Evil! As you may or may not recall, Allan and I are first-time homeowners. In 2019, both of us in our late 50s, we bought a home in Port Hardy, BC, on the northern tip of Vancouver Island. We were lifelong renters, and had no desire to change that. But
Continue readingTag: miscellaneous blather
wmtc: something new: in which i defend pit bulls challenge bigotry without losing my cool
I was at a nail salon. Not an upscale spa, a loud, basic, ramshackle kind of nail salon. Two women sitting side by side for pedicures were speaking loudly and drowning out all the other noise. Loud Woman One was telling the whole salon about her upcoming trip to San
Continue readingwmtc: the game report: an update that is not completely analog
Back in December of last year, I blogged about starting a game night at home, rotating every-other week between games and music. I was super happy about it. Seven months later, I can report mixed results — mostly mixed because my partner really doesn’t like games. This has always been a source
Continue readingwmtc: in which i accommodate another quirk of small-town life: how to hand-wash a pea jacket
About a year ago, I blogged about some quirks of living in a remote region. It’s always amusing, baffling, and occasionally annoying to cope with what is and is not available in our town. There are two hardware stores and two pharmacies, but to buy dog food, we have to
Continue readingwmtc: most useless and annoying advice ever: it’s cheaper if you make it yourself
I did not make this myself. Ever since moving to Canada, people have been telling me how I could make something myself for less money than I paid for it. Curtains, chair coverings, scarves. Kitchen gadgets. Dog needs. Skin care products. And food of all types. You can make that
Continue readingwmtc: gardening and games, but not piano: three things going on with me
Next year? I’m thinking borscht. It was not a total #gardenfail You may recall that I tried to plant my little gardenette, as we used to do in southern Ontario, here in northern Vancouver Island. I was not successful. The area we cleared became well grown over with weeds, and
Continue readingwmtc: from the archives: all over the world, i tell people where to go
On our recent trip to Oregon and California, I made a note every time someone asked me for directions. That may seem like an odd thing to track — unless you’re well-established as a magnet for The Lost. Not the spiritually lost. The physically lost and uncertain. On this trip,
Continue readingwmtc: greetings island: the best e-card site you’ve never heard of
Tl; dr: Greetings Island is the best e-greeting-card site. * * * * I love greeting cards — birthdays, anniversaries, thank yous, “glad you’re my friend”. I used to love spending time choosing unusual and relevant cards for family and friends. No Hallmark drivel, and no holidays that are meaningless
Continue readingwmtc: and let others do for you: interdependence, and the strength to be vulnerable
“I find it really difficult to ask for help.” I’ve heard many people say this. I don’t know if I ever said this myself, but as a teen and then young adult, I definitely tried never to ask for help, and seldom would allow myself to accept any. When I
Continue readingwmtc: and let others do for you: interdependence, and the strength to be vulnerable
“I find it really difficult to ask for help.” I’ve heard many people say this. I don’t know if I ever said this myself, but as a teen and then young adult, I definitely tried never to ask for help, and seldom would allow myself to accept any. When I
Continue readingwmtc: and let others do for you: interdependence, and the strength to be vulnerable
“I find it really difficult to ask for help.” I’ve heard many people say this. I don’t know if I ever said this myself, but as a teen and then young adult, I definitely tried never to ask for help, and seldom would allow myself to accept any. When I
Continue readingwmtc: how do you hold a fork and knife? or, in which i discover my table manners are american
As a child, I was taught to use a knife and fork like this: fork in left hand, securing what you want to cut, knife in right hand, cutting. Put knife down, transfer fork from left hand to right hand, put food in mouth. Repeat. My mother drilled this into
Continue readingwmtc: how do you hold a fork and knife? or, in which i discover my table manners are american
As a child, I was taught to use a knife and fork like this: fork in left hand, securing what you want to cut, knife in right hand, cutting. Put knife down, transfer fork from left hand to right hand, put food in mouth. Repeat. My mother drilled this into
Continue readingwmtc: how do you hold a fork and knife? or, in which i discover my table manners are american
As a child, I was taught to use a knife and fork like this: fork in left hand, securing what you want to cut, knife in right hand, cutting. Put knife down, transfer fork from left hand to right hand, put food in mouth. Repeat. My mother drilled this into
Continue readingwmtc: "use it in good health"
When I was growing up, my grandparents and other older relatives used an expression, “Use it in good health,” or a variant, “Wear it in good health”. This was said when you bought something that you were very excited about, or received a wonderful gift, or made a major purchase.
Continue readingwmtc: true confessions, or will laura buy new window treatments for a house that doesn’t need them
I don’t care much about clothes, shoes, bags. I don’t buy expensive cosmetics or skin-care products. As long as I have what I need, I’m good. It’s easy to watch my spending about any of those. But. There’s always a but, right? I love home things. Towels, linens, dinnerware. Rugs.
Continue readingwmtc: how the media (invisibly) props up capitalism and other hidden biases
I recently read these somewhat old, but still relevant, letters to the New York Times Book Review. Cost of the CrashTo the Editor: In his review of “Crashed,” by Adam Tooze (Aug. 12), Fareed Zakaria asserts that “the rescue worked better than almost anyone imagined.” He notes there was no
Continue readingwmtc: in which i discover jordan’s cereal and need to tell everyone about it
We used to eat President’s Choice Blue Menu granola. The vanilla-almond flavour was crunchy, delicious, and reasonably healthy. My favourite way to eat it was with plain Greek yogurt and fruit, but it was very good with milk or rice milk as well. Then… it changed. It was no longer
Continue readingwmtc: do workplace-based tv shows make people dissatisfied with their jobs?
I recently realized that I enjoy a lot of TV shows that are themed around a workplace. There are the comedies, like The Office and Brooklyn 9-9, and my favourite sitcoms of past generations, such as Barney Miller and Mary Tyler Moore, and a whole bunch of sitcoms I don’t
Continue readingwmtc: should we give up our voip phone and only have cell phones? help me decide.
The ancient technology I grew up with,including the colour. We still have a bit of antiquated technology called a home phone. We use a VoIP phone — have done so since 2002 — which is why I say “home phone” rather than “landline”. Our home phone is not a landline.
Continue reading