SEE BARGE BLOG -
ARE WE READY FOR CHANGES IN LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENT?
EFFICIENCIES AND THE RISK OF COMMUNITY IDENTITY?
DO YOU HEAR THE GNASHING OF TEETH? CAN YOU VISUALIZE THE CLENCHING OF JAWS AND RINGING OF HANDS, AROUND OUR TOWN, NOW THAT THERE'S BREAKING NEWS, WE NEED SIGNIFICANT ROOF MODIFICATIONS TO OUR NEWLY REFURBISHED RECREATION CENTRE? WELL, YOU CAN READ YESTERDAY'S BLOG, IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY, AND SUFFICE TO SAY, THINGS ARE GETTING PRETTY HEATED AT MORNING COFFEE THESE DAYS…..AND IT'S NOT JUST THE BISCUITS. THIS ROOFING ISSUE ISN'T THE RESULT OF MISADVENTURE, BUT MORE LIKELY MISCALCULATION, BUT IT STILL REMINDS US THAT THE BUCK STOPS WITH US! WITH ALL THAT'S GOING ON RIGHT NOW, AND A DECLINING FAITH IN GOVERNMENTS EVERYWHERE, THIS LATEST CATASTROPHE IS PRETTY DISCOURAGING TO THE RANK AND FILE WHO LIVE HERE.
I FIND MYSELF IN A POSITION OF GREAT AND UNYIELDING CONTRADICTION, AND CONFLICT OF MY HISTORICAL VALUES, FOR THE REGION I LOVE, AND THE HOMETOWN IN WHICH I DWELL. HONESTLY, OVER THE PAST THREE OR MORE YEARS, I HAVE BEEN AT ODDS ON MANY OCCASIONS, WITH THE ACTIONS AND REACTIONS OF OUR LOCAL COUNCIL. TO THE POINT, AND EVEN RECENTLY, WHEN I HAVE WISHED THERE WAS ANOTHER LEVEL OF GOVERNANCE, THAT WOULD OVER-RULE SOME OF THE DECISIONS OF GRAVENHURST COUNCIL. A KING OR QUEEN, OR GRAND POOBAH, WHO WOULD SAY "ABSOLUTELY NOT…..YOU'RE NOT GOING TO SCREW THE TAXPAYERS EVER AGAIN." I HAVE A PROBLEM WHEN OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS HAVE TO BE INFORMED WHAT STEWARDSHIP RESPONSIBILITIES ENTAIL, AND WHAT WE EXPECT THEM TO UPHOLD AS OUR "STEWARDS," GENERALLY. WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO PETITION AND BROW-BEAT OUR WAY TO RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT. THIS IS MY PERIOD OF WEAKNESS, WHEN I MIGHT JUST SHIFT ONE STEP FORWARD TO JOIN THOSE "ONE GOVERNMENT" PROPONENTS, I'M STILL SUSPICIOUS OF, LOOKING TO MAKE REGIONAL GOVERNMENT MORE COST EFFICIENT AND LESS ADMINISTRATIVELY CUMBERSOME. GET RID OF THOSE BURDENSOME DUPLICATIONS OF SERVICES…..AND WE'LL BE ROLLING IN SURPLUS. WELL, THAT WOULD BE PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE. THE CRISIS IN GRAVENHURST AT THE MOMENT, IS TO STOP THE BLEEDING BEFORE WE'RE EMPTY.
