Welcome to Windsor

When people ask me where I'm from I usually respond "I don't know.  My dad was in the air force."  (always go for the laugh)  Truth is we didn't move that much, and my teenage years were spent in Belleville, Ontario.  It's the closest thing I have to a home town.

Just over 21 years ago I was transferred to Windsor.  People can say what they like about Windsor, and usually do, but I've had time to reflect on my adopted home town.  Actually, it's fair to say it's the town that adopted me.

When I arrived ahead of the family and set about finding a home for us all my co-workers couldn't have been more welcoming.  They went out of their way to make sure I had a good meal while I lived in a hotel for a month or two, often in their homes but also recommending decent local restaurants.  Some of them stayed on speed dial after my wife and kids finally joined me in Windsor.  Claire knew she could call any of them to get an opinion or advice on the local scene.  Many of them are close friends even to this day, two plus decades later.

My son's Grade 6 teacher not only met him at the door on his first day of school, but also brought his wife for dinner in my restaurant just so she could meet and welcome me.  Before a few months had passed I had met the movers and shakers, the influential and the notable who today are still my doctor, dentist, friends and associates and who introduced me to key contacts in parliament, city hall, the media, Queen's Park and the local business community.  

We shared that Windsor hospitality when a new young manager got transferred from Toronto and Claire made sure that he was never lacking a home-cooked meal; the standing invitation was his to decline.  Besides, I had asked him to take the job knowing it meant moving to a new community where he had only one friend; me.  When a sales manager from the GTA took a remote job representing Windsor, the first meal he had on the first day of his new job in our town was in our home (it was also the last - he had eyes for my daughter).

That's the Windsor I know.  Good people.  I can't imagine otherwise.  And I've never experienced it anything like it anywhere else.

Read my Lips: No More Rats

In 2003 I unsuccessfully ran for city council.  I came in fourth out of four - dead last place, having had my ass handed to me by the two incumbents and the one other candidate.  I was the first candidate to register for the municipal elections in all of Ontario, as soon as the doors to City Hall opened on January 2nd.  It was a long and grueling, and rewarding 10 months until a disappointing election day.

One of the reasons I lost was my platform.  While most of the other 25+ candidates across 5 wards campaigned on a "no new taxes" mantra, I never promised not to raise taxes.  If I was to run again I wouldn't promise zero tax increases, and I would probably face defeat again.

I have no issue with raising taxes for the right reason.  I have no issue paying increased taxes for the right reasons.

If I ran, it would be on a campaign of  "no more rats".  NO rats.  Total eradication of the disgusting creatures in the city of Windsor.  This isn't the only issue, but it's one of the biggest issues threatening our city.

Our city is infested and has been for decades, and yet no politician will speak of it.  It's a quality of life issue.  It's a health and safety issue.  It's preventable by enforcing property standards, and regulating garbage pick up and back alley food sources, just for a start. 

If the city could rid your neighbourhood of rats by increasing your property taxes by just $5 a month, would you go for it or stick to the "no tax increases" party line?  What if it was $5 a year?

That's the problem with focusing on taxes only. 

• It places value on taxpayers, not citizens.  Not all citizens are municipal taxpayers.  Children, for example, are not taxpayers.  The next politician who says (s)he is working for the taxpayer should be made to go and spend some quality time with a homeless person (also not a taxpayer but no less a citizen).
• It doesn't speak to quality of life.  
• It isn't even a vision for the future.  It's short sighted, and unfortunately while we will be "enjoying" the sixth straight year of zero tax increases in 2014, we will also be "enjoying" another year of rats, homelessness in the downtown core, abandoned houses, decreased services and a declining quality of life.

Poor Judgement all Around - City Council and the Library

In Windsor we have yet another crisis, yet another avoidable crisis at the public library.  An elected official has used the corporate credit card for at least $9,000 in personal charges, which he claims to have repaid.  The amount grows daily with each revelation.

