CANUCKS BITE THE DUST EARLY......SO LUONGO WILL BE TRADED RIGHT?....NOT SO FAST MY FAITHFUL SCHNEIDER FAN!

 The cherry blossoms drifted  in the warm, April breeze around a silent Roger's Arena on the Monday morning after the unthinkable happened on the ice the night before.   The Vancouver Canucks were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the first round.   Anyone who has watched the Canucks for the last few months has seen that in some strange way the Canucks were able to pile up points and win the President's trophy, while watching the parts of their game that took them to within a game of winning the Stanley Cup last June dwindle to a fraction of their former strengths. 
Since the Canucks entered the NHL in 1970 they have made the playoffs 25 times during those 42 years.  They have been eliminated from the playoffs every single one of those times, usually in April....occasionally in May and  June.  So why is the Canucks' exit in April of this year so bitterly disappointing?  Why? Because of expectations that's why.  In the first 2 times that the Canucks were eliminated in the final in June the team was not well placed in the regular season and not really expected to win the cup.  Last year the team was expected to win the cup and nearly did...finally being eliminated in June.   This year the Canucks got soundly beaten in the first round after finishing first overall again. No one saw this coming.   Which is strange because the Canucks didn't really play badly...they got beaten by a better Los Angeles Kings team.  It was not about the play of Roberto Luongo who was on the bench for the goal by Stoll that was the final nail driven into the coffin that was the Canucks 2012 season.   Cory Schneider played well, very well and Luongo proved once again that he is a very, very good goalie.

So as the chatter in the bars and around the water cooler changes from talk about the Canucks on the ice to Canucks off the ice, the main issue that is always in the fore front is goaltending.
With the emergence this year of Cory Schneider as a capable starter instead of a capable backup the Canucks management has put itself in a difficult position.  Two years ago GM Mike Gillis signed Roberto Loungo to 12 year 64 million dollar contract effectively eliminating the chance for a major change in the Canucks' net for as far into the future as any of us can look.  Its easy to be critical of the contract but it's not actually, completely, crippling to the Canucks as long as Luongo stays on the ice and plays well.   When it becomes crippling is when the Canucks try to dump his contract on another team and sign Cory Schneider who is an RFA this summer.

 First of all, Cory is going to sign for significant money this summer and the Canucks do not have enough room under the cap to keep both goalies because none of their other players' big contracts are up for renewal this year.  It would be great to keep both goalies but it isn't possible under the cap.  The Canucks are already at the limit.
In a Luongo trade scenario the player(s) that the Canucks would have to take back would have a big contract so the Canucks would have to release several of  the players that are unrestricted this summer in order to fit under the cap.  Those players include, Salo, Pahlsson, Raymond and several other players.   Roberto Luongo is going to continue to be the Canucks' top goalie next season and for a long time to come.   With a no trade clause and making 6.7 million  for the next six years, as good as Luongo is, few teams would want or be able to take on that contract without significant concessions from the Canucks.  It might be tempting to try to move to the calmer, more technically sound and younger Cory Schneider as the number one puck stopper this summer but from a business and hockey standpoint it doesn't make any sense.

 The next reason why the Canucks will trade Cory this summer is because of what the Canucks can get in return for him.   The Canucks can get another good goalie to be the backup, a very very good roster player and likely a 1st round draft pick as well in return for the RFA goalie.  That is a package that will keep the Canucks contending for years to come, it will fit under the cap......and Mike Gillis doesn't have to ask Luongo's permission... all they need to do is keep on paying Roberto Luongo 6.7 a year.  Two years ago Canucks GM Mike Gillis thought that making Luongo the highest paid goalie in the game was proof that upgrading the goaltending would neither be necessary nor possible.  It will be very, very costly for him to change his mind now.  It would be disastrous to try to dump Roberto's salary just to sign Cory Schneider because the Canucks will likely have to take back just one high salaried player in order for the other team to be able to fit Roberto's salary under its cap thus missing out on the chance to secure the team's future by moving the much more trad-able Schneider.   So, Canuck fans, get used to the idea that Roberto Luongo is the Canucks' number one goalie now and look forward to the trade this summer that will send Cory Schneider away and bring some fine fresh faces to the Canuck's roster. 

