It鈥檚 hard to believe that we鈥檝e said goodbye to the year that was 2017 already.
I know it鈥檚 a clich茅d thing to say, but that also doesn鈥檛 mean it isn鈥檛 true.聽 I suppose when you鈥檙e busy enough and your schedule is chocked full of all sorts of events, meetings, sports, interview appointments, and every other thing in between to pump out the weekly news, then the days, weeks and months tend to fly off the calendar.
Speaking of calendars, I should really grab a 2018 one somewhere鈥�
When it comes to us in the news biz, we鈥檙e in somewhat of a unique situation.聽 We tend to think ahead to the next week or two or three or four in front of us.聽 As soon as one newspaper has been published, we sometimes literally look at each other and go, 鈥淲elp, what鈥檚 next?鈥� and begin to mentally prep what the next few issues of this fine publication will look like from front to back.
This kind of mindset and work schedule is the kind of formula that sees the year just cruise on by without a moment鈥檚 notice.
I鈥檓 not going to use this column space to rehash the biggest events of 2017; that鈥檚 what the Year in Review piece is for.聽 Instead, I thought I鈥檇 look into the proverbial crystal ball and make some predictions on where I think things are headed when it comes to both Western society and our part of the world here in Outlook and the Lake Diefenbaker area.
In 2018, I predict that:
-聽 The new leader of the Saskatchewan Party 鈥� and the new Premier of the province 鈥� will be under a heavy microscope from not only the NDP, but residents of the province who were nowhere near ready to see Brad Wall leave the political arena.聽 Any possible fumble by this person will be met with shrugs of 鈥淲ell, that鈥檚 not what Wall would鈥檝e done鈥︹��
-聽 U.S. President Donald Trump will continue to be the main event attraction for late night talk show hosts everywhere who can鈥檛 seem to come up with any other material that鈥檚 actually funny.聽 To be fair though, there鈥檚 a good chance that he鈥檒l deserve it.
-聽 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will have ignored the West for so long that during a media scrum, he鈥檒l be questioned about the troubles facing a particular city and go, 鈥淩egina?聽 You mean that place from that movie 鈥楧eadpool鈥�?鈥澛� Of course, JT鈥檚 usual 鈥渦hs鈥� and 鈥渦ms鈥� will be peppered liberally (ha!) throughout the questioning.
-聽 Outlook鈥檚 new swimming pool will open just in time for Canada Day and the facility will be a popular attraction, but the question that just won鈥檛 die will continue to pop up from those who refuse to accept reality:聽 鈥淲hy couldn鈥檛 this pool be down in the regional park?鈥�
-聽 In response to that particular question, the collective heads of several pool committee members will simply explode.
-聽 Outlook鈥檚 town council will hold another public meeting that encourages comments, feedback and questions from taxpaying residents, and just as it did after a supposedly offensive question was posed, our paper will have letters to the editor after said meeting sharing views and sides that could鈥檝e been dealt with more privately.聽 In fact, a question pertaining to some other alleged rumour will in fact start a civil war within Outlook, with the east side against the west, and the dividing line will be Franklin Street.聽 The east side will be mad that they don鈥檛 have access to most of Outlook鈥檚 restaurants, while the west side will be upset that they lose out on access to the D&E, because you know, people need lottery tickets and ice cream.
-聽 Outlook will continue to grow from a population standpoint, with an increased demand for more lots only adding to the town鈥檚 lengthy project list.
-聽 The SkyTrail walking bridge will once again go another year without seeing any silver lining in its future.
-聽 In a bit of an odd but deserving twist, the Chamber of Commerce will be voted in and recognized as the 2017 Group of the Year at this year鈥檚 Community Appreciation Awards, even though the event is organized and hosted by the Chamber itself.聽 The accolade will come as a result of the incredible work ethic exhibited by Chamber members to give this community some truly memorable events in the past year.
-聽 Outlook and the surrounding area will continue to be a hotbed of news in one way or another, lending further credence to this writer鈥檚 motto of, 鈥淭he smaller the area, the more going on beneath the surface.鈥�
For this week, that鈥檚 been the Ruttle Report.