The councillor's lapsed judgement not withstanding, this is not entirely the issue.  The issue is that the politicians have staged a successful takeover of the Library Board.  The root of the issue is in a council with an obstinate fixation on not raising taxes without regard for the implications of such a sweeping generalization - the first being the false presumption that only the elected council has any wisdom and stake in the outcome of any monetary discussions; not so.  At issue is the failure to separate, very necessarily separate, access to information from those who have most to gain by controlling it - the government.  This issue concerns a growing sense of entitlement pervading Windsor's city council, manifested in a disregard for even the most basic rules of corporate responsibility by one of its junior members, who would have been in high school when this "council knows best" juggernaut first began.

The library must be completely free of political influence in all ways, at all times.  This includes everything from library locations to hours of operation to the books on the shelf.  It is not an overstatement to suggest that along with the health and welfare and the policing of the citizenry,  controlling access to information is the third leg in creating the perfect dictatorship.  No one is suggesting an impending dictatorship in Windsor, however we cannot predict the behaviour of politicians not yet elected.  Not coincidentally, these three areas - Police, Public Health and the Library are protected by law from political influence under the Municipal Act.  Look it up.

In practice, it is quite another story.  Look around.

Agora and the Occupiers

ag-o-ra 
: a gathering place; especially : the marketplace in ancient Greece
merriam-webster.com

The dictionary definition sounds benign, however the wikipedia description suggests that the gathering place in Greece and in Rome (the forum) was under government control.  I can't imagine freedom of speech was a coveted right in ancient Rome .  We have only look to the Christian martyrs for proof.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agora

The Occupy Wall Street movement is slowly disbanding across the globe by government decree, by ennui or by inclement weather.  If this movement is to survive, and it has to, what will replace it?  There isn't one sane person who believes the occupiers can camp out forever, but I wonder, "how can we use the village square as a place of the people to be heard?"

The answer may be "agora", the gathering place of civilisations long past.  What if?

A view to City Hall Square in Windsor, Ontario

• Local government created a place in the square for a permanent "soapbox" of sorts, that included proper audio visual, and perhaps a recording aspect that municipal politicians could access and listen to.  Yes, Much Music in Toronto did it first, but why not continue it into the public square?
• Politicians, wanna be politicians, protesters and loudmouths alike would have equal access to the soapbox, not regulated or monitored except by the patience of the assembled
• This place is protected and celebrated, not merely tolerated. 

We regularly see protests in front of government buildings.  What I'm suggesting is town square by design.  Windsor's City Hall square has some nice flowers and benches and a cenotaph, but I can't see where the right to freely gather was built into the design.

We are citizens first, before we are taxpayers or voters.  Let's encourage and elevate debate.

Here's another look at the Occupy Wall Street movement; interesting reading:

http://www.truth-out.org/agora-liberty-square/1321290469

This Beautiful City

I am fortunate that through a combination of my work, my natural wanderlust and my upbringing as an Air Force brat, I love to visit new cities.  I'm not one of those cosmopolitan travellers who can regale you with tales of exotic locales.  You're more likely to hear of gritty inner cities in unlikely destinations.  This is one such story.

I am in Saskatoon as I write this.  I've never been.  So far we're off to a good start with a nice meal in a small "global café" (their words) called  St. Tropez.  The front desk agent recommended it and pronounced it traw-pez, but hey, she pronounced my surname correctly (teer-rül) so I won't quibble.

This morning started with a run along the river on some nice trails and I was impressed at the fitness level of the locals  Not a sloppy, overweight, out-of-shape person in sight, yours truly excepted.  It occured to me how much I would enjoy living here, going so far as to be a little envious that our little city isn't more like this little city in so many ways.

Truth be told, living here is different from visiting.  I would imagine the citizens of this city experience frustration probably as much as anyone.  They may not even recognize their beautiful river and vibrant downtown (sidewalks dutifully rolled up on Sundays) for the gems that they are, seeing them every day.

