Sharon's Blurb

  As a person who loves all animals, I was mortified to read that a Rottweiler had recently died at the hands of animal control.   It had apparently gotten loose, and while being apprehended by animal control things went terribly wrong. The photo of the poor dead dog surrounded by a pool of its own blood on the pavement is forever now etched in my mind's eye. And while I am personally not a fan of and in fact I am actually afraid of Rottweilers, it was a fate that was not fair to that dog. An investigation is now underway. But I am reminded of an experience I once had with a Rottweiler that escaped several years ago. I watched as it crossed the road in front of our house. And I can still remember the cold fear that shot through my body. The neighbours across the road had let their dog escape again. I can't say I had ever seen them walk it. So perhaps it took it upon itself to go for a walk, to do its business. Luckily I was in my car. And when I ...

  There is a very large Red Bud tree in the centre of our front lawn. For a week or so in May, it blossoms tiny little pink flowers. It has become something of a landmark on our street; people stop and stare, smell the flowers to see if there is a scent, and sometimes even take a photo or two. Passerby often comment on it; it has become the pride of the neighbourhood. It was there when we moved into this house ten years ago, and continues to spread and grow. It has reached out over the driveway now, shading my car, and also most of the lawn too, giving shade to the grass. Last year, an ice storm damaged one of its larger limbs, cracking it away from the trunk. We called a tree company which suggested securing it back to the tree with three bolts. Instead, we cut off the limb close to the main trunk. A large circle remains where the limb was amputated. I am not sure what the future holds for that tree; some young sucker/saplings have started sprouting around th...

  When I was taking the Journalism course at Humber College back in the late 1980's, the weekly Current Events quiz in one of my classes was the bane of my existence. I dreaded it. Unlike one fellow classmate who aced it every week, I was lucky if I got 5 out of 10. Despite being in Journalism, I just didn't keep up with the news. I didn't have the time, I told myself. Or even the desire, if I'm being honest. Even throughout my long and storied Journalism career in Broadcasting, which I enjoyed for more than two decades, I often didn't have a "world view" of the goings on and current events. My dad would often ask me if I had heard about this story or that story in the news; I was embarrassed to say that I had mostly not. He was stymied that even though I worked in the industry, I knew little about world events and goings on in the bigger sphere of things. Again, I just didn't have the time. Didn't have the time to get through...