When I began reading Montreal author Heather O’Neill’s latest book, Daydreams of Angels, I had no idea I would be diving into a genre I thought I’d left behind about sixty years ago—fairy tales. Her two earlier books, Lullabies For Little Criminals and The Girl Who Was Saturday Night were both gritty, eloquent accounts of young adults growing up in the unsavory neighbourhoods of downtown…
Does your chicken cluck?
Chicken is one of the world’s most popular sources of animal protein. With its versatility for being served hot or cold and adapted to thousands of different recipes, chicken is a diet staple around the world. In my world however, it’s shrinking fast. Last night we barbecued some boneless, skinless chicken breasts from a premium brand of so-called organic chicken and after I had two…
Is Timmies still a Canadian cultural icon?
Boomers remember the real Tim Horton—the handsome young hockey player who helped the Toronto Maple Leafs win four Stanley Cups back in the sixties. Tim Horton was killed in a tragic car crash in 1974 shortly after one of his entrepreneurial endeavours had just started up. Tim Hortons was originally just a system of franchised donut/coffee shops in Ontario and grew to become a national…
Circling The Sun expands the cast of eccentric characters in Africa
If you enjoyed Out of Africa, the story of author Isak Dinesen/Karen Blixen’s years as a coffee farmer in Kenya (is there a Baby Boomer alive who didn’t love the movie with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford?), you’ll enjoy Circling The Sun. Written by Paula McLain who also authored The Paris Wife about Hadley Richardson, first wife of Ernest Hemingway, Circling The Sun is the…
Coffee pod pollution is a fixable problem
My name is Lynda and I confess I am a polluter. As the happy owner of a Bosch Tassimo hot beverage dispenser I regularly use the disposable pods criticized by environmentalists for polluting our landfill sites. But I can explain. I chose the Tassimo over the Keurig beverage dispenser because it makes cappuccino and latte drinks which Keurig does not. Both manufacturers are under the…
Where will you be in twenty years?
Remember the old and now politically incorrect adage, “If you want to know what your wife’s going to look like in twenty years, take a look at her mother.” Due a series of recent events in my life, I’ve now been confronted with what life as a Baby Boomer is going to look like in twenty years and it’s cause for concern and action. The…