So the question of the day lately for me is, "Why did you decide you wanted to run for the Mayor's seat?" And I thought I would sit down to write something out as a response. And it has been hard. First of all-I generally have not been doing much writing over the last few years. So I feel grossly out of practice, and secondly-it's a question that invokes so many feelings, and I did not want to come off sounding cheesy.
I want to represent our region as the last few years of serving on council have actually been the most challenging of my life. And I love challenge, and I loved serving and getting to know the residents of our region more than any other job(besides being a mom) that I have ever taken on. On a personal note, our older boys moved out and on with their lives 3 years and two years ago-and after dedicating my life to raising my family I found myself with some extra time when I first got elected as a councillor. So I immersed myself in the role, while figuring out how to balance family and work as we still have our daughter, Shayleen at home(she's now 12). The more time I spent reading, preparing for meetings and listening to residents the more I felt that I had finally found something that challenged me and that I could do really well in my life. But it was only achievable because the residents elected me to the position.
So in the coming months, that will be my big ask-please trust me to elect me to be your mayor. And help me get elected. You can help in so many ways-by donating financially to my campaign, door knocking with me in your neighbourhood(once restrictions are lifted), share my posts on social media, take a sign when the time comes, or just share my contact information with anyone who may want to get to know me. Every single thing will help me. It's a huge region, and I know that I have a lot of work to do to gain the trust of the residents. I hope that my work ethic, my honesty and how approachable I have been in the last number of years will help convince people that I am worthy of the job. I would be proud to be your mayor-but I also want you to have someone that you will be proud of in the role as well. I have not brought my ego or any drama to my role as councillor, and I would do that same as mayor.
We have six months to do the work to convince people I would be a responsible choice at the polls. I need your help-so let's do this together. I will be looking for different ways to engage people as covid will certainly throw a wrench into what the campaign looks like, so watch for more blog posts and videos. Follow my new Murphy for Mayor facebook page, and thank you for those who have already committed your support to me-I am forever grateful.
Over the last few years I became someone I never thought was possible. I turned into someone who had come to hate Christmas. The pressure of buying just the perfect gift for everyone, the stress of how much said gifts cost, the baking, the shopping, the running around, I really dreaded the holidays. This year I could start to feel my anxiety creep up in early November. But this year instead of it allowing it, I started to analyze it. When and why had I started to hate it all? I wasn't always like this. I don't remember ever hating it through my younger years. And when the kids were small, I loved it. I loved decorating Christmas cookies, and the looks on their faces on Christmas morning when they discovered Santa had delivered their favourite gifts of the year.
I do remember the first year in Fort McMurray. I was so worried that we were not going to be doing what we had always done, and many of our family was back on the East Coast. I was so anxious about it all that I worked extra hard to make sure the kids enjoyed the Christmas break. I put a tremendous amount of stress on myself to have the perfectly wrapped gifts, a tonne of baking done and lots of friends over for skating, sledding and sleepovers.
This year I went all the way with my thoughts. I started thinking about the best Christmases I had over the years. And I made notes. And guess what? My thoughts did not include a "best present" or event. The best Christmases I had over the years were like the year I was able to go home from the hospital for a few days with my family and friends after having my bone marrow transplant. Or the year that we had an unexpected house full and I panicked because I didn't think I had enough food, and we ate cheese and crackers and had one of the best visits ever. And when I was younger, the best memories are of going to Midnight Mass with dad, and then visiting some neighbours, and him reading to me at the end of the nights while mom patiently waited so she could look after getting the gifts out for everyone. And of course, there was the Christmas of 15 years ago. That was the year my beloved Nanny was in the hospital dying of cancer. And even though we were all so sad we were losing her, she really got a last wish and had her entire family gathered and visited and she was able to watch our boys open their gifts that she had bought them in her hospital room on Christmas morning. She left us on New Year's Eve day morning. And I don't know how we all did it that year, but I do remember that it was just the way Nanny loved it...just everyone all together, with lots of food and love for everyone.
In the last few years my anxiety spilled over, especially to my immediate family. I would be snippy and cranky. Things would not be done properly, or good enough. The get togethers with friends were more sporadic. This year around December 5th I decided that I would not let it get the best of me this year. I try to be a good person and friend all year long, but would my friends really stop liking me if I didn't have the "ultimate" gift for them? And then a few more things happened.
Last Sunday Shayleen wrote her letter to Santa, and in it she said that the most important thing that she wanted this year was more time with mom. I have not mentioned this last year yet. But it truly has been one of the most stressful years I have ever had in my life. And for a few months I was in a very dark and depressing place. It truly was my friends who helped me through it all, along with Tim(I don't know why he continues to stick it out with me). I wasn't the mother, wife or friend that I really wanted to be for anyone. I felt like I continuously disappointed, week after week. I'm sure anyone who was not in my close inner circle did not realize, but I still feel that now that I am going into 2020 I have to make it up to those who stuck it out with me. So when I read that letter, it gutted me. The only thing that I wanted in life was a healthy, happy family. And now my daughter was just asking for time. Nothing else. And then my oldest, Mitchell, came home last Sunday and we have been completely enjoying having him and our other son, Nathanial for suppers and evening visits. Eventually we had the conversation about what they really wanted for Christmas. And they both answered that they were so happy to be just be able to have my home cooking for the next two weeks. And just having them around is the best gift that I could ever receive. So now I'm just focused on giving my presence over giving presents.
The year that I was sick, I literally just wanted to be home with family and friends, and I don't remember one gift that I received that year. It's so easy to get lost in the "stuff" and the pressure to do it all, but this year I am going to give my family and friends the gift of not being distracted by work, and not being so anxious that I don't enjoy our get togethers. I'm not sure who will be here or not next year, so I am truly committed to just enjoy this Christmas with my family, parents, and friends as much as possible. I hope that you can all do the same. And keep reminding yourself that your real loved ones will love you no matter what is under the tree or on the table. And that the best gift you can give those same loved ones is your time, and undivided attention. Merry Christmas everyone! And only the best wishes of joy, love, and good health for 2020.
