Paralympic Saturday

I did go out on Friday noon to the the Paralympic Torch run through my neighbourhood.  It was a pretty low key even with only a few hundred observers, mainly thanks to a group of school kids gathered on a corner on Denman Street.  Global TV came by on Friday afternoon for a spot they aired Friday night and I think Saturday morning.   It was right after the opening story about the Opening of the Paralympic Games.  They did a really nice piece on it.  So we did get a bit of renewed interest, and are looking forward to hitting 7,000 today.   I uploaded it to Phanfare if you want to have a look: 


Click Here to See Global TV's spot.  


We tried to find the spirit of the Paralympic games downtown on Saturday.  Alas, it is just not the same as the Big Games.  We walked through downtown a bit, over to the live site where we met Sumi and took in a bit of wheelchair curling.  We were expecting Sledge Hockey though, and the curling just didn't measure up, so we went to a Pub for the rest of the afternoon instead.  Eventually it filled with pre-game Canuck fans which proved a decent simulation of Olympic Spirit, and kept us going through the day. 

We came home and watched the Paralympic Opening Ceremonies which we had taped.  Yay us!  Yay Terry Fox... can we even imagine how his parents felt bringing that torch into the big stadium 30 years after their son's Marathon of Hope?  Amazing.

My Letter to Mr. Campbell

I sent this email to the very vague "contact at BC Liberals" email address which is the closest I could find to Mr. Campbell's email... I wonder if he's heard about the petition... what do you think the chances of him personally reading my message?  


* * * 


Mr. Gordon Campbell
Premier of British Columbia,

I had an idea for a BC Holiday to honour our 2010 Experience.  You know – that time when all of us from different places, backgrounds, colours and languages, came together as ONE HAPPY FAMILY and actually ENJOYED each other’s company?  The one when we were unified in our pride, happiness, and maybe just a bit giddy to be so lucky as to BE FROM HERE?  

You might have heard about my petition to start a new Provincial Statutory Holiday – Glowing Hearts Day.  Already in less than a week, more than 5,680 happy citizens have signed it.  

The petition was mine, but the editorial from The North Shore News says it all better than I could:   

"GLOWING HEARTS  North Shore News

Published: Wednesday, March 10, 2010

THIS paper has been inundated with story suggestions from life coaches, fitness trainers and volunteer organizers as to how they are harnessing or building on the collective high the majority of us experienced during the Games.

We think it's exciting that individuals are actively trying to maintain that confluence of positive energy British Columbia generated in February. And if the B.C. Liberals were smart, they would already be collecting, grading and facilitating some of the best. This might be a time when just a little government help in terms of expertise or marketing might have a huge cost/benefit outcome for all of us.
We especially like Vancouver interior designer Katie Holmes' call for a February statutory holiday in memory of the Olympics. She suggests calling it Glowing Hearts Day -- which might seem a little over the top until one recalls that unification was one of the most positive themes of the Games.

We've called for a February stat before, and we don't buy the government's "lost productivity" argument. Sure, a day off costs the economy. But so does spurious sick leave when folks take a mental health day as a break from the winter blahs. We don't think the net loss would be anywhere near the $270-million figure Labour Minister Murray Coell gloomily predicts. And what if Glowing Hearts Day was dedicated to volunteering: one deed for the betterment of others. That's productivity.

You can view and sign on to Holmes' petition at www.gopetition.com/petitions/glowing-hearts-day-in-bc . “

Some people are suggesting other names, like “Hockey Day”,  or “Family Day” or “Patriot Day”.  Glowing Hearts is an obvious tie-in with our National Anthem and the theme of the Olympic Games, but we would be happy to have a day to remember our experience, no matter what the name is.  Many people would like this to eventually become a national holiday – that’s how passionate they feel about their Olympic experience.  What a great legacy!

The petition includes a comments field, and we are receiving many positive comments like,    
“ THE OLYMPICS WAS THE FIRST TIME I REALLY FELT PROUD TO BE A CANADIAN!!!! “

“The Olympics that were held in Vancouver unified a whole nation and mosaic of different backgrounds/races”
“especially for all of us volunteers and employees who put their hearts out for these games”
“We definitely need a day to celebrate in the what is normally a dreary month. Wouldn't it be grand if every year we could remember the excitement and patriotism we felt during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. It was truly magical and made me even more proud to be a Canadian...we are so fortunate to live here!”
“A great way to keep the Olympic spirit going”  

It goes on for 142 Pages.

A New Statutory Holiday represents a great opportunity to leave a legacy in our hearts.   When the petition is printed and delivered, I really hope that you and your legislative colleagues will give it serious thought.

