Not Quite Alone In The Dark

It happened again.
There I was - midstream in the flow of brilliance -
two , maybe three paragraphs away from a major strike -
and the computer died, the clocks all stopped, the TV
in the other room went black - and the lights went out.
Yes - there was wind...but in the 17 plus years I've
lived in Nova Scotia - that is not an uncommmon
occurance - certainly not an occurance for which NS
Power should not be prepared.
My immediate reaction was not one fit to print.
Brilliance is not something that is anything other than
a rare commodity when my fingers caress this keyboard..
or any other..I blame the fingers...but I digress.
So there I was ( I'm repeating myself )...First, bitter
ugly and cynical - and then conciously making the decision
to take advantage of the silence and late afternoon darkness.
I have often said that there is nothing so calming, nothing
so peacefull, nothing so pure in it's ability to medicate,
as the sound of the acoustic guitar.
So I cautiously made my way to the office wall, and picked
out the Larivee ...I sat for 40 minutes or so and replayed
songs rehearsed a hundred a times.
There But For Fortune, Song For A Winter's Night, Need You Most of
All, Baby Now That I've Found You, and a couple of originals,
Most of All, and Tolling Bell.
The thing about an open concept home - it's a pain in the ass
when Charlene's sleeping and I feel inspired to play first thing
in the morning - but when the lights are out , no one else is
home, I can play in the basement family room and hear the echo
from the cathedral ceilings upstairs...there's no changing my
voice but, my God, the guitar sounds sweet.
Ceiladh asleep on the couch beside me and Jazz curled up at
my feet...a packed Massey Hall would not compare favorably...
the dogs have rarely booed me off the stage !
The lights were restored about the same time my left hand
started to go to sleep - which is usually the sign it's time
to put the guitar away - its hard to play in a boxing glove.
So...I had been trying to work this afternoon - then the power
went out so I played...and then the phone rang..Matt and his
brother Tyler were together with family and friends in Fort McMurray.
Lobster was on sale - $ 10.99 per pound. Matt bought 20 or so of them
and wound up having his picture taken by Sobeys representatives - they
told him it ( the picture ) was for the flyer..so if you see a
fellow with a rather large bag of lobster in your next Sobeys flyer -
it might be Matt. I told Tyler that he should have informed Sobeys
that the two of them make a far more impressive snapshot but unfortunately
my fatherly-agently advice was too much after - the - fact...and
apparently it was too frigging cold in Fort Mac to go back.
We did share a tequila shot over the phone tonight but I wish we had been
there. We're going to have to wait until the New Year by which time
Charlene and I should officially be grandparents...the update in
status call could come at anytime.
I wish that family was closer, that times were easier, that our
( friggin ) generator worked properly , NS Power was dependable
enough that we didn't need a generator, that I could still play
guitar for more than 20 minutes before my left hand went to sleep,
that there were no Canadian service people overseas, that the
much needed , massive overhaul of our culture was over,and that I
always took the time to say something nice to all the wonderful
people with whom I am in contact daily.
Good Luck Myrna and Bruce....

"May your path be clear, your vision unclouded, your mission
fullfilling and your plate always bountifully full."

From the Song Maritime Son 2003

Be Happy...
Don

Goodbye Alan Shore and Denny Crane

Frankly....I'm disappointed...disappointed that Charlene and
I won't have Boston Legal to enjoy together each week - it's
become quite a ritual - record it Monday night - and watch it
together over a casual meal later in the week. But like all
good things Boston Legal too has come to an end..."leave them
wanting more." If you're gonna go that's the way you want it.
It may be a good thing...Dexter, it would appear is going to
require my full attention til season's end..not all television
is a complete waste of time.
I was very surprised that with all the political turmoil in
Ottawa these days that "Lloyd" found time in the CTV late news
to include Sean Avery and his suspension. I deplored the editorial
decision to include for the umpteenth time Avery's quote three or
four days after the fact...The suspension might have been newsworthy -
repeating Avery's distasteful comment was abusive, unnecessary,
and close enough to Jerry Springer to...well..enough.
So...to Ottawa...Michael Ignatief is the new interim leader of the
Federal Liberals...and the co-alition. Yawn...Proof again that
the Liberal Party deserves to be denied public money to keep
them afloat. Ask yourself why the Liberals need the money ..
Why are they such poor party fund raisers ? The answer is that
for so many years they were lining their pockets with public
money and never needed to go out and get it themselves.
There's a reason the Tories have regained power in Ottawa.
The Liberals in their arrogance lied and cheated to the extent
that even Canadians could no longer turn a blind eye. There
was no way Canadians would vote in the Liberals after Chretien
got the toss...yet their arrogance remains. Ignatief failed in
his initial bid for the Liberal leadership because the feeling
was Canadians didn't trust his American ties. No one would
have supported Bob Rae - but surely the Liberals would have been
smarter to choose an unknown who to at least the charitable could
have been cast some degree of the benefit of doubt.
After Ontario's experience I don't think anyone sees the NDP
as a realistic option and when you throw the NDP, Liberals and
seperatists into the same pot, someone explain to me how this
coalition could be any kind of improvement over the Conservatives.
Harper arrogant ? Ya..I'll accept that...but to date he's the best
we've been offered and if these opportunistic nutbags under the
banner of the Coalition ever get to rule Canadians will rue that day
indeed.
The world just gets crazier and crazier...people losing their homes,
their jobs, institutions generations old crumbling before our
eyes - God Bless the New York Yankees...their latest signee, a
pitcher with a seven year contract worth in excess of 160 million
dollars.
Surely there's something we can do ??? Where are Alan Shore and
Denny Crane when you need them ?
I'm going out on the deck to have a scotch and cigar with Ceiladh the
border collie and Jasmine the Llasa Apso...Charlene won't sit out in
the rain...even a December rain.
Til next time...

