Wet "Willy" & Gandalf, RIP

I promised the little sister in her Blog that I'd be covering CBC's Greatest Canadian, and I won't dissappoint, but I have some more personal and important business at the moment.

That business involves the death of two of my good friends, Wet "Willy" and Gandalf. They were wonderful little fishies and they were brutally cannibalized Thursday night.

Wet Willy or just "Willy" for short was a soft tempered purple betta (Siamese Fighting fish) and the first of the gang of fish that I currently have. He was famous for allowing you to pet him as you fed him... he'd come right up to the surface and let you pat his head. Willy was found near the clay cylinder, fins eaten.

Gandalf was an unually shy Plecostamus. Although when he first joined the tank he would often be spotted giving anything that approached him a swift swat with his tail, he soon became shy and withdrawn. Any time that the tank light was turned on, he would instantly dash to cover in the clay tube. I was never sure if he was getting his food as he would rarely venture out untill I had turned off the lights and left. No remains of Gandalf were found, thus leading me to beleive he was completely consumed.

I went out this afternoon and bought a new Pleco, he hasn't been named yet although the idea of staying with the Lord of the Rings theme has come up. Shawna suggested Saruman, I thought Frodo. We were going to buy a new betta, but I am waiting for the tank to clear out then I plan to restock it with a more tropical blend of fish. Just hope the new pleco can keep it goin'.

Well enough eulogy for one day. Now about great Canadians.

I wanted to do a post on the Greatest Canadian show not only to put in my two cents, but also to refute a few things my sister said on her blog. So here we go in no particular order.

Wayne Gretzky - It has to be said that anyone who's father is a celebrity just because his son is famous has to be pretty hot shit. That said, Walter Gretzkys son hasn't acheived anything that could be considered all-round great. He's managed to make himself and many other perople alot of money by being the best to ever play his sport, but he's never changed the country. One could argue that he's helped bring the nation together both in his hockey career and after with his affiliation with Team Canada, but one could make the same argument for "Rocket" Richard, Gordie Howe, Mario Lemiux or any of the other greats in hockey. This is one of the two or three in the top ten, not to mention the top 100 that should have made room for greater men (and women?) To me greatness involves putting your balls on the line for something that might be unpopular or really change the way the world sees things... all Gretzkys done is get rich and nailed a playboy bunny.

David Suzuki - Ok my sister got her view of Mr. Suzuki waaaaaay wrong on her site, but she's young so we'll let it pass. She seems to think David is nothing more than a CBC personality. I digress. Although his popularity is derived mainly from his docu-series "The Nature of Things" he has been a spokesperson for the environmental movement for decades, an accomplished genetisist and a veteran of Canadian - Japanese internment camps during WWII. I see him more fondly I think because I was into the "environmental" thing in the early 90's and he was a big part of that. I think that David Suzuki is great because he's stood up for whats right and educated us as to whats wrong, not only in Canada but around the world.

Alexander Grahm Bell - The only great that will be on three nations list. I've never really considered him a Canadian as he lived in Canada for so short a time and never did any of his great work in Canada, but I can't deny his greatness. Not only is he the inventor of one of the most important tools in use today, that laid the groundwork for the information driven world we live in, he is also changed the world for the deaf. His innovation and determination make him great... I just don't know about Canadian.

Lester B. Pearson - The candidate I knew the least about going into this. I knew he introduced the current flag, but that was about it. Who knew the guy won a damn Nobel Peace Prize. I don't so my\uch think Mr. Pearson was an idea man, but he certainly was one to put his balls on the line to get things done. Medicare, CPP, and the UN Peacekeepers were all ideas implemented by Lester B. Pearson. Pretty damn good for a guy who only spent 5 years in Parliament, and then only with a minority government.

Sir John A. McDonald - One of two knights on the list, this guy is one of the founding fathers of Canada and our first Prime Minister. NOt only did he manage to keep everyone together during those tumultuous beginning times, he also managed to create the railway that would connect and bind the country together. And being an alcoholic, his Canadian roots can't be denied. One of my favourite quotes is attributed to him After being called a drunk by a local debutant he replied "'Mam, I may be a drunk, but you're ugly, and in the morning, I'll be sober."

Sir Frederick Banting - The second KNight on the list, this guy makes it possible for diabetic everywhere to get painful needles on a daily basis. OK ok, I know its not that bad and having a friend and a step-cousin who's lives are enhanced and maintained by insulin, his greatness doesn't come into question for me.

Don Cherry - Well here's a humdinger. Ok, so I don't think that Don Cherry is so great that he deserves to be on this list... and neither does Don Cherry. "Grapes" as he is affectionately called is renowned for his flamboyant dress and hard edged commentary on Coaches Corner, a segement on the national favourite "Hockey Night in Canada". NOw Cherry's devoition to his opinions, national pride and modesty may make him a great canadian, it certaintly shouldn't put him in the top 10... probably not even in the top 50. That's what happens when you let the people choose... DEMOCRACY DOESN'T WORK! For the record I think Grapes is hilarious and a real hockey fan... just not a great Canadian... how about we give Louis Riel, Romeo Dallaire, Rick Hansen or even Mr. Dressup this spot instead.

Pierre Elliot Trudeau. - Dickweed. Ok so I'm from Western Canada, so OF COURSE I hate Trudeau. Leave it to a sexy prime minister with a slutty pothead wife to make this list. Yeah his wife was caught toking with Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. Anyway I don't think that any man who would sell out half his country to benefit the other half should be allowed on such a prestigious list, hung would be more fitting. Let's give Mike Meyers this one.. .at least HE makes me laugh.

Terry Fox - Brave and inspired. Racked by cancer, he could have easily layed back and fought it in private and no one would have though any less of him. Instead at the right youn age of 21 (younger than me even wow!) he chose to attempt to run across Canada with only one real leg to raise awareness of cancer and raise funds for research into its cure. Although the diease would ultimately kill him before he had even half completed the marathon, his hope and determination spawned the rest of the world to finish for him. This guy inspires me to get out of bed some days.

Tommy Douglas - IF this guy doesn't win greatest Canadian, he'd better win Greatests Saskatchewanian. Father of Medicare, and the man who brough Saskatchewan from the stoneage to the modern world ... all while keeping the budget balanced, this mna could do no wrong. And he lived in my hometown of Weyburn for a few years, so he's my choice!


So there we have it. Although as I mentioned in some places, a few of these in my opinion shouldn't even be there, here's my list of favourites from the list compiled by CBC.

10 . Pierre Trudeau
9. Don Cherry
8. Wayne Gretzky
7. Alexander Grahm Bell
6. Sir John A McDonald
5. Sir Frederick Banting
4. Lester B. Pearson
3. David Suzuki
2. Terry Fox
1. Tommy Douglas

Incidentally Terry Fox and Tommy Douglas are pretty much tied for first in my mind... Tommy being a homeboy is why I chose him.

NOW GET OUT THERE AND VOTE!!!