The Q92 Morning Crew

Ho ho ho!

What a night. Thanks again to Anything Goes on Mountjoy South for our great costumes and until next year…

Are you getting excited?!

Only a few days left until the big day…and I’ve only bought one present so far. Oh well - it’s not about the gifts. (It’s a little easier to say that when you are talking about receiving.)

But seriously, I have got to get my shopping on. I’ve heard it was a nightmare at the Timmins Square over the weekend. Do you have any horror stories? If you have a video gamer on your list my heart goes out to you. Getting your hands on the cabbage patch doll of 2007 (otherwise known as Guitar Hero) is a struggle. Shawn has lost sleep since his attempts to buy one have failed…maybe Santa will be good to you this year Mr. Whalen.

I, on the other hand, have lost sleep for another reason. I saw I am Legend last night at Cinema 6. Normally scary movies don’t bother me…but for some reason this one left me tense and nervous for hours after I walked out of theatre. It made a ton at the box office this weekend, so I guess I’m not alone on this one. Have you seen this Will Smith movie yet? What’s you review? Am I just a wimp - or did you find it horrifying too?

It’s a cold Saturday night here, but take some comfort in knowing that southern Ontario is about to get pounded with as much as 40 cm of snow, sleet and ice pellets tonight and tomorrow. Meanwhile, Sunday in Timmins looks to be a great day, a few flurries and a high of minus 11…I’ll see you at Kamiskotia Snow Resort.

And while we’re on the weather topic, take a look at the photo in this link. Ever heard of “snowrollers”? Very cool.

When you wake up listening to The Q Morning Crew with Shawn and Mel on Q92, even your breakfast is rockin’.

It’s been a little over a day since the “Greatest Rock Band” performed their first full concert in almost 2 decades and the rumours continue to fly about a possible tour. The latest rumour is that they’ll do three shows in New York in 2008. I wish they would stop keeping us in suspense and just tell us yes or no already!

If you want to live the O2 concert vicariously through poor quality handheld videos with distorted sound from those lucky enough to be at the show, there are plenty on YouTube to chose from:

• Kashmir

• Whole Lotta Love

• Good Times, Bad Times

• Black Dog

• Stairway to Heaven

• Since I’ve Been Loving You

• Crowd after the first encore.

If you find some more, post the link here for all to see.

Ho ho ho! Here comes jolly ol’ Shawn and Mel, taking part in this year’s Santa Claus Pub Crawl! That’s right, it’s an annual event and you’re invited too!

This Saturday, December 15th, the 10th Annual SCPC will be hitting the streets of Timmins. It’s a fun night out to spread Christmas cheer, plus you’ll get to see Mel in an elf costume…worth it. Just make sure you go all out on the costume too.

Itinerary:

• 8pm - Mickey J’s
• 9pm - The Standard
• 10pm - Moneta
• 10:30pm - Corner Pockets
• 11pm - St. Charles
• 11:30pm - Windsor
• 12am - Victory Tavern
• 1am - Fusion
• 2am - Chez Nous

So pick up a Santa suit or elf outfit and get into the Christmas spirits…Merry Christmas and we hope to see you this Saturday.

Thanks to Anything Goes “For all your scrap-booking needs and dance-wear or shoes at 21 Mountjoy South” for supplying the Q Morning Crew with festive costumes.

While posting the joke below, I couldn’t help but think of this clip. It’s almost disturbing how dim this contestant is.  Watch and laugh…and cry inside.

 I figure since I was once a blond, I can pass this one along.

A blonde calls her boyfriend and says, ‘Please come over here and help me.
I have a killer jigsaw puzzle and I can’t figure out how to get start ed.’

Her boyfriend asks, ‘What is it supposed to be when it’s finished?’

The blonde says, ‘According to the picture on the box, it’s a
rooster.’

Her boyfriend decides to go over and help with the puzzle.

She lets him in and shows him where she has the puzzle spread all over the
table.

He studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then turns to her
and says,

‘First of all, no matter what we do, we’re not going to be able to
assemble these pieces into anything resembling a rooster.’

He takes her hand and says, ‘Second, I want you to relax. Let’s have a
nice cup of tea, and then ..’ he said with a deep sigh, .. .. . .

‘Let’s put all the Corn Flakes back in the box.’

This morning we were talking about how great it is to have a REAL tree at Christmas time. There’s no substitute for that fresh spruce smell…except maybe that PinSol aroma after washing the floors.

Then Q92 listener Derek emailed us a video that shows how quickly a tree can catch fire. Wow! Take a look, then read on to learn how you can fireproof your tree this Christmas. Thanks Derek.

