Gravenhurst Economic History Needs To Be Understood Before Editorials Blaze; Captain Fraser On The Muskoka Lakes

BREAKING NEWS
      HOW LONG FOR GRAVENHURST POST OFFICE? WE'VE ALL EXPECTED THAT CANADA POST WAS GOING TO CARRY ON WAYS AND MEANS TO CUT COSTS. THE NOTICE WE RECEIVED IN OUR MAILBOX TODAY ANNOUNCES THAT THE FIRST STEP OF MORE LIKELY TO COME IS A REDUCTION OF HOURS OF SERVICE WHICH IS NOT A HUGE DISADVANTAGE FOR CUSTOMERS AT PRESENT. THE HOURS ARE MONDAY TO FRIDAY 9 AM TO 5 PM. BUT IT'S ONE OF THOSE LETTERS THAT WE HAVE BEEN EXPECTING AND MANY OF US SNAIL MAIL LOYALISTS EXPECT ANY YEAR NOW TO RECEIVE ANOTHER OF THESE NOTICES, THAT WILL TELL US THE OFFICE ON THE MAIN STREET, BENEATH THE OLD CLOCK TOWER, WILL BE MOTH BALLED. SO LET'S US THE POST OFFICE ON MUSKOKA ROAD AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WHILE WE STILL HAVE IT.


WHEN THE EXPERTS AREN'T REALLY EXPERTS AT ALL - HOW IS IT POSSIBLE THEY COULD BE SO MISGUIDED, BUT BE SO DARN QUOTABLE?

WHAT I MEAN BY CALLING A COUNCIL "WEAK"

     THERE IS A FAMOUS SCENE FROM THE MOVIE, "ANNIE HALL," STARRING DIANE KEETON, AND WOODEN ALLEN, THAT IS MY MOST DRAWN-UPON LIFE SCENARIO. ESPECIALLY IN GRAVENHURST. A VALUABLE LIFE LESSON IN FACT. HONESTLY, IT REMINDS ME OF MEMBERS OF OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT, BOTH ELECTED AND ADMINISTRATION, IN ASSORTED DEPARTMENTS; PLUS ALL THE TALKING HEADS ASSOCIATED WITH OUR MULTI-LEVEL MARKETING GROUPS. CALL IT THE EXPERT-IN-ALL-FIELDS SYNDROME. OR, THE "I KNOW MORE THAN YOU DO," APPROACH, TO WINNING FRIENDS AND INFLUENCING OTHERS. I LIKE CHATTING WITH EXPERTS, AND I READ THE WORK OF THOSE AUTHORS, I CONSIDER QUALIFIED, TO ANALYZE WHAT NEEDS TO BE ANALYZED. SO HERE'S THE SCENE. MAYBE YOU'VE SEEN IT! THE BIG MOUTH STARTS PLAYING THE ROLE OF LITERARY EXPERT. BUT OOPS. THE REAL EXPERT IS STANDING BEHIND. WELL, THIS IS AWKWARD!
    IT STARTS IN THE LINE-UP FOR A MOVIE, WHERE THE CHARACTERS, PLAYED BY KEETON AND ALLEN, ARE STANDING, LISTENING TO SOME SELF-APPOINTED EXPERT, EXPLAINING THE "MEDIUM IS THE MESSAGE" PHILOSOPHY, PUT FORWARD BY NEW AGE COMMUNICATION GURU, MARSHALL MCLUHAN. WOODY ALLEN TURNS TO THE MAN, AND INTERRUPTS, TO SUGGEST HE IS WAY OFF BASE, AND HAS NO IDEA WHAT MCLUHAN'S TEACHINGS REPRESENT. WHEN THE GENTLEMAN ARGUES BACK, INDICATING HIS QUALIFICATIONS, THE REAL LIFE MCLUHAN STEPS FROM THE CROWD, TO POINT OUT, FACE TO FACE, THAT THE SPEAKER HAS NO SERIOUS UNDERSTANDING OF HIS THEORIES, OR HIS WORK. NOW TELL ME. HOW MANY TIMES, YOU'VE FOUND YOURSELF IN A SIMILAR SITUATION, AND HAVE FANTASIZED, THAT YOU COULD ALSO CALL-UP AN EXPERT, TO DEBUNK THE JERK, WHO HAS BEEN BENDING YOUR EAR WITH FALSEHOODS. IT'S A GREAT SCENE, AND IT HAS A POSITIVE MESSAGE, TO ALL THOSE SELF-APPOINTED EXPERTS, WHO MAKE ERRORS IN JUDGEMENT AND CAUSE COLLATERAL DAMAGE, AS THE INAPPROPRIATE SUMMATION, GETS PASSED DOWN THE LINE.
