Science is my guiding force in this life. I’m not likely to believe in things I can’t see and although I don’t pooh-pooh anyone else’s philosophies of life, I have a healthy skepticism for them. Live and let live, I say. So imagine my surprise when I found out that I’d been experiencing a paranormal phenomenon, without even realizing it. …
“Well, you had me several years ago, when I was still quite naïve.” Those words, and the other lyrics in Carly Simon’s classic, You’re So Vain. have been the subject of so much speculation over the years. Now we know the identity of one of the mystery men with a bloated ego she skewers in her song. …
We had some good times on the Free-FM morning show, The Big Show with Botten, Blair and Brandt. It only lasted a couple of years, but we worked our tails off and had big fun. …
Today, another little peek behind the scenes of a voice-over business. Mine, of course. E-learning continues to be my top genre, followed by corporate videos, characters and then good old-fashioned commercial reads. …
Did you hear about the provincial candidate in Newfoundland and Labrador who made some foolish comments and had to drop out of the race? Progressive Conservative Tina Olivero apparently thinks some people with cancer can cure themselves with self-awareness. …
A pal who was downsized from her radio job is looking for work. She’s casting a wide net, because broadcasting is getting smaller all the time. So wasn’t she surprised to get a job offer via email, having never interviewed for the position. …
Before he became our Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau was asked in an interview what kind of coffee he liked to drink. “I don’t drink coffee, actually”, he responded. “I learned that it was addictive and didn’t want anything to have a hold over me.” …
Can kids get away with now what we got away with back in the day? These days, you can track teens with a smartphone app. In my youth, my parents just had to hope I’d do what they taught me and survive. …
We’ve been a two-cat household for more than a month now and things have settled into a routine. Our new adoptee Sugar, or Miss Sugar, is a delight. Spice is making sure she knows she’s #2 and he’s #1. There have been some incidents of hissing and chasing but no actual fights. They even get affectionate sometimes. …
The medical specialist I’ve known for more than two decades, who performed three surgeries on me over the years, is under review by the College of Physicians and Surgeons. His right to practise is at stake. A journalist friend who has worked for some of the biggest publications in the country is routinely forced to defend his judgment in front of a review panel. What do they have in common? They both teach at universities. …
What can someone halfway around the world do about a senseless mass murder overseas? Nothing, really. And that’s what’s so damn frustrating. …
The title of this post is how much an Oregon woman is owed, in my opinion, after a slot machine malfunctioned and she thought she had won $8.5-million. …
I’ve never been a big sports nut. I’ll jump on a bandwagon or absorb the important aspects of a sport my spouse is into but given my druthers, I’d watch a movie instead. …
Derek’s Dad was just 21 in 1943 when he answered the call to fight in WWII.
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It turns out that one of my fortes in voice-work is e-learning. Virtually every day for the past six weeks or so, I’ve been working on online or video-learning projects for a few different clients. My voice is teaching everything from how not to sexually harass your colleagues, to how to navigate a complicated sales system for an international automotive company, to tips and tricks for conducting searches in the Internet. …
I was living in Burlington when a story came out about the toxicity of a chemical used in hair dye. A study showed that whatever it was, was leaching into the scalp and possibly causing harm. Grey-haired women of a certain age let out a silent scream and ran to health food stores, looking for natural alternatives. …
Put aside any partisan feelings for a moment. Forget about the long-form census and the deficit and foreign policy and all of those other things that everyone’s opinions differ on and tell me: wasn’t it cool that the new Prime Minister walked up to Rideau Hall with his new cabinet, openly and happily, shaking hands and smiling at ordinary people, like a person who really wants to be in the job? …
“Always remember, and please never forget…” With those words, Duane Schneider on the sitcom One Day at a Time would leave the room with some parting wisdom. …