Personal Life

My Dad in 1993, at the podium making a speech at my wedding, looking healthy and smiling wearing a dark suit and a yellow carnation on his lapel

Thankful Thursday – Dear Dad Donation

When my book, Make the Media Want You was published last summer, I promised to donate 5% of net proceeds to a program my late Dad loved: the Steve Ludzik Centre for Parkinson’s Rehab at Hotel Dieu Shaver in St. Catharines. So on this Valentine’s Day, I’ve decided to do something from my heart, in memory of my Dad.

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Hairy Ordeal (The Struggle is Real)

I’ve been dying my hair for a couple of decades. Underneath all of that colour is dark brown hair that’s turning grey. What no one tells you about hair colour is, how the heck you stop! Is there no choice but to quit cold-turkey and let it grow out in a two-tone effect? There has to be a better way.

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hands on the steering wheel of a car on a highway

Driving to (and from) Wally

When I moved from Toronto to London a decade ago, it was a bit like moving to Alaska. I felt far removed from the life I’d known for so long. I missed my colleagues and friends, and found the four-hour round trip was something I was only willing to do for special occasions. That worked the same in reverse, for those who (rarely) came to visit.

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The Face of Elder Abuse

This post is general and it’s personal. My former mother-in-law has had her life savings, and even her wedding rings, stolen by a couple of family members. Close ones. The ones she would never suspect would treat her like she no longer mattered. I would love to name them and shame them and hunt them down. But it’s not my place.

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Dad's bingo-themed suspenders hang over a kitchen chair

A Few of Dad’s Favourite Things

It’s natural to think about those we’ve lost at this time of year. Yesterday, the great Penny Marshall joined the long list of people who left us in 2018. We think of our dear friend Kerry. Mike Cooper’s wonderful wife Debbie. Our warm and lovable colleague, Jodi. And my Dad’s been in my thoughts more than usual, now a year-and-a-half after he died.

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