OT New Random Thread 4

[XtremeWpg]

So BC had an election on May 9th, and the Liberal party "won". A non-confidence vote was made today, and it looks like we're gonna end up with the NDP in power for the first time in 17 or so years.

(The BC Liberal party isn't the same as the federal Liberals/Justin Trudeau's party. The BC version is closer to the Conservatives.)

Welcome to the 2017 version of Hot Mess Provincial Politics! We're having a great time in Manitoba! Cut education spending! Close half the cities ERs! Trample on employee rights! Weeeeeeee.

In all seriousness though, we thoroughly got ourselves into this conservative mess, what you guys have going on is something else!

 

[Cheer Dad]

Welcome to the 2017 version of Hot Mess Provincial Politics! We're having a great time in Manitoba! Cut education spending! Close half the cities ERs! Trample on employee rights! Weeeeeeee.

In all seriousness though, we thoroughly got ourselves into this conservative mess, what you guys have going on is something else!

Wait a minute, your closing ERs and cutting education spending?

Why?


**I have a photo album of just dogs on my phone**

 

[XtremeWpg]

Wait a minute, your closing ERs and cutting education spending?

Why?


**I have a photo album of just dogs on my phone**

In a word, austerity.

We had an NDP (exceptionally socialist and spend happy leftist) government for almost 2 decades and they created quite the happy little debt load for the province. Cue the election of the Progressive Conservatives (right of centre, though this particular crew is even more right than usual). We're running a $840 million deficit in this years budget even with the cuts he's made.

While it appears that they've actually added money to our heath care and education budgets, the additional 1.8% and 1.1% respectively don't come close to the rate of inflation.

They're closing ERs under the (in my opinion) misguided notion that centralizing services will eliminate cost waste and wait times. The plan includes the closure of three of Winnipeg's six emergency departments and its existing urgent care centre; two of the emergency departments will be converted to new urgent care facilities.

Now, I'm staunchly socialist. However, I do understand and appreciate the need for cost saving measures. But doing so at the expense of front line services while we have hundreds managers making over $75K a year doesn't really make sense to me.

It's probably also worth noting that I am also a unionist, work for a federal public service union and am currently in school taking Labour Studies and Relations. So my opinions and characterizations of the situation are very coloured by my views on employee rights :)

 

[Cheer Dad]

They (being the Liberals) kind of did the same thing in BC. We used to have end of year standardized Provincial exams for grade 12s that would be used for acceptance into universities. They were mandatory, and now they're optional. There have been multiple teachers strikes under the liberal government, with two lasting more than a month. The hospital system is kind of a mess, too. Granted, it's nowhere near as bad as the situations on a lot of First Nations reservations.

The NDP being in power now is gonna make family dinners fun! (My dad ain't a fan of them, and my grandpa used to refer to Jack Layton as "Vladimir"...)


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Oh to be a fly on the wall for those dinners.


**I have a photo album of just dogs on my phone**

 

[omgitssydthekid]

Does anyone have any tips for finding good deals on cruises? Or does anyone have any affordable cruise lines they would recommend? We are looking for something tropical.


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[Stephie1012]

Does anyone have any tips for finding good deals on cruises? Or does anyone have any affordable cruise lines they would recommend? We are looking for something tropical.


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We used vacationstogo.com a few years ago. Saved us a bunch of money. For a 3 night cruise we ended up paying like $3xx for 2 people.

 

[quitthedrama]

Does anyone have any tips for finding good deals on cruises? Or does anyone have any affordable cruise lines they would recommend? We are looking for something tropical.


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I don't have any deals advice, but I have cruised with Carnival twice and Royal Caribbean once. I thought Carnival was far more fun, the ships were nicer and had more to offer, and the service was much better. I had always heard that RC was more "upscale with better service", but I did not experience that at all.

 

[omgitssydthekid]

I don't have any deals advice, but I have cruised with Carnival twice and Royal Caribbean once. I thought Carnival was far more fun, the ships were nicer and had more to offer, and the service was much better. I had always heard that RC was more "upscale with better service", but I did not experience that at all.

