On November 11th I went to the Last Post military cemetery in Pointe Claire.
I have written about this place once or twice before. Here time stands still. Twenty thousand servicewomen and servicemen have been laid to rest in the cemetery. My grandfather Georges Terroux, who served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in World War I, is one of them.
It was a privilege to be here on Remembrance Day. The cemetery was well attended.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Been fiddlin'
Today I managed to implement about ninety percent of the changes to this journal that have been rattling around in my brain for many, many, months.
I have to say that translating the thoughts in my head into reasonably well-behaved pixels on the screen has been as painful as I thought it would be.
Authoring any digital media, whether it's software programming, graphic content like photos, or the look and feel of a blog, is fairly obsessive work. Trial and error, error and trial, trial and error. That, and the occasional epiphany when, on the very cusp of total frustration, something finally works. There are far too many moving parts between what this blog looked like for the past five years, and where it is now. I won't bore you with the details.
I have to say that translating the thoughts in my head into reasonably well-behaved pixels on the screen has been as painful as I thought it would be.
Authoring any digital media, whether it's software programming, graphic content like photos, or the look and feel of a blog, is fairly obsessive work. Trial and error, error and trial, trial and error. That, and the occasional epiphany when, on the very cusp of total frustration, something finally works. There are far too many moving parts between what this blog looked like for the past five years, and where it is now. I won't bore you with the details.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Runnin' errands
Some of the going is voluntary, some is imposed.
I have come to the end of some roads. Other roads beckon.
If I was a commuter, now I run errands. Like a run to Costco last week, to buy new cordless phones.
Monday, September 28, 2015
2015 Blogger to Blogger Tour - Epilogue, and lessons learned
It's been a long time between posts. The main reason is that the past two months have been, by some measures, the best and busiest of our lives. There was the annual conference of the national organization I chair that was, for the first time ever, held in Montreal. As soon as that ended we celebrated the marriage of our eldest son. Sonja and Roland came to visit, then Susan and I went on an amazing trip that took us to Edmonton, Jasper Park, Vancouver, and Maui. Phew.
Along the way, I worked on this post, mostly during our flights. I hope you will find it was worth the long wait.
I'm getting slightly more experienced with touring. That means I still have a lot to learn.
Along the way, I worked on this post, mostly during our flights. I hope you will find it was worth the long wait.
I'm getting slightly more experienced with touring. That means I still have a lot to learn.
Thursday, September 10, 2015
Toying with Templates; Flirting with Failure
I've dropped hints about wanting to make changes to the way this ongoing story is presented.
The choices are unfortunately unlimited.
It's like shopping for a BMW vehicle with an unlimited budget. Sedan? SUV? Limousine? No problem. Suede headliner? 100,000 LED mood-lit interior? Built-in cigar humidor in the console? No problem. No kidding. I was chatting with Billy at Canbec BMW just the other day. Got millions to piss away to annoy your siblings and leave your heirs breathless and nervous? No better place to start than by ordering a custom seven series sedan with oodles and oodles of options and doo-dads.
The choices are unfortunately unlimited.
It's like shopping for a BMW vehicle with an unlimited budget. Sedan? SUV? Limousine? No problem. Suede headliner? 100,000 LED mood-lit interior? Built-in cigar humidor in the console? No problem. No kidding. I was chatting with Billy at Canbec BMW just the other day. Got millions to piss away to annoy your siblings and leave your heirs breathless and nervous? No better place to start than by ordering a custom seven series sedan with oodles and oodles of options and doo-dads.
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Project report - Installing heated grips on a Honda Shadow VT750 ACE
The Honda Shadow is a shared bike. One day I'll get around to explaining in detail how Sonja and I came to co-own the Honda Shadow, which we now call Thunderbird.
Thunderbird is new to us, it's a gently used 2003 motorcycle. True to its roots, Thunderbird was fitted with a bunch of aftermarket accessories installed with thoughts of cruising down the boulevard with the sun glinting off as much chrome as possible, to the tune of very loud aftermarket Cobra exhaust pipes.
Thunderbird is new to us, it's a gently used 2003 motorcycle. True to its roots, Thunderbird was fitted with a bunch of aftermarket accessories installed with thoughts of cruising down the boulevard with the sun glinting off as much chrome as possible, to the tune of very loud aftermarket Cobra exhaust pipes.
