Am I Wrong?

 

If you are like me, you’ve just about had it with this seemingly never-ending winter. Sure, it started out well enough: relatively mild, little in the way of precipitation, but now it’s dragging on with cold temperatures, bitter winds and more than enough snow to satisfy even the most avid skier.

 

Following the hectic days of Christmas and New Year’s, we’ve been plunged into a drudgery of grey skies, snowy sidewalks and, for the most part, people hunkering down in their homes. We had Family Day in February, but it’s really just another day: no special celebrations or activities and the only benefit is a day off work or out of school. There is nothing in March to get us excited (unless you count St. Patrick’s Day, and the only way one can get that off is to call in sick) and Easter doesn’t arrive until early in April. So, basically, we have three months of nothingness.

 

Is it any wonder people get the blues at this time of year, especially in February? Maybe it’s time this town started to look into the possibility of having some kind of weekend festival, preferably in February, to generate some old-fashioned good times, fun activities and communal gathering. The following is just a suggestion, but if it strikes a chord with anyone perhaps it could be a starting point.

 

I’d like to see Brock Street closed to traffic from Victoria Street to Main Street for a full weekend so that a wide variety of activities could take place. For example, a long toboggan ride down the hill from Toronto Street to Bascom. Such a run could be constructed easily and quickly and removed after the fact with little difficulty. How about sectioning off an area for a full-scale ball hockey scrimmage open to everyone of all ages? A fleet of food trucks stationed around the downtown, interspersed with vendors selling their crafts. Musicians, dancers, jugglers, magicians, entertainers of all sorts. Lord knows, we have enough talent in this town. A petting zoo. And, if the weather turns nasty, a couple of warming stations.

 

The Roxy could run an afternoon of kids’ cartoons and the library could run a bunch of kids’ programs. There could be ice and/or snow sculptures and even a snow castle. The possibilities are endless. How about free snowmobile, horse-drawn carriage or dog sled rides in Elgin Park or snowshoe races in Centennial Park?

 

Such a festival would, of course, need the hard-working volunteers of the Lions Club, Rotary and the Optimist Club to take leading roles, as well as the BIA and the township. But the Lions and Optimists already show us what they are capable of with their Art in the Park and Fantasy of Lights presentations and the BIA’s Christmas Holiday Trail in the downtown area is always a hit.

 

Such a festival could bring lots of extra (pedestrian) traffic to the downtown, which could be good for the retailers, who would be encouraged to set up sidewalk tables. It could even be an attraction for tourists, because any such festivals are few and far between in the GTA at this time of year. And it could be a spirit-lifter at a time when our spirits seem to sink.

 

Let’s face it, we have enough opportunities during summer and fall to lift our spirits. The Victoria Day weekend is followed pretty closely by Canada Day, which is followed by the August civic holiday, which precedes Labour Day in September and Halloween in October, which has evolved into more than just one night’s fun. November is rather dull, but since the Christmas period now starts as soon as Halloween is finished, there’s plenty to do. However, between New Year’s and Easter: nada, zilch, nothing. Oh, I suppose one could talk about the March break, but apart from some kids’ programs run by the library there isn’t a plethora of organized activities or events. It’s just time off school.

 

It seems to me that a mid-winter festival full of fun activities would do a lot for the community’s general mental health and give this town a much needed boost in morale. But here’s the big “but:” it would only work if the community as a whole supported the idea.

 

Tell me, am I wrong?