The sun burst through on a glorious Sunday morning, a welcome reprieve from the dark and wet six weeks we've survived in Parksville Qualicum Beach.
People, dogs, birds — seemingly every living thing — crawled out of their caves and went to a park near a beach. Without a jacket, people tossed balls to canines or each other. They smiled and sucked in the sunshine.
It was a beautiful day to be a resident of Parksville Qualicum Beach. Like most days, really. Rain or shine.
After a few thoughtless, enjoyable moments with our where-ya-been? friend Sol, more serious questions popped up in the minds of all. This was one of those queries:
Where's Ross Perot when you need him?
Today our cousins to the south head to the voting booths to choose a new president. We are not envious of their task.
In a way, the U.S. presidential election has given us reason to be thankful. And wedged right between Canadian and American Thanksgiving Days, that seems appropriate.
As bitter and divided as politics can be here, especially in two-party B.C., it's a Boy Scout picnic compared to what's been going on south of the border.
Will the result of today's finale in the Hilary Clinton/Donald Trump slugfest have any real effect on the day-to-day lives of us in Parksville Qualicum Beach? It's a good question and perhaps both 'yes' and 'no' can be correct in this instance.
It's the most powerful country in the world, the Excited States of America. Militarily, perhaps economically. And it's our neighbour and friend, has been since about 1850 after a strained early relationship included a war around 1812 (which we won, just saying).
Most Canadians, perhaps more than 80 per cent, live within an hour or two of the Canada/U.S. border. If, say, a president named Trump intensifies hatred for the U.S., that could unleash any number of repercussions, many of which could detrimentally affect the safety and/or economy of Canadian families.
So yeah, this election is relevant to us. But the other day, even the weather seemed more important.
— Editorial by John Harding