Monday, September 7, 2015
2015 Blogger to Blogger Tour: Safe travels
Sonja and Roland returned this past Thursday from their Ontario trip with Sonja under the weather. Apparently traveling makes Sonja sick. Her love of travel is so deep, that she considers a predictable head cold to be a small price to pay for adventure.
On Friday I resumed my tour guide duties and took the traveling dynamic duo to see the remaining must-see sights of Montreal.
We had seen the southern and eastern sides of the city from the three drive-to lookouts on Mount Royal.
On Friday I resumed my tour guide duties and took the traveling dynamic duo to see the remaining must-see sights of Montreal.
We had seen the southern and eastern sides of the city from the three drive-to lookouts on Mount Royal.
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
The ScootCommute on CITY TV
Today was the day I got about three and a half minutes of the fifteen minutes of fame that Andy Warhol kindly alotted to me.
Some time a few weeks back, I got an e-mail asking if I would mind being interviewed on Montreal CITY TV's morning show Breakfast Television. I was both surprised and genuinely honoured.
When I mentioned to Susan that the show's managing producer told me that it would be a three-minute interview, Susan burst out laughing "You can't even introduce yourself in three minutes!" she teased.
Some time a few weeks back, I got an e-mail asking if I would mind being interviewed on Montreal CITY TV's morning show Breakfast Television. I was both surprised and genuinely honoured.
When I mentioned to Susan that the show's managing producer told me that it would be a three-minute interview, Susan burst out laughing "You can't even introduce yourself in three minutes!" she teased.
Saturday, August 29, 2015
2015 Blogger to Blogger Tour - The Magers are here (no, not baseball)
I was going to title this post "Thunderbird, meet Sonja. Sonja, meet Thunderbird", but really, it's a continuing post in the amazing 2015 Blogger to Blogger Tour series.
They came, they saw, and... Whoosh!... they are on their way.
Sonja and Roland, that is.
They are hearty and hale folks, that's for sure. They barely look the worse for that tiresome east to west jet lag.
That said, Susan and I did our best to squeeze in the quintessential must see, and must do experiences for our out of town guests.
Yesterday we did Mount Royal (all three lookouts)...
... the Plateau (grabbing some iconic snacks along the way)...
... downtown (a coffee break at Myriad steps away from Concordia's campus)...
... Old Montreal and the old port...
... dinner at Wellington (in Verdun, with a decent Merlot/Syrrah blend we picked up steps from Notre Dame, appropriately labeled C'est la vie!)...
... and winding down with a leisurely cruise home along the Lachine Canal and the shores of Lake St-Louis.
Before they went their merry way headed to their rendez-vous with Karen in Morrisburg, Sonja hopped on Thunderbird for a quick spin.
They'll be back in a few days' time to complete the tour of Montreal's remaining must see and must do wonders.
Keep an eye on Sonja's blog, on Karen's blog, and on Dave's blog and you'll be able to follow their progress in Eastern Canada!
They came, they saw, and... Whoosh!... they are on their way.
Sonja and Roland, that is.
They are hearty and hale folks, that's for sure. They barely look the worse for that tiresome east to west jet lag.
That said, Susan and I did our best to squeeze in the quintessential must see, and must do experiences for our out of town guests.
Yesterday we did Mount Royal (all three lookouts)...
Before they went their merry way headed to their rendez-vous with Karen in Morrisburg, Sonja hopped on Thunderbird for a quick spin.
Keep an eye on Sonja's blog, on Karen's blog, and on Dave's blog and you'll be able to follow their progress in Eastern Canada!
Friday, August 21, 2015
I knocked; the universe answered
I was born in the year of the Dragon: 1952.
In August of 2009 I was in St-Johns Newfoundland. 2009 was a tough year. We almost cancelled the 2009 CSCS conference in St-Johns. I insisted we march into the financial storm and carry on, to send a strong message that CSCS would not be deterred by mere financial chaos.
No good deed goes unpunished, so the universe sent hurricane Bill to cheer us up. Bwahhh hah hah! We laughed in the face of adversity!
When I saw a black baseball hat in the tower gift shop high atop Signal Hill I couldn't resist. It fit the bill perfectly. I wore it resolutely at the conference. Adorned with a menacing skull and crossbones it said "The beatings will continue, until morale improves".
A few years later, in the year of the dragon, the winter of 2012, I was visiting my brother-in-law in Florida. I was wearing my pirate hat.