Where Were You When Sam Mitchell....

Okay so I admit I watch more than a reasonable amount
of Sports TV...I was watching when the news broke that
Raptors Head Coach Sam Mitchell had been fired.
From a Canadian perspective Sam Mitchell getting canned
and being replaced at least on an interim basis by
Canadian Jay Troino is a significant story...Sadly, it
was "top of the news" for a very short couple of hours.
The story that had been the headliner before Sam's dismissal
was "Sean Avery and Sloppy Seconds."
Sean Avery eclipsed Carolina coach Peter Laviolette's
firing in the realm of NHL importance despite the fact that
Laviolette was relaced by the man he replaced - Paul Maurice.
On any other day - there's a story with some ironic legs.
But the emphasis all day - in fact since Tuesday night -
was renegade mouthpiece, problem child, and four million
dollar a year headache - Sean Avery.
Sean Avery orchestrated a national TV forum where in a
carefully rehearsed soundbite he referred to two of his
Calgary opponents' girlfriends as his " sloppy seconds."
At best - his comments can be viewed as an effort to
incite and distract his opponents. I think it was more
an effort to inflame the media - a self serving and well
thought out way to get his own image on TV reinforcing
his image as the NHL's badman...
Give him credit..he knows our media all too well. He knew
there was no way the media could resist. His words are
the poison koolaid todays "journalists" die for.
There in lies the problem.
To what depths are we willing to stoop in search of
headlines ?
Calgary coach Sutter said it best. Modano and Turco were
ignored...two of the NHL's credible stars never got
interviewed - until they were asked to comment on Avery.
It's sad really...ignore Avery and his "National Enquirer"
off-ice quotes - and Avery would have to rely on his
performance in-game to be noticed.
The whole issue is not Avery and his conduct, but the conduct
of our media. Avery is nothing if not predictable.
He should be the last player interviewed before or after
each game...and if he doesn't have something worthwhile to
say - he should be ignored.
"Sloppy Seconds" is a headline created not by Avery but by
the media - and if this particular incident leaves the same
bad taste in your mouth as did Steve Murphy's "interview"
during the federal election campaign with Liberal Stephane
Dion - don't be shocked. When CTV aired the Dion "outtakes"
during a Halifax interview, in my mind, the network was not
doing a service to the Canadian public any more than it
was doing a service to Dion. It was a self serving action
aimed only at it's headline, ratings - building potential.
It is my feeling that in both the Avery and Dion cases,
we have witnessed the media at it's lowest level.
The media's job is to cover the news - not create it !
Now to the really important part of this particular column.
I had the pleasure of embarking on my Broadcasting career
in Kingston Ontario...One of my fondest memories is of the
smoked meat sandwiches at the Miss Kingston Delicatessen..
From Kingston, I moved to Kitchener Ontario where I grew
particularly fond of the smoked meat sandwiches at the
Three Minute Deli...smoked meat piled high on fresh rye bread
with a particularly garliccy dill...oh God, I'm becoming
Montreal aroused....well...on the off-chance that you are of
the belief that advertising doesn't work I want you know how
wrong you are...Subway has been promoting it's own version of
Montreal smoked meat...I can't get them out of my head.
Sadly, I am on a diet, trying to provide my knees and ankles
with much needed releif, so I have so far managed to avoid
breaking down and visiting my nearest sandwich artist...
Give me strength....
That's it...
"I have nothing to say and I'm only going to say it once."
Harry Neale
Bless...
Don