Category Archives: Uncategorized

Ode to the Smack Down Chocolate Orange – with apologies to the poet John Keats

Posted on January 1, 2013 by susanonthesoapbox

John Keats’ poem Ode on a Grecian Urn was a flop when it was first published in 1819, largely because of the last two lines:  Beauty is truth, truth beauty, that is all ye know on earth, and all ye … Continue reading →

Posted in Celebrations, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 18 Comments

Merry Christmas Florence Nightingale

Posted on December 23, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, once said “No man, not even a doctor, ever gives any other definition of what a nurse should be than this –‘devoted and obedient.’  This definition would do just as well for a … Continue reading →

Posted in Alberta Health Care, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Remembrance Day: Ask the Question WHY?

Posted on November 11, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

My friend was paying for a coffee when a young barista asked him a question that left him speechless:   “Why are all the men wearing red flowers on their jackets?”  Are you serious?  Um yes…So my friend gave her a … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Hanging By A Thread…Or Why I Like Paying Taxes

Posted on October 20, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

We’ve just spent three and a half days tethered to the house next door.  All of our drinking, cooking, showering and flushing water came to us through a blue rubber hose that snaked across my neighbour’s yard, went up over … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 6 Comments

“I’m a Dead Man Ha Ha”: The LIBOR scandal

Posted on July 8, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

Who will save us from the Masters of the Universe and the Wall Street wizards?  In 2008 they brought the globe to the brink of financial collapse and last week they destroyed the integrity of the London Interbank Offered Rate … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 14 Comments

Did Facebook Do A Face Plant?

Posted on May 20, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

If Facebook is such a good investment why did Zynga’s second quarter profits drop 90%?  To understand how Zynga is relevant to Facebook’s success one needs to read FB’s prospectus (oh joy).* There we learn that FB’s success is based … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Lunch with Larry Summers: Informative but Weird

Posted on February 19, 2012 by susanonthesoapbox

Last Monday I had lunch with Larry Summers.  Well, to be precise I and 249 politicians and business people attended a luncheon sponsored by Jack Mintz of the U of C School of Public Policy.  Larry Summers was the keynote … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Uncategorized | 9 Comments

Ziggy in the Christmas Tree

Posted on December 23, 2011 by susanonthesoapbox

This was supposed to be a magnificent post about the power of the internet and how it opened the Pandora’s box of the Information Age…it turned a small intimate post about the dog in the Christmas tree. Here’s the backstory.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 11 Comments

Paging Ms Redford

Posted on October 30, 2011 by susanonthesoapbox

Paging Ms Redford…Ms Redford…?  I’ve been looking for Ms Redford since the day she was elected as Premier of Alberta.  My Ms Redford said “The strongest leaders are the ones that can be authentic…so that you’re truly saying to people … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

The House of Mirrors

Posted on October 23, 2011 by susanonthesoapbox

Recent statements by Finance Minister, Ron Liepert, confirm my suspicion that politics is like a House of Mirrors.  Not a transparent glass house (no stone throwing allowed), but the maze-like puzzle boxes you find at amusement parks and the midway.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 6 Comments