Bring me sunshine
Sometimes, you just have to tip your hat to government for opening the windows and letting the sunshine in, however much glare it causes. For instance, it’s been a perverse pleasure to follow the legislative committee hearings on the gas plant cancellations—a pleasure in the same way you just knew the Watergate hearings, tragic though […]
Parfait!
Faultless. Flawless. Ideal. Impeccable. Indefectible. Irreproachable. Immaculate. Unblemished. Perfect. Have you noticed, there’s a whole lot of “perfect” going on in the retail and food service industries these days. Go on, order a coffee and I’ll bet you dollars to dunking donuts the server is bound to pronounce your order, “perfect.” You’ve probably already ordered […]
More spring training notes
I usually pick up a copy of Lindy’s Baseball before every season. I checked this year’s edition before heading out to the Red Sox game against the Baltimore Orioles at Jet Blue Stadium in Fort Myers. There is one Red Sox player who has caused a great deal of commotion in the offices of the […]
Summer classic
You may occasionally find crystals in your wine, attached either to the cork or resting on the bottom of the bottle. These tartrate crystals—found in both red and white wines—are formed by the combination of tartaric acid and potassium bitartrate, a byproduct of winemaking. For you bakers out there, cream of tartar is usually made […]
UnHarperizing
It’s starting to get less and less interesting. First George Takach dropped out. Then Marc Garneau. Then David Bertschi. Six are still left (Trudeau, Murray, Cauchon, Hall Findlay, Coyne and McCrimmon), one of whom (Coyne) has freely admitted she can’t win. One is tempted to ask why so many of them dropped in to begin […]
Syrupy sweet
So, how was Maple weekend for you? LOML and I did a quick tour of a few Maple sites with our youngest daughter, her friend and her friend’s rather large dog, Aries. In the past, it was our children who limited or defined where we’d visit while on “tour.” This past weekend, we had to […]
On meeting Al
I recently met Al in the darndest of places. I mean I’ve heard him read his stuff at author’s nights. I’ve met him in the library—on the page that is. And from time to time my dog Cabot and I have ventured down Purdy Lane in Ameliasburg to visit Al’s monument. I still call it […]
Northern migration
In less than three weeks, the “Boys of Summer” will be heading to their baseball homes to begin the 2013 season. As is always the case, all teams are expected to contend for the World Series. That is as it should be. There should always be promise in the season to come, whether it be […]
Follow your nose
You would be amazed by what the “nose” tells you about a wine. In a wine made from pinot noir grapes, for example, it can indicate the type of season vis-à-vis the fruit notes. A nose of damp straw and fresh earthy mushroom indicates a young pinot noir. Dig deeper in a more mature pinot, […]
Kings, knights and parking lots
When people see something for the first time, they think it could be a fluke. But when it happens twice in quick succession, the smart money begins to see a pattern. It was just last month that British archeologists dug through a parking lot in the City of Leceister and unearthed the body—genetically tested to […]