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What’s
?
Vol 31 • No 04
$4.99
September 2018
HOMESTEAD-A-PALOOZA p.74
Gambo’s 9/11 story Be a Lunchbox Hero Turning Cancer into Comedy
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SHERWOOD PARK, AB Festival Place October 10 - 13
LLOYDMINSTER, AB / SK Vic Juba Community Theatre October 14
FORT MCMURRAY, AB Keyano College Theatre October 18 - 21
PICTOU, NS Decoste Centre of the Arts November 6
SYDNEY, NS Highland Arts Theatre November 7
HALIFAX, NS, Rebecca Cohn Auditorium November 9 - 10
SAINT JOHN, NB Imperial Theatre
SUMMERSIDE, PEI Harbourfront Theatre November 14
RIVERVIEW, NB Riverview Arts Centre November 15
FREDERICTON, NB Frederiction Playhouse November 16
November 13
www.buddywasisname.com/tour-dates
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life is better Published monthly in St. John’s by Downhome Publishing Inc. 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3 Tel: 709-726-5113 • Fax: 709-726-2135 • Toll Free: 1-888-588-6353 E-mail: mail@downhomelife.com Website: www.downhomelife.com Editorial Editor-in-Chief Janice Stuckless Associate Editor Ashley Miller Assistant Editor Elizabeth Whitten Special Publications Editor Tobias Romaniuk Art and Production Art Director Vince Marsh Graphic and Web Designer Cory Way Graphic Designer Jeff Cave Illustrator Mel D’Souza Illustrator Snowden Walters Advertising Sales Senior Account Manager Robert Saunders Account Manager Barbara Young Marketing Director Tiffany Boone Finance and Administration Senior Accountant Karen Critch Junior Accountant Marlena Grant Operations Manager Alicia Brennan Operations Manager, Twillingate Nicole Mehaney
Warehouse Operations Warehouse Operator Josephine Leyte Distribution Sales & Merchandising Joseph Reddy Sr. Customer Service Associate Sharon Muise Inventory Control Clerk Heather Lane Warehouse Associate Anthony Sparrow Retail Operations Retail Floor Manager, Water Street Jackie Rice Retail Floor Manager, Avalon Mall Carol Howell Retail Floor Manager, Twillingate Donna Keefe Retail Sales Associates Crystal Rose, Emma Goodyear, Ciara Hodge, Lauren Courage, Jonathon Organ, Megan Thomey, Nicole French, Elizabeth Gleason, Janet Watkins, Melissa Wheeler, Drew Ennis, Rebecca Ford, Darlene Burton, Natalie Engram
Subscriptions Sr. Administrative Assistant Amanda Ricks Customer Service Associate Michelle O’Toole Founding Editor Ron Young Chief Executive Officer / Publisher Grant Young President Todd Goodyear Chief Financial Officer Tina Bromley
To subscribe, renew or change address use the contact information above. Subscriptions total inc. taxes, postage and handling: for residents in NL $39; AB, BC, MB, NU, NT, QC, SK, YT $40.95; ON $44.07; NB, NS, PE $44.85. US and International mailing price for a 1-year term is $49.00.
Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement #40062919 The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of errors in advertisements beyond the amount paid for the space actually occupied by the portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred, whether such error is due to the negligence of the servants or otherwise, and there shall be no liability beyond the amount of such advertisement. The Letters to the Editor section is open to all letter writers providing the letters are in good taste, not libelous, and can be verified as true, correct and written by the person signing the letter. Pen names and anonymous letters will not be published. The publisher reserves the right to edit, revise, classify, or reject any advertisement or letter. © Downhome Publishing Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without permission of the publisher. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada.
Printed in Canada Official onboard magazine of
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80
west coast reunion
Contents
SEPTEMBER 2018
42 Jump, Don’t Lean Why Girls Who Fish wants to get more women out in boats. Elizabeth Whitten
46 Here & Now After facing the toughest battle of his life, comedian Steve Coombs (with perspective and good humour) is taking his story to the stage. Linda Browne
52 The Golden Boys Reminiscing with Ralph O’Brien as Sons of Erin celebrates 50 years of making music and memories. Dennis Flynn
52
80 Mark Your Calendars Corner Brook is hosting Come Home Year 2019 and everyone’s invited. Jennifer Thornhill Verma
a musical legacy www.downhomelife.com
September 2018
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Contents
SEPTEMBER 2018
homefront 10 I Dare Say A note from the editor 11 Contributors Meet the people behind the magazine
12 Letters from Our Readers Getting mileage from your magazine, flashback to a ’40s wedding, a woman’s search for her grandfather’s accordions and memories of a mechanical bovine
22 Downhome Tours Explore Portugal
12 old hat
with Downhome
24 That’s Amazing Wild news from around the world
26 Life’s Funny Feeling Peckish Cindy Sheppard Gidge 27 Say What A contest that puts words in someone else’s mouth
28 Lil Charmers Mini Magazine Readers
30
dog’s day out
30 Pets of the Month On the Trail 32 Blast from the Past Remember the strap?
33 Poetic Licence The Rugged Newfoundlander Bill Temple 34 Iceberg Photo Context 36 Reviewed Denise Flint interviews Ursula A. Kelly and reviews the book she co-wrote, The Music of Our Burnished Axes. 4
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rhyme of the mariner 1-888-588-6353
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58
the perfect shot
38 What Odds Paul Warford and the cross-gift
40 In Your Words The Plane People in Gambo Charles Beckett
features 58 Portrait of a Photographer Getting to know Dave Howells Tobias Romaniuk
66 Meet the One-Kidney Family How they came to share a surprising bond Ashley Miller
explore 72 What’s on the Go Exciting events
74 life on the homestead
www.downhomelife.com
happening in Atlantic Canada
74 Home Sweet Homestead This month’s “Homestead-a-palooza” offers tips on everything from beekeeping to making sea salt. Dennis Flynn September 2018
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Contents
SEPTEMBER 2018
86 NL explorer
86 Exploring New Territory
reminiscing
Meet Dr. Latonia Hartery, the first NL female fellow of the famed Explorers Club. Elizabeth Whitten
118 Flashback Classic photos of people and places
90 Growing on Tradition Three
119 This Month in History
Mile Ridge farm is taking Jiggs’ dinner to a whole new level – and you’re invited to dig in. Ashley Miller
NL’s first Rhodes Scholar
96 Got Yer Goat! An unplanned adventure on the Burin Peninsula Paula Hurley
food and leisure 100 Everyday Gourmet Be a Lunch Box Hero Andrea Maunder
104 Everyday Recipes 8 delicious apple-inspired treats
112 Stuff About What do a Greek god, the Canadian Armed Forces and the Nesquik Bunny have in common?
114 Down to Earth Plucking, Planting and Picking Ross Traverse 6
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100 lunchtime treat
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120 a hearty send-off
120 Amelia Earhart in Newfoundland A hearty send-off into history from Harbour Grace Heather Stemp
126 Amelia’s Medal The day I held a piece of history in my hand Burton K. Janes About the cover Alexandria Fisher’s parents made sure she learned local traditions from a young age. She is pictured on this month’s cover, showing off her prize catch at age nine. Turn to page 42 to learn about a new program that aims to get more girls and women of all ages out on the water.
Cover Index What’s Homestead-A-Palooza? • 74 Sons of Erin Turns 50 • 52 League of Her Own • 86 Girls Who Fish • 42 Gambo’s 9/11 Story • 40 Be a Lunchbox Hero • 100 Turning Cancer into Comedy • 46 www.downhomelife.com
130 Can You Imagine? Knocking on doors and singing songs in Old St. John’s Andrea McGuire 132 Between the Boulevard and the Bay The Prime Minister from PEI Ron Young
136 Mail Order 142 Real Estate 143 Marketplace 148 Puzzles 160 Photo Finish September 2018
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Find out how one couple traded corporate life for farm life – on p. 74
Discover a delicious way to drink moose milk – on p. 112
Listen to the Downhome Podcast at www.downhomelife.com.
Watch clips from the 1980s “Sons of Erin” television show. www.downhomelife.com/magazine
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Submission Guidelines and Prize Rules Be a Winner!
Every reader whose photo, story, joke or poem appears next to the yellow “from our readers” stamp in a current issue will be awarded 20 Downhome Dollars.*
Submit Today!
Send your photo, story, joke or poem to
Downhome 43 James Lane St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3 or submit online at:
www.downhomelife.com
In January 2019, a panel of Downhome staff will select the top submissions published in 2018, which will be put to a public vote on DownhomeLife.com in early 2019. The submission with the most votes will win an iPad mini and a 3-year subscription to Downhome magazine.
*One prize per submitter per month. To receive their prize, submitters must provide with their submission COMPLETE contact information: full name, mailing address, phone number and email address (if you have one). Mailed submissions will only be returned to those who include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Downhome Inc. reserves the right to publish submissions in future print and/or electronic media campaigns. Downhome Inc. is not responsible for unsolicited material. www.downhomelife.com
September 2018
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i dare say The more something changes, the more it will never be the same.
Ashley Miller photo
As I prepare what to write this month, I am heartsick looking at photos of the new Western Brook Pond “trail.” I saw the photos in the news and on Facebook from concerned residents and visitors just as I was preparing my summer vacation (honeymoon, actually) in Gros Morne National Park. That trek to the fiord, which would have been my fourth, was immediately dropped from the list of activities I was so looking forward to. On the premise of improving accessibility they’ve created…a dirt access road. And now the boat tour of Western Brook Pond, which was always astounding and enjoyable and I’m sure still is, is only about the destination and not the journey. There is a full statement on Parks Canada’s website where they outline the details and timeline of the $3-million infrastructure project, which includes a much needed expansion to the parking lot area and addresses practical and safety issues. They also admit, “The surface of the finished trail tread is 4.8 m wide; while wider than the previous trail, the finished trail will be narrower than is currently visible during the construction phase.” Construction is paused for the summer tourist season and will resume in the fall and hopefully conclude next spring. The statement offers some hope that the final outcome will be better than the phase it’s in right now. So while I may not take the trail this year, I will try to be optimistic, keep faith in an agency that is mandated to protect our natural spaces for generations while giving us privileged access to marvel in them, and wait and see what becomes of the trail after the snow melts in 2019. Meantime, let the current outrage over these alterations to our natural environment be a cautionary tale: what little is left unspoiled in this province is a precious commodity, and residents won’t (and shouldn’t) let it go quietly to dust. Thanks for reading,
Janice Stuckless, Editor-in-chief Janice@downhomelife.com 10 September 2018
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Contributors
Meet the people behind the magazine
Mike Parsons
Jennifer Thornhill Verma
Last year, Mike Parsons was finally able to return to his home in Little Bay Islands, NL, and retire. He’d spent about 20 years in Ontario as a software engineer, but always made his way back home for the summers. “It was always the plan to retire back here. Myself and my wife kind of stepped up our retirement plans a few years because…it’s one of the towns that’s going through the resettlement process right now.” They wanted to come back and be part of the community while it still existed, so they packed up their bags and headed home. Ever since, they’ve been as “happy as larks here,” Mike says. These days, he starts his day by getting up with the sunrise and going for a walk with his camera in tow, a Canon S95. A decade ago he took up photography as a hobby and started to post pictures to social media and Downhomelife.com (see his photo of a Little Bay Islands sunrise on p. 70), as well as selling prints. He’s earned a considerable online following, and his kayaker’s view of Little Bay Islands photo won him the public vote for the “wild card” spot in the 2018 Downhome Calendar.
“I consider myself a Newfoundlander first, even an expat Newfoundlander,” Downhome contributor Jennifer Thornhill Verma laughs. Born and raised in Corner Brook, she now lives in Ottawa with her husband and child, but she keeps close ties to home. “I love Newfoundland and Labrador, I love Corner Brook…but like so many Newfoundlanders, I had to leave for work.” In this issue, Jennifer writes about Corner Brook’s 2019 Come Home Year (begins on page 80). It’s expected to be a success, as a Newfoundlander abroad typically always wants to make it back home. “It’s true, there’s this thing that links us all, that we always want to go back, and it is this spectacular place. I think now people get that,” she notes. In the meantime, Jennifer’s finishing up her novel, Saltwater Cowboys, to earn her Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction. The idea for the book originated from the first article she wrote for Downhome in 2016 about her grandfather, the last fisherman in her family. “And I kind of always had that story in me, and Downhome really felt like the place to write it. And when I wrote it, I started to realize how much more I wanted to write.”
www.downhomelife.com
September 2018
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Picture of Tranquility
I am enclosing a picture of a dory that my wife took in 2006, when my sister and I and our spouses returned to Newfoundland, spending two days and one night at the Woody Island Lodge, revisiting old memories of when I was a teenager. I remember my visits (with Mom, Dad and siblings) to see my uncle, Bert Williams, and Dad’s sister, Aunt Lily, for a few days, and I treasure those memories almost as much as I treasure memories of my visits to my Nana and Baba in Thoroughfare, Random Island. I remember the peacefulness of Woody Island and a way of life, which was lost forever with Joey’s resettlement program, in the 1960s. I feel this picture speaks 12 September 2018
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a thousand words about, and is emblematic of, the tranquility that I experienced each and every time I visited Woody Island. Randy Toope Cobourg, ON
Woody Island is a wonderful destination, taking visitors back to a simpler time and offering experiences that are harder to find these days.
Flashback of My Parents’ Wedding Regarding the first photo in your Reminiscing Flashbacks pictures on page 122 [April 2017 issue], it is a picture taken at my parents’ wedding reception on August 15, 1942. The people are (l-r): Gertrude (nee Warren) Martin, my grandmother; Edwin A. Martin, my father; the minister I believe to be Rev. L. Curtis; Janet L. (Goodwin) Martin, my mother; and Dr. Whitman Smith Goodwin, my grandfather. The reception was held at what is now a National Historic Site: Hawthorne Cottage, Brigus, NL, the former home of Captain Bob Bartlett. At that time, it was operated by Captain Bob’s sisters as Brigus Tea Rooms. Unrelated to this picture, but possibly of interest to your encyclopedia of
www.downhomelife.com
useless information: Gertrude’s sisterin-law (Alice Warren) was a cousin of the Bartletts. Edwin’s grandfather, Fredrick Martin, was chief engineer on several of Captain Bartlett’s Arctic voyages. Dr. W.S. Goodwin practised dentistry at Harbour Grace from 1900 until his death in 1954. His son, Dr. LeRoy Goodwin, joined the practice in 1943 and continued until shortly before his death in 2013. Warren Martin Beaver Bank, NS
Thanks for all the interesting information, Warren. It must have been a surprise to see your parents’ wedding photo in Downhome, and from an unrelated source.
September 2018
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find corky sly conner Hidden somewhere in this issue is Corky Sly Conner.
Can you find him? Look carefully at all the photographs and in the text of the stories. If you spot Corky, send us your name, address and phone number, along with a note telling us where he’s located. Your name will be entered in a draw and the winner will receive a coupon worth 25 Downhome Dollars redeemable at our store, or through our website.
Send your replies to: Corky Contest
Congratulations to Betty Anne Stevens of Edmonton, AB, who found Corky on page 83 of the July issue.
43 James Lane St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3
mail@downhomelife.com www.downhomelife.com *No Phone Calls Please One entry per person
Deadline for replies is the end of each month.
Right Year, Wrong Train Dear Janice; I always enjoy reading your preamble to the monthly Downhome. In your June column, you stated that the first issue of the Downhome(r) coincided with the “last passenger train” crossing the Island. Enclosed is a picture of the last passenger train to cross the Island – it left Corner Brook on July 2, 1969 (bottom right photo). While the Newfoundland Railway, aka “The Newfie Bullet,” was notoriously slow (Port aux Basques to St. John’s took 24 hours,), I find it hard to believe it took 19 years to complete the last leg of its journey! John Wagner Corner Brook, NL
Thanks for correcting us on that – and for having such good humour about it. June 1988 marked the last freight train crossing of the island. 14 September 2018
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Disgusted with Litter Paul Warford’s comment – “when it comes to litter, Newfoundland is the dirtiest place I’ve ever been” – in the July issue of the Downhome magazine was spot on. I thought it was just me who had that impression. Born and raised in Stephenville, NL, I have spent my post-teen life living and raising a family in Manitoba. I return for visits. I recall, after my mother’s passing in the ’90s, recognizing the disregard Newfoundlanders have for their province. Their sense of entitlement to the beauty, and yet no respect for it. I come back every few years and see little improvement. I’m told projects that fund public displays, like parks or trails, have to invest a considerable amount of the project money to prevent vandalism.
www.downhomelife.com
Preventative measures still haven’t stopped individuals from taking the potted plants. Who takes a plant from a public garden? I walk the trails and see Vienna sausage tins stuffed into cracks and plastic bottle stoppers topping rocks. The blight is not isolated to one part of the province. I had to give my head a shake at one point, to prevent the thought that Tim’s beverage cups are actually a native part of Newfoundland’s scenic beauty. Looking at the fading colours of some of the cups, they have been on locations to achieve the aged look. I come from away and return to the place I live and feel a sense of sadness for home. To maintain a home, it requires some care. Don’t expect government to help you out there. They haven’t done much lately. Maybe, just
September 2018
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maybe, the people that live in this home won’t need the road sign to remind them to not chuck their garbage out the window or a sign to discourage them from taking what they like. Sean D. Conway Morris, MB
It boggles the mind how people in this day and age of environmental awareness still manage to leave a trail of garbage wherever they go. Some garbage may be carried off from trash bins by gulls or set adrift by the relentless wind, but that is the exception and certainly not the rule. What’s the saying – “You can’t have anything nice?” Perhaps if more of that hospitality and goodwill we are renowned around the world for was directed at the woods and ponds and trails, and parking lots and sidewalks, around us, we wouldn’t have to say to visitors, “Welcome to our home, please excuse the mess.”
Found on Facebook Glenda Marie Never caught a cod but caught this on my camera! What a catch it was – Change Islands, NL.
Magnificent Mechanical Bovine Does anyone remember the beautiful cow that we enjoyed watching on the roof of the Newfoundland Butter Company on LeMarchant Road in St. John’s? Not your ordinary milk producing bovine that you observe eating the splendid green grass across the country. No, this is a special type of cow never seen on farms. This magnificent animal stood day in, day out on the roof, performing to the delight of the audience below. When the switch to the first ever neon light was activated, the movable areas of the fascinating cow came alive. The cow was hardly noticeable during the day, but 16 September 2018
it was a joyful sight at night. The entertainment ended with the blackout during the Second World War, when the neon light was extinguished, leaving us who’d witnessed the performances with a beautiful memory. Shirley Birmingham (Mrs. B.) St. John’s, NL
Does anyone remember this mechanical cow or, even better, have a photo of it? Email your story and/or photo to editorial@downhomelife.com. You may also get in touch by writing to Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3. 1-888-588-6353
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Whale’s Eye In the “What Are These?” section on page 15 of the July edition [“Letters from Our Readers”], the picture shows a couple of moon snail egg casings, also known as sand collars. Some people call them “Whale’s Eye” shells. Thanks for the great magazine!
RECENT TWEETS Liz Gilbert @Liz_Bonavista Hey @MAferries the Lodge girls were pretty excited to see their faces on the welcome aboard edition!! @downhomelife <3
Cheryl Whitten Bradenton, FL, USA
Thanks for identifying these mysterious objects for us, Cheryl.
