Politics
My patient reader knows I love spending time in the north of Alabama. They may not understand why, but they will. First of all it’s an extraordinarily interesting place, full of contradictions and the creative sparks that come from same. It is also, to my mind, exactly the kind
Fiction
There was nothing to be done, the Air Canada person insisted with a face that lied about how sorry she was pretending to be. They had missed their connection to Nashville during the time it took them to go from D34 to F63 via yet another security check and a
Fiction
It was a simple plan. Fly to Ireland, compete in a karate tournament, stay an extra day to visit the graves of various ancestors in an around Belfast, fly back home. There was no need to get lost anywhere. We arrived earlier than expected, because our flight was one time
Urbanism
A shorter update this week as I juggle a few big projects and associated looming deadlines. I will be able to share a few of those projects soon. They’re fun, I promise. My Ottawa Citizen column this week is about skating — in Ottawa and in Huntsville, Alabama. Well, mostly
Urbanism
There are weeks when it seems there are no limits to the number of zany ideas people come up with, including (in no particular order), digging a tunnel under the 401 in Toronto to add lanes of traffic because there’s no way the existing 20 or so are enough,
Français
This one is just in French, because the platform to which I am referring is 100% in that language. It is a new initiative by the Assotiation des auteur.e.s de l’Ontario français to promote the work of its members, francophone literature in Ontario as well as help
Urbanism
One of the coolest parts of my work is to get advanced copies of books I’m dying to read and tell you what I think of them. Carolyn Whitzman’s excellent Home Truths in one you won’t want to miss when it becomes available in a couple of
Urbanism
My friend and colleague, the scintillating Bruce Deachman, challenged us to come up with new and improved mottoes for Ottawa and you know me when someone puts a dare in front of my face. This. I’ve lived in this town for nearly 24 years and while there are many
Travel
A bit of a shorter update this week as I’m on the road from Ottawa to Connecticut via Toronto which, as you’ll know if you’ve ever looked at a map, is totally not on the road to Connecticut from Ottawa. But since Eldest was competing both in
Travel
This wasn’t meant to be a weekend replete with political philosophy. My goal was to take a well-deserved break to rest and recharge. But of course being me, now that I have an hour to kill before dinner, here goes. A whimsical visit today to Canyon Ste-Anne prompted both
Français
There are costs and benefits to living in a country with two official languages. Perhaps, if the British parliament had opted to implement Radical Jack's ideas, we'd have saved a ton of cash. But it didn't and here we are. A country with two
Urbanism
My eldest had her favourite cousin spend March break with us and, seeing as the cousin had never been to Quebec City I decided to take both of them last weekend to end their week off on a high, French note. I took them on a quick walking tour of