I stumbled across this record of a brief encounter memorialized on a stone tablet at a brick beach. I’m amazed I even chanced upon it, lying there, partially hidden amongst all the bricks, cinderblock and other demolition site junk that created this beach on the Leslie Street Spit, in Toronto’s East End. That someone had…
Read More It Was a Dark and Stormy NiteThe first thing I noticed as I opened the door to the outside was an overwhelming fragrance. Flower beds filled with honeysuckle, iris, and aubrietia lined both sides of the path leading to the rooftop garden. Their heady perfume, floating on the warm summer air, mingled with the baser smell of damp soil to create…
Read More Up on the roofI had an appointment with my dentist yesterday. I’ve been going to this dentist for 6 or 7 years now, and I’ve never had any complaints about him. Other than the fact that he has fingers like hot dogs, and can be a bit rough when he’s rooting around in there, he’s nevertheless a pleasant…
Read More That left a bad taste in my mouthI found this song in the voice memo app on my phone yesterday. It’s a traditional French Christmas carol called “Trois anges sont venus ce soir” (Three angels came this evening), sung by El Franco. I have no idea when he recorded it, nor does he. It must’ve been when we’d had “one too many”…
Read More Trois anges sont venus ce soirAt night I travel alone on the Silk Road of your body.The scent of burnt musk fills my senses; my breath, a breeze,Blowing through the dark.I trace my finger over your shoulder, finding my way in a familiar place.What I carry is without substance, worth its weight in gold.My destination is to dream.
Read More SilkEaster Sunday was a good day for us when we were kids, second only to Christmas Day. We couldn’t wait to get home after Mass to unwrap our chocolate eggs! We’d remain in our Sunday best most of the day, as family and friends filed through my parents’ house for tea and biscuits. The religious…
Read More Losing my religionI went to Sadie’s Diner for breakfast this morning. It’s not a bad place to go if you’re vegetarian or vegan and in the mood for some greasy-spoon style food. That’s their specialty there, catering to the veggies and vegans. The place has a classic diner feel to it. The cooks serve up a variety of acceptable…
Read More A café kind of dayThe Internet has increased exponentially in size and complexity over the last 10 years, and back in 1999 it was already providing online users with an embarrassment of riches in terms of information exchange, nascent technologies and ever-evolving formats for websites, and the potential to influence lives via communications with people halfway around the globe,…
Read More One click in ’99I once hid in a bush. Hiding in a bush can be an uncomfortable experience; they’re made of stiff twigs and all kinds of wooden bits and pieces; they’re full of insects that crawl down your neck and bite exposed skin with tiny, sharp mandibles. Bushes are packed with spiders’ webs; cluttered with the dried…
Read More Bushwhacked