Whose Hat Was This? My cousin Bob Heale has what looks like a railway conductor’s hat, but the insignia “LOL” doesn’t fit. It was given to him by his uncle Ken Parsons of Bryant’s Cove, NL. Maybe it belonged to a band member? Can anyone identify it? Gary Pollock Cole Harbour, NS
If you know who may have worn a hat like this one pictured here, help solve the mystery by emailing your suggestion to editorial@downhomelife.com or by writing to Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3.
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Race to Read the Magazine I have just finished reading your latest magazine and am responding to your question, “What do you do with your old magazines?” I keep mine forever and read them over and over again. Sometimes I share them with friends, but it’s really hard to let them go. When our magazine is delivered to our mailbox, my husband and I almost have a fight (just kidding) over who will get to read it first. Sometimes he hides it under his arm when he gets it out of the box. We have been to Newfoundland a
few times and love it there. We have done quite a bit of travelling, from Africa to Hawaii, but Newfoundland is still my favourite place. My husband’s brother lives in Ontario. He has travelled around the world. When he was visiting Nova Scotia a few years ago, we convinced him and his wife to go to Newfoundland with us. He thought that he had died and gone to heaven. Janice Mundle Pugwash, NS
Nice to hear from you, Janice, and glad you are enjoying the magazine.
Downhome Magazine Travels With Us It may not seem like this particular magazine has travelled far, but it has. It is a subscription my auntie Marion from South Branch, NL has sent to my dad in Alliance, Alberta. When he is finished with them, he passes them on to me in Castor, Alberta because he knows of my love for Newfoundland. I brought it with me on my second visit to the island and had my picture taken with it outside the Elliston tourist information/shop. Such a wonderfully Newfoundlander character owns the place and shared many a local story with us. Love his passion for the area and Newfoundland. We fully understand why he has it! Mandy Fuller Castor, AB
That magazine sure has a few miles on it. Thanks for sharing, Mandy.
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homefront Downhome Tours...
Portugal
The Gang’s All Here
This group of friends, all from Grand Falls-Windsor, NL, are in Portugal for the centenary celebration of the apparition of Our Lady of Fatima. Here, they pose at Our Lady of the Rosary Basilica in Fátima. (l-r): Cavell Gaye, Kay Davis, Chris Parsons, Brenda Rowsell, Peggy Barker and Cassie LeRoux. (Photo by Kathleen LeRoux) In May 1917, three children in Fátima, Portugal, claimed they encountered the Virgin Mary while they tended to a flock of sheep and she told them how to see her again. The tale of this encounter spread and gained believers. Soon after, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fátima was built. It is now a popular religious pilgrimage site visited by thousands every year. 22 September 2018
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Portugal Passage Heather Higdon’s daughter and her friends took a trip to Lisbon, Portugal. (Submitted by Heather Higdon of Toronto, ON)
Situated along the coast, Lisbon is Portugal’s capital city. It also happens to be one of the oldest cities in the world, predating places like London and Rome. Lisbon also has plenty of nicknames, including Queen of the Sea, The City of Tolerance and The City of the Light.
Livin’ the Lisbon Life
During Easter break, Rachel Spicer toured Spain and Portugal with classmates on a school trip. (Submitted by Carole and Tim Spicer)
One of Portugal’s most significant museums is The National Tile Museum. Located in the former Madre de Deus Convent that was founded in 1509, the collection follows the history of ceramic tile from the 15th century to the present day.
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homefront
That’s
AMAZING Wild news from around the world
Sporting Wizards
While the FIFA World Cup was happening, so was another international sport tournament: Quidditch! In Florence, Italy, the US team clenched victory from the Belgians at the 2018 Quidditch World Cup. The sport is inspired by the game played in the Harry Potter series, though the real-world game (sadly) uses no magic.
Hats Off to History
The hat Napoléon Bonaparte supposedly wore at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 (which he lost and after which he abdicated and spent his final years in exile) was recently put up for auction in Lyon, France. The hat is over 200 years old and looks a bit shabby, but ended up selling for US$400,000!
Fishermen’s Friend
This summer, a fishing crew found an Arctic fox stranded on an iceberg off Labrador. They managed to get it onboard their boat, where they nursed the critter back to health and fed it Vienna sausages. When the ship docked in William’s Harbour, the fox took off for the wilds of Labrador.
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Java Joy
Coffee lovers rejoice! A new study found that coffee drinkers live longer. Researchers followed half a million people in the UK over 10 years and found they had a slightly lower risk of death. The positive impacts were seen in drinkers of decaf, instant and regular coffee.
Expensive Taste
After an ATM machine in India stopped working for a few days, technicians were called to investigate. Inside the machine, they found nibbled-on notes and a dead rat. The rodent had managed to eat approximately C$23,000 before expiring.
Someone Call for Delivery?
The coastal Chinese city of Qingdao experienced a rare (but not unheard of) weather phenomenon recently, when shrimp, squid and other seafood started to rain down from the sky. The cause was a nearby tornado, which had sucked up the marine life and deposited them in the town.
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homefront life’s funny
Feeling Peckish Early this morning my parents, Roger and Vera Sheppard, were getting breakfast at home in Corner Brook, NL, when they heard this tap, tap, tap on the front door. They wondered who in the world could be dropping by so early on a Sunday morning – despite their house being a “Dew Drop Inn”! My father, as always, looked out the living room window first, to see who was there before answering. He didn’t see anyone out there. My mother, still hearing this tap, tap, tap, went to greet whoever or whatever was making the noise. When she opened the door, there were two large hens at the doorstep! Cindy Sheppard Gidge Via Facebook
Do you have any funny or embarrassing true stories? Share them with us. If your story is selected, you’ll win a prize! See page 9 for details. 26
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“Skip the Wet Ones... I’ll take care ofratit!” – Judy Besha
Say WHAT?
Downhome recently posted this photo (taken by Alana Doucette) on our website and Facebook page and asked our members to imagine what the cat might be saying. Judy Besharat’s response made us chuckle the most, so we’re awarding her 20 Downhome Dollars!
Here are the runners-up: “Going for the marmalade look, too, are ya, kid?” – Trace Stagg “Bathtime for the strange hairless kitten.” – Tina Townsend “Clean up in high chair #1.” – Anne Bowe
Want to get in on the action? Go to www.downhomelife.com/saywhat
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“Like” us on Facebook www.facebook.com/downhomelife
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homefront lil charmers
Mini
Magazine Readers Charmer Looking for Pets
Evaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flipping through an issue of Downhome looking for pictures of dogs. Michelle McDonald Shilo, MB
Good to Go This little guy knows what makes a long road trip pass quickly! Joanne Biddle Port Hope Simpson, NL
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Little Librarian Emma Budden is going through Poppy and Nanny Mcleanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Downhome magazine collection. Krista Gillard Roddickton, NL
Storytime Poppy Calvin Pretty is teaching Violet to read during her first visit to Corner Brook, NL. Mike Pretty Mount Pearl, NL
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homefront
pets of the month
Blown Away by the Wind Violet and Charlie let the wind blow through their fur during a trek on the East Coast Trail. (Photo by Nicole Locke) Erica Pittman St. Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, NL
On the
Trail Pooch Portrait Port de Grave harbour provides the backdrop for this pet pic. Michael Petten Clarenville, NL
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Top Dog This picture is proof that this pooch conquered Gros Morneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tableland Trail. Mikaela Gulliver Pasadena, NL
Double the Fun Tuukka and Bruin stick out their tongues for a photo in Spillars Cove, Bonavista Bay, NL. Rexene Lockyer Gander, NL
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homefront
Remember...The Strap? Believe it or not, corporal punishment against school children was legal in Canada until 2004, when the Supreme Court ruled it an unreasonable form of punishment (unless you are the parent and the child being punished is no younger than two and no older than 12). Ever since organized schooling began, teachers and administrators used leather or hard rubber straps, wooden yardsticks or paddles to punish bad behaviour and to maintain decorum in the classroom. Although Poland outlawed corporal punishment in schools in 1783, noted as the first country to do so, it was the 20th century before there were widespread concerns about the psychological and physical harm caused to children who endured corporal punishment – not to mention the danger posed by those in authority who abused their power. By the 1960s and ’70s, corporal punishment was rarely used in schools in North America. While it wasn’t common in Newfoundland and Labrador after the 1970s, it wasn’t officially outlawed until a change to the Schools Act in 1997.
We asked our Facebook friends if they ever got the strap. Those that did, never forgot it. “At recess we were told to play in the sandbox at the back of the classroom at ‘little Mercy.’ The nuns then checked to see if there was dirt under our nails. I did have sand under my nails. The school lived up to its name, as I got the ruler.” – Jodi Murphy “I got the strap for skipping school and going duck hunting.” – Lee Benoit “In Grade 5, I was chewing gum and was told to take it out. When the teacher was nowhere in sight, I put it back in my mouth. Unfortunately, he was standing behind me, watching my every move. By golly, it hurt...” – Maxine Baker 32
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homefront poetic licence
The Rugged Newfoundlander (for Grandfather Dove) By Bill Temple Leduc, AB
He sits silently on the wharf As the sun rises over the sea His hands tucked inside his oilskins Seeking shelter from the breeze That blows cold in the early morning The years of toil show on his face Burned in by wind and sun And long hard days upon the sea From dawn 'till day is done And beyond into the night But you never hear him complain Of the hardships he must endure For he is a breed, set apart A special breed, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s for sure The rugged Newfoundlander Now that the fish have disappeared The plants have all closed down He stands silently on the wharf Looking at the boats, now run aground The past a memory Perhaps in time, they may return The plants, the boats and fish But who will brave the icy waters Who has this dream and wish Other than the rugged Newfoundlander
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Kylie Goodyear photo
Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to award one photographer $100 worth of canvas printing, plus bragging rights, for the best iceberg photo we see! We are looking for the biggest, most dramatic, wildest shaped, best composed, most impressive iceberg photo in your collection, from this or any iceberg season. Submit your high-resolution photo and tell us where and when it was taken, and by whom. Only send us photos that you own or have express permission to enter into this contest.
Enter online: www.downhomelife.com/icebergcontest Deadline: October 31, 2018
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homefront
reviewed by Denise Flint
The Music of Our Burnished Axes Ursula A. Kelly & Meghan C. Forsyth ISER Books $28.95 The Music of our Burnished Axes by Ursula A. Kelly and Meghan C. Forsyth is probably the most comprehensive collection of the songs and stories of the Newfoundland and Labrador lumberjacks, log drivers and mill workers possible. There are songs of protest and suffering, songs of longing and songs to laugh out loud to. These are the words of the loggers themselves as they strove to keep entertained and sane under the harshest of working and living conditions, miles from civilization and their loved ones. The book is divided into several parts: a brief history of logging in Newfoundland and Labrador and then the songs, recitations, poems and narratives. By far the largest section, making up the majority of the book, is the one filled with songs. Each song is given in full, with the accompanying music and a brief note about its history and how it was collected. Anyone interested in singing or playing one of the songs can easily do so. Illustrations throughout provide a rich visual accompaniment to the words. The authors, both professors at Memorial University, have written what is essentially an academic study with meticulous attention to detail. The result is a book that, while not something one would like to settle down with and read in a sitting, makes a very useful and important addition to anyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Newfoundland and Labrador history and culture collection. And for those who just like the songs and the stories of a people largely disappeared from the province, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a grand resource.
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Q&A with the Author Denise Flint: What is the significance of the title? Ursula Kelly: The title comes from the first line of the first song in the book. It was a lumbering song from the late 1800s and was adapted by local loggers. It shows the blending of people. Many came from New Brunswick and Quebec and Maine to teach Newfoundlanders the skill of lumbering and they brought their songs with them, so Newfoundlanders learned their songs and adapted them. It has beautiful language and it’s a big title to make readers curious. DF: Why is studying this kind of music important? UK: In the case of the woods workers, it just hadn’t been done. There are collections from New Brunswick and Maine and Ontario, and here we are with a magnificent folklore heritage, but mostly about the sea. Logging and lumbering occupied our time for over a century, but the culture isn’t known. The songs tell the stories from the voices of the people themselves. It’s an immense cultural legacy that is little known, and so many families have lumberers and loggers in their family history. DF: Has this kind of spontaneous song-making died out? UK: I don’t know if I’m in a position to answer that. There is less of it because the way we do our work has changed. Prior to the introduction of the chainsaw they could make up songs at work, and now you can’t sing and hear someone else. It’s a cultural shift, so the practice has changed. www.downhomelife.com
Songs now are written more individually. Loggers wrote songs to protest their conditions. Many times songs are written to express marginalized voices. We use the tools available to us to make our voices heard. It’s remarkable that so much beauty came out of what was undeniably grim. DF: How long did it take to collect all these songs? Have you got them all? UK: The project has been five years in the making. It began with a CD and booklet called “Mentioned in Song” that included 27 recordings of the men and women singing. It was clear to me that there was so much more. We’ve probably got most of what’s available. You never know what’s hiding in people’s collections and so much has been lost with the passage of time. But this is a strong representation of what’s written and what’s available. DF: There seem to be two kinds of songs: the ones by the loggers and the ones about the loggers. If you aren’t told which one a particular song is, can you tell? If so, how? UK: Ummm, yes, I can. Oftentimes you can see the way in which language is used, the point of view of the song, those sorts of things are evident when you look at the songs. They’re both important. Lots of commemorative songs indicate the way woods work has permeated our culture. It’s our legacy, and the sons and daughters are remembering [the loggers’] contribution. But they’re different. September 2018
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homefront what odds
the cross-gift By Paul Warford
Where I come Alright now faithful readers, I don’t have whole lot of time. Janice is breathin’ down my from, a new aneck for these words, but I’ve gotta find a place cross-stitch is that screen-prints pictures onto mugs so I can get face on a plain white coffee cup before Friday’s an expression my sun dawns. My wife’s birthday is looming on the of the love I’m horizon. No need to panic! I planned ahead this to ensure my spritely, vibrant, always-tooliving in. year busy partner will get her gifts on time. Well, the mug might be a bit behind schedule, but the Big Gift is all set. What is it? Oh well now, readers, I’m not sure I can mention any specifics. I mean, can I trust you? Then again, her birthday will be well past by the time you read this, so why not? I hired a local company to create a custom-made cross-stitch of our dog’s face. This present will be well-received, I’m sure, because our dog is Andie’s favourite centrepiece, and I’m confident Gabby will darn well. My mother has given us several handmade quilts as gifts over the years. Andie and I drape them over our couches and keep the thickest on hand to keep us warm on the coldest nights. However, there aren’t many cross-stitches at our place, which comes as a surprise because my mom used to be a pro. I can see her now, seated at our motorhome’s dining table, glasses resting on the crown of her head as she squints and whispers, “One…two… three,” counting pinprick-tiny holes in the porous, cream-coloured fabric. With her needle, Mom would poke through the material, pull the thread tight, repeat. She’d fill her hours doing this while my brothers and I read Stephen King novels or fed her laundry change into the campground arcade games. That’s boys for you; never appreciating the time their mothers spend recognizing who they
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are. By the time I was in my teens, framed cross-stitch patterns were a common gift to receive: painstakingly detailed patchworks pressed under glass and framed by my father. It’s not easy to compact a parents’ love so succinctly, but they somehow managed. When I graduated high school, Mom made a large piece featuring a small boy in a graduation cap and gown, coupled with my name and a nice verse that I’ve long since forgotten. And when my parents drove me to Wolfville and deposited me on Acadia U’s lawn, Mom had a new cross-stitch ready to go. This one was smaller – about the size of a desk calendar – and it featured a rotary telephone and the words CALL YOUR MOTHER, SHE WORRIES. Cute. Most 18-year-old guys would never display such a thing in their dorm room (once their parents were out of town), but I left it in view because I figured all the good-looking girls I now lived with would find it cute and charming. In time, my mother graduated to quilting, and now she’s flat out at it. She’s even part of a quilting society, whose members do things together like host luncheons and go camping at Lavrock. My wife and I love the quilts we’ve received, and they’ll last a lifetime. As for the cross-stitches, they’re still at Mom and Dad’s, hung in our old bedrooms (now converted into sewing stations and guest lodgings). Dust probably lines the tops of their frames, but the messages within are
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as loud and clear as they ever were. My brothers and I don’t hang them in our own homes, but that’s boys for you. In adulthood, I let Mom know that we appreciated the effort of all the cross-stitching, and I laughed when she said, “I should hope so! I nearly went blind doing them.” The eyes we strain for love. Which brings us back to me on the mug. I give Andie a new mug every year on her birthday, but she explicitly requested one featuring myself and the dog on her ceramic this year. So, I can’t dawdle. I really should get going. I’ll let you know what she thinks of it. I’m anticipating tears, followed by, “I love it” several times. If you’re stuck on a gift to give my wife, the dog is always a good place to start. Apart from the praise my present is sure to get, I’m excited to have it on our wall for all to see. Where I come from, a new cross-stitch is an expression of the love I’m living in. If you’d like your cat’s head or your parakeet’s plumage translated to cross-stitch, look up All My Friends Are Thread. (I should mention there’s no actual dust atop the cross-stitch frames because Mom definitely dusts them.) Paul Warford began writing for Downhome to impress his mom and her friends. He writes and performs comedy in Eastern Canada. Follow him on Twitter @paulwarford
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homefront in your words
My daughter, along with four members of her running group, recently returned from a trip to New York. They proudly displayed their provincial flag on Broadway at “Come From Away” and were recipients of thanks and hugs from many of the patrons attending the performance. Reflecting on the events that unfolded on that Tuesday in 2001, I wondered why we retain such vivid memories of exactly where we were and what we were doing at that time. It’s called flashbulb memories: we recall the experience of learning about the event, not the factual details of the event itself. On September 11, 2001, I was helping my daughter and son-in-law with some renovations on an older home in Torbay they had recently bought. It was my brother-in-law who arrived bearing the earth-shattering news of the Twin Towers attack. Early next morning we received a call from one of the shelters in Gambo; someone wanted permission to enter our home to get our coffee percolator, to use in catering to 40
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stranded passengers. We arrived home in Gambo on Thursday, September 13, at 5 p.m. and went directly to one of the 10 shelters in town. I had photocopied some traditional Newfoundland song lyrics and, around 7:30, four of us led the singing of them. I imagine at the other shelters there was also some kind of entertainment. Some made it to the Trailway pub, where two of the stranded passengers performed. Many passengers had already been taken into homes, but we found one guy getting his cot ready on the floor. We offered him a more comfortable bed and a shower, so he came home with us. He was with the PDVSA, the state oil company of Venezuela, returning to Houston, Texas from a conference in Aberdeen, Scotland. His 1-888-588-6353
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travelling companion (who lived in Venezuela) was in another shelter, so we decided to go and get him, too. A passenger from a different shelter saw, upon his arrival there, a satellite dish on a house across the road. Needing to know what was happening in the US, he approached the couple sitting on the patio (my father-in-law and his The Town of Gambo Sheltered over spouse) and asked if he could 1,000 stranded travellers check out the television news. He spent the next five days glued to CNN. He said he was a biblical about more than politicians and headarchaeologist destined for Colorado liners. In smaller communities surSprings, Colorado. On checking his bi- rounding Gander, without large ography, I found that while he is a bib- emergency resources at their disposal, lical investigator, he’s also a former local residents opened their homes, police investigator and SWAT team hearts and kitchens and volunteered member, international explorer and their time to make the crowds of anxauthor of nine books. He has partici- ious “plane people” feel welcome and pated in over 50 expeditions around comfortable. In 2001, the population the world searching for lost locations of Gambo was approximately 2,100, and we had about 1,100 passengers described in the Bible. Other passengers were taken on here. Crowds of people could be seen ATV rides, out in boats, and to cabins strolling along Smallwood Boulevard on Gambo Pond. Still others were in the September sunshine. One of the taken to larger stores in Gander passengers who stayed at a shelter where, ostensibly, Walmart quickly here said in an interview, “They had people working in the kitchen 24 sold out certain items. Just after breakfast on Saturday, hours a day and it turned out to be for September 15, we got the call to have five days. We were 187 passengers and all passengers back to their shelter, as they fed us three meals a day. They their bus could be leaving to join their celebrated us like we were five-star flight at Gander. The people at our guests. They were so full of love.” For once, our isolation was an shelter all gathered, joining hands in a circle, in a very poignant ceremony. advantage, placing us in a more We said our goodbyes to the strangers favourable position. When the lights who had become friends, and many of the world seemed extinguished, we folks in Gambo have since gone to visit provided a beacon of light and a ray of them in their homes in the US, Eng- hope as members of one big family simply carrying on a tradition of carland and Germany. The “Come From Away” story is ing and sharing. www.downhomelife.com
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It’s a story Kimberly Orren has heard plenty of
times: a woman heads out with a father, brother or husband on some outdoors activity and the guys just take over. “And women kind of step back and let them, you know?” she says. Someone else puts the worm on the hook, catches the fish, lights the campfire and drives the boat. “And so women, even though they were participating in these outdoor activities, they weren’t fully participating in them. They were kind of stepping back.”