That this town, or any town including mine, is a good place in which to live, visit or work, is not by accident or happenstance.  It takes political will, vision, trust, cooperation and an engaged citizenry.  That didn't just happen here.

It is happening in my town.  Sometimes you just have to leave to see it.

Say Only the Good Things People Need to Hear

From time to time a blogger will present a criticism of a product, process or experience.  Hopefully the intention is to serve others with a lesson learned, and ultimately an introspective evaluation keeps we service providers humble, knowing that, except for the grace of God, there go any of us.  Sometimes criticism is malicious.  This criticism isn't.  It's about a bad business practice, and not about the place in which it occurred.

I guess it's better than Tweeting

Today's businesses are but one Tweet away from closing the doors.  Any idiot with a smart phone is a critic.  Sometimes is seems like every idiot with a smart phone is a critic.

When do you concentrate on excellence in product and service, and when do you sacrifice quality and service for cost?

Recently my son, a Business major in University, received incredibly bad service from a well-known local restaurant, the gist of it being that his take out order was mistakenly prepared a full hour before the requested pick up time.  The deficiency in execution came in at least two parts.  First, the order taker argued with him about exactly what time the pick-up had been arranged, and took as proof of her own infallibility her history of apparently never having made a mistake.  Secondly, the restaurant protected their costs by determining the hour-old food to still be edible.  It wasn't, and that presumption leads to two sorrowful conclusions.

First, that merely qualifying as "edible" is their culinary standard, and secondly that the restaurant, for the sake of saving about $3 in food costs, placed its reputation on food that had been sitting under the heat lamp for over 60 minutes.  In effect they determined that even though this customer would base his opinion of their restaurant, his recommendations and all future dining experiences on this one meal, rather than make a fresh order they were willing to risk everything on hour-old, cold, and dried out food.  The good news in all this bad news is that they saved a few bucks in not having to prepare it twice.  The bad news is that they will never have to bother making my son or his friends a meal, ever again.

And that, my friends, though I'm sorry to report it, is nevertheless painfully good stuff we all need to hear and learn from, we in business.  We can't fix that place, but if we take our eye off the ball for even a moment in our own operations, there go any of us.  We walk a fine line between watching the bottom line and serving the customer, but even when our priority is necessarily the bottom line, it can't be obvious to the customer.

We don't need to know the name of the business.  Does it matter?  It could be any of ours, no matter what we make or do.  The error was executed by a front line employee in a culture that finds it's source and support at the top.

To deny that it could happen to any of us is the first step towards closing the doors.

The final word is that my son did complain to the manager, and after a full day of reflection(!), she offered to replace the meal on his next visit.  He took her up on her offer immediately.  There was no apology.

You Can't Get There from Here

There was an article I read probably 13 years ago that ended with that sentence.  "You can't get there from here."  It stuck with me.  The article was about relative poverty, the working poor, those who long for better or more, but can't reach it from where they're at.

Reporting on conditions in the inner city of a second tier Canadian city, it could have been Windsor, the article was about hunger.  It was born of the frustration of seeing the poor in the writer's neighbourhood sending the children off to school without a proper lunch, of seeing children eat packages of Mr. Noodles (a dry ramen noodle with a package of sodium meant to imitate a chicken stock) as a breakfast substitute as they shuffled to school; of seeing a child stop by a convenience store, buy a large bag of Doritos, put it in the hood of her winter coat (for lack of a proper backpack).  This was her lunch.

It is difficult to find nutritious food within a reasonable walking distance of most neighbourhoods of our inner city.  Big Box supermarkets (and hardware stores, and pools and rinks, and libraries) may work well for people with wheels, but those without spend precious dollars on taxis to bring their groceries home.  It is faster and more convenient, but not better or cheaper, to spend precious dollars on belly-filling junk foods in the local 7-11 or a Tim Hortons.

Sickness and poor health as a result of poor nutrition keep people in poverty.  Children lack the energy to concentrate at school, adults struggle to get through the work day in listless surrender.  Decrying the lack of reasonable local alternatives to convenience store food shopping, to quote the article, "You want fresh vegetables?  You can't get there from here."

