Posted on March 31, 2014 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

FREE BREAKFAST

 

 

Breakfast at Tiffany’s ?  Hardly.

No. Your eyes are not deceiving you. You will have an opportunity to sit and shoot the breeze with me this Saturday ( 5^th. )  at the Prissy Pig at 10:00 a.m. and have a chance to get your breakfast for free. I frequent the PP on Saturdays from time to time. I take the NY Times crossword puzzle from the Saturday Herald with me and enjoy the buffet. I thought it might be fun to sit around and talk about story ideas. If more than one person shows up, I will pick a name and the winner gets their breakfast for free. If no one shows up, I save myself $10. Either way, I can’t lose!

Speaking of stories, I have been in discussions with my book editor, Clare and the wheels are in motion for my second book. The timeline will be the same as last year. I plan to have the book printed and ready to go by early November with an official launch in December. I haven’t thought of a title yet. If you come up with something that I end up using, you will receive a fabulous prize… maybe a signed copy of the first book off the presses.

I saw something recently about “new math.” Do you remember back in the late 60’s and early 70’s , all the rumbling about new math?  What in the hell was wrong with the old math? I remember when my own children were in school.  Assisting with math could be intensely frustrating. I admit clinging to the past when it comes to certain things and math is one of them. Luckily, the good Sisters pounded the times tables into my head so that I can still do mental arithmetic and calculate percentages with relative ease. Younger people may wonder why I would get my knickers in a knot when a simple click on a mobile device can give them all the answers they need. I guess it’s not so much as getting the right answer as it is about making the old brain work. Have you ever wondered if technology went down for a few days?  Most people would not be able to function.

I thought I would have a bit of fun at the expense of “new math” so I wrote a story called, “ It Doesn’t Add Up.”

Still in the lineup are the following stories: “ Everything You Wanted to Know About “ ( my take on sex education ); “Grin and Barrett” ( The MacDonald family’s impromptu visit with the premier of B.C. in 1973 );  “Making a Difference” ( how one person can change the atmosphere in a room ); “Travels With Tony” ( a tribute to a great friend from Alberta who passed away recently).

Hope you have a great week and keep your antennae up tomorrow. It’s April Fools Day. Don’t let anybody fool you into believing that it’s Spring.

 

 

Posted on March 29, 2014 under Storytelling with no comments yet

 

 

Do you have obsessions?   Sure you do.  We all do in one way, shape or form.  Some people just can’t get enough of Downton Abbey while others hang on every word coming out of Justin Bieber’s mouth.  Politics does it for some while many of my friends are fitness fanatics.   And of course, we all have certain foods that we simply must have on a regular basis.  I used to be crazy about KFC until the Colonel kicked the bucket.

As I look at the calendar, I notice that it is technically spring … somewhere … but certainly not where we live.  On the second official day of spring I walked to work and the temperature was a balmy -20 Celsius.  No self- respecting crocus was poking its head up through the frozen tundra.   And just a few days ago, we were treated to a rather significant storm, combining heavy snowfalls and high winds.  A nor’ easter, to be precise.  One of many snow events this season.  People are downright grumpy.

But not too grumpy to talk, text, share and obsess about the weather.

There was a much simpler time when, well, weather just happened.  You woke up in the morning and if the snow was piled to the rooftop, you knew that things would be shut down.  You didn’t need to know this five days in advance.  Weather forecasting was in its infancy, and if you did get some inkling that foul weather was around the corner (granny`s aching joints were a satisfactory bellwether), you prepared yourself.  You made sure that there was lots of dry wood for the stove, you laid out the candles and matches and you filled the bath tub with water.  Especially if you lived in a rural area.

When the power went out, you put on an extra sweater, went outside and did lots of shovelling and then cooked food on top of the wood stove and even in the fireplace.  It was always a good chance to slow down and have a chance to chat with your family.  Oh yes.  We were warned not to touch the wires on the telephone poles when the drifts reached the heavens.  We have pictures to prove it.