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Girls Who Fish – consisting of girls and women of all ages – meets regularly in Petty Harbour to gain hands-on experience in the province’s fishing heritage. All photos courtesy Fishing For Success
Instead, Kimberly wants women to step up, and that’s what Girls Who Fish is all about. It’s a program Kimberly’s been running for the past three years through the nonprofit Fishing For Success, operated in Petty Harbour, NL. Women need to do more than just lean in to these activities. They have to take charge, she says. “Yeah, a ‘jump in the boat’ mentality! Not just lean in, jump in.” Kimberly explains the program’s goal is to make fishing accessible, especially to people who don’t have access to the knowledge of boats, such as young people, women and new Canadians. They meet in Petty Harbour on the first and third Sunday of every month – unless there’s a holiday. Members pay an annual fee, earning them attendance at any workshops that interest them. www.downhomelife.com
Those who join learn practical skills, like how to clean and fillet fish, as well as cut out tongues and cheeks. And it’s not just fishing skills that they hone. They partake in a lot of pursuits, from hiking to painting. And if they can’t get outside due to the weather, they’ll do indoor activities related to fishing and our heritage. In the winter they go ice fishing and snowshoeing. And when members get more familiar with tasks, they can lean in some more and take over running events, helping others. Members are also encouraged to get more official training, such as a Pleasure Craft Operator Card (required for anyone in Canada operSeptember 2018
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Participants learn a wide variety of lessons, including how to properly move and maintain traditional wooden dories.
ating a motorized boat) and courses in hunting safety. Right now, they have women who are finishing up the requirements for their Newfoundland and Labrador Guide Licence. There’s also a civic engagement component, where Girls Who Fish gives back to the community. Last year they teamed up with Choices for Youth’s Momma Moments to teach young women how to make fish stock at Mallard Cottage. They also take the fish they catch and provide meals for seniors. At present, Kimberly is working with the Association for New Canadians on a program for young women who are new arrivals, helping them get familiar with local culture.
The woman behind the boat
The history of Newfoundland and Labrador is entwined with the fishery. Whole families relied on it to survive, with men heading out in boats and the women and children staying on shore, hard at work on the 44
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flakes. “And unfortunately, their work was credited to their husbands, or fathers or brothers, depending on whether they were married. So the work of the women kind of got covered up or given credit to the men,” says Kimberly. “Changing that is really important because…we have this view of the fishery as being in a boat. And so, what do we do to get women in the boat?” Her hope is that when women see other women recreationally fishing, maybe they’ll consider it as a career. And it’s not just about fishing, but also marine transportation, oceanography, research and other marine careers. “Fishing is just the hook to get people 1-888-588-6353
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Girls Who Fish is about much more than fishing and being out in boats. Related activities, such as painting and cooking, also celebrate our ocean-going heritage.
interested in thinking about what they might do around the water.” A passion for the outdoors was instilled in Kimberly at a young age. She grew up in Grand Falls-Windsor, an inland town, but her family had a home on the coast in Leading Tickles. That’s where she had the opportunity to see fishermen at work. Occasionally, she even helped out by cleaning and gutting fish. It led to a love of science and got her hooked on fishing. “As a kid growing up in Newfoundland, it was something that you couldn’t avoid,” she says. She was a high school science teacher for 13 years, covering everything from chemistry to physics, but Kimberly says she wanted to get stuwww.downhomelife.com
dents outside because that’s how most people get their first exposure to science. Many of her kids weren’t even familiar with the plants and animals found in their own backyards. It got Kimberly thinking, “‘Maybe I’m teaching the wrong thing? Maybe I need to get back into teaching what initially got me interested in science?’” It prompted her to enroll in graduate school for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences at the University of Florida, where she also got involved with the university’s youth fishing program. Following this, she moved back home to Newfoundland and Labrador permanently in 2013, and in 2014 set up Fishing For Success. Kimberly firmly believes fishing is a basic human activity that connects people to nature and our ancestors. “It’s really a terrible thing that young people are growing up today without a way to participate in this activity.” “You walk on George Street and you hear the music about fishing, and you go to The Rooms and you see artwork that’s created and inspired around our attachment to the sea and fishing, getting on boats,” she says. “And if we aren’t creating pathways for people to experience those things, we’re going to lose the story of fishing. It’s not going to be a part of who we are anymore. And maybe we won’t be unique, maybe we’ll just be like, you know, the next person who just moved [here] from Toronto. Because that is something that makes us unique.” September 2018
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Like many
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, Steve Coombs likes having (and giving) a laugh. A database analyst by day, the Townie, husband and father of two has been making a splash in the local stand-up scene (check out his reading of “50 Shades of Bay” on YouTube and you’ll see why). Always one with a knack for tickling the funny bone, Steve made his official comedy debut in 2008, at the Newfoundland Screech Comedy Festival, after answering a newspaper ad seeking participants for a two-day stand-up workshop. While he’d never really tried “writing” a joke up until that point, he says, “I got a punchline probably two hours or so before the show, when I went home, in the bathroom – which is where most punchlines come from.” Putting nerves aside, he did the schtick, got the laughs, walked off stage and “got the bite.” A decade later, he’s still at it. Since his debut, Steve has shared the stage with brazen Bluenoser Nikki Payne, toured across the island with Corner Brook’s own Trent McClellan and represented the province at SiriusXM’s Top Comic Competition (where he also snagged a spot opening for Canadian comic legend Russell Peters). Like all good comics, Steve aims the microscope at the minutiae of everyday life and notices the funny little things that many of us miss. His easygoing nature, self-deprecating humour, and musings on married life and the inadvertently hilarious things his kids say have earned him praise far and wide. It is this same “take it as it comes” attitude and his ability to poke fun at himself that has also helped carry him through one of the most trying times of his life.
Above: Steve Coombs reading “50 Shades of Bay” www.downhomelife.com
Courtesy of CBC
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A Bumpy Ride About three years ago, after regular stints performing at the (now defunct) Yuk Yuk’s comedy club in St. John’s, Steve decided it was time to do his own comedy tour. However, as they say, life had other plans – the kind of plans that would send most people into a tailspin. It’s a time that Steve remembers all too well. “It was the day before Father’s Day [2015] and we had the kids out for my daughter’s soccer kick-off. And it was probably the first day in weeks that I sat down across the table from Ange [his wife] because we’d just been so busy…and Ange looked at me and she said, ‘Your eyes are some yellow,’” Steve recalls. Other than feeling tired and his stomach feeling “off” (“I thought it was nerves because I had a show coming up,” Steve explains), he had no reason to suspect anything out of the ordinary. But on June 23, after an emergency CT scan and blood work, the tests confirmed he had a tumour, the size of a tennis ball, wrapped around the head of his pancreas (suspected to be pancreatic cancer). All of a sudden, at the age of 42, life came to a screeching halt. On July 3, Steve underwent a complex, roughly seven-hour surgery, known as the “Whipple procedure,” which removed the tumour, the head of the pancreas, the first part of his small intestine, 18 lymph nodes, and
Steve, with his family, about two weeks after the Whipple procedure.
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a portion of his stomach, gallbladder and bile duct. In an unfortunate coincidence, it is the same procedure his late sister had 17 years to the day that Steve was diagnosed. (Ann Marie passed away from stomach cancer in 1998 at the age of 29, leaving behind her husband and 14month-old son.) “As soon as I found out I was sick, I looked at Ange and I said, ‘What am I going to tell Mom and Dad? What am I going to tell the girls? Tell Mom and Dad they’ve got to bury another child? Tell the girls they’re probably going to lose their dad?’” Steve recalls. (His daughters, Sarah and Anna, were 8 and 4 respectively at the time.) To help cope with the complicated emotions such a diagnosis brings, Steve began writing down notes and jokes, and anything funny that happened at the hospital, “trying to keep myself as positive about it all as possible,” he says, “because when I first 1-888-588-6353
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Steve’s buddies in comedy put off two fundraising shows to show their support for him. heard ‘pancreatic cancer,’ that usually doesn’t have a happy ending.” On July 27, Steve received some unexpected good news when his pathology report indicated that he didn’t have pancreatic cancer, but rather, a rare, neuroendocrine tumour (a slower, less aggressive cancer with a much higher survival rate). Three weeks later, when he went to his oncologist to learn about his treatment plan, Steve says, “I was told, effectively, you’re cured.”
Back in the Saddle While Steve’s cancer journey lasted all of two months, the “mental fallout,” he says, lasted much longer. “I started to see a counsellor regularly at the cancer centre...Right around the six-month mark, I just sat down one day, wrapping Christmas presents with Ange, and it just hit home...just getting upset, crying. I www.downhomelife.com
went in to see my family doctor and I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ He said, ‘Well, what happened six months ago?’ It was basically that feeling of walking off the curb and feeling the wind go by and going, ‘Jeez, that truck just nearly took me out,’” Steve explains. Unfortunately, his journey wasn’t over. In September 2016, Steve discovered the cancer had returned in a small lymph node, which has since been removed. He is now being monitored while hormone therapy for cancer continues. Steve says he’s incredibly grateful for the care and support he’s received from his medical team, the comedy community, his friends and, most importantly, his family. Initially afraid of how his young daughters would handle the news of his diagnosis, Steve says they continue to amaze and inspire him. His eldest daughter, Sarah, recently joined him for the Great Cycle Challenge to raise September 2018
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The poster for Steve’s upcoming show. money to help fight childhood cancer. She also recently picked her dad as the subject of her “hero” project at school. (“She said, ‘I chose to do you – or Isaac Newton,’” Steve laughs.) After taking a break from the stand-up world to rest and recover, Steve’s spirits are now high and his health is in good shape. This fall, he’s sharing his story on stage during three shows (September 24, 25 and 26) at the LSPU Hall in St. John’s. “Here & Now” (originally titled “How Cancer Saved My Life”) will be part stand-up set, part one-man show and will tackle some of the stereotypes around people’s expectations of those who are dealing with a cancer diagnosis. But, Steve says, “It’s not a 50
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morbid affair.” (The laughter he received during the initial readthrough last fall, he says, is a good indication of the feel of the show.) When all is said and done, Steve says, the show is really a song of praise to his family and those who have stood by him – and if you look closely at the show’s poster, you’ll see those elements sprinkled everywhere. Even the blue paisley background is an homage to his sister’s bandana (which he now carries in his pocket, like a good luck charm, when he does a show or has another important event coming up). To pull the show together, Steve consulted with several of his peers in the arts community, including Andy Jones, and worked with director Charlie Tomlinson, who helped him bridge the world of stand-up comedy and theatre. He also received funding from ArtsNL through their Professional Project Grants Program. Wanting to make something positive out of his experience, Steve says working on the show has been therapeutic and he hopes it’ll help others who have been touched by cancer. “When I did my reading, one of the people I had invited, their partner was there. And this person had a cancer experience. He was very emotional at the end of it, and he was like, ‘You know, I didn’t want to come. But I’m so glad I came.’ And he gave me a huge hug…even now, I’m getting goosebumps because it impacted someone that much,” he says. “I’m still here, so it ends on a nice, positive note,” he smiles. “And there’s a lesson in there. It sounds cliché or corny to say there’s a lesson in there, but there is.” 1-888-588-6353
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All photo by Dennis Flynn
The tiny room
is filled with rollicking Irish music as frontman Ralph O’Brien and company take the stage on a beautiful fall night in October 2012, the last weekend of performances at the legendary Erin’s Pub on Water Street in the heart of downtown St. John’s. Glasses laden with Guinness or other libations of choice clink, and voices of audience members join in familiar choruses of songs old and new. Stories are shared, hearty laughs are heard and countless well wishes are extended to Ralph upon his retirement from the pub business, after more than 25 years at the helm of the most famous Irish bar in the province – a spot where many of today’s most popular local musicians got their start. And while Ralph might have retired from being a publican house proprietor in 2012, he in no way stopped making music. And this month, his band, Sons of Erin, celebrates its 50th anniversary of making music and memories in Newfoundland and Labrador and beyond. www.downhomelife.com
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I recently caught up with Ralph at his home in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s. At 77, he is still spry and full of enthusiasm for new projects, including the Sons of Erin 50th Anniversary Concert happening at the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre on September 20. As we sift through countless posters, newspaper clippings, press photos, album sleeves, ticket stubs and other memorabilia from Ralph’s extensive personal collection, he says with a smile, “It’s hard to know where to begin. There are so many great memories and stories over 50 years, and so many wonderful people we performed with in so many places.” He
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Ralph O’Brien (left) pores over scores of memorabilia he’s kept from his 50 years with the beloved Irish band, Sons of Erin. adds, “The fans were great wherever we toured...” Originally from Dublin, Ireland, Ralph came to Canada in 1967, eventually ending up in Newfoundland where his lifelong love of music – combined with a people who appreciated it – soon saw him shift gears. The following year, Sons of Erin (“Erin” meaning Ireland) was born. The band’s original members – Ralph plus Fergus O’Byrne, Gary Kavanagh and the late, great Dermot O’Reilly – were all natives of Dublin. “Newfoundland is my home now, and I love it here. The people are amazing and basically adopted us, and they really know and appreciate the music. They are tremendous fans and we always got our energy for the live shows from the audiences wherever we went,” says Ralph – and they went all over. In the ensuing decades the band toured Canada, the United States and back to their roots in Ireland. www.downhomelife.com
After years of touring, by 1986 the Sons of Erin had found a place to call home. That year Ralph bought Erin’s Pub, which became the band’s home stage and a place for burgeoning musicians to grow and flourish. Sons of Erin soon became a household name in Newfoundland and Labrador, especially when they starred for a time in their own musical variety show. Broadcast on NTV in the 1980s, “The Sons of Erin” featured their own performances, plus appearances by countless special guests – everyone from acclaimed accordionist Harry Hibbs to former premier Joey Smallwood.
Music & Memories
While the iconic band has stayed true to its musical roots over the last halfcentury, it’s evolved, too. When asked exactly how many members have been in the band over the years, Ralph breaks into a broad grin. “I wouldn’t even be able to hazard a September 2018
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guess,” he says. “We have been really fortunate to have so many excellent musicians play with us over the years, and we enjoyed them all and made great friendships that lasted a lifetime. Of course, over all that time people come and go on to new locations or careers or form bands of their own, but that is a normal part of it all.” Alumni of Sons of Erin have gone on to perform in bands such as Ryan’s Fancy, Sullivan’s Gypsies and The Irish Descendants, each prolific in their own right. Musician D’Arcy Broderick well recalls how his journey with Sons of Erin began. “Back in 1982, I got up on the stage at a show in Old Perlican and did a set on the fiddle with the Sons, and Ralph offered me a position. Being an 18-year-old musician at the time and a huge fan of the Sons of Erin, they were like The Beatles to me,” remembers D’Arcy. Before long, he was touring with his idols from coast to coast of the United States. “It was too surreal. I remember Ralph had amazing connections. We would go into Burbank at Paramount Pictures and places like that, and we’d have dinner and outings with the current TV and film stars at the time – like folks from ‘Happy Days’ and ‘Hill Street Blues’ and ‘Murphy Brown’ and ‘Laverne and Shirley’ and you name it, Ralph knew them somehow. When I came home I wouldn’t talk about it because I was afraid people would say, ‘You made it up.’ The memories were amazing,” says D’Arcy, adding he has a deep respect for Ralph. “I owe him a lot over my own 36 years in the music industry. The Sons opened a lot of doors.” Following his stint with the Sons, 56
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D’Arcy went on to perform with iconic Irish-Newfoundland bands The Irish Descendants and The Fables. Chris Andrews, frontman for Shanneyganock, also has high praise for Ralph and his influence on the local music scene. “Ralph is like Dad No. 2 to me and, like so many people coming up through the music industry, I have tremendous respect for him and the Sons of Erin. The doors they opened up for other people like me to follow over their 50 years are amazing,” he says. Years ago, while working as a doorman at Erin’s Pub, Ralph often got Chris up on stage singing. For Chris, it was a safe place to perform while building his skills – opportunities, he says, that made all the difference to his burgeoning career. Another opportunity given Chris on that same stage turned out to be a very fortunate fluke. “Myself and my musical partner of the last 25 years, Mark Hiscock, were double booked to play solo acts at Erin’s Pub. We didn’t even know each other, and instead of sending one of us home, Ralph put the two of us together on stage at the same time. We have been together ever since as Shanneyganock, so it worked out pretty well.” Chris’s early experiences at Erin’s Pub have come full circle. Shortly after Ralph retired as owner of the pub, Chris (along with Bob Hallett of Great Big Sea fame) reopened the band’s iconic venue. “Erin’s Pub always was a landmark institution that was totally music-driven, which I really loved,” says Chris, adding that he aims to maintain the rich musical culture Ralph honed in the legendary space. 1-888-588-6353
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Sons of Today
Alongside Ralph, the current Sons of Erin lineup includes Joe Tompkins, John Barela, Steve Best and Jason Simms. One of the youngest in a long line of Sons, Jason can’t recall exactly what he said when he was invited to join the band back in 1994. “What I can recall is feeling the weight of the band’s history and tradition, and how I would be a part of it. Self-reflection told me…you’re not
As their 50th anniversary year unfolds, a documentary-style short film about the band is in the works, produced by CBC. And preparations for the concert are underway. During the show, Sons of Erin, plus special guests (including former band members) will perform. “They were great people to travel with, to play with...I was so happy to get the chance and it served me so well in my own career,” says D’Arcy. “Fifty
Today’s Sons of Erin (l-r): Joe Tompkins, John Barela, Jason Simms, Steve Best and Ralph O’Brien. ready…it’s too soon, but supportive family and friends said, ‘You can do it. Make your own mark on this band,’” he says. Reflecting on the band’s influence, he compares it to “a tree which grew to lay seed to legendary bands like Ryan’s Fancy and The Irish Descendants. What if those lads hadn’t found time to get together? I shudder [at] the thought…Ralph has been the captain, no question, but like all great captains he has been a steady hand on the wheel, always on the lookout for new talent, understanding when members were ready to move on there would be others ready to join.” www.downhomelife.com
years in traditional music is incredible, and the love that Ralph has for the music, even today, is unbelievable.” Chris echoes those sentiments. “Ralph is a special person...We are very lucky to have had him so long, and he continues to make great music today.” And, as it should, the last word goes to Ralph himself, who says: “You know, it has all been the greatest of joy. I loved Newfoundland, the people, all those we played with and met wherever we travelled, and the music most of all. I wouldn’t change a thing.” September 2018
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“Find the one thing you’re good at and run with it, basically. You find your passion and you do it.” And that was the way my conversation with Dave Howells, international award-winning, globe-travelling photographer, ended. We had been sitting in a booth at Piatto in St. John’s, NL, drinking coffee, eating soup and pizza, and talking. He’s the sort of guy you really enjoy hanging out with, a guy who seems generally interested in people and wants to hear their story. But this is his story, and it all starts with actor Nick Nolte.