     WE HEAR AND READ A LOT OF THIS FAULTY LOGIC, AND MISUNDERSTOOD HISTORY, BEING IN OUR RETAIL POSITION ON MUSKOKA ROAD. I WAS ONCE AGAIN, READING IN THE LOCAL "WEEKLY," ABOUT THE RECESSION THAT HURT THE WHOLE DOWNTOWN / UPTOWN BUSINESS COMMUNITY, OVER THE PAST DECADE OR SO; AND IT WAS JUST ONE OF DOZENS OF SIMILARLY OFF-BASE, POORLY RESEARCHED OVERVIEWS, OFFERED BY TOWN ADMINISTRATORS, WHO BELIEVE THAT BY LIVING HERE, ALL OF FIFTEEN MINUTES, THEY ARE THE "MCLUHAN'S" OF THE LOCAL ECONOMY. HAVING, ACCORDING TO SELF PROCLAMATION, INTIMATELY STUDIED WHAT'S WRONG WITH US POOR-BASTARD RETAILERS, TRYING TO EKE OUT A LIVING HERE IN SOUTH MUSKOKA. AFTER READING AN ARTICLE, CARRYING SUCH AN UNDER-WHELMING OVERVIEW, OF JUST WHAT HAS BEEN WRONG WITH US, AND WHAT IS SO WILDLY WONDERFUL NOW, I HAVE ONE THING TO SAY TO COUNCIL HOPEFULS; IF YOU GET ELECTED, PLEASE DEMAND THAT THESE PEOPLE BE HELD IN CHECK, AND TUTORED PROPERLY, OR EVEN MUZZLING THEM FROM THE MEDIA WOULD BE GOOD TOO. I'M A DIE-HARD BELIEVER IN FREEDOM OF THE PRESS, BUT GOSH, HAVING THIS TRIPE HITTING THE PRESS, IS REALLY STARTING TO WEIGH DOWN BUSINESSES, THAT ARE ACTUALLY DOING QUITE WELL. SOMETIMES WE THINK THAT OUR SUCCESSES MUST BE IN OUR MINDS, IMAGINED, AND INVENTED, BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN OVERVIEWED AS PART OF THIS ECONOMIC DOWNTURN FOR SO LONG, IN OUR RETAIL HISTORY, IT ALMOST WANTS TO STICK. GADS, WHEN WE TURN TO OUR ACCOUNTANT, AND SHE TELLS US WE'VE BEEN IN THE BLACK FOR ALMOST OUR ENTIRE BUSINESS LEGACY, WE FEEL JOYFUL, AND RELIEVED, BUT WE DON'T KNOW HOW TO EXPLAIN OUR PROSPERITY, TO THOSE WHO PREACH DOOM AND GLOOM. THEY WILL DISLIKE EVEN MORE. SO WE JUST GO ON OUR MERRY WAY AND IGNORE THEM. UNTIL, OF COURSE, THEY BROAD STROKE US AGAIN, INTO THEIR CONVENIENT MANTRA, ABOUT THE SKY EITHER FALLING, OR THE FACT WE NARROWLY MISSED GETTING CLOBBERED, AS LUCKY CHICKEN LITTLES.
     I'VE WRITTEN ABOUT THIS OFTEN, IN THE PAST THREE YEARS, BUT IT DESERVES TO BE REPEATED. I HAVE NEVER ONCE IN MY PROFESSIONAL YEARS, AS BOTH A COMMUNITY JOURNALIST, OR REGIONAL HISTORIAN, EVER ONCE TURNED ANYONE AWAY, FROM STUDENT TO SENIOR EXECUTIVE, WHO HAD A QUESTION ABOUT MUSKOKA CULTURE OR HERITAGE. SEEING AS I HAVE LIVED AND BREATHED THIS STUFF FOR ABOUT FORTY YEARS, AND HAVE WRITTEN ABOUT IT FOR THIRTY-FIVE OF THOSE YEARS, AND BEEN ON TWO MUSKOKA MUSUEM DIRECTORATES, WOULDN'T YOU THINK IT RESPONSIBLE, FOR SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T KNOW THEIR LOCAL HISTORY, BUT WANTS TO MOUTH-OFF ABOUT IT, TO GIVE A GUY LIKE ME A CALL, OR PAY ME A VISIT, TO MAKE SURE THEIR STATEMENTS ARE ACCURATE; AND WELL, LET'S JUST SAY, VALIDATED BY SOMEONE WHO KNOWS? WELL, HERE'S WHY THEY DON'T. CRITICS OF GOVERNMENT IN ANY FORM, ARE BAD. JUST PLAIN BAD. SCARY, DANGEROUS PEOPLE. BEING RIGHT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. STAY AWAY FROM PEOPLE WHO KNOW, BECAUSE THEIR SO BLOODY ANNOYING.
     WHILE I CAN'T BE BOTHERED WRITING COPIOUS LETTERS TO THE PRESS, TO REMIND THEM OF THEIR JOURNALISTIC RESPONSIBILITIES TO GET ALL SIDES OF THE STORY, FROM MULTIPLE SOURCES, I JUST WANT TO SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT ABOUT OUR OWN STAKE IN THE MAIN STREET BUSINESS COMMUNITY; NO THANKS TO ANY OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED GROUPS, GOVERNANCE, OR TALKING HEADS, WHO CHERISH THE SOUND OF THEIR OWN VOICES. ALTHOUGH IT WOULD BE A FROSTY DAY IN HELL, BEFORE THESE SELF PROCLAIMERS, WOULD EVER WILLINGLY STEP INTO OUR SHOP, TO HAVE A LOOK-SEE, OR TO HAVE A MEANINGFUL DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO BE SUCCESSFUL AS AN UPTOWN RETAILER, (NOW BY THE WAY, IN YEAR ELEVEN), AFTER SIX PERIODS OF EXPANSION,.... WHAT A GLORIOUS VICTORY IT WOULD BE. ONE DAY, TO ACTUALLY HAVE THESE JUNIOR EXPERTS, COME IN FOR A CHAT, WITH SOMEONE WHO KNOWS A LITTLE MORE THAN THEY DO, ABOUT THE ECONOMIC, SOCIAL / CULTURAL HISTORY OF MUSKOKA; THAT WOULD HELP THEM UNDERSTAND JUST HOW SHALLOW THEIR MEDIA-QUICK ASSESSMENTS REALLY ARE, TO THOSE WHO KNOW BETTER. I DON'T HAVE MUCH USE FOR PROFESSIONALS, WHO DON'T SWEAR AN ALLEGIANCE, TO THE VALIDATION PROVIDED TO ANY RESEARCH, BY THE DEDICATED EXERCISE OF DUE DILIGENCE.