I have opened this page 1000 times since January. And I haven't lingered long before closing it again. A few things happened that I will write about in the coming weeks, but long story short, I let other people's opinions/comments and negativity get to me. The final straw was after I started writing about my weight loss surgery I received several messages, some from people who I thought were friends, where I was told that I was completely full of myself for sharing the story and that I should stop immediately.
And I did.
I listened. And I quit.
But in the last few weeks, several other things have happened, and I'm back. In the end a few things happened that gave me the redirection, ie, kick in the arse that I needed. First, Shayleen went to the now annual girl day that they do here in Fort McMurray for the girls in grade 5. For several days after that, we had many conversations about what girls can do and how we think about ourselves. I heard myself talking to her about making healthy food choices, working hard at school, loving her body and being kind to others. And then I had several nights in a row with older women, who ranged from their 20's-60+ where I could not help but think about how hard we are on ourselves as women. It made me sad. We criticize ourselves for our weight, our workload, our lack of work, how unorganized our houses are, how our kids are doing at sports, how our are kids are doing at school....all while trying to do the best we can do to get through every day no matter what is thrown at us. We deal with medical issues, depression, homework(christ I hate homework), our kids moving out, our marriages, our in-laws, our extended families, the deaths of loved ones, the frigging dog who keeps escaping, and feeding everyone. Our boobs are sore from nursing, saggy with age, any given week we need to lose weight while still are trying to make our butts bigger. We criticize ourselves the way that we would never criticize a friend. We hate our bat wings, the lack of time we have with our kids and we struggle with getting pregnant, losing babies, finding out we have cancer, and that our marriages isn't getting the work it deserves. So over the course of those few nights, I finally admitted to myself that life is complicated for all of us, and I once wrote about it all at one time. And I wrote about it because it felt good. I wrote about it, because when I was honest, people connected to that and reached out to me and shared their stories with me. I never told my stories before for any weird agenda or attention. Moving forward I want to start sharing again and not be so critical of myself. I am always open to criticism, but I need to write.
Here's the weird thing. Because I'm an elected official now, people have issue with me sharing my opinions. Which is kind of ironic because other people love that I'm real and approachable. So I will have to figure it all out as I move forward. But I also want to write about work some as well, especially to clear up misconceptions about issues when they come up. I will always be cautious of governance, but there are lots of things that I can address when rumours start flying about things that come up.
If you are on my social media, you know that I am quite wrapped up with everything that is related to Bills C-69 and 48. The week before last Mayor Scott, myself, Councillors LaLonde, Balsom, our CAO Annette Antoniak and some administration support went to Ottawa to meet with several MPs and Senators, along with a member of the Prime Minister's Office regarding Bill C-69. We went as part of The Coalition of Canadian Municipalities for Energy Action. A few of us were also able to meet very briefly with the Prime Minister. The Energy Senate committee came to Fort McMurray to hear from the residents of our region about three weeks ago. I will not mince words, if that Bill goes through without the suggested amendments, it will have very negative consequences for our region. While in Ottawa, we were also able to attend when Premier Jason Kenney presented to the Senate committee. I was proud of the work that we were able to do with the coalition. We literally hit the ground running and ran for two days. And I will continue to scream the Team Alberta message moving forward. I won't bore you with all the work details. But upon returning I heard many comments that "we flew off" to Ottawa on taxpayers money. So I have been dying to address that. I will always, as long as I sit as a councillor be conscious of every single nickel that is spent. No weather catchers on my watch, lol. And if you ever, ever wonder why I make certain decisions, just ask me. But I'm also hoping that I can use this forum to address such questions. The funniest part of those types of comments is the actual reality. We literally were so tired at the end of the first day of meetings that we ate chicken wings in our rooms. No fancy restaurant. It was a few girls with their feet up going over the agenda for the next day. And then I called my husband to tell him how the day went while we watched the end of a hockey game together. There are some cool things that you get to do as an elected official, but I will always put in the work and not take one second for granted. I remind myself every morning to get up and do the best I can for the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo and my family.
One last thought. I have heard other women's stories lately, and I often reply, "That's amazing, how did you do that?" or "You should tell that story." But I wasn't taking my own advice. So in the coming weeks, I will finish telling you how I have lost 148 pounds, and like the story of my bone marrow transplant, or when my husband, Tim was in a serious car accident when he was hit by a drunk driver, I will be as open and honest as I can. I hope you can take something away from the stories I share, but if not, I still feel better already for getting back to my writing.
I decided that Tijuana was the spot for me for my weight loss surgery. It has become a medical tourism destination, with many weight loss and plastic surgery clinics and hospitals to pick from there. As I said, I researched for a year before booking my surgery. There are many facebook groups you can join if you are thinking of going through the procedure, and I even watched the surgery on Youtube. I ended up picking A Lighter Me because it was more hospital based, and many from Fort McMurray had gone there and to the Obesity Control Centre.
Once my application was accepted, I had to fill out an extensive questionnaire so that my pre-surgery preparation could be put together. For the two weeks before the surgery, my diet was very strict, but I didn't find it hard to follow until the last couple of days. In the last few days they want your stomach pretty empty, so it's broth and things like popsicles and protein shakes. So that was a bit hard while still at home when you are cooking for everyone else. But I wanted to follow the doctor's orders to the finest detail so that nothing would go wrong, so that stayed in the back of my mind.
