Posted on July 25, 2013 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet

People who are not of Scottish ancestry may not understand the inside joke so let me give you a quick primer. On Feb.13th. 1692, ( a Happy Early  Valentines Day to you too! ) a group of Campbell men killed a number of MacDonalds in Glencoe, Scotland. The MacDonalds had offered food and lodging to the Campbells. Years ago, I went to Glencoe, stood at the base of the cairn memorializing the event and sang the  “Massacre of Glencoe”.

As part of my research for the upcoming story about the 1000 apron display at Bethany, I wandered over to the Art Gallery at St.F.X. and spent a pleasant hour with Bruce Campbell, the Director of the gallery. We sat at the milling frolic table as I anxiously looked over my shoulder at the display of weapons and swords. Luckily, the campus security office is not far away!

Since I last wrote about this, I have discovered that the idea for the apron exhibit came from Margaret Nicholson who is an instructor at the Fine Arts Department. I hope to speak with her before writing my story. If you live anywhere near Antigonish, please try and get out to the ribbon cutting ceremony which will be held on Thursday, August 1st. at 6:00 p.m. at the exhibit site at the rear of Bethany.

We will be heading to Alberta next week for a reunion of students that I taught some 35 years ago. I expect that I will come back with lots of material for stories. I am hoping that travel snags and lost luggage will not be amongst them.

On Saturday, I will be posting a story about packaging. Is it just me or are manufacturers conspiring to make it almost impossible to get into some of those hard plastic packages that hold products? It’s a good thing that all our food isn’t packaged in this way or else I would starve. Honestly, tell me that you haven’t fought with a package and hurled some expletives. I know you have. Don’t lie.

Besides Facebook and Twitter, I am now on LinkedIn. I just might be the “missing link” on this platform.

See you on the weekend.

Posted on July 23, 2013 under Storytelling with 3 comments

It’s hard to bottle joy but when it is all around you, you can certainly feel it.  Despite an iffy weather forecast earlier in the week, Mother Nature pitched a perfect game for the 150^th running of The Antigonish Highland Games.  Participants and spectators enjoyed breathtakingly good weather.  They came from far and wide. They piped, they drummed, they danced, they ran, they tossed cabers and even tossed a few beers.  Maybe more than a few.  It was reported that the Saturday night beer tent had ticket presales of almost two thousand.

Staging an event like this is a huge logistical challenge.  Coordinating all the events and raising the required capital is one thing, but pulling them off with precision requires great determination and the cooperation of the weather.  This dawned on me as I stood in line for tickets to watch the heavy events and the tug o’ war.  Rain… no lineup.  A warm breeze and brilliant sunny skies; wait patiently for your turn to get a ticket.

But none of this would happen without the extraordinary efforts of hundreds of volunteers and this is the case at every festival in small and large communities across North America.  Like clockwork, you see the same faces year after year taking up their positions.  I perform one minor task as marshal of the 5 mile road race – some call me the pace bunny.  Most volunteers dedicate the entire weekend to the cause, and much time beforehand during the planning.  Unless I see Nick at the south end of the track prior to the race or Gail toting her camera, I know for certain that the race can’t be held.  The heavy events would seem lacking if Bunny, George and James weren’t there assisting the athletes.  I was a bit perturbed that they wouldn’t let me compete in the Farmer’s Walk.  One gentleman of great stature came out of the crowd unexpectedly and carried those two, 202 pound missiles down the track like he had been doing this all his life.

I could go on and on but you get the picture.

I’m sitting in the grandstands taking it all in.  I can see the fleet footed Highland dancers working their magic on the main stage.  Off in the distance the pipe bands are competing for the spoils of victory.  Great giants of men from all over the world are going toe to toe to in the Scottish Heavy Events.  And how about the tug o’ war being played out just a few feet away?  Is there anything more captivating than watching young, strong men and women straining every sinew, trying to drag their opponents across the line?  And off in the distance, young children play in the water park, oblivious to what is going on only a few feet away.  Ah, but their day will come.

And then there were the bike race, the golf tournament, the return of the track and field events, and concerts, ceilidhs and community dinners too numerous to list.  Did you experience the street fair, the grand parade and all the displays of art and culture?  There were cairns and clans, galleries and Gaelic, Masses and massed pipe bands, and the theatrical masterpiece “The Ships of 1801”.  And so much more.

Not only do the games preserve our heritage and culture, they are good for the economy and the soul.  A hundred thousand welcomes to all who come to share in our celebration.  And a toast to our ancestors and the people who keep their spirit alive.

Posted on July 23, 2013 under Storytelling with 3 comments

I took this picture on the weekend at Bethany. It is a beaver pond located on a walking trail. And it’s only 5 minutes from downtown.