Posted on July 15, 2013 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

What a weekend! The weather in this part of the world was fabulous and there were huge throngs of people here for the Highland Games. The final tally isn’t in but everyone seems to think that attendance records will be broken. In honor of the Games, and in particular, the role of the volunteers, I wrote a story called ” A Highland Fling” which I will be posting in the near future.

The beautiful weather gave me the opportunity to get out and shoot a few video clips which I have added to my website. Check them out. They will form the basis of some new stories I’m working on.

I also wrote a story that I think you will enjoy about mistaken identity. This one is as close to being 100% true as it gets. Usually I take a few liberties but this time I simply wrote the story as I heard it told. It is called “The Good Samaritan”.

I have a big favor to ask. As you know, I have been posting my stories on my personal Facebook page until just recently. I am trying to get as many people as possible to join my Week45 page so please ask your friends to take a look.

I hope you all have a great week.

Posted on July 13, 2013 under Storytelling with one comment

Summer is a time of festivals.  It matters not where you travel across this great land, you will find people gathering to celebrate something.  If you love jazz music, folk music, rock, bluegrass or country, you can probably sniff out a great venue and experience world class entertainment.  The same goes for arts and culture.  And there are countless festivals that celebrate food and drink, and gatherings that celebrate our heritage.

In my home town, people of Scottish descent are celebrating the 150^th anniversary of the Highland Games.   It is a week filled with tons of activities.  The skirl of the bagpipes fills the air on a daily basis and sometimes well into the evening.  Occasionally, an overzealous piper will play right in your neighborhood well after the sun has set.  This brings out howls of protest from people and dogs.

The week is replete with competitions in Highland dancing, piping and drumming, the world famous Scottish heavy events and a good old fashioned tug of war contest.

Today was the annual street fair where local merchants hawk their wares on the sidewalk outside their establishments.  There were also lots of artisans, food vendors, face-painters and, you guessed it, more pipers, all vying for a piece of your attention… and wallet.

It was a magnificent day weather-wise and the streets were teeming with people of all ages.  As I was walking back to work after lunch, I noticed an unusually large crowd gathered on a property sandwiched between the Legion and Town Hall.  I wondered what it was that could draw such huge numbers.  I knew that it couldn’t be strippers, seeing this was an all-ages crowd.  Had “Dora the Explorer” made a surprise visit to Antigonish?  Was it possible that the Legion had opened its doors and was wading through the crowd offering free booze?  Maybe the mob had grabbed the mayor and councillors and put them in stocks?

Even my failing eyesight could not miss the large sign displayed at the perimeter of the crowd: “Dog Fashion Show Today at 1 PM”.

So this qualifies as Scottish heritage.  I must have missed this when I took Celtic Studies as a freshman 40 years ago.  Due to the enormous crowd I couldn’t get anywhere near the action and just had to experience the event vicariously.  A little while later, I took a short cut behind Town Hall to get my car.  I inadvertently stepped into the staging area for the dogs.  It was almost exciting as having a back stage pass to see U2.  I watched as their handlers efficiently primped and changed outfits on the doggie divas in this canine cabal.

I realize that people are passionate about their pets, especially dogs, but this experience left me dumfounded.  As I was leaving, I bumped into a local physician (not a vet).  When I expressed my amazement at the spectacle, he informed me that dog mania is rampant.  He recounted an episode at Central Park in New York.  He was chatting with a woman walking her three dogs.  Apparently, the dogs had become a bit of a sore point between her and her husband.  In a fit of frustration, he had offered her an ultimatum: either the dogs were going or he was.  Without pausing for air she indicated that she and the dogs do miss him from time to time.

I walked away with my tail between my legs.

Posted on July 12, 2013 under Storytelling with no comments yet

I have never been to a fashion show and I have certainly never been to a doggie fashion show…until earlier this week. Actually, I didn’t get to see the show as the crowd was so large that I would have had to elbow little babies and senior citizens to get a vantage point. Tomorrow, I will be posting a story called ” Barking Up The Wrong Tree”.

Some of you may have already noticed but I have a new Week45 Facebook page up and running thanks to the patience of my son, Peter and my daughter, Margaret. I am slowly getting up to speed on social media. I do believe that you can teach an old dog new tricks.

See you early tomorrow morning. I have come to realize that there are a lot of other early birds!