On they day I was leaving home to travel to Mexico I was extremely nervous. As my family was giving me hugs and wishing me luck, my ever present comedian son, Nathanial hugged me and said, "Good luck mom. Don't wake up in a tub of ice with your kidney gone." And even though he joked, many had expressed the same sentiments to me. "Why Mexico? You are going to end up dead and alone down there," and "Aren't you terrified that something will go wrong?" Well...yes, and I don't need you fuelling the fire, just support me and my decision. Just a few days before leaving a gentleman from town reached out to me when he heard I was going. He had gone a few years before me, and encouraged me to ask him whatever questions I wanted of him. I had several friends who had gone, but this man was a tremendous support for me while I was down there, and when I returned home. Just before I went into surgery he was one of the people who texted me and said that he knew I would do great. His texts always seem to come at exact moments I could use some encouragement.
On the Lighter Me facebook page, I had "met" a few others who were going down at the same time as me. I really connected with one woman from Arkansas, and when we arrived in San Diego staff from A Lighter Me picked us all up and took us to the clinic for some blood work and an ECG. Before we got to the clinic I knew that the woman from Arkansas, and her friend were going to be my best buddies on the trip. We had so much in common, and they pledged right away that since I was alone that they would check in on me and we would keep each other company.
Once we finished the basic tests and were given a quick tour of the small hospital we were taken to the hotel to check in and do some paper work. The hotel had "hospital" floors, where the front desk was much like a nurses station on the floor, and after the surgery they were there to check in on us and help us change our bandages. I was the lucky one and would be the first one into surgery the next morning. I hated the thought of waiting any longer than necessary. I can't really remember that first evening, except that I fell asleep fairly early and then woke up at midnight and drove myself crazy with my racing thoughts for the rest of the night. Staff were downstairs waiting for all the morning patients at 5a.m. We were all nervous in the van, but also excited about the positive changes that we hoped were in our future.
It took me a full complete year of research before I decided to go for weight loss surgery. In the end, I went with vertical sleeve gastrectomy, or what is more commonly known as "getting sleeved". Funnily enough when I finally decided to tell my sister in law in a text, she thought I was going to get my arm covered in tattoos. It led to some funny texts before I figured out what she was thinking.
The plan was that my husband would travel with me when I went for the surgery two years ago, but as fate would have it, he had to have hip surgery about a month before I was to go to Tijuana, Mexico and he couldn't go. I didn't want to ask friends to take vacation time to go with me, so off I went all by myself. When I think back on it now, I don't know if I would do it alone again, but I can fill you in on it all as we go along.
In the year leading up to my decision my blood pressure was extremely high, and I was on medication. I went on an extra "water" pill and my pressure was still staying high. I was extremely low on energy, I hated going out where I had to dress up at all, and I was sick of dieting, losing a few pounds and then gaining it back. It felt like all I thought about was food, exercise and dieting. I constantly beat myself up for overeating, and would try to plan ahead when we went out to such an extreme that most times the fun was lost. I knew I had to do something, but I was absolutely terrified of surgery. Every time I have ever been put "under" I did not react well. My heart has stopped, I am sick to my stomach, I have a hard time waking up(every single time for this point), and I'm generally one of those foolish people caught on camera who are crying, laughing and not making any sense. I remember one time that I just was partially sedated for a procedure, and it took me two days to be able to walk around and make any sense. During those two days I would wake up crying, telling my husband, Tim, how much I loved him and I was sorry. I would fall back to sleep and even if I woke up 20 minutes later I would repeat the whole procedure. So thinking about all the horrific things that could happen to me in another country, alone no less, made me almost cancel the whole thing three times after I had decided to book it. But I didn't. And this week marks two years.
When I booked the surgery I was sitting at about 260 pounds. I say that as a guess. When I hit 250 pounds I literally hated checking my weight. I remember trying for a couple of weeks to lose some weight, and when I got back on the scale it said 252, so I stopped weighing myself. When I filled out the application, I put down 260, but it could have been a little higher, or a little lower. I never in a million years imagined my weight would get to that point. I can remember after my bone marrow transplant years ago that I promised that if I got better I would always look after my body, but as the years went by many hard situations, and stress had brought me to the point where I felt completely overwhelmed on how to get it back under control.
What was the final push for me? I really love my family doctors. I say doctors because in my whole life, I have only had four. Dr. Bernie MacLean brought me into this world, and was my doctor until I was 25 or so. Then I had Dr. Nicholson during my pregnancy with Mitchell. Dr. Pluta was my doctor when we lived in Mackdale, and for about the last 8 years I have had a wonderful doctor here in Fort McMurray by the name of Dr. McCombe. I have always been very particular about my doctors. I have to be comfortable with them, they have to be willing to answer all my questions, and they have to have my complete trust. So when I finally went to Dr. McCombe I was nervous. If had said it was a horrible idea, I would have put the idea out of my head and never thought of it again. But he was so supportive. He gave me research to read, and talked about the benefits of losing weight and keeping it off. Part of me had hoped he would convince me not to do it. Instead he gave me information and helped me prep, and told me what to expect afterwards.
Everyone is different, and the same is true for those who decide to go for weight loss surgery. We all have to prep differently, we choose different places to go, and we all have different results. In my next post I will start telling you about the actual trip and what the whole experience was like. For all my research and experience, I literally never once regretted the decision. I have been sitting between 125-129 pounds now for about 8 months, and I literally had 170 as my goal weight. You never know what you can accomplish until you put your mind to it.
I probably am asked about my weight loss every day, and I have been saying I am going to write about it for over a year now. Over the last few days as I started thinking about sitting down to do this series of posts, I noticed I got anxious almost every time. So then I started really thinking about it. And you know what I came to? I haven't written about it because of a few reasons. First of all, I don't like "bragging". I think part of that comes from growing up in Cape Breton, you probably will never meet a group of people who downplay everything they do more so than Capers, lol. So talking about what I have done in the last two years to lose 140 pounds seems very much like bragging. But I also realized that I didn't want to write about it because I live in fear of gaining it all back. It's like my brain hasn't caught up yet. Some mornings I wake up and honestly expect the scale to jump up by 20 pounds. Over Christmas I gained 2 pounds, and during the first 5 days of the new year I lost it, but my first thought was still...it's coming back.
