Elmwood-East Kildonan: Welcome to the Jungle.

I had a lot of fun at the Elmwood-East Kildonan forum on Wednesday night.  The dainties, especially the biscotti, were a nice touch.  Big shout out to all the grandma's who put that delicious spread together.  

However, I wasn’t overly impressed with any of the candidates; Sanderson almost had me at hello, but he kept losing his train of thought like it was his life’s duty.  His golden nugget of a bottom tooth also kept distracting me.

Did anyone else think that Rod ‘The Bod’ Giesbrecht had a Howard Dean thing going on?  He’s pretty much a dead ringer for him.  And what about that sweater?  You don’t even want to know how close I came to writing my article about it.

Did Howard Dean and Rod the Bod just become best friends?  YUP!

Thought Gordon Warren was a mix between George Costanza, The Macho Man Randy Savage, and Mr. Clean.  Just a riot.  I kept waiting for him to body slam Thomas Steen through a table, grab the microphone, tell-off the crowd, put on a championship belt, and exit the auditorium.

I wasn’t overly offended by our boy Bill Redekop’s comment about the presence of CreCommers at the forum.  It’s a free country after all, and he’s entitled to his opinion.  He was there trying to find a story too.  If his comment was based on a legitimate observation, then he really can’t be bashed. 

I know how hard I work, so I don’t need any type of validation from anyone.  I really hope that no one takes his comments to heart.  CreComm is a great program, and that’s something everyone who’s gone through it knows.  Just ask Megan Batchelor, John Lu, and Dawna Friesen.  

I’m not much of a whiner, and I don’t like to complain.  If someone wrongs me, or says something that they shouldn’t, it only motivates me to work harder.  As we inch closer and closer to the time when we become media professionals, characters like Redekop will be lurking around every corner.  It’s not exactly Sunday school out there, so we need to get used to people like him.  So, if anything, I want to thank him for his comments.  Instead of having 75 students wanting to admire him, he now has 75 students gunning for his job. 

I’ve learned that journalists are like car salesmen.  Some of them are pushy, arrogant, and classless.  Others are attentive, patient, and genuine.  That’s just the nature of the business.  I’m not too sure where Redekop falls within that corollary, but I sure know how I want to known.  

I also really hope that the people of Elmwood-East Kildonan elect someone who will make a difference. The residents deserve it.  Although there weren't a lot of them there on Wednesday, the one's that were really care about the future of the 'hood.  It was good to see.  

On a side note, I was almost certain that my truck's window was going to be smashed that night.  I parked on probably the shadiest street of all time, where a group of kids, who looked like they should have names like "lil deuce" or "cap face killa," stared me down as I briskly speed-walked to the forum.  Luckily for them, I didn't have to bust out my high school wrestling skills.