Education in Alberta

The more I deal with my kids education, the more I see how broken the system is. I can't complain about the quality of education my kids get in the Catholic system in Red Deer, however I do have an issue with the relevance of curriculum and the methods that many older teachers embrace. This post is not about my kids school but that of another school that I visited today.

We went to a local public school in an older neighborhood for a basketball game and what I saw and smelt totally appalled me. This school was probably built in the 60's and has not had much attention since. The school was dingy and had a very old smell... but the icing on the cake was the smell of urine in the gym. The gym surface was so worn you could hardly see the lines in places and was dirty. An overwhelming feeling of pity came over me as I tried to imagine myself being a student in a school like this.

It is very difficult to embrace learning and take pride in your community when the walls around you are dirty, dingy and smelly.

We need to instill pride of ownership in our kids and an environment like this I would find it hard to be excited about my school and my community. Our provincial government is creating ghetto's in our older neighborhoods with decrepit schools. There is no pride of ownership and the money is not there apparently to do minor upgrades like paint. What a difference even a coat of paint would make.

I feel sorry for these kids, I really do. We live in one of the most prosperous provinces in the best country in the world and I have seen 3rd world countries with better schools then the one I saw today. This is seriously messed up. Where is the forward thinking to see that if we do not invest in our kids now we will be paying later when these kids are behind bars or drop outs? We need to invest in education... into schools and not just when it's convenient to do so...... It needs to be a priority for our provincial government. The system is so broken... who is going to step up to the plate and put their money where their mouth is and actually fix it?? Lots of people talk... I have yet to see very few that walk that talk.

Gifts for Grandparents

I have just gotten back from driving around in the dark with my friend Kristi delivering some gifts for grandparents with Family Services of Central Alberta. For the last 4 years Family Services of Central Alberta (FSCA) has collected donations for gift hampers for those people in our community that may not otherwise get a Christmas gift. Some are grandparents yes, others are disabled or unable to work and shut in. Tonight we delivered 5 hampers to some deserving people. Last year FSCA had only 6 volunteers to deliver hampers and tonight there was 65 volunteers. WOW! This is a great experience for anyone. Take a couple of hours and be reminded of how blessed you really are. There are so many people that are lonely and hurting right here in Red Deer. Not just at Christmas but all year round. Although it can be difficult, it is important to be reminded that although we all have challenges, there are those close by that are not so well off.

Merry Christmas!!

What's your score?

A few weeks back I got an invite from someone to find out what my "Klout" score was. My first thought was "What the heck is a klout?" It didn't sound good. Was it an illness? Klout sounds like Gout and my grandpa almost lost his foot to that so klout, no thanks. Was it to score my sanity? Goodness knows that would be a bad idea. (sorry for the foolish rabbit trail)

Back to klout. Klout turns out to be an answer to my prayers. I am forever being harassed, teased and picked on by my family and friends because I spend so much "wasted time" on things like twitter, linkedin and (not so much anymore) facebook. I have pleaded my case trying to explain the importance of credibility and reputation on these sites and the benefits but sadly it gets me no where.

Now I have some backing. I have linked all of my social media accounts to klout and it has given me a score. This score measures how effective I am with social media and how much of an influence I am with my network of people. The score can be easy to increase at first (like from a 20 - 25 score) but it is a lot harder to move up (say from a 70-75 score) The Klout website says that the score is based on a 1-100 point system and that the average score is about 20.

So that my friends is Kout in a nutshell. I encourage you to use this tool to increase your credibility even if only to get you loved ones off your back for wasting time online.

Stay warm out there!

I'm No Artist

My job has taken me all over Central Alberta the past few weeks. I've been to Stettler, Lacombe (3 times), Sylvan Lake, Olds and somewhere between Olds & Didsbury at a sulphur plant. With all this driving I have seen many trains and lots and lots of graffiti. Every time I see graffiti I am in complete awe at the talent of these artists. I get totally inspired. Weird right? It makes me want to buy an expensive camera and go out and shoot all these trains and graffiti and make some sort of gallery display exploring graffiti... and I'm not even an artist.

Now the majority of people (local citizens, council, businesses, police) HATE graffiti. "It's vandalism" they say.

Graffiti is an art form. The people that create these amazing tags on buildings are artists and don't get any recognition for their art. Now I need to clarify here, I do not in any way support anyone spray painting other people's property. But what I would say is that there is a time and place for everything.

Let's look at this a different way for a moment.

WHAT IF? We as a community set boundaries and gave a venue for graffiti? Do you think it would still happen everywhere else?

WHAT IF? We allowed the street culture to express themselves at the local skate park with spray cans?