It's no secret what kicked off the weight loss for me. I went to Mexico and was "sleeved". That was two years ago this month. In this series of posts I will tell you all about every detail, from how I made the decision, to what it was all like, and how it's not the "easy way" out for anyone who makes the decision to go. It was by far one of the most difficult decisions I have ever made. I researched the surgery for almost a full year before finally booking it all. And I researched the options of where to go for a couple of months as well.
What finally gave me the push I needed was the wild fire of 2016. After coming back to Fort McMurray after the evacuation, I felt like many things were out of my control, and I was extremely frustrated. I literally was lying in bed one night, and thought about how I could at least try to control my weight. That was something I could do. I was lucky that my husband, Tim fully supported my decision in every way, and that night I told him I was ready to finally go through the steps to see if I qualified for the surgery. Looking back now I wish I hadn't taken so long to decide, as it obviously was a good decision for me and my health. Over the next few days I will dive into and share my weight loss journey with you all. I hope it might inspire some of you as we go into this new year to take control of whatever challenge you want to take on in your life.
In the next few days I am going to publish a series of blog posts about my weight loss journey. It's probably one of the top things that I am asked about. So buckle in, and if you have someone that is thinking about tackling the mountain that it can be, let them know, or share the posts when they go up with them. It really is a journey, and it's easier if we have support.
But tonight it's all about my family. The day after tomorrow our oldest leaves again, and we don't know when we will see him next. How is it that they can be six months one minute, and be 21 years old the next? I am trying to suck up every minute. I am literally that sucky creepy mom that went down and watched him sleep a couple of nights, curled up with him and cried on Christmas Eve....I'm sure he felt a bit smothered at times over the holidays. But he seems happy to be home, and actually wanted to come here, so I will always go with that.
About 9 years ago I wanted a raclette grill, and my parents gave us one for Christmas that year. Every year since we have done it up over the holidays, and tonight was the night to do it. Raclette is not something to be rushed, so it's a perfect way to hang out for a few hours and chat. Tomorrow night is beef wellington, and Friday I just might cry in a glass of wine. These last few months was the longest amount of time that I have gone without seeing one of my kids. In the coming months, I don't know when we will all be together again, and I feel lonely already.
For now, I will go enjoy the sleepover for the nine year olds, catch up with the rest that stayed in tonight to bond over Shark Tank, and try not to be miserable for them all as I block out how fast Friday is coming.
Where did 2018 go? It was one of those years that literally felt like it flew by and is a slight blur. In the last few weeks again I have had many conversations about starting my writing again. I joined a blog challenge for the month of January to see if it will help me kick start a few projects that I have long been working on. I seem to have a wall that is blocking me from putting things out. I am worried about being politically correct or upsetting certain people. But in conversations, I can be logical and I know that the people who love and support me on a day to day basis will always support me. I need to tell my heart to stop worrying about people who really don't care about me.
Sounds so easy right?
Over the years, I know that I am more productive with my writing when I am sharing and receiving feedback from other writers, thus the reason for starting the year with the blog challenge. I am hoping to start meeting with local writers again as well, and have a first meeting scheduled already for this week.
I recently poured my heart out to someone who didn't know me over the last few years. It was that person saying several times now that I should be writing down more of my stories that made me start picking at things in the last few months. My ultimate goal for 2019 for my writing career is to finally put out some of my fictional writing. It's like the last terrifying thing that I need to at least try....or die disappointed in myself for not doing it.
I am already working on several blogs about local issues that will be coming up in the next few months. I love helping to inform residents as much as possible, and will try harder to post more about what is going on in the region, and with council. Often when I am struggling with an issue going into a meeting it is the interaction and the feedback that I receive from residents that guides me in my decisions. Every decision we make as a council affects local residents almost immediately, I will never take that responsibility lightly. I have learned over the last year that we will never, ever please everyone...even when we thought people would be extremely happy with something that we have brought forward we have received negative feedback...and that is literally on every single issue. I try to make decisions by thinking about the big picture, and long term. But even when residents don't agree or upset, those conversations are extremely important as well. If I never try to see all the sides of an issue, I think I am at risk for having a closed mind, and in a healthy democracy that is not healthy.
I'm excited about 2019, as far as the municipality goes I think that Mayor Scott and the rest of council has laid a good foundation in 2018 to get some very productive things done this year. But I am also realistic and know that we have some hard work ahead of us before we see some movement on big items like downtown development. I guess I will continue to hope that residents have patience, as nothing was done with the downtown for so many years, and we are working on it, but it can't just be changed miraculously over night.
My personal challenge for 2019? I am going to tackle my house. We are going into year 3 of construction around here, and I had a conversation with someone and admitted that I am having a great deal of anxiety of what it will look like again come the spring. Once the foundation issues start to be addressed will more things be found wrong? Will the contractor be committed to the job and get it done in the least amount of time possible? Will I once again be avoiding being around the house because of the noise and mess? We all don't want to complain about the situations we are in since the fire, but it's okay to feel frustrated that it's going into year 3 and we are still dealing with contractors and insurance. It sucks. So I'm hoping we will finally have our home back this year, and I will take control of it again, much like I have done with other aspects of my life(ie my weight).
I love the beginning of a new year, it seems to stretch out like a canvas, or some blank pages. I can't wait to see what will be written on them. I am hoping if you read this far you will help me on my challenge over the next 31 days, keep me accountable and ask where my blog posts are if it's not up by 3p.m every day.
I wrote out several longer posts over the last two weeks trying to capture my feelings about the last year. As I often do, I sat on them after finishing them, and then read them again. And they all hit the junk pile. After reading them again I realized that they all sounded political and stiff. In trying to be politically correct about the last year, I lost my voice. That's why I haven't been writing at all. I don't want to insult anyone or look like I am favouring one group or another. But I don't favour any group, and I would never insult anyone or any group intentionally. So here we go. People don't want to read long posts, so I thought every couple of days I would put some short ones out that gave updates, and I could tell everyone about what is going on.
