BEAUMONT BUZZ - Idle Free Bylaw

There is a new bylaw being proposed by the Town. It's called "Idle Free Bylaw 696/08" and last week it was up for 2nd & 3rd reading. There is mention of it in this week's issue of La Nouvelle. Some members of council wanted more time for the public to take a look at it before they go ahead so they put off 3rd reading until June 24th.

There are three ways to encourage residents to reduce the time they have their vehicles idling. The most obvious is the fact that gas prices keep rising. Ouch! The second is to launch a solid media campaign. So Council is being asked to vote in favour of adding $5,000 to the 2008 budget to fund this. The final method is to pass a bylaw. If 3rd reading is successful, this would mean that residents could be fined $100 for an infraction.

If you want to get a look at the bylaw itself you can go to: http://www.town.beaumont.ab.ca, select "Council" from the menu, and look for the June 10th agenda package. The bylaw is Item 8a on the agenda.

I am concerned about idling. Several years ago, on a cold winter day, I noticed a number of school buses idling near a diner and as I walked on the sidewalk the fumes spewing forth were quite disgusting. I chose to call the school division and advise them of the problem. It was resolved quickly and efficiently and no fines were issued.

So I support the kind of media campaign that is being proposed. Providing residents with motivational information is a great way to get everyone onside. We can count on high gas prices to help too. But a bylaw should probably be used only as a last resort.

My main concern is that it is hard to enforce. And it would require people to complain about each other. I would rather we focussed on encouraging residents to voluntarily support the concept. It would be a much better way for us to lead other communities by example.

I encourage you to attend the next council meeting on June 24th. It may be the last opportunity the public has to weigh in on the issue.

BEAUMONT BUZZ - Alcohol Use

Last night I attended an information session sponsored by the Town of Beaumont and FCSS regarding youth and alcohol. The three presenters included a Registered Nurse with years of experience, an RCMP officer and an Insurance Agent. Handouts were provided by each and I would encourage any parent/adult who has concerns about drinking, especially among our youth, to contact the town. You can phone Kim Williston, FCSS Community Liason, at 929-3322.

The presentation was quite informative and a very good idea! There are a lot of misconceptions about alcohol use even among adults. I am pleased the Town took this bold step. But it would be even better if the information shared last night reaches into each and every home in town and families sit down and discuss the matter.

There are a lot of physical and social consequences tied to alcohol use that need to be realized. I believe that prevention is our greatest safety tool. If you are going to drink, you need to be informed about it!

On a personal note, I found the facts shared last night have only served to reinforce my personal choice to stay away from alcohol entirely. It has been 31 years and I have absolutely no regrets.

RANDOM STORIES - Hamster ... Conclusion

Last night was worth it. I set up Cornpop's cage by closing off the side entrance and opening her front drawbridge-like door instead . Then I sprinkled some more flour on the floor in front but this time I smoothed it over so that it's easier to distinguish her footprints.

I had the dvd camera all ready to go but decided I should brush my teeth first. I didn't want that kind of noise on film. As I peeked out the bathroom door and looked down at the cage I noticed ... footprints all over already! Darn! I had missed her.

I tidied up the flour once again, sprinkled a little food in the cage, and made sure to start the camera this time. A couple minutes later I looked down at the set-up ... and there she was! And then quick as a flash ... she was gone.

I started to feel a little disappointed about the whole thing. I was looking forward to filming her but if she goes in the trap right away I won't get much footage. I sat at the top of the stairs (only six, our home is a bi-level) and every now and then looked down to see if she had returned. I was feeling pretty tired by now so I was resting my eyes.

Everything remained quiet and it was 12:30 am. So I decided I may as well just go to bed. As I lay there trying to go asleep every little sound had me wondering if it was Cornpop. I heard some faint noises from downstairs and then some scraping sounds. But I was tired so I must have dozed off.

I woke up just a few minutes later though and I couldn't resist taking a peek. It was quiet in the kitchen. As I surveyed the scene once more ... it looked like there was a small brown body sleeping in her cage loft. Could it be? I carefully crept down the stairs, only to see her look up at me with little squinty eyes.

I rushed to the cage door and closed it. Boy, would the girls be happy to see her againI I turned off the camera and went back to bed. It was 1:30 am and I was tired. Jami woke up at 6 am though and was asking me how it went. I made her wait until 7 am before I would give her any answers.

