Monthly Archives: November 2019
The Other Side
Remembrance Day is tomorrow – in Canada anyway. When we moved to Germany I was surprised to discover that Germans don’t remember their war dead on November 11. Germans will take time to remember next Sunday. Growing up as a Canadian I never thought much about the casualties on the other side. Which made […]
An Act of Remembrance
As much of the world celebrates Remembrance Day on Monday, I am re-posting some of my earlier thoughts on the subject. Today’s post comes from 2016. I only know her name, nothing else about her. And where she lived in 1916, a place that I had never heard of before, Manor, Saskatchewan. By 1921 she […]
Tonight At Menin Gate
It is Flashback Friday, with a post from five years ago. Today seemed like a good time to provide a reminder of the Great War. Tonight at 8, for the 29,758th time (31,583rd time in 2019), the Last Post, the traditional salute to fallen warriors, will be played at the Menin gate in Ypres. It’s […]
First Snow
Woke up to this scene Wednesday morning. A smattering of snow had fallen overnight. I knew it was a possibility at this time of year, but must admit I hadn’t been checking the forecast, so it took me a little by surprise. I expected it all to melt during the day, but some of it […]
Postures In Protest
I saw this poster in Vienna and was struck by the words, 72 adverbs that describe how individuals stage public protests. It isn’t an exhaustive list. The first thing I noticed was that “violently” wasn’t there, yet that seems increasingly to be a factor in protests around the globe. In many cases there is no […]
The Whipping Post
They stopped whipping women in 1791 – but continued to flog the men until 1837. Today that might be considered sexist. Of course today we don’t see flogging as a civilized method for punishing criminals. Things were different in 1572 when this post was first used at St. Martin-in-the-fields in downtown London. The post was […]
An Eye Over London
On my first visit to Paris, more than 30 years ago, I didn’t go up the Eiffel Tower. I thought it was too expensive. I haven’t gone up on subsequent visits either, as they have been of the changing planes/trains variety, so I haven’t been back. Part of me regrets not having spent the money […]
Decision Chamber
Made a quick visit to downtown Ottawa last week, as I realized I had yet to see the new chamber for Canada’s House of Commons, which relocated to West Block earlier this year. Centre Block is undergoing a ten-year renovation/restoration, and a new place had to be found for the House to meet. So they […]
It Was Cold Out There
It suddenly occurred to me as I sat there: I haven’t been this cold in years! Southern Germany has mild winters. The beginning of November is still practically summer. In Sulzburg today it is 16 Celsius. In Ottawa it is 1. Which is why today’s post is later than usual – I needed time to […]
Signs of Winter
Do you know what you are seeing in the picture? Most likely not, unless you are Canadian. It is a national tradition, a fall rite of passage. A sure sign of changing seasons. In my neighbourhood and across the country, as October blends into November, the boards are dropped off in the parks and […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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