“Every generation, no matter how paltry its character, thinks itself much wiser than the one immediately preceding it, let alone those that are more remote. ” -William Shakespeare Old Mr. Shakespeare was a pretty keen observer of human nature with all its foibles. I guess that's why his plays remain so popular, we are still … Continue reading Government sponsored morality
Whimsy
The born loser
Monday evening, in preparation for the following day, I placed on our dining room table an envelope containing a bill payment on behalf of one bookkeeping client and a cheque that I received from another client. They were exactly the same size and the thought crossed my mind that I might just pick up the … Continue reading The born loser
Breakdown on the information highway
I had planned to write something else yesterday evening, but found myself in a position much like the young man in the photo above: the vehicle with which I cruise the information highway had broken down. We live on an acreage in a sparsely populated part of the Saskatchewan prairies where there are not enough … Continue reading Breakdown on the information highway
I’m taking a break
Plans are that by the time this appears on line I will be sitting in a little church in Québec working on editing a book recently translated into French. Then I will stay to worship with the brethren there on Sunday and do a little visiting around before returning home. I will return – to … Continue reading I’m taking a break
What do you want to be when you grow up?
When I was growing up in the 1950’s, the older generation had scraped and scrabbled to survive the depression and they wanted their children to have a better life. The key to that was to get a good education so you could be someone who could make a living without working hard. Maybe that wasn’t … Continue reading What do you want to be when you grow up?
Canada Day Rain
As my dear wife says, times have changed. For several months the forecast promised rain that never materialized. Today the forecast promised 1 mm and we have received 15 so far.
Hope
Ah hope! What would love be, stripped of the encouraging smiles, that teach us to look behind the dark clouds of today, for the golden beams that are to gild the morrow. —Susanna Moodie
In the mood for a little subjunctive?
I made it through high school without ever encountering the subjunctive mood. Then I decided to learn French. I fought my way through the bewildering thicket of conjugations of regular and irregular verbs, then I was introduced to the subjunctive mood. My head hurt for weeks. I didn't seem to have any reference point in … Continue reading In the mood for a little subjunctive?
To better understand English, learn a little French
In its grammatical structure, English belongs to the Low German language family, a group of languages that developed from a common early Germanic root. The group includes Flemish, Dutch, Frisian, Afrikaans (the Dutch that is spoken in South Africa), Plautdietsch, English and Scots (not Gaelic but the variety of old English spoken by the lowland … Continue reading To better understand English, learn a little French
I don’t have a talent for baking bread
My mother certainly did. She baked the most wonderful loaves and buns of white bread, brown bread, rye bread. Her cinnamon rolls were the greatest. She baked with a wood stove, then a gas stove and finally an electric stove. The only time the bread didn’t turn out was the day she left for parents’ … Continue reading I don’t have a talent for baking bread
Flatlander Faith 