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Dave was in England at boarding school – his father’s alma mater – after having grown up in Africa and the Caribbean. He’s 50 now, so this school experience of his teenage years was way before the internet or digital photography or computers. To keep teenage boys occupied, and preferably out of trouble, the school had movie nights. It was on one of these nights that Dave found his calling. He was going to be Nick Nolte. But he didn’t want to be an actor. He wanted to be a photojournalist, working in exotic locales, like Nicaragua. Specifically, he wanted to be Nick Nolte’s character, Russell Price, in the 1983 movie Under Fire. Using his father’s old camera, Dave became known around school as the guy who took pictures. When he went to university, he took pictures for the school paper. The classroom portion 60
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didn’t go so well, though – as Dave tells it, he flunked out. He didn’t have much desire to be a university graduate. But he still wanted to be a photojournalist. “I was unemployed for a couple of years pretending to be a photographer,” says Dave of the days after university. “You know, the whole ‘fake it till you make it’ type thing.” His mother, finally realizing he was serious about this camera thing, called a friend in the business who agreed to see Dave. That friend, well known in British photojournalist circles of the time, explained that news1-888-588-6353
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papers don’t just hire people off the street. Call Paul Delmar at the National Council for the Training of Journalists, said the friend. The school was full, but stop by tomorrow and we’ll chat, said Paul. So Dave jumped in his car, drove through the night to the northern end of the island, slept in the carpark and walked into Paul’s office the next morning. “Oh, I didn’t expect you,” was the response, followed by a chat and a thank you for stopping by. Unsure of his future, Dave drove 62
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home to a message waiting for him. It turned out that the attitude and enthusiasm shown by driving through the night for a meeting was exactly what the school was looking for. Dave was enrolled in photography school. He didn’t drop out. One night, he was on a school exchange and Paul was telling him, in a bar in Portugal at 3 a.m., that he would never make it as a photographer. “Dave, you’re talented, probably the most talented photographer we’ve ever had through the school, but you think everything will just come to you. It won’t. You have to want it more than anybody else and that’s the only way your talent will see fruition,” is how Dave recalls the conversation. “I woke up the next morning and I was literally a changed man,” he says. He started working that day and never stopped. Straight out of school he was given
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a job at a photo agency (think Getty, Corbis, Reuters and the like, but smaller – places that provide images to all the major daily newspapers) after being selected as the best in his class. He spent a couple of years there before moving on to South West News Service, where he worked up to 16 hours a day, 12 days on and two days off, while getting to know the people at the photo desks of the nation’s daily newspapers. You have to remember this was back in the 1990s, before the internet ruined newspaper advertising and when people still read newspapers in England. The country is the geographic size of the island of Newfoundland, but with a population of some 48 million people in the mid1990s. There were a lot of big-name daily newspapers to serve those people, like the Guardian, the Telegraph, the Times, the Daily Mail, and each one had a lot of advertising
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dollars to spend. Facebook wasn’t a thing yet and Google hadn’t devoured advertising spending. The newspaper business was healthy. Times were good. Dave worked. And after that level of intense work, a South West News Service photographer could have his pick of any job he wanted. Dave chose to go to New York, using those contacts back in England to keep working. A lot. He went to all 50 states, logged a million flight miles, got to know the airport gate staff, spent some time in Miami, worked throughout the Caribbean, then back to New York. Along the way, Dave had met and married a Newfoundland gal. They had a daughter and bought a house here in St. John’s, back before the 64
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boom. But they weren’t ready to move home yet. Dave still had Nick Nolte-esque things to do, he explains. While the newspaper industry was wheezing to a crash, Newfoundland and Labrador was crescendoing to a boom – the sound of oil money coming to town. That oil activity, and the desire of large corporations to have imagery reflecting their new activity, allowed Dave and his family to move to Newfoundland and Labrador. He’s now shooting advertising, not editorial work. It’s both completely different and still the same, Dave explains. Instead of photographing American presidents, he’s now photographing company CEOs. Dave’s working harder now than he 1-888-588-6353
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ever has. He’s up all night, headphones on, foot tapping, zoning out to Prince as he edits photographs with his Wacom tablet. He’s out the door some days early enough to be at a location before sunrise to get that spectacular shot. Some nights, he’s sitting in the cold and the dark, waiting for the earth to spin around and line up a point of land with the Milky Way to create a photo that gives the viewer a transcendent experience. When you get good enough at www.downhomelife.com
something, people want you to talk about it. And Dave is a pretty good photographer. Excellent, even. He gives quite a few talks, he says, and has noticed something – a nodding of heads in agreement as he admits to being useless in school and flunking out, before going on to say that you can do well after dropping out of school if you have passion. He has figured out the secret to success, and that secret still keeps him going, because after all these years he still loves photography. “That’s why I still get up every morning and do it, because I’m still passionate about it…I get to wander around with my camouflage jacket, my sunglasses and a camera on my shoulder. It’s the goal. I won.” September 2018
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Some families have more in common than others. Some are the spitting image of one another; others share the same interests or hobbies. This family, however, has an especially rare bond. Danny Benoit of Black Duck Brook, NL, and his four grown children each have only one functioning kidney. But none of them were born that way. Since childhood, two of Danny’s children – Chris and Angela – have both suffered from diabetes, a disease strongly linked to kidney problems. (According to the Canadian Diabetes Association, up to half of people with diabetes will demonstrate signs of kidney damage in their lifetime.)
The Benoit family, from left: Chris, Danny, Yvonne, Billy and Angela www.downhomelife.com
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By 2008, Chris (then 38), had already endured kidney dialysis for nearly two years and was advised by doctors to seek a transplant. As luck would have it, both Danny and Chris’ brother, Billy, were matches. In the end, doctors deemed the brothers a better match and the pair underwent surgery – a decision that would later prove wise. “He’s my brother,” says Billy. “He needed the help, I was there. I was the perfect match.” The procedure was a success, and Chris felt the benefit of his new kidney almost immediately. Although that hurdle was behind them, more lay ahead. Eight years on, in 2016, their father fell ill. Doctors soon made a troubling diagnosis: Danny was suffering from cancer – of the kidney. The diseased organ was removed, and the Benoit family patriarch is cancer-free today. “We talk about that sometimes. If Dad would have given me a kidney, then it would have gone either way for him; either he gave me the bad one or he gave me the good one and winds up with none,” shares Chris.
History Repeats Itself This year marks the 10th anniversary of the brothers’ transplant procedures, a milestone they wound up marking in a most unusual way. Just a few months ago, Chris and Billy found themselves back in hospital. This time, though, they were in the waiting room. After three years of dialysis, Angela was now in need of a new kidney – and her younger sister, Yvonne, stepped up to the plate. “She didn’t want me to do it. She 68
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was bent on getting a deceased donor. It seems ridiculous, really, but she didn’t want to hurt me. She didn’t want to change my quality of life,” says Yvonne. “But eventually, in time, her health wasn’t getting any better, and we decided that it was the best way. I finally convinced her to do it.” They cried during the phone conversation when Yvonne revealed the good news: she was a match. As they headed into surgery in May, Yvonne says they were nervous but surprisingly upbeat. After all, having watched their brothers come through the same procedure a decade earlier, they had living, breathing examples of what a successful kidney transplant can look like. And just like their brothers, they came through it with flying colours. “[Yvonne] had never been in hospital, she’d never had a surgery, so it was physically and a little bit mentally hard on her. I’m an old pro, right? I’ve been doing this for a long time,” says Angela. “She’s my hero.” Today, the Benoit siblings (who all live in Ontario) are back to living life as usual, finally free of machines doing the work of failing organs. Going forward with their new leases on life, Chris and Angela will require anti-rejection medication and careful management of their diabetes. Little has changed for Billy and Yvonne. “You can live a pretty normal life with one kidney,” says Yvonne. As for Danny, he’s basking in the relief that his children are finally enjoying good health. And he’s truly moved by the sacrifices they’ve made for each other. “I couldn’t be more proud of the 1-888-588-6353
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The World’s First Transplant Kidneys were the first vital human organs to be successfully transplanted, and an operation that took place in Massachusetts in 1954 is widely considered to be the world’s first truly successful transplantation. Led by surgeon and Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Joseph Murray, a team at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston performed the ground-breaking procedure, though the medical establishment of the day declared them fools for attempting the surgery. At stake were the lives of twin brothers: 23-yearolds Richard and Ronald Herrick. Richard, in the end stages of kidney disease, reportedly had second thoughts about the operation. On the eve of the procedure, he penned a desperate note to his brother: “Get out of here and go home,” he wrote. Ronald’s reply read, “I am here and I am going to stay.” It turned out to be a wise decision. Despite the absence of anti-rejection drugs (which hadn’t yet been developed), the transplant was a success. Richard’s new kidney earned him another eight years of life, while Ronald passed away at age 79. In 1984, Murray received the Nobel Prize for his work, which helped usher in a new era of medicine.
bond they share,” he beams. However, his children aren’t necessarily patting themselves on the back. Neither Yvonne nor Billy say they see their actions as extraordinary. “I felt like it was something nobody else could do for him,” says Billy. “But I don’t take pride in it. I don’t let pride get in the way of anything.” There is one thing the Benoits do take pride in, however, and that’s how close their family is. When they’re together, no fancy plans are required. All they need is a kitchen table to sit around, some food to share, and minwww.downhomelife.com
utes turn into hours as they laugh, swap stories and reminisce. “We’ve always considered ourselves to be very lucky because our family bond is very tight,” says Yvonne. “I guess those values were just instilled in us as children. Our mother and our father just made us realize that family, they’re your forever friends. And they are: my brothers and my sister are my best friends. They’re the people that I can turn to for anything, and I know they will always be there for me. And I want to do the same for them.” September 2018
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life is better Morning splendour in Little Bay Islands Mike Parsons, Little Bay Islands, NL
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explore
what’s on the
Go
Cow Head, NL
Gander, NL
September 1-22
September 7-9
Organized and put off by Theatre Newfoundland Labrador, Gros Morne Theatre Festival is a 16-week celebration of stage works featuring anywhere from six to eight plays in a season. September’s play is “Our Frances,” a production based on letters to home written by Frances Cluett that explores her time spent at the 10th General Hospital in Rouen, France during the First World War. www.theatrenewfoundland.com
Calling all ATV enthusiasts. If you’ve ever wanted to ride your quad through town without getting in trouble, or go for a trail ride somewhere new, or meet other ATV enthusiasts over food, drink and entertainment, then you want to go to Gander’s sixth annual Quad-A-Palooza. Register by contacting the Quality Hotel Gander or the Albatross Hotel.
Bonavista, NL September 8 After more than 20 years of playing together, Shanneyganock are showing no signs of slowing down. Their full tour schedule includes a show at the beautiful Garrick Theatre. This show, which starts at a very reasonable 8 p.m., also features the masterful guitar playing of Craig Young. www.garricktheatre.ca
Avalon Peninsula, NL September 5-9 Feile Seamus Creagh is a celebration of Newfoundland and Irish traditional music in memory of Seamus Creagh, an Irish fiddler who lived in Newfoundland and Labrador from 1987 to 1992 (during which time he recorded the album Came the Dawn). Seamus influenced many local trad musicians, and his legacy lives on through the festival. facebook.com/FeileSeamusCreagh
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St. John’s, NL
St. John’s, NL
September 12-22
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Launched last year, Iceberg Alley is returning for 10 nights of concerts featuring performances by Alan Doyle, Big Wreck, Serena Ryder and many more. All shows are held in a big tent on the shores of Quidi Vidi, keeping everyone dry while rocking out. www.icebergalleyconcerts.com
September is national ovarian cancer awareness month. To help raise funds for cancer research, a fun run has been organized in the province’s capital. The Women of Hope ovarian cancer NL fun run begins at 2 p.m. at Quidi Vidi. For more information about this event, email: womenofhopenl@gmail.com.
Various locations, NL September 19-25
Serena Ryder
Elliston, NL September 14-15 Combine excellent food with the great outdoors and you get Roots Rants and Roars. This two-day festival includes a food hike – 5 km of trail with multiple stops for food created by some of the best chefs in the country. There’s also Cod Wars, where chefs create fish-based plates as they vie for the title of king and queen of cod; and The Feast, a night of excellent food enjoyed outdoors. www.rootsrantsandroars.ca
“Menopause the Musical,” a laugh out loud comedy about four women brought together by a black lace bra in a department store, features songs from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. A smash hit on the mainland, this long-running show is embarking on a tour of Arts & Culture Centres this month. See the show in Stephenville (Sept. 19), Corner Brook (Sept. 20-21), Grand Falls-Windsor (Sept. 22) and Gander (Sept. 25).
Marble Mountain, NL September 15 The 5K Foam Fest takes a fun approach to obstacle course-style racing with a whole lot of foam. There’s the lily pad section, where you run across mats over the water; giant inflatable slides named the Death Drop; mud sections, log rolls, tube slides, hurdles and more. With 22 obstacles and 1.5 million cubic feet of foam, it’s a whole lot of wet, muddy fun. the5kfoamfest.com www.downhomelife.com
St. John’s, NL Thursday evenings Rocket Bakery’s new jam is the sort you can’t taste. It’s a treat for the ears, not the taste buds, as Matthew Hornell hosts the “Homely Made Jam Session” and invites people to perform during an informal music night. The free event is open to all and has a focus on bluegrass and old timey music. September 2018
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This month’s “Homestead-a-palooza” offers tips on everything from beekeeping to making sea salt. STORY & PHOTOS BY DENNIS FLYNN
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THE LATE EVENING SUN glistens on the ancient metal tines of the horse-drawn hay rake as seagulls glide in from the nearby harbour, swooping low to investigate. There rises the perfume of freshly mown grass as wooden-handled scythes are swung by strong men in unison. Soon the pony pulls at her harness; head down, pawing the ground, she is eager to go, and before long iron wheels roll across the meadow. When a pook of hay of sufficient size is gathered behind the rake, the driver lifts the rake to drop the load. They turn and repeat the process anew until the meadow is laid clean and closely shorn. It is a fashion of farming almost as old as agriculture itself, and while you may think I’m describing a centuries-old scene, it was actually observed during a stop to photograph Newfoundland ponies at work in Bay Roberts in 2006. Stopping to chat with Kevin Dawson that day, he explained to me the significance of continuing to work this way in modern times. “This is the hay meadow on our late father’s small farm. They used to call
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him ‘Farmer’ Jack Dawson, since he raised some sheep, pigs, goats, chickens, ducks, a few cows, grew his own vegetables and, of course, he always had a special place in his heart for the Newfoundland ponies…So we like to hook them up and do this particular meadow the traditional way when we can,” he said. “It is great exercise for both the ponies and us; we get to take care of the supply of hay for our animals knowing what they are eating is good, natural stuff; plus it lets us all
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Steve and Lisa McBride left their corporate careers to become homesteaders, growing their own food and raising livestock.
feel close to our father and the land. If you don’t mind a bit of hard work, it is not a bad way to live.” That desire to control the security and quality of our own food supply has enjoyed a resurgence in the province in recent years, with a boom in the do-it-yourself homesteading movement. Recently, I travelled to Mobile on the beautiful Irish Loop to chat with two people who are local leaders in that movement: Steve and Lisa McBride. Steve is originally from Vancouver, 76
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British Columbia, but has been living in St. John’s for the past 10 years. He is best known (along with his partner, Lisa) as the owner of what he refers to with a laugh as the “Mobile Goats.” (Townies may remember the McBrides and their goats from their days living in the downtown area of St. John’s.) “We homestead, which basically means we are concerned with the entirety of our food network. We are not quite there yet, but we take an active hand in growing our own 1-888-588-6353
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Lisa tends to the goats on their Mobile homestead.
vegetables, foraging for our own fruits, collecting salt water from the ocean to make sea salt, keeping ducks for eggs, raising heritage turkeys, keeping rabbits, keeping goats for milk – from which we make yogurt, cheese, and even ice cream – keeping bees for honey and mead [a type of honey-based wine], and in the winter making our own maple syrup,” he shares. But the couple didn’t start out as homesteaders – far from it. Not so long ago, they were working in corporate careers and admit they’d never grown anything or had any hand in their own food supply. “It has been a voyage, learning things along the way,” says Steve. Walking around their property, it’s evident how far they’ve come. I tell them the place is a “hive” of activity. www.downhomelife.com
Steve and Lisa tolerate my bad joke, a reference to the bees buzzing around us. They figure there are roughly two million bees on their land, providing not just honey and wax, but also an invaluable service as pollinators of plants. “Some studies say you will get about 20 per cent more yield on plants where there are beehives nearby,” explains Steve. “That is significant for harvesters, and of course the bees love bakeapple, blueberry and cranberry blossoms, so Newfoundland is prime territory for this in some ways.” And the McBrides don’t just reap rewards from the land around them, they also find good things in the sea. “We gather the water, filter it to get any minor imperfections out, and then allow it to evaporate in pans in September 2018
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the greenhouse in the summer or on the woodstove in the winter. It leaves behind this really nice sea salt we harvest for all our recipes and cooking,” says Steve. A five-gallon bucket of seawater yields about a pound of salt, adds Steve, and because of its superior quality and the way it crystallizes, you can generally use about 30 per cent less in your seasoning than regular table salt.
