I have been procrastinating. I had time on my hands, so I dug out four framed prints of a Montreal artist that belonged to my parents, who have been gone but not forgotten for a few years now. They were sketches of well-known landmarks in my hometown of Montreal. I didn’t have much of an…

I was at the front desk of my local recreation centre chatting with the staff person encircling my wrist with the appropriate coloured band of the day. She asked me how my day was going. “Excellent,” I replied. I told her that I had no bombs falling on my head as was happening to many…

I came across a familiar quote but didn’t know to whom it was attributed. I searched further and learned that Milton Friedman said, “the only social responsibility of business is to maximize shareholder profit.” Mr. Friedman was an American economist and statistician who received the 1976 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. I long accepted…

I tend to appreciate more when I know more. In Edmonton, there was a periodic homeless lady, Grace. She was harmless when approached or approached you, no matter how dishevelled she was. She would usually ask passers-by if she could have a quarter. For better or for worse, I often gave her what she was…

I learned last summer that many farms in my home province celebrate Alberta Open Farm Days on a weekend in August. Let the Adventure begin: It is a time to connect with rural life, learn about our food production and generally de-city-fy for a few hours. I thought it would be an excellent adventure for…

I was thinking about celebrating, reflecting, and remembering. It is something we do as a country, particularly around November 11 each year. We think about the people who died for Canada. With Canada Day today, I want to think about the people who have died because of Canada, particularly the Indigenous people in Canada. There…

I was in line ordering at a fast-food restaurant and was asked if I wanted to supersize my order. “No, thank you,” I replied. My favourite is my favourite for a reason. But that exchange got me thinking. I was reading about what I can expect as an older adult and how I could better…

I was watching a Ted Talks video on bias. After a short while, I felt uncomfortable because it spoke to me. I’ll try to capture some moments that challenged my awareness of my own biases. The speaker’s research found that when exposed to black faces, the viewer was quicker to see blurry images that they…

I recently learned about the origin of the name for an object familiar to most of us. Jerry cans. First, a quick side trip to acknowledge that The Jerry Cans are a band from Iqaluit. There is a link below if you are curious. I’ve heard they don’t bite. The jerry cans I was referring…

I was browsing through the various anniversaries I celebrate or ritualize in some way or another. There was a pattern. The joyous ones of birthdays and family celebrations such as Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Year’s included sharing with my friends, my family and food. The sombre ones of deaths and more national moments such as…