AS I KNOW HOW STUPID IT IS, REALLY, TO SIT DOWN AT THIS KEYBOARD ANGRY, I PULL MYSELF BACK INTO "SERENITY NOW," AND PONDER JUST WHAT IT ALL WOULD MEAN, IF OUR LOCAL COUNCILS WERE TRANSFORMED ENTIRELY, AND THE WEIGHT OF OFFICE SHIFTED TO A STRONGER, CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INSTEAD. AS A LOYAL HOMETOWNER, AND A FORMER REPORTER WITH A FAIR AMOUNT OF MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE, I HAVE MY CONCERNS ABOUT MAKING WISHES THAT MIGHT COME TRUE. IF THERE WAS A VOTE RIGHT NOW, ABOUT WHETHER DISTRICT SHOULD TAKE POSSESSION OF THE NEWLY REFURBISHED GRAVENHURST RECREATION CENTRE, AND MANAGE IT WITHOUT INCREASING THE BURDEN ON TAXPAYERS, WE MIGHT ALL BE SHOCKED BY THE WILLINGNESS TO VOTE FOR "OCCUPATION" TO SAVE US FROM OURSELVES. WHY WOULD WE BE SURPRISED, ABOUT THE RATEPAYERS' IMMEDIATE WISH TO BE UNSHACKLED FROM THIS HIGHLY POTENTIAL, FUTURE MONEY-PIT. THIS WHOLE OVER-BUDGET THING, OF COURSE, IN THE MINDS OF CRITICS, IS FLAPPING LIKE A BEACHED-FISH, SOMEWHERE BETWEEN WHAT WE KNOW AS A BLESSING, AND WHAT WE FEAR AS A CURSE. OF COURSE, PRESENTLY AT DISTRICT, TODAY'S MODEL ISN'T ALL THAT COST EFFICIENT EITHER, AND I WOULDN'T BE COMFORTABLE HAVING THE CENTRE UNDER THEIR MANAGEMENT EITHER. SO WHEN FRUSTRATION HITS ITS PEAK, MANY OF US DO FANTASIZE THAT THE KIND OF NONSENSE, WHICH HAS GONE ON VIRTUALLY UNABATED, WITH THE RECREATION CENTRE, BEING ABOUT FIVE MILLION DOLLARS OVER THE ORIGINAL ESTIMATE, MIGHT BE BETTER HANDLED BY A MORE FINELY HONED, STRICTLY MANAGED REGIONAL AUTHORITY. IT IS A LITTLE TREASONOUS I SUPPOSE. MAYBE A LITTLE FOREWARNING OF MUTINY YET TO COME. RIGHT NOW, THE ONLY WAY TO BRING THIS BABY BACK FROM THE ABYSS, IS TO LEAVE IT IN THE HANDS OF OUR TOWN COUNCIL, AND HOPE AGAINST HOPE THEY PRACTICE MORE SENSIBLE MANAGEMENT THAN WHEN THEY BEGAN THE PROJECT……AND OPTED FOR THE PRESENT ROOF CONFIGURATION.
I'M PART OF A GROWING GROUP, IN THIS TOWN, WHO ARE GETTING REAL CONCERNED COUNCIL HAS LOST CONTROL……AND IT MAY VERY WELL BE A CASE OF THE TAIL WAGGING THE PROVERBIAL DOG AT TOWN HALL. SO YES, AS FAR AS EFFICIENCIES GO, FIVE MILLION BUCKS OVER-BUDGET IS ALARMING, AND THIS GIVES A LOT OF CREDIBILITY TO A MOVEMENT TO CREATE MORE ACCOUNTABILITY…..IMMEDIATELY. BUT THEN I SNAP OUT OF IT, AND THINK ABOUT THE REALITY, WE COULD BE TRADING ONE WEAK GOVERNMENT FOR ANOTHER. THERE ARE HISTORIC ASPECTS TO CONSIDER. PRECEDENTS SET FROM THE LAST TIME GOVERNMENT WAS TWEAKED FOR OUR MUTUAL BENEFIT. HOW'D THAT WORK OUT FOR YOU? AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, YOU WILL STILL COME UPON AN OLDTIMER, OR A DOZEN, LOOKING FOR A GOOD POLITICAL SCRAP, WHO WILL VEHEMENTLY ATTACK THE PLAN THAT KILLED THE HAMLETS AND VILLAGES OF GOOD OLD MUSKOKA, BACK IN THE LATE 1960'S. HARD FEELINGS THIS WAY HAVE ONLY BEEN DIMINISHED BY THE FACT SO MANY OF THE OBJECTORS ARE NOW DECEASED.
BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN I WAS COVERING DISTRICT COUNCIL, FOR THE LOCAL PRESS, THERE WERE THOSE COUNCILLORS THEN, WHO FELT CHANGES WERE NECESSARY TO REDUCE OR ELIMINATE DUPLICATION OF SERVICES, WITH MEMBER MUNICIPALITIES. I'LL BET THERE ARE STILL A FEW FORMER COMMUNITY LEADERS, STILL CURSING THE FORMATION OF REGIONAL REPRESENTATION, IN THE FIRST PLACE, AND THE CREATION OF LARGER MUNICIPALITIES. THEY WERE HAPPY WITH TOWN AND VILLAGE COUNCILS, WITH A LOT FEWER ENCUMBRANCES TO DEAL WITH, TO MAKE EVEN THE MOST BASIC DECISIONS. AS A MATTER OF FACT, NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED REALLY, SINCE THE LATE 1960'S WHEN CHANGE WAS COMING PRETTY FAST TO OUR REGION OF THE PROVINCE. THERE'S STILL A STRONG UNDERTOW OF DISENT, AND A GROWING PUBLIC OUTCRY ABOUT TAX AND DEBT. I THINK THE DEBT IS A TAD BIGGER THAN WHEN I WAS COVERING COUNCIL IN THE EARLY 1980's. IT'S TRUE. YOU CAN'T PLEASE EVERYONE. BUT I'LL TELL YOU WHAT. IT WOULD PLEASE MOST OF US, MOST OF THE TIME, TO PAY LESS THAN WE DO TODAY, IN TAX BURDEN. THERE ISN'T ANY DOUBT WE'RE GOING TO GET HAMMERED IN THE FUTURE. UNLESS, AS SOME CITIZENS DREAM, WE WIN A LOTTERY.
THERE ARE MANAGEMENT ISSUES THAT NEED TO BE ADDRESSED, SO STUFF LIKE THIS DOESN'T KEEP STRANGLING OUR ABILITY TO PAY. IN GRAVENHURST, IT'S SEEMS TO BE HAPPENING TOO FREQUENTLY, AND THE TAXPAYER PICKS UP THE BILL. THIS IS LEADING MANY FOLKS TO GET ONSIDE, WITH THE ONE GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE, AND I THINK GRAVENHURST COUNCIL SHOULD WAKE UP AND SMELL THE PROVERBIAL COFFEE…….BECAUSE THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF. OR IT WILL BE OUR CITIZENS CARRYING THE BANNER, LEADING THE WAY, FOR REGIONAL GOVERNMENT OVERHAUL, IN THE ONE GOVERNMENT MOVEMENT.
NOW FOR SOME GOOD NEWS. AND A SAFE PLACE IN TODAY'S BLOG FOR TOWN COUNCILLORS TO VISIT, TO GET SOME DESERVED PRAISE FOR THEIR INSIGHTS, AND SUPPORT OF THE BARGE RESTORATIONS.
GREAT NEWS FOR GRAVENHURST - REPAIRS AND REINFORCEMENTS MOVING ALONG!
THE NEW SEASON HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED FOR "MUSIC ON THE BARGE."