     WHEN I THEN OFFER THE BLANKET ASSESSMENT, THAT THE PRESENT GRAVENHURST COUNCIL IS WEAK, THIS IS SOMEWHAT THE INFORMATION I USE TO MAKE MY DETERMINATION. THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO OVERVIEW WHAT MAKES IT FROM TOWN HALL, TO THE NEWS PAGES OF THE LOCAL PRINT OR ELECTRONIC MEDIA. WHILE COUNCILLORS ARE RELUCTANT TO TALK TO THE MEDIA, EXCEPT OFF THE RECORD, BEING WHAT I ASSUME "HALF-MUZZLED," STAFF SEEMS TO HAVE SOME EXTRA LIBERALITIES, THAT I DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND. ESPECIALLY WHEN I CAN POKE HOLES IN THEIR STATEMENTS EASILY, AND I'M A LESSER EXPERT THAN SOME OF MY HERITAGE-PROFESSION COLLEAGUES. IT'S ONE THING TO KEEP BRINGING UP THE HARD-LUCK STORIES ON THE MAIN STREET, AND HOW MANY YEARS WE'VE BEEN IN WHAT, A TOWN OFFICIAL CLAIMS, WAS A "RECESSIONARY" PERIOD, SIMPLY BECAUSE HE CHOSE THE WORD "RECESSION," WHICH I SUPPOSE IS BETTER THAN IF HE HAD OFFERED-UP INSTEAD, "DEPRESSION," OR "ECONOMIC CALAMITY." THE FACT, THAT ONCE AGAIN, WE HAVE BEEN DENIED AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS OUR COUNTERPOINT, ABOUT THIS ALLEGED BUT UNPROVEN RECESSION CLAIM, INDICATES THE TOWN SHUN IS STILL ON; BECAUSE YOU CERTAINLY WOULDN'T WANT TO TALK TO OWNERS OF A BUSINESS, THAT HAS BEEN GROWING AND PROSPERING FOR THE PAST ELEVEN YEARS. TO SUPPORT THE TOWN CONSENSUS, AND WHAT THE BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS LIKE TO PASS OFF AS THE TRUTH THESE DAYS, I UNDERSTAND WHY YOU WOULD WANT TO KEEP THE INFORMATION-POOL A LITTLE SHALLOW. AS FOR A REPORTER, THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR UNDER-RESEARCHING AN IMPORTANT STORY. WE, IN OUR BUSINESS, WOULD OFFER A MUCH DIFFERENT PROFILE, AND PERSPECTIVE, OF WHAT HAS BEEN CONTRARY ALONG THE MAIN STREET; AND IT DOESN'T HAVE AS MUCH TO DO WITH ECONOMICS, AS AN END RUN, AS IT DOES AN ASKEW, SHARED ATTITUDE, THAT HAS BEEN THIS WAY, FOR AS LONG AS WE'VE OCCUPIED OUR STORE-FRONT. WE DON'T PLAY THEIR REINDEER GAMES, AND WE WON'T BE BULLIED, AND THIS IS NOT AN ENDEARING QUALITY, IN ORDER TO BE PART OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. WELL, WE SCRUTINIZE OUR ACTIONS PRETTY CAREFULLY, AND WE WON'T BE OFFERING AN APOLOGY TO ANYONE FOR OUR PART, IN A BUSINESS SUCCESS STORY; WHICH OUR CUSTOMERS AND SPECIAL GUEST ARTISTS KNOW WELL ENOUGH. WE'VE GONE WELL BEYOND NEEDING THE SUPPORT OF THIS TOWN, TO OPERATE FROM THE MAIN STREET. THIS, IN A NUTSHELL, IS THE REASON A LOT OF BUSINESSES DON'T PERFORM BETTER. THEY LISTEN TO THE WRONG ADVICE.
     SO ONCE AGAIN, WE WILL ANSWER TO OUR CUSTOMERS, FROM ALL OVER THE PROVINCE, AND COUNTRY, PAYING ATTENTION TO THEIR CRITIQUES AND OVERVIEWS, REGARDING THE DYNAMIC AND QUALITY OF OUR BUSINESS. WE WORK FOR THEM. OUR CUSTOMERS, WHO WILL PROBABLY READ, OR HEAR, ABOUT HOW LUCKY IT IS, WE HAVE SURVIVED THE MOST RECENT RECESSION ON OUR MAIN STREET, WILL ASK US DIRECTLY, HOW WE MANAGED TO BEAT THE ODDS. WHEN THEY ENQUIRE HOW BATTLE-WEARY WE MUST BE, HAVING SUFFERED FROM SO MUCH ECONOMIC DISPARITY FOR SO LONG, WE'LL JUST LET THEM KNOW, WITH A LITTLE WINK, THE PRESS ISN'T ALWAYS RIGHT, THE ELECTRONIC MEDIA FOLLIES WITH ITS MINUTE LONG OVERVIEWS, AND THE GENERALIZATIONS OFFERED BY THE BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS, ARE WEAKLY PROPORTIONED, AND FACTUALLY "HERE AND THERE" BUT NOWHERE IN PARTICULAR.
     I'D REALLY LIKE TO SEE A NEW MAYOR AND COUNCIL, TAKE A WALK-ABOUT SOME TIME, ALONG THE MAIN STREET THAT THEY KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT. VISITING ALL THE BUSINESSES, NOT JUST THE ONES WHO FIT WHAT THE BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS' CONSIDER MODEL RETAILERS. WE'VE SEEN A LOT OF THIS IN THE PAST YEAR, AND IT'S THE REASON THEY WILL NEVER, EVER, GET AN ACCURATE PICTURE OF WHAT'S GOING ON; SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY REFUSE TO LOOK, AND PERFORM THEIR DUE-DILIGENCE, BY STEPPING OUTSIDE THE PROVERBIAL BOX. COUNCIL COULD START BY BETTER INFORMING ITSELF, AND THEN EXPECT, BY SERIOUS INTERVENTION INTO BOTH THESE ASSOCIATIONS, A MORE AMBITIOUS EFFORT TO FACT-FIND BEFORE SHOOTING FROM THE HIP, AS THEY SAY. AS LONG AS THEY HAVE COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES SITTING ON BOTH BOARDS, THEY DO HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO INTERVENE, WHEN THINGS AREN'T GOING WELL. WOULDN'T IT BE A GREAT CHANGE, FOR THESE GROUPS TO BE A TAD MORE SELF-CRITICAL OF THEIR PERFORMANCE FAILINGS; AND STOP COVERING OVER THE SHORTFALLS AND FAILINGS, WITH THE RUG OF PROPAGANDA. COUNCILLORS NEED TO ADDRESS WHAT THESE FOLKS ARE GETTING AWAY WITH, ALLEGEDLY ON OUR BEHALF. THEY HAVE TO STOP SPEAKING FOR US. WE CAN SPEAK FOR OURSELVES.