The relatively poor in a country of plenty live a quiet desperation.  Not only do they live day to day with a hunger for a decent meal, they live in a land of plenty, just out of reach.

The poor of Windsor live with empty stomachs in a poverty of hope.  You want better for yourself and for your children?  You can't get there from here.  Not the way it is now.

Quality of Life and a Nice Home

Years ago we were transferred to Windsor, Ontario from our life in Toronto.  Frankly, I had no idea where Windsor was.  I knew it was west.  That's an understatement.

"Get on the 401 highway and head west," were the directions from my boss.  "When you get to the end of the highway and someone asks for your I.D., back it up a little.  You'll be in Windsor."  Windsor is on the border with the U.S.  Detroit is across the river.

Long story short, that was 18 years ago.  In spite of career upheaval and crisis now and then, this has been the best thing that ever happened to our family.  We couldn't possibly have enjoyed the quality of life we now enjoy - our neighbours and neighbourhood, our proximity to a major American city while still living in a small town, our friends, our Church, and our well adjusted, well educated and very cool children raised right here.  Windsor has been good to us.

There's more to a community than house prices.  There's more to life than working to pay a mortgage.

Read the Globe and Mail article on the subject:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/mortgages/want-to-buy-a-sweet-house-for-under-200000/article2101942/

There Goes the Neighbourhood

When my buddy Rick (Moose) Moore's family  moved to Toronto when we were teens I was distraught at the thought of him leaving our little town, afraid he'd be swallowed up in the big city.  On one of his visits back to Belleville he reassured me.  "Jeremy," he said, "in Belleville we live in our neighbourhoods.  In Toronto we live in neighbourhoods, too.  There's just a whole lot more of them."  With those words of wisdom my fears were at rest.

I wish Moose was here to talk to Mayor Eddie and council.  (Why does our council entertain delegations if they have no intention of listening, or perhaps even changing their votes because of what they've heard?)

As when they opened the WFCU Arena and closed several neighbourhood ice rinks, by opening the aquatic centre they intend to close down neighbourhood pools and the main library in this "big box" approach to city services.  I think that's a bad idea.

~ conflict of interest alert - all 3 of my kids have put themselves, or are putting themselves through University on lifeguard wages ~ all 3 of my kids have given everything they have (including cash from their own pockets) to make a kid's summer a great one at the neighbourhood pool ~

We live in our neighbourhoods.  My kids spent summers walking over to an outdoor pool and spending afternoons with their friends.  If we lived in the vicinity of one of the soon to be closed pools, the summer magic and the lessons of community learned at an early age would have been lost to them, as it will be to kids today.

Pools, rinks, libraries are NOT cost items on the city budget, at least not in the sense of a profit/loss calculation.  They are the services provided with the tax dollars pooled for the benefit of all.  Yet lately we hear about pools losing money, or libraries costing money.  They're supposed to.  So is snow removal.

When we land the big swimming events, who's going to be temporarily evicted?  Swim classes, recreational swimmers, library users who can't find a parking spot, all of these citizens will have to cool their jets while the big pool and all the little ones in the complex are being used for some mega-event or another.

I'm in favour of a new sports-plex type installation downtown, seriously really in favour.  It's good for business, it's good for tourism, it's good for Windsor.  I'm not sure it has to be so big, and I'm just not in favour of shutting down the lifeblood of our neighbourhoods for this Council's legacy project.

Trouble in the Local Catholic School Board

There's trouble in the local Catholic School Board, and many will take this opportunity to suggest that the problems begin in the "Catholic" part of that title.  I've have my own concerns regarding that as well, not the least involve statements that are decidedly un-Catholic from some of our Catholic teachers.  I've heard Catholic teachers make statement supportive of same-sex "marriage" and another make statements supportive of couples living together.  Regardless of what is now considered to be mainstream and acceptable in society, it's not what Catholics believe and it is not what teachers in the Catholic system can support, even privately.