AS A TAXPAYER, I'M NOT JUST A LITTLE STINGY. I'M A LEGENDARY CHEAPSKATE. SO WHEN YOU READ ABOUT MY SUPPORT FOR RESTORATION OF THE BARGE, YOU WILL APPRECIATE JUST HOW THOROUGH I HAD TO BE FIRST, THAT IT WAS AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE THAT WOULD REPAY ITSELF PROMPTLY. AS A MATTER OF FACT, ALTHOUGH IT DIDN'T GET TO THIS POINT OF CRISIS, THE SUPPORTERS OF THE BARGE WERE READY TO UNDERTAKE A MAJOR FUNDRAISING PROJECT, TO PUT OUR MONEY WHERE OUR BIGGER THAN BIG MOUTH WAS! THIS IS HOW MUCH WE CARE ABOUT THAT WOODEN ISLAND, WHICH HAS BECOME SUCH A NEAT TRADITION IN SOUTH MUSKOKA. IF WE KNEW THAT IT WAS GOING TO CONTINUE COSTING THE TOWN A FORTUNE IN MAINTENANCE, OUR SUPPORT GROUP WOULD HAVE BEEN EAGER TO PURSUE ANY OTHER RESPONSIBLE, COST REDUCED PLAN, TO KEEP THE CONCERT SERIES FROM EXPIRING. WE HAD LOTS OF BACK-UP PLANS. WE WERE VERY PLEASED THAT THE TOWN AGREED WITH US, THAT IT SHOULD BE SAVED, AND RESTORED AS AN INVESTMENT. NOT AS A DRAIN OF CASH FROM TOWN COFFERS. WE KNOW WHAT WE CAN AFFORD. AND AS WE HAVE RAISED FUNDS TO HELP PURCHASE BARGE EQUIPMENT IN THE PAST, WE'LL DO IT AGAIN TO SHOW CO-OPERATION WITH THE TOWN.
YOU KNOW WHEN YOU EXPERIENCE ONE OF THOSE PRECARIOUS MOMENTS IN LIFE, WHEN AN INCIDENT OCCURS, AND YOU SIMPLY, FOR MORTAL AFFIRMATION, HAVE TO PINCH YOURSELF, TO MAKE SURE YOU'VE MADE IT SAFELY OUT THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TWISTER. YOU DUST YOURSELF OFF, REMOVE THE BRANCHES STUCK IN YOUR UNDERWEAR, AND OFFER A LITTLE PRAYER OF THANKS. YOU SEE, FOR THE BETTER PART OF TWO YEARS, THERE WAS A CONSIDERABLE DOUBT ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE BARGE. I REMEMBER, LAST SUMMER, WRITING SIX OR SEVEN MAJOR BLOGS, AS I WAS DRIPPING WITH SWEAT, IN A MODEST BUT DETERMINED ATTEMPT TO GET SOME ATTENTION DIRECTED, AT THE FAILING CONDITION OF THE BARGE. I ACTUALLY BEGAN CHISELING THIS OUT, DURING THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S MUNICIPAL ELECTION, LOBBYING COUNCIL HOPEFULS, TO PUT THIS RESTORATION PROJECT ON THE PRIORITY LIST. SOME OF THE CANDIDATES WHO AGREED, WELL, THEY DIDN'T WIN THE ELECTION.
