City kid gets weirded out in a small town

I realized I haven't put a photo up in a while so here's a completely unrelated shot of the world's biggest wagon wheel and pick in Fort Assiniboine, Alberta. I took it on the way to, or on the way back from a forest fire a few months ago.

And now the focus.

I have noticed everyone in town knows who I am. This likely has something to do with the photo beside my name in the paper. (investagatory journalist at work)

We have over 5,000 subscriptions and the town only has 5,000 so everybody reads us and it didn't take long for everyone to figure out who I was.

It's weird to be in a community where people know who you are even though you have no idea who they are. The older people also start up conversations about an article I wrote, or the other guy wrote, or something someone wrote one time in their lifetime, or the weather that day, or where their medication might be.

But never mind that now.

Anymawho

My point, (other than the obvious people know each other in small towns) is that it is an interesting experience to be recognized and not know why. Growing up in Markham the only people who knew you actually knew you.

I have had this experience before, because my mom has worked in the same hospital for 30ish years and when my brother and I visit people point at us and say "Barb's kid." They also tell you they were in the room when you were born, which as I am sure Andrew can attest is weird.

But I have never had it on such a large scale.

(wow this post got rambly stay tuned for more lucid thoughts in the weeks to come)

Working on a meth feature over the next few weeks. It is a crazy problem out here.

The Canadian justice system in action

I went to Westlock court today. Westlock is part of a provincial circuit court and every Wednesday a judge comes to town and goes through the docket. It can be a bit of a drag, but with a few guilty pleas and a trial or two you can get a few nice stories.

The Mayor of Westlock is also the most popular (Read: only) defence lawyer in town.

I often deal with the Mayor in both of his jobs. He is a good guy and a good lawyer and he usually helps Westlock's less fortunate with their legal problems.
Sometimes a court will have a duty counsel, whose job it is to help the defendants who don't have lawyers. Westlock doesn't have an official one but the Mayor usually serves this purpose.

Today he wasn't there because he is on vacation. The divide between people with money and people without money was never more clear. A couple of defendants offered guilty pleas without any access to a lawyer, or in one case any access to a shirt. Criminals and alleged criminal alike tend to make poor decisions, so them planning their own legal strategy is usually a bad choice.

The judge was compassionate enough to not take the guilty pleas and to get the guy a shirt, but those guys could have seriously screwed up their life because they didn't have access to good advice.

I am not saying they might not be guilty, but a lawyer might have found ways to get them into an alternate program or a better sentence.

It just realy exposed that if you have money and can get a lawyer you will do better than a guy who doesn't.

photos from the fair

This is a photo from the RCMP musical ride. I find it kinda nice that even though the RCMP are responsible for policing huge parts of the country and protecting the Prime Minister, they still come to rural communities in another form and pose for pictures and visit seniors.
There is something very Canadian in that, not taking oneself to seriously.



This, for those of you like me who didn't know, is a chuckwagon. They go very fast and occasionally tip over.



Go bull Go! (see post below)



This is the midway at night.

Ryan learns about rodeo

I went to the rodeo at the Westlock fair this weekend. I was working, but I probably would have gone to see it anyway because I had never been to a rodeo.

There were a whole bunch of events at the rodeo and I have to say, I was impressed by the athleticism of the participants. I also found the whole thing entertaining. I got right up close for the bull riding event, right at the gate where they let the bulls out. I got to see the whole process up close and let me tell you something.

I am now cheering for the bull.

You see they take this belt and wrap it around the bulls testicles and pull really tight and then they electrocute the bull, occasionally in the testicles. That's what has the bull all pissed off. I always thought in my naive Eastern way that the bull was just pissed someone was riding it.

You could probably jump on a bull no problem if you didn't electrocute its testicles first.*

I am not an animal activist. I eat lots of meat, I am ok with the seal hunt, and while not a hunter I don't think they are evil, but it seems a touch outlandish to vilify a bull that is pissed because you just electrocuted it in the testicles. If someone electrocuted you in your testicles would you not be pissed off? (use your imagination ladies)

* I take no responsibility if someone tries this.

I took some cool photos at the fair. I am going to put them up soon.

Our first technical glitch

Apparently gremlins crawled into my computer and made it so only registered users can post . The problem has been corrected please stay tuned for more exciting errors.

Our story so far

Ok kids,

Well I thought I would give everyone a quick update. I moved out here from Ottawa in June of this year. I took a 4500km (give or take) drive out. The drive gave me a sense of the county and if you get the chance the trip is worth it just for the experience.

I have been reporting on a wide array of issues. Westlock is caught up in the Alberta economy and while the town is not awash in oil like some Alberta towns, it is growing and new development in town has been a story that I continue to report on. I also report on courts and crime, farming, (which I know nothing about) local politics, sports and anything else that crosses my plate. As Edmonton grows it is also becoming a more viable option for commuters.

I am hoping the Westlock News is going to be a stop along my career not the end of the line. I work super long hours and would like more time to work on some stories, but quite often the time isn't there.

Our paper is about 20 pages each week and that means I write 10-12 stories, plus photos a week. We only have two reporters so we work on a ten day on four day off schedule. It works out to be the same as a regular job, but ten days on can be a lot. Mild whinnying aside, my worst day here is better than my best day at the cushy government because I enjoy what I do.

Hey look at this interweb thingy

So, I am assuming you noticed I now have a blog. Many of you are probably wondering a number of things so I have designed a helpful Q&A.

Why do does Ryan /Andy have a blog?

I started this blog for a number of reasons. I moved out here a few months ago and have been living in Westlock, Alberta working for the unoriginally-named Westlock News. I left a cushy government job to come out here, because I missed reporting and not doing it was hurting my soul. I have been surprised by the number of people that are interested in what all is going on out here, so this is how people who want to know can find out.
I also take a lot of photos and thought a few people might be interested in them, mostly because a few people have expressed interest in them.
I also don't get the opportunity to vent about politics the way I once did in Ottawa and I am going into withdrawal.

How often will said blog be updated?

When I feel like it. A few times a week probably.

Where is Westlock?

An hour northwest of Edmonton, not 45 mins as a certain lying town website would have you believe.

Ryan / Andy ? WTF?

Long story short, Andy is a nickname that got out of hand and now there are some people who get confused when I use my actual name. For those of you on the other side of this equation Andy is not my name it is a nickname and it is Darcy's fault.

Why is this blog sometime broken?

This is a question I am expecting will come up so I am preempting it. I am a blog novice and there were a whole bunch of things here I didn't fully understand. I am assuming if something goes wrong there may be a steep learning curve. The other reason is because Nick touches himself.

*Interesting side note blogspot's spell check doesn't know the word blog. Now that's irony.