CAN'T AFFORD A $500,000.00 CONDO DOWNTOWN?.....CONSIDER RAW RURAL REAL ESTATE IN THE GREAT WHITE NORTH

 Buying raw,  undeveloped land as opposed to houses and apartments is a very different type of real estate purchase.  There are several drawbacks and also some real advantages. In the long run, mortgage free land that has been used and enjoyed for decades can be a valuable part of one's retirement plan.   It can be especially important for people who never did manage to get into the urban real estate market while needing a city job and then, at retirement age, finding the cabin on peaceful rural acres to be a mortgage free domicile to kick start retirement years.

The good news on buying raw land is that it's cheap.  The bad news is that financing is more difficult to arrange.  Although Canada is huge and mostly undeveloped and unpopulated, very little land in Canada, as a percentage of the overall land mass, is available for private ownership and land remains an expensive proposition for most.  Raw, rural land is of course the cheapest, but one usually has to pay cash to get the very lowest price and that still entails many thousands of dollars.
So why would someone buy raw, rural land without the plan to inhabit it or develop it.  Well one reason is to build equity.  Once again, the problem of developing equity in raw land is that the banks don't like it as collateral to any large degree.  Most banks will loan in excess of 75% of the value of developed property because if foreclosure is required, the property will produce cash flow from the rent.  Raw land will likely only attract 20% of its value in the form of a loan.  This means for example that if you buy your land....build lots of equity over the years and then approach the bank for a mortgage to build your house, you have to jump through a lot of hoops and still may not get all the money you want. But for people who don't need or want to build a house or those who want to build for themselves over time, land outside city zones can be a very satisfying way to own real estate.

The reason of course that raw, rural land is cheap is that most folks want to live in urban centers where jobs, services and entertainment are plentiful. In addition, despite the relatively low cost of raw, rural land, if one decides to buy such land, the cost of acquisition combined with the carrying costs may inhibit other savings and disposable income to the point where buying urban real estate, i.e. a place to live, may be impossible.

Despite all this negativity the idea warrants merit and I did it!  Like many things that aren't mainstream it requires a need for a slightly alternative perspective on things. One of the best things about buying raw, rural real estate is that it's possible.  Even po folks like ourselves can afford to buy land in Canada and maybe even some land with some desirability, such as waterfront, proximity to home, large tracts, merchantable timber, arability etc.  Land is available in every province in Canada and in most provinces large acreages can be had for about $500 an acre.  Yes!  FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS AN ACRE.  So what about all these condos and suburban houses across the GWN that cost hundreds of thousands for just an old house on a little lot?   Well there's a vast disparity in all kinds of Canadian real estate.   This blog isn't for those who are shopping on Vancouver's west side nor for those looking at family houses in Fort McMurray and other high priced neighbourhoods.  These ideas are for those who either dream of owning a place in the country or for those who see that as a way into the real estate market and who don't have the financial resources to carry a big mortgage or don't want to be saddled with one.

 These low priced, rural lands have the potential for providing useability, building materials, equity building and maybe even a little cash flow...all good things for someone on a tight budget.  Enjoying the privacy, the wide open spaces and flora and fauna of the countryside may be enough for many.  For those desperate for some sort of ROI. There are a many different ways to take some money and materials out of your rural acreage.   In most cases, you'll be doing well to get enough cash out of your land to pay the taxes if you don't actually work the land.  Of course, hard working folks can do better.
 It may be possible to rent arable land in whole or in part to a farmer.  Simply accepting some of the crop as rent maybe a good way to fill your freezer and offset your city food bill.

 If your land has merchantable timber, some of the acquisition cost could be offset by either logging it yourself or allowing a logging company to do it for you.  Or if the timber is of lower quality the land may still be a good wood lot for firewood sales, heating your cabin or sawing timber for lumber yourself which can be air dried and sold by the board foot and/or used to build your cabin which can then be rented out to others.
 By clearing the land as an improvement you might not only increase the value but also make other ways to develop cash flow.   You could own your own blue berry patch, grape vines for your own wine or plant fruit trees for examples.
By planting walnut trees that develop valuable timber over decades and provide nuts in the meantime, while not demanding daily maintenance, your land could be quite affordable in the short term and very valuable in the long term.