It's not my place to judge others, however as a parent in the system and a taxpayer contributing to the system and as a Roman Catholic Deacon, I would like to see at least one change beyond trimming the administrative ranks in the local board.

I believe any teacher and administrator or trustee in the Catholic school system who does not attend Mass on a regular basis should resign her / his position in the Board, and go and find work in the Public Board.  I am not advocating they should be fired, far from it, I believe people should have the courage to admit when they can't support what their employer supports, when they can't fully perform the job they were hired to do.  In the case of the Separate School teacher, that includes teaching the Gospel - always.

Teachers in either Board do not just teach the three R's, they develop young people into responsible adults, they shape character, they mentor and encourage while they teach.  Catholic teachers have the extra responsibility of doing all that in Christ's name. If they don't attend Mass themselves, they can't pass along the Church's teachings because they aren't participating in the Liturgy of the Word, or of the Eucharist.  Don't talk to me about praying in a field or a forest; don't talk to me about being a good person.  Go to Church, participate in the Mass at least weekly or stop pretending.  This isn't just a job you're doing, folks.

We don't need to amalgamate two boards into one to save money, each board is funded per pupil so we'd roughly need the same amount of schools and teachers whether there is one board or two.  To all those who want to see the Catholic Board shut down, I say "be patient."

It's ours to lose, and frankly, we Catholics are presiding over its demise quite nicely without any secular help at all.

Read more here:  http://goo.gl/Cmm4h

First Class Travel - First Class Pool

The Mayor is traveling to faraway lands to check out swimming pools, of all things. Read the story here

City administration has proposed a new travel policy that would allow Mayor and Council to fly Executive, First Class, Business Class - however it's marketed, wide seats and free wine - when flying outside of North America to, say, faraway lands. Read the Report Here

The Mayor is lauded, rightly so, for his extensive travel to bring jobs to our region.  It's worked.  Read all about it here

I'm just not sure we need to send him first class to have a swim in an Irish pool.  Perhaps someone from Parks and Rec could handle it, and Eddie could stick to an agenda that includes job creation, which he has done so very, very well.

The Library...Street Smarts vs. Book Smarts

I make no secret of it; I think Alan Halberstadt is a hell of a journalist, a hell of writer, and a hell of a bad city councilor (and I like the guy, though I don't blame him if the feeling is not mutual).  Full disclosure - he kicked my ass, figuratively, in the 2003 Municipal election; fair and square, no excuses.

He writes a fantastic blog article about the Windsor Public Library, which to those who haven't been paying attention, appears to express his unreserved support.  For those who were in the room when he said "we'll just get a Private Members Bill to take over this place" when the Board wouldn't capitulate to political influence, his words today are either a conversion come too late, or deceptive.  Read his blog here  - it's really quite good.  It just doesn't jibe with his behaviour in the past.  Read part two here .  Well written, sir (and well played).

This isn't about my arch-nemesis ("To the Batmobile Robin!  We haven't a moment to lose!")  This stuff with the Library has to stop.  Council and the Mayor absolutely HAVE to be "hands-off" when it comes to Library locations, types of books, resources available, hours of operation or any other means of control.

When government controls and influences access to information by any means, we're just one step closer to losing our democracy.  It seems impossible in today's day and age, but is it?

I'm not worried about our current Mayor and Council turning into dictators. Laws have to be in place and strictly observed, both the letter of the law and the spirit of the law, to protect us from the megalomaniacs we haven't elected yet.

On Smart Communities...

In most communities there's an element I have heard referred to as "movers and shakers."  These people are the ones you see at every event, every opportunity, and every reception where the wine is flowing and the shrimp is free.  They natter and gnosh, gladhand and trade bon mots, imbibe, air kiss and pat each other on the back for jobs well done, whatever it is that they do.

Frankly, it's been my experience that most "movers and shakers" are just "bobbers and weavers" in expensive suits.

