I said I'd rant today.
But first - I did a whole bunch of knitting on the flora/fauna socks. I still think of them that way, because that is what inspired them. The Sock Knitter Anonymous group on Ravelry has themed socks for each month. I didn't really feel like doing just another vine lace sock, and I didn't really see any with an appropriate name that interested me, nor did I really want to end up trying to buy yarn that was animal/plant named just to match the theme/pattern. I had bought the yarn already because of the colour, and since it was called "rosewood" (I just thought of it as pink) I figured I could use that, and the theme title of flora or fauna just sort of inspired me to try something I'd been wanting to.... So, I did. I'm going to rename the pattern something like cats among the butterflies or butterfly chase or something like that. Anyway, I did butterflies at the top, then some lace eyelets to represent flowers, then some cats' paw lace. I'm now working on the gusset decrease section. I've also thought of some tweaking I might do, so I may need to make a second pair. At first, I was afraid the socks were turning out too big, but they are fine on my leg so far. Will take a picture for posting soon....
My rant is because yesterday was a holiday. We didn't always get a holiday in February. And honestly, I am not sure why we needed one now. Most of the holidays we have throughout the year are country wide. Some are international/obvious, like New Year's, Christmas, Easter, and so on. We have a holiday nearly every month. Starting with New Year's in January, Easter in late March or early April. Victoria Day in May, Canada Day in July, a civic holiday in August (no special name, just the first Monday in August is "the August Long Weekend"), then labour day in September, Thanksgiving in October, Remembrance Day in November, and of course, Christmas in December. Now, February is a short month. Why we need to have a break in February I really don't know. And, like so many other holidays, it is really unfair to many people - Oh, we don't want to work today, but we want the stores to be open so we can shop, and restaurants to be open so we don't have to cook, and entertainment centers to continue with business as usual.... In other words, someone in a union decided he or she didn't want to work every day, and managed to get enough advertising about it to convince enough of the general population and the governing body at the time to declare a day in February to be a day off.
Now, historically speaking, unions were good things. They ensured that workers were treated fairly by employers, and safety issues were addressed. However, as time went on, they seem to have become more power crazy - they are holding both employers and public hostage. They are driving the directions businesses go in, instead of the owners of the business. Often times, without consideration for how the employer can meet some demands. Union demands are becoming more and more unreasonable, and disruptive, and one of these days, the business owners are going to have to unite some way to stop the excessive power of the workers' unions. I'm not saying all unions are bad, but most are. And I base my opinion on the numerous strikes that occur, the news reports about these strikes, the news interviews with the union leaders, and my knowledge and experiences regarding how business run and the limitations faced by business owners. I've also been a member of a union, and don't like the idea that a group of people can end up dictating to me whether I want or need a raise or a change in working conditions or whether I should go on strike or not, and I'm not allowed to cross picket lines anywhere, and if I happen to not agree with the crowd, I am not allowed to continue working if they say go on strike. Nope. I don't like unions in general. And I don't like that I'm forced to live with a holiday in a short month that I didn't ask for, and didn't want.
Having said all that.... I will concede that I'm OK with what they eventually decided to honour with the day. First they declared the day as a holiday, then they asked the public for ideas to "name the holiday". Eventually, they settled on Louis Riel Day. I'm ok with that. It is about time they honoured the man, who is declared as the father of the province, crucial in history to the forming of Manitoba. So, I'm glad they've given him his day. Just wish they'd done it the other way 'round - "Let's have a day to honour Louis Riel then ask the public when they want it". I would have accepted the holiday in February better if that was how it came about.
My rant is because yesterday was a holiday. We didn't always get a holiday in February. And honestly, I am not sure why we needed one now. Most of the holidays we have throughout the year are country wide. Some are international/obvious, like New Year's, Christmas, Easter, and so on. We have a holiday nearly every month. Starting with New Year's in January, Easter in late March or early April. Victoria Day in May, Canada Day in July, a civic holiday in August (no special name, just the first Monday in August is "the August Long Weekend"), then labour day in September, Thanksgiving in October, Remembrance Day in November, and of course, Christmas in December. Now, February is a short month. Why we need to have a break in February I really don't know. And, like so many other holidays, it is really unfair to many people - Oh, we don't want to work today, but we want the stores to be open so we can shop, and restaurants to be open so we don't have to cook, and entertainment centers to continue with business as usual.... In other words, someone in a union decided he or she didn't want to work every day, and managed to get enough advertising about it to convince enough of the general population and the governing body at the time to declare a day in February to be a day off.
Now, historically speaking, unions were good things. They ensured that workers were treated fairly by employers, and safety issues were addressed. However, as time went on, they seem to have become more power crazy - they are holding both employers and public hostage. They are driving the directions businesses go in, instead of the owners of the business. Often times, without consideration for how the employer can meet some demands. Union demands are becoming more and more unreasonable, and disruptive, and one of these days, the business owners are going to have to unite some way to stop the excessive power of the workers' unions. I'm not saying all unions are bad, but most are. And I base my opinion on the numerous strikes that occur, the news reports about these strikes, the news interviews with the union leaders, and my knowledge and experiences regarding how business run and the limitations faced by business owners. I've also been a member of a union, and don't like the idea that a group of people can end up dictating to me whether I want or need a raise or a change in working conditions or whether I should go on strike or not, and I'm not allowed to cross picket lines anywhere, and if I happen to not agree with the crowd, I am not allowed to continue working if they say go on strike. Nope. I don't like unions in general. And I don't like that I'm forced to live with a holiday in a short month that I didn't ask for, and didn't want.
Having said all that.... I will concede that I'm OK with what they eventually decided to honour with the day. First they declared the day as a holiday, then they asked the public for ideas to "name the holiday". Eventually, they settled on Louis Riel Day. I'm ok with that. It is about time they honoured the man, who is declared as the father of the province, crucial in history to the forming of Manitoba. So, I'm glad they've given him his day. Just wish they'd done it the other way 'round - "Let's have a day to honour Louis Riel then ask the public when they want it". I would have accepted the holiday in February better if that was how it came about.
posted by Catlady @ 10:37 a.m.
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