Welcome to Hell… September 11, 2001 At 9:30 am on Tuesday, September 11, 2001, the telephone rang in the office that I shared with my friend, the French teacher René Moisan. At the other end of the line was his daughter, Geneviève. “Have you seen the news?” she asked, with a peculiar catch in her..
Spring 1969, London, Ontario. Grade 12, Oakridge High School A friend named Chris Turnbull had somehow inherited a car. Probably his parents handed over this dilapidated vehicle when he turned 18. His decrepit Dodge was something of a jalopy. But it was equipped with an 8-track cartridge player: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8-track_cartridge You inserted a clunky music cartridge..
My American Cousins, July 4, 1963, St. Albans Street on the corner of Church Street, Enosburg Falls, Vermont For Tammy MacBryde Farr Folding chairs and outdoor dining tables festooned with colorful paper table cloths were positioned at regular intervals across the vast corner yard of our cousin Robina MacBryde Randall’s Vermont home, like a series..
The Trial of Duddy Kravitz This is Academy Award week and one the films in line for best picture is a brilliant courtroom drama titled Anatomy of a Fall ((Anatomie d’une chute). My family has always loved courtroom dramas. So I created trials with and for my students. Here is a piece about Duddy..
Recyclage du livre My Time with You Has Been Short but Very Funny en français! Lancement du livre Book launch Aujourd’hui, je suis ravi d’annoncer le lancement de la version française de mon livre. Today I’m thrilled to announce the launching of the French version of my book. Recyclage du livre My Time with You..
The marathon is almost over: I’m staggering to the finish line November 1966 Grade 10 Oakridge Secondary School London Ontario The boys’ phys ed teacher, Madman McCarthy, sent us off to run cross country, Through the desiccated bogs and wasteland surrounding our school. We wore little white shorts and tee shirts,..
The French version of this excerpt from my book titled My Time with You Has Been Short but Very Funny follows the English. The French version of the book will be published in a very few weeks. Stay tuned! La version française de cet extrait de mon livre Le temps passé avec vous fut bref..
David Sedaris and little old me Most of us have been told at one time or another that we look just like “X” (i.e. my favorite cousin’s best friend’s elder brother/sister/wife/uncle). Well, what happens when someone tells us that we write a whole lot like “X”? Since my book My Time with You Has Been..
Skinned alive… surviving by the skin of my teeth For a great many years, I contemplated suicide on a near daily basis. That I didn’t actually follow through on these ideations had much less to do with principles or consideration for others than with an abiding terror of disappearing forever into the yawning abyss of..