Chuck saw it and flipped. Florida was still firmly in the death grip of the 2009 financial crisis. Chuck had to have the hat. I understood. I gave it to him without a moment's hesitation.
Chuck was so pleased, he enthusiastically led me to his closet where he had his considerable collection of baseball caps. For the most part, the collection was investment dealer and mutual fund swag, along with sports memorabilia. Chuck gave me the pick of his collection.
I went through the hats without much enthusiasm, until I found my dragon hat. I had to have it. It meant so much. My mother had given me many, many years before, a Chinese chop, my Chinese signature stamp, with my name in Chinese characters carved out of a solid block of jade. A beautifully carved dragon decorated the stamp. My mother explained to me that I was born in the year of the dragon.
I sometimes feel like a dragon, peculiar, strange, proud, sometimes fierce, courageous when it matters, somewhat mystical and a little bit mythical.
This summer, three years later, my dragon hat has suffered from constant use. The black is sunwashed. The dragon is still boldly golden, but that won't last forever. Then again, neither will I.
A few weeks ago, on a whim, I searched for the website of the Matthews Funds. I used the 'contact us' page to ask for a new dragon hat as a hedge against future decay. I forgot about it. It was a message in a bottle.
Today, as we are deep in readiness preparations for our son Jonathan's wedding tomorrow, my son Andrew called out to me as I was wrapping up pool cleaning. "A package came for you!" he said, brandishing a square Fedex box.
I wasn't expecting anything.
I tore into the box eagerly. Leah's kind note fell into my hands.
H-A-T-S?!?!
And there they were!!!! I've got spares! An everyday, workin' around the house hat, a new goin' out on the town hat, and a dress hat!!!
Oh boy!
To you I say: "Is there something you need? Is there something you want? Knock on the universe's door! You never know what will happen. I started knocking a little too late in life. But it's never too late. Knock my friends, knock!"
To Leah Harold, Vice-President, U.S. Marketing, for Matthews International Capital Management LLC, thank you so very much, now you know how much it means to me. I will continue to wear the hats proudly.
In August of 2009 I was in St-Johns Newfoundland. 2009 was a tough year. We almost cancelled the 2009 CSCS conference in St-Johns. I insisted we march into the financial storm and carry on, to send a strong message that CSCS would not be deterred by mere financial chaos.
No good deed goes unpunished, so the universe sent hurricane Bill to cheer us up. Bwahhh hah hah! We laughed in the face of adversity!
When I saw a black baseball hat in the tower gift shop high atop Signal Hill I couldn't resist. It fit the bill perfectly. I wore it resolutely at the conference. Adorned with a menacing skull and crossbones it said "The beatings will continue, until morale improves".
Chuck saw it and flipped. Florida was still firmly in the death grip of the 2009 financial crisis. Chuck had to have the hat. I understood. I gave it to him without a moment's hesitation.
Chuck was so pleased, he enthusiastically led me to his closet where he had his considerable collection of baseball caps. For the most part, the collection was investment dealer and mutual fund swag, along with sports memorabilia. Chuck gave me the pick of his collection.
I went through the hats without much enthusiasm, until I found my dragon hat. I had to have it. It meant so much. My mother had given me many, many years before, a Chinese chop, my Chinese signature stamp, with my name in Chinese characters carved out of a solid block of jade. A beautifully carved dragon decorated the stamp. My mother explained to me that I was born in the year of the dragon.
This summer, three years later, my dragon hat has suffered from constant use. The black is sunwashed. The dragon is still boldly golden, but that won't last forever. Then again, neither will I.
A few weeks ago, on a whim, I searched for the website of the Matthews Funds. I used the 'contact us' page to ask for a new dragon hat as a hedge against future decay. I forgot about it. It was a message in a bottle.
Today, as we are deep in readiness preparations for our son Jonathan's wedding tomorrow, my son Andrew called out to me as I was wrapping up pool cleaning. "A package came for you!" he said, brandishing a square Fedex box.
I tore into the box eagerly. Leah's kind note fell into my hands.
And there they were!!!! I've got spares! An everyday, workin' around the house hat, a new goin' out on the town hat, and a dress hat!!!
To Leah Harold, Vice-President, U.S. Marketing, for Matthews International Capital Management LLC, thank you so very much, now you know how much it means to me. I will continue to wear the hats proudly.
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