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Updated software for blog

Just a quick note: the blog software was updated yesterday. The display is a little different and it has a few new features. Invision's blogging package is not as good as that offered by other companies like Wordpress, but I stick to it because I don't believe I can port the contents from this package to another. I might start a new blog one day...



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Not much change promised for Ontario's municipalities this election

Ontario’s provincial leaders are promising a lot this election. It’s what they’re not promising that is more troubling to me.

I listened to the leaders of the three parties speak at the AMO convention this week, and heard a lot of promises, a lot of justification, some blame, some excuses and some puffery. But for everything we're...



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A reflection on AMO's 2011 convention

Spent most of this week at the annual AMO (Association of Municipalities of Ontario) convention. This year it was held in London, ON, and around 2,600 municipal politicians and staff from across the province attended. As always, it's a combination of information, networking, schmoozing, politics, workshops and ideas. I've always enjoyed...



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Simcoe County to consider rail line acquisition

The Barrie-Collingwood Railway (BCRY) may have a little more life left in it. There's a motion on the agenda for the County of Simcoe's Planning and Economic Development committee for its August 10th meeting that reads:

RECOMMENDATION:
THAT staff be authorized to enter into discussions with the Town of Collingwood to acquire the Town’s...



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Axial tilt and evolution

What role does Earth's axial tilt play in the ongoing evolution of life on this planet? That question has intrigued me ever since the Japanese earthquake, this spring. I read that the quake had shifted our planet on its axis by 25cm - a minute amount on the planetary scale - but one that could have, as one story noted, "profound, if...



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Myth, storytelling and modern writing

Back in 1949, Joseph Campbell, a follower of Carl Jung, wrote a book called The Hero With a Thousand Faces. It traced the story of the 'hero's journey' through the world's mythology, showing how every major tale, regardless of culture, shared common elements and archetypes. It detailled 17 quintessential steps along the mythic...



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The last train

A chapter in local history was written, and closed, this week. The last freight train left Collingwood on July 14, 2011, ending more than 160 years of rail service to the town. I was present when the BCRY rail line was launched and the first train left for Collingwood, so it was fitting that I was there when its last train came into town,...



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Relearning the bass and other follies

The past few weeks I've been a bit pre-occupied with several tasks and pursuits, so I haven't been blogging much, although I have been busy. About a month ago, I bought an Epiphone Viola bass from Blue Mountain Music. It was the culmination of several months' exploration and investigation of bass instruments that began with an electric...



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500-million-year-old fossils create economic development opportunities

This intriguing story is from a media release from the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development, posted on the Municipal Information Network. Exciting stuff when a government recognizes the importance of fossils, evolution and science, and helps promote them to the public.

Capturing the significance of...



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The honeymoon is over...

It seems Council's honeymoon ended last night with the defeat of Councillor Hull's motion. Four members of council* opposed what should have been an easy motion to accept. But - because we had only eight members at the table - it was defeated by being tied. And I think the defeat will have much greater implications for council in the...




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