So it is that time of year once again when
little ones are wide eyed waiting for what wondrous things the little
man in
the red suit is going to leave under the Christmas Tree on Christmas
Day, and
your loving better half is wondering if hubby remembered that little
fur number
she had so casually mentioned as they passed the store one day in June.
If on the trees the leaves still hold,
The coming winter will be cold.
Felt weather-stripping glued to the underside
of rocking chair runners will cut down on noise and scratched floors.
YOU GUESS THE
VERDICT
When a 7-year-old Cub Scout yanked Santa’s (AKA George)
beard off at a
Christmas party, George slapped the youngster.
It was the first time George, who had played Santa Claus for
more than
20 years, ever smacked a child. He told
the court he reacted without thinking and meant no harm.
The prosecutor said that was no excuse for
slapping a little child. Was George
guilty of a crime?
HOW WOULD YOU HAVE RULED? HERE’S
WHAT THE COURT SAID: Guilty of simple assault.
His sentence: apologize to the child.
Illegal to gossip about your neighbours on
Christmas Day in one small Indiana town?
Yes, the community of Santa Claus passed laws prohibiting such
activities as “talking behind another person’s back”, “unwarranted
gossip on
the town square”, and “lying without cause about others.”
Each of these infractions is not against the
law on any other day except Christmas.
How about doubling your gift.
When giving homemade cookies for Christmas, include the
recipe with your
treats. This not only gives folks the
ingredients, but also lets them duplicate the goodies long after the
original
gift is gone.
Some other important dates took place during
the month of December, such as; Pearl Harbour, Bill of Rights, Rosa
Parks’
arrest for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man, the first
self-sustaining nuclear reactor, French physician Nostradamus was born,
and
first United States president George Washington died in December. ’Tis also the season of World Aids Day, the
introduction of bingo and the discovery of the South Pole.
It’s during this most wonderful time of the
year that days get shorter, houses glow in colourful lights, families
unite to
share the culture and children delight in rituals that fill hearts (and
toy
boxes) Feast of the Epiphany. It’s
Boxing Day, no not boxing as in Moore vs. Holyfield.
Boston Tea Party
On December 16, 1773, crates of prized English tea were
tossed overboard
into the Boston Harbour by colonists disguised as Mohawks.
Three hundred forty-two chests of tea,
valued at over 18,000 pounds (about $1.22 million in today’s money)
were thrown
off the East India Company ships.
Christmas - Dec.
25. This
Christian festival of colourful lights, decorated pine tree,
overspending and Santa
Claus marks the birthday of Jesus Christ.
(Whether he was actually born on this day is uncertain.) It is the most popular Christian celebration
with roots in the 4th century.
Part of the pleasure of Christmas lies in the
wonderful opportunity it provides for us to show our affection for
family and
friends by making them gifts - gifts which are not necessarily
expensive. An African boy once brought, as
a Christmas
present for his teacher, a most beautiful seashell.
When she asked him where he had got it, he told her he had gone
to a beach several miles away to find it.
“You should not have gone all that way to get a gift for me,”
said the
teacher.
“Long walk part of gift,” the boy said simply. He understood the true meaning of Christmas
better than many of
us today.
The Board of
Directors for Federated
Co-operatives Limited (FCL) in the President’s Newsletter of May 2007
reported
that Mr. Wayne Thompson, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), for FCL had
retired
on March 29, 2007 after being in that office for the past 24 years. Mr. Art Postle, the Treasurer for FCL for
the past 20 years, was appointed as CEO by the Board of Directors. The Board appointed Mr. Wayne Elmgren as
Treasurer
of FCL replacing Mr. Postle.
We wish both Art and Wayne all the best in their new
positions and Mr.
Thompson all the best in his retirement years.
FCL (Federated Co-operatives Limited) member
retail co-operatives returned $152.5 million of equity in cash to their
members
last year, according to the 2006 Retail Co-operatives Statistics Manual. The cash repayment followed cash repayments
of $119.2 million in 2005, $104.3 million in 2004, $96.0 million in
2003 and
$102.8 million in 2002, for a five-year total of $574.8 million.
“This consistent performance has allowed retail
co-operatives to flourish in the communities in which they operate. With most retail co-ops making general cash
repayments to their members, communities across the west are reaping
the
rewards of membership benefits,” said Glen Tully, president of the
board.
“Whether it be building facilities and
developing people, offering members guaranteed quality products, or
generating
equity and cash back, the CRS is building stronger communities that
will
enhance economic prosperity and quality of life for this and future
generations,” added Tully.
Year End Earnings Forecast
In his address to the Co-operative Managers’ Association
(CMA)
conference in Fairmont, British Columbia, CEO Art Postle reported that
FCL was
forecasting earnings for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2007 in the
$550
million range.
The CMA is the professional association of
retail co-operative general managers with retail sales over $6 million. The conference, held annually in September,
is the group’s major forum for discussion and professional development.
The little old
lady boarded the plane and once
on board she told the flight steward that it was her very first flight. It wasn’t an ideal night for a first
flight. There was thunder about and the
rain was lashing down on the plane as it taxied to the end of the
runway. Breaking a strict rule, the
steward
unfastened his seat belt and sat on the arm of the little old lady’s
seat,
taking her hand in his. She squeezed
his hand tight and held on. Once the
plane was safely aloft and the steward started back to his own seat,
she turned
to him and whispered: “Now, son, if you’re afraid when we go to land,
you come
right back here and I’ll hold your hand again!”
