October 2, 1996 Over The Edge 5

Editorial

MEMO FROM THE ISOLATION

WARD: The fog lifts to reveal Clear Wisdom

The slogan on this years
environmentally friendly
giant plastic coffee mug
reads NORTHERN
BACKYARD BBQ II R U
READY TO RUMBLE.
This is, I suppose, a
rhetorical question. No one
asked, nor were they
themselves asked, if they
were ready to ‘rumble.’

At least I wasn’t. I was asked
to help out around the
Backstage Area; to assist the
bands in their preparations, to
offer drink, peace, love and
whatever else they required.
Actually, I wandered around
pinpointing problems and
offering solutions to Those In
Charge. One crisis I couldn’t
solve was the hail. I am not
properly trained in the
development of strategies for
weather management.

That goes double for
rumbles, All I could do was
stand firmly in place and
offer those who were no
longer in charge a steady
shoulder against which they
could lean. I hope I handled
that adequately.

When I say rumble, I mean
it in the finest sense of the
word. The Oxford Dictionary
has two definitions: to make
a deep and continuous sound,
and to detect the true nature
of etc etc.
There was indeed a deep and
continuous sound. That
much we all know.

As for the detection and
nature bit, well indulge me,
dear reader.

The True Nature of which I
speak goes something like
this: Some volunteers, most
of whom were born during
the Carter administration,
demonstrated their true
nature in that they became

obsessive control freaks. I
don’t know about you, but I
have a hard time taking a
54" 115 pound teen-ager in
a reflective vest seriously
when she’s blowing a whistle
and demanding to see my
credentials.

I also have a hard time
understanding why some
students would ignore a 6’3"
220 pound football player
charged with guarding the
stage area.

I understand math at a very
rudimentary levelabut even I
know when the jig is up. 18
year olds should not be
dealing with riffraff at the
beer garden. And football
players, most of whom are
my regular drinking buddies,
should not be sent out to
protect The Act.

Proper training does not
come from The Boss during
his or her little pep talk
before the big game. It comes
from professionals who
know how to manage drunks
and assholes and spaced out
freaks.

I took particular interest in
Keeping Track of this group,
if only for personal reasons.
This is, I believe, the main
fold of our problem.

After Bif’s manager pulled
the plug, I dealt with a lovely
little number who demanded
a refund because she felt it
unjust to pay out the bands
fee when Bif herself was
upstairs nursing her now
famous tooth.

This person was drunk and
rude and sloppy and looked
like a dogs breakfast that had
been left out in the sun all
day. Her loud and vicious
behavior illustrated the Main
Nut of the evening perfectly.
That Bif was injured was of

So. It’s official. Prince
George has its first winter
snowfall of 1996 as of
September 30th.

Great.

It’s not as if we couldn't
wait for winter, the snowball
fights and hot chocolate with
those we love, but Mother
Nature seems hell-bent on
the banishment of every front
lawn in the city. The flakes
actually had staying power in
some of the lower regions of
the city but, overall, they
vanished pretty darn quickly.

Wish my mind was more
positive. The image of the
white stuff falling on the
parking lot coupled with the
feeling I’ve had every time
my feet first hit the floor in
the morning, kind of makes
me wish was more prepared
for winter.

no concern to her. This
walking Barf-o-rama wante
big word that: ‘wanted' Bif to
get her ass back on stage and
play. Teeth be damned. To
hell with safety. Hers or
Bif’s.

If there’s one thing I’ve
learned this year, it’s that
many of you feel that what’s
yours is yours undeniably;
it’s yours right this instant
and you demonstrate this
inalienable right with all the
ferocious intensity of a
spoiled, foot stamping child.
What happened during our
BBQ was not par for the
course. Those In Charge did
the best they could under the
circumstances. In other

After all, it was only in
August that I found myself
wondering why the Sears
winter catalogue had arrived
so early in the year and now?
I find myself wondering why

‘I haven’t ordered anything

from it yet! Sneakers would
appear to be largely
ineffective in five feet of
drifting snow at the bus stop
at 8:30 in the morning.

Which reminds me.

My bus stop reminds me of
something. When I stand
there, huddled and freezing,
there are still those who do
not have to get to work and
drive along in their cozy little
vehicle. My bus stop is
across from an elementary
school.

Here, there is the many
varied applications for the
four letter-white stuff from

words, they worked well
with what they had.

The real problem was in
dealing with the drunks who
turned a friendly gig into a
logistical nightmare. Had
everyone behaved nicely, I
am certain that Bif would
have finished her set, the
MacKenzies would have

Phone 563-6637
Fax 563-6610
Toll Free 1-800-303-2950

1229 4th Avenue
Prince George, B.C.
V2L 35

invading forces.

heaven. The snow forts that
will never be high enough to
successfully keep out the
The
snowball fights and
“facewashings” at recess.
The snowmen and women
with their carefully crafted
dog “Fluffy”. The childish
voices raised high in victory
and defeat.

Yes, the view of snow is
different for everyone
(apparently non-existent to
some....) but it’s about to
enter our lives once again.
The frigid cold air from the
Arctic Circle is poised to
strike at us any chance it gets.

But really.

Let’s try not to think about
that.

Paul Berard
Editor-In-Chief

played and we all would have
had, what dad likes to call,
memories for a lifetime.
Instead what we got (and
deserved) was a reputation
for being childish drunks
who spoiled what was
otherwise a great evening.
Boo to you.