     KEEP IN MIND, THAT IT WAS BOTH THE BIA AND THE TOWN, IN COLLABORATION, THAT BOOTED THE WINTER CARNIVAL MASCOT, SKOKIE, OFF THE MAIN STREET, THIS PAST FEBRUARY. WAS IT A CASE OF THE TAIL WAGGING THE DOG. THE BIA COULDN'T BY ITSELF, HAVE TURFED-OUT SKOKIE, BECAUSE THERE WAS NO VOTE TAKEN AMONGST MEMBER BUSINESSES. WE WEREN'T ASKED, AND WE'RE BIA MEMBERS. THEN, THE TOWN CAPITULATED, AND IN MY MIND, THAT MAKES THEM PARTNERS IN A MOST RIDICULOUS SITUATION. THE WINTER CARNIVAL ACTIVITIES WERE MOVED AWAY FROM THE MAINSTREET, AND OPERA HOUSE, BECAUSE OF THIS, AND I HAVEN'T HEARD ONE APOLOGY FROM EITHER OF THESE GROUPS. TOWN COUNCILLORS REALLY LOOKED BAD ON THIS ONE, BUT I SUPPOSE, UNLESS I BRING THIS UP AT THE ALL CANDIDATES MEETING, IN OCTOBER, THEY WILL HAVE BEAT ANOTHER FAILING OF GOVERNANCE BY THE PASSING OF TIME. THEN THERE ARE THE NEW STOPS SIGNS AT THE TOP OF LAKEVIEW CEMETERY, WHICH, LET ME TELL YOU, ARE ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS, BUT AN EXAMPLE WHY WE NEED SOME NEW BLOOD ON COUNCIL.
     IF YOU'RE HONESTLY LOOKING FOR THE A RESEARCHED PROFILE, OF THE ECONOMIC SITUATION ON THE MAIN STREET, WE'LL GIVE YOU AN INSIDE SCOOP; AND PROVIDE YOU WITH A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY, ABOUT THE CENTURYS' TUG-OF-WAR, IN THE TOURISM INDUSTRY. YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME TO DROP IN AND SEE A GRAVENHURST SUCCESS STORY IN ACTION. OR, CHECK OUT THE COMMENTS ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE, BY CLICKING ON "facebook.com/curriesmusic". If we were doing crappy, and had been failing for all those years, in this apparent recession environment, do you really think we'd be here today? Not bloody likely! We'd have moved to Bracebridge, which I honestly feel like today, when I read this ongoing drama about main street disadvantages, finally being brought back to life by new business investment. Give me a break. Geez, it's nice to know these new businesses, have saved ours. Someone should have told us in advance, how the hatched story was supposed to read, so we wouldn't have been so surprised; the fact that they have made everything all right after all our years trying, but failing to find success. I just don't get these people, who feel they have a right to make these statements, without footnoting, that they're either new to town, or have just opened their shop, and have a lot to learn. By the way, one of the new businesses that was saving us, and our main street, has now closed after only a couple of weeks. Maybe they should have talked with a successful business as a first step. As for the marketing associations, and the town helping us succeed, I don't think we'll go there. This laptop would catch fire from the friction of my typing intensity.
     Running for council? What have you got to lose, talking to a business that defies the negative image? Unless of course, you also feel that to defend oneself, is discreditable conduct.
     There's a terrible disconnect in this small town, and we're getting fed-up with it, especially with the explosion of self purported experts, who aren't experts at all; yet their comments are gobbled up by a press, that still finds it hard, actually impossible, is better stated, to drop into one of the most visible main street businesses, just to check out their facts and overviews for accuracy.
     As far as expecting, that a future town council, will think something like this is important, and due diligence worth the extra effort? Sadly we have no expectation, that we will ever have more influence with these misguided administrators, than to continue, year after year, to prove them wrong; and then laugh to ourselves, as their helter skelter approach, continues to be that vicious cycle of perpetual frustration. "Try to prove us wrong. We dare you!"
     How many Town of Gravenhurst Council members, have been in our shop in the past eleven years? Two this term. Three the term before. Three out of the five total visits, were to ask for our assistance, in the music enterprise. Only one has visited as an actual councillor. It was a very brief visit, that all told, was more whistle-stop than either council business or partly social.
     How many councillors do you see on the main street daily, weekly, monthly? Not many, and it's not habitual, except for dart-in to the bank or to get gas. What message should we get from this rarity of appearance thing? Their indifference is striking, and with the exception of grip and grin photos, for store openings, and maybe a trip to the Opera House (to make use of comp. tickets?), we're likely to find hen's teeth on the sidewalk first.
     The first and only shortfall, that's important to me? The reality, that to get their information, on the state of the main street, means they also have to take submissions from others, as supposed gospel. Second hand information. A crappy substitute for face to face dialogue, from business owners, who all have their good, bad, and ugly stories to share. This is what has to be corrected. We need town councillors who aren't afraid of a little leg-work, and public relations activity, by first of all, visiting main street, and for that matter, all our businesses; that is, if they want the word on the street, from the stake-holders. Instead of the left of centre musings, from the plethora of non-experts, who continue to make judgements on the rest of us; because their position affords the luxury.
     We really like Gravenhurst, but admittedly, in our hearts, we are finding it harder each year, to brush off the reckless oversights and overviews, as just the character quirks of small town living. It is the root cause of disharmony, and needs be cleaned up by a new town council.
     I've earned my stripes as an historian, in Muskoka, by unforgiving trial and error, and more scrutiny from my peers than you can imagine; so when I claim to be "the expert," commenting on what history tells us about business successes and failures, imbedded as we are, in the tourism industry, there is nothing unfounded in my overview and generalizations. I have no fear of being challenged by the "McLuhan" factor. Bring it on!
     The new Gravenhurst Councillors (I've given up on the old ones) have to lead by example. A start, would be to show a willingness, to upgrade their knowledge of town history. You can't understand this community today, without knowing its chronicle. I've even offered to give free history lessons for candidates, because there is no down-side to enlightenment. Do you suppose I will have any takers? Not bloody likely! Well, it shows, that they're so confident in their capabilities, by past performance, that they don't need upgrading. They're perfect the way they are! They also don't like to be shown, they're wrong about that assumption. You know, I've never subscribed to the learning curve scenario, because I simply don't believe it is a curve at all; we need to be learning constantly, and there is no age limit. Just think how amazing it would be, if instead of the staunch, know-it-all perspective, our new councillors actually felt instead, a true civic responsibility and pride, wanting to know more of the town's history, in order to govern with more sensitivity, and sense of precedent?
