Monthly Archives: August 2018
All Hallow’s Eve
It is August. I am sure of that because I read it on the calendar. Though my first visit of the year to a Canadian grocery store had me wondering. It had been ten months since my last visit, and there had been a few changes at my local store, more that is than just […]
Sad Sunflowers
A week ago today I flew back from Germany to Canada. Except I didn’t. It is a rather lengthy saga of a 42-hour voyage that saw me, after 24 hours of travel, 100 kilometers further from my destination than when I started. The tale bears telling, and will indeed be told here, but before I […]
Sunrise
(Originally posted August 22, 2016) When you vacation in the same place each year some things become ritual. Like sunrises. I try to take a picture of the sun rising over the Atlantic Ocean at least once in my two weeks at Old Orchard Beach, Maine. I’m a natural early riser, which is a good […]
Language Issues
(Originally published August 29, 2015 – and I forgot to ask about the sign the next year.) Canada is a bilingual nation, though in parts of the country that is more theory than fact. When I was younger both England and France were acknowledges as our founding nations, and English and French were our national […]
York – 306 A.D.
Originally posted September 26, 2014. York was not on the original summer itinerary. The plan was to go to England’s Lakes District and do some hiking. But by the time we decided that as our final destination the price of accommodations was sky high, so we looked for cheaper options that would be just as […]
HOW DO YOU SPELL OVERRATED? MANNEKEN PIS!
I don’t know where the time goes. A few weeks ago I ambitiously set out a schedule for posting here. The idea was that I would work through the backlog of posts on my phone, things that were written but just needed a final edit. Finding time to do that was tough. There was a […]
Gotta Dance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKdswW-kCRc There was no polite way to say no, so I went. It was a learning experience. As an introvert I’m not keen on parties. I’m even less keen on parties involving people I don’t know. Which means I wasn’t overly thrilled when my wife relayed a birthday party invitation from one of the refugees […]
Too Much Information (Cultural Differences XIV)
I had to write a job application cover letter in my German class. I could not believe the example we were given. I have the luxury of being the oldest person in my class. While that makes language acquisition difficult, I don’t have the same pressures the other students face. My work is in English, […]
Make That Call!
Stranded, Basel Airport. Lufthansa canceled my flight. Two hours later no idea what is coming next. Lufthansa has no staff on site. I also can’t reach them by phone – their German numbers don’t seem to be accessible here. The one number that did work was an answering machine. Could you do me a favor? […]
Local Entertainment
I figured the timing was perfect. There were people coming over to our place for the evening, so I could drop by Sulzburg’s market square, take some pictures and go home. No need to subject myself to the music. The thought of an accordion band did not appeal to me. It reminded me of the […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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