IT WASN'T ONLY THE CRUMBLING DECKING, OR BROKEN PIERS, CAUSING CONCERN. IT WAS THE FAILING HOPES AND ASPIRATIONS OF THE BARGE MANAGER, WHO WAS ADMITTEDLY FEELING A LITTLE NEGLECTED BY THE FOLKS HE WORKED FOR, WHEN OBSTRUCTIONS AT THE PARK, AND FOR HIS ADMINISTRATION OF THE EVENTS, JUST KEPT POPPING UP WEEK AFTER WEEK…..ALL ADDING TO THE DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY MANAGING THE SHORT BUT DEMANDING SUMMER CONCERT SERIES. FRANKLY, I WASN'T SURE WE WERE GOING TO BE ABLE TO CONVINCE THE TOWN, IT WAS A VENUE WORTH SAVING. AND FOR SOME TIME AFTER, WE STILL HAD TO LOBBY AND PETITION, ON A VARIETY OF LEVELS, TO KEEP THE LIGHT SHINING AS THEY SAY……ON THE POLITICS OF SAVING THIS HERITAGE STRUCTURE. WE KNEW WE HAD OODLES OF PUBLIC SUPPORT, AND OFFERS OF DONATIONS TO KEEP THE CONCERTS GOING, BUT THE COST WAS GOING TO BE MUCH GREATER THAN WE HAD INITIALLY THOUGHT. AT A TIME OF AUSTERITY, AND TAXPAYER FATIGUE, WITH OTHER TOWN DEPARTMENTS BITING THE BULLET, AND HAVING TO PUT WORTHY PROJECTS ON HOLD, WE REALLY FELT LIKE WE WERE BALANCING ON THE THIN EDGE OF A RAZOR. I THINK FRED MAY STILL FEEL LIKE THIS, ESPECIALLY DELIVERING THE BIG CROWDS THIS SUMMER, TO PROVE THAT THE INVESTMENT WAS JUSTIFIED. WELL, ALL OF US CONNECTED WITH FRED, AND THE BARGE, FEEL THIS WAY. WE'D BELIEVE IT TO BE A PERSONAL, GROUP FAILING, IF WE LET THE TOWN DOWN, BY NOT LIVING UP TO THE PROMOTIONS, AND STANDARDS WE'VE BEEN PEDDLING FOR TWO YEARS. I'D SAY "THE PRESSURE'S ON," BUT THE REALITY IS, FOR FRED AT LEAST, IT'S JUST NORMAL PRE-CONCERT-SERIES JITTERS. HE'S BEEN HAVING THEM FOR DECADES. WE'RE RELATIVE NEWCOMERS TO THE WORRY PART. THAT'S WHY FRED HAS ALWAYS BEEN A GOOD INVESTMENT AS A MANAGER, WHETHER ON THE BARGE, OR WHEN HE WAS AT THE HELM OF THE OPERA HOUSE. THE FACT HE TAKES HIS JOB SO SERIOUSLY THAT HE SWEATS BLOOD, MEANS INCREDIBLE ATTENTION TO DETAIL, BEFORE, AFTER AND DURING EVENTS……AND A PERSONAL COMMITMENT, THE EVENT, AS MUCH AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE, WILL BE SUCCESSFUL. JUST TRY AND TALK TO HIM BEFORE AN EVENT. HE KNOWS WHO YOU ARE, BUT THERE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO FOCUS ON. NOTHING PERSONAL. YOU CAN TALK TO HIM AT THE END OF THE SHOW, TO FIND THE "OTHER" FRED. THE RELAXED MASTER OF CEREMONIES. THE MAN AT EASE. FINALLY.
WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW, AS CASUAL VISITORS, OR OCCASIONAL SHOW GOERS, IS THAT ALL THOSE FOLKS IN THE CROWD, WHICH CAN NUMBER INTO THE MULTI THOUSANDS, HOLD HIM TO ACCOUNT. IF THE SHOW DOESN'T CONNECT WITH THE AUDIENCE, YOU SHOULD HEAR THE VOICE MAIL THE NEXT DAY. I KNOW HE LOVES HIS JOB, EVEN WITH SOME ANGRY PATRONS NOW AND AGAIN, BUT I WOULDN'T SWITCH PLACES EVEN ON A DARE. HE DOES MORE WORK THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE, PULLING THIS SUMMER SERIES TOGETHER. HE'S GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE TO KEEP HAPPY, AND AS YOU CAN APPRECIATE, HIS ULTIMATE BOSS, IS A FULL TOWN COUNCIL. IT'S A LITTLE ROUGH WHEN SOME COUNCILLORS DON'T KNOW WHAT GOES ON AT THESE CONCERTS, AND THEY'VE HAD TO AGREE TO MAJOR CUTS IN THE DEPARTMENT'S SPENDING……TO KEEP THE BARGE OPERATIONAL. IT'S LIKE HE'S ONE OF THE FLYING WALLENDAS, CROSSING NIAGARA FALLS ON A VERY THIN ROPE. HE'S PRETTY GOOD AT IT, BUT HE KNOWS WHAT A MIS-STEP MEANS.
