Day 12 and going into second weekend ...

Here we are at day 12 and going into the second weekend of the Calgary Glenmore by-election. Thought I would surf the other candidates websites.

It is good to see the NDP finally have acknowledged their candidate.

And the PC camp... oh wait... what's this?

Diane Colley-Urquhart's site seems to be down. I checked her Twitter and nothing posted there about what the issue might be.

Anyone want to take odds that she got the Boutilier err I mean boot for speaking against King Eddie?

Diane Colley-Urquhart; Tories hiding from dissenting opinions.

I was alerted today that Diane Colley-Urquhart Tweeted yet another brillant quote.



Is she truly oblivious to the facts that got us to this point? The PC's have been overspending for several budgets in a row now. More than a few sources have been pointing this out for years and predicting the deficit situation.

This is the second great nugget of wisdom to come from Diane Colley-Urquhart and since she has been following me for a while on Twitter; I thought it time to repay the favour.

But alas when I click on "Follow" I get a big red (ironic, isn't it...Big Red) warning.



I have little doubt that Diane Colley-Urquhart has blocked me because she may not have liked some of my commentary on her and I have heard through the political-grapevine that she doesn't take critism very well.

But really Diane is this how you handle difficult or challenging situations? Turn a blind eye to them? Shut the door and hope they go away? One wonders if this will be a regular practice should she become the MLA for Calgary-Glenmore.

Luckily the residents who do their research have been finding this blog... and in record numbers of late. Good to see that in a Google blog search of Diane Colley-Urquhart; my blog comes up as a "related blog". In fact hers is currently fifth on the list.

Oh what a dilema....

This morning I am reading through my google search hits (as I often do) and one of them takes me to Brian Dell’s blog.

He drops some interesting hints as to the identity of the phantom blogger Enlightened Savage. Enough hints for me to figure it out rather quickly.

Now I find myself in a bit a spot. Normally this kind outing would be a bit of coup; but I actually like this guy.

What a dilemma; what to do?

A) Out him. -- I am a strong believer that people should stand behind their words.

B) Leave it be.-- If I can figure it out, surely others will now too.

C) Is there a third choice?

Paul Hinman, Calgary Glenmore Kick-off a HUGE success.

It was a beautiful day in Calgary; perfect for the first large volunteer effort on Paul Hinmans campaign. We met at 10:00 AM and the workers were eager to go. We managed to snap this picture of the first 35 volunteers.

By 10:15 they had their packages and spread out like busy ants throughout the constituency. CTV stopped by to do a quick interview with Paul and then he was on his way too.

By 11:00 AM we had late arrivals signed in, along with another half dozen from each the Mark Dyrholm and Danielle Smith campaigns. Bringing our confirmed number to 55!!

With so many hands we covered all the targeted areas without having to over work any of your dedicated members. We reconvened at the Boston Pizza at Southland Drive and 24 St.SW.



The management welcomed us with great hospitality and the staff did an amazing job creating a vast selection of their finest pizzas. The food was delicious and was perfect for those who had worked up an appetite.



All in all, it was a great day, it went smoothly, we accomplished our goal; it was a HUGE success.

A big THANK YOU to everyone who came out.

In the coming days I will be posting an invite to visit at our campaign headquarters. For more information you can also visit Pauls website.

How would you feel?

How would you feel if the party you were running for, or the leader of that party, barely recognizes that you are their candidate? Or that there is even a by-election on the go?

Diane Colley-Urquhart was the first candidate nominated to the Calgary – Glenmore way back in early June. Yet no statement has come from the Leader of the PC’s in support of this candidate.

The PC website didn’t even acknowledge there was a by-election on the go until AFTER it was pointed out on two blogs, here and here in the comments; and that was two days ago. We all know this party knew when the by-election was going to be called.

They knew the date, they knew who their candidate was; yet they failed to give Diane Colley-Urquhart every day of free advertising they could on their very own website. It took a couple astute bloggers to bring it to Ed’s attention.

And where is Ed? Diane kicked off her campaign Monday afternoon with a handful of people in attendance. This is not a general election where he can’t attend all 83 constituencies; there is only one show on the go, yet he doesn’t even show up for her kick off???

Does he just “assume” she does not need his support? Perhaps he doesn’t support her as a candidate?

Is he afraid to step foot in Calgary? Has he caught wind that there is a message to be delivered to him? Or is he even paying attention?

So many unanswered questions….counting the days until Eddy makes an appearance.

Strange happenings in Calgary - Glenmore

Last night the sign crew got our good 'ol election truck done up with a couple of 4 X 8 campaign signs.




