Bay St. George South -
Just when we thought summer was here to stay and we were certainly well past the time when night frost would be an issue, we experienced several nights of unseasonably cold nights with heavy frost. This of course was a reminder that we live in Newfoundland and Labrador and weather patterns can be extremely unpredictable.
There have been no reports of crop damage as a result of this unexpected cold snap and there is no doubt that some farmers had a few nervous days and nights as a result of frost warnings by Environment Canada.
If this is what we can expect as a result of the much talked about global warming phenomenon then it might be wise to hang on to our long John's.
Local strawberries
Gale's Farm at Robinsons has been a busy spot over the past week as strawberries are now available. The weather we have enjoyed over the past few weeks with sunshine and very cool nights must be ideal for the growing and ripening of strawberries as the size and quality of berries available is, in a word, perfect. There is a lot to be said for locally produced fruits and vegetables.
Some attribute the superior taste and quality to our climate.
New Health minister
Residents of the province were informed last Tuesday that Premier Williams was shuffling his cabinet and we would be getting a new Health minister. Ross Wiseman was being moved to a new department and Paul Oram would be taking the Health portfolio.
Wiseman received much criticism for his leadership - or lack of leadership- in this department over the past two years and it remains to be seen if Oram will do any better. There is already controversy brewing as many feel that he may be in a conflict of interest because before he became a politician he owned and operated a number of personal care homes. He still owns these businesses and his department will be making decisions that will impact personal care homes.
In my opinion it makes no difference who becomes minister of Health as he is just a mouthpiece for the senior bureaucrats who run the department. It would seem to me that the only way to fix the health care system in Newfoundland and Labrador is to clean house in a big way and since this is unlikely to happen, to paraphrase Brian Peckford's words just before he resigned as premier, I doubt this government has the necessary ruthlessness to do what needs to be done, as we all know politicians want everyone to like them and this usually results in policies and decisions that are designed to appease everyone and fix nothing.
Would you believe?
God always answers our prayers, it's just that sometimes the answer is no.Crops survived unexpected frost
