Opinion

The speech from the throne on Friday and the budget release yesterday show a lot of promise for following through on items that influenced the outcome of the federal election.

From chili cook-offs to bed races, from bucking broncs to rodeo queens, I am proud to say I survived my first Bonnyville rodeo. There were a few close calls, though. It wasn't my first rodeo. Sandwiched between a childhood in B.C.

The date – May 24, 1994. The venue – the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.

Has the final draft version of the Lower Athabasca Integrated Regional Plan fallen off your radar? Why should you care when you have more than enough to worry about as it is? For your own sake, and for your friends and family who need to breathe clea

I was assigned a story on the Slave Lake fundraising in Bonnyville last Monday at the end of the day, when we usually have our story meetings after a long day of production.

The great Canadian playoff beard - a sight to see and some hockey history too. My friends, I stand here before you willing to bear my face, in all its ghastly glory. "It's like a man-child, struggling to show his masculine side," I have been told.

Last week the unimaginable happened. A good portion of a town in northern Alberta burned to the ground. Photos and video footage of Slave Lake show the devastation of the town, with people's homes and many livelihoods having gone up in flames.

I meet many interesting people and hear many interesting stories in my job as reporter but every once in a while a story will reach out and touch you in a special way. On May 10, I saw the obituary for Lieutenant Colonel Howard Cook.

Hundreds of local area Grade 12 students are preparing to graduate this spring, whether that includes cramming for exams, performing in a school play, or finishing off the year playing a favourite sport.

Surprised? Yes. Shocked? Not at all. The much-anticipated Conservative Party majority is here, and it’s here to stay for at least four years, barring some unforeseen change in federal politics.