Pic was taken with my BlackBerry and is a bit blurry, but you get the idea. Today was it's first day in the constituency, busy delivering more signs.

The sign crew stopped at a local convenience store for some refreshments, when they came out there was someone who appeared to be taking down their license plate numbers. (From this truck and another)

She was in the passenger seat of a BMW. They described her as being an older woman with her hair dyed red. They thought this a bit odd, so they also took down her plate number.

A gentleman then got into the drivers’ seat. The campaign truck pulled out of the parking lot and realized the beamer was behind them. Coincidence perhaps, so they turned down a residential street and so did the car.

Turn down another street. Yup still behind them. Three turns later the campaign truck pulls over; the car pulls over too about half a block back. Truck pulls out, car pulls out…. A few back alleys and side streets later they lose the tailing car.

This is my husbands truck and he was driving it today. Now, I know he is one good looking man, hell he is HOT....and he does have a thing for older women, but he is taken!!!

So back off....LOL

Funny Calgary Glenmore By-election story

Truth be told, I am not that "involved" in the actual campaign. Other than fielding and redirecting calls that happen to come into Head Office. So this might end up being the only funny story from me.

Tonight the sign crew was working on installations at Wildrose Alliance members homes, so I thought I would tag along for PR. Had a great time catching up with some I hadn't seen for awhile and since many are new; meeting others for the first time.

On one particular street there was a sandwich board sign saying Diane Colley-Urquhart was "door knocking" in the area. We did quite few signs there and were in the vicinity for about 30 minutes.

When we were re-grouping to move to the next section, my husband turned to me and said; "I still haven't seen Diane's knockers."

With a rather astonished expression I said; "Excuse me????"

And he repeated; "I still haven't seen Diane's knockers." Then he realized what he had said.... priceless.

When things don't add up.

As a bookkeeper things that don’t add up catch my attention. This was the case recently as I read through some of the Alberta Human Right Commission (AHRC) decisions made by Diane Colley-Urquhart.


You can see from this screenshot it looks like the most recent case determined by Diane Colley-Urquhart was made on June 16, 2009. I was pretty sure she had stated she resigned after her candidate acclamation. I searched out news articles to confirm her acclamation date. Several sources confirm what we see below June 4th was the deadline for nominations and therefore by June 5 Diane Colley-Urquhart was the PC candidate.



When I re-read her comment about her resignation, I realized it is indeed ambiguous with no specific date given. One might “assume” the date was June 5 the first business day after she was confirmed. Now that was a Friday, so maybe she waited until the Monday. All we can discern with certainty it was not between June 1 and 5 and given she made an AHRC decision on June 16 it likely was not before then either.




The fact that the AHRC did not remove Diane Colley-Urquhart’s bio from their website until it was pointed out only adds more doubt to the exact date of her resignation. This leaves one wondering “why be so vague” about it. If she had business to conclude with the commission, why not just say so.

Personally, I think individuals who run in elections don’t need to step down from their current paid positions until the writ is dropped or until they start “actually” campaigning. It is not an uncommon practice within in political campaigns that the candidate be remunerated from contributions, sort of “in lieu of” salary they are no longer receiving. I have never done it and I don’t condone it, for me I see it as a cost of my commitment, also I think contributions are better directed to campaign expenses. (signs, advertising, etc.)

Having said that the PC Calgary-Glenmore constituency has more than $150,000.00 in their coffers, it's well within their means to replace their candidate’s salary for the duration of the campaign or even the campaigning, which in this case started long before the writ was dropped.

Diane Colley-Urquhart is on record August 15 stating; “We have been campaigning in Calgary-Glenmore now for over two months.”


Many have criticized her for not resigning her aldermanic position while campaigning. As a Calgarian I agree, our tax dollars pay her salary and she should not be receiving it while she is clearly not carrying out those duties. This is evidenced by both her statement and the fact that she has been absent from some votes at city council.

When questioned on this Diane Colley-Urquhart said; “I am taking leave of absence and paying back my salary when the election is called.”



Who are her "community leaders"? Bronco? Shouldn't she be answering to the people of Calgary?

Her statement is very vague. Is she only paying back salary received from today to election day? Or is she paying back everything from when she started campaigning?

Why bother with “paying back”; why not simplify things and take a leave of absence “without” pay? Let me know what you think, vote in the poll on my blog.

Stats and Twitter are a buzzing.

For a Saturday, my stat counter is racking up the hits today; haven’t had this kind of activity since I exposed Rebecca. I also seem to have a new batch of Diane Colley-Urquhart supporters following me on Twitter.