Tomorrow Mayor Scott is presenting at the Teck hearing at 9am. At 10a.m. we are attending the grand opening of the Conklin Multiplex. Then we head to Anzac and have the grand opening of the new firehall at 1:30p.m. And then we have a special council meeting at 3p.m. in Anzac regarding the community hall.
As much as I would like to attend the Arts Awards tomorrow evening, I literally have not seen my husband/family together in three weeks, so I am hoping to get home and have supper with them all and hang out for a bit tomorrow night. It really sucks sometimes not being able to attend absolutely everything, but I continue to try to find balance.
The coming week will be busy. We have a council meeting on Tuesday, and then on Wednesday we have another special council meeting to discuss the Moccasin Flat report that the Fort McMurray Metis had done.
I haven't written for so long that I almost don't know where to start. People keep asking me if I am enjoying my time council....and I can honestly say that I am. It's probably the first time in my life that I don't mind putting in lots of hours, as long as it's all for the benefit of the region. I am working with some amazing people, both on council, and in administration. I have met some unbelievable, hard working community leaders, and I still wake up pumped to start the day and see what can be done.
I am always open to any conversation on any topic, my cel is (780)838-1782, or you can send me a message at verna.murphy@rmwb.ca. Councillor McGrath always loved when I wrote about him before, so I'm sure he will be happy to be mentioned in my blogs again, lol. The past Councillors, Claris, Keith, Jane, Phil, and Mayor Scott and Mike have all been wonderful supports this last year. I continue to learn so much every day and they all share their knowledge whenever I ask. And I have bonded with some of the new councillors as we all navigate this new job. It has not been an easy year, but we have been working very hard for our region and the residents that live here. This still sounds awkward, lol...maybe as I do more of these it will become easier again. I will do my best, I think it's important for residents to know what's going on with their council, and I also think this will be important for me, as I miss writing.
This last year has been an absolute honour for me. I still wake up some mornings and think about how blessed I am to serve in this elected role. I hope that people continue to think that I am approachable and open to conversations, as that has always been my goal going into being on council. Otherwise, feel free to slap me up the side of my head whenever I am failing. And feel free to follow me on social media, and I will try to start posting more pictures and updates about everything that is going on in our region(but heads up, I still hate getting my picture taken, so don't expect lots of selfies from me....you don't need to see my face to know what's going on). And if anyone has questions or suggestions about what you would like to hear from me, please send them to me.
Many of you know that last October I was elected to council here in Fort McMurray. Over the last year I have dedicated myself to my new role as councillor, and yes, a year in, and I'm still loving it. I know it sounds silly, but I still can't believe it. I'm so lucky to say that my job is working for the residents of the Municipality of Wood Buffalo. It's an honor I promise I will never take for granted.
But I'm going to be honest, the last couple of months I have felt like something was missing, and I couldn't figure out what it was. Luckily I have wonderful friends and when I started vaguely saying that I felt something was off, I started getting feedback that I should be writing again. But I brushed them off. But then over the course of the last few days when I really started thinking about it, I realized that I do miss it. I miss the connection and the interaction.
So I'm not sure yet what this will look like, or how often I will get to post, but I do know a few things that you can expect. As a councillor, anything I write will respect the office, and it will not be a reflection of the rest of my councillors or the mayor. As a councillor, I will never, ever write about anything related to labour, legal or land as we are never suppose to speak about such things publicly. It has been hard over the last year when I am asked some questions and I cannot share information. There are have been some huge issues that we faced as a new council over the last year, but because the courts are often involved, we cannot speak about it. When those things happen, I will let you know that I just can't talk about certain things.
I do want to share information that people can use. Even in the last few days I have attended some events, and afterwards people have said, "I wish I had known that was happening, I would have liked to go." So I will share events, and when I attend events or public meetings, I will share my thoughts on the material shared.
The question that I am most often asked lately is about my weight loss, so I will definitely writing about that as well. Otherwise I will follow my old patterns, and share recipes, life stories, and whatever comes up in my day to day comings and goings.
This week I'm not sure how much I will get to post, as I will be attending the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association(AUMA) convention in Red Deer. It will be fun to start sharing some of these types of events with everyone. Ironically before I was elected I was not sure of the value of these conferences for elected officials. Last year when I attended, we were able to meet with several Ministers and we were able to get some movement on several issues that were outstanding in our region. This year we will do the same.
Tuesday morning I will be attending the Grand Opening of the Elsie Yanik school at 331 Callen Drive. It starts at 10:30, and is open to the public. I was lucky enough over the years to have many meaningful conversations with the amazing Elsie Yanik. I am so happy that this new school will bear her name. In her quiet gentle way she inspired many to live better lives and to do more for their community.
Thanks to my family and friends who encouraged me to get back to my writing. It's hard to explain to someone who doesn't write, but it literally feels like life is wrong when I'm not writing. I have been writing over the last year, but nothing that I would share with the public(as I always have done with journals, etc). My next big leap is that I want to share some fictional stories that I have written over the years. I just need the courage to finally let them go out.
I'm already excited for this new journey, I hope that you will tune in!
And I don't mean election time, I mean it's time for Matt Minglewood baby!! For the next three nights in Fort McMurray Matt will be taking, and owning the stage at the Boomtown Casino.
Over the years I have shared my love of Matt with all of you. I have told you about how he plopped me up on the hood of a truck at the shore in Mabou Harbour the first time I met him and talked to that 7 year old like I was the best fan he ever had. I wrote about how when I was going through chemo and a bone marrow transplant he drove hours for me to have my one last wish, to hear him sing Me and the Boys.
