In light of the recent blizzards giving motorists trouble on the roads, I felt it prudent to make a list of supplies that would be extremely beneficial for any motorist experiencing roadside problems, especially roadside problems in winter. My emergency kit includes:

Clothing

• Fleece blanket
• Foil blanket (reflects body heat)
• Socks
• Fleece toque and gloves

Tools

• Screwdriver with different tips
• Ratchet set
• 9 LED flashlight
• Crescent wrench
• Booster cables (10 foot length)
• Shovel
• Extension cord (15 foot)
• Tire pump
• Tire pressure gauge

Other

• Candles
• 2 Candle holders
• Waterproof matches
• Lighter
• Hand warmer
• Garbage bag

Some other things that are useful include a chain or a tow rope and of course a vehicle jack and spare.

A good source of education and inspiration for emergencies and survival can also be found on the television show Survivorman.

People can freeze in the winter. It is best to stay alert and stay safe!

City Council met last night and today in sessions facilitated by the Local Government Leadership (LGL) Institute to find alignment on the Municipal Services priorities for the upcoming year.

“This was the first real opportunity that Council has had to sit down together as a whole to have some lengthy discussion about the priorities that all nine members are bringing to the table,” says Mayor Norm Boucher.

The sessions were not meant for decision making, but rather for City Council to bring their priorities to the table and work towards consensus to determine which require more immediate resolutions.

Over the course of the sessions two distinct themes emerged: Facilities and Fiscal Matters. From those two themes, the following issues were identified in no particular order:

• The Glanville site
• The Event Centre
• The Cultural Centre
• The Animal Shelter
• Review of the Dividend Policy

“The sessions were definitely a success because we were able to come together on these five priorities,” said Boucher.

City Council will decide whether to proceed with project

Provincial regulators approved the Box Springs Wind Farm on December 14, marking the next step in the project.

With the approval by the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), City Council must now decide whether to move forward with the wind farm, which would carry an approximate cost of $25 million to the City.

The project consists of four, 2-megawatt (MW) wind turbines, which would generate enough electricity for about 3,000 Medicine Hat residences. It would be located on the east side of Box Springs Road near the City’s northern boundary.

“This is the next step in what has been an exhaustive process and now it’s up to council to decide whether or not it’s in the city’s best interest to proceed,” said Russell Smith, Manager of Energy Sustainability.

The application was sent to the AUC for approval by the city in February 2009. The AUC conducted a thorough study which assessed various aspects of the project including the proposed connection to the provincial electricity grid and environmental factors such as noise and the effects on birds, bats and plant life.

If City Council approves the project, the target date for the erection of the wind farm would be late 2012 or early 2013.

Full details of the decision are available on the AUC website at www.auc.ab.ca.

2011 Nightshows Poster

The 2011 Medicine Hat Exhibition & Stampede Nightshows lineup has been revealed.

Charlie Daniels Band

July 27th, 2011
8:30 PM

Clint Black

July 28th, 2011
9:00 PM

REO Speedwagon

July 30th, 2011
8:30 PM

Individual night show tickets go on sale February 1st, 2011. Click on the poster to get more details.

Bruce Campbell as Ash, from Evil Dead 2

It looks like this is happening, for real! When it was first put forth, I got an invite to the Evil Dead: The Musical group for Medicine Hat many months ago and never thought about it until I got another message in my inbox yesterday. It looks like this really happening now. Last night they held auditions which anybody could try out for and the same is happening tonight at 7:00PM. There are 4 lead female parts and 4 lead male parts up for aspiring actors/actresses/singers locally or fans of the cult classic… that can act (and sing).

If you don’t know what Evil Dead is, you are kind of a lost cause; although, it’s possible you can see one of the most celebrated cult horror movies of all time. I would suggest taking a look at Evil Dead 2 (more or less a re-make of the equally good, but more old-school, Evil Dead) and Army of Darkness, and maybe do a little bit of reading on Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi.

If you are interesting in auditioning tonight, stop by the Community Theater Arts Center (1221 10th Ave. S.W.) at 7:00PM. To read more about all the other restrictions and other information, please visit the event on Facebook or contact Amber Krause either via Facebook, or by emailing amberkrause1@gmail.com.

Facebook Event

Medicine Hat Media has been around quite awhile now, coming up on to three years. It hardly seems like that long ago Sean and I didn’t know what we were doing with this. Over these years we have made changes to the format, the layout, the type of posts, community-content and more. One thing that almost stuck out in my mind was the frequency of posts. Our updates are completely random, and has been that way since we started the site… although in the last while we tried to space things out at least a bit intelligently.

It’s long been known to me that this isn’t exactly the best for the readers, relegating to their RSS feeds or the home page to see if anything has changed. Because we can’t commit to anything daily, we want to open a dialog to give your input in this regard. Maybe Medicine Hat Media updates on Satudays and Wednesdays for example. Sometimes it will be 3 posts on Saturday and 1 on Wednesday, or sometimes 1 on Saturday and 2 on Wednesday depending on the amount of content we create or have submitted. Obviously for breaking news, we may update between those dates as well. Again, that is just one of the options and example scenarios. So please vote and please leave a comment describing your thoughts on this.

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Part 2 of my 738 part series (WATT?) What Are They Thinking?

The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) has banned the sale of beers with alcohol content of more than 11.9 per cent because of possible binge drinking. Not liquor or spirits that are generally of a  higher alcohol content, only some specific beers.

Really? What binge drinker or out of control alcoholic is going out buying $114.00 a bottle Sam Adams Utopias?

I don’t know what the normal government process is, but it seems odd that they can just ban products without any legislation or ability to appeal. It appears to be a quicker process than the rest of their business dealings. At any rate, they’ve decided that we can’t be trusted with a Belgian Black or a Doppelbock. Thanks Mom!

The AGLC suspended sales of these beers until a report can determine whether they factor in binge drinking. That report will likely be presented to the AGLC board next spring. Beers under the ban can remain in stores until they are purchased but can’t be re-stocked until the AGLC makes a final decision.

If you have a problem with this regulation, you can direct your concerns to Andrea Kicia, supervisor of product and pricing, liquor supply and distribution for the AGLC – andrea.kicia@aglc.ca.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2010/11/30/calgary-alberta-beer-alcohol-content-ban.html

Full job posting: http://medalta.org/coop_coor.html

Just a reminder that next Thursday, December 2nd is our Olde Tyme Christmas on the Stampede Grounds in Pioneer Village.

FREE admission, hot dogs, hot chocolate, hay rides, and candy canes.

With a visit from Santa and Rroary the Tiger, plus choirs from Eagle Butte and Crestwood schools and the “Town Crier”. Be sure to also take in the Olde Tyme Christmas Market in the Cypress Centre.

*UPDATE*

As of 10:20 a.m. power has been restored to approximately 1,775 Redcliff Electric Utility customers.

As of 10:05 a.m. approximately 1,775 Redcliff Electric Utility customers are without power. The area affected is the north side of Redcliff and the Lockwood area of Redcliff

The power went off at about 8:30 a.m in the north side, affecting approximately 1,500 customers and at about 9:40 a.m. in Lockwood, affecting approximately 275 customers. Crews are working to restore service as quickly as possible.

Customers in the City of Medicine Hat Kin Coulee and Riverside areas were without power for a period of time this morning as well. Their service was restored at approximately 9:20 a.m.

Customers may expect intermittent outages all over the city due to weather conditions. Snow and ice have built up on power lines and high winds are causing the weighed down lines to slap together, triggering the intermittent outages.

For information related to the service interruption, customers may call the Electric Utility Emergency Line at 403-529-8260.