HOMESTEADING HELP
Of course, a lot of hard work goes into procuring honey and salt (and a myriad of other foodstuffs) the way the McBrides do, and Steve admits there’s a lot involved with the lifestyle they lead. He says when a particular task becomes boring or tiring, they simply shift gears and tackle a simpler job for a while. “But it is all productive work and you can see the good in what you are doing, which makes it all enjoyable and appealing to certain people,” he says. That appeal is evident in the increasing requests the McBrides see for workshops and information on homesteading. After learning a few tricks on their own, the McBrides created the Facebook group “Backyard Farming & Homesteading NL,” a place where people who share their interests can exchange knowledge. As of July 2018, the group had grown to 11,000 members. This month, to further address the demand for homesteading help, they are teaming up with some 20 presenters to offer “Homestead-a-palooza,” set for September 16. The full-day event will take place at the Colony of Avalon in nearby Ferryland and will include introductory workshops 78
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Lisa holds some sea salt they collected from evaporated seawater. covering a diverse range of topics – everything from foraging for food to keeping bees and making honey, cheese, mead, sea salt etc. Folks can also learn about raising backyard chickens, growing fruit trees, and dying and working with leathers and sealskins, plus lessons in a host of other traditional crafts and food skills. (Stay tuned to the Facebook group for pricing and additional details.) “When you consider the fact that Newfoundland imports approximately 90 per cent of its food, then that is an astonishing number. Also, when you think about what is happening to food prices, anything we can do to improve our food security has to help,” says Steve. For the McBrides, it’s been an 1-888-588-6353
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The McBrides have a fun rule that everyone pays rent on their property: the ducks pay in eggs, the bees in honey.
amazing journey, though it hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been without challenges. They are pleased to see the amount of food that can be grown here. Near the end of my tour, I ask if there is anything missing from their homestead. Lisa says with a grin, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have a fun rule on the farm that everything here pays a rent of some sort; the bees give us honey, the goats give us milk, and the ducks give us eggs and so on. The only thing that does not give rent is the cat, but the cat was with us before we started, so www.downhomelife.com
that makes the cat exempt. We are missing a horse, but we are not quite ready for one yet. We would both love to have a horse to work the ground and do some general chores. Maybe someday.â&#x20AC;? I smile, thinking to myself of Farmer Jack Dawson, long departed from his days of plowing his pastures. And I imagine the deal he would have given the young homesteaders on a Newfoundland pony if they ever decided to see a man about a horse. September 2018
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The mill whistle in Corner Brook is ubiquitous with the city itself. As one former resident put it, when that steam whistle blows it’s like “that same old, familiar voice speaking to them again. ‘Hi, remember me? Welcome home, friend.’” As Corner Brook prepares to host its first-ever come home year, the mill whistle will surely sound its welcome. Last fall, city council designated July 19-28, 2019, official “Come Home Year Week.” As the volunteer committee for Corner Brook Come Home Year (CBCHY) plans this 10-day celebration, residents and expatriates alike are taking to the event’s Facebook page to share cherished memories. A video of that enduring mill whistle has been shared nearly 2,000 times. As an expat Newfoundlander living in Ottawa, I understand the appeal. But besides the mill whistle, topping my Corner Brook soundtrack are the trickling waters of
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the Corner Brook Stream Trail, the church bells of the Cathedral, children playing at Margaret Bowater Park and light breezes rustling through the trees of this city in the forest. For the uninitiated, Corner Brook is in a valley, surrounded by tree-lined hillsides and rock-faced mountains, where the Humber River and other tributaries pour into the Bay of Islands. Its full beauty is only revealed atop lookouts like Captain James
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Aiden Mahoney photo
Cook Historic Site and the TransCanada Highway, where views extend to the majestic Blomidon Mountains. The idea for CBCHY started online, thanks to resident – and now, event chair – Gladys Batten. I sat down with her last spring to learn more. We met at The Carriage Room, known for its Newfoundland and Labrador cuisine, at the Glynmill Inn. Gladys orders pea soup and a bun along with a pot of tea. I follow suit and the conversation naturally segues to food, as is so often the case down home. Gladys envisions businesses, church groups and other associations organizing events for CBCHY that celebrate the local fare – think Jiggs’ dinners, cold plates, lobster boils and bake sales. As we chat, it’s clear from the frequent hellos across the dining room that everyone here knows Gladys and her husband, John Collins. So, although Gladys is about to retire from her day job at the Corner Brook 82
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Arts & Culture Centre (and a whopping 60 years of work altogether), she’s unquestionably the right woman to lead this event. Indeed, event planning is in her blood. At 16, and to the dismay of her mother who didn’t want her daughter involved in such frivolous activities, Gladys rallied up two passenger train car-loads of people to take in a big hockey game between the Corner Brook Royals and the Grand Falls Andcos. Gladys doesn’t recall who won, but the real victory was serving as host, a role she’s enjoyed ever since. Last summer, Gladys pitched the idea for a come home year on the “Historic Corner Brook” Facebook page. The idea quickly dominated the page’s newsfeed, so she launched a dedicated Facebook page, pledging to take the idea to city council for endorsement if membership reached 3,000. Within weeks, the group was 5,000 members strong and growing. Many members were locals, but 1-888-588-6353
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others were expats. At last count (July 2018), membership was just over 7,800 – almost half of Corner Brook’s population, which is just under 20,000 based on the last census. “On behalf of members of council and the City of Corner Brook, I sincerely want to invite everyone to attend the Corner Brook Come Home Year,” says Mayor Jim Parsons. “This event will be an integral part of our community experience in 2019. Not only does it bring together members of our community, but it also will attract visitors from all over the country to return home to our great city.” In fact, the event is likely to attract visitors from around the globe. “There’s no doubt there are Corner Brookers and Newfoundlanders all over this planet,” writes CBCHY committee member Terry Anstey, in a Facebook post. As an administrator of the Facebook page, Terry compiles demographic information about the membership. So far, most are from Canada, but others hail from the United States, Australia, and countries throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia. With 10 days slated for CBCHY, there will surely be something for everyone. The event will begin with a meet and greet at Memorial University’s Grenfell campus on July 19, but the grand opening will coincide with Corner Brook Day on July 20, with fireworks and other events in Margaret Bowater Park. Opening and
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closing ceremonies will also honour the traditional territory of the Qalipu First Nation. Applications and expressions of interest from organizations, businesses and entertainers wanting to take part are still being accepted as planning continues.
“There’s no doubt there are Corner Brookers and Newfoundlanders all over this planet.” CBCHY couldn’t be happening at a better time, Gladys says, as it coincides with the 70th anniversary of Confederation. It might also play into the province’s efforts to persuade expats to come home. In February, the provincial government reached out to expats “to better understand their reasons for leaving the province and gain insight into what would entice them and their families to return.” It’s part of the government’s vision, as outlined in The Way Forward on Immigration in Newfoundland and Labrador, to welcome as many as 1,700 immigrants annually to NL by 2022. “Encouraging Newfoundlanders and Labradorians living abroad to return home helps our economy and communities,” says Al Hawkins, minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour.
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Mayor Jim Parsons agrees, saying CBCHY “will have positive social and economic impacts years after the event concludes.” Granted, CBCHY is about coming home not necessarily for a long time, but certainly a good time. Above all, the event offers attendees the chance to spend time in one of the province’s, and indeed the country’s, most cherished cities. In March, Corner Brook was recognized as one of Canada’s top 20 small cities by Cities Journal. “Tourists are drawn to Corner Brook by the promise of beautiful scenery, a vibrant arts community and amenities available in a safe, small city,” says Gudie Hutchings,
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Member of Parliament for Long Range Mountains. “The family lifestyle available in Corner Brook is something that cannot be beat by the hustle and bustle of living in larger centres. Hopefully, those that visit for Come Home Year will see that Corner Brook has become a progressive, welcoming and diverse community.” Those interested in attending are encouraged to join the Facebook page to learn about the latest schedule of events as well as best-rated places to stay, eat and play. Consulting the City of Corner Brook’s Activity Guide and the NL Tourism website will also help in planning a memorable stay in this city worth celebrating.
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life is better The granite lighthouse of Rose Blanche Harold Feiertag, Kinsgston, ON
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DR. LATONIA HARTERY was seated at her kitchen table, drinking coffee and checking her email, when she got the big news: she was being made a fellow of the Explorers Club. It’s a big accolade for the archaeologist and filmmaker – and now the first woman from Newfoundland and Labrador to join the prestigious club. “I just sat with it a second and processed what it all means and how exciting it is,” she says.
Top: Latonia at Canada Point, North Baffin Island David Newland photo
Bottom left: Latonia in Alexandra Fjord, Ellesemere Island Daniel Catt photo
Bottom right: Latonia in the lab Top right: Driving a Zodiac in the Arctic
The Explorers Club was founded in 1904 in New York City to promote scientific inquiry and adventure. Today, mountain climbers, astronauts, scientists and former U.S. presidents are among its members. Captain Bob Bartlett, the Arctic explorer from Brigus, NL, was made an honorary member in 1914; and in 1927, he was awarded the Explorers Club Medal. To get in, Latonia had to be nominated by someone already in the club and then write an application. After getting news of her acceptance, she sensed a shift. “All of a sudden I had felt, in one moment, a very long way from where I started just in a small town on the coast of Newfoundland,” she says. “And now I’m in this fellow category at the Explorers Club with some of the brightest minds in the world. It felt like a long way.” Growing up in Bay d’Espoir fostered a love of science and adventure, says Latonia. Her father was a pilot who flew in and out of remote communities on all sorts of missions, everything from medical evacuations to firefighting, search and rescue, and transporting political dignitaries. “So lots of times, instead of going to school, if my father was doing something special I would actually skip school and go with my father on these adventures,” she recalls. “So a lot of my childhood actually had a third dimension to it because I was seeing a lot of the world from the air, even
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though I was only six, seven, eight years old.” From a helicopter, she saw migrating caribou, giant sea turtles and deep fiords. But one trip stands out in her mind even decades later. Her father was taking a team from National Geographic to Francois, a tiny south coast community. When she heard of the trip, she begged and pleaded to go. Her parents were hesitant; it was one thing to miss a class here and there, but another to be absent for a test. But by morning, they’d changed their minds and she was allowed to go. The National Geographic team carried large cameras and snapped shots around town while Latonia looked on. “Whatever it was that those people were doing, I wanted to be doing that,” she decided that day. At the time, she wasn’t quite sure why they were visiting this tiny, rural town; what was fascinating to National Geographic and their readers was just an isolated outport to her. Of course, as she got older, Latonia could appreciate how unique such remote places are, and how few people get to see them in person.
Finding her dream job That desire sparked in Francois to lead an adventurous life pointed her towards a career in archaeology. “I want to travel, I want to explore, I want to discover, I want to be outside. I love being outside, so what can I do that gives me all that? And the thing about archaeology,” she says, “it’s the study of people, so then I can apply anything I learn there to anything.” And so she has. Latonia is president of Amina Anthropological Resources Association Incorporated, a nonprofit that ties together Newfoundland and 88
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Labrador and the Arctic. She also acts as an interpreter for Adventure Canada expedition cruises and occasionally teaches at universities. And she’s CEO for LJH Films Inc., a documentary film production company. Since 1998, Latonia has been visiting a research station in Bird Cove on the Great Northern Peninsula. When the moratorium began in the ’90s, the town realized they needed a next step to survive, Latonia says. So they looked at their resources and they knew there was history there. Archeologists confirmed the area was rich in material culture. So the town started a nonprofit in ’96, and the next year had its first field season with professional archeologists. Eventually, the town’s old school was converted into a museum, which interprets local history and houses a lab for processing and conserving artifacts. Residents of the community are deeply involved with what’s going on. Core archeologists led the expedition, while some of the locals became field researchers. By the third summer, they were capable of excavating the site on their own, as well as identifying and aging artifacts, Latonia says with pride. In fact, one time an archeologist from Hawaii joined them on a dig and was watching the locals at work. He was so impressed he wanted to offer them jobs! “They started to become so good that they could start interpreting some things faster than I could,” Latonia says. “And also, because they had local gardens and stuff, they knew the soil really well. And in archaeology, sometimes soil change can equate to a culture change in the levels…So one day I was excavating and I came to this new level of soil 1-888-588-6353
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Latonia scans the horizon at Karrat Fjord in northwest Greenland Daniel Catt photo
and I was like, ‘Oh, new soil level!’ And one of the workers from town [said], ‘Nah, we see that all the time. That’s not cultural, let’s keep going.’” She adds, “There’s something to be said for local knowledge and how those people get out in the environment, interact with it, absorb that knowledge, apply it to everything they do.” In isolated communities, people develop intimate knowledge of the land that allows them to survive. “They use knowledge that’s been passed down for hundreds of years to interact with their environment in a way that the knowledge is so deep and pure.” It makes her want to know the world on that level, too.
A sense of adventure With Latonia’s standing as a fellow of the Explorers Club she’s already planning her first official trip to the headquarters. The club is known for its annual March meeting, when members converge on New York City for a dinner. “So I could meet Buzz Aldrin and all the astronauts, that’s the kind of people that go,” Latonia says. She’s looking forward to chatting with likeminded people, bringing their enthusiasm back and applying it to her www.downhomelife.com
work. As a fellow, she also has a permanent invitation to the Polar Film Festival the club hosts in January. It won’t be her first time at the club, though. She visited before as a guest. “When you walk in, you do feel like you’ve stepped into something very lush. Almost like the walls could talk or something, you know? It feels very historical.” Inside, there’s a map room, an archival room, space for public lectures, and rare artifacts, including Arctic explorer Robert Peary’s sled. It wasn’t luck that got Latonia her dream job or membership in such an exclusive organization, but hard work. In total, she was in university for over a decade and she remembers plenty of Friday nights she stayed in to study while others were out partying. But she knew it would pay off. Recently, when Latonia was sailing around northern Greenland as an interpreter with Adventure Canada, she found herself struck by how scenic it all was. “As I’m looking, as these vast landscapes reveal themselves before me as we sail along, I really feel good about some of those choices I made with respect to archaeology and exploration and adventure. It just really led to this fulfilling life.” September 2018
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Even as a toddler, she cried and cajoled to join her grandfather as he plowed, planted and picked his sprawling vegetable fields in Lethbridge, Bonavista Bay. By the time she was eight, she was already well versed in operating his farm equipment. Adulthood pulled her away from the farm, though; like many young people, she moved to St. John’s to attend university. Then the farm pulled her back. “I was out of my element. No offence to city life, but I couldn’t live it. I was depressed every day,” says Krista. “When I moved home to the farm, all of that went away.” And before long, she decided to start working the land herself, all while caring for her elderly grandparents and her two young children. But it would be a hard row to hoe. Much of the 81 acres of once immaculately kept vegetable fields had gone untended in the decades since her grandfather’s retirement. Using his vintage equipment, she turned over her first piece of sod in 2007. Since then, she’s transformed swaths of forest back into fertile fields – much of it on her own. “[My grandfather] could tell me where every water basin was, where there’s wet sections on the field to stay away from, where there’s slate content…He could tell me everything about that farm,” says Krista. “So every evening after I was out working I would sit down at 9:00 and have a snack with him and we’d just talk farming, we’d talk about the land.”
All photos courtesy Krista Chatman
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Above: Called Three Mile Ridge, the farm is named for a well-known area of railway track that once ran along the back of the property. Right: William Reader started working the land in 1970. Decades later he passed down his knowledge to his granddaughter, Krista, who follows in his hardworking footsteps.
Thanks to those late-night discussions with her grandfather (who passed away in 2009) and plenty of hard work, today 20 of those 81 acres are back in commercial production. The early years saw her face numerous crop failures on her farm, but she persevered and found ways to make things work. Instead of planting seeds directly in the ground, she now uses greenhouses to get ahead of the season, and she’s becoming increasingly in tune with the nuances of the local microclimate. A certain amount of innate knowledge helped her 92
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through the hard times, too. “I knew what I seen in the plants,” shares Krista. “I knew, by looking at the leaves and other characteristics in the plants, what they needed. I didn’t know I had that knowledge, but I had it.” In recent years her husband, David, has come on board fulltime at the farm; her parents and two sons (now 12 and 15) are also heavily involved. As for Krista, she is happier (and busier) than she’s ever been. (In addition to running her farm, she also serves as the managing director 1-888-588-6353
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of Farm & Market Clarenville, a farmers’ market that opened just last year – a project she helped bring to fruition.) While in many ways she’s following in her grandfather’s footsteps, she’s putting her own spin on the farm, too. Three years ago, she opened a store on the farm, where she sells her produce plus products from local businesses and artists. She regularly welcomes school groups for farm tours, and most recently she’s begun offering opportunities for the general public to share in her passion for farming through a unique, delicious experience.
Tradition Becomes Tourism
In addition to buying vegetables of all kinds on the farm, starting this year, folks can enjoy the “Three Mile Ridge Experience” to get a slice of the life that Krista and her family enjoy so much. “We’ll take to the fields and get them to harvest their own vegetables,” says Krista. Once the veggies www.downhomelife.com
are procured, Krista leads participants through the farm to an especially scenic part of the property – complete with a gazebo, cabin and campfire area – overlooking a pond. With guidance from Krista’s parents, vegetables are then prepped and tossed in with salt meat, already boiling away on an outdoor cook stove. “Then we’re going to take their [vegetable] scraps…and we’re going to go up on another side of the farm where all of our animals are kept, and we’re going to go around feeding the animals that can eat the scraps and petting all the other ones,” says Krista. “By the time that’s done we’ll make it back to the cabin where they can overlook the pond in the gazebo eating their Jiggs’ dinner.” Krista plans to offer the Three Mile Ridge Experience through October, and imagines the outing (which costs $100 per person and takes about three hours) will appeal to both tourists and locals, and folks young and old. “I think children would enjoy it – September 2018
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Operating Three Mile Ridge is a family affair. Above: David and Krista Chatman. Right: Krista’s oldest son, Spencer, sells produce from his family's farm at the Farm & Market in Clarenville.
and maybe if they harvested their own they might eat their Jiggs’ dinner, they might eat their veggies,” she points out. For older individuals, she can offer a wagon ride through the property as opposed to undertaking the walk. In developing the tourism experience, she didn’t have to look far for inspiration – the leisurely harvest and cookout has been an annual tradition in her family for several years running. It’s become more or less a time to reap what they’ve sown before selling off their hard-won produce to the public. Krista has more business ideas brewing, too. She says she hopes to offer a winter version of the Three Mile Ridge Experience, which would pair a horse-drawn sleigh ride with the Jiggs’ dinner feast, using veggies they store for the winter. 94
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Grow Food, Not Lawns
The tourism offerings are one small part of helping Krista achieve her vision. Since she turned over that first bit of sod more than a decade ago, her goals have evolved in concert with the land. “I needed to earn an income to raise my family, but then it became I want to feed people, and then it became I want to promote agriculture,” says Krista. To that end she’s always open to sharing her knowledge and encouraging others to grow. And while not everyone can commit their lives to farming as her 1-888-588-6353
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Krista offers a slice of farm life to the general public at Three Mile Ridge, including a feed of fresh Jigg’s dinner.
family has, she believes everybody can play a role. “I always believe in grow food, not lawns,” says Krista. “There’s a lot of people that just grow a little bit in their backyard…I think those people contribute significantly to the overall picture of food security.” And it’s not just talk. A living, breathing example of food security, Krista is implementing plans this year to grow crops year-round in her greenhouses. Moreover, you won’t find her buying plastic-wrapped meat on Styrofoam plates at the supermarket; her family is sustained www.downhomelife.com
by the animals raised on their farm. Eventually, she’s hoping her two sons will carry the torch she’s relit, using the lessons she learned from her grandfather over those countless late-night conversations. And while she estimates she’s invested approximately $250,000, mainly in new equipment, in the farm in the last four years, she’s held onto some of her grandfather’s original pieces, the very ones she started out on. “The planter that I began with, which is vintage – it’s 50 years old – is sitting on the deck to my store. I have it there and people come in and say, ‘What is this?’ And I say, ‘That’s my start right there, that’s where I began,’” says Krista. “I hope he would be proud.” Visit threemileridgecountry.ca for more tour details, including discounts for children and large groups. September 2018
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When we visited
Marystown, NL on our staycation in June 2018, a local server recommended we visit Tidal Cove or Tidal Point. It was beautiful and a good spot to possibly see whales – we were sold. We continued on to our hotel in Burin, where the reception lady gave us the local version of directions: turn left at Appleby’s, go to the cemetery and turn on the dirt road. (I love this island!) She also said we might see sheep and goats. So off we went on our adventure, and we actually found the exit quite easily following her directions. We bumped and jumped our way along the dirt road for quite a ways. We missed the “exit” for the cove and kept along the road to an unknown destination. It finally climbed and ended at the lighthouse – and sure enough, there were some random goats munching and napping. “Cool,” we thought, “we’ll lower the power windows, take some snaps...” I took it one step further, turned off the vehicle and got out to meet the locals. This is where it went sideways. My friends were still in the SUV. One, who had some bananas in the back seat with her, thought she’d make friends and kindly peeled a banana and offered it to the largest goat. The goat enjoyed it immensely and immediately wanted more, so she peeled another. By now the goat was turning into an ape, and had acquired a real taste for bananas. It proceeded to jump up on two hooves and attempt to climb into the backseat with my friend to get the rest of her bananas! Between howling with laughter, panicked cries of “My paint job!” and failed attempts at prying the goat’s hooves out of the SUV, my friends managed to pass me a banana through the passenger window (I was outside the vehicle with the keys this entire time), so I could lure the goat out with the thing it wanted most. I tossed the banana, then made a run for the driver’s door, hopped in and started up the vehicle to get the windows up before the goat came back! I carefully backed up and headed back to the cove we had missed the first time. All the way down we continued to laugh hysterically at our experience. And when we encountered a very baritone sheep, we absolutely died! Needless to say, it was a highlight of our trip, even as we continued to find goat hair in the SUV for days after and I now have to buff hoof scuffs off my door. But hey, it’s all about the memories!
