If you have been following this blog, you are aware that I am not pleased with the situation the North End is in. I am not happy with the issues going on in the North End and on my street.
When I first started the blog I was not sure what would come of it, if anything. Then I got a call from the Mayor. I started to think maybe someone is listening to the issues of the North End. Maybe I am making a difference. But it turns out the Mayor was filled with empty promises. Remember that when you vote. I will.
As the weeks went on, I did manage to get the mattresses and couches picked up from my back lane and the neighbouring back lanes. I did manage to get a dumpster delivered and placed where there was a gap in my back lane.
I have sent letters to different members of government requesting changes to existing Acts and By-Laws. I have uncovered holes in procedures, which may actually get fixed because of my actions.
And I have discovered there are Residents Organizations throughout the neighbourhoods of this fine City. In my area we have the St Johns Residents Association. They happen to have their Annual General Meeting this Saturday. Well, I am a part of this neighbourhood, and I am going to attend the meeting.
The meeting is at Ralph Brown Community Centre on Saturday, October 2 at 11:00am.
I will be there, because I am a part of the St. Johns community and I am not turning a blind eye to the actions going on in my neighbourhood anymore.
If you care about your community, go to your neighbourhood residents association meeting. If you don't know who they are or where they meet, ask your local member of government. Be a part of the solution.
I am mad as hell, and I am going to be a part of the solution.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Cheque Day In The Hood
Today is cheque day. That means the people on social assistance got money in their accounts at midnight last night. I don't need a calendar to tell when cheque day is, I just need ears.
I was woken up at 2:27am last night by someone loudly screaming down the lane. It sounded like it was further down than the party duplex. It didn't last long, about five minutes. Then I was back to sleep.
I woke up at 4:11am to the sound of loud yelling. After looking out the window, my husband and I spotted the culprits. There was a group of individuals on the next block over standing in the middle of the street. It is a busy street, and a truck route. Cars had to slow down to get around the individuals who were standing and staggering around and yelling on the street. They were not on their way anywhere. They just wandered around, yelling, in the same area of the street for twenty minutes. They calmed down and stopped yelling finally around 4:30am. But by 5:00am they were back at it, yelling again.
Then, just after 5:00am a car turned down my back lane. It was slow to start, then took off with tires squealing, down the full length of my back lane. I fell asleep again sometime after 5:00am.
There were sirens to be heard all through the night, moving around in the distance.
I woke up to a siren this morning around 7:00am and another around 8:00am. By 11:00am the sirens seem to be running five minutes apart, like labor pains.
Yesterday was quiet. We slept through the night, and hardly a siren could be heard until noon. Then it was only one per hour for a few hours. Then all was quiet until midnight, when the money arrived in the accounts.
I was woken up at 2:27am last night by someone loudly screaming down the lane. It sounded like it was further down than the party duplex. It didn't last long, about five minutes. Then I was back to sleep.
I woke up at 4:11am to the sound of loud yelling. After looking out the window, my husband and I spotted the culprits. There was a group of individuals on the next block over standing in the middle of the street. It is a busy street, and a truck route. Cars had to slow down to get around the individuals who were standing and staggering around and yelling on the street. They were not on their way anywhere. They just wandered around, yelling, in the same area of the street for twenty minutes. They calmed down and stopped yelling finally around 4:30am. But by 5:00am they were back at it, yelling again.
Then, just after 5:00am a car turned down my back lane. It was slow to start, then took off with tires squealing, down the full length of my back lane. I fell asleep again sometime after 5:00am.
There were sirens to be heard all through the night, moving around in the distance.
I woke up to a siren this morning around 7:00am and another around 8:00am. By 11:00am the sirens seem to be running five minutes apart, like labor pains.
Yesterday was quiet. We slept through the night, and hardly a siren could be heard until noon. Then it was only one per hour for a few hours. Then all was quiet until midnight, when the money arrived in the accounts.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
We Survived The Weekend In The Hood
We survived the weekend without any major incidents.
But the presence of the police on my street this last week bothered me. I started thinking more about the houses on my street. I also started paying more attention to the traffic on my street. I am noticing the same vehicles dropping by for quick visits in front of specific houses.
And I have been thinking about the prostitutes that I see along the side streets in the area. I mean, I have always known they were there. And I have always seen the condoms in the back lanes. But I never put any thought into where they conducted their business. I mean, I can't believe that the people who are paying for services will just walk down the lane and into someone's back yard. I can't believe that they go right up against the houses to conduct their business. Who are these people who are paying for services in the back yards of the North End?
The more I open my eyes to the goings on in my neighbourhood, the more I wonder how much I really want to know.
What I do want is a neighbourhood where it is against the law to sell drugs, and actions are taken. I want a neighbourhood where prostitutes do not work openly along my street and the streets around me. I want a neighbourhood where people from other parts of the city do not use my back lane for a dumping ground for items they no longer want or need. I want a neighbourhood where people have respect for themselves and others.
I do not want to be celebrating small victories like sleeping through the night. I do not want to have to check on the garbage truck to ensure my back lane actually had the garbage removed every Thursday. I do not want to constantly look out my window after hearing sirens to see if, yet again, they are on my street.
But the presence of the police on my street this last week bothered me. I started thinking more about the houses on my street. I also started paying more attention to the traffic on my street. I am noticing the same vehicles dropping by for quick visits in front of specific houses.
And I have been thinking about the prostitutes that I see along the side streets in the area. I mean, I have always known they were there. And I have always seen the condoms in the back lanes. But I never put any thought into where they conducted their business. I mean, I can't believe that the people who are paying for services will just walk down the lane and into someone's back yard. I can't believe that they go right up against the houses to conduct their business. Who are these people who are paying for services in the back yards of the North End?
The more I open my eyes to the goings on in my neighbourhood, the more I wonder how much I really want to know.
What I do want is a neighbourhood where it is against the law to sell drugs, and actions are taken. I want a neighbourhood where prostitutes do not work openly along my street and the streets around me. I want a neighbourhood where people from other parts of the city do not use my back lane for a dumping ground for items they no longer want or need. I want a neighbourhood where people have respect for themselves and others.
I do not want to be celebrating small victories like sleeping through the night. I do not want to have to check on the garbage truck to ensure my back lane actually had the garbage removed every Thursday. I do not want to constantly look out my window after hearing sirens to see if, yet again, they are on my street.
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