If anyone out there has some pull with Environment Canada, I would really appreciate cooler temperatures this week. For that matter, a bit more snow also wouldn’t be amiss, because one of the defining characteristics of a winter carnival is “winter.”
Nevertheless, at the time I am writing this, it looks like we may have survived Sunday’s downpour with enough white stuff to carry on. And if we can get the mercury down to the negative side of the scale, the standing water on top of the pond ice should freeze to a Zamboni-like finish. This will eliminate the need for hours of cold and tedious gas-powered flooding. Although, just in case, Ben does have Donnie Raymond’s auger, pump and fire hose standing by.
Behind the scenes
While I can’t speak for the “Breakfast Buffet at the Hall” side of things, I can report that this past weekend was a beehive of activity at our place east of the crossroads. Saturday, Ben Williams, Vivian Franklin, Denis Comier and Sean Burgess rolled into the parking lot armed with shovels and chain saws. In anticipation of impending rainfall, they wanted to clear last week’s snow off the three rinks back at the pond. And this they did in short order. They also packed down the sliding hill to give the snow cover a fighting chance of surviving the deluge.
With these missions accomplished, Ben, Denis and Vivian moved on to creating a fire pit by collecting fuel (including part of our former Christmas tree as a kick-starter)… and building a circle of log benches. This is first year we’ve had a bonfire at the Dunvegan Carnival and I’m looking forward to this new addition.
Sam and Jake Wensink also stopped by on Saturday with their shiny new-to-them pickup to offload the component parts of their familiar red and green sleigh and get it ready for the test runs scheduled for the following day.
As promised, the two hard-working lads were back on Sunday morning with their father, Peter, to pack the trails and clear away any trees and branches that had fallen since Jim Tilker and I last checked in the late fall. To be frank, this is one my favorite Carnival times — going around and around the trails to the accompaniment of the sleigh’s creaks and groans, watching the clouds of steam rise off Limerick and Sarah and listening to Peter’s fascinating stories. It just never gets old.
And that’s just a fraction of the behind-the-scene activities. I surmise that Kim Raymond, Vivian Franklin and their team of volunteers have been putting the finishing touches on the Hall for the Carnival Breakfast. And Terry has baked sixteen dozen butter-rolls to go along with her pots of Beef Vegetable soup.
Given all the volunteer time that has gone into it, I hope you’ll drop by on Saturday, February 6th. Start the day right with our country-style Breakfast Buffet from 8:00 to 10:00 AM at 19053 County Road 24. It only costs $7.50 per person; $3.00 for children aged five to twelve.
Then, from 10 AM to 3 PM, the Carnival moves down to 19314 County Road 24. There, if all goes according to plan, you’ll be able to skate on the pond, toboggan down the hill, go on the Star Wars scavenger hunt, watch an exciting “Snolleyball” tournament between the Dunvegan Dynamos and the Alexandria Gold Diggers and more. Remember, the outdoor Carnival activities and refreshments are FREE… and everyone is welcome to participate, even if you’re not from Dunvegan.
Gluten-free Gasoline?
There was a great cartoon in the New Yorker magazine a couple of years ago. Two fashionable young women were lunching at an outdoor café with the caption: “I’ve only been gluten-free for a week, and I’m already totally annoying.”
This cartoon came to mind last Sunday when Terry and I were shopping in a local grocery store and I came across a shelf of premium-priced potato chips with a label proudly declaring that they were “gluten free.” Duh!
According to the Celiac Sprue Association potatoes, sweet potatoes and yams are totally free from gluten. And, as gluten-free alternatives to flours made from wheat, rye and barley, the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness recommends potato flour and potato starch.
Don’t you love marketing? Can a sticker declaring that the gasoline we buy is “gluten-free” be far behind?
Parking Conundrum
Given how cash-strapped the Glengarry Memorial Hospital is, I totally understand their decision to charge for parking. With the provincial Liberals squandering money as fast as it can be squeezed from taxpayers and Hydro One customers, it’s no surprise that the hospital board needs to look at every potential revenue stream they can. I just wish there was a more equitable… and yet still affordable way… to charge for it.
All too often I’ve found myself having to pay $5.00 to stop by the hospital for just a few minutes. At the other extreme, people can park there for days on end for the same five-loonie fee.
A small short-tem parking lot could be one possible solution. But human nature being what it is, I know it would be packed with vehicles that wouldn’t move all day, their owners knowing that the hospital lacks the resources to police such a lot.
So the only really fair approach would be to install a “take a ticket/pay inside” system like the ones they use at big city hospitals. At least this way people would be paying for the actual parking time that they use. No doubt this option was explored and rejected as being too expensive at the time. But maybe prices have come down in the interim. It can’t hurt to check.
Valentine’s Day fast approacheth
While not strictly a Dunvegan news item, our community is closely allied with the Town of Maxville, so what the heck. There’s also the fact that I love spaghetti and look back fondly on the days of the Old Spaghetti Factory.
If you and your pair bond share my passion for tomato-sauced meatballs and long, slinky noodles, then mark Saturday, February 13th on your calendar. That’s when Maxville’s St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church is holding their Sweetheart Spaghetti Supper fund raiser at the Maxville and District Sports Complex from 4:00 to 7:00 PM. The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for children. Also on site on the 13th will be a bake sale put on by the Glengarry Girl’s Choir. They’re trying to raise funds for their trip to sing at the Antigonish Highland Games.
So, this Valentine’s Eve, treat your sweetheart to a delicious meal and take home some extra dessert while you’re at it. I’m told that everyone is welcome.
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