A Voice Against New Pipelines

The recent Trump-inspired uproar about Canada’s relationship with the United States has several dimensions: economic, cultural, political. All of these focus on the heightened importance of reducing our dependence on U.S. trade, diversifying our relations with other trading partners, reducing internal trade barriers between provinces, and taking better advantage of our abundant natural resources. One

We visit Floradale

We’ve decided to visit some small towns in our area of Ontario this summer. The first one was a week or so ago – a visit to Floradale, just a few km outside of Elmira. This has been a small community with many Mennonite families, but as one long time resident told me, it is

“Separate” Schools in Ontario

(**Sources to be added.) The problem of publicly-funded Protestant/Catholic schools was an outcome of the history of Canada. When the British defeated the French in 1763 Canada was populated with mostly RCs, but the official religion of the British Empire was Anglican (ie., non-Catholic). To avoid internal fighting the British govt gave the residents of

This is cool – Dry Pour Concrete

This dry pour concrete technique has gone viral, and it’s something we intend to try very soon. We’ll report back as the project moves along. Notice they are pouring the dry concrete right on a grassy area: no gravel and no metal supports (screen or rebar).

Status of Conestogo Iron Bridge

Many local Conestogo residents have pretty much given up on using the Glasgow St. bridge. But it’s still there, and to a limited extent at least, still being used. As far as I can tell the status and future of the bridge were determined in 2019 when it was decided to make minimal structural improvements

Reflections on our trip to Ireland

This August (2023) we had the opportunity to travel to Ireland for a week-long visit. Judy and I had visited the emerald isle back about 20 years ago when we flew into Belfast and drove a couple hours across to Donegal, the most northerly part of the Irish Republic. The entrance to our airbnb Like

The unmistakable sound of revving motors

Today when I went thru the outside doors to the food court at the mall, I heard this odd whirring sound up ahead. It was clearly an electric motor, but I couldn’t remember hearing it before. Hearing loud noises at the food court is not unusual. Young kids seem to like the echo and hearing

Responsible government and voting in early Canada

Nellie McClung was an activist and “suffragette”, elected to the Alberta legislature in 1921. This article is about the development of “responsible government” and universal suffrage (the right of all adults to vote) in Canada. The granting of responsible government – where citizens rather than autocrats made decisions about governance – was a process that

Developing your “Ear” – Note Recognition

It’s pretty difficult to play the guitar if you can’t tell one note from another. This is what is called developing your “ear”. This skill helps you recognize when you are playing the correct note(s), when notes are higher or lower in pitch than others. And, of course, developing your ear helps you determine when

Practicing while you travel

Travelling can put a dent in your daily practice routine. Too bad, because you almost always have “dead time” between sight-seeing, meal-eating, etc. If you’re going to spend a few days in one location you might consider renting an instrument. On a trip to PEI a couple years ago (BCovid) I rented a trumpet and

Practice Suggestions for (New) Guitar Players

We all know that practicing is one of the most important ways to improve our guitar playing. But you may also know how easy it is to get side-tracked into spending time a lot of time doing unproductive things. Practice Routine 1 is a short series of exercises the beginning guitar player would do well

My Eddie Shack story

A few days ago I heard that Eddie Shack died at the age of 83. I was never a fan of the Leafs, but it was hard not to be a fan of Eddie Shack. About a decade after Shack had retired (in 1975) I was involved up to my wahzoo in minor hockey. I

Check Out these Sample Practice Tracks

Now you can become a member of practicetracks.org for just $10/year. PracticeTracks is a project of MuzicTrain.com, a non-profit organization in Waterloo, Ontario, dedicated to encouraging young musicians and making music resources and opportunities available to them. Practice Tracks are play along songs and exercises that give new and aspiring musicians practice resources. These are

The Evolution of Modern Logo Design

The way corporate logos are designed has evolved a lot, especially since after WWII, the advent of television, the “visualization” of popular culture, and the explosion of consumerism that really took off in the 1950s and 60s. Here is a short video published in The Atlantic in August, 2018 featuring one of the firms involved