BOUQUET To the City of Nanaimo employee who risked life and limb to dash out into morning rush-hour traffic on the Nanaimo Parkway to retrieve a snipe that had been run over by multiple vehicles.
BEEF A store made masks mandatory with announcements and signs at the entrances but the first time we were shopping we counted no fewer than 25 people not wearing masks. A week later we counted 22 or so. Stores have the right to refuse service and I find it hard to believe that many were physically unable to wear a mask. Abide by the rules or don’t shop there.
BOUQUET To the man who helped change my tire in front of my son’s daycare.
BEEF To the lady who sprayed my neighbours’ kids with a jet from her garden hose through the hedge for playing in their own backyard in the daytime. What kind of person does this? Shame on you.
BOUQUET To the driver of the Dodge Caravan who paid for our Whoppers at Burger King. Very nice gesture.
BEEF To the woman on the corner of Uplands and Rutherford roads. The pedestrian light was on but you chose to yap on your phone instead of crossing. I watched you, then as I proceeded to go so did you. Walking and texting is the same as driving and texting.
BOUQUET To city crews for clearing away the blackberries and other shrubbery from the corner of Oliver Road and Uplands Drive. It is so nice to have our sidewalk back, as a pedestrian who uses this intersection daily your excellent job is much appreciated.
BEEF To the Departure Bay resident who imagines him or herself a friend of nature. Feeding animals makes them too tame for their own safety and less able to fend for themselves. It makes them vulnerable to cars, human pets, and illness (from food not suited to them). Cougars in search of prey – the animals you are feeding – may venture into residential areas, which puts them at risk of getting euthanized. If you were indeed a friend of nature, you would leave it to its own devices.
BOUQUET To the team at the Kal Tire on Victoria Road when I came in with a flat tire on my Toyota Yaris. You looked after my car quickly and efficiently and I left with a smile on my face. Thanks for the great service.
BEEF To the Departure Bay neighbour feeding the wildlife. The meaning of ‘wildlife’ is a wild animal that isn’t tame and lives on its own without any help from people. You are doing a disservice by feeding these animals. There is also a bylaw in Nanaimo which does not permit it. Why don’t you make a donation to our local SPCA instead.
BOUQUET To the traffic flagger working at the Hammond Bay Road treatment plant upgrade. I love the smile and enthusiasm you give to each and every car who passes by. Your joie de vivre makes the construction delay enjoyable. Keep spreading the joy.
BEEF To the beef about children needing school. We parents will make our decisions best for our child. We know what they need and that is safety. Mind your business and don’t judge.
BOUQUET A heart-felt thank you to the anonymous attendant at the Real Canadian Superstore who found and brought my hearing aid to the lost and found. My brother picked up the hearing aid in perfect condition.
BEEF To the groups of teenagers wandering around the mall without masks and not observing social distancing or directional markings. Come on, we are in the middle of a pandemic and everyone needs to pull their weight. Do their parents know they are doing this?
BOUQUET Thanks to the driver of a large SUV in Best Buy parking lot. I blasted my horn, he quickly braked and we did not collide. But he pulled up next to me when I parked, rolled down his window, and apologized. So nice.
BEEF To the people in the Oliver Woods area who park their car backward and are rude to their neighbours about street parking. If you don’t know how to park, maybe you shouldn’t be driving.
BOUQUET To ‘Benjamin the Beaver’ whom I met on Girvin Street late one night. What a pleasure it was to meet this beautiful creature as he stopped to chat and have his photo taken and thanks to May at Dufferin Place for giving him his name.
BEEF To the motorcyclists who use Gulfview Drive as a thoroughfare instead of Hammond Bay Road to avoid traffic. There is a barrier in place because it’s supposed to be a dead end, providing peace and quiet for the residents who pay high taxes for that location. I think a creative solution can be found to allow cyclists access while preventing motorcycles from loudly cruising down our street.
