SOMETHING TOTALY DIFFERENT, ESPECIALLY FOR AMERICAN FRIENDS

An Interesting Thought from the Bipolar Diva

Blessings and Bear Hugs, Everyone!

(with or without the Second Amendment)

            Please do not shoot the Bear with your second amendment arms.

IN WHICH BEAR APPEARS, AND DISAPPEARS.

Hello; this is the Bear speaking. (OK, writing, to you.)

I've been "occupied" for a bit, as you know. Also, my computer is in the computer hospital with some kind of chronic whatever. (I'm sending this to you via J's computer; she's very gracious about lending it to me!)

Just a quick note to let you know that I have not died and gone to . . . wherever Bears go. Though I did have a dream about Bears last night — one of which was killed by a car. As in a Bear beheaded by a car. Not nice at all.

Nor have I gone into hibernation. I'm still too busy for that.

So, I'll get back into some sort of cyber-routine, some day. I'm just not thrilled, though, about the prospect of having to buy a new computer.

In the midst of life, I am "Bearing up." I hope all of you are well.

IN WHICH BEAR HAS PECULIAR EXPERIENCE IN THE BUSH

As you realize, Bear has been very involved in "Occupy Saskatoon." One of the roughly 2,000 Occupy groups around the world.

Monday night, Bear and other "Occupiers" were at the regular meeting of Saskatoon City Council. We had a chance to chat with Council. And found some fairly enthusiastic response. (Meaning the Mayor, I think, actually had to bite his tongue.)  Truth is, you see, we got "in their face." We did it gently. That's the Canadian way. But I mean, really, when we've exposed the need, and are acting on it (housing homeless people), I think we have every right to speak up.

You already know Occupy Saskatoon had been "occupied" by a bunch of homeless people. So, their welfare and future became an immediate concern. Yes, in Saskatoon one can have a job and be homeless at the same time. Such is the price of rent (unless you want to share your place with rats, cockroaches, and bed bugs).

We weren't there to "fight city hall"; we were there to have a conversation with City Council. After all, we are "Occupy Saskatoon: Join the Conversation." (That's our full title.) Our goal is really to occupy peoples' minds, with questions of fairness, health, reasonable incomes and appropriate living standards for all. And then have a conversation.

But earlier today, we got the word that the City was planning to evict us from our location. It's a city park, with about as much bush as grassland. Great camping site; lots of protection from the elements. The word we received was that the police would be there at 6:00 p.m. for a "conversation." So a whole hockey sock full* of us were there to take on the . . . not police?!

Nope. Nary a constable nor sergeant to be seen. Nor the Inspector (Captain, for you Americans), who had talked with us last week.

Instead, a man from the Salvation Army's centre and a very friendly elected Councillor for the city (who used to be a community organizer in his past life).

Hmmmm. What is this? Two people who like us? Two people who support us? Two people who want to work with us? Wonders never cease!

Turns out that the City doesn't want to evict us; the major concern is for our health and safety. A "Won't you come in out of the cold?" gesture. Which was, obviously, not what we thought we would face.

So we did the very Canadian thing. We stood around the camp fire and had a friendly chat about the whole situation. And discovered some possible solutions. (No, we didn't quite get to singing "Kum by yah"; I left my banjo at home.)

We've agreed we're going to keep framing the conversation in "health and safety" language. Because that's what it is; that's the issue — people's health and safety.

"The System" could end up housing a bunch of Occupiers. Perhaps in the same place, to keep our community together. Which might even give us all some meeting space. I suggested (later) that we should call it "Occupy Saskatoon House." And when it gets too full, because of the extra people who come in, we'll let "the System" find a second house for those who won't fit in the first place.

Who? Me? Subversive? Perish the thought. 

Yes, I know; I should be hibernating. But, uh, well, I'm having way too much fun. We're actually starting to solve an immediate problem. Emphasis on "starting." Nobody has had to admitted defeat. Nobody feels like a loser. It's not "them and us"; it's "us and us." I mean, why quit when you're making progress?

Makes the ol' Bear's heart feel good.
________________________

* That's Canadianism for "a whole lot." Anyone who knows how much protective gear one wears when playing ice hockey, and how big a sock one needs to cover said gear on one's legs — such a person understands entirely. ;))

VITALITY (A - Z CHALLENGE)

Well, things have certainly changed.

My second doc (yes, I've got two of them now) is trying to help me handle on all this pain with different medications. And you know I've got a lot of it. Pain, that is.

Well, she has helped me reach a significant improvement! Can it be that the Bear is actually pain-free?

OK, not quite, but getting there. Bear is beginning to recover his long-lost vitality! There is some new energy here! Bear may actually start being human again. (Only that would mess up his identity; need to rethink that language.)

Uh, well, hmmmmmm. Lets not get over-excited. But! We'll take a few simple steps first. We'll keep watching the progress. We'll keep celebrating small improvements. And then, one day. . . .

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Also brought to you by the letter V:
• vigilant
• vexatious
• vanquish
• very
• volume

And from the New Phonetic Alphabet, V for la France.

UNEMPLOYMENT (A-Z CHALLENGE)

"Unemployment isn't working." ~ Anon.

Yes, it's true. Sigh!

For the first time in a very, very long time, Bear isn't working. Bear is unemployed.

Of course, I'm retired, and drawing several pensions. I'm not facing the hard times most people face when their work ends.  But that's not the point.

I've been writing (with some friends) a regular column for a Canadian newspaper for about ten years. I was told last week, just before I submitted my latest piece, that the paper is making changes, and there is no space for us because of the changes. So our contract is ended, at least for the time being, after my last column. Sic transit gloria mundi.

There really was a shock to the whole thing. One day I had a job; later in the day, I didn't.

I can begin to feel what others have felt with such news.

Ironically, I was the one who ended up comforting our editor. She genuinely felt badly about letting us go. She hated the idea of talking to us about the situation. I said I would break the news to my colleagues, and we might come back to her with something. She called me "kind" for doing that. But that's just Bear being Bear. You know that.

Just because I'm retired, there's no reason why I have to give up everything in the wording world; the working world.

I suppose I could go on looking for work. The little bit of income (pocket change, really) was useful. It would mean more research, queries to editors, etc.

Or I could be content just to do my volunteer work with several different ethics committees (about one meeting a month, on average). And, of course, keeping up with my blogs. There will be two of those starting sometime in July.

Honestly, I've done enough of working. I have other goals to accomplish with my beloved J. That's what I really want to do. Other things come after that.

Lawrence Peter Berra put it succinctly: "It ain't over 'til it's over."

Guess what, Yogi. It's over!

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Also brought to you by the letter U:
• understanding
• ubiquitous
• unsettled
• ultra
• unlimited

And in the New Phonetic alphabet: U for me.

YES, WE'VE ARRIVED

I'm writing to you from our new locale.

And it's a zoo! (As in crazy busy with bringing the last bits over from the house, unpacking here, and figuring our what goes where.)

But it's a zoo with a view!

I don't have the time to give you a full explanation of these pictures, except to say that the first two pictures are of the downtown riverbank area of our city, and the last picture is looking up the river valley (which runs north-east from downtown). BTW, what you can't see, to the right of the third picture, is our sprawling University Campus; another time.

By time we get fully settled in, I'm sure our sixth-floor suite will seem much less zoo-like.