History – Page 18 – Chronicles of Canada Slim

Canada Slim and a Matter of Perspective

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 30 December 2016 There are many things that are unpleasant about getting older: diminishing senses, unflattering changes to one´s body, memory lapses, acquisition of a world-weariness… But for myself, especially in 2016, it has been the loss of one’s heroes. Yet another musical legend passed away over Christmas: George Michael, age 53. Famous for… Continue reading Canada Slim and a Matter of Perspective

Canada Slim and the Days Confused

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 19 December 2016 Time changes a place. A place changes a person. I think back to the little town of Lachute, Quebec, Canada, where I went to high school. Many of the people I remember and much of what I knew is gone. “Progress” has arrived in the form of shopping malls and… Continue reading Canada Slim and the Days Confused

Canada Slim and the Teacher’s Travels

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 14 December 2016 They are beloved by everyone from misunderstood teens and fools for love to the serious-minded middle-aged and those of a critical bent. Now the Bronte sisters are taking centre stage again as the bicentary of Charlotte´s birth (born 21 April 1814) brings a host of events at their Yorkshire home… Continue reading Canada Slim and the Teacher’s Travels

Wooden soldiers and little books

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 8 December 2016 Oh, what a lucky man I am! As much as I complain at times about teaching there are also great moments that I also must share… As regular readers of the gobbledygook I produce know, I have… along with Cambridge Certificate courses, business and technical English courses… conversation courses. In… Continue reading Wooden soldiers and little books

Water Wars

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 6 December 2016 Why does the United States invade a country? Historically, wars are fought over scarce resources, with religion or politics as convenient excuses or triggers for the commencement of hostilities. So what does Canada possess in greater abundance than the United States? (Besides being the 2nd biggest country in the world… Continue reading Water Wars

Strange bedfellows?

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 5 December 2016 The older one gets the more one realises that perception is everything. And in every country´s elections it is perception that determines the rise and fall of a nation´s ruling elite. Perception in American elections seems usually shaped by factors such as military records, marital status, religious adherance, place of origin,… Continue reading Strange bedfellows?

Oil and Blood in the Heartland 2: Home and Native Land

Brantford, Ontario, Canada, Summer 1992 I embarrassed myself. West of Hamilton and surrounded for the most part by farmland, Brantford is known for several things: It lays claim to the invention of the telephone, the birthplace of “The Great One” hockey player Wayne Gretzky, entertainer Phil Hartman, Group of Seven painter Lawren Harris, and a… Continue reading Oil and Blood in the Heartland 2: Home and Native Land

Oil and Blood in the Heartland 1: Hope and Despair

Landschlacht, Switzerland, 8 November 2016 King Solomon of Israel (970 – 932 BC) once wrote about life on Earth in his day: “A generation goes and a generation comes… All things are full of weariness. A man cannot utter it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will… Continue reading Oil and Blood in the Heartland 1: Hope and Despair

Walks of Life: The Apple and the Grape

Landschlacht, Canton Thurgau, Switzerland, 6 November 2016 It is true. I often feel quite critical of this country in which I have resided in these past six years. I criticize its government and its xenophobic policies. I criticize its people and their parochial ways. I criticize its economy with its soulless greed. But what I cannot find… Continue reading Walks of Life: The Apple and the Grape