner. A small rip in his suit would be automatic disaster. A small rip in the plastic balloon? There were many things where there was no backup.
I had not been paying attention to this stunt. On the day of the jump twitter was full of "Felix" and then I realized what they were talking about.
So the Guinness book of records gets another entry. As an aside, when I taught I tried to have one period a week for reading. Some little guy always got the Guinness book of records and would be mesmerized for the whole period.
So I have to question the value of setting so many different records. Yes, I know this one had a certain amount of scientific value, but many records are pointless. Example: 150 combines in one field, a hockey game which is played for 72 hours. Aren't we wasting time and making spectacles of ourselves?
I for one can do without such records and can get myself cranked up to live a fulfilling life without all the hype cluttering my head.
Baumgartner went to tremendous planning and expense to set up his record breaking jump. He carefully picked the best place on the planet to make the jump. All kinds of technology was used. How many cameras were set up to record the event? A balloon made of plastic close to saran wrap thickness carried him to the outer edges of the atmosphere. The balloon...15 stories high! The tiny capsule he traveled in? One small mistake and it was over for Mr. Baumgartner. A small rip in his suit would be automatic disaster. A small rip in the plastic balloon? There were many things where there was no backup.
I had not been paying attention to this stunt. On the day of the jump twitter was full of "Felix" and then I realized what they were talking about.
So the Guinness book of records gets another entry. As an aside, when I taught I tried to have one period a week for reading. Some little guy always got the Guinness book of records and would be mesmerized for the whole period.
So I have to question the value of setting so many different records. Yes, I know this one had a certain amount of scientific value, but many records are pointless. Example: 150 combines in one field, a hockey game which is played for 72 hours. Aren't we wasting time and making spectacles of ourselves?
I for one can do without such records and can get myself cranked up to live a fulfilling life without all the hype cluttering my head.
Friday, October 19, 2012
A Triggered Memory
The other day a local newspaper photographer came to our skating group to take pictures. I have met this photographer many times and can say that he is and excellent photo journalist.
Talking to him the other day reminded me of the first time I met him. I was doing a Christmas bird count in Dec. of 91. I slipped on an icy down slope piece of trail. I reached back to break my fall and my hand landed on dirt. I felt a sudden severe pain in my wrist and I knew something had broken. I sat up and just about passed out because of the pain. I took my glove off to see what things looked like. That gave me a tremendous jolt. I tried the old test to see if things moved to find out if a bone is broken. Things moved...sort of. I thought maybe if I move the wrist to another position it might not hurt so much and I could walk home. I got up. Things really went in circles. I grabbed the railing and tried to get back up the slope. Extreme pain. I was blacking out and thought I would fall. I leaned on the rail or over it.
At that point I saw a runner go by me. I hollered and the runner turned around to see what I wanted. The runner was the photographer who I saw the other day. Jeff helped me up a steep bank to a large apartment. Jeff had a great deal of first aid training so I appreciated his assistance.
I phoned my daughter to come and get me. She took me to emergency and I sent her home as I knew I would be there for quite a while. I told her , "Don't tell Mom." Xrays were taken and an orthopaedic surgeon was called. was called. He decided that surgery was needed but he couldn't use anesthetic because I had eaten. Finally about 3 PM my wife came racing in just as I was being taken for surgery. She became alarmed because I was at emergency for so long.
The surgical process they used was called closed reduction. They have imaging technology which allows the orthopaedic surgeon to see the bone pieces and manipulate them into place without opening up the wrist. The ulna had four fractures and the radius had three fractures . When I later saw an xray the whole thing looked like crushed ice.
I was amazed at how much pain I had. I was used to seeing kids come to school with a cast and it seemed like a lark.
I was teased endlessly about breaking my wrist while "bird watching." People remarked that, they didn't know bird watching was a dangerous activity. The students teased me about being in a tree and watching birds. Bird jokes were flying around through the air continuously..
So that Christmas I had the worst of memories and the best of humor.
Talking to him the other day reminded me of the first time I met him. I was doing a Christmas bird count in Dec. of 91. I slipped on an icy down slope piece of trail. I reached back to break my fall and my hand landed on dirt. I felt a sudden severe pain in my wrist and I knew something had broken. I sat up and just about passed out because of the pain. I took my glove off to see what things looked like. That gave me a tremendous jolt. I tried the old test to see if things moved to find out if a bone is broken. Things moved...sort of. I thought maybe if I move the wrist to another position it might not hurt so much and I could walk home. I got up. Things really went in circles. I grabbed the railing and tried to get back up the slope. Extreme pain. I was blacking out and thought I would fall. I leaned on the rail or over it.
