Difficult Week for Council

As a disclaimer for the following blog, in case you do not know, I did run in the by election last year in Fort McMurray, the result was that Colleen Tatum won that seat. I wrote the following column for the Today this week, but they felt that there was a conflict of interest since I had ran against Councillor Tatum. I respect their decision and decided to publish it on my blog. I feel that I have written about our city for 11 years now, and have never been accused of not being fair, and I have always been professional enough to remove my ego or emotions from pieces that I write about politics. Over the years, many councillors, and MLAs have even become friends, and I did not always write flattering pieces about them. The perfect example would be during the time of last council, when our city decided to expropriate the downtown. Councillor Tatum was on that council, and I spoke out about the decisions to expropriate. We remained close enough friends that on the day I decided to run in the by election, I went to Colleen to tell her in person before I filed my intent to run. Moving forward, this blog will be evolving in the next few weeks. I will now be covering more about Fort McMurray, and it will become a blog that will contain ads and I will be working as an affiliate. I had looked at doing this last year, and the timing was not right. So if you have a business you want me to write about, an event, or if you have a story that you want help telling, please send me an email at vernamurphy1@gmail.com. Last year I had gone back to working in the community with the Connect, and I realized how much I missed hearing all the stories, and writing about the wonderful people who live in our region, so that was the main reason that I decided to move forward on the new blog. And now you can read my opinion on the latest council news: 

Unless you have been out of town lately, you have heard about Councillor Colleen Tatum being in breach of the Municipal Governance Act(MGA). The Act is law right across Alberta, and all municipalities have to follow it. Part of the Act states that anyone sitting on council cannot be in arrears to the municipality which they represent for more than $50 and 90 days. Tatum breached both when she went in arrears on her taxes to the tune of $6700.00. 

This week at council, the following motion was made: “That the Regional Solicitor be instructed to cause an application to be made to a judge of the Court of Queen’s Bench supported by relevant and material evidence, for an order determining whether Councillor Tatum has ceased to be qualified to remain a Councillor pursuant to the provisions of section 174(1)(b) of the Municipal Government Act and section 22(1)(c) of the Local Authorities Election Act.” All this means is that the decision on whether Tatum should be disqualified or not will be sent to a judge. Council voted, and Julia Cardinal was missing for the vote, and Tatum also did not participate. Jane Stroud was the only councillor to vote against the motion, stating that she would rather see sanctions be brought against Tatum. 

Council really did not have any choice in this matter, as was shown by the almost unanimous vote. For the last two years the words “transparency” and “accountability” have been thrown around, to a point where even I was getting sick of the terms. If council had not sent it to a judge, it could be said that they all think they are above the law and will cover for each other. Sending it to the judge was the most transparent way for the decision to be made for the public to hear all the evidence that will be presented in the case.  Besides, if council had let this “slide by” what other laws are they willing to break and then overlook?

I was wavering on even writing a column about this topic. Why? Because like her fellow councillors, I like Tatum. But if we ignored the law for everyone that we like, every son that committed a crime would be off because his mother would be able to plead their case without fault. It was not until I heard Councillor Tatum on the radio doing the McMurray Matters show that I no longer wavered. 

During that interview Tatum said that she did not know about this law, and if that is really true, than that shows her incompetence. I know for a fact that when she filed her nomination papers she was given a package where it was clearly stated that candidates had to be sure about their taxes, and this specific law. On top of that, our statutory declaration in the nomination papers again was specific about this law. And on top of all that, during the candidate information sessions municipal administration went over this rule because they did not want to have any issues, especially given the fact that Guy Boutilier had  just resigned over questions about his residency. It was very black and white. But during the interview Tatum said that she didn’t know, and that she was given a lot of papers to read. If she didn’t bother to read those papers, what other papers is she not reading when making decisions for our city? She then went on to say that she gives her mail to her assistant, but when you swear to uphold that council seat on the day you are sworn in, then you cover your bases and make sure you are eligible to sit in that seat. 

Council did not bring this forward, and they did absolutely nothing to provoke this issue what so ever. So for them to be blamed for forcing this issue is totally and completely unfair. The mayor has stated that she found out, and brought it to Tatum’s attention. It was only over a week later that the other councillors even found out. This must have been a very hard decision for them.It would have been easier to try to appease those that like Tatum and just impose sanctions. I am sure they are worried about how they look to the public as well, they don’t want to look like a bunch of meanies. So good on them for wanting to uphold the law. 

