Posted on October 7, 2021 under Thursday Tidbits with one comment

 

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From earworms to books

I often sound like a broken record. Of course, most people under the age of 40 have no idea what this means in a literal sense. For the benefit of all my loyal millennial readers out there (all 3 of you), back in the days of vinyl records (which are making a huge comeback), it was not uncommon for the stylus of your record player to hit a groove, causing a phrase to repeat itself incessantly until someone gently lifted the arm and moved it ahead a groove or two. Hell, maybe this is how the term ‘groovy’ was coined!

Last week, I wrote about the soundtrack of my youth listing 25+ of my favourite songs. A few of you sent messages with some of yours. Obviously, there are still a lot of Beatles fans out there. This week, I’m turning the page and will chat briefly about books.

I wish that I could say that I have been a voracious reader my entire life. I would be far wiser today and wouldn’t have wasted so much time watching television. While I have tried (in vain) to live a life of moderation, I am convinced that that’s just not in my DNA. I am a feast or famine kind of guy. To wit, this past summer, as restrictions were lifted back home, I spent some of my hard- earned cash on beer, wine and restaurant meals on a fairly regular basis. It felt so damn good to be able to go to a patio to quaff an ale, have Friday afternoon hors d’oeuvres with my walking partner, or share a nice meal with friends old and new. Now that I’m back in the saddle, I haven’t had any alcohol and there aren’t a whole lot of patio restaurants in the village thereby curbing my appetite for a delicious meal… prepared by someone else.

I have mentioned more than once in this space (cue the broken record) that I have first rate accommodations this year up north. I have an entire house to myself, and it has Sirius radio, excellent internet, and a couple of flat screen TV’s for watching Netflix and Prime. I don’t have cable. At first, I was worried that I would suffer withdrawal pains from not being able to watch sports and news, my two mainstays. I got over this quickly. I am not missing the mind numbing, inane, soul-destroying ads which utterly ruin television as far as I’m concerned. I know it’s a necessary evil or there wouldn’t be any live television but, come on, do TV execs think we’re all morons? Yup. They do and they will continue to force feed us tasteless gruel, as long as we’ll consume it.

In the absence of Kurt Browning spouting the merits of reverse mortgages, I have returned to books. When I get on a roll, I read a lot. Feast. Famine. Presently, biographies are my genre. I just finished Michelle Obama’s excellent book called “Becoming”. It’s quite a story and one that I think most people would enjoy. I have just begun to read Nelson Mandela’s “Conversations With Myself”. He was truly one of the giants of the 20^th century. I have been lugging around Walter Isaacson’s biography of Leonardo Da Vinci. Leonardo was an interesting dude for sure and like many of his works that he didn’t finish, I don’t know if I’ll ever have the energy to complete this book. Let me know what you’re reading these days.

After completing my latest marathon walk last weekend (42km), friends on both coasts expressed their concern about my health. They know about my physical infirmities, but I think deep down, they were more concerned about my mental health. What kind of kook walks for 10 hours with a bad back and a wonky knee? I assured them both that I was no worse for wear. I was a bit sore for a day but that didn’t stop me from showing up to work this past Monday, bright eyed and bushy tailed. Intellectually I know that 70-year-olds probably shouldn’t take part in extreme activities but I’m also aware of how lucky I am to be 70. Many people die long before this. I suppose if we knew when we were going to die, we could plan out our remaining days but with all of life’s uncertainties, my plan is to continue to live full throttle while I’m able.

Last thing. A dear friend from the west coast sent me one of her favourite songs. It forms part of the soundtrack of Four Weddings and a Funeral. “Love is All Around” was originally released by The Troggs of “Wild Thing” fame, back in 1967. The rendition of the song in the movie was performed by a group called Wet Wet Wet. Give it a listen. https://youtu.be/h3gEkwhdXUE It’s a wonderful version. There are some sweet harmonies. Thanks for giving me an earworm all week, IC!

Have an awesome Thanksgiving weekend. And while you’re at it, be thankful.

P.S. After an outpouring of demand (one person), I plan to do a live music Pillow Talk show on FB on Thanksgiving Monday at 7:00 EST (8:00 AST/4:00 PST). Sure to cause indigestion after a turkey dinner!

Posted on October 4, 2021 under Monday Morning Musings with 2 comments

 

 

The sun setting on a successful marathon walk (Len/Pouria and Chad)

(Chad Bourdages photo)

 

It is Sunday morning. I’m sitting here at my laptop trying to tap out my Monday piece. I must admit (and this is not whining but an observation), I am stiff and sore. I did my final long walk of 2021, a memorial walk of sorts. A few of us decided to do a walking marathon (42km) as our personal acknowledgment of National Day Truth and Reconciliation Day observed a few days ago.

There are still many people who don’t believe that the treatment of indigenous people was as bad as purported in the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. There are also people who don’t believe in vaccines or seat belts. Maybe the only thing that we might all agree on is a beautiful sunset but even then, there are scrooges and pessimists who can find clouds on a sunny day. Optimists believe that rainbows will appear after a rainy day.

There was a time when I thought that walking (or running) a marathon wasn’t such a big deal. I keep reminding myself that sane people don’t do extreme things like this. They do sensible things like walk 5km, eat two cookies in one sitting, use crosswalks, and settle for just one glass of wine. These rational people (I don’t know many of them!) are paragons of virtue. I have finally realized (I think) that my days of extremism are over. My body hurts today and that is actually not a bad thing. My pain will be short lived, and it is not terminal, although the recovery times are getting much longer.

It was a perfect fall day for a long walk. It was sunny and cool all day. As always, I was struck by the vastness of the land. If I was back home now, I’m sure I would be watching the leaves turn color. It is one of the most magical gifts provided by Mother Nature. Being above the tree line, one might think that the mountainous landscape would be rather bland by comparison. Wrong. The colors are more muted but no less spectacular as vegetation in the mountains and on the tundra show their reds, oranges, yellows and rust hues. When the sun hits them at a certain angle, they are spectacular.

A good friend messaged me after the walk. She was concerned about the state of my health. She knows about the issues with my back and knee and was wondering about pain levels. I can see many of you shaking your heads wondering why someone with these infirmities would tackle something so grueling. There is no answer that would make an ounce of sense. Ask any long-distance runner and they will tell you that when the pain kicks in, you just have to redirect it. In my case, all I had to do was think about the indignities done to indigenous people over the years to gain some much-needed perspective. And let’s face it, we’ll all have lots of time to rest when our expiry date shows up!

Oh man, am I kicking my arse this morning. Two nights ago, the northern lights made their first appearance in a while. It was a perfectly clear, starry night. Living beside the bay where there are no obstructions and few lights from the village, I get to see the northern lights in all their glory. They danced along the edges of the mountains, pirouetting every few seconds. As an added bonus, the lights were reflecting on the bay. No magician could replicate this sleight of hand.

I was told Sunday morning that the northern lights were jaw dropping Saturday night. Had I known, all that was required was for me to open my bedroom curtains a few feet away and I could have watched from my bed. But to get the curtains open would have required me to actually get out of bed. Only James MacEachern’s boom truck would have been able to perform this delicate operation, such was the precarious state of my body.

One might think that sleep would come easy after such a long day. We left at 8:00 in the morning and including rest stops and a lunch break, we staggered home at 6:00. Actually, in my experience, it is very difficult to sleep after a huge day of exercise and fresh air. I tossed and turned as I tried to find a comfortable position. When I realized the futility of this exercise, I did what any noble person would do. I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, trudged to the kitchen, grabbed the jug of milk and a bag of cookies.

I swear to god I was so tired that I stopped at three cookies.

Have a great week.