Doldrums

Feeling kinda blue today, as winter is slowly gnawing away at my hard outer shell and multiple layers of clothing. Might be dealing with a mild case of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD – how’s that for an acronym?). Or maybe I’m just sick and tired of all the snow after last weekend’s 35cm whopper of a storm (that’s a little more than a foot for you Yanks and Brits). It’s gotten to the point where, short of trucking the stuff out of town, I just don’t know where to shovel it anymore. Snowbanks along my street are over my head, which makes pulling into traffic a little more exciting than it should be. At least Mr. Weatherman isn’t predicting any more of the white stuff for the near future.

Also worrisome to me is the state of certain other MC bloggers out in cyberspace. I was sad to read about all the problems that Gary over at Rush Hour Rambling has gone through over the past year, and the fact that the RHR blog is most definitely gone for good. Very sad, as it was a great blog, not to mention that Gary has done so much for motorcyclists (especially rounders).

Same goes for Gail at SheRidesABeemer. Currently unemployed due to the economic state and looking for work before the reserve runs out. Her latest blog entry details how truly difficult it is dealing with bureaucratic red-tape when you're just struggling to get by. Scary indeed, and as a public servant I can't help but feel somehow responsible for some of her troubles. Sure, I don't work for the same department - heck, I'm not even in the same country! But bureaucracy is the same the world over. Processes, procedures, policies and paper trails have taken precedence over common sense. I can't tell you how often I get frustrated by how powerless I am in my job. Sometimes I could actually fix a problem here, or deal with an issue there, all in a matter of a few minutes. But then the red tape monster rears its ugly head, and something that seemed so simple ends up taking a few days to get done... and even then it isn't done right.

Here’s to hoping that spring and sunnier times aren’t too far off. I think many of us could use it right now.