Land that has poor growing soil but is in an area of livestock farms maybe a candidate for composting to improve the arability.  Chicken, hog and other sale barns often have surplus manure that can be used for composting that will significantly improve the soil.   So cheap land with poor soil becomes more valuable land with good soil over time.  Good compost will be available from raw materials within a couple of years....a fairly short time to wait for great garden harvests.

These ways of using rural lands are well known to people who live in the country and can be used by city dwellers on weekends and vacations.  Exchanging that trip to Mexico for a two week trip to rural Ontario for clearing bush and bucking firewood might not excite the kids too much but when the weekends later on are spent berry picking, or harvesting honey from your hives or tapping your maple trees for syrup and candy, perhaps the road less traveled can be rewarding....and profitable after all.
I bought my land firstly to enjoy the use of it and I also I expected to achieve long term equity growth.  Both have occurred.
Lastly there is another reason that owning land is important......prestige, pride of ownership...you're the owner!  Private property rights are almost impossible to extinguish in Canada.  Once you own the land...you own it.  You can use it and will it to your descendants who will then not have to work those long hours to make all those mortgage payments.
But with your land you will most likely own it outright within 5 to 10 years.  You can farm it, rent it,  build a cabin, camp on it, do projects that require space like wood and rock work, have storage space and a myriad of other uses.
Sometimes, land that seems remote can become less so over the years because of growth in the area, improved roads or other transportation links.  Then, developments such as subdivision becomes a possibility.

Here's a great link because this a real estate company that provides uncomplicated financing for it's lands....all you have to do is make the payments and in five years you own it!
http://www.dignam.com/category/western-provinces/

Here's another good resource
http://www.niho.com/
Here's the most important link for shopping for land in Canada
http://www.realtor.ca/index.aspx

 The first five years after acquisition is always the most difficult.  After that, because of inflation the payments are smaller, the land is worth more, you're making more etc.  So it seems daunting at first but I've never met anyone who regrets buying land. 
Buying my land was a pivotal decision and remains one of the most important things I've ever done so I have no problem recommending it to friends.  But like the buying of silver....almost no one does it.  All you need is either a few thousand dollars or a bit of credit or both is nice of course.  In some cases the seller may take payments in order to make the sale possible..... Then you could buy land like this for example.
http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8834770&PidKey=-1083420418
or this
http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=11534826&PidKey=1554220469
feeling adventurous?  How about 155 acres for $20,000
http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=11493914&PidKey=-1380278859

HARD LIQUOR FLOWS INTO COSTCO....BUT NOT IN THE GREAT WHITE NORTH

To say that there are two kinds of states in America...control states and non-control states is like saying there are two kinds of people in this world. But one of the 21 control states has just relinquished....uh...control.
After 80 years, Washington State has approved a bill that will dismantle the state control of the sale of liquor not only at the retail level but at the wholesale distribution level as well.  Of course for those of us living in the Great White North, which is a control country, divided into provinces and territories, this is an event of inconceivably, massive, bureaucratic destruction.  Even in the great, white provinces, Alberta and Quebec, the most ideologically independent regions of Canada, where retail sales of alcohol are more or less in privately owned stores, the provincial governments maintain a monopoly on the wholesale distribution of all booze.  Of course the changes in Washington State won't lower taxes on booze but they will lower prices on hard liquor as the highly competitive retail stores such as Costco will bring efficiencies to the market that are as alien to government liquor stores as tax free booze is to Canadians.  But even in post control times in Washington State, overall, it's still, by American standards, a high alcohol tax state.  Two Buck Chuck is Three Buck Chuck in Washington State for example.  Even though wine sales are not controlled like hard liquor sales the tax is still high compared to many states.  Nevertheless, ordinary bottles of Gallo table wine are 3 for ten bucks at the Texaco station in Pt. Roberts and similar bottles are 12 dollars EACH at the bottle shop 10 minutes drive north in sunny Tsawwassen.  When the hard liquor flows into Costco like an ethanol tsunami, Canadians will salivate at the thought of $25 US gallons of Crown Royal in the kind of bottles that weaken the party knees of Canadians....a bottle with a handle on the side!
Oregon, celebrated by Vancouver Camra members and others as a mecca for craft brewed beer also remains a control state for hard liquor and is a high alcohol tax state as well.  Oregon has deregulated some parts of its liquor laws to make it easier for craft brewers, vinters and distillers get into the market and there are those who would like the river of de-control to flow all the way to sunny California, the Eden of cheap booze where Two Buck Chuck actually costs....two bucks!..
Again, all states are low tax states compared to Canada where provincial governments gouge consumers deeply and pour the BILLIONS in taxes into the black hole of general revenue.
So what does all this mean for the average, frozen Canuck who wants his booze and wants it without having to make a mortgage sized payment every month to get it.   One way is make your booze at home in the kitchen or use a u-brew service.  This won't solve the $65 dollar wine price at restaurants, nor the $10 dollar pints at the pub.  It  won't fix the $50 round of tequila shooters at the night club either but what it can do is eliminate all or most tax paid on all other booze drunk. Other than that, Canadians nation wide can only continue to look south across the 49th parallel as we have done for decades, at a land awash in cheap booze and say "tax me I'm Canadian."