BOUQUET To Bonnie at Marlin Travel for her Herculean efforts getting me back from Mexico during the pandemic. Five unsuccessful attempts over a 10-week period, dozens and dozens of e-mails. Above and beyond the call of duty. Muchos gracias.
BEEF To the man at the pet store who took an obscene amount of live bugs for his bearded dragon on shipment day. Many customers were waiting patiently and you raised your voice over other people who had been waiting longer. You are one of the reasons why the store keeps running out of supply and leaving other reptile owners without adequate food supply for their pets.
BOUQUET To Merit Furniture in Nanaimo. Bill the manager was so helpful, knowledgeable and very accommodating. He gave us lots of time to browse with no pressure. After checking out several other stores, we found the best service and best deal there.
BEEF The destructive deer on the Island should be culled. I had a beautiful garden of beans and peas. The deer came one night and ate all the blossoms off everything so no food for my freezer this year because of this. I had a beautiful rose garden; one night every flower was eaten. This should be stopped.
BOUQUET To the people working at the ICBC driver licensing office in Nanaimo. They were wonderfully pleasant, professional, and organized and getting my licence renewed in person was totally easy, given the circumstances. Well done.
BEEF To the beefer complaining about bike trails built by tax dollars. Our taxes pay for roads that not everyone drives on – what’s the difference?
BOUQUET I would like to thank Dr. Hendrix in the emergency department at Nanaimo hospital for his wonderful care he gave me. He really cares about his patients. I’m in there a lot and have never received such care as I did with him. Truly, deeply, forever grateful. I wish you were my doctor.
BEEF To the city and RCMP. I know everyone is very busy upgrading sports fields and bike lanes but can we please get some help with the graffiti artist who wields orange-coloured paint who is going around and destroying beautiful murals, street signs, walls, roads, the outsides of shops, billboards. Not only is it an eyesore, but it’s criminal and impacts those of us trying to make this city welcoming to visitors and residents alike.
BOUQUET To Country Grocer at Southgate, thank you so much for the camping supplies that I won in your latest prize giveaway. I am so excited to enjoy nature with friends and great camping equipment.
BEEF To the young man in the silver car who was speeding down Hammond Bay Road, yelling at me to use the [expletive] sidewalk as I was making a left-hand turn legally onto Overlook Drive on my bike. I was stopped and had a hand signal on and was wearing bright clothing. Bicyclists are supposed to abide by the rules of the road as a motor vehicle would. The car behind me chose to stop instead of going around me. Please share the road. Concerned with the anger.
BOUQUET To the wonderful people at Nanaimo Unique Kids Organization and Salish Sea Consulting. We are so lucky to have kind-hearted people like you in our community. Keep up the good work.
BEEF You left a note when I parked on Milton Street where there are no parking restrictions to not park there as residents have very few spaces. Nanaimo streets are not your individual property. I was supporting local businesses and there were many empty parking spaces on arrival and departure.
BOUQUET To the person who returned my lost car keys to the Mid Island Co-op. I searched and searched for four hours that day and am so very grateful to those who took the time to drop them off.
BEEF To the person who drove over our cat while speeding. You killed our best little friend and did not even stop. Accidents happen but you are a murderer to me for not having the decency to let us know what happened. Beef to all the people who speed on Portsmouth and Applecross.
BOUQUET To the guy from Fortis who was in Deerwood Estates for taking a few minutes to help get a little dog named Lulu back to its owners.
BEEF Offended by a sign but not by an irresponsible driver. Wonderful human being
BOUQUET To the family with a trampoline and pool. Please keep making your kids happy and ignore your grumpy neighbour.
BEEF Litter can get a bit much along many of our streets, but since this virus turned up people have gotten very lazy. I am finding masks discarded like coffee cups. I watched a lady come out of a store, take her mask off and toss it. We have a virus, and these lazy people could be spreading it by discarding their masks on the ground.
To submit a beef or a bouquet to the Nanaimo News Bulletin, e-mail editor@nanaimobulletin.com.