It didn’t take long to get a response from Diane Colley-Urquhart in reaction to my morning entry.



As you can see two of my three questions have been answered. Diane Colley-Urquhart has now removed my name from the entry and deleted Travis’ comment. However, she maintains her stance that investing copious sums of money in the carbon capture boondoggle is critical. So it is safe to say the Progressive Conservative’s (PC’s) will be pissing away more money on CCS.

Diane Colley-Urquhart has also confirmed her resignation from the HRC. (This question was previously brought up on Travis’ blog)

She goes on to explain how her campaign will not engage in name calling. For the most part I agree with that comment; facts certainly make a better argument than petty names. However in politics, it is inevitable. I have been on the receiving end and I sure there are examples out there of me dishing it out as well.

If Diane Colley-Urquhart is taking issue with my using the moniker of “Big Red”; she must really have a hate on for Rick Bell, he uses it no less than nine times in this article.

Lastly, it is rather comical that she posted during her volunteer rally. I feel honored that she would take time away from her volunteers and supporters to respond to a member of an opposing party.
Hmmm, wonder how they feel about it?

Diane Colley-Urquhart recap and covering her tracks?

As you may recall Diane Colley-Urquhart Tweeted this bizarre comment about the Pembina Institute.

Diane Colley-Urquhart: Need to get up to speed on the Pembina Institute and your policy positions...you do good work..

It caused others to muse:

(I_Q to Diane Colley-Urquhart} you'll be kicked out of caucus before you even start if you continue talking like that.

We have seen with Guy Boutilier; speaking your mind gets you kicked out.

(russlyster to Diane Colley-Urquhart) The Pembina Institute does good work? They're probably the largest anti-oil propagandists in AB. Not something we need, IMO.

Perhaps what Diane needs to get up to speed on is that fact that the O & G industry is the largest driver of Alberta's economy, never mind the fact that she is running right in the home base of it.

(ABConservative to Diane Colley-Urquhart) WOW! Really Diane?

and

(WildroseJane to Diane Colley-Urquhart)HUH? PC Candidate?

We of course were questioning exactly what type of "good work" they do and how a PC candidate could possibly be taking them seriously. A true conservative would be more apt to take any report they put out with a HUGE grain of salt. If these are the types of policy positions the PC's are considering people might as well vote NDP.

Now Diane had ignored all four of these responses directed to her until I blogged about it here on August 11 at 1:00 PM.

On August 12 at 3:30 PM on Twitter:

Diane Colley-Urquhart: Sorry for the delay Jane, not intentional, I will post a reply on your blog

I waited, but nothing came. I was getting comments from others so the feature was indeed working. Then, more than a day later I get a comment from Travis, a fellow blogger that she has posted the response on her blog.



This was Diane's response.



Then by 10 AM the following morning it has been removed!!!

It is only thanks to Google cache that I am able to provide you with the screen shot. Unfortunately, it does not show the comment Travis had left.

Why did she pull it?

Perhaps someone pointed out that it was a bit odd to see the name of the Wildrose Alliance's Executive Director as a subject title on her blog?

Maybe she couldn't stomach the negative comment Travis had left?

Or could it be that the PC puppet masters laid down law when because she clearly states:

In particular, carbon capture and the heavy investments made by our provincial government and the feds is critical to reducing GHE.

This speaks volumes; Diane Colley-Urquhart supports "heavy investments" for carbon capture. Not only does she support it, but in her own words it "is critical".

Her nickname of Big Red takes on a whole new meaning in this light.

What gives Diane ?

It would appear she has removed her comments. What gives with that?

I am on my way to the Canadian Centre for Heart Attack & Stroke Prevention for testing, but will delve into this a bit more later.

Diane Colley-Urquhart responds

Diane has responded on her own blog with the following:

I tried to respond with the following comments yesterday ...

I have been busy door knocking and campaigning so apologies for not responding sooner to your inquiry regarding the Pembina Institute. In particular, carbon capture and the heavy investments made by our provincial government and the feds is critical to reducing GHE. I agree with the PI that this is only one of the measures we need to take with regard carbon dioxide emissions and finding sustainable solutions.

Posted by Diane Colley-Urquhart at 9:26 PM

Vows and other things.....

Just returned home from my son's wedding. It was a beautiful early evening event on the rooftop of a building in downtown. The sun came streaming out for one last gasp at just the right moment. Even a little breeze whipping up the brides dress was well timed. Later in the evening guests enjoyed dancing with the Calgary Tower as a backdrop.