Like thousands of other folks, we love Rotary Gull Lake Park. And we sure delight, when Fred Schulz begins that spring-time tradition, of spreading around the familiar "Music on the Barge," pamphlets, beginning with the preliminary offering in early May, listing the acts we can expect to see when the summer festival begins in late June. The later brochure that Fred uses for event nights, will have some companion ads from local businesses and sponsors. Fred uses this as a "thank you" hand-out, when the kind collection-takers make their rounds, trying to drum up a little financial support during those magnificent summer evenings. But the first notices are now out, and it's looking like another highly entertaining season. Suzanne and I have already been leveling the earth on our special picnic site, on the shoreline, just to get in the mood for those Sundays in the park.
This has been a tough year for Fred Schulz, and all those informally bound-together, as "Friends of the Barge." For the past two years, the condition of The Barge platform has been in rough shape, and without us even knowing it, some of the iron posts had been sheared in two pieces, by years of ice shifting on the lake. Not only were the boards nearing the "see-through" stage, but the rear railing wouldn't have supported a budgie let alone a husky drummer, or upright bass player. If you were to go down to Gull Lake park now, you'd be able to see how deep and intrusive the surgery, had to be, to keep this half century old platform in use. It was a close call for Fred and all of us, who plan our summers around the Concert Series. We might travel out of the area during the week, but by golly, never on a Sunday. Our boys Andrew and Robert, and friends Luke Thompson and James Lucibello, have been working with Fred for years now, and it's become one of those traditions you don't measure by either remuneration or volunteer hours. It's just being a part of a highly entertaining, wonderfully appointed, night in the park. Amongst concert loyalists, we know what we like, but it's just something that's hard to put into words. I guess you might say, The Barge and the Concert Series, has become a "comfort zone" for us, without strings attached. Hundreds of us haul our jammed picnic lunches down the park hillside, some as early as mid afternoon, on concert Sundays, and make a day of living the good life in Gravenhurst.
So when there was a real potential that The Barge would have to be closed for a lengthy period for refurbishing, or removed entirely, a few of us were looking for rehab. As it is, on Sundays before the series begins and immediately following, we still bring our picnics and watch all the lakeside activities…..and just hope that some roaming musician, will wander on stage and entertain us. To think we might have had to go without this venue, was very disturbing, and particularly for Fred, who has become one and the same, as the music series he promotes. It's like he inhaled the responsibilities, and even by his own admission, it's almost impossible to think of retiring from active service as manager of The Barge. "What would I do on Sunday nights?" he asks. I'm pretty sure, that even if he didn't have concerts to run, he'd still be phoning his weather sources to get the evening's outlook. Just out of habit. I once said to him, that even if he was strapped onto a gurney, unable to walk the plankway out to The Barge, his mates would see to it that we "honor guarded" him out to the microphone, even by crane-drop, to welcome everybody to the concert on The Barge, and then introduce the group, before being wheeled to the side……where he would still fidget about, worrying whether amps were plugged in properly, and the sound was perfect for the audience. No kidding. We talk about stuff like this, and usually, when he, for some strange reason, starts pondering when that eventual retirement might occur, and why. He knows all about the inevitability that one day, he'll have to turn it over to a new generation of concert promoters. It becomes incumbent then, for the friends of The Barge, to let him know he can not retire, ever, and that we will come for him every Sunday night, right to the edge of the pearly gates, to bring him back to keep an important tradition……for all of us…..including him, alive and kicking.