      Each new term of office I hope against hope, this will be the case. Each new term, I am disappointed, when it all reads again, as "second verse, same as the first."


FROM THE ARCHIVES

FOLK STORIES PUT THE COLOR BACK INTO HISTORY

     IT IS A LONG FORGOTTEN FOLK TALE NOW, ABOUY A FORMER BRACEBRIDGE BUTCHER, WHO THREW AN ADVERSARY OVER THE BIRD'S MILL BRIDGE, BECAUSE  AS THEY SAY, DEAD MEN TELL KNOW TALES.
     REDMOND THOMAS Q.C. WHO DEFENDED MURDER SUSPECT, GEORGE CYR, FOR KILLING THREE OF HIS FRIENDS, DURING A ROBBERY, HEARD THE MAN'S CONFESSIONAL BEFORE HE WAS HUNG, APPARENTLY TO EASE HIS CONSCIENCE. THE GALLOWS HAD BEEN SITUATED AT THE TOP OF BRACEBRIDGE'S CHANCERY LANE. THOMAS KNEW WHERE THE HANDGUN HAD BEEN HIDDEN BY CYR, WHO THOUGHT HE'D GET OFF THE RAP, IF A "SMOKING" GUN COULDN'T BE LOCATED. HE WAS WRONG. HE WAS BURIED BESIDE THE GALLOWS, IN A BATH OF FAST ACTING LIME, SUPPOSEDLY TO SPEEDILY DISSOLVE ALL HIS MORTAL REMAINS.
     FLYING SAUCERS HAVE BEEN REPORTED, IN THE SKIES OVER MUSKOKA, ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS,  IN THE PAST. (WE'LL REVISIT THIS TOPIC IN A FUTURE BLOG.)
     ARE FOLK STORIES IMPORTANT TO THE APPRECIATION OF LOCAL HISTORY. WELL, IN MY OPINION, IT WOULD CERTAINLY BE A LOT LESS FUN TO RESEARCH.

    WHEN I WORKED AT SOUTH MUSKOKA MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, IN BRACEBRIDGE, AS A SUMMER SEASON PAINTER, TO PAY FOR UNIVERSITY, (CIRCA EARLY 1970'S) I HAD NO IDEA REALLY, WHAT MY FUTURE HELD IN STORE. I HAD AN IDEA THAT IT WOULD INVOLVE WRITING TO SOME DEGREE, AND POSSIBLY HISTORY, BUT IT KEPT BANGING AROUND IN MY HEAD, THAT BOTH PROFESSIONS COULD RUIN ME FINANCIALLY. EVEN BEFORE I GOT STARTED. BOTH PROFESSIONS DID NOT PROMISE BIG PAY CHEQUES, UNLESS I COULD SPECIALIZE, OR BECOME A TEACHER. MY GIRLFRIEND GAIL, AT THE TIME, HAD ACTUALLY SECURED A JOB IN COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY, BEFORE SHE GRADUATED UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO. I HAD A LOT OF CATCHING UP TO DO, CONSIDERING I WAS ON THE JOB HUNT A YEAR BEFORE HER.....WITH NEXT TO NO LUCK. THERE WASN'T A LOT OF DEMAND FOR HISTORIANS JUST THEN. THE MARKETPLACE HASN'T REALLY IMPROVED EITHER.
    SO IN THOSE WARM-UP YEARS, I JUST LISTENED AND LEARNED FROM  WHOEVER I WAS ASSOCIATED, AT THAT TIME, THAT MOMENT, TO GET SOME ON THE JOB TRAINING. I WAS, YOU MIGHT SAY, AN OPEN CANVAS.
     AT COFFEE TIME, TWICE A DAY, I'D HAVE MY CHANCE TO SIT WITH SOME FINE CHAPS, OF SENIOR YEARS, WHO WOULD SWAP STORIES IN OUR ROUND-TABLE BREAKS, AND FOLKS, IT WAS THE BEST EDUCATION IN LOCAL HISTORY I COULD HAVE SECURED ANYWHERE, FOR ANY PRICE. AND YES, IT WAS LIKE AN EXTRA TUTORIAL TO ADD TO MY UNIVERSITY STUDIES IN CANADIAN HISTORY. I HEARD STORIES THAT HUGELY CHANGED MY OPINION ABOUT BRACEBRIDGE AND MUSKOKA HISTORY, EVEN BEFORE I KNEW MUCH ABOUT IT, EXCEPT BY MY OWN IMMERSION AS A KID GROWING UP IN A SMALL TOWN, IN A BEAUTIFUL REGION.
     IT WAS WHEN I BEGAN TO APPRECIATE THE OFTEN PROFOUND DIFFERENCES IN WRITTEN AND ORAL HISTORIES; THE FUNDAMENTAL HISTORY THAT WAS IMPRINTED IN BOOKS, AND WHAT WAS MORE LIBERAL AND EXCITING, IN THE ORAL VERSION, OF THE SAME OR SIMILAR STORIES. IN OTHER WORDS, I LEARNED QUICKLY, FROM THEIR TAKE ON COMMUNITY EVENTS, POLITICIANS AND LOCAL NOTABLES, THAT THERE WAS MUCH MORE ABILITY TO BEND TRUTH, AND EMBELLISH, THAN WITH THE SAME STORY SET IN TYPE, AND BOUND INTO A BOOK. WHEN I STARTED WORKING AT THE HERALD-GAZETTE, AND BEGAN MY CLOSE APPRENTICESHIP WITH ROBERT BOYER, A WELL KNOWN WRITER / HISTORIAN, THE LIBERALITIES BETWEEN ORAL AND WRITTEN VERSIONS OF HISTORY, WERE THEN MILES AND MILES APART, EVEN THOUGH THE FACTS ESSENTIALLY REMAINED THE SAME. BOB BOYER WAS NOT A STORY TELLER, AT LEAST IN MY OPINION, AND HE COMMUNICATED WITH ME, WHEN I HAD A PARTICULAR QUESTION FOR A FEATURE ARTICLE, BY HANDING ME A COPY OF ONE OF HIS BOOKS, SO THAT I COULD EXERCISE MY RESEARCH SKILLS, AND FIND THE ANSWER MYSELF.
