Thinking Allowed: 9 float planes for Aurora

It is entirely possible that we have worn our rain jackets more in the last two weeks than in our year and half in Australia. This wet weather was a hot topic around Vancouver. However, it is nice for the city that they have one common concern that doesn't involve housing. We did feel pretty soggy after spending so much time in nature's shower, but realistically, while the weather seemed bad to us it was great in comparison to Vancouver's previous few months. We did get to stroll around parks and beaches in the sunshine. We feel kinship with Stanley park. We are enamoured by float planes. Vancouver is a pleasant well located city with a great view to the mountains and sea. It is a shame that it is such an attractive city; if only it were a bit more decrepit, the foreign investors would be turned off. But there is a decrepit side to the city (weather and housing costs excluded) that makes locals shy their eyes in shame. Yes - there is a major drug and homelessness problem. While these issues are so sad I am feeling like they could also be exploited. Rather than hiding its underbelly Vancouver should spam China's internet waves with images and facts of this brutal reality. This might both discourage further investors as well as encouraging current investors to sell or invest money in social services to decrease these problems in the hopes of offsetting the drop in property value due to the bad press about the city. I also think people should pay me to come up with these sorts of ideas.

In other bright news, our favourite eight year old turned into our favourite nine year old in Vancouver.