I interrupt this series of posts about murals to (a) apologize and (b) vent a little. The apology is necessary because I have no idea how my posts appear on your electronic device but I’m pretty sure my last couple of posts were a bit haphazard, graphically speaking. […]
Now that many of us are staying home to limit the spread of COVID-19 we have more time to be aware of the comings and goings in our neighbourhoods. In fact, because so few people are out and about, the people who do walk or cycle by our […]
Until COVID-19, I had a system for moving money from Canada to the USA based on my expectations of income and expenditures in each place each month. Then the pandemic hit and I suddenly found that my plans and expectations were dust in the wind. Now I have […]
The recent news that one of my favourite resting-and-reverie spots was to be cleared to make way for something big and modern, reminded me that I took a few photos when I was there in January. So, here for your viewing pleasure and perhaps for posterity are the […]
Clinkers are bricks that have been over-fired and have become misshapen. Clinker bricks used to be discarded by Edmonton brickyards but the owner of a hardware store saw value in them. In 1927 he used them to build his house. James Rutherford built a house eight short blocks […]
Inertia: 1) a tendency to do nothing or remain unchanged 2) a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless that state is changed by an external force. (via Lexico) When I first began my […]
Given that we find ourselves living in the future and that the future does not include toilet paper, I feel it my duty to explain the tow rag. Back in the days of sailing ships, the sailors did not have toilet paper. What they did have were rags. […]
It took three attempts, but I finally got my online request for a refund from Air Canada to be accepted into their system. The first two times, that little wheel kept turning backwards and finally kicked me out. The third time, though, I got through and felt as […]
As I was telling him the saga of my need to return to Canada before the border closed, my cab driver from Edmonton airport to my house said, “Your country called you home.” I thought that was a pleasing way to think of it. I had originally planned […]
This stereographic photo viewer, or stereoscope, is on display at the Stevenson House in Monterey, California. Robert Louis Stevenson lived there in the latter part of 1879, and the house was one of several that my niece and I saw during our tour of the adobe buildings in […]
As Oliver Hardy once said to Mastercard; that’s another fine mess you’ve gotten me into. He didn’t actually say it to Mastercard, but he would have if he had my recent experience. To tell you this story, I have to provide a little background. I travel regularly from […]
Humans have invented amazing things, but some inventions are so ubiquitous that we overlook them. Today I am focussing my attention on one invention that owes everything to the ingenuity and industry of ancient civilizations. I am thinking about bricks. Ordinary, everyday, bricks. They have been around since 7000 […]
In 2017, some UK family members and I enjoyed a ride on the Bluebell Railway. We were on one of several steam locomotives on a railway line that was closed by British Railways in 1955 but preserved by enthusiasts and still running today. We took the train from […]
A little while ago I was visiting with some family members and my nephew noticed my phone. It was an iPhone 5S and it worked just fine for me. My nephew commented on it and made me take a second look. I can’t remember what he said, exactly, […]
I have been an avid user of Twitter for a couple of years. You might say I’ve been enamored or addicted. Today, though, I decided our love affair is over. It’s been good, Twitter, but you became abusive. Now I have chosen to leave. For a few months […]
You have probably seen that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught on a hot mic gossiping and giggling with some other world leaders about President Donald Trump. Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but none of that actually happened. The incident you saw was edited from […]
On Saturday I was flying from Edmonton to San Jose via Seattle. The first flight was without incident aside from some turbulence. When I arrived in Seattle I had plenty of time to catch my second flight which my boarding pass told me was at gate N18. I had […]
For everyone who has heard “It’s your age,” this article is for you. I have reached the age when this diagnosis has been applied to whatever thing I might be grumbling about. I must explain, though, that this conclusion has not come from my doctor. She is very […]
When we give a star rating to a business or a play or a product, often that is all we do. Much of the time, we don’t analyze why we gave that rating or justify it. If we do give an explanation on sites such as Angie’s List […]
I am a snowbird who travels south for the winter. When I get there I have a bird of paradise plant on my patio.
