Free Refills for Your Water Bottle - the BlueW Program

I like the idea behind this BlueW.org program. It encourages folks to refill their water bottles with free municipal water at locations displaying the logo below.

I see that the program is active with a presence in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Bravo to the folks in Niagara Falls for this. Now if we could get this going throughout the Niagara Region on "both sides of the River".

Refill your water bottle here! BlueW.org

The BlueW.org Program:

• Encourages hydration - a very good thing
• Encourages the use of municipal water - another very good thing
• Educates the public on the issue of municipal water quality - e.g. tap water is as good or better for you than bottled water
• Saves folks money - duh - a very good thing

Meet the 2012 Loonie and Toonie

Have you ever wondered why the Canadian Mint's Loonies and Toonies look like they are made from silver and gold? Well they are neither silver nor gold but plated steel.

The reason that they are made to look like silver and gold is because we humans have recognized silver and gold as being a meaningful currency for thousands of years. In fact we in Canada and the US had a defacto currency based on gold until August 15, 1971.

Then one once of gold was worth US$35 - today, as I write this entry, gold is selling for US$1668. That is 47 times what it sold for in 1971. That is to say both the Canadian and US Dollar are worth a little over 2 cents in 1971 money.

So why is the Canadian mint celebrating it's new coins? They are really celebrating the stupidity of the populace to put up with the debasement of their currency. The current digitally created money is relatively worthless when compared to the real mined representation of convertible wealth, silver and gold.

Some would say that if you have no debts and extra cash on hand that people might consider buying and taking possession of physical silver or gold MINTED coins. The Canadian Maple Leaf silver and gold coins are usually regarded as top quality bullion.

The Canadian Mint introduces the 2012 Loonie and Toonie - and no, it isn't precious metal

City of St. Catharines will hand out smoke alarms on Saturday

 

Safety Tips for Halloween and other times too!

Halloween is coming up soon, this Monday Oct 31.  Here's some safety tips for you and your kids:

• Do you only give sealed packaged goodies like mini candy bars? You SHOULD. Unwrapped or homemade treats will be thrown away by prudent parents.
• Do keep an eye out for the kids while your are driving home - Remember the young ones and their parents often start visiting by 5:00.
• Do your kids see and breath well in their costumes?
• Can your kids be seen easily by drivers and other trick or treaters.
• Do you always make sure your kids go trick or treating with a group and a parent (if your kids are teenagers, they may not need the parent but they should still never go out alone, have them in a group).
• Do make sure our kids each carry a flashlight to light their way - flashlights are inexpensive but the kids are everything.
• Do you make sure your kids only trick or treat in areas you feel are safe? (I've seen some areas I wouldn't let my kids walk through anytime.)
• If there is a dangerous situation in the area, you can host a Halloween party at home instead of having the kids trick or treat, if necessary or check to see if a local mall or business district is hosting a Halloween night complete with candy for the kids to trick or treat for at each store.
• Do not permit your kids eat their collected treats until they get home (and until you've had a chance to check their treats first).
• If possible, have each of your kids carry a cell phone with them.
• Do set a time for your older kids to return home if you are not going out with them.
• Do not tolerate violence or nastiness of any sort and make sure that your kids aren't involved in such things.
• Do have a zero tolerance policy for violence either on your kids part or their friends (no soaping, egging or TP-ing houses or cars, etc).
• Above all - Make sure your kids are aware of basic stranger danger safety tips (Remind them: don't ever go into a stranger's home, never give out their personal information to a stranger, never walk to the back of a house even if the sign on the door says to do so, if someone needs help, or if another child or pet is lost, they should be asking the police for help, etc).

The above tips and some common sense should help you and your kids have a happy and safe Halloween.