On another note, Diane Colley-Urquhart has replied on Twitter, that she will be providing commentary here on my blog in response to fellow "Twitterers" (or is it Twits? LOL).

While she is at it I invite her to check out a fellow bloggers post here. It seems a question has come up in the comments with regards to her current status with the Human Rights Commission, that she could clarify.

Diane Colley-Urquhart - True Colors?

I have heard DianeColley-Urquhart referred to as "Big Red", I always thought it referred to her hair color. Then I saw her post this on Twitter ten days ago.



Leads me to think she might have a heavy Liberal red stripe to her....err or is that more an NDP orange?

It raised the eyebrows of other Twitter users and prompted these resplies to her.



After a week she had not addressed the inquiries. I went away for a few days, thinking there must be a response by now.... but alas there is none. Leaving many wondering just what the heck she was talking about.

Interesting Political Quiz

My Political Views
I am a right moderate social libertarian
Right: 4.87, Libertarian: 2.57

Political Spectrum Quiz

Sometimes when we touch, the honesty's too much...

I heard this song a few days ago and it started the gears churning on my blogging hiatus. In some ways it could be an alternate title to my blog, but not if I fear “going there”. If I avoid being to “up close and personal” or “the honesty is too much”…..then I really should change the blog name.

“Sometimes when we touch….”

Touch can be a warm hug from a dear friend or an electrifying kiss, but it is not always physical. You can be touched by things that don’t even involve you; like a disaster in another province. You can be touched by a look; like my sons’ eyes when I explained what has been happening with me. You can be touched by words; as the numerous emails I have received from friends and strangers. And perhaps this blog entry will touch someone and make a difference in their life.

If you are squeamish or have a weak stomach, you may not want to continue reading.

July 21, 2009

Cory and I celebrate our second wedding anniversary. We have a great barbeque and exchange gifts. He gives me an aromatherapy neck bag. Very thoughtful, as I seem to be plagued with headaches and a sore neck from too many hours at the computer. I give him a book published in 1920, “The private letters of Sir Robert Peel”; Conservative Prime Minister of the UK in the early 1800’s.

July 22, @ 3:00 AM

I awoke to a mouth full of blood. Of course I ran to the bathroom to vomit. I was barely able to formulate the thought that I must be bleeding internally, only to realize blood was streaming from both nostrils. I tried for 15 minutes to get it to stop and decided to wake Cory up. After another 15 minutes, he declared he was bringing me to the hospital. Later we would marvel at how I did not spill one drop from the bedroom to the bathroom, yet the bathroom looked like a slaughter house floor.

At the hospital they have me take a seat right in the triage office and affixed a massive clothespin on my nose. Then started taking my vitals and had the admitting clerk come into the triage area to obtain my personal information. Cory was still parking the car at this point, which gives you an idea of just how quickly I was attended to.

The questions start, all pretty straight forward until… “How long have you had high blood pressure?” My response, “Never. I have low blood pressure.” Nurse: “Not tonight you don’t”. They move me to a treatment room in the emergency section, good thing I can’t lay down as all the beds appear to be full.

Over the next 30-45 minutes they monitor my blood pressure, which remains high. I now have an ice pack on my neck. With my nose blocked the blood runs down my throat and is clotting so I continue to throw up globs of semi-congealed blood. The doctor explains the procedure of chemically cauterizing the rupture in my nasal passage. The first image that pops into my head is the scene from Fight Club when he burns the back of his hand with acid. As he takes out the nasal forceps yet another movie pops into my head…Total Recall. Go figure, my nose is a flexible as Arnie’s.

The doctor explains that in his opinion, I am very lucky to have just a nose bleed and that this could have just as easily been a stroke or brain aneurysm. He suggests I stay so they can run a few more tests. I balk at this (at this point, I am still doubting the seriousness) and he relents so long as I agree to see my regular doctor later in the day. Agreed.

6:00 AM

We are back at home. I send a quick email to the board and Heather, (my office administrator) letting them know I will be taking the day off. Cory cleans up the slaughter house bathroom and I try to get some sleep.

9:00 AM

Call my doctors office, he is not in but we decide to go anyway and see another through the walk-in clinic in the same office. I can’t shake the words from the emergency doctor, so I start to do my own research and I start to have a better understanding. Though it will still be sometime before I admit there could be anything “really” wrong with me.

11:00 AM

The walk-in doctor didn’t ask too many questions and said my blood pressure was pretty much normal. Though he did note from my history, it could be seen as being on the high side. He felt my nose bleed was likely due to the dry air in Calgary and nothing to be concerned about. All the same, keep an eye on your blood pressure. I took it upon myself to book a follow up with my own doctor the following week.

