House for sale
We’ve listed our house and there’s now a sign on the lawn and everything. There’s an open house this Sunday and we’ve got a bunch of showings scheduled tomorrow.
Utah Phillips has died
Thanks Bob Bossin for writing an obituary of Bruce “Utah” Phillips on rabble.ca. This is crushing, for me. Utah Phillips is the last link I know of to the era of radical unions, political tramps, guitar playing agitators and big ideas.
Involved
I was in Toronto yesterday to be with my dad as he got news of two scans done to see how far along his prostate cancer is. It could have been worse, but not by much. Both CAT and bone scans showed that the cancer has spread to dad’s bones. “The bones are involved,†in oncology-speak.
Lucky streak
Well, it had to end. I’m not sure when it did, but I’m pretty sure it was just before I got in the car to head to Pearson.
Clear margins, foggy day
The pathology report on my dad’s colonoscopy came back with clean margins, which means his surgeon is recommending only more frequent ‘scoping’. Meaning: no surgery, no chemo.
Anna Jansen MacDonald has died
Only in December I was writing about how my niece Anna had just put her leukemia back into remission, again, with the help of 1,000 paper cranes from her classmates at Churchill Alternative School.
How quickly life unravels
This is a really bad sign. The day I wake up to discover a fever-addled, miserable Mallory is also the day I learn Fidel Castro is stepping down, is also the day I learn that my dad has colon cancer.
All my thoughts with the Tomkins-Flanagan family in Winnipeg today
I was going to write something vitriolic about the jackass who slashed the tire on my car last night but I read on FaceBook today that my long time friend Donne Flanagan has had a heart attack.
I don’t think I will ever fly again
At least not to Toronto, Montr�al, Qu�bec or anywhere that�s within a day�s train travel.
Seven random things about me
Apparently now I hate Laurie Kingston who tagged me with this seven things meme. I don’t, actually, but do feel this post is a bit more revealing than I’m used to. Ah well.
Nikon Canada gives good service
Some time in late July the zoom ring on my camera’s lense jammed. I was really bummed. In this the age of disposable gadgetry I assumed this three year old gadget was out of warranty.
“Oh, no,” said the clerk at store #1, “Nikon’s like five years. They’re really good.”
Urban tree removal: be the talk of the neighbourhood
Up until about 9am this morning we had this big, dead elm tree straddling our property line. Now it’s gone. And so, too, soon (or is that “And so too, soon”) will be our fame.
Dave Kappele, activist, absent friend
Dave Kappele, a man I worked with about fifteen years ago at the Ontario Federation of Students has died suddenly at 45.
Soundtrack of my life (tag)
Maurizio tagged me with one of those silly tag things. The trick is to use your iPod to generate a random list of songs which you apply to some particular stages of Your life – the movie. I don’t actually own an iPod, but I’m enough of a geek that that didn’t present a problem.
Bad news about a good friend
My friend Laurie Kingston, I discover, has got more trouble with cancer. This time in her liver.
