Well, it's been a year, hasn't it?
One of the big goings-on around here was that this blog became mostly-dead. We had a pretty good run, but the defection of one of our researchers and a decrease in the quality of the coffee in our staff room spelled the end of this enterprise. At least for now.
Blogging is a bit of a dying activity it seems. The CreComm program at Red River College pumps out a fresh new batch of bloggers each year, but content and quality are mixed and most are short-lived. Besides that though, we have stumbled across a few new local Manitoba blogs that you should check out. If we have missed any good ones, and I'm sure we have, by all means leave a comment and it will get added to the list.
New Manitoba blogs:
Around This Town - Written with an oddly familiar though slightly stuffy style. Might be worth looking at.
James Hoddinott - This teacher and novelist has a diverse blog, with posts about art, development, and other things.
RPARC - Former Waverly West And Beyond blogger David Watson makes a return here, writing on behalf of the Riel Parks and Rivers Commons organization, mostly digging into the emerging development of agricultural land in south St. Boniface -- something that has the potential of becoming a bit of a debacle.
Open Letters to Louis Riel: Fulfilling the Winnipeg Dream - Dr. Robert-Falcon sets up this blog as a series of letters to Manitoba hero/villain/founder/crazy person Louis Riel, but in doing so he tackles some hefty and important issues.
The Art Of Gettting By In Winnipeg - Melissa explores the 101 things to do in Winnipeg (and more).
Good Day and Great Days - Winnipeg Free Press journalist Lindor Reynolds allows us to follow along as she battles brain cancer.
Dave Shorr - One of Winnipeg's 100 most interesting people also took us along on a very personal and poetic journey through his own battles with cancer.
WHOLLY SHIT ~ church reviews from a serious punk - A tip 'o the hat goes to James Hope Howard for finding this gem, with its refreshing and hilarious reviews of local churches.
Colin Blog-heed [title pending] - Winnipeg based but not about Winnipeg, this astonishingly well researched blog is a must-visit if you dig cartoons.
365 Portrait Project - Dave Lipnowski committed to posting a portrait every day in 2013. I have seen other one-a-day-for-a-year blogs that failed, but what makes this more remarkable is that each photo was taken the day it was posted, and the quality of the photos are excellent.
Sadly we haven't been following the blogs as closely as we should, but we do have a New Year's resolution to update the blogrolls in the sidebar .. and keep them updated.
New blogs that need just a little more encouragement to keep going:
Cam Does Winnipeg
Tom Scott In Winnipeg
Another Megan
Eden In Winnipeg
From The Mind, Heart & Toe...
Our most read posts of the year:
Derelict Properties Bylaw?
We would like to think that this 2011 post made a resurgence because our novel idea to apply the derelict properties bylaw to vacant lots finally gained traction, but no ... it was Ray Rybachuk's hijinks and eventual demise that sent people scrambling to the internet to find out more about the shady dude with marginal snowmobiling skills.
People in glass houses should buy small furniture
Our sneak peak at the (very small) floor plans for the new Glasshouse Condominiums in downtown Winnipeg. The funny thing is all of the floor plans were completely redesigned from what I posted here.
How to get to Vimy Ridge
Once again this 2008 Vimy Ridge post generated hits almost on a daily basis. Go, if you ever have the chance.
Phil Sheegl: The right man for the job
Gosh, what could have possibly drawn people to this sarcastic little post about Winnipeg's former CAO? I can't imagine ...
Proposed new Winnipeg Jets logo!
We have to admit that our redesign of the Winnipeg Jets logo didn't go over as well as we had hoped. That is to say, the Jets organization didn't email us and offer to buy it for $100,000. Nevertheless, it was fun to do.
The Manitoba Government subsidizes strippers
Perhaps one of our better posts of the year? One of the least bad? At least not so crappy as to prevent assiniboiadowns.com from linking to it. This one sneered at Minister Stan Struthers and the government's claim that it was saving tax payer money by cutting back "subsidies" or "funding" to the Manitoba Jockey Club...
The places receiving this so-called funding includes strip clubs like Teasers, which in addition to featuring "Sleek & Sheek, Sexy, Exotic & Erotic, Applebottom babes, Big bang bootys, MilkJugs, Curvy, Mind Melting Hourglass figures, Long Legged Ladies, Big Bouncing boobs, Shocker Knockers & fun all the way around" also offers VLTs for your gaming pleasure. Each VLT could net Teasers up to $50,000 per year in revenue, thus the government is likely funding "nipple popping snow shows" to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
Thank you, Stan!
A big thank you to all of patrons of Anybody Want A Peanut throughout 2013 and since the inception of this blog. Also a special thanks to those who shared these pieces on twitter or elsewhere, and to the other blogs that linked here.
Finally, here are a few other year-end blog posts to check out:
West End Dumplings: Most Read Posts
Slurpees and Murder: 156 Lines
Observations, Reservations, Conversations: Part I and Part II and Predictions for 2014
Nothing In Winnipeg: Bookends
The Crime Scene: Top Stories of 2013
The Black Rod: Newsmaker of the Year
Conceit and Sociopathy: Yeah it's 2014
North End MC: 2013 stats