The other night the usual suspects were noticeably absent and the room was mostly filled with academics and entrepreneurs who somehow found time to celebrate Windsor's Top 7 standing as one of the world's most intelligent communities.  Columnist Chris Vander Doelen of the Windsor Star in his column today succinctly describes almost exactly my thoughts on the matter, both before Monday evening and after a wonderful night, beautifully presented at the St. Clair Centre for the Arts.

Read it here 

I was a skeptic about the amount of money being spent to promote the region, but now I'm a believer.  Here's what a number one ranking would mean to a man in my position:

1.  Doors would be opened in Toronto and Ottawa as I sell Windsor as a convention destination to provincial and national associations.
2.  One more reason for people to consider our region for tourism, investment and relocation, as if an extra month of fresh vegetables, golfing and nice weather on either side of the summer wasn't enough
3.  A fresh infusion of influential dandies and dilletantes
3.  The long term viability of a pretty cool city for my wife and I, but also for our kids.
4.  I look like a genius for relocating the family here all those years ago.

Stay tuned to see how it all turns out.  The World's Most Intelligent Community will be named in June 2011.

http://www.intelligentcommunity.org/

Gotcha!

Recently in our city a cop was "caught" playing video games in his cruiser, with pictures to prove it.  Not long ago pictures of a sleeping transit worker in Toronto were splashed across the front pages.  Our cell phones and smart phones are always at the ready to catch others in the act of offending our sense of what they should be doing instead.

The transit union protested that instead of snapping a picture of the sleeping booth attendant, the judgmental picture taker should have checked to see if he was in any sort of distress.  It turned out to be prescient, as I am told by a someone in the know that the transit worker died not long after that picture was snapped.  It may or may not be related to what caused him to be sleeping on the job, and who cares?

Have we become a society that is quick to broadcast other's faults through social media?  In both these cases the pictures and story were picked up by the mainstream media, and the community tsk-tsk'd in shame.

Ironically, in our privacy obsessed times, a man's illness or death cannot be announced from the pulpit, nor prayers requested of the congregation, without the express permission of the family.   So, if I have a heart attack and slump over on a park bench later today, feel free to take a picture of the sleeping drunk and post it on the web.  Do not, however, do anything to help and for God's sake, don't say my name in church.  I need my privacy.

Is nothing sacred?

Today's lesson is actually about Obedience

In her column "Today's Lesson: Bow to Authority" Windsor Star columnist Anne Jarvis compares the disobedience of some silly white girls to the courageous action of Rosa Parks who, when she herself was still a young lady, risked her life to put an end to state sanctioned racism and oppression. Black people were being lynched simply because of the colour of their skin in Rosa Park's time. Ms. Jarvis does great disservice to the Civil Rights movement and to our own area's history by comparing teenage rebellion to the fight for the dignity of all people, regardless of skin colour.

I remind the columnist that this is the same school that took strong disciplinary action with disobedient students in the hockey program just last year. If these children don't learn about consequence in school, then they will learn about it in the workforce where obstinate disobedience is not celebrated and can lead to loss of employment.

You go girls, indeed, go right back to class, lesson learned.

A brief call to the school principal might have clarified the issue for the columnist. Read Ms. Jarvis' poorly considered opinion here:

Today's lesson: Bow to authority

And the Concept of the Flash Mob Dies a Timely Death

A year ago I was begging, and I do mean BEGGING our Sales team that we stage a Flash Mob promotion. They said no. If the idea comes up this year, I'll be begging them, and I do mean BEGGING, not to do it. Don't get me wrong. They were a good idea at the time; an idea that's come and gone.

We all have our favourites, from a "Sound of Music" performance in a train station to the most recent, the Hallelujah Chorus in a department store. Mine is the "can you hear me now?" guy with his mob following the unwitting snowboarder on his cellphone at a ski resort. Brilliant!

