Happy Holidays!!

This will be my last post before Christmas so I wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Holiday! Please don't drink and drive. Spend lots of time relaxing with family and friends and do something charitable for all those who are not as fortunate. Most of all, I wish you all the best in 2007!

The last two weeks have not been as busy as normal. Usually things start to wind down for the holidays and there just are not as many meetings. I had my last French class for this term and so will be moving on to the next level in January. I also have a large essay due for my Management course in January so I have been busy working on that.

The basement continues to be a nightmare. They are saying it will be done by January 1st so I am hoping they are right. Every night I come home I know I am going to find something wrong and spend an hour on the phone getting it corrected. For example: wrong windows installed, water heating pipes busted, screen ripped, personal property thrown out, holes in ceiling, water on floor, etc. This just shows you a few of the things I have come home to over the past couple of weeks. On top of that, two of my four tenants have now left for a new place and the other two are getting very inpatient. I can understand them moving on though as it should not have taken this long to renovate. I spent today priming the ceilings in the basement that we gyproced
previously and I must say that it is the best work down there and I don't even have a trade. Lesson learned: find quality contractors even if your insurance company tries to push you towards a particular contractor.

I have been attending a lot of holiday gatherings as many of the non-profit groups in the community have a little get together prior to Christmas. So far I have been to the Open Door Club, Human Development Council, Community Health Centre and OPTIONS Outreach Employment Inc. gatherings.

I also attended a meeting the other day for P.R.O. Kids as I am a board member but this was a special meeting around the annual fundraising dinner where I ended up becoming the chair for this year's dinner committee. It is our major fundraiser and has been called Curry Night Out. The dinner is not until April but I will plug it right now by saying if you want to contribute anything to the auction part of the night or help sponsor the dinner just give me a shout (333-3711).

I also attended a talk by Paul Dupuis at the Open Door Club last week. He is a man from the St. Stephen area who has published several books and lives with Schizophrenia. He is a very smart man and it was nice to see how successful he has been. It should remind us all that mental health disorders are quite common and rooted in biology. These individuals can be every bit as successful and even more successful than people without mental health issues.

Finally, I want to leave you with a story that I hope you will reflect upon this holiday season. Last week a 27 year old woman was killed in Fredericton when she was struck by a motorist. I knew this woman from my time at Mount Allison University and from different initiatives that we were both involved in around the community. This woman was very committed to her family, her local community, and her world. She traveled the globe. She had a keen interest in the environment. She helped people and she educated people. She will be very missed. Over the holidays my thoughts will be with her family. I challenge all of you to think about what you can do to help your community or your world. But even more than think, I challenge you to do something today to help your world because you never know when it may be your last chance.

Have a very happy and safe holiday break!