We were all sitting down to tea when Jimmy
leaned over and took the largest piece of cream cake from the far side
of the
table.
“That’s not very polite,” said his little sister. “I never take the biggest piece.
I always take the smallest.”
“That’s all right then,” said Jimmy.
“’Cos I’ve left it for you!”
Laughter is the best medicine!
How to know you’re getting older:
• Every thing hurts, and what
doesn’t hurt doesn’t work.
• The gleam in your eye is from
the sun hitting your bifocals.
• You feel like the morning
after and you haven’t been anywhere.
• Your little black book only
contains names ending in MD.
• Your children begin to look
middle age.
• You finally reach the top of
the ladder and find it’s leaning against the wrong wall.
• A dripping faucet causes an
uncontrollable bladder urge.
• You look forward to a dull
evening.
• Your favourite part of the
newspaper is “20 Years Ago Today.”
• You sit in the rocking chair
and can’t get it going.
• Your knees buckle and your
belt won’t.
• Your back goes out more than
you do.
• Your pacemaker makes the
garage door open when you see a pretty girl.
• The little old grey-haired
lady you help across the street is your wife.
• You sink your teeth into a
steak and they stay there.
• You have too much room in the
house and not enough room in the medicine cabinet.
• You know all the answers and
nobody asks the questions.
The Crown
Investments Corporation of
Saskatchewan, which owns 50% of NewGrade Energy Inc. (the upgrader
which is
part of our refinery complex), received an offer to sell their interest. The Agreements with Co-op refinery require
Crown Investments to present that offer to our refinery, which can
choose to
purchase on the same terms. The Board
of our refinery and FCL has decided to exercise their rights of first
refusal
and buy Crown Investments 50% interest in NewGrade.
The result of this decision will be that Co-op Refineries will
own 100% of NewGrade.
The purchase price is $325 million and the deal was to
be closed on
November 1, 2007.
There was a
well-heeled tourist who dropped
into a tiny village church in Essex County, England, for the Christmas
service. Before it began, he
buttonholed the rector and said expansively, “I mean to give you a
handsome
contribution. I only hope you’ll put on
a good show today.”
The rector answered quietly, “It won’t be a bad one. It’s been running now for almost two
thousand years!”
Two brothers went to confession, the younger
one went first. The priest always liked
to ask questions of the children before their confession so he asked
the little
boy, “Do you know where God is?”
The little boy ran out and told his brother, “Let’s get
out of here, the
priest lost God and wants to blame it on me!”
An archaeologist is digging in the Dead Sea
area and comes up with an exciting find.
He rushes back to the university and tells his colleagues, “I
just found
the four thousand year old skeleton of a man who died of a heart
attack.”
“How do you know he died of a heart attack?” a colleague
asked.
“He had a paper in his hand that said, ‘A hundred
shekels on Goliath.’”
I just thought of
a novel idea for a Christmas
Gift; why not get a membership in the Co-op for that person who has
everything. I am sure they would thank
you for it. It would open up a whole
new concept in shopping for them, or buy them a gift certificate and
tell them
it can only be used to buy a membership, hey worth a try.
When fate knocks
you flat on your back, remember it leaves you looking
up.
I ran across a recipe for Hot Mulled Cranberry
Wine (without the wine)
500 mL / 2 cups cranberry juice
550 mL / 2¼ cups unsweetened pineapple juice
125 mL / ½ cup water
75 mL
/ 1/3 cup brown sugar
1 mL
/ ¼ tsp. ground cloves
1 mL
/ ¼ tsp. cinnamon
1 mL
/ ¼ tsp. allspice
Dash of nutmeg
Butter
Cinnamon sticks
In a saucepan combine all ingredients except
butter and cinnamon sticks. Heat to
boiling.
Pour into mug; dot with butter and serve with
cinnamon sticks.
Yield: approx. 8-125 mL (½ cup) servings.
Should be great stuff to warm your guests when
they arrive in out of the cold, or just when the family is sitting
around
enjoying the warmth of home, even the kids could be included.
DID
YOU KNOW
Membership in the Co-op can be an important source of
personal
satisfaction. For example, you can have
a say in the way the Co-op is operated.
Each member has one vote at general membership meetings,
regardless of
the equity owned. This means that your
vote will carry as much weight as that of any other member.
With the above in mind keep an eye out for the
next annual meeting, at which you can cast your vote to help determine
what the
Co-op does in the next year and who will serve on the Board of
Directors,
perhaps you would like to put your hat in the ring and serve on the
Board.
Just about time to draw a close to this
newsletter, but in the meantime enjoy the Yuletide Season and we hope
old Saint
Nick will be good to you. Remember to
be careful under the mistletoe. So from
all of us, Rene, Bud, Ken, Marje, Henry, Colleen, Cesar and Nirmal;
Cliff and
all his staff and of course me and mine, have yourself the bestest
Holly Jolly
Christmas possible and we will be talking to you.
Doug
Smith, Member at Large
