The world’s greatest humourists
I have to hand it to them. Without a doubt, the world’s greatest humourists are teenaged children. Under the pressure of an exam, they sometimes manage to answer adroitly the very question they are asked, but—courtesy of the nuances of the English language — not the question the examiner had in mind. And sometimes, they […]
Kids these days
Teenagers, eh! Remember when you were a teenager? Did you just shudder? I remember. Like now, I knew it all when I was a teen. I put on a sweet face for my elders when advice was being dispensed—but, inside. Oh, the dialogue that was going on inside my head. Somewhere, on the timeline between […]
Yankees and Tigers 2012
The New York Yankees stormed into the 2012 playoffs this year, sporting the best record in the second half of the season. They knocked the cover off the ball, slamming more home runs than any other team in baseball. More than 50 per cent of their runs came as a result of round-trippers. Defence was […]
A grape resurrected
Although they form the most visible part of a vineyard, the canopy of grape leaves is often overlooked. But, without the carbohydrates formed through photosynthesis, the vine—and its grape clusters—would never grow. Canopy management is critical in a vineyard: the leaf-to-fruit ratio will determine whether the fruit reaches its maximum potential. Vineyard managers will also […]
Grannies with small suitcases
I was going to give it the benefit of the doubt. But I hear so many other people grumbling about it that I’m going to go public with my grumbles and bravely assume that my comments might resonate. So what am I talking about? The new Belleville Via station, that’s what. For any of us […]
Anniversary time
It’s anniversary time. My second anniversary is coming up and I’m not talking about the “walking down the aisle” anniversary. I know at least one of our readers would have something to say about my “wedding.” Two years have passed since I walked into the County Club and asked if I could “please, please,” literally, […]
Grey Cup 2012
This year’s Grey Cup game will be played in Toronto on November 25. The names of the participants are yet to be determined. Nothing new there. Year after year, it always goes down to the wire. Teams get a lucky bounce and they are successful. They take a bad penalty, and they find themselves on […]
The road to Ameliasburgh
The road to Ameliasburgh follows a rise of land from where, on a day like today, you can see forever. Well maybe not forever but at least as far as the highlands of Wilno, of Kaladar; as far as trees and lakes and rivers run this side of the divide that separates the Lake Ontario […]
An inferior stopper
Last week we noted that cork has traditionally been valued as a stopper, since it excels at re-expanding to the shape of a bottle. A popular misconception holds that Dom Perignon devised a conical cork to better withstand the pressure that develops within a bottle of sparkling wine. Many also mistakenly think he was visually […]
Celebrity democracy
You can bet that neither the Conservatives nor the NDP are taking this Justin Trudeau business lying down. Plan A, of course, is to expose him as a well-coiffed puffball. Plan B is to turn on the charm of the existing players. But it’s plan C—going celebrity to celebrity—that really has my attention. Plan A […]