Goodbye Wicked Wedge

Just got a text from a friend walking down 17th Ave. It appears that the Wicked Wedge on 17th, near 6th Street is gone. I don't know if it's closed down or they are just moving but the website is still up.

The Wedge is an old skool Calgary mainstay. At one time, it was the only place you could get a decent slice of pizza in this city. That has changed and it is possible to get a decent slice of pizza in some locations around the city.

The Wedge was a good place to eat, but it had one problem. It was expensive. A slice of pizza and a can of pop pushed 7-8 bucks making for a pretty expensive lunch or quick snack. With money being tighter perhaps that's why it's gone?

Greenpeace in the Oil Sands

It's as predictable as snow in October. Once again, Greenpeace have invaded the oil sands in the hopes of spreading their message.

I don't really have a problem with someone protesting; after all it is a free country. Nor will I talk about the "security risks" and "dangers" of climbing up machines in the oil sands to make a point.

The problem with Greenpeace is that they just don't get it. They don't seem to get that the reason the oil sands exist is BECAUSE there is a demand for oil and, in the scheme of things, a growing shortage of easy to extract crude.

The reason that Greenpeace protest up in Fort Mac is because it's all about getting camera time & media attention. You're never going to see Greenpeace heckling shoppers. They will never point out the carbon footprint of a mango. Or a tomato from Mexico. Or a pizza manufactured in Florida.

And I wonder how many of the members of Greenpeace eat fruits & veggies? I'd bet a lot of them. I wonder if any of them give thought to how those mango's, oranges, grapes..etc land on their plate. Or when they go out for a coffee do they ever think about how the coffee got there? Or when they crack open a Stella Artois or some "hipster" European beer do they give thought to how it got here?

The answer is no.

Greenpeace are like the people that blame drug dealers for the problems in a bad neighborhood. Drug dealers are just a symptom of a problem. The root of the problem is the drug addicts. The people that need a fix. Our world is addicted to oil and we need our fix and the oil sands is our dealer.

So rather than climb up tall towers in some remote location in Northern Alberta, maybe Greenpeace should reflect on their own actions..and THEN go protest down at Safeway when they see people buying boxes of food or out of season fruit.

But they won't. Because doing that won't get them media coverage. And it would piss off potential donors to their cause. AND..(the big and)..they'd have to admit that they are part of the problem.

How's the mango and coffee taste now?

Another Eddie (and this one isn't good)

Alberta, home to the one of the worlds most bland, boring politicians & clearly one of the most clueless. His name is Ed Stelmach...and to his friends (the few) they call him Steady Eddie.

Ed Stelmach is the Alberta version of Paul Martin (Federal Liberals). He flip flops on things. Sometimes they are small like when he added 10 cents a can tax to a beer, then revoked that tax. Other times his flip flops are larger, like when he institutes a royalty regime for the energy industry then..when the industry decides it's cheaper to drill in Sask or BC, he changes it. And then changes it again. I guess Ed skipped that part of business school where they teach you that one of the best ways to attract investment is with something called "stability". I never believed Eddie's royalty plan was about anything than trying to capture votes at a time when crude was burning up near $150 a bucket.

Ed also likes to spend. In fact, Eddie and his boys in E-Town have increased government expenditures at near double digits. The Alberta government also spends more per capita than Quebec (that statement goes over as well as putting a Trudeau statue in Olympic Plaza).

But then again, Ed never really won the Leadership of the Conservatives.. You see he came in 3rd. A Calgary oil boy with the name Dinning came in 1st with a redneck country boy named Morton in second. As leadership conventions go..Ed ended up winning. In short, Alberta's managed by a 3rd rate loser.

One more thing this clown did that pissed me off..was limiting prices at pubs during happy hour. Who are you to ban what a bar charges it's customers? For a second I thought I was living in a nanny state like Ontario which controls it's liquor for the "good of society".