At that point I saw a runner go by me. I hollered and the runner turned around to see what I wanted. The runner was the photographer who I saw the other day. Jeff helped me up a steep bank to a large apartment. Jeff had a great deal of first aid training so I appreciated his assistance.
I phoned my daughter to come and get me. She took me to emergency and I sent her home as I knew I would be there for quite a while. I told her , "Don't tell Mom." Xrays were taken and an orthopaedic surgeon was called. was called. He decided that surgery was needed but he couldn't use anesthetic because I had eaten. Finally about 3 PM my wife came racing in just as I was being taken for surgery. She became alarmed because I was at emergency for so long.
The surgical process they used was called closed reduction. They have imaging technology which allows the orthopaedic surgeon to see the bone pieces and manipulate them into place without opening up the wrist. The ulna had four fractures and the radius had three fractures . When I later saw an xray the whole thing looked like crushed ice.
I was amazed at how much pain I had. I was used to seeing kids come to school with a cast and it seemed like a lark.
I was teased endlessly about breaking my wrist while "bird watching." People remarked that, they didn't know bird watching was a dangerous activity. The students teased me about being in a tree and watching birds. Bird jokes were flying around through the air continuously..
So that Christmas I had the worst of memories and the best of humor.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Oh the Flu Shot, the Flu Shot. Such a Terrible Thought!
Yesterday I went for my annual flu shot. Now I'm not a wuss when it comes to needles or any other treatment, but I do have some reservations about flu shots.
Here , Alberta Health Services provides and encourages all people to get a flu shot. At one time flu shots were only available for those over 65, 12 or under and people with a chronic condition such as asthma. Since we've had a few scares about pandemics, they have decided to make a flu shot available to all citizens.
I had always resisted getting a flu shot because I have excellent health and resistance. I also didn't want to put something in my body that may alter my immune system.( Just my opinion. Not a researched idea.) So I was dragged , kicking and screaming, for a flu shot a few years ago. Somebody threatened that if I got the flu "herself" wouldn't look after me. I have not had a flu for 15 years and I'm not sure if it was the result of a flu shot or my own resistance and good health.
So yesterday off I obediently went for my flu shot. It was the first day flu shots were available. Now with new technology needles are so fine and sharp that you really have to be thinking about it when you get your shot to feel anything.
Here large clinics are organized. A large building is set up with about 20 nurses. Volunteers man a reception area and processing of records. Then you sit and wait.. You are given numbers and when they call your number off you go. You have to wait 15 minutes after your shot so there is a large room with about 400 seats for people to wait. I said to the person next to me that I should get up and sing because I would not likely ever have an audience this large again!
So I hope this is another year without a flu.
I hope all readers and followers miss the flu this year too.
Here , Alberta Health Services provides and encourages all people to get a flu shot. At one time flu shots were only available for those over 65, 12 or under and people with a chronic condition such as asthma. Since we've had a few scares about pandemics, they have decided to make a flu shot available to all citizens.
I had always resisted getting a flu shot because I have excellent health and resistance. I also didn't want to put something in my body that may alter my immune system.( Just my opinion. Not a researched idea.) So I was dragged , kicking and screaming, for a flu shot a few years ago. Somebody threatened that if I got the flu "herself" wouldn't look after me. I have not had a flu for 15 years and I'm not sure if it was the result of a flu shot or my own resistance and good health.
So yesterday off I obediently went for my flu shot. It was the first day flu shots were available. Now with new technology needles are so fine and sharp that you really have to be thinking about it when you get your shot to feel anything.
Here large clinics are organized. A large building is set up with about 20 nurses. Volunteers man a reception area and processing of records. Then you sit and wait.. You are given numbers and when they call your number off you go. You have to wait 15 minutes after your shot so there is a large room with about 400 seats for people to wait. I said to the person next to me that I should get up and sing because I would not likely ever have an audience this large again!
So I hope this is another year without a flu.
I hope all readers and followers miss the flu this year too.
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