Do you have a great story from your summer adventures around Newfoundland and Labrador? Turn to page 9 to see how easy it is to submit your Travel Diary and have a chance to see it printed in Downhome. www.downhomelife.com
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food & leisure the everyday gourmet
Be a Lunch Box
Hero
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the everyday gourmet By Andrea Maunder
Andrea Maunder, locovore, wine expert and pastry chef, is the owner and creative force behind Bacalao, a St. John's restaurant specializing in "nouvelle Newfoundland" cuisine. www.bacalaocuisine.ca
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I think the universe
might be offering me baking challenges! I find myself getting together with friends who have various food allergies and dietary restrictions, frequently all at the same event. While preparing a dessert for a party where some guests were vegan, and others had egg, coconut and gluten allergies, I thought to myself, “That eliminates pretty much everything – what’s left to put in?” So, I had a glass of wine and then an idea came. Practically everyone loves chocolate, and I had this gorgeous black cocoa on hand. Shortly, gluten-free, vegan brownies were born. And they are soooo delicious, I swear you won’t feel you are missing anything. Back-to-school time presents similar dilemmas, with so many schools prohibiting foods, so I thought I’d share this recipe with you. Free of most common allergens, these brownies are sure to make you a lunch box hero for some students you love. That black cocoa I used is available at the bulk foods store. If you can’t find it, use more regular cocoa and double the espresso powder. If you can’t find instant espresso powder, replace the water with brewed coffee. September 2018
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Gluten-Free Vegan Brownies 1 1/4 cups gluten-free flour blend (Robin Hood is widely available and is just the right blend for this recipe) 1 cup white sugar 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/3 tsp kosher salt 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1 tbsp instant espresso powder 2 tbsp black cocoa 2 tbsp regular Dutch process cocoa
1/2 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 1/4 cup water 1/4 cup semisweet or dark chocolate chips (check ingredients if baking for vegans)
Chocolate Sauce (optional) 1/4 cup semisweet or dark chocolate chips 1 tsp vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray an 8"x8" baking pan with non-stick spray (or brush with oil) and line with parchment paper (leave extra paper hanging over two sides to lift the brownies out later). In a mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Sift in the cocoas, as they are generally lumpy. In a large measuring cup, combine the oil, applesauce and water. Add to dry ingredients and stir to combine. Add chocolate chips. Transfer to pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 26-28 minutes until the top feels slightly firm. (They will still be a little gooey in the middle.) Cool in the pan for 20 minutes then lift out, peel off the parchment and finish cooling on a rack. Cut into 16 squares. If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to add some extra chocolatey goodness, melt chocolate chips and vegetable oil in the microwave in two to three 30-second increments. Drizzle resulting sauce over cooled brownies. 102
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everyday recipes.ca
Instead of offering apples to your kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; teachers for all their hard work, break with tradition and gift them one of these simple, yet delicious, apple-inspired treats.
Warm Apple Salsa 1 cup diced, peeled apple 1 cup shallots, small dice 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup diced plum 1/4 cup turbinado sugar (or golden yellow) 1/2 cup red wine/port 1/4 cup rice vinegar 1/2 tsp celery salt 1/2 tsp black pepper
Mix everything together and store, covered, in the fridge overnight. Next day, strain the salsa thoroughly, reserve it, and place the liquid in a large frying pan. Boil the liquid until it has reduced by about 75 per cent and is nearly a syrup. Add in the reserved salsa and toss to coat it in the liquid. When salsa is warmed through, remove from heat. Serve with your favourite meats such as steak, lamb or duck. Yield: Approx. 3 cups
All of our recipes are brought to you by the fantastic foodies in Academy Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Culinary Arts program, led by instructor Bernie-Ann Ezekiel.
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Apple-Fennel Slaw 1 1 1 1
tart apple, peeled and cored, julienne cup fennel (the bulb), julienne cup red onion, sliced very thin tbsp fennel fronds, roughly chopped
For the dressing 1/2 tsp fresh garlic, minced 1/4 cup white wine vinegar 2 tbsp white sugar 1 tsp sesame seeds 1/2 tsp black mustard seed 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a medium-size bowl. Add apple, fennel, onion and fennel fronds, and toss to coat. Let marinate for one hour in the fridge, stirring occasionally, before serving. Yield: 3-4 servings
For printable recipe cards visit
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Apple-Rhubarb-Ade 1/2 cup white sugar 1 3/4 cups water 1/2 cup red rhubarb, small dice
3 tart apples, washed and cored 1/4 cup lime juice
Mix water and sugar together in a heavy bottomed pot over high heat. Bring to a boil and boil for one full minute. Cool to room temperature. Pour into a blender with all remaining ingredients. Blend on high until everything is completely pulverized. Pour through a fine strainer, stirring occasionally. Ensure that it is completely strained and serve over ice. *Note: You can keep the remaining purĂŠe to use in baked goods such as muffins! Yield: 20 oz.
For printa recipe ca ble rds visit
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Tarte Tatin 1 pkg puff pastry, thawed 1/4 cup butter, softened 1/4 cup white sugar 2 tbsp white wine
1/4 tsp vanilla 2 apples (any tart variety), cored and sliced thinly
Preheat oven to 400°F. Use the butter to coat the bottom and sides of a cast iron frying pan, concentrating the thickness on the bottom. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the bottom of the pan. Combine wine and vanilla in a bowl; add apples and toss to coat in liquid. Fan out the apple slices over the bottom of the cast iron pan. Drizzle any remaining liquid in the bowl over the apples. Cut a sheet of the puff pastry to fit over the apples and slightly up the sides of the pan. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the pastry has turned a dark golden brown and has puffed up. Turn it out onto a serving platter immediately after you remove it from the oven. *Note: the sugar will have turned to caramel and will be very hot. Be very careful flipping it over. Yield: 6-8 servings
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Apple-Cranberry Spice Bread 1 1/2 cups warm water 1/3 cup vegetable oil (or melted coconut oil) 2 tbsp instant yeast 1/2 cup white sugar 2 tsp salt 1 cup craisins
2 apples, peeled and grated 1 egg 5 1/2 cups flour 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cloves
Whisk together water, vegetable oil, yeast, sugar, salt, craisins, apples and egg. Let sit in a warm place for 10 minutes. Sift together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; add to wet ingredients and combine well to form a dough. Knead until it is smooth and elastic. Cover dough and let it rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size. Divide dough in half and place it in two loaf pans that have been sprayed with non-stick coating. Set aside in a warm place to rise again. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Once loaves have risen to nearly double, place them in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes. The loaves will be a dark golden brown, lightweight and will sound hollow when you knock on the bottom. Remove from pans to cool on racks. Yield: 2 loaves
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ble For printa s rd a c e ip rec visit
Apple-Partridgeberry Jam 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and grated 2 cups frozen partridgeberries 1 cup dark brown sugar 1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cloves 3 tbsp red wine/port 1/4 cup cold water 1 tbsp cornstarch
Mix everything (except water and cornstarch) together in a heavy bottomed pot and cook over medium heat. Allow everything to come to a gentle boil. Once it’s reduced to the point that it’s starting to get a little syrupy, mix the water and cornstarch together and add it to the jam. Once it returns to a boil, allow it to boil for about 10-15 seconds and remove from heat. Yield: 2 – 2 ½ cups
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French Toast with Caramel Rum Sauce 6 thick-cut slices of day-old Apple-Cranberry Spice Bread (see recipe on p. 108) For the bread dip 6 eggs 1/2 cup whipping cream 1/4 cup milk 2 tbsp white sugar 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 tsp almond flavouring
For the caramel 1 1/2 cups white sugar 1/4 cup water 1/4 cup butter, cubed 3/4 cup cream 1/4 cup dark rum
Blend together the bread dip ingredients and set aside. To make the caramel: Combine sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once it starts to boil, do not stir. Use a wet pastry brush to wipe down any bits of sugar that spit up on the sides of the pot. This will help avoid crystallization of sugar. Once sugar has reached a deep amber colour, remove from heat and immediately whisk in butter. It will produce a lot of steam, so lean away. Once butter is incorporated, mix cream and rum together and whisk in to sugar mixture. Allow to cool. Dip bread in egg mixture and let soak while you heat a non-stick pan over medium heat. Melt a small amount of butter and start frying dipped bread, flipping to get a golden crust on both sides. When done, the centre will start to puff slightly and should not ooze any egg mixture when gently pushed. Serve immediately with caramel rum sauce. Yield: 6 servings
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Chewy Granola Bars 1/2 cup rolled oats (quick oats) 1/4 cup coconut 1 apple, peeled and grated 1/2 cup sliced almonds 2 tbsp mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup puffed quinoa 1 egg white 1/4 cup maple syrup 1/2 tsp cardamom
Preheat oven to 325°F. Mix the first six ingredients together and set aside. Whisk the egg white until very frothy, then add the maple syrup and cardamom. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry and thoroughly combine. Press into a sprayed loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until the edges are browned and the top starts to become golden. Remove from the pan, cut into six bars and return to the oven on a sheet pan for about 10 minutes to dry a little. Remove bars from the sheet pan and cool on a rack. These may be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days or at room temperature for 2-3 days. Yield: 6 bars
ble For printa s rd a c e recip visit
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food & leisure stuff about
Milk Ever thought about why it’s called the Milky Way? According to Greek mythology it is the breast milk of Hera, queen of the gods, which she accidentally sprayed across the galaxy after nursing Heracles.
Milkweed is a common wildflower poisonous to most animals. However, the monarch butterfly is able to safely ingest its toxin and doing so repels the butterfly’s predators. Back in the days of home delivery, milk slides (sleighs) pulled by dogs were used to deliver fresh milk door-to-door in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.
The voice of the Nesquik Bunny, Quicky – mascot for the milk flavouring powder and syrup since 1973 – is provided by actor Barry Gordon. Before acting, Gordon was famous as the six-year-old singer of a chart-topping single (now a classic), “Nuttin’ for Christmas,” in 1955. 112
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Carnation Evaporated Milk, founded in 1899 in the State of Washington, started its own dairy cow breeding farm to ensure their milk was of the highest quality made from truly “contented cows,” as their slogan famously claimed.
The breast pump, a device for extracting a nursing mother’s milk that is seen as a modernday must-have, has been in existence for centuries in some form or another – all the way back to ancient Greek society.
Breastfeeding moms are the target of a very fashionable trend: breast milk jewelry. The featured stone(s) in each piece are made using the mother’s own breast milk.
Moose milk isn’t just something baby moose drink. It’s the name of a popular Canadian Armed Forces cocktail, featuring hard liquor mixed with milk, ice cream or eggnog.
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food & leisure down to earth
Plucking, Planting & Picking Gardening tips for September By Ross Traverse
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The children are back to school and the weather is nice and cool for working outside. This is the ideal time to do some work in the garden.
In the flower garden Flower beds and containers will need to be maintained to look their best in the fall. First of all, you should pick off (deadhead) all the faded annual flowers. This will stimulate the plants to produce more flowers late in the season. When seeds develop from the flowers, many annuals will slow down or stop flowering. If seed is already developed on the plant, that seed should be removed as well. Annual flowers need to be fertilized on a regular basis during the summer and into the fall. An application of 20–20–20 soluble fertilizer every two or three weeks will keep the plants growing right up until the frost. Perennial flowers should not be fertilized in the fall because this will stimulate soft growth going into the winter when the plant really needs to go dormant naturally. Some annual transplants, like pansies and calendula, can be planted in early September to produce flowers in late fall and early winter because they can tolerate cold conditions. They may even overwinter and produce flowers early next spring. September is a good time to plant perennial flower seeds directly in the garden. They will overwinter as small plants and then they can be transplanted to a permanent location next spring. Make sure you label the plants so that they can be quickly identified when they start to grow next season. This is a very economical way to propagate new perennials that are grown from seed. Existing perennials can be divided in September and planted in a new location. The soil should be prepared by mixing in organic matter, lime and fertilizer before planting. Lime should be mixed at the rate of 10 lbs per 100 sq. ft. A generalpurpose fertilizer like 6–12–12 should be used at the rate of no more than 2 lbs per 100 sq. ft. It must be mixed completely with the soil. The soil should be prepared in advance of dividing the perennials so that they can be planted right away, to prevent the roots from drying out. www.downhomelife.com
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Bulbs like crocuses, tulips and daffodils are best planted in mid-to-late September. This will enable them to produce a strong root system that will result in good flower production the following spring. In order to get a good colour display you should plant the same variety in a group of 10-15 bulbs. The area you plant should be well-drained, and avoid planting near the drip line of the house because ice can form on the ground below during the winter and kill the bulbs.
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In the vegetable garden September is a very rewarding time in the vegetable garden. Most of the vegetables will be ready for harvest and some can be stored fresh, frozen or canned (bottled). Generally speaking, fresh vegetables should be cooled down as soon as they are harvested because they will last longer in the refrigerator or cellar. When the frost kills the potato stalks, the potatoes can be dug for long-term storage. New potatoes should be stored in a cool, dark place. Potatoes exposed to light may develop a green colour and may be toxic to some people. Some gardeners like to wash their potatoes before storing them, but then you run the risk of spreading rot diseases in storage. Pumpkins and squash should be covered if there is an early frost warning. Also, remove any leaves that shade pumpkins so that they will develop their orange colour earlier. Place a flat stone or board underneath the fruit to protect it. Winter squash can be stored in a cool place for a month or so, or it can be blanched and frozen. Leaves and stalks from vegetables that have been harvested should be 1-888-588-6353
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removed from the garden. If there is no problem with disease, the waste can be put in the compost. Weeds should be removed when they are small because they will develop seed and cause a big problem next year. This is especially true of chickweed. A late crop of vegetables like spinach, leaf lettuce and rape (turnip greens) can be planted in the area where some of the early vegetables have been harvested. Water-soluble fertilizer like 20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;20 will give the plants a boost after they come up. Some garden herbs, such as parsley, mint and rosemary, can be dug up and put in pots to take inside, where you can continue growing them and using them fresh during the winter. Herbs like savoury and oregano can be dried indoors in a dry, dark space. Hard neck garlic bulbs are available in the fall and are best planted in late September. They will come up early next spring to be harvested in August. The garlic bed should be prepared with the addition of organic matter, lime and fertilizer.
In the fruit garden Clean up the strawberry bed by removing any weeds and thinning out the rooted runners on the plants. The rooted runners can be potted up in containers to grow new plants. These plants can be planted in a new bed later on in October or November. They can also be overwintered by mulching the pots for planting in the spring. Raspberry canes (shoots) that have produced fruit this summer are best cut out right to the ground after they have finished fruiting. These canes www.downhomelife.com
will not produce any more fruit but the new canes are the ones that will give you fruit next year. Support the new canes by tying them to a supporting post and rails, to prevent damage to the canes by wind and snow during the winter. Raspberry plants should not be fertilized in the fall, but lime can be applied in September. You can make new plants from existing gooseberry and currant bushes using a technique called layering. This involves pinning some of the lower branches to the ground and covering part of the branch with soil while leaving the top sticking out. The branches will produce roots in the fall and then they can be separated from the mother plant in the spring to be planted elsewhere. Ross Traverse has been a horticultural consultant to gardeners and farmers for more than 40 years. downtoearth @downhomelife.com
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reminiscing flashbacks
Outdoor Assembly Students gathered for a photo outside their school in Salmon Cove, NL about 60 years ago. Berkley Reynolds, St. John’s, NL
Class of ’63 Years ago, Reta Philips was a teacher in the small community of Monroe, Trinity Bay, NL. From 1959 to 1963 she taught Kindergarten to Grade 11. This is a photo of all her students, taken in ’63. Reta Philips, Clarenville, NL
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Holloway Memories As a young boy, John Cornick attended the Holloway School in St. John’s, NL in the 1950s as a primary student. John especially remembers Miss Leslie and Miss Dingle as excellent teachers. Once known as the Methodist College, after a fire and rebuilding in 1926, the school changed its name to honour past principal Robert Holloway. Front Row (l-r): Miss E. Scott, Mrs. M. Parsons, Miss H. Leslie (Headmistress), Miss M. Dingle, Miss I. Duder, Miss D. Bradbury. Back Row (l-r): Mrs. L. Locke, Miss L. Davis, Miss K. Pottle, Miss M. Roberts, Miss R. Simmons, Miss C. Thornhill, Miss J. March, Miss L. Reid. John Cornick, Halifax, NS
This Month in History
The Rhodes Scholarship, founded in 1903, is one of the world’s most coveted scholarships. On September 8, 1904, Sydney Herbert became Newfoundland and Labrador’s first Rhodes Scholar. According to The Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, Sydney was born in Pilley’s Island, Notre Dame Bay in 1883. He attended St. Bonaventure’s College in St. John’s, where he earned the highest marks on the island on the Council of Higher Education exams for three consecutive years. In 1899, he graduated and worked at the St. John’s Electric Light Company until 1903, when he left to begin preparing for the qualifying exam for the newly established Rhodes Scholarship. Six other men wrote the exam, but it went to Sydney (women weren’t allowed to apply until 1977). He graduated from Oxford in 1907 and went to work for the United Tobacco Company in South Africa. When the First World War broke out he joined the Newfoundland Fusiliers and later returned to South Africa, where he died in 1957.
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reminiscing reminiscing flashbacks
A hearty send-off into history from Harbour Grace By Heather Stemp
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This is the fourth
and final chapter in the series, “Amelia Earhart in Newfoundland.” Amelia landed in Harbour Grace at 2:01 p.m. on May 20, 1932, five years after Charles Lindbergh’s transatlantic flight from New York to Paris. Amelia planned the same crossing on the same day, thanks to her husband and publicist George Palmer Putnam. He was always looking for opportunities to make Amelia the bestknown female pilot in the world. If you try to think of the names of other aviatrix at that time, you realize what a good job he did. In the third article in this series, we left Amelia resting at the Archibald Hotel, where she met my aunt, Ginny Ross, and my great aunt, Rose Archibald. My great uncle, Harry Archibald, the airstrip supervisor, assisted Amelia’s team (Bernt Balchen and Ed Gorski) with the servicing and refuelling of her plane.