Fireproofing Solution for your Christmas Tree

1. Once you get home with your new tree, get a saw and IMMEDIATELY make a fresh cut at the base of the tree trunk. This is mandatory for any tree you’ve bought. Make your cut about an inch above the bottom of the trunk.

2. Next, you’ll need a place to store your tree for a few days before taking it into your home, as it takes a few days for the preservative mentioned in the next step to fully saturate the tree. An ideal place would be the carport/garage or possible a balcony for apartment dwellers.

3. Immediately after making your cut from the bottom of the tree, mix the homemade preservative as follows:

Into a 2-gallon (or 1-gallon jugs) bucket, add HOT WATER from the kitchen tap. Fill the bucket to within an inch or so of the top, then add the following ingredients:
…2 cups of Karo syrup
…2 ounces of liquid chlorine bleach
…2 pinches of Epsom salt
…½ teaspoon of Boraxo
…1 teaspoon of chelated iron (pronounced KEY-lated)

Stir these ingredients thoroughly in the bucket(s); then IMMEDIATELY stand the trunk of the tree in this solution. Leave the tree in the solution containers for a day of two until you’re ready to take it indoors and decorate it.

4. After taking the tree indoors, make sure to put it in a stand with a water reservoir at the bottom. Once the tree is secured in its “final resting place”, get the bucket containing your preservative and FILL THE RESERVOIR IN THE TREE STAND TO THE TOP.

5. Last but not least, EVERY DAY, WITHOUT EXCEPTION, MAKE SURE THE RESERVOIR IS KEPT FILLED TO THE TOP WITH THE PRESERVATIVE SOLUTION.
That’s all there is to it. If you follow these steps faithfully, you will have a completely FIREPROOFED Christmas Tree to enjoy throughout the holidays.

And, for those inquisitive minds, here’s an explanation of why and how it works.
The Karo syrup provides the SUGAR, and it is only in the presence of sugar that tremendous amounts of water will be taken up by the exposed tissue at the base of the trunk. Without the sugar, only the smallest amount of water will be absorbed. However, in the presence of sugar, you can expect more than 1½ gallons of the solution to be absorbed by the tree during a 10-14 day period.

But there’s more. Thanks to the boron you have supplied (in the Boraxo), the water and sugar will be moved to every needle and branch of the tree. Remember, boron is what makes sugar move, not only in trees, but vegetables, fruits and even houseplants.
Then, there’s the Epsom salt and the chelated iron. Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate, and magnesium (together with iron) is the center molecules in the process we know as chlorophyll production. By making the magnesium and iron available to the tree, you’re assuring yourself of green needles, even if the tree was not sprayed at the tree farm before being shipped to the market.

But what about the chlorine bleach? Chlorine stops a mold from forming when water and sugar stand for any period of time. Here, the chlorine stops the mold from forming in the bucket and the reservoir of the tree stand where your preservative sits.

Benefits

1. Your tree will be SOAKING WET with water. In fact, at least 800% more water than when the tree was growing in the forest! This in turn prevents the tree from becoming a fire hazard.

2. No needles will drop, no matter what variety of evergreen you choose to display in your home. At the same time, the tree will give off a fragrance like that which you’ve sensed while walking through a forest of evergreens or strolling through the Christmas tree lot.

3. Finally, make the test yourself. When the holidays are over and the tree is taken down and moved outdoors, cut one of the branches off. Move away from the tree and try to light the branch with a match. IT WON’T BURN!!! So, take the time to fireproof your live evergreen tree this Christmas and enjoy a safe holiday!!!

Deck the halls!

It’s almost December and we’re in full winter mode now. I’ve been plugging my Christmas lights in each night for a while now. Mostly just because I actually put them up early this year. But there is no tree in sight right now at the Shawn household. It’s way to early for that, for two reasons: I get a REAL tree every year - that’s right, no imitations. And, I’m really not in the Christmas spirit yet. Maybe it’s because I’ve been avoiding anything resembling shopping, maybe it’s because it’s been a busy month here at Q92, or maybe I’m really just a Grinch…no that can’t be it. Whatever the reason though, there will be no eggnog in my fridge for at least a couple more weeks.

Are you in the festive mood?

In other news, Melissa had a chat with MPP Gilles Bisson about the Ontario Northland strike and he foresees a resolution very soon. With parliament getting back into business next week, it should be something at the top of the to do list. With Christmas coming soon, that would be great news for many holiday travelers

How has the bus strike affected you?