Do you think you could pass this email onto Mr. John Furlong?  He’s a hero for how well he represented you, the Olympics, and all of us here in BC.  I’d be happy if he would hear about our petition and the positive feedback from our citizens.  

Paralympics Mar 12 - 21

The Paralympics starts tomorrow.  By the way people, It's PARA-LYMPICS, Not PARA-O-LYMPICS, just sayin'.

Sumi is the official mascot for the Paralympics.

Sumi is part Orca whale Thunderbird and Black Bear.  See his CV below.  His specialties are Alpine Skiing and flying.

The Opening ceremony is Friday night, at the same venue as the main games.    I wonder what it will be like?  We'll certainly be more exposed to Paralympic games and issues than ever before, and I'm looking forward to getting some more amazing inspiration from these great athletes.
 
The Olympic Cauldron will be re-lit.  I'm happy about that too, because I think it really only looks nice at night, and we didn't have a chance to get down there in the dark during the main Games.  Are they really going to leave us with those big ugly ducts after all the games are gone?

A few former Olympic venues will be re-opened, including 

The very popular Canadian Mint
Canada Pavilion
Manitoba Pavilion
Northern House
BC Pavilion at the Art Gallery
Live City downtown

I will definitely get to the BC Pavilion.  Come to think of it, it's the only one of those I couldn't get to.  The line ups were HOURS long.  We'll be seeing a semi-final playoff Sledge Hockey Game next week.

And my most favourite re-opening:  I'm supposed to meet a friend tomorrow morning and see how the line up is for the Ziptrek across Robson Street.  I hope it's not POURING rain tomorrow as it is today, or else I'll hae to think of something else to amuse me tomorrow.


click image to see webpage below 

Glowing Article on Glowing Hearts

A VERY Nice article from NSN  in support of Glowing Hearts Day. 


Have a look !! 

North Shore News

Published: Wednesday, March 10, 2010

THIS paper has been inundated with story suggestions from life coaches, fitness trainers and volunteer organizers as to how they are harnessing or building on the collective high the majority of us experienced during the Games.

We think it's exciting that individuals are actively trying to maintain that confluence of positive energy British Columbia generated in February. And if the B.C. Liberals were smart, they would already be collecting, grading and facilitating some of the best. This might be a time when just a little government help in terms of expertise or marketing might have a huge cost/benefit outcome for all of us.

We especially like Vancouver interior designer Kate Holmes' call for a February statutory holiday in memory of the Olympics. She suggests calling it Glowing Hearts Day -- which might seem a little over the top until one recalls that unification was one of the most positive themes of the Games.

We've called for a February stat before, and we don't buy the government's "lost productivity" argument. Sure, a day off costs the economy. But so does spurious sick leave when folks take a mental health day as a break from the winter blahs. We don't think the net loss would be anywhere near the $270-million figure Labour Minister Murray Coell gloomily predicts. And what if Glowing Hearts Day was dedicated to volunteering: one deed for the betterment of others. That's productivity.

You can view and sign on to Holmes' petition at www.gopetition.com/petitions/glowing-hearts-day-in-bc.

CBC interview link

City TV was here today... honestly, things are beginning to slow down a little, but I'd still like to get as many signatures on that petition as possible, as quickly as possible, and package that petition up for the Premier.  It would be great to hit him while the glow is still around from the Olympics.  Perhaps as soon as the Paralympics is over. 


If you want to hear the CBC interview you can find it on this page... http://www.cbc.ca/onthecoast/  Look for interviews under March 9th and you'll see it.  Not too much else going on here today!   

Big Interview about Glowing Hearts Day

Today's big interview is with CBC Radio One just before the 6:00 evening news, around 5:50 pm Pacific time.   If you want a laugh, and to listen live, you can access it on line...http://www.cbc.ca/radio/

Controversy Growing over Glowing

1700 Signatures on THE PETITION yesterday.  Crazy.  I have surely hit on a hot topic, or a sore point.  Here's an updated story from The Province newspaper.  
http://www.theprovince.com/sports/2010wintergames/government+cool+idea+February+stat+holiday/2658564/story.html 
Oh, and here's another humuorous one from the same paper, but this one has one of your typical cranky B.C. skeptic points of view: 
http://www.theprovince.com/sports/2010wintergames/Back+chat/2660304/story.html  
S/he thinks it would be better to have a holiday on February 29th.  Every four years.  Let's have some celebration, but not TOO MUCH, eh?  We're Vancouverites after all, and apparently we should get back to our reputation as a "NO FUN" city, as soon as possible.  

People continue to blog, tweet and sign the petition!  It's the 7th most popular Canadian petition at GoPetition.com EVER, and is about to beat a similar petition launched by Quebecers to have Family Day in their Province.  That petition took over TWO YEARS to reach 4498.  We're at 4389 in 4.5 DAYS!