The Lynda Parcells Blog - 660News Calgary

Today’s blog is about a major pet peeve of mine. I drive in from Okotoks every work day. The thing that’s bugging me is traffic lights. I climb into my truck every morning at 3:15 a.m. I’m sure you won’t be surprised to hear a lot of people aren’t milling about at that horrible hour, but you might be surprised to hear every traffic light seems to be on red. I’m not kidding. I drive through five intersections in Okotoks and 90 percent of the time, the lights are on red. Why?! Like I said, except for the RCMP, I’m pretty much the only vehicle on the road at that time of day, but still, I sit and wait (most of the time impatiently) for the light to turn green. It’s clear sailing once I hit Deerfoot, but it’s back to the lights once I hit 32nd Avenue N.E. One light in particular that really gets me going is at 19th Street N.E. Not only is the light ALWAYS on red, the traffic (and there is none) coming from the other direction gets an advanced green!!! I’ve started taking a side street just so I can bypass the darn thing. Isn’t there some sort of way to program the lights for different times of day? Wouldn’t flashing yellow lights suffice at that time of day? I really hope something can be done, otherwise I might be getting a ticket from the police for running one of those reds when I just can’t take it anymore!

This is my public apology to Ryan and Kori Ballantine. Ryan is our overnight anchor, but was switching shifts and was working with the morning crew Friday morning. At about 4 a.m. Thursday, Ryan asked if he could catch a ride with me the next day. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem, except for one thing. Between 4 a.m. Thursday and 3 a.m. Friday, I totally forgot!

The fact I was supposed to pick Ryan up was obviously not anywhere near to being locked in my brain. I drove right past the area where he lives, and it still didn’t click in. Of all days, I didn’t have my cellphone on, so Ryan’s calls went unanswered. When I arrived at work, our morning editor asked me if I’d forgotten anything, and it still didn’t click in!

I think the worst part about all of this is that the Ballantine family have only one vehicle and Ryan was forced to wake up his wife Kori at 3:30 in the morning to tell her I’d left him behind. Ryan seems to be okay with being forgotten, but I’m not so sure about his wife, so once again, sorry Mr. and Mrs. Ballantine. I promise it will never happen again.

A lot of people are getting hurt trying to get fit with the new Wii Nintendo Fit program. Apparently people have been doing a ton of damage, sending their knicknacks, TV sets, even their pets flying through the air as they try to mimic the work-out routines. This story literally made me laugh out loud, because I can totally relate. I haven’t sent my dog flying through the air, but I have injured myself, and not even doing the Fit program. I hate to admit this, but I hurt myself using the Wii bowling game. I guess I got a little too involved, and yes, I pulled my hamstring. Apparently, I need the Fit program. I’m not the only one who’s been injured playing with the Wii. Our Morning Show Editor Radana Suk came into work one day barely able to move her head because she got a little overzealous with her victory dance. Can you say “poor winner?” And never in a million years did I think I’d actually witness furniture being broken, but it happened. My girlfriends and I were in Fernie for New Years and we decided to pull out the Wii. We got into a really heated game of bowling and all of a sudden it happened - the battery cover let loose, batteries went flying and we ended up with a broken vase and dents in the ceiling! Everyone was hitting the deck and running for cover, trying to avoid being hit by a stray battery. Despite the injuries, I’m not ready to put down my Wii remote. I do think from now on though, I’ll be limbering up before I get down to business. Oh, and I can’t forget to strap down the dogs!

I’m feeling a little bit like “Mrs. Ingalls” this week. You know, from Little House On The Prairie? I live in Okotoks, a place my husband and I love. This week though, we’re a little frustrated. We’ve been told to not drink the water straight from the tap. Apparently the recent rainfall has increased the “turbidity” in the Sheep River, which is our drinking supply. In other words, the river looks more like chocolate milk than water.

Water, I’ve discovered, is one of those things you totally take for granted living in Canada. Normally, you turn on the tap without giving it a second thought and it’s just there. Always ready to go whenever you need it. This week though, I’ve been boiling water to do the dishes that need to be done by hand. I’ve also found myself running back upstairs at 2:30 in the morning to get a glass of bottled water so that I can brush my teeth!

One of the things we didn’t think about when the boil water advisory was issued was our dogs. The poor things were still getting tap water, and you can just imagine what happened there…..can you say “running to the door with a panic stricken face?” Needless to say, they’re now on the bottled water program as well.

I am wondering why this boil water advisory happened in the first place? From what I can tell, we pay a lot of taxes to live in Okotoks. As a matter of fact, we just forked over $2800.00 for our property taxes. That’s more than my parents pay and they live in Calgary, in the inner city! As a matter of fact, according to Stats Canada, Okotoks had the highest population growth between 2001 and 2006, across the entire country. The population of Okotoks has grown by 46% since 2001. I think maybe it’s time for Town Council to start looking at upgrading the water treatment system. We certainly don’t want another Walkerton.