Councillor Tatum has also used the case in Red Deer as a reference. Councillor Paul Harris was a partial owner of a business there that went behind in it’s business taxes, and the day that he found out, he paid in full. The council there decided to impose sanctions on the councillor when he did not resign. The difference is for Tatum it is her property taxes. But what Tatum failed to mention when she used that case as an example was that there was a huge public outcry. The reporter that I spoke with said that many called for the councillor to resign, and that when council did not send it to the judge people then said that they were a bunch of crooks who were covering for each other. 

There is a bigger picture here that people are forgetting. Our city is currently still trying to shake off the image of being corrupt, and is trying hard to start developing our downtown. Outside investors are still very much watching how we run our city. It cannot appear now that we are still not willing to follow the laws that the rest of the province does on a daily basis. It’s all very sad really, I feel bad that Mayor Blake and the council members have been put into such a difficult position. 

Tatum forced the issue to court by not resigning as is required by law under the MGA. Period. And like many, I wonder now how competent she is on council if she is not able to read and follow the law that was laid out very clearly for her twice now when she filed to run for that seat. She would have had my vote next year if she had admitted her mistake and resigned and then ran in the next general election. Instead she has lost my confidence.  

It's My Christmas Week!

This is it, I know some of you have been waiting for me to start, and I have been patiently waiting to start talking about Matt Minglewood. But I won't wait any more!

The next three nights are the best nights that I have in Fort McMurray. The nights that Matt comes to town and plays at the Boomtown Casino are my Christmas. I count down from the time that I hear that he is booked, and I start reminding people about 100 days out. And here we are, this time tomorrow night, I will be sitting at a table, waiting for Matt and band to take the stage.

So here's the plan. Tomorrow night is girl's night! Whoever wants to join us for supper, a few of us are heading to the new Town Hall on Fraser Avenue for around 6:45p.m. And then we are off to grab tables at the Casino to hear Matt.

If you don't like me, and you don't like Matt, then the next few days are not a good time to be following me on Facebook, here or Twitter. This is my time to have fun, dance, sing, and catch up with all my old and new friends. Every single year I get to meet some new people in town, or ones that are in from camp. And I get to sit and see friends that I went to school with, friends that I haven't seen in years, and best of all? I get to listen to a Canadian legend on the stage. How does it get any better? For me, the only things that could make it better would be more friends. I wish that some of my oldest, dearest friends and some family could be with me this weekend. I wish that my old friends that love Matt almost as much as I do could be here to share the nights with me.

And one extra bonus for me this weekend is that my oldest, Mitchell, is going to be going with us on one of the nights. Several other young people who come here all the time are also going, and that is so special to me. This marks the official weekend that a fourth generation in our family will go and listen and sing along to Matt's great songs! So if anyone has a younger, sensible daughter, bring her along to meet my son, lol! Good thing he doesn't read his old mom's writings!

We always have so much fun, and it's always way better than I even imagine. So if you have a friend or relative out here in Fort McMurray, tell them to head to the Boomtown Casino this weekend, and if I haven't met them before, tell them to go introduce themselves to me. I will be the redhead up front, dancing and laughing and having the time of her life. It all starts in less than 24 hours now!!

I need motivation!

I am still trying to figure out how to get my motivation going. I am down 5.4 pounds since I started about three weeks ago. Not a lot, but slow and steady, and better than any gains!

But I still haven't been adding in any exercise. And in talking to other women, I realize that I am not alone. The days that I get the house work, and a little writing, then there is no time for exercise. If I do some interviews and a meeting for work, I get nothing done at the house, so then I feel like I should clean up the next day instead of once again fitting the exercise in. See, no balance. My goal in the next few weeks is to start planning my days out better, and getting the exercise done.

So far the easiest part has been the healthier eating, as everyone is on board in the house. I will start posting more of the recipes that have been a hit so far. The first one is supper easy, and everyone loves lettuce boats.

I use romaine lettuce hearts. For the stuffing, I cut up boneless chicken breasts and fry them in some olive oil. I add about a tablespoon of red pepper flakes, and about a half a bottle of hoisin sauce(for about four chicken breasts). Then I add whatever the kids will eat, like red pepper, corn, chopped water chestnuts. and matchstick carrots.

