Sunday would have been Dad’s 83rd birthday. Life expectancy for a Canadian man is just over 82 years, so I suppose he was pretty average in that way. Yes, I looked it up, trying to make sense of it and continuing to fail at making it okay that he’s gone. Reminding myself that it’s the natural order of things. …
I call her Mamasita, Matka, Ma, Mom and other variations on the same theme. And when I’m serious about something, I use her full name: Mother! It’s the equivalent of her using my full name when I was a kid. Strikes terror in her heart! (not really)Â …
As we explored the St. Stephen-St. Andrews-Calais area last week, we took the advice of anyone who offered it. If someone said we should go see something, we went. That included my brother’s suggestion that we head up to McAdam and see the old train station. …
There are places in North America where you can stand in Canada and the US simultaneously. A massive, historic home straddles Stanstead, Quebec and Plain, Vermont, for example. You can enter the house from both countries. …
Anthropologists probably have something deep and insightful to say about why Derek and I are drawn to water. All we know is that we feel calmer and happier around a body of water of just about any kind. Bigger than a puddle but not necessarily an ocean. …
Full tank of gas? Check. GPS? Check. House/pet sitter? Check. Blog posts for next week? Um, uncheck. There might be one or two.
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Translation: It’s been ten years since Derek and I visited England and France. We also went to Monaco but didn’t quite make it to Italy. I’d love to spend a couple of years visiting tiny pockets of Europe. The only other European country I’ve seen is Iceland. …
Throwback Thursday – Une Dizaine D’annees, Mon Dieu!Read More »
One of life’s little delights is discovering that the artist whose work you admire is also a great human being. So often it happens the other way. I’m looking at you, Louis ck. …
The personal possession purge continues. A cedar chest we acquired and have no room for; a barnboard-and-bulb-cage chandelier made by Derek; an extra motorcycle windshield we boxed up and stored – it’s all going, going, gone! …
Coming soon…. …
Sunday can’t possibly be the first anniversary of my father’s death. It’s gone so fast and time has also crawled. I truly thought I understood what it must be like to lose a parent but I didn’t – I couldn’t – until I lost my own Dad. …
My brother and I argue about the most inconsequential things. Last week, we spent more time than I care to admit in opposition over what a piece of melted cheese looked like. …
When I was a kid, I loved the poems of Robert Service. They told stories of the Yukon gold rush in a musical cadence that included lots of alliteration and rhymes. Service didn’t bother with subtleties in his most famous works. You knew what you were getting with The Cremation of Sam McGee, The Ballad of Blasphemous Bill and hundreds of others. He also wrote six novels, two autobiographies and even acted in the 1942 film, The Spoilers, with Marlene Dietrich. Visiting his restored cabin in Dawson City, Yukon – a preserved historical site – is on my bucket list. …
While I check out my items at the grocery store, I can’t help but think about the last time I went through a cashier’s lane. We exchanged the usual pleasantries. She asked how I was. I responded, fine, how are you. And then she launched into the reasons why she shouldn’t be there. It wasn’t her shift. Someone called in sick and she was summoned at the last minute. She was really tired. …
After more than a year away, I signed up once again to Voices.com. (I wrote about it HERE.) I was annoyed with them. My booking rates had fallen and they had doubled their escrow rates without notice. It went from 10% to 20% overnight. That’s the amount they charge a client based on the rate paid to the talent. The amount comes out of the total budget, ostensibly reducing how much the talent, like me, can charge for the job. …
The question I asked myself was, where can I buy a can of turkey gravy and a container of PolyFilla? I’m very tired and must get home to nap so this magical place must not be out of my way. Only one store came to mind: Walmart. …
So, this is what our basement floor looks like! I haven’t seen this much of it since it was installed!
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What a difference a name makes. When fake leather was known as pleather it was considered cheap, as in, spend a few more bucks and buy real leather. Now that it’s got a better name – vegan leather – it’s the cool and cruelty-free thing to own. …