     AT THE HOSPITAL COFFEE SESSIONS, I HAD THE RARE OPPORTUNITY, TO HEAR FOLK TALE INTERPRETATIONS, OF OUR REGIONAL HISTORY, FROM OLDTIMERS, LIKE BILL "WILLY" ANDISON," WHO KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT LIFE ALONG THE FRASERBURG ROAD; KEN DAWSON, STEAM ENGINE TRACTORS ON THE FAMILY FARM, ART COULSON, LONG TIME RESIDENT IN PURBROOK, FRANK HENRY, HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATOR, WHO CAME FROM A STEVENS BAY ROAD FARM BACKGROUND, BILL BENNETT, WHO MADE ROPE BOAT BUMPERS FOR JOHN NEWARK, DOUG FITZMAURICE WITH A LONG BACKGROUND IN MUSKOKA LAKES, JACK HIGH AND GEORGE JACKSON, WHO WERE MASTER STORY TELLERS ABOUT EVERYTHING RELEVANT TO HISTORY AND CONTEMPORARY LIVING. I NEVER HAD ONE DAY, IN THE COMPANY OF THESE FINE GENTS, THAT I WASN'T TUTORED ABOUT LIFE AND TIMES IN MUSKOKA, PAST AND PRESENT. BUT THESE STORIES WERE NOT QUITE THE SAME, IN THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT, OF WHAT WAS BEING IMPRINTED AND PUBLISHED. BOB BOYER'S PROFILE WAS LEAN AND MEAN, WITHOUT ANY EMBELLISHMENT. IN HIS EYES, HISTORY WAS BEST SERVED BY FACT; NO NEED TO PAD. MY MATES AT THE HOSPITAL, PUT THE COLOR COMMENTARY OUT THERE, ADDING SOME CHARACTER TO THE BLACK AND WHITE OF HISTORY. BY THE WAY, I WAS TOLD EARLY IN MY HOSPITAL YEARS, BY MY BOSS, KEN DAWSON, OF THE MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT, THAT "WHAT I HEARD HERE, REMAINED HERE, WHEN I LEFT HERE." I DIDN'T NEED TO BE TOLD TWICE. BUT WHAT I LEARNED, UNDER THEIR MENTORSHIP, WAS THAT THERE IS ALWAYS A STORY BEYOND THE BARE BONES, AN HISTORIAN SHOULD AT LEAST BE AWARE OF, BECAUSE EVEN WITH FOLK TALES, THERE WAS HONESTY WITHIN.....IT JUST TOOK A LITTLE SLEUTHING TO GET AT THE BLOATED FACTS.
     WHEN I THEN, (AS FOR THIS BLOG), REFERENCE THE WORK OF CAPTAIN LEVI FRASER, I'M NOT SUGGESTING HIS ACCOUNT WAS MORE FABLE THAT FACN, JUST THAT HE IS TELLING HIS STORY, FROM HIS MEMORY OF EVENTS,  IN HIS OWN UNIQUE WAY, AS A NAVIGATOR MORE SO THAN A PURITAN HISTORIAN. WE SHOULD HAVE NO REASON TO QUESTION THE FACTS OF THE STORY, BECAUSE HE HAD VERY GOOD RECALL. YET WE HAVE TO APPRECIATE THAT HE WASN'T TRAINED AS AN HISTORIAN, AND HE WAS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS ABILITY TO SPIN A YARN WITH, AS THEY SAY, "THE BEST OF THEM." SO IN THE STORY TODAY, THERE IS A LITTLE OF BOTH. HISTORICAL RECORD AND EDITORIAL LICENSE TO PRESENT THE STORY WITH THE BEST INTENTION. HERE NOW IS THE STORY TOLD OF THE SMALL STEAMSHIP, "LAKE JOSEPH," BETTER KNOWN AS THE "LAKE JOE."
     IN THE WORDS OF CAPTAIN LEVI FRASER: "I DO NOT REMEMBER THE SPRING 20 YEARS AGO (CIRCA 1922), BUT IT WAS BY NO MEANS THE EARLIEST OPENING OF NAVIGATION. ONE SPRING, ALONG ABOUT 1900, WE OPENED NAVIGATION ON APRIL 4TH, WITH THE OLD STEAMSHIP, 'LAKE JOSEPH,' FAMILIARLY OR AFFECTIONATELY KNOWN AS THE 'OLD JOE.' ALTHOUGH THE ICE WAS OUT EARLY THAT YEAR, IT WAS IN NO OTHER SENSE AN EARLY SPRING. THE DAYS WERE CLOUDY AND WINDY AND THE NIGHTS BITTERLY COLD. IT WAS NOTHING UNUSUAL TO FIND THE BAYS FROZEN OVER IN THE MORNING FOR A MONTH AFTER WE HAD BEEN RUNNING. THE OLD JOE WAS EXPECTED TO RUN IN THOSE DAYS, TWENTY-FOUR HOURS PER DAY. THAT SPRING WE WERE EXCEPTIONALLY BUSY AND IT NOW SEEMS TO ME THAT WE MUST HAVE BEEN DOING OVER-TIME.