This is what I found on the film:

Cornpop made many quick trips around the bookshelf, the bucket (trap), and sometimes the cage. Not all of which was filmed because the camera was stationary. (The picture below shows the area it was focused on). She made three trips to her former home. Her first one lasted 12 minutes before she went off rambling around the living room. Her second visit was shorter and her third one must have tired her out.

Between her visits I saw her make a brief visit to our dog's water dish on the right. It looked like she might have taken a small sip. She preferred her own (blue) water bottle though, drinking from it for 2 minutes straight and then another time for 6 minutes. That must have been the scraping sound I heard from my bedroom.

She totally avoided the ladder (paper roll/tunnel) leading up to the bucket. From the sounds that were recorded it appears she found another way in. By using the handle on the side she must have boosted herself up. I could here her plop inside, and then the sound of her pushing the dried food into a corner. We figure she must have used this to help her climb back out. All out of camera range!

Shortly after her escape from the bucket, obviously not tall enough for the job, she made her third and final visit to the cage. She emptied out the food she had picked up and went to sleep in her old bed. It had been three nights since her break-out and with all the excitement she must have been bushed.

She slept for the rest of the night and most of the day and she's still sleeping. In a couple of days we may hook up her tunnels to a second cage and her playground will be back in business. But for now I want to keep her in one place, one that is easily monitored.

And the camera footage should make a cute film, once I get it edited and add some catchy music.

RANDOM STORIES - Hamster ... Part 2

Here's the update on our missing hamster situation. First thing in the morning we checked out the hamster cage. I had positioned it on the kitchen floor, not far from the shelf it usually rests on. Her bed loft was on the floor beside the cage and we had sprinkled a nice thick coating of flour in front of it.

Upon close examination we discovered numerous rodent footprints in the flour from one end to the other. Cornpop found the hole in the side of the cage open so she had grabbed all of the dried food she could find inside. She hardly touched the piece of apple and had ignored the portion of strawberry we left for her. Apparently she prefers her fruit to be fresh.

We thought it would be a good idea to take photos of the evidence. I'm adding a couple to this blog so that you can see for yourself. The food trap (bucket ) was in our basement crawlspace and left untouched. So we have concluded that she did not leave the living room.

Karren brought the bucket upstairs and I have put lots of new dried pet food inside. I have also taped her exercise wheel to the kitchen floor. And to top that all off, I have carefully positioned our new dvd movie camera in the right spot to film her anticipated visit tonight.

We have 6 hours available on normal mode so I'll start the recording before I go to bed and hopefully we will catch her in the act. If she goes for the food bucket right away she'll get inside to the food alright but she won't be able to get out. If she runs in the wheel beforehand, there is the slight possibility I will hear it and wake up.

All in all this is turning into a fun adventure.

RANDOM STORIES - Hamster on the Loose

It's happened again. Our pet hamster is footloose and fancy free. Hamster number three that is. Number 1 was named Teddy. He was a Teddy Bear Hamster, known for their long hair. He escaped a number of times. He died a few years ago. He was just over two years old.

Number 2 was Kocoa Popcorn Hudson. She had a friendly temperament. The girls taught her to do tricks. We bought her last May. She got sick just before Christmas and didn't make it. That's when, after about a week of mourning, we bought number three. We call her Cornpop.

Late last night, when Jami woke up because she is suffering a bad cold, she felt impressed to check in on Cornpop. She was missing. So at 2 am Jami came into my room and sadly announced that she had somehow broken free. Groggily I climbed out of bed.

For the next hour and a half I searched all over, focusing on the crawlspace. Usually we track them down right away but it's been almost 20 hours now and still no hint as to where she is hiding. Maybe she didn't make it to the basement yet and is still in the living room, behind one of the wall units.

We have had some discussion on how to find her and for now we have a few of places where we have left food out. I reckon she will find at least one of these locations and by tomorrow, if we haven't seen her with our own eyes, at least we'll be able to tell she is still alive.

One trick I'm kind of looking forward to is sprinkling flour around the food sites. If she comes by we may be able to follow some nifty rodent tracks to her hiding place. Or maybe not. We'll keep you posted.