The flash mob is a flash in the pan that's come and gone. That ship has sailed. It's a dead parrot. Here's why:

1. It appears to be spontaneous but is actually quite planned and precisely choreographed. The next generation of Flash Mobs will be more about delightfully shocking the crowd "oh look, it's a Flash Mob!" than in delivering an excellent performance, unexpectedly.

2. They have to be a surprise. My local rag reported that there's going to be one this weekend at the Mall. The place will be jammed with expectant Mob-watchers. If you're going to catch the awestruck surprise of the unwitting audience on a cell-phone camera, they have to be awestruck, suprised and unwittingly a part of the event. This is key - the audience has to be surprised.

3. There has to be a reason for the Mob. To promote a car, or a show, or a cell-phone plan or in my own case, our booth at a tradeshow. A Flash Mob performance can't exist only to exist. It exists for a higher purpose.

4. It has to go viral. The best Flash Mob videos aren't as much about the performance, although they appear to be. They are actually about the bystander reaction. Candid Camera knew that years ago and was a hit TV show because of it.

5. And finally, it can't be old news. We've reached the stage where the next Flash Mob that breaks out in a subway station is going to be more of an annoyance than an unexpected delight.

Just say no to Flash Mobs! NO MORE FLASH MOBS!! (Can you hear me now?)

The Mayor Outlines His Four-Year Plan for Windsor

I wish Eddie Francis well. I hope he achieves his goal for Windsor of competitiveness, efficiency, integration and just for good measure I'm going to throw in hope for sustainability, livability and a preferential option for the citizenry. All the citizens, not just property owners.

Not all citizens pay municipal taxes. Don't believe me? Say hello to your children. Is their Windsor experience important? Of course it is, in fact so important that the quality of life in our city years from now, the crime rate and future population base depend on us doing the right thing for them now. Until recently when my son bought his first house, those who paid no municipal taxes outnumbered those who did in our home, 3-2. Does the mayor work for them?

Gearing an inaugural speech towards placating only municipal taxpayers does not bode well for the quality of life in our city. I have no doubt that the Mayor's intent is noble, but his inability to separate "no new taxes" rhetoric from a "this is going to be the best city in Canada to live, work and invest" goal by defining his next four years on the issue of taxation alone should be disturbing to all but the most simple.

He's right about some things - there can be economies of scale but I'm not sure it's as simple as saying that the mechanic who repairs a city bus can jump under the hood of a firetruck or a police car quickly and easily.

One thing is certain. His successor will be tasked with restoring essential and desirable programs that will be cut in "across the board" budget reductions that have been the uninspired base of this mayor's fiscal policy and his last two councils' single minded fixation on what is, frankly, only part of what makes a city.

The question is not whether our taxes are too high. It's whether we're we getting our money's worth; whether we're using our collective resources for our collective good. Cuts across the board don't answer the question, they evade it.

Read The Windsor Star's Chris Vander Doelen's opposing opinion here:

http://www.windsorstar.com/news/Vander+Doelen+Francis+sets+agenda/3938050/story.html

A Perfect Three-Pointer

When I was transferred to Windsor years ago, I did an advance reconnoitre of the area, and arrived at a wonderful conclusion. Windsor had the three things necessary to ensure a happy life:

1. A Pop Shoppe on the main drag

2. Old Dutch potato chips at Beckers (in boxes, not in the cellophane bags like today)

3. Daily Doonesbury cartoons in the Windsor Star (aka "the local rag")

Sadly, none of these things exist in Windsor any longer, although there is some hope that if we can get Eddie to express a passing interest in Doonesbury in the quiet of the Mayor's office, the Windsor Star will somehow get wind of it and print Doonesbury on the front page daily. (Yes, he's going to win the election).

Since then and only once since there has been a remarkable convergence of happy circumstances that have led to near perfection for me, and it was when RBC announced a credit card that:

1. Had no annual fee

2. Doubled as a Starbucks card

3. Earned Starbucks points on every purchase, which were then loaded on to the Starbucks side of this one single piece of plastic, code name Duetto. Nirvana! Grande Nirvana! Then they discontinued the card, proving that there are no free refills in the coffee shop of life. Enjoy every cup as if it will be your last, I say. I have grounds to believe that one day it will be.

