The magic of mushrooms
“Hello, Wellington Mushroom Plant.” “Yes, I’d like to speak to your furniture division, please.” Response in March, 2014: “I’m sorry, you must have been eating the wrong kind of mushrooms. And we don’t have a hallucinogenic division either.” Response in March, 2015: “You’ll have to hold for several minutes: they’ve got three other calls waiting […]
I won’t tell if you won’t
So, when I was a teenager I had a recurring nightmare, and I’ll go out on a limb and suggest more than one of you had the same, dread-filled dream. You know the dream when you are sitting on a bus or in a meeting room or in a classroom or walking along the street […]
Something else about Sam
I mean, the only thing to do is to go with the flow right? Accept things as they come. Like when your neighbour judges you fit enough to tend to the needs of their backyard goose while they fly south. You’re onto it and, lo-and-behold, things work out just fine. Take Sam for instance: The […]
The first six teaspoons
I thought it pretty ironic. Two section headlines, same newspaper, same day. One in the business section, talking about a new advertising campaign. One in the life section, talking about a health report. The business section article was about the plan by Nestle to remind consumers of Canada’s best selling chocolate bar, Kit Kat, to […]
Vegetables in my bread
Hey! You! Skin care product marketing people! You’ve got a product on the market for an old face like mine. Don’t try to pull the wool over my baggy eyes by using a 16-year-old girl in your advertising. I’m not stupid. I know there isn’t a snowball’s chance in H E double hockey sticks I’ll […]
On the road, again
Last Sunday, Shawn Matthias played his first game in Florida as a Vancouver Canuck. It was not his first game in Sunrise, a suburb of Fort Lauderdale, as he had played 312 games for the Florida Panthers. Needless to say, it was different for the former Belleville Bull. “It was very emotional for me,” he […]
Eagles fall to Mercer
Once again last Sunday, the city of Fort Myers came out in force to show their support for the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles. It is Spring Break time at the university; nonetheless, the students also packed the arena to cheer for the Eagles. Again on Sunday, a record number of 4,702 basketball fans filled […]
Rise of the clones
Talk to winemakers and you will discover there is a lot more to making wine than simply planting vines. In the mid-1930s, California growers noted that vines were becoming less productive, and increasingly susceptible to disease. A program to create, and certify, rootstock sold to growers was not developed, unfortunately, until after the Second World […]
Chess: Get ready to rumble
Have you seen how many poker shows are on TV? It’s sure got a following. So, mind you, do darts and bowling, so you have to figure there is room for another ‘sport’ to add to the mix. Like chess. Chess? Yes, chess. “Do you realize,” says Andrew Paulson (of whom more later) “there are […]
We have met the enemy
Stop it. Just give it a rest. Enough already. I am tired of people slagging fast food and fast food companies. Nope, you didn’t misread anything. Let’s be honest about fast food. It’s here. It’s been here for years and years and years. It’s not going to leave any time soon, and I think you […]