The NASCAR season has just wrapped up with Martin Truex Jr. the champion. Truex’s Crew Chief is Cole Pearn, who cut his racing teeth at Delaware Speedway. His Mom Patti is a local realtor. Anyone connected to Delaware knows Cole. He’s a star of the sport right now. …
I truly love two songs in particular by the Hamilton rock band Junkhouse. One is Out of My Head, a hit from their 1993 breakout album, Strays. The other is Shine, and I’d put it in my top 20 of all time. Junkhouse appealed to my love for raw, filthy rock and roll that sounds live off the floor. (My all-time fave rocker: Humble Pie’s 30 Days in the Hole. It doesn’t get much filthier!) …
“Increased geographic synergies”. Just typing that bullshit sentence makes my blood pressure spike. Yesterday, Torstar and Postmedia swapped nearly two-dozen newspapers for the sole purpose of shutting them down, and reducing competition. Hundreds of people will lose their jobs, including my friends at Our London, for whom I write a biweekly column. They have about six weeks left before the padlock goes on the door. …
When I returned to London, my first radio gig was midday host at Greatest Hits 1039fm. You think greatest hits, you think Beatles, of course. …
Plenty of discussion is underway about what London’s Bus Rapid Transit plans will do to properties along the proposed routes. It seems that several homeowners, especially along Richmond St. North, were unaware that the city owns a part of their frontage. City Hall can claim several metres if it needs it without offering compensation. …
On Remembrance Day, Derek found some personal connections to the second world war. He found a photo album dedicated to his Dad’s experience in WWII, put together by his Aunt Barb, his Dad’s sister. What a treasure trove. …
It took a long time to figure out what Spice and Sugar were to each other. Were they reluctant spouses? Roommates? It was about a year into their relationship before they cuddled up but they still have little spats. Spice still dominates her in little ways. He’ll shoo her away from the food bowl if he feels like it. Sugar will back up and sit patiently until he’s feeling more like sharing. We’ve determined they’re brother and sister. …
I have the reputation of being a Grammar Nazi. However, I’m not a grammar expert. I double-check myself before I post anything publicly and I still make mistakes. I learned a lot by having my first book edited by a bulldog of an editor (that’s a compliment) who was relentless in her pursuit of perfection. When I got my first draft back it looked like someone had coloured on the pages with markers. Those were the changes she insisted on making. It was at first depressing and then illuminating. …
I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been to Las Vegas. I went to the old Vegas three times, before the mega-resorts and resort fees and insanely-sized hotels were erected. I vividly remember waiting in the limo with my Dad before we left for the airport. We were watching the cranes and other signs of construction that would eventually completely change The Strip and the city as we knew it. Dad said, “We won’t recognize this place next time we come back”. He didn’t go back, as far as I know, but I did and he was right. It was unrecognizable. …
My face feels like butter. On Friday morning, it felt more like 10 miles of gravel road. My heart feels like it swelled up to pumpkin size and then shrivelled back down to the face of an apple doll before settling at about half-full. My tummy – well, let’s not even go there. …
Our friend Al has just completed his first Invictus Games. He only started his sport, archery, in April and he gave some highly accomplished opponents a run for their money in Toronto last week. He also got to shake the hand of Prince Harry, co-founder of the competition for wounded and ailing veterans from around the world. …
There are many things to love about my husband but one of them is that he doesn’t hesitate when someone needs help. That was never more evident than when my Dad’s health began to fail. …
At the suggestion of a former colleague, I listened to a podcast last week about a frightening new piece of technology. It scares me more than Kim Jong Un or Donald Trump with their tiny fingers hovering over their country’s big red buttons. …
We love the simplicity of a small-town fall fair. Although Saturday felt more like the height of summer than the beginning of fall, we ventured out for the annual event in Thorndale, a bit north and east of London. …
If you cry easily or can’t stand a tragic story, even when it has a happy ending, this is your opportunity to bail. Go ahead. The rest of us will wait. Head over to Cute Things Falling Asleep or watch a cat video. …
Do you remember the feeling of going back to school? A mix of excitement and dread, mandatory shopping trips and uncertainty about what stuff we would actually need. Were denim-patch pencil cases still in? These things mattered when you simply wanted to blend in. …
The first time in my lifetime that I remember the world feeling united was after the death of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed in 1997. I was working at CHML in Hamilton but put 680 News on through the house, because they were live with continuous coverage. After the paparazzi chased their hired car into a Paris tunnel and it crashed, everyone wondered – would she live? Minute by minute it seemed less likely, although she was alive after the collision. Prince Harry recently said one of the hardest parts of what happened for him and his brother was knowing that their mother was still alive in the back seat of the car and yet photographers did nothing but continue to take photos of her. …