Above: Amelia Earhart talks to reporters at the airstrip just before leaving Harbour Grace. 1-888-588-6353
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Departure into Destiny Telegrams arrived regularly from George with meteorologist Doc Kimball’s updated weather reports. At 2:50 p.m. on May 20, George cabled, “British Isles wind South or Southwest 20 to 30 miles at 2,000 feet but variable in Eastern district. Variable clouds perhaps thunder and rain. Local fog Irish Sea English Channel. Western Europe wind Southwest or West moderate to fresh variable clouds perhaps thunder showers.” It wasn’t the best weather report, but everyone connected to the flight felt it was good enough to proceed. At 6:30 p.m. local time, Amelia was awakened and told it was time to return to the airfield. She asked Aunt Rose for a can of tomato juice to take on the flight. Aunt Rose insisted she take a thermos of soup as well, and that was where the soup debate began. According to official accounts, Amelia returned to the airfield “carrying with her some canned tomato juice and a thermos of Rose Archibald’s soup.” But Ginny’s friend and cousin, Pat Cron, didn’t agree with that account. She told me it was Ginny who’d made the soup. While she worked at the hotel, Ginny’s job was to make the soup every morning so Aunt Rose could serve it for lunch and dinner. Whether you believe the official account or Pat’s version, one indisputable fact remains: in a black and white photograph taken at the time, Amelia stepped out of Mike Hayes’ taxi at the airstrip some time before 7 p.m. carrying her flying suit and the thermos of soup. She joined Uncle Harry, Bernt and Ed inside the roped area that held the 122
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crowd away from the plane. She shook hands and spoke to many who had come to wish her well and say goodbye. According to Associated Press reporter Bill Parsons, who was on the scene, “There seemed to be an aura surrounding her. Even though everyone wanted to get as close to her as possible, to shake hands, to wish her well, to touch her, she was very patient and showed no signs of anxiety or fear.” After conferring one last time with Uncle Harry, Bernt and Ed, Amelia climbed into her “little red bus” (her nickname for the unnamed aircraft), revved the engine, waved goodbye, bounced down the gravel airstrip and took off. She circled over Lady Lake, headed across the bay and disappeared into the distance. My aunt, Louise Archibald, told me she stood at the airstrip and waved until the plane was a dot in the sky. “People didn’t move,” she said. “Some talked about her safe landing in Paris, while others shook their heads.” Mrs. Crane, Louise’s mother, “dabbed her eyes with a hanky and said, ‘She’s so young and pretty – and capable to be sure. But we may be the last people to see her alive.’”
The Perilous Flight Mrs. Crane and others had reason to fear for Amelia’s life. The crossing was anything but smooth. After an hour the altimeter, which showed her distance above the ground, failed. She had no idea how far above the waves she was flying. Three hours out, she smelled burning and saw a small flame coming through a broken weld in the manifold ring outside the 1-888-588-6353
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“How long we spun I do not know. I do know that I tried my best to do exactly what one should do with a spinning plane, and regained flying control as the warmth of the lower altitude melted the ice.” For a number of hours she flew higher because of her fear of getting too close to the waves, only to ice up again and have to drop lower.
windshield. In spite of this second mishap, she decided to continue. The Harbour Grace airstrip had no lights for guidance and she still carried a heavy load of fuel. Turning back was not a safe option. Four hours out, she hit the rainstorm Doc Kimball had predicted to the south of her route. As she looked out the windshield, the rain turned to ice. The controls froze and she went into a spin. “How long we spun I do not know,” Amelia later wrote. “I do know that I tried my best to do exactly what one should do with a spinning plane, and regained flying control as the warmth of the lower altitude melted the ice.” For a number of hours she flew higher because of her fear of getting too close to the waves, only to ice up again and have to drop lower. 1-888-588-6353
More hours passed before her next problem arose. She turned on the reserve gas tank and realized the cockpit gauge was broken when fuel dripped down the side of her neck. The flame outside the windshield added to her concern. On one of her descents to clear the ice, she finally saw a small fishing boat. Its size told her she couldn’t be far from land. She flew over a rocky island, perhaps one of the Aran Islands, and then saw land. She followed a set of railroad tracks and decided to land as soon as she could. Fourteen hours 54 minutes after leaving Harbour Grace, she bounced down in a pasture around midday local time on May 21, and climbed out. A man ran toward her and stopped at the plane. Amelia asked him where she was and he replied, “In September 2018
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A Heroine’s Reception Amelia had crossed the Atlantic solo to prove to herself and others she could be a successful pilot. In doing so she made or broke a number of records: First woman (and second person) to fly the Atlantic solo Only person to fly the Atlantic twice Crossed the Atlantic in the shortest time in any direction Established a record (3,260 km) for the longest nonstop distance flown by a woman (previously held by Ruth Nichols with the distance of 3,182.6 km)
Gallagher’s pasture.” The man was Danny McCallion, who worked for the Gallaghers. He led Amelia to William Gallagher’s cottage, where she found out she had landed in Culmore, northwestern Ireland. William arranged a car to take Amelia to Londonderry, about eight kilometres away. The local police were called and, apparently, they informed the Londonderry Sentinel newspaper. Very soon, news of Amelia’s safe arrival in Ireland flashed around the world on teleprinters. A long, anxious night had ended for George in New York, as well as Bernt, Ed, Uncle Harry, Aunt Rose, Ginny and others at the Archibald Hotel. 124
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Amelia left Londonderry in a plane chartered by Paramount news, who had exclusive rights to film interviews with her. But before she left, she put on her flying suit and reenacted her landing for the newsreel cameras. A small crowd was assembled for the event and when she stepped out of the plane, they threw their hats in the air and cheered. George Putnam would’ve been delighted with the free publicity! In London, Amelia was greeted by dignitaries and an enthusiastic crowd. The adulation continued in Paris, Rome and Brussels, before she and George, who had joined her on June 3, boarded a ship to return to the United States. At home, she was celebrated with a tickertape parade in New York City. Thousands came out to cheer her motorcade. Other honours followed in the form of the Special Gold Medal from the National Geographic Society and the Distinguished Flying Cross from the United States Senate. She was America’s sweetheart. Amelia Earhart’s two transatlantic flights from Newfoundland – 1928 from Trepassey and 1932 from Harbour Grace – made her the bestknown female pilot of the time. The newspaper headlines gave us the essence of Amelia’s accomplishments, but, like an iceberg, what lay beneath the surface was a bigger story. It was laced with secrecy, intrigue and daring – much like Amelia herself. Missed an issue? All four parts of this Amelia Earhart series are available at Downhomelife.com/magazine. 1-888-588-6353
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Amelia re-enacts her landing in Culmore, Ireland for the press. Courtesy National Air and Space Museum.
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The late Graham Bursey of Bay Roberts, NL was an avid
collector of all things the least bit unusual. There was a gold mother-of-pearl umbrella handle, which he suggested may have belonged to a passenger on the Titanic. Another object was a small gold knife, which he believed belonged to the pirate, Peter Easton. However, Graham’s most prized possession was a medallion commemorating Amelia Earhart’s 1928 flight, when she became the first female to fly across the Atlantic. In 1993, I called Graham and said, “I hear you have a medallion Amelia Earhart gave your mother before the flier took off from Harbour Grace in 1932.” After confirming my statement, he invited me to visit him. Graham met me at the door that day with the medallion in his hand. He passed it to me as he invited me into his collection room. I held the object briefly, reverently, before passing it back. He was bursting with obvious pride as he regaled me with the story of how the medallion had ended up in his family. 126
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“On that particular day,” Graham said, “my mother, Mary Brown, a nurse and midwife, was on a maternity case in Spaniard’s Bay. She was with Dr. Pritchett, our local doctor at that time. They decided to go down to Harbour Grace to see Miss Earhart when she took off. There were very few cars here at that time. Only a doctor or merchant had one. Dr. Pritchett and my mother drove right to the airstrip in his car.” They joined the crowd gathered about 20 feet from the plane. Earhart approached and singled out Mary, reportedly 1-888-588-6353
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saying, “I’d like to give you this medallion to commemorate my flight across the Atlantic.” “How did your mother respond to the honour?” I asked. “She thanked Miss Earhart and wished her a safe voyage across the Atlantic. My mother then went home with the medallion.” “Can I examine it more closely?” I asked. Graham passed it back to me, and this time I took the time to study both sides and note how it was inscribed. On one side, which bore her image, it read, “The first woman to cross the Atlantic by airplane – Amelia Earhart.” Turning it over, I read, “Newfoundland June 17 – South Wales June 18 – 1928.” The image of an aircraft was captioned “Seaplane Friendship.” The medallion commemorated her first history-making flight, from Trepassey, NL, when she became the first female passenger to fly across the Atlantic. When Graham’s mother met her, Earhart was about to become the first female pilot to fly solo from North America to Europe. I cradled the medallion for a few moments before returning it to Graham, realizing I was holding a piece of history. This was as close as I would come to the great aviator. The medallion has been in Graham’s family every day since May 20, 1932, though it has travelled a bit. “It has been to the United States a couple of times,” Graham said. “Eventually, my sister came home from the States and brought it back to me again. She said, ‘It belongs to you – you’re the youngest of the family.’” “When you were growing up, did your mother often bring this 1-888-588-6353
Mary Brown, nurse and midwife, met Amelia Earhart in 1932. incident to mind?” I asked. “Yes. My mother treasured the medallion. It was always a family heirloom and was kept in a special place. We had a little box where we kept the ‘family jewels,’ special papers and so on. That’s where the medallion was kept over the years. That’s how much my mother valued the medallion. Otherwise, it would’ve been lost. We’ve hung on to it since then. I’ve been offered quite a few dollars for it.” Graham’s medal is rare but, alas, not unique. There is at least one other in Newfoundland, in Port de Grave. Amelia dropped it from the plane as she flew over the Port de Grave Peninsula. The object landed on a grassy plain across from the Fisherman’s Service Centre. Twelveyear-old Clayton Ralph, and his brother, William, were playing outside and found it shortly after the low-flying plane passed overhead. September 2018
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* Valid in Canada on a 1-year term. Total inc. taxes, postage and handling: for residents in NL $39; AB, BC, MB, NU, NT, QC, SK, YT $40.95; ON $44.07; NB, NS, PE $44.85. US and International mailing price for a 1-year term is $49.00. ** Valid in Canada on a 3-year term. Total inc. taxes, postage and handling: for residents in NL $99; AB, BC, MB, NU, NT, QC, SK, YT $103.95; ON $111.87; NB, NS, PE $113.85. US and International mailing price for a 3-year term is $140.00.
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reminiscing Collective Memories
Can You Imagine? Knocking on doors and singing songs in Old St. John’s By Andrea McGuire
“I just love old St. John’s. I love the streets, I love the small little alleyways,
I love the structures. You know?…A lot of it is sort of etched in memory.” Lynn Anne Hollett spent her early childhood on Flower Hill and Barter’s Hill, which, in the 1960s, “felt like a community unto itself.” The steep slope of the hills made it hard to play the typical games in these streets. It was tricky “to skip or do anything like that, since you were on quite the hill,” Lynn Anne says, though she did play many rounds of jacks and marbles. “Kick the can,” she says, “was a big one, too, because all you had to do was find a can.”
She and the neighbourhood kids wandered the streets of St. John’s, stopping for picnics in Victoria Park, custard cones at Lars Fruit Store (“the smell of that place was unbelievable,” she remembers), and “scraps” at Central Bakeries, which were the end pieces of apricot, raisin and date squares, bagged up and sold for seven cents a bunch. Lynn Anne also recalled having her foot x-rayed at department stores downtown, saying, “I mean, you’d go down there for play. I mean, at least once a week you’d get away with it, to go down there and have an x-ray done of your foot.” The x-ray showed the prospective buyer’s foot inside the shoe, and was a big downtown attraction. Lynn Anne explains, “It was new, and it was amazing. Like, ‘That’s my foot!’ I mean, what doctor ever showed you 130
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an x-ray if you ever had one as a child? None! You know, as they sat smoking in their examining room. But who knew that radiation was a problem or that it existed? You know, nobody.” Many childhood pastimes involved knocking on neighbour’s doors. For instance, Lynn Anne often knocked on doors to “ask the ladies if I could play with their babies. And we were allowed to take the babies – whether in strollers or by the hand or whatever – and just take the babies out of their mother’s hair for awhile, and bring them back and say, ‘Here you go.’” At Christmas time, Lynn Anne says, “we would knock at people’s doors – not people that we knew well – and ask, ‘Could we see your Christmas tree?’ And you’re just standing up, looking at their tree. Almost like 1-888-588-6353
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mummers would do now, right? It was amazing. It was just something that kids did. It was almost like when you made your first Holy Communion, and you went around with your little purse and your little white gloves and your full outfit, going to people’s doors, and they would give you money. It was like another Halloween.” Lynn Anne’s family also loved to sing together. On the corner of Livingstone Street and Barter’s Hill, the family gathered with friends in “a little garage just basically knocked together, with probably a few oil cans and a few tires and the swing that man made for his kids…we’d get in there and sing, ‘My Bonny Lies Over the Ocean’ and all the Beatles songs, and we would swing away and swing away…Oh my goodness, we had lots of concerts in that little spot.” When Lynn Anne was eight, the family moved to Empire Avenue and often invited the neighbourhood kids over to the house. “We would all chip in money and buy a package of Freshie, and Mom would provide the sugar,” remembers Lynn Anne. Then, all the kids started singing and dancing together in the basement. “We would make up songs and dances to things like ‘Knock Three Times on the Ceiling’ and all these songs, and we had dances to it, and we would go over where Shoppers Drug Mart is – it was called Dove Supermarket – and we’d go over
Lynn Anne Hollett
Andrea McGuire photo
there because they had spotlights in their parking lot, and we would sing and dance over there. And I was the singer. So I would sing old country songs and the new Beatles songs or whatever, and everybody would dance. All the neighbourhood kids. And then other people would chip in and start singing songs and everything. ‘Standing on a Mountain’ was one of the biggest songs, and I would be there singing that; and the neighbourhood kids, we would be doing the twist, and we would be singing away, and Mother Hen here was getting all the kids together, and here we were having a time, right? Big old scuff out in the parking lot. Can you – I mean seriously, can you see kids doing that now?”
The Collective Memories Project is an initiative of the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador to record the stories and memories of our province. If you have a memory of old-time Newfoundland and Labrador to share, contact Dale Jarvis at ich@heritagefoundation.ca or call 1-888-7391892 ext 2 or visit www.collectivememories.ca. 1-888-588-6353
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reminiscing
between the boulevard and the bay
The Prime Minister from PEI By Ron Young
Although Little Did you know that the first prime minisof Newfoundland wasn’t born here? He was was young and ter born in Prince Edward Island, when both islands new to the game, were still independent colonies. he made a Philip Francis Little was born in 1824, the middle child of Cornelius and Brigid Little. The Littles convincing had emigrated to PEI from Ireland via the United speech to voters States. Cornelius owned a small shipping compaand among its ports of call was St. John’s, Newand squeaked ny foundland. This probably played a role in the out a victory with direction young Philip’s life would take. 269 votes After his primary and secondary schooling, Little pursued a law degree. He studied over Douglas. Philip under Charles Young in Charlottetown. Young was a strong advocate of Responsible government and no doubt influenced Little. By 1844, Little had become a solicitor and barrister. That year he decided to emigrate to St. John’s, where his mother had relatives. Little found himself in a new colony where the majority of the population was Roman Catholic, like him, but there were no Catholic lawyers practising there. The ambitious and brilliant Little took full advantage of this gap he perceived in the local legal community. He opened his law office in St. John’s, though as a newcomer he faced a serious hurdle to success. It was a clause in the Lawyers’ Incorporation Act, which was designed to reinforce the monopoly of lawyers already resident. He was able to find work as a barrister, but this clause excluded him from the much more lucrative work of solicitor. Clearly he had foresight even while a student in PEI, for he had acquired from Charles Young in Charlottetown a letter of introduction, which he took straight to John Kent – the leading reform politician in Newfoundland at the time. He explained his predicament to Kent, 132
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who presented his petition to the legislature and had the clause removed. That accomplished, Philip then convinced his older brother, John, also a lawyer, to join him in St. Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. This he did in 1848, and the two brothers developed a prosperous practice. With the law office making lots of money, Phillip turned his attention to politics. He began by getting himself elected as a member of the Benevolent Irish Society, where he could make his name more well known among Catholic voters. He was also appointed as managing executor of the estate of RC Bishop Michael Anthony Fleming, upon Flemingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passing. Little then befriended his replacement, Bishop John Thomas Mullock, who supported Little in his first real run at politics in a by-election in 1850. His opponent was James Douglas, a Protestant merchant who was pro-reform. Although Little was young and new to the game, he made a convincing speech to voters and squeaked out a victory with 269 votes over Douglas. Little continued to advocate for Responsible government, even joining a delegation to London, England, to petition for it. In 1854, Britain agreed to Responsible government in Newfoundland. Not only was Little successful in that pursuit, but the next year his party won the general election and he was chosen as first Prime Minister of Newfoundland, running the new Responsible government. In 1858, Little resigned from politics altogether and took the position of Supreme Court Justice. In 1864, he left the bench and moved to Ireland 1-888-588-6353
Philip Francis Little with his wife, where he practised law and got involved in Irish politics. He died in Monkstown, Ireland, in 1897. Little was born to parents who came from Ireland and he lived out his last days in the land of his ancestors. Ireland is known as the home of great poets, so it should not be surprising that among his other attributes, Little was a published poet. This is one of his short poems: I shall have three grey poplar trees above me when I sleep; the poplars will not sway or swing, nor like the willow weep, but upright as the staff of one who watcheth o'er his sheep. Ron Young is a retired policeman, published poet and founding editor of Downhome. ron@downhomelife.com
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life is better Evening sail in the Bay of Islands Daniel Devin, Ontario
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GREAT GIFT IDEAS! Last in Mummers the Word Collection
Mummers the Word Kit from Quirpon Figurine, 11.5"
#75646 | $79.99
Game - Joan Sullivan #75629 | $19.95
Some Good: Nutritious Newfoundland Dishes Jessica Mitton #75755 | $19.95
Star’s Island: Where Newfoundland Ponies Roam - Margaret O’Brien #41722 | $14.95
Traditional Newfoundland English - R. A. Bragg Updated and Expanded #75827 | $13.95
Ornament, 5"
#75647 | $32.99
All Good Intentions Trudi Johnson #75643 | $19.95
Reviewed on pg.36
Soul Steps: 52 Ways to Reconnect with Spirit #75803 | $19.95
My Visual Self Revealed: Original Paintings and Stories from Newfoundland - Lloyd Pretty #75781 | $29.95
The Music of Our Burnished Axes - Songs and Stories of the Woods Workers of NLUrsula A. Kelly & Meghan C. Forsyth #75186 | $28.95
PRICES IN EFFECT FOR SEPTEMBER 2018
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FOR MORE SELECTION VISIT: www.shopdownhome.com
Hoodie Flag Place Names
Hoodie East Coast for Life
Black, Size S-XXL
Grey/Teal, Size S-XXL
#75719 | $39.99
Toque - Yes B’y Grey/Beige/Red
#73270 | $19.99
Mummer Night Light 5.5" #75616 | $21.99
#64059 | $54.99
Cap - Newfoundland Canada with Moose Red Plaid
Ladies’ Fleece Newfoundland and Labrador Size S-XXL
#60140 | $39.99
Cap - Newfoundland 1497 with Maple Leaf Denim
#75546 | $19.99
#75727 | $19.99
Can Koozie Newfoundland Sayings
Can Koozie Newfoundland Sayings
Red/White
#64922 | $7.99
Blue/White
#75425 | $7.99
TO ORDER CALL: 1-888-588-6353
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GREAT GIFT IDEAS!