The thing with Ed is that he was pretty cocky. No way the Liberals or NDP would have a chance. But along came this party called the Wildrose Alliance. They didn't exist 2 years ago. A few weeks back they thumped Ed in a byelection in a 40 year Con riding (Eddie came in 3rd). Now polls show that the Wildrose Alliance is at 22% support. Seem low? Well consider they didn't exist 2 years ago and were a no show in the last election

And the WRA are about to chose a new leader. One of the potential leaders is Danielle Smith. She's intelligent, well spoken, fiscally Conservative and I don't think she cares if gay people hold hands. And she's a MILF too. Better be careful Ed..because that Conservative Dynasty is on pretty shaky grounds dawg.

Big Rock & the Eddies

I bought a 12 pack of Big Rock Traditional on Friday and attached to the side was a calender of the Big Rock "Eddies". The Eddies are advertisements created for Big Rock by the people that drink the beer.

The above made me laugh because whoever created this is pretty savvy when it comes to micro brewed beer. Budweiser (aka InBev) recently sued Brick Brewing company in Waterloo, Ontario because they created a product called "Red Baron Lime". The law suit has something to do with the use of the term "lime" or something which..in my opinion..is retarded. It's just a case of a big ass corporation picking on a small, regional brewery that probably makes almost zero impact on their market.

The interesting part is that if you're from Calgary, you've heard of Big Rock Lime. Easily on of the most popular beers of the summer it was the drink of choice for many last summer and many pubs at BRL (Big Rock Lime) nights. I don't have figures available, but I'd bet my life savings that Big Rock Lime easily outsells the Brick Brewery version of the beer.

The above ad is a perfect example of "western swagger" and for all the right reasons. I suspect the reason Budweiser/InBev never went after Big Rock is because if they sued Big Rock they'd never sell another drop of Bud in this city (and Labatt is owned by InBev). One of the pleasant parts about being back in Calgary is the staunch support that locals give to their "own". You'd be hard pressed to find a microbrewery in North America that has the market penetration of Big Rock. This stuff is more common in Calgary than cowboy hats.

Bud Light Lime sucks anyway. So does the gay ass TV commercial "in the can".

Cccchanges

So, after being gone 10 months, I've returned home to what is now "post boom" Calgary. First thing you notice is that there are 1000's of apartments. In fact, as I write this Rentfaster has a sum total of about 3800 available units. In 2007, there were 400 listed on Rentfaster. The prices have dropped a wee bit, but nothing spectacular. What really blows my mind is that Mission (3 blocks wide, 9 blocks) has 70 units available for rent.

Calgary is often maligned in the media..especially Eastern media that loves to point out the rapid rise in EU claimants or how the unemployment rate has "soared" in Calgary. It's a point of contention...because prior to the recession there WAS NO unemployment in Calgary. It's basic math, 2 is 100% more than 1...so it doesn't take much to post huge increases in EI claimants. Same for the unemployment rate. Two years ago it was 3 %, today it's in the high 6's..6.9% or something like that. Sounds bad until you realize that that figure was the unemployment rate in Toronto during GOOD times.

What I do notice being home is that there is a slight change in the "spend spend spend" mentality of people. I was surprised to sit in OJ's in Mission and have them offer me specials. The other thing that caught my eye was empty seats. A few months back, I went into OJ's and it had 10 people in it on Saturday. Of late, I find it to be fuller & places like Joyce on 4th are often near capacity. Compare this to just 18 months ago when I'd walk up and down 4th street trying to find a place that had an available seat. I notice that there is more focus on "deal" nights and prices are starting to get cut.

Up in Edmonton I was spoiled. I could pull into a Tim Hortons or another coffee shop and there would be 2 people in line. I lived on Whyte Ave in Edmonton.."the" urban area to live. I'd walk in the Tim Horton's and you'd be lucky to see 3 people in line in the morning. The Purple Perk, Starbucks, etc have the usual long lines. Same for many of the places that sell you lunch in the core.

So life here did pull back, but Calgary and Alberta in general seems to have escaped the brutal recession that hit Ontario and the USA. Energy prices still remain high (very high compared to even 5 years ago)..so overall I'd say things look positive.

Just means the end of the 25K bonuses and 3 flex days a month at the local oil company. Perhaps that's a good thing too. There is such a thing as too much money

Back in Calgary

After 10 very long months I am back in Calgary. And hopefully I can return to writing again. I "broke" my leg which really means my foot was turned sideways. 7 long months on crutches.