Harvest time
At this time of year, all things within the vineyard come down to harvest, and rain (such as fell on Monday) can make the process miserable. The rows turn into mud, making travel through the vines difficult. But if the brix are correct, you are obliged to harvest. And even if certain varietals have not […]
Four corners
Maybe it was the slow white light of the dawn that triggered a string of thoughts that kept me awake this morning. I began to thinkin’ that this County of ours, this place we live in, is very much a metaphor for Canada as a whole. Sure it’s not quite ocean to ocean to ocean. […]
From boil to simmer
I looked at the front page of my daily newspaper last Friday and every single article on it made by blood boil. The first article stated that Premier Li of China, while visiting Ottawa, had defended China’s use of the death penalty while at the same time urging Canada to adopt an extradition treaty with […]
Origin story
Here’s a common question I get: Where are you from? It’s a loaded question. In the County, I’m sure some people simply mean, ‘you’re not a Bongard or a McFaul, so obviously you arrived here from elsewhere.’ It could also mean, ‘wow, what an unusual name, what is its cultural origin?’ Or it could mean, […]
Chief cook and the bottle washer
As some of you may know, LOML had lifesaving heart surgery almost 10 years ago. It was an overwhelming event in our lives. We thought our lives were damn near perfect. And then? Well, and then we went from having it all to almost losing it all. It is from this perspective I approach this […]
Late summer hockey
It is always a bit of a shock to see the Boys of Winter on the ice pads when there are still people flocking to our beaches; however, that is exactly the case now as many leagues are now underway, and the World Cup of Hockey is in full swing in Toronto. Some of the […]
Flavour conduit
Despite our year-around attraction to the barbeque, we are now entering the time of year when we also begin to think of “comfort food”. Rich stews, casseroles and marinated meats and fowls will begin to headline the bill of fare. All these menus are enhanced by the addition of a suitable wine, which—by adding a […]
The County comedian
We were fortunate this week to catch up with the County’s own Jacky Rosenhall, the stand up comic who recently took the fabled Las Vegas comedy venue, Club Brutus, by storm. Rosenhall explained to us that he had always longed to be an actuary, but decided comedy was for him after watching former Conservative MP […]
Context
When Justin Trudeau was asked about the gender parity of his cabinet, he answered simply that it was 2015. It was time. And yet months later, south of the border, thousands protested the Oscars for their lack of racial diversity in 2016. Then Hollywood announced The Birth of a Nation, a dramatization of the story […]
The good old days
The first few days of school have passed. It’s been hot in our house. It’s been hot on the street. It’s been hot in the backyard. It’s hot in those classrooms. Not many of the windows in our local public schools have blinds or curtains on them. Indeed, in some classrooms at PECI, the windows […]