     "MANY THRILLING TALES COULD BE TOLD OF THE EXPLOITS OF THE OLD JOE. THERE ARE FEW SHOALS IN THE LAKES THAT HAVE NOT, AT SOME TIME, OR OTHER, COME IN CONTACT WITH HER KEEL. YET SHE INVARIABLY CAME THROUGH WITH SOUND TIMBERS AND UNDAMAGED MACHINERY. THAT SPRING WE HAD LOGS TO TOW FROM VARIOUS POINTS ON THE THREE LAKES. I RECALL GOING INTO A LONG NARROW BAY, BETWEEN JUDDHAVEN AND SANDY BAY FARM, FOR A BLOCK OF CEDAR LOGS ONE HOUR BEFORE DARK. IN ORDER TO CLOSE THE BLOCK WE HAD TO RUN SOME BOOMS BEHIND IT. A LIGHT WIND WAS HOLDING THE LOGS SHOREWARD WHICH MADE THE JOB DIFFICULT AND SLOW. IT WAS NOW GROWING DARK BUT WE NEVER THOUGHT OF LEAVING THE JOB UNTIL FINISHED. JIM MCCONNELL WAS BOSS LONG-MAN, TOM BRUCE WAS MADE AND ASSISTANT LONG-MAN, SO WE THREE WORKED AWAY IN THE FADING LIGHT TO CLOSE THE BOOM. NOW AND THEN A SPLASH COULD BE HEARD AND WORDS NOT LEARNED IN SUNDAY SCHOOL, FLOATED THROUGH THE SEMI-DARKNESS. ALONG ABOUT TEN O'CLOCK WE COMPLETED THE JOB, ADJUSTED THE TOWLINE AND THE OLD JOE STRUCK HER CHUGGING STRIDE FOR AN ALL-NIGHT PULL. THE WIND BY THIS TIME HAD GONE DOWN AND IT WAS FREEZING COLD. MCCONNELL AND BRUCE AFTER REMOVING THEIR WET CLOTHES, WENT TO BED AND I TO THE WHEEL."
     THE WRITER RECALLS, "FOUR OR FIVE HOURS LATER, AS WE WERE APPROACHING WHAT IS NOW WIGWASSAN LODGE (TOBINS ISLAND, LAKE ROSSEAU), AT THAT TIME JUST A GREEN POINT, WE ENCOUNTERED FRESH ICE AND HALF AN HOUR LATER, WE WERE AT A STANDSTILL. THE ICE HAD BECOME SO THICK THAT WE COULD NOT PULL THE BLOCK ANY FURTHER, NOR COULD WE GET TO SHORE TO TIE UP. SO WE STOPPED THE ENGINE AND WENT TO BED. I WAS AWAKE AT DAYBREAK BUT WE WERE STILL FAST IN THE ICE. IT WAS SEVERAL HOURS LATER THAT AN EAST WIND AND THE OLD KENOZHA FROM ROSSEAU, BROKE UP THE ICE. WE THEN PULLED THE BLOCK ASHORE, TIED IT UP IN A SHELTERED BAY AND RAN BACK TO BOYD'S MILL TO TAKE A SCOW OF LUMBER DURING THE DAY, AND TOW THE LOGS DURING THE NIGHT. A WEEK LATER WE HAD THE CEDAR BLOCK IN ROWAN'S BAY, BIG ISLAND, AND WERE WATCHING FOR A CALM NIGHT TO TOW IT ACROSS TO GRAVENHURST. ABOUT TEN O'CLOCK ONE MOONLIT NIGHT SOON AFTER, EVERYTHING LOOKED FAVORABLE, SO WE LEFT FOR BIG ISLAND. THE OLD JOE WHEN RUNNING LIGHT WOULD GO FOR MILES STRAIGHT AS AN ARROW WITHOUT TURNING THE WHEEL. SO WHEN WE CAME ABREAST OF GOWAN ISLAND, AND STRAIGHTENED AWAY ON THE GRAVENHURST ROUTE, OUR BOW WAS POINTING DIRECTLY AT CAPTAIN PARLETT'S LITTLE GEM OF AN ISLAND, ONE MILE AHEAD.
     "THIS COURSE COULD BE HELD FOR THREE-QUARTERS OF A MILE WITHOUT MOVING THE WHEEL. IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL CLEAR MOONLIT NIGHT, JUST A FAINT RIFFLE OF WIND. EVERYTHING SEEMED QUIET AND STILL. I WAS DREADFULLY WEARY, AND HAD BEEN ON DUTY TWENTY-ONE HOURS A DAY FOR THE WHOLE WEEK, AND NOW THERE WAS NOTHING TO DO FOR A FEW MINUTES BUT TO REMAIN AWAKE AND WATCH THE OLD JOE AS SHE CHUGGED SMARTLY ALONG. COULD I REMAIN AWAKE? I THOUGHT I COULD. I RESTED MY CHIN ON THE WHEEL, WITH MY EYE ON THE LITTLE ISLAND AHEAD. I REMEMBERED ST. ELMO, OFF OUR PORT BEAM; CHIEF ISLAND (DR. BRIDGLAND'S SUMMER HOME) WAS FALLING ASTERN - THEN SOMETHING HAPPENED. THE SCENE CHANGED! INSTEAD OF THE LITTLE ISLAND AHEAD, A HUGE SEA MONSTER SEEMED TO BE RUSHING ACROSS THE LAKE AT A TERRIFIC SPEED, AND MY LITTLE SHIP WAS RIGHT IN ITS PATH. I SEEMED TO BE ALONE ON THE SHIP, BUT I REALIZED THAT WHATEVER WAS DONE HAD TO BE DONE BY ME.
     CAPTAIN FRASER RECORDS OF THAT MISADVENTURE, "IN AN INSTANT I WAS ON MY FEET, AWAKE, WITH ALL MY MENTAL FACULTIES FULLY RESTORED. THERE WAS NO SEA MONSTER IN SIGHT BUT A BOAT'S LENGTH AHEAD, LAY CAPTAIN PARLETT'S LITTLE ISLAND, WITH THE OLD JOE RUSHING MADLY FOR ITS ROCK-BOUND SHORE. I GAVE THE SIGNAL FOR FULL SPEED ASTERN BUT REALIZED THAT NOTHING NOW COULD PREVENT THE BOAT STRIKING THE ISLAND. I WONDER IF THE SPEED OR RANGE OF THE HUMAN MIND IN A CRISIS HAS EVER BEEN CALCULATED? IN THE FEW MOMENTS BEFORE THE BOAT STRUCK SHORE, MY WHOLE LIFE SEEMED TO PASS IN MENTAL REVIEW. I REMEMBERED THAT, AS A SCHOOL BOY, I HAD ALWAYS LOVED TALES OF THE SEA, ALWAYS ADMIRED SUCH MEN AS BRAVE JOHN MAYNARD, THE OFFICERS AND MEN OF THE BIRKENHEAD; THE MEN WHO WENT DOWN TO THE SEA IN SHIPS WERE MY HEROES. THEN WHEN AN OPPORTUNITY OFFERED A CHANCE TO GO SAILING, HOW EAGERLY I GRASPED IT. FROM THE BEGINNING I WAS DETERMINED TO MAKE GOOD AND GET TO THE TOP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. I REMEMBERED THE THRILL OF PRIDE IT GAVE MY DEAR OLD MOTHER WHEN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SECOND SEASON I HAD GONE HOME TO TELL HERE THAT I WAS NOW MATE TO CAPTAIN MORRISON.