HOW TO BREW HOMEMADE WINE ON A TIGHT BUDGET IN A TIGHT SPACE

Warning: If you know the meaning of the word sommelier, cru, terroir, or if you normally spend $30 dollars or more on a bottle of wine, NAVIGATE AWAY FROM THIS PAGE IMMEDIATELY.  Otherwise read on.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED: 1 five gallon white bucket. 12 two liter pop bottles.
TOTAL ELAPSED TIME FROM START TO DRINKING: ~two weeks.
TOTAL COST: ~$35
METHOD:
Garbage pick the cleanest, white, five gallon bucket you can find from behind some restaurant.
Go to Dan's or your own local homebrewing supply shop and buy Lalvin 118 wine yeast, one package of acid blend, one package of pectin ezyme powder (if using fresh fruit) and one package of yeast nutrient.
Buy your fruit juice (on sale!) you will need about 23 liters of grape, apple or any other kind of juice. Frozen concentrated juice is okay if it is actually fruit juice...if the first ingredient on the can is sugar then it won't make very good wine...you'll need 12 cans.
The best juice is unfiltered, not from concentrate juice. My favourite is RW Knudson black cherry juice but it's very expensive. Santa Cruz apple juice is excellent. A good and much more affordable alternative is SunRype grape juice. Aim to spend about a dollar a liter on your juice.
Also buy a 4 kilogram bag of white sugar.
Fresh fruit should be run through a juicer before adding to the bucket. It is a great way to improve your wine but it's time consuming.
Go home and carefully wash your 5 gallon bucket.
Pour your sugar and fruit juice and two teaspoons each of the pectin enzyme powder, the acid blend and the yeast nutrient and fill up the bucket....(all your ingredients must be at ROOM TEMPERATURE!) ..... to within 5 inches of the top. Stir briskly to dissolve the sugar.
Sprinkle the yeast into your bucket and cover it with plastic wrap.
The next day your wine will be foaming with the fermentation.
Over the next couple of days collect 12- two liter pop bottles with lids from recycling and wash them and the lids carefully with hot water at the sink.
The wine will be finished fermenting in about 10 days.
Line up all your pop bottles and using a jug scoop the wine out of your bucket and put the first one into a glass and drink it. Then continue to scoop out wine and fill up all your bottles to within about 2 inches of the tops WITHOUT SPLASHING.
If you want your wine carbonated, dissolve one cup of white sugar in about one cup hot tap water in your jug and trickle it as equally as you can into the pop bottles on top of the wine....put the caps on and put all the bottles in the closet or cover them with a towel to shield them from light.
The wine will be fizzy and mostly clear in about 10 days but you can drink some any time before that if you are ready. The clarity and the flavour will continue to improve for several months however. Even wine that is made from relatively weak flavoured, pasteurized and from concentrate juice will improve significantly after several months in the bottle.  I make lots of wine to try to make sure that some of it lasts that long.
You will see sediment in the bottom of the bottles, the wine will be clearing from the top down and the bottles will be very hard.
If you have carbonated your wine you must chill the bottles in the fridge before opening them or there will be a lot of foaming.
Invite me over to drink your wine.
If you want to take your wine out with you, it would be best to decant a chilled bottle into an empty pop bottle so as to leave the sediment behind.
Rinse your empties as soon as possible for easy cleaning and reuse.
Conveniences such as a spigot for your bucket and an airlock for the lid can be added later if desired for convenience but this method requires very little investment of time, money and effort for a novice.....the world of home brewing only gets bigger from here..... this is the quickest, easiest and simplest way. Your wine should cost about $1.50 per liter depending on the cost of your juice.