The hysteria surrounding the most recent storm was something right out of Armageddon.  The 24 hour weather channels and every media outlet were once again trumpeting the “storm of the century“.  They’ve even coined a new term: bombogenesis.  According to the meteorologists, a storm that is forecast to strengthen explosively undergoes bombogenesis.   I remember studying about genesis in the first chapter of the Old Testament.  I guess the impending storm was of “biblical” proportions.

And how does our modern world prepare for the end of the world?  By making absolutely certain that our computers, smart phones and tablets are all charged so that we don’t miss a nanosecond of “breaking news” on Facebook or Twitter, should we experience a power failure.

I drove over to the mall the day before the storm.  It was like Christmas Eve, with long lineups at the grocery store and the liquor store.  From the looks of the shopping carts, the key to surviving the storm included a combination of potato chips and Bailey’s Irish cream.  #stormchips.  #stormbooze.

The only thing worse than the lead up to the storm (“Do you have your storm supplies?”) and the storm itself, is the aftermath.   And I’m not talking about snow removal.   The post mortems after a winter storm can go on for days. “Terrible storm.” “Yeah, just awful.”  If we didn’t have weather, good and bad, I swear we’d have nothing to talk about.

Spring is just around the corner.  The first appearance of dandelions will unleash another round of whining and complaining.  At least right now we don’t have to worry about them as we shovel ourselves out once again.

 

 

Posted on March 27, 2014 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet

 

 

Bombogenesis.  Go look it up. It is a weather related word and I saw it a few days ago in the lead up to the storm that roared through the province yesterday. There was so much hype about this storm that I couldn’t resist the temptation to write a story and so I chose the catchy name “ Bombogenesis.” Last evening, I did my own exhaustive survey (!) on Facebook to see how folks rated the storm…. 1 being a minor dustup and 10, “White Juan revisited.”  While none of us would relish being out on the highways and byways, the storm did not live up to the hype. I am all for safety and closing schools and businesses was a prudent move. It’s the unabashed and relentless hype that has me all a twitter ( no, not that Twitter ).

You spoke and the storm, the bombogenesis of all bombogenesis rated about a 5. I will probably publish this on Saturday when it’s sunny and +12.

On a completely different subject, my “gratitude jar” is starting to fill up nicely. Taking my cue from KG, I started writing down on paper something that happened each day since January 1^st. day that made me feel grateful. As of yesterday, I have 85 small pieces of paper sitting in a big plastic jar that used to be home for Unico pepper rings. It will be fun at the end of the year to dump them all out and review all the things that made me feel grateful over the year. It’s not too late to start your own.

Which leads me directly to an upcoming story about how one person’s attitude completely transformed an otherwise mind numbing, moribund departure lounge at the Orlando Airport. I watched a guy who ran the Hudson News stand turn a waiting room full of tired ( depressed passengers ) who were leaving the warmth to travel back up north , into a room full of laughter. Now there is a guy who decides when he gets up in the morning that he is going to make the world a happier place. What if we all adopted that attitude? “Making a Difference” coming at you soon.

A dear friend of mine from Fairview, Alberta passed away last fall. He was just a great guy who had a wonderful sense of humour. As some of you know, I write a weekly column for the Fairview Post and this week my story is a tribute to Tony. It is along the lines of the tribute I did recently for Joe Judique. I think I will post it on my website. We have a lot of “Tonys” in our midst. Even though you didn’t know him, the story could be written about a lot of people. Coming soon, “Travels With Tony.”

And, I’m just checking with my lawyers ( not ) about the upcoming story about a visit the MacDonald clan made to the home of a sitting Premier of British Columbia back in 1973. Some of you , long in the tooth like myself, will remember the colorful, Dave Barrett. We paid him a visit one day along with our father (who was quite mortified by the whole ordeal.)  Let me take you into the Premier’s home for a beer and some music. “Grin and Barrett.”

Have a great weekend and don’t stay in the sun too long on Saturday.