Gifted Typist

Last year, the politicians of this province lavished $9M on something called Democracy 250. The idea was to engage young people in the democratic process. They brought in two former premiers – old, grey-haired,  stodgy men – as co-chairs of this “celebration.” Typical of Nova Scotia politicians, these men have all the charisma of an [...]

So. Last week I was fretting over whether to change my snow tires. A few days later, I was caught in a little hail dump. Good, I thought. I’ll wait till May to make the change. Today they’re predicting temperatures of 28C (82F). Hmmmm. May isn’t until Friday. And where I live, a snow storm [...]

I saw a chickadee. There were BTUs in the sunshine. The streets were all buzzy with the sound of motorbikes. The crocuses are in flower and the tulips are looking hopeful for a bloom. I saw a bumble bee. There is hope in the air after a long, ice-encrusted, miserable winter.

My daughter’s wearing green to school today. Yesterday she brought home all of the garbage she generated in the day. This recognizes Earth Day. It’s great to see that the kids “get it.” Some adults get it too, but most don’t, especially in Canada. And the politicians we elect definitely don’t get it. They have [...]

That is the question. It is a week and a half until May. The chances of a snowstorm grow less with each passing day. But it wouldn’t be beyond the realm of possibility if we did have enough snow to warrant snow tires. I am a snow tire Nazi – my days as a newspaper [...]

Doing my personal and business taxes these past few days. It’s my duty, and being a rule-follower to fault, I will perform my duty in a timely and law-abiding manner. And I will pay up in a timely and law-abiding manner, too. Because, let’s face it, all those unelected Canadian Senators deserve my money, don’t [...]

We had brilliant sunshine, teams of energetic huskies, scary moments with fast-approaching tree trunks, shrieking typists, laughing typists, maple toffee made in the snow and exhausted huskies.

… after a glorious week of dog-sledding and skiing in Newfoundland. I’m happy to report that I wasn’t eaten by the dogs, although I do appreciate the concern, Doc. There were a few crazy-arsed moments when the dogs took off and I was left in the sled with tree trucks approaching at speed. (I want [...]

Today, Canada’s opening up the front room, puffing up the sofa and dusting off the side tables. Tea’s on and special biscuits are baking in the oven. Obama’s coming to town today. For six hours. But that’s an important six hours. Our old-school NeoCon prime minister Stephen Harper is in an awkward place. Canada’s late-blooming [...]

This is the advert that was turned down by Metro Transit, the public transit system in our town. Seems the municipal bus authority deems this question too controversial for our city. The ad is being pitched by the Humanist Society in cities across Canada and in other parts of the world. Most transit authorities in [...]

Ugly, ugly storm last night. Snow, blizzard, freezing rain, slush, rain. Later it will turn cold again, and the slush will turn to concrete. So think of me out there moving that heavy, water-soaked slush. While it’s still movable. Better to shovel slush than to chisel ice, I always say. Remind me, because I’m having [...]

Almost didn’t make it home for Christmas. We were booked to come home from New York on Sunday Dec 21 but with storms, cancellations, delays, Christmas, overbooked flights, standby, hours in airport lounges … the outlook was bleak. By Monday night, they’d dumped us in Montreal airport and told us we had no hope of [...]

As an old bluesman of my acquaintance once said: “It don’t matter what they’re saying, as long as they’re talking about you.” Well, Canada, nobody else is talking about your “Made in Canada*” political crisis. And that’s because nobody really cares. Yesterday, the American ambassador to Canada said as much when he shrugged his shoulders [...]

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Now we finally have a glimpse of the hateful, spiteful, hidden agenda so many of us feared. After cleverly hiding his NeoCon ideology from centrist Canadians, Stephen Harper finally blew the lid of the thing this week. And it’s ugly. He plunged the ideological dagger [...]

The show is over. The roguish, dysfunctional, foul-mouthed boyz of Sunnyvale Trailer Park will be no more. And it doesn’t seem right, somehow. For anyone unfamiliar with Trailer Park Boys, the show is a collision of concepts: Think the Spinal Tap mockumentary, the US show My Name is Earl and the Burt Reynolds slapstick flick [...]