A fine achievement
The Court of Master Sommeliers was established in London in 1969, as a training school for wine knowledge and service. It offers four levels of wine knowledge from the basic entry level to the stratospheric Master Sommelier diploma. There are only two hundred and thirty-six individuals who have acquired this prestigious award, which allows them […]
Black and white and red
US politics, there is a hallmark issue upon which leaders have been taking a hard line. It is an emotional issue that leads to horrible, irrational behaviour, but somehow it all ends up black and white. When the Roe v Wade decision came down on January 22, 1973, the highest court in the land determined […]
The Mascot Bandwagon
It’s been a couple of years now since the new County logo (grapes, waves and sand, a barn and silo) came to live among us. Some people even quite like it. But a logo is two dimensional. It sits flat on a page or a T-shirt. It doesn’t move. It doesn’t scream excitement. So perhaps […]
Hug a museum
It’s Sunday. This year was supposed to be better than last and so far, not so much. I’ll just plough ahead with this column and address one of those items I said I would address a couple of weeks ago. I know. I know. It’s a surprise, right? I decided that today I’d be all […]
Hockey Life, on the road
A hockey life is a very transient one. For a variety of reasons, you do not often stay in one place for a long time. You might get traded or demoted. Then again, you might get “called up” to play in a better league. Injuries are always a factor. There may also be personal reasons […]
Moving Day
I hope that the Binghamton Senators will really enjoy their stay in the Belleville area, which includes vast stretches of land from north of Bancroft to the shores of Lake Ontario, south of Prince Edward County. I was in the crowd recently when it was announced that they were relocating to Belleville. There were a […]
Of wine and volcanoes
In addition to clay, soil is composed of sand, silt, organic material and animal compost—along with mineral particles made of finely ground rock particles. The blend of these elements determines the specific productivity of the soil. (Sand, for example, facilitates drainage.) Volcanic soil contains significant mineral elements ejected from the core of the planet. Volcanic […]
Try, try again
Last spring, as hundreds packed into a parking lot in Belleville to celebrate local breweries, a different kind of event made headlines. Amidst the rush of noise and crowds, one man collapsed, sparking chaos. An apparent heart attack. Another man, local radio personality Tim Durkin, jumped in. With training in first aid, Durkin was able […]
All the rage
Politicians who fly a little too close to the vacation sun often receive their come-uppance. When Justin Trudeau and his family and friends enjoyed the helicoptered hospitality of the Aga Khan at his private island off the Bahamas, he touched a nerve. Then there is the case of Manitoba premier Brian Pallister. Mr. Pallister spent […]
One word sounds like
A few days ago, I forgot the word “lullaby”. I knew there was a word to describe what I wanted to say, but it wasn’t in my “RAM”. I was trying to describe the song I sang to our children when they were infants. The best I could come up with was “This is the […]