     "AND NOW, AT THE EARLY AGE OF TWENTY-FOUR, I HAD FAILED WHILE IN COMMAND OF MY FIRST BOAT, WITH THE INK SCARCELY DRY ON MY MASTER'S CERTIFICATE, WHICH ONLY A FEW NIGHTS BEFORE I HAD SO PROUDLY SHOWN TO THE LITTLE GIRL WHO WAS WEARING MY RING. WHAT WOULD SHE THINK OF ME NOW? WE HAD ARRANGED TO SIGN OUR DECLARATION OF WAR AT THE CLOSE OF THE SEASON, BUT THE CLOSE OF THE SEASON NOW APPEARED TO BE COMING TO AN ABRUPT CLOSE AND FOR ME AN IGNOMINIOUS ONE. THE JOE WOULD BE PILED ON THE ROCKS AND IN ALL PROBABILITY A TOTAL WRECK AND PERHAPS LIVES WOULD BE LOST; IF SO A COURT OF INQUIRY FOR ME, STERN-FACED OLD SEAMEN WOULD BARK QUESTIONS AND IN THE END MY PRECIOUS CERTIFICATE WOULD BE CANCELLED AND I WOULD BE A DISHONORED OFFICER, A TERRIBLE PRICE TO PAY FOR TWO MINUTES' SLEEP.
     "WHILE ALL THESE MEMORIES WERE PASSING THROUGH MY MIND, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE BOAT AND THE ISLAND WAS RAPIDLY SHORTENING, THE INEVITABLE CRASH WOULD COME IN A MOMENT. COULD NOTHING BE DONE? HAD MY GUARDIAN ANGEL FAILED ME? IN THE SHADOW OF SOME OVER-HANGING BOUGHS, HIDDEN FROM THE MOONLIGHT, LAY A GOOD SIZED LOG; ONE END ON THE SHORE, THE OTHER HALF-SUBMERGED IN THE WATER. I NOW NOTICED IT FOR THE FIRST TIME. IF I COULD ONLY SWING THE BOAT SO AS TO HIT THE LOG, IT WOULD AT LEAST SOFTEN THE IMPACT AND PERHAPS SHEAR HER OFF. SOME AGENT WAS AT WORK IN MY FAVOR, PERHAPS SOMEONE WAS PRAYING AND THAT LOG WAS THE ANSWER, FOR IT SURE SAVED THE OLD JOE. SHE STRUCK, CLIMBED HIGH ON THE ISLAND, ROLLED HEAVILY TO PORT, BUT THE LOG WAS UNDER HER KEEL. THE PROPELLOR WAS NOW GETTING A FIRMER GRIP AND SLOWLY THE BOAT BEGAN TO SLIDE BACK, THE LOG ROLLING, BUMPING, GROANING AND GRINDING; THE OLD JOE WAS STEADILY GOING ASTERN. IT SEEMED AS THOUGH SHE WOULD NEVER DETACH HERSELF FROM THAT ISLAND BUT FINALLY, AFTER SEVERAL MORE ROLLS AND BUMPS, THE SHIP WAS ONCE AGAIN FLOATING CLEAR."
     LEVI FRASER CONCLUDES, "I RUSHED TO SEE WHAT DAMAGE WAS DONE, BUT STRANGE TO SAY THERE WAS NONE. WE RAN A QUARTER MILE TO WHERE OUR LOGS WERE, DOWN IN ROWAN'S BAY, TIED UP AND WENT TO BED FOR A FEW HOURS. I WAS COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED. I HAVE SPENT MANY SLEEPLESS NIGHTS WHEELING A BOAT DURING THE LAST FORTY YEARS BUT ALWAYS MANAGED TO KEEP MY BOAT FROM DANGER. MANY INTERESTING STORIES COULD BE TOLD OF HAPPENINGS ON OR AROUND BIG ISLAND."
     IF YOU HAD ALL KINDS OF EXPECTATIONS, ABOUT THE OLD JOE BEING CRUSHED IN A GIGANTIC SMASH AGAINST THE ROCKS, AND THE OCCUPANTS BEING KILLED IN THE COLLISION, THE BOAT SINKING AS A RESULT, THEN YOU HAVE BEEN MASSAGED BY A WONDERFUL STORY-TELLER, BY THE NAME OF LEVI FRASER.
     I DON'T WORK AS AN HISTORIAN, DEALING WITH FOLK TALES ALONE. BUT IT WOULD BE AWFULLY DULL, WITHOUT THEIR COMPANY, DEPICTING OUR REGIONAL CHRONICLE. AS FOR CAPTAIN FRASER'S WORRY ABOUT THE GUARDIAN ANGEL FALLING ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL? GUESS HE WAS WRONG. IT APPEARS HEAVEN MAY HAVE HAD A HAND IN SAVING THE LIVES ON THIS HARD WORKING LITTLE STEAMER, PLYING THE MUSKOKA LAKES.
     THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING FRED SCHULZ AND I TODAY, FOR THIS LOOK BACK IN TIME....ON OUR LESSER KNOWN MARINE HERITAGE. PLEASE COME AND VISIT AGAIN, AS WE CONTINUE TRAVELLING THROUGH THE HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY OF OUR FAIR REGION OF ONTARIO.