Me and the Boys was played at our wedding, during the births of both our sons, and many nights of kitchen dancing with our family. All the kids have seen and met him over the years, but this weekend is going to be so sweet to go with both the boys "legally" for the first time. And I will take to the dance floor with them with complete and utter joy.
If you have never seen Matt play, you really must come out, it's a time you will never forget. And for those from the East Coast, it is magical. It's a taste of home, and you get to see all your good time rowdy buddies!
But even further to all that, this weekend we can say thank you to Matt and the band. Last year after the fire the residents of Cape Breton organized a fundraiser for Fort McMurray, for us...and they gave in a huge way. Matt headlined a concert, that was full of an amazing amount of talent. They raised over $250,000!!! For those who may not know, Cape Bretoner's have huge hearts, but for them to raise that amount of money to give back to McMurray is just phenomenal. This weekend we can say thank you for that tremendous gift, we can get out and have some fun and dance all at the same time too!
I will see you on the dance floor, I will be the redhead with the "Vote Verna Murphy" button on!
To see Matt's part of the concert(and to get you pumped for the weekend), skip ahead to the 3 hour mark.
So as many of you have noticed, and messaged me about, I have been away from my writing. A combination of things happened last year, and to be honest, my heart just wasn't in it. Even when I wrote some columns I just felt that I couldn't stir any passion. But in the last couple of weeks, I started picking up my journals again, and then I found myself waking up in the middle of the night to jot down some thoughts. And just like that, my love had returned.
To be honest, it could have been some type of writer's block. After the fire, I went into overdrive, and was working a great deal, but was also overextending myself in a variety of ways, which is my way of dealing with anything...get busy. But there was also another life lesson in amongst the events of the last year, and I wanted to share it so that you don't do the same thing that I did. It was kind of an a-ha kind of moment when I actually started writing about things the last couple of weeks.
Last year, at the height of many emotions in Fort McMurray, someone had written me an email, and questioned me on "who I thought I was" and my writing "ethics" in response to a few things that I had written. And I let those words seep into my way of thinking, and not in a good way. I literally started thinking that I had no right to be giving my opinion on events in town, or political happenings. I felt that so many others had lived through much worse than I did last year, so why would anyone want to hear my opinion on things, or care what I thought. And then in writing about it all the last few days, I realized a few things. The main one being that the persons that emailed me last year to question me so much have had very little to do in my life in the months since then. They do not interact with my children, they do not ask me how my day was, they do not land with a bottle of wine on my hard days, because they have no idea what my life is like on any given day. I had given my power, my words to people who had no right to it. I thought I had learned this lesson years ago. I have been a strong, opinionated woman for a few years now, what had happened? Well, a lot. And now suddenly, I feel like we have so much to catch up on, I have so much to tell you.
A few months ago, when I announced that I was going to run for council in the fall, I had to give up writing for the Today. I had done the same when I ran in the by-election two years ago, and I think it's fair. But I miss it terribly, and many have contacted me almost every week to ask about what I thought about something that happened at council, or at the provincial level. And I realized a few other things. One was that I love talking about politics, and everything political. And just because I am running for office doesn't mean that I have stopped having opinions on things. People may not always agree with me, but over the years I have learned so much from discussions with those same people, so it has always been a benefit in some way. Also, people have often come to me because I am honest, and try to have a balance approach to whatever the issue is. People liked me because of my openness and my honesty, so why shouldn't that continue when I am looking for their vote?
On the political side of things, now that Nathanial(my son's) graduation is over, I am ready to ramp up the campaign. I will be hitting doorsteps, thinking of creative ways to meet more people and sharing my platform in the next couple of weeks. If you want to meet me for a coffee, chat on the phone, or get involved with the campaign please feel free to email me at vernamurphyforcouncil@gmail.com, or phone me at (780)838-1782. I know I have my own barriers to overcome, like the fact that I don't believe in posting every single thing that I do in the community(I am still thinking that is good Catholic guilt and a Cape Breton upbringing also at play), I hate getting my picture taken, and I often would rather be in the back volunteering than out front making sure the crowd knows I am there. Lately I have been watching videos where people approach things with humour, and honesty, and I was thinking maybe I should start doing a series of videos about local issues, and about who I am. They will not be professional, or polished, just like I am neither, but they will be honest, and hopefully funny at times(and no, Tim, my hubby, will not be appearing.
One other thing that I wanted to talk about today was about this blog. I had gotten a business license after we returned after the fire last year, and was working on advertising and being an affiliate. But once I started thinking about running, I put it all on hold. I didn't want people to think that I was taking money from some companies for ads in relation to my campaign, or that I was writing some stories to seek attention for my campaign. So I shelved it all. Running for council, for me is something that I will never do again if I don't win this time around, so I really want to do it justice, and by the book. Even if it's only in my head, I want my campaign to be one that I am proud of, and one that no one could question the motivations of things that I do. It may sound silly, but I want to be a candidate that people know they can trust to say one thing, and then actually do the same thing in follow up. I want people to say, "That woman has integrity."
The last few months have been jammed full of lots of changes for me, and everyone in my house, and I am excited to start sharing all of that with you again. And I am even more excited to take you along with me during the next few months, as I think they will be some of the most exciting in my life. I feel like everything has turned for me in the last 6 months(except for the house issues that you will hear about as well), and I am so happy to be back in control and moving forward. I hope you will all join me by either reading about the adventures to come, or play a part in them personally.
Last night I had a moment sitting in front of Paul Spring when I thought I might completely break down in tears. I could feel them gathering in the corner of my eye, and I was taking some deep breaths so as to not make a complete fool of myself.
I had once again taken a minute to try to find some words to say thank you to him for all that he has done not just for our family, but for all of the Wood Buffalo region. His usual response was, "It's my job." And while I understand that he has been doing it for so long, and he does it so professionally that I think he just doesn't understand the ramifications that his "job" has on families.
