Roller coaster ride
The 2011 baseball season is well underway.The Jays have played 54 games and are currently hovering around the .500 mark.They have won 28 games, and have lost 26 games. They are a couple of games behind the Yankees and the Red Sox. What else is new? That has been the case for many years.The parts […]
Adaptation
In the late 18th century, following North American colonization, the lack of success of the initial plantings of European vines did not spell the end of viniculture in the new world. John Adlum, surveyor and viticulturalist, enjoyed great success with a varietal, which is a cross between vitus lambrusca and possibly a vitus vinifera. The […]
Flab, sweat and tears
Promises. Resolutions. Both meant to be ignored or broken. I know this topic very well. In November of 2010 I decided to act on one of my New Year’s Resolutions. A resolution I’d made many times since the birth of my youngest daughter just over 24 years ago. My theory then was, it took me […]
Bringing it home
This year’s version of the Memorial Cup is winding down in Mississauga. Last night, Jonathan Huberdeau scored at the 17:35 mark of the first overtime period to propel the Saint John Sea Dogs into the final on Sunday. The victory over the Owen Sound Attack was a heartbreaker, especially for Belleville’s Andrew Shaw. Andrew has […]
New world vines
In the 11th century, the grapevine was brought to North America, where it thrived, as in many other new world continents, and the grapes were harvested by its indigenous people. Norse explorer Leif Erikson was so impressed by the quantity and size of the vines in northern Newfoundland that he promptly named it Vinland (wine-land). […]
Up, up and away
The Rapture. I may have missed it on Saturday. You know how it goes, a couple of the kids were visiting and we had cider to buy and enjoy, we had to find a good home for coffees and treats, and art to ogle and tempt us. Perhaps I just didn’t have time for The […]
Don’t ask
Rain. Rain. And again with the rain. Just go away, rain. I’m not sure I’ve talked to anyone, recently, who is thrilled with the amount of rain we’ve endured over the past few weeks.The weather is just plain dreary and as much as I want to stay upbeat and optimistic about my life, I just […]
Taking the humour initiative
My wife and I were in Toronto last week preparing for my upcoming surgery. While we were there, a relative, who is gay, told us the following anecdote. He and his partner had an inordinately difficult time going to gay square dances. It was impossible, as partners rotated during a song, to know whether you […]
Playoff season
This is always a great time of year for sports fans. The Stanley Cup semifinals are underway, as are the playoffs in the National Basketball Association. The NBA began the season with a bucketful of hype surrounding the Miami Heat. The team convinced last year’s MVP, LeBron James, to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to join […]
Heart of my heart
In 1987 the first fundraising ride for the Heart and Stroke Foundation was organized. Twentyfour years later it still happens on the first Sunday of June. If you’re a cyclist it’s a great thrill to pedal your arse across the Gardiner Expressway, up the Don Valley Parkway and then turn around at York Mills Road […]