FAQ
Do I have to invite Julian over to drink my wine?
Answer: Yes
Can I use other containers than a white 5 gallon bucket?
Answer: No
How will I know when my wine is ready to drink?
Answer: There is no point at which you cannot drink your wine.  If you drink it before fermentation is complete you won't be able to get drunk because you won't have enough alcohol in it yet.  If you drink it as soon as fermentation is complete you'll be able to get drunk but the wine won't be as clear nor as smooth tasting as later on.....but I drink all wine when I am ready.
Is it legal to make wine?
Answer: Yes
Will my wine be as good as Château Lafite Rothschild?
Answer: No
Will my wine be cheaper than any wine that I can buy in stores
Answer: Yes
Can I poison or make myself sick drinking my home made wine?
Answer: Not unless you drink too much.
Can I pair my wine with food?
Yes.
Will my wine be as good as cheap, store bought wine?
Answer: Only wine made from grapes tastes like grape wine. Wine tastes like the fruit from which it is made.  If you want your wine to taste like varietal grape wine you will have to start with that juice.  If you start with apple juice you will only be able to make apple wine. It doesn't mean it won't be good it just means that it won't taste like wine made from grapes.  If you do wish for good tasting grape wine then buy grape juice or a wine making kit.  The process is the same as listed here but it will cost more money.  In Canada this will still always be a lot cheaper than buying wine but in lower tax jurisdictions such as California you are going have a tough time beating the cost of Two Buck Chuck.  If you don't put too high a cost on your time and effort and/or if the grapes are free then you'll save money.
Can I put my wine in Bordeaux bottles and cork and label them?
Yes.
Will my wine taste better poured out of wine bottles?
Yes.
Can I sell my wine?
No.
Can I give it to friends as gifts?
No.
Can I give it to my enemies?
Yes
Can I cook with it?
Yes.
Can I clean floors and other household surfaces with it?
No.
Can I burn it in my car?
No.
Can I pass a breathalyser test after drinking a bottle of my wine?
No.
Is there any risk of clothing removal when drinking my wine?
Yes.
Is my wine flammable?
No.
Will my wine "go bad?"
No.
Will drinking my wine get me pregnant?
Possibly.
Can I drink my wine when I'm pregnant?
No.
Will drinking my wine cause riots?
Possibly
Is my wine suitable for hand to hand combat?
Yes.
When should I make more wine?
Now.

JULIAN ON JERKY

There are some good reasons for making jerky at home.  Of course a major component of DIY projects is saving money.   Making a high quality product is also of major concern.  And by doing things ourselves, we have more control over the ingredients and practices involved in the process thus possibly leading to a product that meets our personal desires and a healthful product.  Regarding jerky, the process is relatively simple and safe, the results can easily exceed commercial products and with attention to detail and methodology, some money can also be saved compared to the price of commercially available jerky.

 Jerky meat is expensive! That's one reason why commercially made jerky is well over $50 a kilo.  What is the best way to get top quality jerky meat at the lowest possible price?  Buy more  meats when they are available at sale prices. If you, or if you know someone who hunts or fishes, take full advantage of a bountiful harvest or gifts or barter opportunities.  When you get large amounts of meat, do your slicing immediately and then freeze it in batches of the size that will fit your marinating bowl.  (For freezing fish especially, see my article The Salmon Are Here....Now What?) Then when you want to make jerky, place the lump of frozen slices in the bowl and pour the marinating spices over it and leave it in the fridge until it thaws and can be mixed. Then dry as usual.  