WHAT IF? By doing these things we were able to engage a segment of the population that is seen as negative and delinquent and gave them a sense of belonging to the community?

WHAT IF? Some downtown businesses that were all located beside each other allowed people to tag the back of their buildings and every month would repaint over it all so they could start again?

WHAT IF? This became an accepted art medium that the community could come together and enjoy and photograph?

What I am trying to get at is that if we want to be proactive about crime prevention, crime reduction, community engagement and the like, we have to start thinking differently about how we get to the end result.

Change is much more likely to happen with positive reinforcement than with negative criticism.

Just a thought.

Thanks Matthew

I have just come back from my 3rd funeral in 3 months. That's a whole lot of perspective in a short period of time. From each funeral there was a theme. Intentional of not, a theme emerged.I shared with you in a previous post about the first.

This most recent passing was a very dear friends' brother. Matthew was the youngest of 5 children and the only boy. He was killed by an erratic driver in the Crowsnest Pass last Saturday. He was 27.

Matthew's life was not easy by any means. He suffered with chronic pain and migraines from a previous car accident. In spite of that he lived his life in a way as to have no regrets. He loved the people around him whole heartedly. He forgave immediately. Everyone in his life didn't have to guess his feelings because he told them all. Even his young nephews spoke at his funeral because in their words "Uncle Matthew would want me to tell people how I feel." His young nephews told me "We know that uncle Matthew loved us more than anything" WOW. It is unfortunate that it usually takes a tragic event for people to have their "wake up call".

I have been called many things in my life... including lame and cheesy because I have affirmed and told people how I feel about them. I also have lived my life making friends and family my top priority before work, volunteering or any thing else. The bottom line is that I would rather you know how I feel about you now while you are alive then say nice things as you lay in a casket. If that makes me cheesy then so be it.

So to Matthew's family, thanks for raising a son that was such an example to so many. As spoken at the service, his legacy will go on with each person that knew him that outwardly show more love and feeling to those in their lives.

A life taken too soon. Rest in Peace Matthew!

Cool Beans!

So it has happened again... my favorite Red Deer coffee shop was broken into and vandalized over night. This is the 3rd time since opening this summer that Traptow's Cool Beans has been broken into. Small businesses are what make a community unique. Without them we become generic and boring. The spirit of community is evident in our downtown with small businesses like Cool Beans, places like Sunworks and City Centre Stage & The Scott Block theater.

Owning a business is no easy task. I saw a tweet from @reactionmike yesterday that said "an entrepreneur is a self-employed person working 16 hours a day to avoid working 8 hours a day for someone else." So True Mike.

Kevin & Becky and their family work so hard 7 days a week to keep Cool Beans open. I know they are feeling tired and a little let down by this latest vandalism.

So this is a call to action. Tomorrow, Saturday 17.. I want everyone who lives in Central Alberta to send a message to Kevin and Becky. I want you to kick it old school and when you go to Cool Beans tomorrow (yes.. I want you to physically go there and order a coffee and maybe some chocolate root beer cake) and bring along a card or poster or something that tells them that we as a community appreciate them and their contribution to making our downtown unique!

Then I want you to tweet with... I love @Coolbeansbus because... (and give your reason).

We cannot as a community be successful unless everyone in the community feels supported.

Show your love! I will be a Cool Beans at noon to show my love... hope to see you there!!

Beth

A Life Lesson

I had an interesting day yesterday. A close friend of my husbands family passed away a few weeks ago. As they were from Newfoundland there were lots of people that came to pay respects to our friend Randy. We loaned his wife and family our holiday trailer for family to stay in so they could all be together.

Yesterday we went to pick up our trailer and as we sat with Randy's wife Marilyn she said some very big things that I think we all need to consider as we walk through life.

Randy and Marilyn were married 48 years. Quite an accomplishment these days. They did absolutely everything together. They very rarely left their farm without each other and spent every day being and doing things together. It is a beautiful story really, the love they had for each other right until the day Randy died. It was like the honeymoon lasted all those years. They respected each other and never overlooked an opportunity for a hug, or a squeeze and a "You know I love you right?"

Marilyn explained that loosing a spouse is different for everyone. People with jobs, friends, hobbies all have those things after the death of a spouse. They have support and things to continue to do. Marilyn didn't have those things. She retired to a farm near Ponoka and didn't make friends. Who needs friends when you have such a wonderful husband right?? Wrong. Marilyn feels like she has nothing. Everyone can go on living and the center of her world is gone. Her advice to us was make friends, find hobbies and interests outside of your spouse. Create a life so that when your kids leave home or you loose your special someone you still have pieces of the puzzle that can still be intact while you work through the emotions of loosing a big piece of your puzzle.

Another thing to consider in this balancing act called life.