Author Archives: Lorne Anderson
Westminster Hall
There are few things in life that frustrate me more than not being able to take pictures when I visit an historic site. It just doesn’t seem right. In early 2017 I had the opportunity to tour Westminster, the mother of all parliaments. At the time I was still working on Parliament Hill in Ottawa […]
Say It Ain’t So
Many years ago I worked for Canada’s famed national police force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, colloquially known as the “Mounties.” I was a civilian employee, not a police officer and had the opportunity to view many officers first-hand in my work both in the national and eastern Ontario headquarters. As with any organization, the […]
Christmas Feast
I took a step of faith and invited people for Christmas dinner. By Christmas Eve, with meal preparations well underway, I was doubting the wisdom of that. I’ve hosted a Christmas feast many years, but lat year we went to a friend’s place for Christmas dinner. While we have had many people over for a […]
Happy New Year!
No, I didn’t get it wrong. I know what day it is. Today is Christmas Day. Think about it though. Maybe December 25 should be the first day of the year. Certainly the birth of Christ was momentous enough, even if not recognized as such at the time. Most of the world divides their calendar […]
Christmas Eve 2018
The world pauses tonight, at least in theory. With bated breath we await the announcement of a miraculous birth, the Christ-child, the Prince of Peace. Every year we remember the world-shaking event. Occasionally I have detailed my struggles in learning German, but when I saw this picture I realized I had learned something. I understood […]
Advent Reflections
This post was first published December 19, 2015. I thought you might like to see it again. He looked round again and could hardly believe his eyes. There was the blue sky overhead, and grassy country spreading as far as he could see in every direction, and his new friends all round him, laughing. “It […]
Christmas Dinner
The sign said they were Weihnachtsganse or Christmas geese. This flock of white birds was in a field just below the castle in Emmendingen when we visited a month ago. I thought perhaps they are named Christmas geese because they are snow white. I suspect though that they are so called because that is when […]
Tannenbaum
It is our second Christmas in Germany, and I can’t decide if I prefer the simple white lights used as Christmas decorations here, or the multi-colored ones of North America. I think the white ones are a remnant from the days of wax candles – you didn’t have the options electricity gives. The displays here […]
Another Rink
Yesterday’s post reminded me that I took some pictures of the skating rink at the Christmas Market in front of the Rathaus in Vienna. That rink impressed me with a far more creative approach than most of the other outdoor rinks I have seen in Europe. Instead of a rectangular slab of ice which could […]
The Rink
After a year I have figured it out. The big fuss about skating rinks that is. Last year I saw them in Mullheim and Lippstadt. Outdoor rinks installed around the end of November in public spaces and gone at New Year’s. Skates were available to rent and a good time was had by all. This […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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