Delightful complexity
It beggars the mind to think that Ireland is listed as a wine producing country by the labyrinthine bureaucracy of the European Union. Grapes do have, admittedly, a history in the Emerald Isle. Cistercian monks first planted vines in the late fifth century—most likely for the production of sacramental wine. I suspect they laboured long […]
The joys of inadvertent English
You know them. The grammar police— those officious people who patrol print newspapers and swoop down for the kill over picayune points of English grammar, such as the failure of a sentence to contain a verb. Every once in a while, they show their hand in letters to the editor pages, demonstrating how some egregious […]
Straightening nails
My dad was the kind of guy who didn’t have time for a cellphone. Oh, he had a one, but it never left the drawer of the end table in their sitting room. Anyone who visited my parents’ home was asked about their cell phone ownership status and within moments Dad would try to give […]
The Dudley Hewitt Cup
In 1981, Larry Mavety was behind the bench for the Belleville Bulls. In the spring of that year, they defeated the Gloucester Rangers by four games to three to win the Dudley Hewitt Cup. The Bulls travelled to Halifax to play for the Centennial Cup. They were defeated by the Prince Albert Raiders, led by […]
Spring sipper
Water is essential for the healthy growth of a vine’s foliage, root system and—perhaps most importantly—berry cluster development. The ideal amount of rainfall to sustain a vine varies between 25 to 35 inches per growing season, with rain ideally falling in the early spring and summer. A deficiency of water causes vines to produce smaller […]
Of strads, strats and banjos
Ask anybody what they consider to be the world’s most valuable stringed instrument. Almost without exception, I bet you’ll get the reply “a Stradivarius.” The Stradivarius violin is about as iconic a name as the Faberge egg, the Rolls Royce car and the Times newspaper. Like the famous eggs, antique musical instruments are not being […]
The reward
Half past April! No, wait it’s quarter to May. Time for me to start thinking about doing the income taxes. I know, I know. Start? Really, I’m not kidding. At this point in the year, many of you have been there and done that. You’ve paid the piper or jumped for joy because you paid […]
Stanley Cup playoffs
Now that the regular season has wrapped up in the National Hockey League, it is time for coaches to rally the troops for the playoffs. A team must win 16 games in order to win the Stanley Cup; however, each team will play a minimum of 16 games, with each series the best of seven. […]
Ending the regular season
Last Thursday night, Leafs coach Randy Carlyle decided to start Drew MacIntyre in goal. Without a great deal of fanfare, it was an important evening for the Leafs goalie. MacIntyre was drafted by the Red Wings in 2001. Since that time, he has logged an awful lot of ice time in many hockey leagues. As […]
April moon
It’s a little after 4 a.m. The moonlight spills through the roof skylight and onto the place where I’m writing. I’m thinking it was the moon that woke me up. I seem to be as anxious as the coyotes sounded earlier this evening; as anxious as the nearby creek where it makes a drop while […]