I hope you all are working towards your own goals, and know that there are many of us going through the weight loss struggle.

I hope this is the beginning of a new trend!

I did it! I kicked off my first week of weight loss with a great start. I lost 3.2 pounds in a week, yeah me! But I didn't incorporate any exercise in the last week, so that is one thing that I plan to change this week.

I did try to add some extra steps to my fitbit, but it was really just better meals in the last week that made the difference. I had smaller portions, more veggies, and I also made things like stuffed peppers, and skipped fast food and desserts.

Now this week I am going to get back to Oranj for some classes and keep up with the healthier eating.

Of course life threw me another curveball this week, as Tim has been assigned to a new project at work, so he isn't going to be home after Christmas. For the next few months I am more or less going to be a single parent again. Tim will be gone before Shayleen and the boys get up, and Shayleen will be in bed before he gets home. And with the long hours, he will be in bed before the boys are.

The other wrench with this new plan is that I will have to make two suppers again each night. Hopefully I will restrain from eating with the kids and then with Tim.

For now, I'm happy with my loss this week, and I feel like I am still on track for this week. Thanks to the ones who have joined me, keep checking in and we will do this together. I wish I could figure out how to link my fitbit or my fitness pal onto the blog. I will do some research this week to see if I can do something like that so that I can be more accountable with my exercise on here. I will let you all know what I find out. And I will start posting some of the healthy recipes I am using.

Wine Wednesday!

Okay, before you start emailing me, I realize that it is diabolical that the first blog I do after saying that I am going to lose weight is one about wine. But lighten up.

For months now I have been watching Matt Bellassai do his Wine Wednesday posts, and every week I get tempted to do my own version, Fort McMurray/Cape Breton style. And then every week, I chicken out. I can't think of anything I hate worse than getting my picture taken, except maybe making a video of myself. The other night a loved one "Face timed" me on my phone. It's a good thing I love him, because otherwise, I wouldn't have answered. All I could see was my huge red nose up in the corner distracting me the whole time. And yes, I'm working on finding a fix to that stupid thing.

So instead I thought I would offer some of my favourite wines every week, because, you know, everyone loves wine. And everyone loves trying new wines and talking about a great find.

It's funny, I don't think people believe me, but I didn't really start drinking wine until a few years ago. I would have the occasional glass at a wedding in Cape Breton, but I didn't really start enjoying the different wines until I moved out to Fort McMurray. And yes, I realize the irony. And it has turned into a huge signature for me, I love wine jokes, I love nice wine accessories, and I love a good wine, especially with good friends. So on Wednesdays I will share some finds.

To kick off the series, I am going to offer some Canadian, Australian and another from the States. Which is kind of funny, because anyone who knows me would say that my favourites lean more to the Shiraz and Cabernet picks.  I have two from Canada, one from the States,  and one from Australia Regretfully, they are all a bit more pricey, but the Canadian ones are not too bad.

If anyone ever asks me what my absolute favourite wine of all time is, I will quickly answer, it comes from the Larkmead Winery in California. And my favourite so far is the Cabernet Sauvignon. Hands down, best wine ever, ever. Friends and relatives have gone in on a case with me a few times now, because it is becoming harder and harder to find at a liquor store up here. And while we all say that we only drink it for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, we have been together and looked at each other and said, "Why not?" and cracked a bottle. It's a bit more pricey, since it usually comes in at around $55-$60 a bottle. But it's cheaper to order a case with friends.

And when I can't find a Larkmeand, my next best find is a little cheaper, since it usually costs around $47 a bottle, but it is Kilikanoon. It is an Australian Shiraz, so I guess it would be my favourite Shiraz, but it's not one that I would buy on a regular basis. Instead it's another one of those "treat" wines that I get for special get togethers.

My two favourite Canadian wines came to me through friends. My first pick was given to me as a gift from my bestie, Brooke. It was so good that after she gave it to me, and then I went to Toronto, we drove down to the Jackson Triggs Winery in Niagara just to buy some more. It is the Sparkling Merlot by Jackson Triggs. And again, sadly, it's a hard one to find. I just went to see if I could order it, and it's sold out. And I have never seen it in any liquor store out here, we and Brooke and Kevin have only found it at the actually winery. But if you ever get the chance, it's one of the best wines you will ever try.

