Columns

When I walked into the new dairy barn at Gordon's Roxburgh Farms near Thedford the first thing I detected was the sweet smell of corn silage.
Growing up a dairy farm it's one of the smells you never forget. It's rivalled by fresh hay...

I'm going to show my old geezerdom again when I recall how much I enjoyed reading a column in Huron County Focus, a free newspaper distributed in Huron, about the glory days of Circle 8 Ranch on CKNX TV...

There are certain words and phrases that just bring out an almost visceral reaction: root canal, filing income tax and cyber security. While we may realize these things are necessary, and avoidance can lead to bad outcomes,...

The onset of winter came late this season in Southwestern Ontario, well into January. I remember the day, observing from the back porch that overlooks our garden the first few flakes of the first substantial snowfall in the air, glimpses ...

"I forgot to pick up the mail yesterday so I stopped before I came in for coffee this morning," George Mackenzie said as he sat down at the table at Mabel's Grill.
"Anything interesting?" asked Dave Winston idly as he opened his menu.
"Six letters...

There's a meme that's algorithmically bouncing about my Facebook news feed these days: "We have to talk about Gaza."
I'm not a fan of "have tos," "musts," and "shoulds." But I'll gladly make an exception when ....

It was a Dutch voice I heard yelling "are we still the boss on our own farms" after Steve Runnalls presented highlights from the new Dairy Code of Practice at Grey Bruce Farmers Week.

I talked to my neighbour this morning as we were both dropping off our Blue Boxes for pickup and he was preparing to go on to the barn to feed his cattle. I must admit it was the first time in a couple of months that we'd chatted.

For me, 2023 will go down as the year we lost my Uncle Charlie, about six weeks shy of his 100th birthday. He was doing his daily walking exercises in his residence when he fell, fracturing bones in his spine and hip.

A few years back, a mom and her three children moved into the house next door. The youngest, a little girl who in a few months would be attending pre-kindergarten classes, embraced the idea of having become our neighbour from the start.

Over the last few years, my February columns have been the hardest to write, both because I've written about mental health and because I'm writing from the middle of my own winter slump. But let's just continue the tradition, shall we?

"In case anybody's interested," Molly Whiteside told the guys at Mabel's Grill as she delivered the menus to their table the other morning, "Mabel's made up some cupcakes decorated for Valentine's Day for customers to take home."

In the cold winter season, we look forward to comfort food to sustain and fulfill us. For some of us, vegetables are hard to include in our comfort foods, but quite often, we do need ...

Recently, I attended a workshop that was offered by the Bruce Grey Woodlands Association. The instructor was actually one of the two people that signed off on my Cutter Certification in 1992. This training session reminded me ...

I've been making News Years' Resolutions my whole life. They've moved from a determined stance to stop biting nails and get up everyday at 6:30 to more esoteric announcements...

As I travel in Huron County I'm amazed at how many of the old farm houses have been demolished and replaced by modern structures. Sometimes, knowing the house was small or simply built, I'm not surprised. At other times, knowing ...

December usually finds me reflecting on the year that was. What worked, what didn't work, what remains a mystery, what should have had more focus, and what really doesn't matter ...

When crumbs of soil from prime farmland sift through fingers of my right hand, I conclude that it should be used to grow food crops for human consumption, while maintaining or improving ...

Fruitcake is one of those things where you either love it or hate it. If you are not a fan of dried fruits, there is not much to enjoy. You may claim I am "nuttier than a fruitcake" when I tell you this, but I love the stuff...

You sit down for a minute with acoffee and think, "I'll just watch a few videos" and next thing you know, the coffee is cold and you've wasted an hour. It's not just teenagers who can't resist the lure and addictive qualities of reels.

All around the world, in December each year, there's a good-hearted example of fraud as we raise the fiction of Santa Claus again for the benefit of our own children and the children of our community.

"Heavens, it's only December and I'm sick of winter already -- and it's not even officially winter yet!" Molly Whiteside complained as she delivered menus to the fellows' table the half-light of one morning at Mabel's Grill.