Over the next five days I went to my local Shoppers Drug Mart, took my blood pressure and recorded it in a book. It was different every day, one day even normal. Aside from that though, it was consistently high (averaging 147 over 107). During that time I did not “feel” sick. In fact, I didn’t feel much different than I had prior to the nosebleed.

“…The honesty’s too much…”

Honesty, like touch can take many forms. It can make you laugh, cry, it can be surprise you in a delightful way or it can shock you and scare the hell out of you.

July 28

I have another bad nosebleed in the morning, but am able to get it to stop and attend my afternoon appointment with my doctor. From my research and the questions he asks, I now start to face the fact that there’s more to this picture than just a nosebleed. For a few months now I have been having trouble focusing my vision first thing in the morning. Not every day, but enough for it to be annoying to me. Also, Cory and I have now recalled an incident that happened about a month ago, where I suffered extreme chest pain. It was a crushing pressure, like a tight squeeze. At the time, I put these off as insignificant, odd occurrences’. I share these with the doctor along with the record of my blood pressure readings.

He promptly sends me for blood tests and an EKG (why do they call it that when there is no K in it?) and tells me to return with a copy from the lab. I check in at the lab and they take me in right way, no waiting despite other people in the room. (I wonder just what the heck my doctor wrote on the form, the only legible part was ASAP). I walk back to the Docs office with a copy of my EKG in a brown envelope, I am very tempted to open it and look. But I honestly, I would have no clue what I was looking at, so I refrain.

The doctor reviews the EKG and says it has some “irregularities”, nothing serious he assures me. All the same he would like to get a chest x-ray done. Off I go again, requisition form in hand, down the mall to x-ray. Here I have to wait. I get a bit of a chuckle about all the “Turn off you cell” signs as the girl behind the desk answers a ringing phone…..her cell. Within the half hour I am returning to my Doc’s office with another tempting envelop in my hand, again I decline to look. It’s like a bad dream, I thought what if the x-ray showed my heart with a “best before date” and that date was already past.

I wait while the Doc reviews it. I am hoping he comes back with a verdict, then again I’m not. And that’s sort of what I get, a half answer. He tells me he has booked me an appointment with a cardiologist. Umm, ok, why? “Well your heart is enlarged.” He explains this could be a number of things. Most likely, the high blood pressure or less likely a tumor. He also strongly believes the episode of chest pain I had a month ago was in all probability a mild heart attack. He gives me a prescription to lower my blood pressure; books more blood work (to check for kidney damage) and a follow up appointment. In a nutshell, I have Stage 2 hypertension and in a very high risk category for a heart attack or stroke.

Then I get read the riot act, which I have heard before and knew it was coming.

You drink too much coffee; cut back.

You use too much salt; cut back.

You don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables; eat more of these.

You smoke; STOP. (This one changed a bit, he used just say, cut back)

You are overweight; start some sort of exercise, mild exercise for now. (Geez, he used to be more diplomatic about this one too)

I think this was more my day of awakening than any of the others. It starts to sink in; deep. I can’t help but think, this is so typical and you hear it all the time. Where people get everything “right” in their life; only to be taken from this world. I have found the love of my life, my kids are grown and on their own, I have a wonderful grandson and a career I thoroughly love; what more could I ask for? Apparently, I could ask for another 20 years to enjoy it all.

Cory and I talk about “what if’s”. The “what if I die” seems a whole lot easier than the “what if I don’t”. If I die; he will move on with his life. Will he find another? “Yes”, he says. I am ok with that, hell I even expect it. He’s young. In fact my sister has offered to take very good care of him. LOL

What if I am suffer a severe stroke or have a blood clot in my brain? What if I am either mentally or physically incapacitated, but not dead? Would you move on then? “Yes”, he says. Ouch. Score another one for honesty. He goes onto explain, if the situation was reversed he would want me to move on. This was days ago, I am still processing it.

The past week I have had a nosebleed every day, sometimes twice; but they are lessening. My blood pressure has come down marginally.

I have reduced my caffeine intake to one cup of coffee in the morning. If I have other coffees in the day, they are decaf.

Cory has been working very diligently on reducing the salt in our meals and I am eating more fruit and veggies.

We are going for walks every day now.

The smoking is by far the most difficult. I was smoking close to a pack (24) a day. I have it down to 10 a day now.

I have a follow up with my doctor this week, and then see the cardiologist next week. In the in between time I will be attending my son’s wedding and being thankful for YouTube so I can enjoy my grandson Taelon's laughter from halfway around the world.