I have only two goals left in life, and I don't believe in bucket lists so being the idiot on Kilimanjaro isn't one of them. (Gimme a break - what kind of northern hemisphere arrogance does it take for the average cubicle Joe to convince himself that climbing Tanzanian mountains is a reasonable one-time ego stroking goal? And why do the rest of us have to listen to their damned "you can do anything..." claptrap motivational speaking as they live out their few remaining minutes of fame on the small town luncheon rubber chicken circuit? Insurance and Real Estate salespeople eat this stuff up - quotables and rubber chickens alike.)

Anyhoo... the first goal is beyond my control: I want grey hair before I have no hair. Currently it's anybody's guess on which will come first. I have enough forehead for four heads, so I wouldn't put my money in silver, if you catch which way the combover is heading.

But the other, real but seemingly impossible goal, is to get triple points on my credit card. Here's what I mean. Right now I collect points on every purchase through my credit card company, and through whatever loyalty programs to which I belong. To give an example, if I buy my shampoo (for the remaining time I will need shampoo) at Shoppers Drug Mart and use my VISA, then I will get VISA points and Optimum points - that's a two-fer. If I check into a Holiday Inn and pay on VISA, I get credit card points and Priority Club points, which I will later redeem for upgrades or a free room. Same for VIA rail - credit card and VIA Preference - two-fer! Shell gasoline by credit card? Two-fer: credit card points which I will someday redeem for a big screen TV and Air Miles (which we occasionally cash in for Starbucks gift certificates. Don't judge me).

I'm looking for the elusive third reward. Credit card points, loyalty rewards points and...what? This, then, is my new quest in life. A perfect three-pointer on the loyalty program court of life.

OK, so I don't have big dreams. I do have lots of little ones which, like points programs, can add up.

The Annual Skunking of Molly

Every year, sure as the sun sets in the west, my dog Molly gets skunked. The first year it happened was the worst. She took it full-on in the face. Apparently the skunk didn’t realize or care that Molly only wanted to play. So, there I was at 2 a.m. drenching my year-old puppy in tomato juice. The timing was horrible as I was scheduled to get up at five and be on the road by six to drive across the province.

The next year I was in Montreal when it happened. My wife had to deal with it. When Gloria Steinem famously said that “a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle” she obviously had never had to bathe her hound in tomato juice. Two things I have learned after many years on the road – first, don’t leave your wife at home staring at walls that need painting. Either take her with you or paint the walls before you leave. Secondly, when you’re on the road for extended periods of time, it is almost guaranteed your wife will need to deal with a crisis that should have been yours to handle.

This year the skunking wasn’t so bad as Molly is starting to catch on and she high tailed it away so that the skunk only caught the back end of her. High tailed it right into the house, up the stairs and under the bed. We just got our carpets cleaned less than three days ago.

At least I was home to crack open a case of Leamington’s finest.

Good things in Windsor - The Optimist Youth Band

If you read enough Windsor blogs you would think that there’s nothing to do in this town but complain and find fault. I blame that on the fact that... no, just kidding.

And so bloggers are the only source of dissenting opinion, it seems.

That said there are a lot of very good things happening in our fair city. Although it is my profession to sell this city as a destination, even I forget the small wonders that make it more than just a great place to visit; this is a great place to live for most.

Last night I took in a concert at the Peace Fountain on Riverside Drive. The Windsor Optimist Youth Concert Band performed. The setting was beautiful, and the exuberance of the talented youth in the band was contagious. We don’t hear enough about them. They are an award-winning marching band that represents our city very well indeed.

While most of the audience was obviously parents and grandparents and family, my wife and I were there because we enjoy a good show in a peaceful setting in the company of good friends. Congratulations to the Windsor Optimist Youth Concert Band for being such fine ambassadors for and good neighbours in our city!