Let me start from the beginning. Four years ago this May someone had told me that STARS, the well known air ambulance service did not serve the Fort McMurray region. Like many, I thought the person was wrong, and immediately started looking into it. I ended up calling Paul to ask him directly about the medevac service that we had in Fort McMurray. We talked for over an hour and a half, and I was dumbfounded by the information that he shared, it was the beginning of my fascination with the service in Fort McMurray. Never in a million years did I think at the time that we would ever be needing the service for anyone in our family.
Just two short weeks later I had just left a meeting at the hospital, when I received a call that Tyler was in emergency and had been hurt at work. I had just texted him earlier that morning about what I was making for supper, so my first thought was that it wasn't bad, it just couldn't be, I would know. This was the spring of 2013, and we were in the middle of the flood situation. Once Tyler's coworkers began to arrive, and we talked to doctors, we realized it was a horrible accident, and when the ambulance couldn't reach Tyler, it was Paul who flew in to airlift him out for help. At the time, Paul was working on getting his pilots trained for night flights, so that we could have a 24 hour dedicated service. H.E.R.O was born about two years ago, and stands for Helicopter Emergency Response Organization. The goal for the organization was that once it was set up, the funding, and everything attached to the medevac would be a sole entity, not connected to Phoenix. In fact, probably the only thing that I have disagreed with Paul over the years is that he is too modest, like painfully so, and he does not want his name connected to the service, and shies away from media or any attention about all that he does for our region. I think he should be telling some of the amazing stories of dramatic rescues, or even all that he did during the fire. Many do not know that he saved people in Draper by going and landing when they were surrounded by flames to take them to safety, and he did the same for patients at the hospital who were critical.
I could go on and on all day about the stories that I have heard over the years about this service. But here's some important points. If Paul had not taken on the initiative, we would not have medevac service here in town, never mind a 24 hour service. Now imagine if you or your child were in an accident say up north while camping, or south of town on highway 63. Would you want to sit beside your child and hold their hand for 2 hours while waiting for an ambulance? Well, our Tyler laid there for over an hour waiting for that ambulance. HERO's log shows that it took them 11 minutes to get to Tyler, and they made it back in 10 minutes. The difference is life saving. People that are having heart attacks, or strokes don't have the time to be waiting, and when airlifted and receiving medical attention more quickly, their recovery time is quicker, and their outcomes are better. So that means less time in the hospital, so all around the taxpayers win.
The hurtles are that people just don't know about this amazing service. And then funding such a service is an enormous burden. One that HERO has carried alone until this weekend. I'm not sure how it played out over lunch one day, but I am sure that it was Paul could not say no to Ramona Morrison, and she set the wheels in motion.
Ramona is a Fort McMurray legend, she has raised millions of dollars for our region, and started things like the Festival of Trees. After the fire, Chef Michael Smith had reached Ramona on Mother's Day to make sure she was okay, and he said that once things settled down he would come out to help however he could. The East Coast Lobster Party was eventually born, and will happen tonight at Shell Place. And I cannot wait to see how the residents of Fort McMurray show their love to HERO for all they have done in the last few years.
Paul's biggest cheerleader, and supporter is Andrea, his wife. I had met her a few years back, but in the last few weeks I have come to love her as much as I love Paul. Their dedication to the community just amazes me. Even at the end of the evening last night, they were the ones carrying things to storage or cars, and looking after last minute details. And while I loved Paul for saving Tyler, I think my respect for them has grown tenfold because they just stepped up when no one else did, and carried that burden without ever complaining. In fact, I remember about two years ago being quite upset about some funding that was suppose to come and it fell through. I was ranting about it to Paul, and he just said, "All we can do is our best, and getting upset isn't going to help any patients, or anyone else. We just need to keep moving forward and hopefully someday, we will be supported." Never angry, and never negative towards those that did not step up even after they said they would....never.
So tonight, I hope that funding is raised, and the word gets out about what HERO actually does for all of us here in Fort McMurray. Ramona, Andrea, Paul, Shelley, the HERO team, and everyone else who I have met in the last few months in preparing for tonight, you all amaze me, and I love you all. Your work ethic makes me want to do better in life, and I am so proud of all that you do for our community. Ramona, you are a special star in Fort McMurray, I have a whole new respect for you, and I will now need your biscuit and oatcake recipes if you don't want us constantly dropping by for tea.
And my final words go to Paul and Andrea. You have worked so hard on this event, but I realized last night that you have been working at this level for years behind the scenes. I will never find the proper words to say thank you, because I know that if it wasn't for Paul's commitment, and Andrea's support of that, Tyler would not be here. And he is just one of the lives that you have saved over the years, so I'm sure there are 100's of others who feel the same way as I do. I hope you are able to enjoy tonight, although it's kind of like a wedding, so much work, and you don't really get to sit back and enjoy it. At least take a minute to look around and realize how many lives you impact. Thank you, you guys are the best.
Paul and I at the grand opening of the airport three years ago.
Many weeks ago, I applied for a business license from the Municipality of Wood Buffalo to begin a new adventure. I had been approached many times about ads on this blog, or becoming an affiliate, and the timing never seemed right. But then just after Christmas, I decided to make the leap. I am guessing that I would have had my license some time in May, but as you all know, The Beast stepped in and wracked havoc again on my best laid plans.
Yesterday I returned home to Fort McMurray since the first time since we left by flight on May 5th from north of our city at one of the camps. I will tell you the story of how we made our way out at another time, but tonight, I wanted to talk about driving up Highway 63 to reach home yesterday.
Our oldest, Mitchell, had received a call about returning to work, and we had still not gotten our car back from the camp site, so we decided to drive him up to his truck, and retrieve our car. The drive up was fairly quiet given the early morning get up, but as we neared the city and started to smell the smoke again, we all sat up a bit straighter and started to watch the tree line a bit closer.
