Karlo captures County fruit
By 1498 the Portuguese explorers had travelled around the Cape of Good Hope and established trading centres in the Indian Sub- Continent. Since they had not accomplished a foothold in the tip of Africa, the Dutch explorers seized this opportunity, founding the colony of Cape Town in 1659. The Dutch were established and preeminent traders […]
Gift of innocence
When Foster Bailey died a few weeks ago, I felt a double tinge of sadness. Tinge number one was of course because Foster himself had died. I never got to know him, but when we passed each other on the street—as we did quite frequently— he seemed to say, hello in the most upbeat way, […]
What a horse taught me
The domestication of the horse helped close distances between people and societies. The horse helped us to communicate, to explore and to find freedom of movement. While in travel, in war and in agriculture horse power was a measure of prestige, the horse became part of our mythologies and was akin to flying and to […]
The Supertest Story
Fifty years ago, we lined the banks of the Long Reach in Prince Edward County to watch the Harmsworth Trophy Races.We had little idea what to expect. We knew something about water speed, from boat races in the Bay of Quinte.We knew land speed from motorcycle and automobile races at the Fairgrounds.We knew air speed […]
Still keen on Argentine
At the beginning of the 19th century, Argentina boasted the 8th largest economy in the world. With these riches the middle and upper classes of Buenos Aires enjoyed lifestyles on par with those in Paris, London and New York. The wine industry catered to this class as most of the wine produced in Argentina remained […]
Where’s my energy?
It’s half past summer and I’m having a tough time getting this week started. I’m tired of battling the long lines of traffic on our main roads. I’m tired of grocery stores filled to the brim with vacationers who should have a look in a mirror before they head into town to stock up on […]
Golfing history in the County
The Canadian Professional Golfers’ Association is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. George Cumming was a popular pro and teacher at the Toronto Golf Club, and he was elected as the first president of the organization. In 1988, Lou Garrison won the CPGA Seniors’ Championship in London, Ontario. That title was certainly the highlight of […]
Keen on Argentine
The land of tango is inherently passionate about wine. Argentina, colonized by the Spanish in the early 1500s, followed the well-worn path of establishing vineyards to sustain the local demand and supply of sacramental wine for the Catholic missionaries. In 1557, the Jesuits established vineyards in Santiago by planting mission grapes imported from Chile. This […]
News of the world
Last week a young friend asked me the epic, “What’s this world coming to” question. How the H E double bench dips would I know if the world is coming to anything or anywhere. But he was concerned and, from the look on his face, he wanted an answer. At the time we just happened […]
“…let me live it as a 1.5”
My little personal soap opera about my ‘deep brain stimulation’ surgery is turning into a threepart miniseries. Episode one saw me about to enter hospital worried whether I would be assigned a humour therapist who told bad jokes. Episode two had me recollecting the low point of my surgery as the frantic search for an […]