David Asper.. Winnipeg's Athlete of the Year?

It's a sad state of affairs Winnipeg when our top sports story of the year is trying to get a new stadium. Trying. If the shovels broke ground and we were looking forward to a 2010 opening day and so on and so on, then yes, it would have some merit. But without even a final destination completely determined, how is this an event? You're telling me that between our Winnipeg Goldeyes, Manitoba Moose, and the Blue Bombers, not to mention all of Winnipeg's youth athletes, there fails to be a better sports story then something that may or may not happen...maybe.

If the choice is to write about a facility as our sports story of the year, why not talk about the new indoor soccer facility at the University of Manitoba. At least it exists.

If the city is having a hard time unearthing any quality stories, give Dancing Gabe a call. I'm sure he could have given a number of better examples of real events that he attended that could have made the short list for story of the year.

Oh well... I'll give you this much Winnipeg. At least our top story had nothing to do with the former Winnipeg Jets - though I'm sure if we talk about it enough over 2009, it will have a chance next year.

Is social networking just self promotion?

I'm of a dying breed in that I don't have a Facebook, MySpace, Twitter or any other account in the new world of social networking. Check that... I do have a LinkedIn account which is set up in the hopes that someone will find me one day wanting to spend copious amounts of money with the company I work for.

The reason I have yet to embrace this form of connectivity is fairly simple... I don't feel I'm that important. Do my old high school friends, whom I haven't connected with in 15 years, really care what I'm doing or are they just so bored at work or home that they'd rather fantasize about all the good times we could've had had we stayed friends? Does anyone care that I'm off to the shopping mall? Can anyone really have 1,042 friends?

It all just seems like a big "look at me" campaign, where the artist gets to paint whatever picture of themselves to people that they are truly unconnected too. Yes, I do see the benefits of the system among a tight group of friends in sharing pictures, or to stay connected when work or family force one to relocate. But overall, from what I've observed, a lot of it is just a big popularity contest, where one waves the gaunlet to "accept" or "deny" the adoration of their fellow peers; and where the voyeur is free to mock the person who so willingly accepted their friendship.

Maybe one day I'll feel open to having everyone know what I'm doing everyday, all the time. But until the RFID chip is inserted into my arm, I'll just stay as much off the grid as I can.

Does anyone want to reply and be my blog friend?

There's a Cost to being Cool

I'm sorry my fellow Winnipeggers to report that it does cost money to be cool. Since the Eagles were announced to play the MTS Centre, I've heard nothing but complaints about the cost of tickets - $90 up to $240 each. Not really being an Eagles fan, this seems like a lot of money, but to many of the fans who never would have thought they'd see the band back together again, let alone live in Winnipeg, I imagine this is peanuts when compared to the experience. For the record, if U2 announces they are coming, charge me what you will, just get them here.



For years we complained that the major headliners simply forgot to stop by Winnipeg on their way to Vancouver from Toronto. Now that they're willing to spend the night, we need to spend the bucks to keep them coming back. Elton John, Celine Dion, the Foo Fighters, Neil Diamond, Neil Young, Roger Waters the list goes on and on. (Vanilla Ice is also coming on New Year's Eve at Blush Ultraclub, but I didn't feel his name qualified for the previous list) The glass is not half empty Winnipeg.... hell it's damn near full. If we can lock in a new stadium, and keep our whine to the "bottled variety", we'll enjoy all the big names we've yet to lock in... who's on your wish list?

Incredibly Cool Winnipeg

Winnipeg a place where you can afford to buy a family home 20 minutes from where you work, so you can spend your life with your family instead of in a car.

It's a city that's growing. And a great place to live, work and play. If you're looking for a change - we're looking for people to come and build our city with us.

Five Incredibly Cool Reasons to Move to Winnipeg

1. We’re Hiring Manitoba is pegged to lead the country in economic growth and we’re looking to hire people in all sorts of professions. We've got low unemployment and our diverse economy means we're looking for people.

2. It’s affordable Winnipeg has one of the most affordable housing markets in Canada.

3. Spend your time living instead of commuting You can spend your time on the things that matter - like spending time with family and friends, instead of in commuter gridlock.

4. We’ve got 360 Degrees of Cottage Country There are dozens of cottage getaways within 100 km of City Limits, including Grand Beach, ranked as one of the best in the world.

5. There’s Lots of Incredibly Cool Stuff to Do We’ve got a great arts scene, with local live music, theatre, dance, and the world’s biggest names in international touring acts.

Winnipeg, Manitoba - you may have heard that it's cold here in winter.

In fact, it's incredibly cool.

What else would you call a place where Neil Young and Marshall McLuhan went to the same high school? The birthplace of the Man Called Intrepid? The first place in Canada where women got the vote?

What you may not know about Winnipeg is that it has glorious summers. Within an hour's drive from city limits there are dozens of lakes and cottage getaways and some of the best beaches in North America.

It's a city that attracts concerts by the top acts in the world, and features a world-class arts community of its own, from classical music to folk, rock, jazz and blues, from live theatre to ballet.