While sipping on a Sleeman last night and thinking about settlers of the Cariboo I pulled out an old book that I’ve been meaning to flip through that gives an historical account of the Wells /Barkerville area of B.C. Bill Hong took up the hobby of compiling his memoires in the ’70’s much to the appreciation of folks that follow the early days of gold mining. Things were a lot different back then. There weren’t the environmental laws on the books that now prevent alluvial excavations. “And So..That’s How It Happened” will likely be out of print now but it has some great old photos from the town of Stanley which no longer exists. Bill highlights some old tales of how the gold miners kept themselves entertained. He depicts all the different working in all the various creeks disbursed through the Barkerville region. In 1905, there were about 500 people in the town of Stanley during the summer months, 200 of which were of Chinese descent. Bill point out in his foreword that “the significance of the role of the Chinese have not properly been recognized” in the settling of these small mining communities.
Economic Excess
Mar 3, 09
Jaw dropping aberrations from capitalist norms have inundated the pysche of politicians, regulators, and market analysts alike whom have been examining economic excess. Who would have thought – other than legendary Richard Russel (founder of Dow Theory) that the indexes would see these levels today? On second thought, I guess that Ian Gordon has been talking this up for a good while along with Jim Willie and Doug Casey. I know – good chance you’ve never heard of them because they were all considered unworthy of attention due to some screws being loose. Funny what unfolds away from the fold. The only mantra that hasn’t yet come to fruition for these mavericks of market musings is skyrocketing junior gold share prices and consistent four figure bullion. Obviously still a developing story.
Fearless Youth at The Aussie Open
Jan 24, 2009
Occasionally you stumble acrose moments of athletic genius upon channel surfing late into the evening. TSN puts on its top ten hightlights of the night which oftentimes gives reason to pause. However; tonight the last half of the deciding set between Alize Cornet and Dinara Safina in the round of sixteen down under was raucous. With the favourite Safina down 5-2 and two breaks of serve, she came screaming back like a ferocious tiger. In no way shape or form did the nineteen year old Cornet wilt with fatigue because her ground strokes were matching in heaving power and topspin. The kid just out of juniors was simply the target of a rejuvenated Safina destined to step through to the finals and ultimately into the number one world ranking. We’ll see how things wind up with the rest of the draw.
In The Shadow of Others’ Dreams
Feb 3, 2008
Today at 6:30 pm EST, tens of millions from around the world will tune into watch men thrust themselves at each other at what’s called the “line of scrimmage”. It’s a place where two teams of 5-7 people exert physical pressure at this notional line with the goal of assisting the advancement of a ball carrier or defending against him. Nothwithstanding interceptions or fumbles, it’s a struggle where ball control and time of possession and the ability to convert field position into “touchdowns” can lead to victory. Meanwhile, the lives of desperate souls looking for meaning in an otherwise mundane world of shift work and routine throw their spirits into something that will mean nothing to them on the Monday after. Humankind’s ability to foster faith and hope in a sporting event where oftentimes none exists in a professional life is something to behold. A culture void of substance at the community level appears readily eager to become enraptured in the circus of a media driven football game heavily interrupted with station breaks. Theses commercials are carefully crafted with the aim of pilfering the pockets of beer chuggling men whose minds may be absent from concrete goals or aspirations but if fulfilled could someday put them on a similar centre stage.
Go West Young Man
Nov 2, 2007
I woke up this morning to a Canadian dollar, jobless rate, oil price, and gold price that have all flirted with all time records. The pace of Canadian currency ascent has absolutely shocked all. Recruiters are holding seminars in Toronto encouraging folks hit by the manufacturing sector to jump on the commodity boom and go west while shoppers boycott stores reluctant to match U.S prices. Suddenly, Canada is becoming something more of an economic footnote with expertise, capital markets, and reserves of energy and materials available for exploitation. Governments appear prudent and reliable notwithstanding some peculiar posturing on non-economic matters. Indeed, it’s a different kind of environment from the recession of 81-82 (my senior high school year). Young workers are walking from job to job nowadays with ever increasing rates of pay in the industrial parks of Calgary. Brand new commercial condo bays are under development in the vast city outskirts as are office towers downtown (twelve in all). Good luck finding parking in the cities’ core. Apparently, it’s among the richest parking spaces in North America. Last week’s news of a royalty rate increase in the oil patch is all but forgotten in lieu of awe inspiring economic indicators.