And finally, my last pick for favourites has a local connection. Bob Campbell is a lawyer from Fort McMurray who invested in  Dirty Laundry a few years back. Get your heads out of the gutter, lawyers are not always associated with everyone's dirty laundry. This time around, Campbell did us all a favour, the buzz around town was that several local people had invested in this company, so of course, everyone was curious to try it to see if it was any good. In the last year this wine has become one of my favourites. It's one that I would give to a good friend as a Birthday gift, and it's one that I would buy myself at the end of a particularly hard week. It is usually $38 in the local stores, and my particular favourite is the Kay -Syrah, but I want to try the Dangerous Liasons, which always seems to sell out before it even hits the stores. Wineries alway have wonderful stories behind how they came up with their names, and Dirty Laundry is no exception. Go to www.dirtylaundry.ca to read about their history, their wines, and the fun things they do at their winery.

As you can tell, I definitely favour my red wines, but I will also share my favourite white wines in the weeks to come. I hope that you will all share your picks with me, and cheers!

It's time to start all over again.

229.4. There it is, the great big ugly number. It's the number that came up on the scale this morning. It's the number that took me all day to put into print. It's the number that needs to be defeated, again.

Yep! Over two years ago I had hit a slightly higher number, and I had done well for several months at losing the weight. And then life threw me some curves, and I found that my weakness during stressful times is food. I had thought I would never go back, I would never lose focus on my health, I would never gain it back. And here I am. Starting all over.

Around supper time one of my best friends texted me, and asked me how my day went. This morning on Facebook I made a statement that it was "Operation Take back the house, and the body" day one. I had all the best intentions today, but didn't do as well as I had hoped. My goal was to get back to the gym, and that didn't happen. I got wrapped up with back to school details, work and other crazy life details that I had been putting off over the summer. But I did eat healthy today to kick it off, and I went for a little walk as well. But in order to lose some major pounds, I have to get back to the gym, and one other thing...I need to get the family on board.

Tim(hubby) actually printed off some healthy meal plans to kick off the first month, and I will post any recipes that turn out well. But having him on board is huge. I fight terrible guilt since his accident. It took me a while to admit it to him, but since his accident he has not been able to be as active as he use to be, so every time I could be active, I was having guilt. But now the weight is affecting my health, and my happiness, so it's time to get better. And it will help us all.

So if you want, you can join me on my journey. Come up with a meal plan that works for you, and perhaps some exercise too, and I will give you the ugly details each Monday about how I am doing.  I realized during my last journey that putting out the ugly numbers, and telling about the funny struggles I was having helped to keep me accountable. But that might not work for everyone, so find what works for you, and join me.

Summer's End

Last summer I remember saying that I tend to be a seasonal writer. And this summer I once again proved that this was true. But in the last few days, I realized it wasn't so much because I take the summer off, because I am just as busy in the summer with the kids off as when they are in school. But I guess my priorities change during the summer months.

Years ago there was a time that I thought I would never have children. I have been blessed with three, and with being foster parents over the last few years that number has fluctuated from time to time. So having the opportunity to spend my days trying to entertain them and just spend some time with them is by far the biggest blessing in my life.

Tomorrow Nathanial will go to Holy Trinity to register for his Grade 11 year, and Shayleen is off to MacDonald Island for a week of summer camp as we try to get her back on a schedule as she will be back to school next Monday. For the last 14 years or so I would have been getting Mitchell ready with back to school clothes as supplies as well, and I am still sad that he graduated and will no longer be needing his mom to do those preparations any more. In fact, September always seems to be somewhat of a challenge for me, as I get a bit blue with the kids going back to school, and the thought of another cold winter starts to take root in my thoughts.

This year will be a bit different for another reason, I am back doing some reporting work for the Fort McMurray Connect newspaper. I will be reporting more on council and with council starting weekly council meetings, it should be a fairly busy fall for me as we all get back into some regular routines.

I have already started working for the Connect, and I have found that there is one other thing about me that is true, and that is that when I am writing more for work, I tend to write more personally. So in the coming weeks I will be sharing more in the blog again, and am even playing with the idea of starting to share more of my fictional work, which I have never done before in the blog.

Hopefully all will go smoothly in the coming weeks, and it already feels good to be back sharing here again, and I have several ideas jotted down for upcoming blogs. I hope you all had a wonderful summer, and suck up the last few days with your children and the summer sun during this last week.