That is great to know, I've been hearing good things from people that have used Carnival!


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[luv2cheer92]

Another vote for Carnival!! I've done 2 Carnival and 1 RC as well and I much preferred the Carnival ones, and they often have great deals.

 

[WinstonsGirl]

Does anyone have any tips for finding good deals on cruises? Or does anyone have any affordable cruise lines they would recommend? We are looking for something tropical.


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Try vacationstogo.com You do have to put in an email, but they don't spam you and you can get lots of great deals. I have a friend who does crazy amounts of cruising and she is always getting great deals from them. I can also get you the number of her travel agent if you're interested. He works over the internet too.

Cheaper cruise lines include Carnival, though with the lower price point, you will get a lot more families and younger people, which may be more up your alley anyway.

 

[CheerBank]

@omgitssydthekid Try Costco. I don't think you need to be a member to use their travel services. We used them to book a cruise to Alaska a few summers ago and we saved over a thousand dollars by booking it through them.

 

[EWalsh1029]

I got engaged last Sunday :cloud9:. We are not starting any planning until September, but I'm already so overwhelmed - don't even know where to start! Any tips or tricks for this MA bride to be :help:

 

[oldcheermom]

Does anyone have any tips for finding good deals on cruises? Or does anyone have any affordable cruise lines they would recommend? We are looking for something tropical.


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My daughter and son-in-law went on a week cruise with Carnival the end of February/beginning of March this year. Three days into the cruise, the ship lost an engine. They slowly limped back to Miami from Puerto Rico for three days on one engine. They were miserable and missed seeing the last two ports. Not how they wanted to spend their vacation. At first, Carnival made a a lame offer to guests, but after many complaints and getting slammed on their facebook page, a much better offer was made. Word was out that they knew about the bad engine before leaving at the start of this cruise. Guests on the next cruise on this ship were also given an offer, due to the broken engine. Check comments on their facebook posts before booking and get travel insurance.

 

[katemarie89]

Any Big Brother 19 watchers out there? There is already so much drama and it just started last week!

 

[WinstonsGirl]

I got engaged last Sunday :cloud9:. We are not starting any planning until September, but I'm already so overwhelmed - don't even know where to start! Any tips or tricks for this MA bride to be :help:

Congratulations!! Such an exciting event!!

Planning should be between you and your Fiancé(e). You two need to decide what you want (big, small, private, elope, etc.)

Budget first. What is it. Who is contributing. Don't count on money from others until it is your hands and remember that if people offer to pay for things, they get a say in how their money is spent. Money comes with strings. Better to plan as if you two were paying and any extra cash that comes in is bonus.

Guest list next. How many people, who do you want. Check with your VIP's to see if your plans work with them (for example, if you want an destination wedding, can they afford it, etc.). Invite in circles if you need to keep the list smaller (immediate family, larger family, friends, work colleagues, etc.)

From here, you can start to look for venues, to see if they fall within your budget. Plan for 100% attendance and never over invite based on what your venue states as maximum numbers.

Once you have a venue/date, look to other vendors - food/drink, flowers, music, DJ, etc.

Use your credit card to pay if possible. You get points and insurance protection in case something falls through. Nothing is finalized until you have made a deposit and have a signed contract. Read them before you sign and make sure you understand them. Yes, it's tedious, but worth it.

People will remember being fed well and being comfortable, not your decor/flowers/etc. Make sure you feed everyone appropriately and well and every butt gets a chair at all times. If someone is invited to pre-wedding parties, they must be invited to the wedding and the reception after (work showers being an exception). If you are on a tight budget, there's lots you can do to get around more expensive celebrations. And have fun. It's an awesome day, but it's only 1 day, and the most important part is that you will be marrying the person you love the most on that day. Enjoy the experience and don't sweat the small stuff. You will still be married at the end of it all.