I'm grateful to the town for following through on this matter of stewardship, and at the same time, believing folks like me, who have made some pretty tall claims about the popularity and investment value of this venue's health and welfare, to our community at large. I hope they will take a much greater interest, in Music on the Barge, than in the past, and study the level of support for the program and for their friend Fred Schulz. Never underestimate how many friends he has. If you don't believe me, ask him why he prefers to remain on The Barge when concerts begin. Even at intermission, he is reluctant to head to the washroom. Well, as he'll tell you, in his own diminutive way, he gets mobbed by people who want to talk with him…..long time friends, neighbors, loyal concert goers, and first timers, who feel compelled to let him know, what a kind service he's providing to the permanent and seasonal residents of Muskoka. Not just Gravenhurst. Now there will be some councillors who read this, and think me quite mad, for making such an assertion. Fred's not Jesus after all. Well, you can stop in at Andrew Currie's Music and Collectibles, and speak with my sons Andrew or Robert, and they'll give you all the testimony you need, to validate this claim of popularity. It isn't that Fred doesn't want to meet his supporters. Rather it's the fact he is obsessive to the highest level, about being on The Barge during the business of the evening. He feels obliged to be within a few feet of the band, the electrical service (in case there is a problem), and as captain of this ship, to be aware of everything else going on in the park. He has a pretty good vantage point for most of it, and the boys fill him in, about activities on the other side of The Barge, and even what's going on at the beach. If Fred had been captaining the Titanic, he'd have missed that iceberg. To say that Fred takes his job seriously, is to measure the man accurately. You will not distract him during a concert engagement. You will find him open to conversation, when The Barge lights dim and extinguish, and his vehicle is loaded to the hilt with equipment. This is what we all want as a quality for our captain. Work before play. But does he enjoy it! Mostly when it's over. When the Good Brothers are packed up, and the customary "shaking of the hands" occurs, Fred can let his hair down. Just a figure of speech. But that's how much pressure he feels, to execute a perfect season. Well, perfect would be rain-free.
Now this year, Fred is under a little bit more stress, to move storm systems by mind-power. He's been known to mind-shift a few clouds, from time to time, but he really can't do much about a summer cyclone. Unfortunately, with inadequate alternative sites, with very limited seating, even in the newly refurbished Recreation Centre, and the Opera House in use otherwise, Fred has the heart-breaking responsibility now, of having to cancel concerts entirely due to bad weather. This was done for years, with relocated events, being held instead, in the Terry Fox Room of the former Centennial Centre, and then for the last two years, at the Opera House. But the workload and the complications associated (especially turning people away), has simply become unmanageable for all those who help with the concerts. So it is new this year, that rainouts will mean total cancellation of the event. This will drive Fred crazy, because he hates turning any one away, and I'm sure if it was possible, he'd run concerts through a monsoon. He has, if I heard correctly, acquired a rain shelter, to house electronic equipment on stage, for short-lived rain events, hopefully buying a little time……like at an open-air baseball game, to ride out inclemency. It won't make him happy to announce that the rain has won, but at least he will have given it the old college try. I'm still betting he'll use his psychic skills to turn around rainy weather.
We're all enormously happy that it has worked out for Fred, and what had seemed an imminent closure of The Barge venue, has been thwarted, for what may well be considered, a new beginning for two veterans……..a wooden island in Gull Lake, and a well travelled master of ceremonies, both with a lot left to give. It would be nice this year to see many more council representatives at the Sunday night concerts, to see up close and personal, what their investment of tax dollars will earn in dividends for years to come. They will, you see, find that many of those fannies on the hillside, and on the park benches, and huddled close together on picnic benches, are from neighboring communities, and even greater distances away, who wish their towns and cities had as nice a venue, as our lovely little Barge, out in the sparkling bay of picturesque Gull Lake. If interested councillors take a drive around, just before, and just after the concert, they will see the rush for ice cream cones, and variety store items, and watch concert-goers lined-up at the local gas stations, and restaurants, before they head home. As for Gravenhurst's permanent and seasonal residents, well sir, we'll proudly extend our hands of welcome, and feel fortunate about what we have to share, as assets, in our little town.
Thank you for joining today's blog. Please join me again soon.
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