When we finally hit the turn off for the airport road and started to see the remnants of what the huge fire had left in it's path, I fell silent. Mitchell and Tim chattered and pointed out the losses to each other along either side of the road. I am convinced after the last month that men and women are totally wired differently. As we made our way down Beaconhill, and into the downtown area I felt a lump in my throat, and my eyes tearing, but it was not from the smoke or air quality. The amount of loss for the people in Beaconhill, Waterways, Abasand, Saprae, Wood Buffalo and Parsons hit me like a wall once I started seeing just corners of the total damage from the drive down the hill. And as we made our way to the camp parking lot I sat trying not to cry for all that had happened during the last few weeks to our community. We switched around, made sure Mitchell was safely on his way and I started back south towards Edmonton in the rental car, while Tim drove our car in case it was smoky. In the last few years my lungs have gotten worse, and this past winter I struggled with breathing on several occasions due to my issues, including asthma.
My first reaction as I came back south from site was to get in the far right lane to go up Confed as I got closer, it was just automatic. But the RCMP had the exit blocked and I was reminded to keep south. By the time I reached Gregoire, I was crying. I wanted to stay so badly, but in the short time I was in the area, my breathing became heavier, and I had to break out my puffers. I cried because I had to leave, I cried because I couldn't go see if my house was okay, I cried because I felt guilty for still having a house when so many lost theirs, and I cried because it feels like our community had been through a hard enough 18 months even before the fire happened.
I had my little pity party, and I turned on the radio and felt sorry for myself and Fort McMurray all the way to Wandering River. And then I stopped to get gas, and some air, and it was crazy busy at that little stop. And I looked around at all the work crew guys heading north to help rebuild our city, and had a moment.
If you have read this blog in the past, you know that we have had our own personal challenges over the years. And standing there in Wandering River, looking across the parking lot as my husband, Tim approached me I realized that we would be fine. I could have died from having a bone marrow transplant, he could have been killed instead of badly injured by a drunk driver, our little girl could have passed away from complications when she was young, but we are fine. We have a home to go home to once we do whatever we need to do to make it safe, and we will go back.
When you have a transplant, you celebrate that date like it is a new birthday. Every time I hear the word, "re-entry", for some reason, I think "re-birth". So today, June 1, 2016, I am declaring it a new beginning, again, for the Murphy family in Fort McMurray. We remember life "before" and "after" the transplant, the accident, and now we will add the "before the fire" and "after the fire" to the mix as well.
And on an even more personal level, this blog will be reborn. Before it was always "Around the Kitchen Table", because I had envisioned it would contain the conversations that people had at their own kitchen tables. From here on in, my new blog will be known as "Murphy's View From McMurray" for a few reasons. Months ago when I asked friends for their ideas, they all said that I should have my name in the title somewhere, and over the last few weeks I really wanted to make sure that Fort McMurray was included as well. Because through all of the last month, and everything that happened, I know that I love being a Murphy more than ever, thanks Tim, and I love being from Fort McMurray more than I ever thought possible. The way that my heart swells with pride when I think about our community, well, I think I will just have to dedicate myself as we all head back to trying to capture how deep that feeling of pride really runs. It will be hard to put it into words.
I know that this new "rebirth" will be full of challenges, great people, lots of love and hope. I also hope that it will be full of laughter, fun, and lots of sharing so that we all realize we are not alone with whatever we are going through. My goal with the new blog was to capture more stories of the people, businesses and events around town, and now more than ever I am committed to that goal. Months ago I had visions of having a grand launch day, and a big announcement. But today, June 1, with re-entry starting it suddenly hit me that I didn't need a big announcement, because life is full of every day moments, and huge tragedies, so I will start this journey today, with Fort McMurray, and it's residents. There is not one single doubt in my mind that we will rebuild, and we will help those most devastated in the weeks and months to come. Because we are Fort McMurray, and that's what we do.
As I got back in the car and started my drive back to Edmonton for another couple of weeks, this was the song that came on the radio, so I turned it up, and thought about how Fort McMurray will be there for us, whenever we all decide it is safe to go home.
I had a speech all set for tonight for the council meeting, but I don't think I am going to be able to make it, so I thought I would share any way.
I come here tonight as a mom, not a council geek, and not a resident who is worried about the future of our city. Just a mom, who stood in her kitchen this morning and told her 16 year old son that it was likely that Phase 2 of the Northside Rec plan would probably be halted by council tonight. And do you know what his reaction was, he said, "It's been so long now it doesn't matter anyway." And I answered that well, some day maybe his kids would use it, and to that he answered, "If I have kids I don't know if I want to raise them here at the rate things are going." It was like a punch in the gut, and I feel partially responsible.
You see when the municipality posted the online survey for the design of the Northside Rec, and held the engagement sessions, I encouraged our sons to participate. I told them that if they didn't participate, they wouldn't be heard, and that you can never get what you want if you don't speak up. I told them that their voice mattered. I told many residents in Fort McMurray the same thing the last few years, "get involved" I said, "make sure you vote" I said. And when they did participate, and engaged with this project they were loud and clear that they wanted this rec centre on the north side. There was no denying it at any level. But what has administration done? Killed it. And tonight, if council votes with the recommendation, they will not only kill a rec centre, they will further alienate the people of Fort McMurray.
Don't come asking me next week why people won't stay. Stop trying to figure out why they are mad. It's because they continue to not be heard by administration, and sadly by their representatives on council.
For years I have corrected people when they said that the current council wasted money on the weather catcher and the expropriation of the downtown core. I have patiently explained that it was last council that made those decisions. But if council votes to kill this project tonight, at the cost of well over $5.5 million, I will only pause and wonder at what they have accomplished during their time in office.
And how do I continue to try to get my children, and possible residents of Fort McMurray to engage, when tonight I am feeling so disillusioned myself?
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.
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 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 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.
