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Notes from a Garage

With John Gardiner

My winter boots; the trouble with global warming; and say hello to the HST

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

So, I had this pair of winter boots for 12 years, but, finally, about four years ago, they gave up the ghost. And about this time, my wife and I were walking through a mall and there was a shoe store and, holy cow, they had a two for one sale on winter boots. In we go and we end up with two pair of winter boots – different colours just for variety – and I think I’ve got a lifetime supply of winter boots. Remember, I’d had my previous pair for over a decade and I’m in my mid fifties and now I’ve got two pair of boots. I remember joking in my column at the time that I’d likely never have to buy another pair of boots. So, this past weekend, Carol and I were heading for Barrie – snow country in winter. Up to the attic to get my winter boots. Brought down the pair I’ve been wearing, and, surprise of surprises, the soles are falling right off them. Rats! But no problem….I have another pair. Back up to the attic and down with the second pair….guess what? The soles were also falling off of them….Unbelievable! Seems the folks who made the boots glued the soles on with some type of disintegrating glue that had a lifespan of about four years. And I wondered how many other pair of boots sold during the big sale were also headed for oblivion. Anyway, you know my point. Why the heck can’t they make anything that lasts today? You trade in your 35-year-old TV for one that lasts 10-12 years. You buy iPods and cell phones that have a half life of about six months. You’d think the longer we were making stuff, the better we’d get at it. But, sadly, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Indeed, most stuff today seems to be junk, plain and simple. Oh well, think I’ll listen to an album on my 35-year-old stereo, then I’ll play my 36-year-old Fender guitar through my 40-year-old Traynor amplifier…We used to be able to do it. And we better get back to it before we run out of stuff to make the junk. And you read that here first…..

So, there was a rumour last week that global warming was just a hoax – something about somebody, somewhere fudging the numbers. Well, it better be true because governments around the world ain’t never gonna solve the problem if it is real. I’ve been watching the news reports from Copenhagen where they’re supposed to be coming up with a treaty to deal with global warming. Heavens to Betsy…..what a dysfunctional bunch. Need to give the whole lot of them some sort of happy pills. And this goes back to something I’ve repeatedly said about the environment and our chances of learning to live in harmony with it. There is absolutely no political will anywhere on the planet to fix the problem. Because you can’t fix the problem and continue to live the way we do. A relatively small number of EuroAmericans have already created a significant amount of damage to the planet with the consumer-driven capitalist system we currently use. And now the bulk of the world’s population want it all too. They want big screen TVs, blackberries, iPods, iPhones, expensive cars and all the rest of the stuff they’ve seen us having so much fun with. And we’re telling them they can’t have it because it’s bad for the environment – and we’re also just rolling merrily along continuing to consume at an amazing pace. And we’re talking about carbon credits and balance sheets and just a whole lot of really inane stuff that ain’t gonna solve nothing. In essence, we are fiddling while Rome burns. And I’m sure you didn’t read that here first….

So, the Harmonized Sales Tax has passed the provincial legislature and is now law. Whoopee….not that I really care, but I really hope it doesn’t come back to bite the Liberals on the butt. I’m not a fan these days of absolutely anything that adds more money to government coffers – they just simply don’t need it. They’ve got plenty of our money and if there was any accountability at all in government – any way to stop the bleeding – we’d all be looking at a huge tax decrease. There is just so much waste and unnecessary spending in government at both the provincial and federal levels. Goverment should not be meddling in every area of our lives – and you’re reading words written by someone who is philosophically sort of a liberal. I believe that government should be there for its citizens and should deliver strong social programs, but it needs to stop trying to be all things to all people. Doesn’t work and has cost us big time…..Less government, less taxes…it’s the way to go.

Well, out of time for another week and hoping you’re almost ready for the big day…I’m practicing my reading for the two Christmas outings I have planned……William Street Café and Chez Denise……take care and remember, “Hew to the line; let the chips fall where they may.”



John Gardiner is a 25-year-veteran of the community newspaper business, but he is also a prolific writer of moralistic short fiction he refers to as "emotional thoughtscapes" or "adult fables". Samples of his fiction can be found at:

He has also produced a noteworthy piece of humanist philosophy which can be found at: http://www.xs4all.nl/~aboiten/ad502.htm He welcomes comments on his work.