Try to avoid putting liquid additives into your marinating bowl.  Firstly, most of these will be poured down the drain.  Secondly, all the remaining moisture will ultimately have to be dried in the oven.  There is plenty of moisture for marinating purposes already in the meat and you will find some of this in your marinating bowl the morning after when the salt has drawn it out.  Soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce have excellent flavour but are very dilute.  Dried soy flavour would be a better choice if it is available but not if it is more expensive than ordinary soy sauce.  Worcestershire sauce is mostly malt vinegar but I like the taste as well. 

Leave your marinating bowl uncovered in the fridge.  This will start the drying process as soon as possible.

While the combination of ingredients in the marinade does affect flavour of course, and you will make adjustments for your taste as you gain experience, the main object of the exercise is to evaporate the water out of the meat.  Meat is over 75% water and almost all of this needs to be removed.  If you dry your meat with no additives at all it will still taste great!  In traditional times, when the only purpose of making jerky was to preserve meat, the only additive if any was salt.   Increased salting will lead to reduced drying times and greater preservative qualities but it will concentrate salt in the final product and may be more or less desirable to your taste buds. 

 That's another reason why jerky is so expensive.  Like so many foods, you are paying for meat that is mostly water and which literally vanishes into  thin air and IS money down the drain.  I'm a big fan of saving money but I like to pick my battles.   In my blog Tax Free Booze in the Great White North, I rant on and on about how easy it is to enjoy huge savings when making homebrew...the essential point here is that when making homebrew, one isn't beating the industry price, one is beating the GOVERNMENT PRICE.  No matter what we do to our jerky we won't be able to to beat commercial makers by very much because there's not much tax on food in Canada.  But we can avoid the additives and preservatives found in commercial jerky that we don't want.  So is home made jerky cheaper than commercially made jerky? The short answer is yes it can be.....but only slightly.  If one shops for meat at the lowest possible sale prices, doesn't drive too far to get it, buys and uses additives and packaging frugally, air dries his jerky or at least uses a 110v convection oven  AND doesn't put a high price on his labour then he can beat the price of commercial jerky.  

These guidelines form the basis for all my jerky recipes including beef, pork, salmon, turkey etc.

Directions and Basic Recipe

• 2 pounds beef round, brisket, or whatever lean is on sale....the less fat the better.  
• cut it into thin strips as thinly and as evenly as you can... .slight freezing and a thin sharp knife help but don't worry.
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons liquid smoke
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• for fish jerky, either leave the skin on or slices should be around twice as thick as for beef to avoid crumbly jerky
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika and or  chili powder, paste or any or as much hot spice as you like.

1. Place beef strips in the bottom of a large bowl. Pour all ingredients over beef. Mix to assure all the meat is evenly coated.  Marinate, uncovered in the refrigerator  overnight....longer is fine if you don't get to it right away.
2. Arrange the meat strips on a wire rack or perforated tray of some kind and put it in a 70 degree Celsius (158F) oven and place a foil lined tray underneath it to catch the drips.  In a conventional oven leave the oven door slightly open.  Dry at least 4 hours then turn the slices over and continue drying until the desired texture and colour is achieved.   Store in an airtight container or resealable bags.

APPRECIATION FOR FINE PERIOD PIANOS

The pianos that I actually have in my stock are ones that I find interesting for different reasons such as superior tone, a beautiful cabinet, a famous maker's name or some other characteristic that makes the instrument historically significant.
Most pianos that interest me are made before the depression (1930).  The great depression was the watershed point for the piano industry. The overwhelming majority of piano manufacturers did not survive the depression and those that did were nearly broke.  Prior to the depression as many as 200 companies made pianos in Canada.  Only  about 6 continued after the depression and now there are none.  In the USA, the numbers are proportionately larger and they paint a similar picture. 
So the best pianos generally speaking were made between about 1880 and 1930.  They are considered modern pianos because the  parts are standardized and still available and because pianos are made the same way today.  Good post depression pianos are rarer and more expensive whereas pre-depression pianos usually need or have had restoration to some extent. 

It's possible to get an old piano with the cabinet style that appeals to one's taste because styles changed from fancy to plain and back again over the decades.  Like tone quality, cabinet style cannot be changed, nor can it be ignored since a piano is large and the pianist sits facing it.  So even though cabinet style cannot be heard, it must be seen and usually that makes it important.  It is the first thing to look for.


