Favourite Books

  • The Green Mile
  • Animal Farm
  • Lord of the Flies
  • Lord of the Rings
  • To Kill a Mockingbird

Thursday 9 February 2017

Municipal Fluff

  O.K. I know, I am Old!! I am also miserable.or is that old fashioned? I believe in frugal living, unless one has a pretty unlimited budget..because..that is the way I have to live.
  I have a home..O.K. I am the unlucky person who actually has two homes. Those two homes both have mortgages, they have insurance, they have property taxes, they have utilities, and they have upkeep. All of this does not come cheap. In fact, much of the time, any income left after food, goes directly into these costs.I can't overextend our budget, because...lending facilities don't look favourably on this..so we are limited. Yep..sure would like a solar power system, and triple glazed windows would be awesome..maybe a nice heated floor and a thermal heat system? But...again..not in the budget.Oh..I forgot to mention..along with both homes come the costs of water and sewer..yep, see..it all adds up, and for these taxes, my municipality is able to maintain roads, pick up garbage, provide safe drinking water..and duct tape the aging sewer system.Oh, Oh..I forgot, they can also build a nice new Public works building in the middle of property that was once a donated walking trail.
  Those things are absolutely necessary for a town! I am fine with paying taxes to allow the basics of services needed.
  But....there comes a point that I begin to be p*ssed. First it was the insanity of flowers. Every summer a large clump of folks make a nice chunk of change planting new flowers all about. There are large flower pots and gazebos and sprinkler systems..does this improve my property? When the h_ll did this become a constant in small towns? See..some summers we run into issues with water, and the town issues notice telling folks they are not to water their lawns..however..every day the timers kick in, and the municipal lawns and flowers receive their water???? Yes, there are question marks after this..because I find this questionable. I sometimes dish out my own money to purchase plants, and I try to keep my lawn watered and looking decent..but I am simply suppose to let my own go, while that which my property tax pays, is somehow different.
  No, I am not a Grinch. However the flowers do not come down my street, plus. when I spend my own money on plants, I attempt to get those which will pop up year after year..these, well they are planted, and dug up at the end of the year to be replaced with new ones..I know this is not inexpensive, and the maintenance costs are pretty steep when one takes into account the summer employees, the equipment use, the materials. I am not against a few planters scattered about, and of course lawns been mowed..but this has become overwhelming, and expensive, and..it is not necessary!
  Just awhile back, I noticed we now have a new comer, someone who has a job description of Special Events and Recreation Coordinator. O.K. I sort of heard bits and pieces of this position a few years back..but...really..now we have brought someone in to town with some sort of degree to Coordinate special events and recreation? Where the hell do I live? I live in a dinky little town, much as I have all my life. Life in a small town generally consists of a lifestyle unlike large places. One fishes, or hikes, or hunts, or camps, or simply enjoys the peace and quiet. Suddenly it is necessary to have someone arranging things to do? Lets see...July 1st..a parade, hot dogs, cake (provided by our government) and a large area for folks to gather..maybe baseball tournaments, soccer..what not..but..lordie lordie..must pay someone some of those property taxes to organize this!
  Sorry this is all getting way to stupid! You move to a small town, you have to know, you may have to make your own activities..but..no..not anymore...now there is someone who has the job to ensure you have things to do.
  See..I am fine with my taxes paying to ensure the sewer system is capable of carrying all the sh*t, I am fine with paying taxes to ensure the roads are maintained, even though I live on the highway and my District does not touch my area. I am fine with paying my taxes to ensure I have police service, Fire service, and a Mayor and council. I am fine with the school and the hospital..but I am not fine with fluff.
  Like every other form of government, and trust me, lately Municipal governments have signed on to more and more sub sections of groups, or committees, that make blanket decisions for areas,folks who indeed get paid for their time..chipping away at the funds, taking community decisions and making them part and parcel of their agenda. It is way past time to stop with the in-camera meetings that involve so much of what happens in a small town, and go back to the basics.
  No more fluff, whether government offers subsidies, or not....Let the appearance go, let people find their own damn recreation and activities, stick to the basics..get those things in order, and then..well if there is money left over spiff things up a bit!

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