Seaside Village Cafe in Horseshoe Bay

Last week, the whole gang was off to Vancouver Island. Sherry had a reading with Theatre One in Nanaimo, Jim was planning on surfing in Tofino, and BT Mendelbaum (disbarred) and G. G. Blynn were along for the ride. As usual.

First stop is Horseshoe Bay where we await our ferry, and it's coffee time. Seeking out something better than Starbuckian is always top of mind. Here in Horseshoe Bay, the Seaside Village Cafe is a possibility.

Small and friendly, it is pretty much the opposite of the corporate coffee shops. The barista knows her customers, mainly locals, and there's a simple pleasure to be found in listening in on the conversations.

Freshly pressed juice is an option, as are the usual pastries and a few other breakie type items.

 

The coffee was strong and comforting. As were the people around us. But the ferry ride beckons, and we were off. Perhaps in more ways than one.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2017 by Jim Murray.

The Wealth Gap in British Columbia

Something has been happening on Canada's left coast and it isn't fair.

A small number of people in BC have become wealthier, the rising cost of living (especially of housing) and a trend towards lower wages have combined to increase the gap between the rich and poor significantly.

In fact, BC is now the most unequal province in Canada.

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives shows that the BC Liberals "decade of tax cuts" and continuing "regressive changes to the provincial tax system" helped to "exacerbate growing income inequality in BC."

At the beginning of the century the wealthiest ten percent saw their earnings "spike" while the lowest fifty percent saw their earnings drop. And this after the BC Liberals under Gordon Campbell introduced tax changes that benefited top earners.

The trend has continued under Christy Clark, indeed the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition says the income gap in BC is growing at a faster rate than most of the other provinces in Canada, noting that the "average household income of the top one percent in BC has increased by thirty-six percent since the mid-2000s." The most recent available data from Statistics Canada shows that the richest ten percent in this province own more that fifty percent of all the wealth in British Columbia.

Christy Clark, our smiling photo-opportunist premier, doesn't mention the growing polarization within the province, but her regressive tax policies continue to exacerbate the problem.

Something isn't right here.

Graphs by Press Progress. Copyright 2017 by Jim Murray. 

The job of the Canadian prime minister ...

The PM speaking to reporters in Calgary after Cabinet. CBC

"It is the job of the Canadian prime minister 

to have a constructive working relationship 

with the President of the United States. 

That's exactly what I intend to do."

Well yes, maybe that's part of it. Working relationships with all our trading  partners, including the US, might be a good idea. But really? 

Shouldn't "the job of the Canadian prime minister" be to look after the interests of Canadians? To uphold the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms? And maybe, just maybe, the job of the Canadian prime minster should be to stand up for Canada in the face of bullies and tyrants. To choose citizens over corporations, the environment over pipelines, truth and reconciliation instead of racism and misogyny.

Perhaps I'm confused, but I always thought my prime minister should stand on guard for Canada. Apparently not.

Justin Trudeau welcomes Keystone XL approval

By Jim Murray. Copyright 2017.

The Elbow Room Cafe ~ great shtick but....

The Elbow Room Cafe has been around a long time. Along Davie Street, but out of the West End, and officially in the high-rise, high rent district. It's a favourite among tourists and some locals too, though why isn't readily apparent.








There are rules posted in the menu, which are more an invitation to be entertained in a certain way. Don't ask for water, get it yourself, We'll bring you your first cup of coffee, after that, get it yourself. Getting crowded: leave. Don't like our choice of language: too bad.

Be prepared for banter from the servers that is rude, crude and sometimes hostile. It's all part of the act, and it works for a once-in-a-while visit. And while it isn't quite elbow-room-crowded, it is pleasantly small and intimate; the better to hear all the conversations.




To keep the locals coming back, the food could be a wee bit better, though the helpings are generous and the flavours possibly from natural sources. What can I say? It's a breakfast place and the reason anyone is here is to see how close the servers can come to being offensive. Underneath the layers of feigned anger and abusiveness, it's all about caring for each other. More or less. Maybe.

 

Great shtick but the food: meh.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

Boxing Day Snowfall

On Boxing Day in Canada, many people head to the malls for the annual consumerist ritual of spending money on things they don't really need.
















We decided to go for a walk in the snow as yet another snowstorm blanketed Metro Vancouver and the entire south coast.

Tomorrow it will probably be washed away, but for now, our world is winter-white.


Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.