Tone quality is inherent and generally speaking cannot be improved.  It is part of the manufacturing process and is the major thing that skilled makers strive to create.   High quality tone cannot be seen of course, and in some ways requires an experienced and/or educated ear.  Once discovered though it becomes desirable beyond anything else. It is sought second after cabinet style for the simple reason that tone only exists when the piano is played, whereas cabinet style is always visible.

The way the piano feels to the hands when it is played is the third way that pianos are perceived.  The piano is a machine made of wood, metal and felt and there are considerable differences between the way pianos play.  This is called the "action" of the piano.  New pianos run more smoothly, quietly and key response is quicker than is the case in pianos with worn actions.  Also, higher quality pianos have more complex actions and they play better too, just like other machines.

When searching for a good piano I like to have balance in all three of the above areas.  Just a nice cabinet isn't enough any more than a piano that sounds great but has poor cabinet condition is acceptable.

Look for period details that are no longer available today such as ivory keytops, solid brass hardware, top quality rosewood, ribbon and watermark mahogany, birds eye maple and quarter sawn oak cabinets, frescoes, purfling, and other details found on the cabinet and on the gilded plate inside the piano. Note chip carving, marquetry, beveled edges, fancy
fallboard decals and special attention to marks such as serial numbers and makers signatures. 

High quality period pianos were made by craftsmen who specialized in making various components.  Often the key maker would sign his work on the side of a bass note for example.   Look for other signatures and dates on the action, cabinet parts and soundboard.

To find a great piano is more about the work of locating it than it is about the money.  Upright pianos especially are available in the hundreds of dollars generally rather than thousands.  Even a piano that has had significant maintenance over the years and is a fine instrument as well can usually be had for a couple of thousand dollars more or less. Quite a bit of money and effort can be saved by finding a piano that has new strings and/or hammers.  A refinished cabinet can sometimes be a good thing depending on the quality of the work done.  
If you're in the market for a grand piano in Canada, the search  will be more difficult.  The number of grand pianos made compared to uprights is about 500 to 1.  And of those grand pianos made, most are small inexpensive instruments, barely superior if at all to a large upright.  The rule is beware any upright piano less than 48" tall and beware any grand less than 6' long.  Yes a nice Steinway in the 5'10" size might attract consideration....but not by me.  In general, the best tone and quality of construction are found in pianos that fit that simple rule.  Expect to pay between $5,000 and $15,000 for a good to great grand piano.  The best deals are found in the very largest pianos because few rooms can house them and moving is cumbersome. 
A big nicely restored upright should be a pleasure to see, hear and play....a big, nicely restored, grand piano should wow the senses!

WHY IS CANADA A BACKWATER OF THE MOBILE PHONE WORLD?

Trying to negotiate the world of mobile communications technology these days is like trying to kick a field goal when somebody's moving the goal posts all the time and changing the rules during the game.  The combination of choosing the right handset and the right carrier plus keeping the monthly bill down to a king's ransom requires research.  I like my monthly phone bills to be well under $100 and I don't like surprises.  But many of my friends have regular bills well over $100 and of course with data packages and roaming charges incurred on a business trip, running up much bigger bills than a $100 is very easy. 
I was a Rogers customer for 9 years then Telus and Koodo  and now Wind Mobile. Recently, after a big and unexpected long distance bill from Koodo, I've been shopping for a new carrier.  Also, as a discount carrier offering basic service and handsets Koodo doesn't offer much in the way of data packages or web surfing devices. Koodo doesn't permit tethering.  In addition, the CDMA devices lack SIM cards so changing devices is difficult. But keeping the bill under $100 is easy. 
There doesn't seem to be any unlimited data package available in Canada on 3g and 5gigs seems to be the limit across the board.  That package will, after taxes of course, leave chump change, if any, from a $100 bill every month.  Wind Mobile has its Infinite Laptop and in certain areas this may be useful to some.
I started looking for high speed, mobile web access with cutting edge handsets and what I found is that not only are Canadian carriers expensive and offer very limiting data packages and handsets...they offer technology that is dated by comparison to Asian, European, Scandinavian and US markets.  Yes my constantly texting friend!  Canada, known as a communications technology leader lags behind other areas of the world in mobile communications at the consumer level.  The Federal government recently auctioned off a couple more licenses to try and free up the Canadian market because everyone knew that we were getting taken to the cleaners by Rogers and Telus.   But it's been a couple of years since then and not much has changed.   Services offered by the new and discount carriers like Wind and Koodo  are spotty and gold plated packages offered by Telus and Rogers come at nearly solid gold prices.
Splashy ad campaigns try to convince consumers that cell phones are cheap and that service is great but this generally is not my experience.  The companies are all just trying to charge top dollar for splintered voice plans and selling megabits like French truffles.
It stands to reason that developing reliable wireless communication systems using cutting edge technology costs big money, but the big phone companies certainly have lots of money.  In fact it seems that they have so much money that they don't feel the need to invest it in up to date technology.....this is so Canadian...it reminds of the BCLDB trying to limit the selection of products in the stores because the bureaucrats think that the status quo is adequate. While adjacent markets like Alberta have thousands more products available.

