I agree, somewhat, with Tom Flanagan
I have what I know will be a very unpopular opinion about a highly volatile subject. I should probably keep it to myself, but I feel compelled to share it.…
C. Death, Mayhem, and the Collapse of Civilization
We know how to have fun
GC got a sliver in his foot from the hardwood floor. He said it felt like a long, skinny sliver. There wasn’t much to see, but he was limping and…
Gender Failure
I’ve set up a google alert for ‘transgender’ so I can keep abreast of transgender news and activity on the internet, since my favourite part of my new job is…
Diagnosis: Too much freedom
We took Simon to see the avian vet yesterday, to consult about his behaviour problems. She thinks he’s got too much freedom and he’s taking advantage of it. He has…
First week of work, and a psychotic parrot episode
So far at my new job I’ve been immersing myself in reports and files and getting up to speed on the subject matter and my projects. The subject matter is…
Nasty old lady kills swap box
Yesterday I watched a nasty old lady beat my swap box to death with her cane. Rosie and I were out for an afternoon walk in the Enchanted Forest. As…
Remembering Elmaks
It was on this day, a year ago, that Ottawa’s favourite street artist hiked into the forest, lay down under a tree, and died. His parents recently sent me a…
Wanted
I wonder if Coyote knows his mugshot is plastered all over that new coffee roasting place on Anderson Street? The last thing he needs is a bunch of heavily caffeinated…
New neighbours, old garbage
Remember when you were a little kid, and a new family would move onto your street? You’d stand there watching the moving truck being unloaded, looking for clues about the…
Psychopaths versus turtles
One day last week, while we were making pottery, Chandler mentioned the turtles. Apparently they have turtles in Blakeney, Ontario, and a lot of them get killed crossing the road.…
Motorcycle madness
Have you seen that crazy video of the motorcycle out in BC going 299 kph? Somehow I missed it when it was first making the rounds. Here it is, if…
A pool of fresh blood
Every morning I go for a long walk along the bike path and I encounter all kinds of other people walking, biking, roller blading, skateboarding, running, and dog-walking. On Sunday…
Happy Canada Day, Stephen Harper. Here’s 59 cents.
It’s hard to look at yourself objectively, but rightly or wrongly, I’ve always thought of Canadians as peaceful, fair, decent, thoughtful and compassionate people who respect diversity, care about social…
I had a grandfather
My grandfather, Opa, would be celebrating his 104th birthday today if he hadn’t been killed by an irrational fear of surgery. He died in a hospital in Hollywood, Florida, as…
Next thing I knew, the duck was mine
Yesterday afternoon I walked right into an unfolding crisis on Fisher Avenue. The scene, as I approached, involved a man stopping rush-hour traffic while he retrieved an injured duck from…
I got laid off again
I got laid off last week; today’s my first day of unemployment. There were three weeks remaining on my three-month contract, but we started running out of international tax returns…
GC reads the Riot Act
I live in a row house. The woman who owns the next house in the row is an investment advisor. She rents the place out to one group of kids…
The right place at the right time
First off, I’m happy to report that Cindy Lou was found and captured on Friday afternoon as she was running down the Queensway! It’s a miracle she wasn’t killed. Two…
A long hard week with a happy ending
Thursday was one of those days. I’m still figuring out the buses on my commute to and from work, and I somehow got myself turned around at the Billings Bridge…
The meaning of life
I’m working at home this week and next. I like walking to work, so I go for a walk each morning before I get started. We’re not talking a quick…