Posted on August 24, 2015 under Monday Morning Musings with one comment

I wouldn’t skip a family reunion for anything

( Peter MacDonald photo )

 

 

Wow! My head is spinning. What a whirlwind four days. The range of emotions is really hard to articulate.

It all started last Thursday when a dear friend of the family passed away. The scourge of cancer claimed another person. Dave Dixon was a quality guy and we are all going to miss him. I’m doubly sad because he suggested a subject for one of my “living tributes” as I like to call them. He mentioned an older gentleman from Doctor’s Brook who led a pretty interesting life. I met with this person two days before Dave died. I had hoped to have the story finished in time so that he could hear it. But sadly, it wasn’t to be, although I was able to tell him a few funny stories from the interview. This story will be published in next week’s Casket .

Friday was also the last Art Fair for 2015 and this coincided with the first MacDonald Family Reunion in 15 years. Did I mention that it was an unseasonably warm and humid weekend…just in case you didn’t notice?! The reunion started late in the morning with a walk around The Landing and ended Sunday afternoon with a catered lunch at the John Paul Centre.

I certainly won’t bore you with all the details. This would be as bad as someone coming back from a mid- winter cruise and telling how great it was. There were definitely a few highlights though. On Friday night at the Art Fair, I was joined on stage by almost every relative, for the finale. We sang a handful of songs in four part harmony. And who was smack dab in the middle of this motley crew? My 90 year old mother. Even though she is showing signs of aging, she remembered every word to the songs we sang. I believe that music is one of those things that’s hard wired in our brains.

However, we were definitely upstaged by 19 Coady students who put on an amazing display in their 20 minute set. The crowd, estimated at 1200, clapped , hollered and cheered , as each participant brought greetings to Antigonish in the official language of their country. We are so fortunate to have them in our midst. It was a wonderful evening and I think everyone went away happy.

The rest of the weekend was full on family reunion. You know how these things go. It’s exhausting and exhilarating. The youngest attendee was Leah ( aged 2 ) and the oldest was mom at age 90. Thankfully, the weather forecasters had it all wrong ( a disturbing trend these days ). There wasn’t one outdoor event that was even close to being cancelled. The clan’s patriarch, P.D. died in 1977 so most of the people attending the reunion never got to meet him. The last event on Sunday was dedicated to his memory as most of my siblings told stories about dad so that our children and grandchildren would get a glimpse of who he was and what he stood for. All of my brothers and sisters ( including yours truly ) had a hard time getting through our presentations without some gulping and tears. As I said earlier, these kind of events evoke all kinds of emotions.

A huge thanks to the four cousins that put the whole thing together: Margaret , Laura, Tricia and Betsy.

September is lurking like an unwanted intruder.

Have a great week.

P.S. Yes, I can jump that high… and pigs fly!!!

Posted on August 20, 2015 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet

Yup. This way to the parachuting cows!

 

 

Well, the votes are in ( no, you didn’t miss the Federal Election! ) and the story “And Pigs Fly” has made in into the top all time views of stories that I’ve written over the past 2.5 years. You were fascinated with the notion of parachuting cows. I’m sorry to have left so many of you dazed and confused by not resolving the mystery in the story. But I did leave a clue in the last paragraph: “Students,” muttered Peter. I can’t say this with complete certainty but an inquiry to the Department of Transportation, who puts up these road signs, revealed that they believe it is a case of mischief by some enterprising students. It appears that someone came in the dark of night with a stencil and paint and ,voila!, we had two parachuting cows. But as you can see from the picture above, they weren’t done. If you come off the roundabout at Exit 33 en route to Antigonish, you will see this second parachuting cow sign.

Unless you’re an economics students you may have missed the deeper meaning of Ruth’s comments: “You have two cows.” If you took any economic courses in high school or university you probably encountered a discussion on economic models using two cows. Rather than me try to explain it, check out this link: https://www.facebook.com/TheIDEAlistRevolution/posts/612557992110984

I still think that this would be an excellent tourism ploy to get people to come to Antigonish. I don’t mean actually trying to have airborne cows raining from the skies. Just signage that would make people stop and think that the “locals” have a very good sense of humour.