 One of the big complaints I have is the "not coming anytime soon 4g network." Rumours about Rogers  launching  it's 4g network in time for the Olympics proved to be just that... we're still not sure which Olympics....it certainly wasn't the 2010 Olympics.   4g web access is offered in 36 American cities but nowhere in Canada.  It's up and running in Norway and Sweden, the UK and elsewhere but not one place in Canada has it.   It's true that 4G is still centered in major urban areas but Canada has major urban areas doesn't it?
Having read the news about the fabulous speed offered by 4g I wanted to make sure my new handset is 4g ready so I began comparison shopping.   Of course the latest iphone is 4g is ready isn't it?  No! it isn't!  the iphone4g refers to 4th generation of the handset.    4g ready iphones aren't predicted to become available until summer 2011. Oh, so which 4g ready handsets are available in Canada now?  Answer....NONE! That's right my chatty Canadian friends....not only is 4g not available in Canada, there are no 4g ready phones either.   Not the  Samsung Epic nor the HTC Evo.  I'm stunned by this.  Nokia, the largest maker of mobile handsets in the world doesn't even have a store in Canada and will not ship to Canada via its online stores.  The N900 is a year old already and Nokia has announced that this the last model in the line.  The N900 is  my current mobile device of choice....no iphone for me thankyou...I had to buy it on Ebay but I it is an unlocked quad band smart phone that runs Maemo 5, a Nokia version of Linux.  NONE OF THESE DEVICES HAS EVER BEEN SOLD IN CANADA! I still get people asking me about my N800 with it's bluetooth folding keyboard all the time because hardly anyone in Canada has ever seen one to this day and it's borderline obsolete!
So what's the problem here?  Do I have to just get a dated iphone like a good little Canadian and pay through the nose for it for years and then get slammed with a whack of stupid taxes as well while my neighbours to the south surf the web at a 100 mbps. 
Hst, 911 fee and and the government regulatory recovery fee......I will do my level best to NEVER pay these taxes.  All bureaucracies should be starved at least half to death.
And while this is going on giant, ridiculous, hippopotamus and bird ads are constantly telling me how fabulous Telus is.  Can anyone tell me that I should be impressed?
I would never buy a laptop or a desktop that was locked to my ISP for three years so why should I buy a phone that is locked to a service provider for MANY MONTHS BEYOND THE AVERAGE WORKING LIFE OF THE DEVICE.  We should be buying the UNLOCKED devices we want and then shopping for a provider that wants our business.  I know we don't want to write $500 cheques for our phones but this is the best way to avoid getting locked to an expensive plan. 
Here's what I want from my governments, the network providers and the hardware manufacturers.   Open market competition between network  providers stimulated by the CRTC's licensing arrangements,  less money spent on flashy ad campaigns and more money spent on upgrading the networks...unlimited data packages....AND A FULL LINE OF CUTTING EDGE HANDSETS AVAILABLE TO THE CONSUMER.  Oh and keep it under a $100 a month, please and thank you.... if you don't mind....and you're welcome.