Sept. 3, 2006

Commentary by Christine McHale

Since many residents of Caledonia have been left feeling helpless not knowing what is going on, wondering if they will in fact be protected by the OPP, a close-knit group of four ladies have taken it upon themselves to at least offer some sense of security by riding around at night, patrolling their neighborhood.

These ladies, dubbed the 'Timbit ladies', have armed themselves with the latest in high tech gadgetry, when most women their age would be arming themselves with knitting or crochet needles.

With their high tech scanners, the Timbit ladies cruise the lawless streets of Caledonia late at night, watching and noting the comings and goings of the OPP, the Natives and anyone they think may be up to no good.

The Timbit ladies can often be found at late night stakeouts parked at the local Tim Horton's parking lot. Ever mindful of the laws governing all of us, and not wanting to be picked up by the OPP on loitering charges, the Timbit ladies will purchase one Timbit at a time, dutifully noting that with each purchase, they are allowed 20 minutes of parking time at Tim Horton's. The Timbit ladies take the Rule of Law very seriously.

It has been suggested that the Timbit ladies should also be armed with Black Berries so they can text message their observations to area residents, keeping them informed in a timely manner, and, at the very least, offering some sense of security.

And if anyone thinks these ladies should be sitting at home watching TV or doing some other innocuous pastime, would be wise to note that one of the Timbit ladies was quoted as saying, "We used to be bored, but not any more!"

What a hoot it is to listen to the OPP go crazy over a few cars parked at the Canadian Tire. On Friday night the Grannies, along with occupants of two other cars, sat at the Canadian Tire parking lot at 9:00 pm. The OPP sent 50+ officers to respond. By 9:30 there were about 15 residents' cars parked at the Canadian Tire. The OPP sent in the Tactical unit to hide behind the Body Wave and also sent the MELT team in with two paddy wagons.

Finally, just before 10:00 pm, the OPP got up enough courage to approach the cars. But suddenly and just before the OPP reached the cars, all the cars drove out of the Canadian Tire lot and left town. The OPP stood dumb founded as they increased their alert level. The cars circled around Caledonia and went to Tim Horton's for coffee and a big laugh at the expense of the OPP. Everyone gathered with their coffee to listen to scanners while the OPP tried to figure out what to do with the 100+ officers they now had stationed at the Canadian Tire parking lot.

The once proud OPP who used to be viewed by residents as being paralyzed, are now just seen as one big joke.

The scene was repeated Saturday night with more residents joining in to listen to police radio and laugh at the police.

So there you have it, Timbit ladies on citizen's patrol on the streets of Caledonia and occasionally having a little fun with the OPP.