For someone whose mission in life these days is to entertain, I still have occasion to rant, as many of you know. During the winter, people complained about ice, snow and cold temperatures. The complaints shifted to dandelions ( imagine, the nerve of dandelions growing on your lawn ), black flies and mosquitoes. And now it’s the oppressive heat and fruit flies. The last time I remembered, these things happen every single year. This is not an anomaly, people. I have a friend in the hospital who is gravely ill. I visit him every day. Somehow fruit flies buzzing around the compost for a few weeks is not really that big a deal. Today’s rant is over and was brought to you by RAID.

I have lined up a few interviews with some very interesting people and hope to publish their stories in the not too distant future.

The last Antigonish Art Fair will be held tomorrow. We have our fingers crossed for the weather as we have a fantastic lineup of artists, performers and food vendors. The last act of the night at the gazebo is a surprise.

This has been a fantastic beach week and we have managed to get in a few swims. The water is a perfect temperature and the jellyfish haven’t arrived…yet! But I’m sure once they make their appearance, you will hear a litany of complaints. Oops, the rant wasn’t done, obviously.

The “P.D.”’s are having a big family reunion this weekend. As a person gets a little older, they realize that these are moments to be treasured.

Here’s hoping you have a fantastic weekend.

Posted on August 18, 2015 under Storytelling with one comment

All signs point towards the cow parachuting capital of the world

 

 

The elderly American couple, Ruth and Peter, had just completed a trip around the world-renowned Cabot Trail. Retired history professors, they made many side trips, visiting landmarks such as the Fortress of Louisburg, the Big Fiddle and Rita’s Tea Room. They saw a moose on MacKenzie Mountain and were startled at the enormity of the magnificent animal. They also saw eagles soar on the Mira and enjoyed a whale watching tour in Cheticamp. They thought that they had seen some of the most intriguing sights and wildlife imaginable.

That is, until they took the off ramp at Exit 33 near the town of Antigonish.

It was nearly dusk when they decided to get a room for the night. They were dog tired as the car decelerated on its approach to one of the newly constructed roundabouts. The large tourist sign ahead indicated the usual amenities like hotels, gas and lodging. However, in the far right-hand corner, there was an image that was very much out of the ordinary. Although they both saw it neither mentioned it, chalking it up to a mistaken impression due to twilight and fatigue.

After a better than average sleep, Peter was on the go early. He was intrigued about the whole sign business from the night before. Maybe his eyes had played a trick on him in the waning light. He decided that he must put the matter to rest so he grabbed his car keys and headed for the door for a second look. “Where are you going?” queried his bride of 45 years. “I’m going to go through the drive through and get us a cup of coffee.”   He thought that clarification of the sign might initiate a lively discussion at the breakfast table.

He headed for the highway and in the clear light of day and well rested, to boot; he stopped the car, turned off the motor and stood in front of the sign. There, as clear as could possibly be, was the picture of two cows, suspended from parachutes. He looked at the sign and viewed the landscape around him. He didn’t have the foggiest notion what the sign meant. He drew upon all of his years of academe and drew a total blank. He grabbed his cell phone and snapped a picture.

He quickly returned to the hotel.

“Where’s my coffee, dear?” In his haste to solve the mystery, he had completely forgotten about the “other” reason for his little outing.

“Honey, did you notice the sign that we saw just before we entered the roundabout last night?” Ruth nodded in the affirmative. “And did you find anything peculiar about the sign?” “Yes. I thought I saw a picture of parachuting cows but I didn’t want to say something and have you think that I was losing my marbles!” she replied.

He whipped out his phone and clicked on the “picture” icon and there, as large as life, was the small herd of cattle (2 to be exact), floating gracefully down from the heavens.

A quick “Google search” revealed nothing. In recent years they had become avid users of social media. If you’re going to keep in touch with the grandkids, this is a given. They immediately turned to Facebook, that great amalgam of humanity and wisdom.

And the feedback poured in. Someone opined that the Republicans might be parachuting in a candidate for our upcoming federal election. There was a suggestion (credible) that this type of signage was common in Scotland to warn people about cattle crossing areas. Perhaps the logo indicated that some cows had been abducted by space aliens and managed to escape. Maybe “cow parachuting” was a new sport found only in this neck of New Scotland. Or could Banksy have visited our small town?

The debate raged on for much of the day with no clear resolution.

Just before heading west on their journey home, Ruth and Peter circumnavigated the town just so that they could view the sign one more time. “Students” muttered Peter. “Economics students”. “You have two cows …” replied Ruth.

In some clever marketer’s eyes, cows can fly.

Surely pigs can’t be far behind?