The sands of North Beach
“I know every damn inch of that park,” says Ralph Margetson. “I was born in the south of England and lived there until I was 11 years old. Got to know the shrubs and the birds and when we came here I would get to know the skunks and raccoons. I quit school down here […]
The aftermath—Toronto, 2013
They cleaned up the debris at the Maple Leaf Square in Toronto on Tuesday morning. The location gained prominence in the last few weeks as a gathering place for the members of the Leafs Nation. Toronto Maple Leaf fans gathered on the west entrance to the Air Canada Centre—those who could not, or would not, […]
Romney style
Wine wasn’t always about scorecards and tastings. With some exceptions, wine was consumed in the Middle Ages much the same way we consume water today. Up until the 18th century wine was considered a safer alternative to drinking water, which was often of somewhat dubious quality. To meet the demand, grapes were harvested to yield […]
Trained to the hilt
You just never know where the times will take you. Take the British nanny. Amid rampant unemployment in other sectors, “Saudi princes, Russian oligarchs, busy executives and celebrities demanding a Mary Poppins-like figure to look after their children” are creating a boom in the market for the classic British nanny, according to a recent news […]
A PAD at PEPtBO
Sometimes I think it’s nice to let you know when I’m writing. Today is Mother’s Day. I almost always do the final write on Sunday and today I am thinking about how grateful I am to be a mom. My family has made my life wonderful, creative and exciting. Mother’s Day aside, today I am […]
Unsung heroes
All communities, everywhere, have unsung heroes. They are the people who do things, unselfishly, day after day, for the good of the community. It is a good thing that these people exist; otherwise, the community would not benefit from their efforts. There are times when the work of these people is recognized; there are more […]
Keeping score
As wine science and technology advanced, of course, standards of measurement became more important in the marketplace. In the 1980s, an American lawyer named Robert Parker started up the aptly named magazine, The Wine Advocate. Mr. Parker’s incredible palate meant that his comments, as the years progressed, could make or break a winery or a […]
Countyworld
This paper has recently aired various serious and not quite so serious pieces advocating the County’s secession. How about taking a step that stops a little short of that, but that would still generate the revenue to let us control our own destiny? I’m talking about turning the County—the whole County—into a theme park. The […]
Our library
We all know what a library is, right? Almost everyone has been to a library at least once in their life—maybe even twice. When I was a little kid, our elementary school was located one block from the public library. Once every two weeks we lined up and marched down to the library to select […]
Visionaries
Because of remarkable advances in winemaking technology over the past 50 years, winemakers can now reliably produce good quality, approachable wines. There will always be variations, of course, due to the vagaries of vintage. But correct vineyard management , paired with modern winemaking science, give winemakers around the world the capability to consistently produce fine […]