Hello everyone! Welcome to winter in Canada. Believe it or not, when I was in an area where winter brought cold rain, black ice and snow that came at night and was gone by noon, I really missed the weather that I was used to. At least now we can look forward to warmer weather with no snow to shovel, just grass to cut.

I trust that everyone had a good Christmas and a happy New Year. It might be interesting to know how many made New Year's resolutions and have not broken them yet. The only resolution made here is "Don't make any resolutions" and then you can't break them.

I received a telephone call asking about being able to get a rebate of GST if the club was incorporated. Apparently an MPP in the area had visited the club and suggested this to them. SO MUCH FOR THE MYTH!

A simple answer came from Revenue Canada. To receive a rebate of GST or the future HST you do not have to be incorporated, however there are other factors concerning rebates. First you must be registered to collect GST etc. with Revenue Canada. Secondly, the only tax that can be claimed is that which has been paid on material purchased to manufacture goods for sale or on articles bought to be resold by a retailer. As clubs are not selling merchandise as a business, they would not be able to claim a GST refund.

If you require more information, the regulations are on the internet or you may call the GST office of Revenue3 Canada on a toll free number that is in most phone books.

Now that you are probably really confused, I will leave and say Happy Valentine's Day and farewell until next month.