Encounter Near the Old Cheddar
On my mammoth grocery shopping trip Saturday morning a woman waved me over in the cheese aisle and asked me to look at her recipe card. …
August 2012
The Dresser, Such as it Is
Since I made a big hairy deal of the dresser I was refinishing I suppose I should show you the finished product.  I’m not over the moon about it.  It’s only been a few days that I’ve been able to walk past it without grimacing.  Having said that, it is funky and quirky and really livens up our guest bedroom. …
Old Is New Again – House Proud, Sun Media
Ikea means different things to different people. For some, it’s a place to stock up on inexpensive essentials for offspring leaving the nest. For others, it’s the home of organizational inspiration for a closet or a room. And still others see it as the preferred option for in-home kitchen design and installation. Its name conjures up an image as individual as the shopper who straps on a big blue bag and strolls through its Marketplace but there’s one irrefutable fact: Ikea has always first and foremost been about innovative product designs. It can’t be a coincidence that Ikea rhymes with idea. …
Putting it Out There
A fair bit of anxiety has gone into planning to release my little ebook, The Naked Truth. Yesterday I posted the first chapter here and on Facebook and Twitter, just as a preview. One never really knows what will come of such a thing. It isn’t just my writing, it’s a piece of my life I’m putting out there. …
Preview: The Naked Truth
I hope you’re prepared to sit a spell and enjoy a longer than usual blog post today! As promised, here’s a chapter from my forthcoming ebook, The Naked Truth, out September 1st. I flip-flopped on what I should post and finally decided to start at the beginning. This is chapter 1. …
Verbal Crutches
Lots of people have them. Â In radio they’re particularly irritating. Â There’s a news anchor (and there have been others) who starts every story with a “well”. Â But it comes out: wool. It gets so you brace yourself for it. Â And it never fails to arrive. …
Peanut Butter Protein Balls
Our Free-FM colleague Pasqualina brought in some peanut butter balls the other day. Â I thought I’d died and gone to protein heaven. Â So I asked for the recipe. It’s from the Oxygen Network. I use about 1/2 the honey it calls for (as does she) and I don’t add the chocolate chips at all and they’re delicious. Â The trouble is with trying to eat just one. Â …
We’re on Mars
We, as in the human-designed Rover, Curiosity. …
Increasing Traffic
When you’re about to self-publish, as I am, you’re also about to self-promote, self-represent and self-distribute your work. So I’ve been reading up on ways to improve the chances of my little book getting seen – keep in mind this is something I already know a thing or two about.  So I’m only going after tips from the masters. …
Not a Fan
Yesterday I tweeted a question: does anyone know of a completely silent fan? Â Not a radio fan, an actual fan. Â My newsbooth is controlled by colleagues in another room who like it warm. Â I like it cool. I would prefer the thermostat set to “meat locker” but I realize that’s not fair to everyone else. Â The only suggestion I received was to spend $300 on a Dyson. Never again. Dyson once sucked me in. Â He’s the inventor of the Dyson vacuum, you know, the one he says “doesn’t lose suction”. Â Bullspit! Â Â …
Weird Week at Work
Our radio station is in a nice part of the city. Â It’s in a beautiful building on Richmond Row, the mecca of London’s downtown shopping and dining spots. Â Just so you know that what I’m about to describe isn’t a shack in a derelict district of town. Â …
Our Used Car Lot
I had to laugh at the Toronto Star’s online headline: Found a Mystery Porsche in Your Driveway? Â …
Steve Jobs
Everybody knows how the story of the Apple founder ends but not everybody is aware of way he worked and lived.  I just finished the book by Walter Isaacson, the authorized biography of Jobs that he wanted to chronicle his life, warts and all, so his children would get to know him better and learn what he was doing while spending so much time at work. …