Reactionary gal
I get asked a lot of questions about this column. Sometimes the answers are easy to cough up. Other times, not so much. A man recently asked where I got the “ideas” for my column. I told him I often write about things in my everyday life. “Like the Christmas tree that kept falling down?” […]
An enduring tradition
Ontarians are justifiably proud of their award-winning dessert and ice wines. Today, however, I want to write about a French dessert wine that has been in production for over two millennia: the iconic Muscat de Beaumes de Venise, made from muscat blanc à petit grains. This grape is among the oldest grape varieties still in […]
Survivors
Some of my best friends are survivors. Yup, they are. I’m sure, if you’ve been reading my columns for a few years, you’ll remember my family’s personal journey through bypass surgeries. LOML is a heart-bypass surgery survivor. His is a genetic problem not related to his lifestyle. My father, on the other hand, was a […]
The 360 degree view
Well, the excitement is building. Yes, I know it’s the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and more power to her. But I’m referring to something a tad larger. It’s the 150th anniversary of Wellington’s incorporation this year. Now I hope that mere statement is not going to start those with similar longevity anniversaries rioting in the streets […]
Matthias on the Prowl!
Shawn Matthias is a Florida Panther. At six feet, five inches tall, plus or minus a bit on skates, he is a big cat. He patrols the rink in a sweeping fashion, unless a breakout opportunity arises. He relishes transition opportunities. He recently notched his ninth goal of the season into an empty net. On […]
Steeped in blood
When we last left off, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the region of Languedoc had managed to survive and prosper as a throughway for trade between Italy and the Iberian Peninsula. Under the benevolent Counts of Toulouse the area remained renowned for its wine and song—and a comparatively wealthy standard of living—up […]
Super Bowl XLVI
On the last play of the game, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady launched the ball into the Giants’ end zone. For a moment or two, it was up for grabs; however, it fell onto the turf, just beyond the reach of Rob Gronkowski, the whistle blew, and the Giants began to celebrate their second recent Super […]
An apple a day…
“You are what you eat.” Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard this from your Mom as she plopped a load of mushy, overcooked, canned carrots on your plate. I remember mumbling, “I’m a gaggy pile of barfy carrots?” To which Mom would reply, “Eat all of those carrots. They’re good for your eyesight. If […]
In Hannibal’s footsteps
Although our weekly travels have been taking us progressively farther north, I want to backtrack south this week to pay homage to a wine region that rarely receives due respect. The Languedoc-Roussillon wine area in France can be described as an arc from the mouth of the Rhône River on its east, to the Spanish […]
Pond hockey – part two
On the snappy cold mornings of the fifties and sixties, we thought nothing of heading out with our skates and sticks on our shoulders. For most of us, it was a short walk to the courtyard of the Hastings County Court House and Gaol. We did not realize it at the time, but we were […]