This is for my neighbour. Not my next door neighbour, but the one that lives across the street. The one with the really loud Harley Davidson. I know you love your motorbike, but do you really have to start it, and then just let it run for what seems like hours?! Don’t you want to go for a ride? I’m confused. Wouldn’t you look a lot more hip actually riding your bike, instead of just looking at it and revving it up as loud as it will go? I’m all about people having a good time, and maybe you are, but I honestly think you could have way more fun riding it. Not to mention, I’ll finally be able to get some sleep!

Doesn’t Michel Fournier realize every possible sign is being sent to him to get him to stop his insane jump? The French skydiver has a crazy dream. He wants to fly high enough in the sky, to then free-fall 40-thousand metres back to earth. For the second day in a row there was a glitch preventing the dive though. Yesterday, Fournier’s plans were scrapped due to high winds. Today, he lost his balloon. That’s right, everyone was ready for the take-off, and then the unthinkable happened - the balloon floated away….without Fournier! One person said it looked like a “giant silver squid.” I have a question. Why exactly would someone want to free-fall 40-thousand metres? That’s a very long way. To put it into perspective, free-falling 40-thousand metres is the equivalent of flying about five times higher than the average passenger jet, or stacking 186 Petro-Canada buildings on top of each other. Again, why? If Mr. Fournier wants to try again, it’s going to take a long time. The launch manager says he’s out of the $500,000.00 balloons, so it could be months, even years before another attempt. By the way, this is the fourth time Fournier has failed. He tried the same stunt in 2002 and 2003. I personally think he should sit back and think about what he’s trying to do and maybe thank his lucky stars that his attempts have failed.

I’m thinking it might be time for a new vehicle. I’m one of those crazy people that’s still driving around in a huge truck. The rising gas prices are starting to kill me though. I decided to stop in the rain yesterday to fill up the tank, and thank goodness I did. I had to fork over $129.00 (no, you’re not seeing things!), but if I had waited until today, it would have cost me even more, thanks to gas prices jumping again. I have a bit of a dilemma though. I like the thoughts of driving an economical vehicle, but I have no idea what exactly I’d replace my truck with. My husband and I travel almost every weekend to our family cabin and when we leave the city, we are packed to the hilt. We have everything from two dogs, to golf clubs and luggage, not to mention two dirt bikes. So, what’s a girl to do? I’d appreciate any suggestions at lynda.parcells@rci.rogers.com. And just for the record…..I don’t do minivans!

Once again, it’s a few idiots that are ruining it for everyone. Over the long weekend, the McLean Creek area, west of Bragg Creek, was totally trashed by off-road vehicles. Wildlife Officers say the recreational area was ripped to shreds with unprecedented damage. Campers left mounds of beer cans and garbage in the bush, and turned a grassy meadow into a mud pit. Let’s be clear about one thing though - I can almost guarantee you the damage wasn’t done by regular, responsible users of the area. It was most likely done by a bunch of rowdy campers that had one intention…..to party their faces off, whatever the cost. Now it’s inevitable changes will be made and off-road users will likely be severely restricted. Some are calling for a ban on alcohol, or a complete ban on off-road vehicles. One thing I don’t understand; if everyone is so concerned about what might happen at McLean Creek over the long weekends - why don’t they have security making sure everyone is well behaved? Yes, I know that costs money, but think about how much money it already costs to clean up the area every single year.

The Calgary Health Region only publishes its health inspection reports for restaurants where “critical” violations have been found, but that’s all about to change. Starting July 1st, the CHR will be publishing all, not just some, but ALL of its health inspection reports. That means you’ll be able to check on how clean your favourite restaurant really is. My question is: do I really want to know?

I am furious. Shaw TV, which owns Star-Choice Satellite, has decided to take four stations off the air; CBC Regina, Sun TV, City Winnipeg, and Global Maritimes. The company tried to remove CTV Calgary, but there was so much opposition, Shaw backed off on that decision. I decided to sign-up with Star-Choice thinking it would help me see my favourite programs because of the wacky hours I work. I also thought it was a good idea because I work in news and I like to see what’s happening around the country. But now, I’m seriously considering switching back to basic cable and buying a PVR after this latest move by Shaw. I feel like every time I turn around, something is changing with Star-Choice. For example, a few stations that were included with my package, I now have to pay for! I called Star-Choice about the four stations being removed and was told the decision was made because there is a lot “repetition”. In other words, if you watch CBC Regina, you should be able to find the same programming on CBC Calgary. Well, what if I want CBC Regina? When I posed that question I was asked “why would you want it?” I couldn’t believe it! How does he know that I’m not from Regina (which I’m not) and maybe I want to watch the local news? As I continued chatting with the fellow, he mentioned Shaw is also trying to make more room for HD channels…..ah-ha! Let me guess, more HD channels will be added, but I can almost guess, if I want them….I’ll have to pay.