Luggage Tag Newfoundland Sayings Blue/White, 4" x 2.5"
#64921 | $4.99
Luggage Tag - Home #75426 | $4.99
Snow Globe Newfoundland and Labrador Large, 4" #75796 | $15.99 Small, 2.5" #75797 | $9.99
Bold yet friendly, like a Newfoundlander!
Newfoundland Seasonings Newfoundland Seasonings Steak, Burger & Taste of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Ome Caesar Spice 50g #61717 | $8.79 200g #59670 | $11.99 70g #60527 | $7.99
Sherpa Throw Outport Mummers 50" x 60" #61149 | $36.99
Musical Mummer featuring "The Mummers Song" by Simani Playing Banjo 5.5" #65089 | $24.99
PRICES IN EFFECT FOR SEPTEMBER 2018 *** For larger parcels please call for quote
Necklace - Labradorite with Chain 10.5" #75728 | $24.99
Musical Mummer featuring "The Mummers Song" by Simani Republic Sweater w/ Bottle of Rum 5.5" #65088 | $24.99
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FOR MORE SELECTION VISIT: www.shopdownhome.com A
Mummers Playing Musical Instruments 3 per pkg, 3" each
The Mummers are Coming - Mummers Playing Musical Instruments - 3D 3 per pkg, 3" each
B
A Newfoundland Christmas Light Up Mummer Candle $19.99 each
#65033 | $17.99
7.5" LED colour changing B #73161 A #73160
Musical Ornament - LED Light Up - Newfoundland Mummers in the Cove #65023 | $12.99
Musical Ornament - LED Light Up - Newfoundland Mummers Parade #65024 | $12.99
Musical Ornament - LED Light Up - Newfoundland Kitchen Party #65020 | $12.99
Musical Ornament - LED Light Up - Quidi Vidi Mummers #65021 | $12.99
Newfoundland Mummers - Milk Chocolate Bar 57g #75807 | $2.99
Newfoundland Sayings Milk Chocolate Bar 57g #75808 | $2.99
#56515 | $17.99
TO ORDER CALL: 1-888-588-6353
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GREAT GIFT IDEAS!
Tea Towel Newfoundland Tartan Set of 3 - 18" x 28"
#58374 | $9.99
Newfoundland Tartan Mug Rug Set of 4, 5" x 5"
#45716 | $5.99
Newfoundland Tartan Mug #74148 | $9.99
Infinity Scarf Newfoundland Tartan #57617 | $24.99
Napkins Newfoundland Tartan Set of 4, 18" x 18"
#58380 | $10.99
Newfoundland Tartan Scarf 8" x 60" #55926 | $16.99
Celtic Tin Whistle and Tune sheet #48726 | $19.99
Newfoundland Tartan Shot Glass #74150 | $5.99
Newfoundland Tartan Shooter #74149 | $6.99
PRICES IN EFFECT FOR SEPTEMBER 2018 *** For larger images visit www.shopdownhome.com
Item #
Description
Central and Western Canada. 2-3 weeks USA. Guidelines set by Canada Post.
Delivery Time 3-5 days NL, NS & NB. 7-10 days
isfied, please let us know. We will exchange any item in resaleable condition. Sorry, no returns on earrings, books, CDs or DVDs. If you do not receive your order or it is damaged upon delivery, please let us know within 3 business days. Overnight delivery available: please call for details. Product prices and shipping costs may be subject to change without notice.
Service Guarantee If you are not completely sat-
Qty.
Colour
TOTAL
*
Tax (your provincial sales tax )
USA add 15% (+ Shipping)
Shipping & Handling
SUB TOTAL
Size
$15.00
Price
*
NL, NS, PE, NB 15%; ON, 13%; BC, AB, NT, YK, NU, SK, QC, MB, 5%
Please make cheques payable to Downhome Incorporated and send to Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL A1E 3H3 Toll Free: 1-888-588-6353 • Fax: 709-726-2135 mailorder@downhomelife.com • www.shopDownhome.com
*
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Gift Service Information
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Address: ________________________________________________________
Send to: _______________________________________________________
Please complete your order form carefully. Please send this form along with payment to the address at bottom, or fax to 709-726-2135.
Shop online for more selection Visit: shopdownhome.com
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$
slash
New Price!
ed by
00 100,0
Price
FOR SALE OLD NTS S R WA OWNE
!
Beautiful 2940 sq ft home on 7/8 acres located on brook Plus Cabin located on Dynamite Pond, private and peaceful. Cottage living with all of the amenities of home. serenaroberts@royallepage.ca 709-673-6797
MLS# 1163597
PRIVATE SALE BY OWNER
Town Square, Gander Building, Both Levels 3400 Sq. Ft. Total 709-221-8757 or 709-424-0757
f.tizzard@nl.rogers.com
$329,990 Formally the Stonewall Inn Spaniards Bay, NL 1 ½ Acres 5 Bedrooms 4 Bathrooms Contact: Debbie Hollett 709-687-9700
Discount Storage St. John's, NL
709-726-6800
PRICED TO SELL ON BELL ISLAND 3.3 acres cleared land on municipal water Surveyed in 2011
$12,900 • CALL 705-435-2563 FOR DETAILS Business for Sale 38 Main St., Twillingate, NL Turn key operation • Excellent location Building and contents going together Reason for selling - owners retiring
For more info call Woodrow 709-571-2195 142
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LAND FOR SALE Woody Point Bonne Bay
Beautiful view of the bay & Gros Morne Mountain • Water & Sewage Hook up • Just over 1 Acre
Contact 416-948-8191 1-888-588-6353
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RIVER ROAD • THORBURN LAKE MLS # 1167878
Artistic Getaway .85 acres Architecturally designed by Robert Mellin. Soaring ceilings, studio loft, decks + high end finishes
Huge Price Slash! Now $597,500!
Carolyn Kettle • 709-746-2484 FOR SALE Kings Point Diner & Pub Springdale, NL
$249,000 Lot: 255 ft. Wide by 224 ft. Deep • 2 Level Building, each 2,900 sq. ft.
Formally known as Budgell’s Motel, this three-room motel is a local icon and part of King’s Point history. Room to grow, well positioned for tourist industry growth. Improvements and additions made since 2008 include: a new metal roof, complete pex plumbing, completely renovated kitchen, completely renovated Event Area, all new pressure treated decks, completely renovated dining room and more!
Call Corey 587-343-3302
(709) 726-5113 1-888-588-6353
advertising@downhomelife.com
Marketplace Discount Storage St. John's, NL 8x20 unheated storage units. 709-726-6800 Downhome October 2018 Ad Booking Deadline
August 24, 2018 www.downhomelife.com
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Movers & Shippers FIVE STAR SERVICE Without The Five Star Price! ★ Local & Long Distance Moves ★ Packing
Voted CBS Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year
★ Door-to-Door Service Across Canada ★ Replacement Protection Available ★ NL Owned & Operated
MOVING INC. 709-834-0070 866-834-0070 fivestarmoving@outlook.com www.fivestarmoving.ca
Over 25 Years Experience in the Moving Industry
Movers & Shippers A Family Moving Families Professionally and economically Coast to Coast in Canada Fully Insured
Rates start at $175 for a 1 col. x 2" ad.
Call Today! 709-726-5113
Newfoundland Owned & Operated
Contact: Gary or Sharon King
Toll Free: 1-866-586-2341 www.downhomemovers.com
Clarenville Movers Local & Long Distance Service Your Newfoundland & Alberta Connection Over 30 years Experience Toll Free: 1-855-545-2582 Tel: Cell:
709-545-2582 709-884-9880
clarenvillemover@eastlink.ca www.clarenvillemovers.com
Toll Free 1-888-588-6353
Moving you from Ontario and Newfoundland... or any STOP along the way!
DOWNEAST CONNECTION 709-248-4089 905-965-4813
Hawke’s Bay, NL (collect calls accepted) downeastconnection@yahoo.ca
A&K Moving Covering all Eastern & Western Provinces and Returning Based from Toronto, Ontario Discount Prices Out of NL, NS & NB Newfoundland Owned & Operated 35 Years in the Moving Industry
Andy: 416-247-0639 Out West: 403-471-5313
aandkmoving@gmail.com
SAMSON’S MOVING Let our Family Move Your Family Home
Newfoundland, Ontario, Alberta and All Points In Between Newfoundland Owned & Operated Fully Insured, Free Estimates Sales Reps. in Ontario and Alberta
Call Jim or Carolyn - Peterview, NL 709-257-4223 709-486-2249 - Cell samsonsmovers@yahoo.ca www.samsonsmovers.ca
Downhome Shop www.shopdownhome.com 144
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life is better Gunner is ready for a ride. Lori Hodder, Gander Bay, NL
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puzzles
The Beaten Path By Ron Young
Block out all the letters that are like other letters in every way, including shape and size. The letters that are left over will spell out the name of the above place name in letters that get smaller in size.
M
b
K
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H
T p
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J H R C A B n B
U
V
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d
E
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U
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S H H
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J L R
H S H L
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p R
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R J L K L p R
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Last Monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Community: Musgravetown 148
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Sudoku
from websudoku.com
Skill level: Medium
Last monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s answers
?
Need Help
Visit DownhomeLife.com/puzzles for step-by-step logic for solving this puzzle
www.downhomelife.com
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Downhomer Detective Needs You
A
fter more than two decades on the Urban City Police Force, Downhomer Detective has come home to rid Newfoundland and Labrador of a new threat – cunning thief Ragged Rick. A real braggart, the slimy criminal sends DD a blurry photo of his surroundings plus clues to his whereabouts just to prove he’s always a step ahead. DD needs your help to identify where in Newfoundland and Labrador Ragged Rick is hiding out this month.
Use these 5 clues to identify where Ragged Rick is now: • A key stop on the Irish Loop • Seabird Ecological Reserve just offshore • History is “clueless” to the origin of its name • Named for the bay it’s in • East Coast Trail winds through here
Last Month’s Answer: Eastport
Picturesque Place NameS of Newfoundland and Labrador
by Mel D’Souza Last Month’s Answer: Goose Bay 150
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In Other Words Guess the well-known expression written here in other words.
Last Month’s Clue: Every crewman to the promenade In Other Words: All hands on deck This Month’s Clue: Mine own sibling’s guardian In Other Words: __ ________ ______
A Way With Words Last Month’s Answer: Turned Upside Down
Rhyme Time A rhyming word game by Ron Young
1. An obese rodent is a ___ ___
TURNED
This Month’s Clue
2. To enjoy a nature walk is to ____ a ____
WORKING TIME
3. A smaller boxer is a _______ _______
ANS: _______ ________
1. funny money, 2. ditch a snitch, 3. rob the mob
Last Month’s Answers
Scrambled Sayings
by Ron Young
Place each of the letters in the rectangular box below into one of the white square boxes above them to discover a quotation. Incomplete words that begin on the right side of the diagram continue one line down on the left. The letters may or may not go in the box in the same order that they are in the column. Once a letter is used, cross it off and do not use it again.
M C O E D E R C O M P L E R M P L S P U
A A C N
E N E H E B A H A N A E N I F E I E I N I N S C C M O L G E Y O H E T I I T R O M P T H I T N G V R T T S U T U N T N
Last month’s answer: You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change www.downhomelife.com
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Rhymes 5 Times Each answer rhymes with the other four
1. container 2. essence 3. ogre 4. funny 5. questionnaire
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Last Month’s Answers: 1. fly, 2. tie, 3. sly, 4. shy, 5. cry
STUCK? Don’t get your knickers in a knot! Puzzle answers can be found online at DownhomeLife.com/puzzles
Tangled Towns by Lolene Young Condon and Ron Young
Sound out the groups of words below to get a familiar expression. For best results sound the clue words out loud!
Hits Release Add ___ ______ ___ Dawn July Tomb He ____ ___ ___ __ __ Last Month’s 1st Clue: Eight Ale Huff Honk All Answer: A telephone call Last Month’s 2nd Clue: Europe Lay Soar Mine Answer: Your place or mine
A
nalogical
A
Unscramble each of the five groups of letters below to get 5 Newfoundland and Labrador place names.
1. HEELVENTSLIP 2. AHATAUGUN 3. SOLARSWOB 4. CALLICYDIP 5. PEPSINK Last Month’s Ans: 1. Jamestown, 2. Brooklyn, 3. Monroe, 4. Charleston, 5. Portland
nagrams
Unscramble the capitalized words to get one word that matches the subtle clue. 1. EAR URCHIN – Clue: such a blowhard 2. THING LING – Clue: a flasher that gets claps 3. SURE SIN – Clue: it just dawns on you 4. SPA HIT LO – Clue: it’s a pain to get into 5. UNABLE MAC – Clue: quicker picker-upper Last Month’s Ans: 1. animal, 2. potato, 3. aluminum, 4. exhaustion, 5. sleepless 152
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Four-Way Crossword F o re Wo rd s • B a c k Wo rd s • U p Wo rd s • D o w n Wo rd s By Ron Young
Unlike regular crosswords, in Four-Way Crossword each letter is not necessarily related to the letter in the adjacent row or column, but is part of one or more words in some direction.
1-10: speed up 1-91: definitely 2-22: hat 3-63: phoning 7-10: charge per unit 8-28: craft 11-13: sheep sound 13-33: everyone 15-19: warn of danger 16-14: fall behind 17-19: limb 22-25: blockage 23-25: tote 26-28: louse egg 30-28: away 31-33: lube 34-4: massive 34-14: embrace 34-37: warmth 37-40: pie 37-67: ripped 39-19: strong drink 40-10: musical note 42-22: tear 42-44: getup 44-74: fence opening 48-28: head cover 48-98: hurry 49-99: ring 50-10: gem 50-45: educate 50-41: female student 52-22: clasp 52-82: raise 52-92: grumble 53-55: arrest 55-52: loud noise 55-75: ship front 56-26: whine
www.downhomelife.com
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56-86: anchor boat 57-60: attack 58-60: assist 62-82: paddle 64-44: label 64-66: also 72-74: single 75-78: will not 75-95: which person 82-85: launder 83-85: cinder 84-64: place 84-82: sighted 86-88: fish eggs 93-91: foxy 95-97: mine output
100-10: honing device 100-50: rubs 100-91: benevolently 100-97: DNA segment Last Month’s Answer 1
2
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A C C I D E N T A L
D H I G H E A R C E
A E G U H C U O R G
P R A Y O C S B A I
T E R R A C E A V T
AT I NOE D I G E L L B EA R F R AT I T I N E S G I MA
ON NO C I E T T A ER NG A I NM T E
September 2018
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The Baymanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Crossword Puzzle 1
2
by Ron Young
3
4 5 13
14
18
6
8
26
21
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37
50
12 17
24
31
32
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39 46
11
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ACROSS 1. ___ liver oil – foul tasting health supplement 3. unruly group 4. bottle 5. children 13. Goose Arm (abbrev) 15. Nova Scotia (abbrev) 16. molecule 18. acquire 20. desired 24. hatchet 25. mistakes 27. “____ ___ meeting” – outdoor church service (2 words) 29. Outer Ring ____ – St. John’s bypass 30. World News (abbrev) 31. distinguished 33. Eastern Passage (abbrev) 35. street (abbrev) 36. common seaweed 38. short for Florence 39. Great Big ___ 40. Not a ____ of a lie – truth 43. him 45. Eastern Tickle (abbrev) 47. thing 48. warning 50. flake or fence pole 51. cross-current
10. Robert’s Arm (abbrev) 11. begins 12. repair 14. bubbly chocolate bar 17. Paul Bunyan’s pet 19. long line of fish hooks 21. regatta action 22. Victory in Europe – from WWII (abbrev) 23. peril 26. South Dildo (abbrev) 28. input/output (abbrev) 32. carved 34. Churchill Falls output 36. structural part of a boat’s bottom 37. postscript (abbrev) 38. ____ Haven – NL community 41. Old Man Intake (abbrev) 42. short for Dorothy 44. opposite of WSW 46. Three sheets __ the wind – intoxicated (colloq) 49. Marine Institute (abbrev) M A Y
A S A I
R
ANSWERS TO LAST MONTH’S CROSSWORD
D A Y I A R M S E
N O R T H E R
B O G G A N
DOWN 1. what-do-you-call-it (colloq) 2. mountain ash berry (colloq) 6. “Go __ wit’ ya!” 7. University Student Centre (abbrev) 8. anchor 9. adolescent
I
N E A T H
D
T E R
U S
N A R N
L E T
I
G O B
G
A
N
P E W
R E E V E S
U
I
R A
S
I
V V E R
A
Y E W
I M P
N
N
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O
D R O P L U K E Y
A Y R E A N D S O N S
S K
www.downhomelife.com
O R E
I M
P
A R
A S T E R N
September 2018
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DIAL-A-SMILE © 2018 Ron Young
Pick the right letters from the old style phone to match the numbers grouped below and uncover a quote which will bring a smile to your face. ___ 255 __ _ 28 8
___ _ 633 3
___ 968 _ 2
___ 669
______ 548853 ___ 263
_ _ _ _. 5683
__ 47
_ ___ ___ _ _ 2 462 652 8 3
’
____ 8436
__ _ ___ 36 3 768
____ 4878 Last Month’s Answer: Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?
©2018 Ron Young
CRACK THE CODE
L
Each symbol represents a letter of the alphabet, for instance =S Try to guess the smaller, more obvious words to come up with the letters for the longer ones. The code changes each month.
_ _ _
Hm x
_ _ S _
B7Lx
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ S
DH
nkxL
_ _ _ _
kb 0 x
B m DH
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ S
Okkl
_ _
nkxL
_ _ _
Hm x _ _
DH
_ _ S _
l DLH
Last Month’s Answer: Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned. 156
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Food For Thought
© 2018 Ron Young
Each food symbol represents a letter of the alphabet. Find the meanings to the words then match the letters with the food symbols below to get a little “food for thought.”
purchase =
majority =
broils =
kids =
_ _ _
t}m _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _
_ _ _
lie
mt} i _ _ _
yv el i
_ _ _ _ _ _
xlz [ b
`
f[eY[ b ` _ _ _ _ _ _
oltveo
_ _ _ _
_ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
pill =
tl z ev
Yhe b
yh[ v p i e b
seeing =
xtvo
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _
fl v}ev _ _
ot
_ _ _
mt}’
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
pey[v[t
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
teyt xev
bv
_ _ _ _ _ _
elv[e i
Last Month’s Answer: The art of leadership is saying no, not saying yes. It is very easy to say yes. www.downhomelife.com
September 2018
157
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Different Strokes
Our artist’s pen made the two seemingly identical pictures below different in 12 places. See if you can find all 12.
ERN AND COAL BIN CHECK OUT THE BIG CATCH
Last Month’s Answers: 1. Patio door; 2. Window; 3. Hair; 4. Girl; 5. Trousers; 6. Beer bottle; 7. Apron; 8. Barbecue cover; 9. Barbecue lid; 10. Clothesline; 11. Tawt; 12. Wheelhouse rack “Differences by the Dozen”- A compilation of Different Strokes from 2002 to 2014 (autographed by Mel) can be ordered by sending $9.95 (postage incl.; $13.98 for U.S. mailing) to Mel D’Souza, 21 Brentwood Dr., Brampton, ON, L6T 1P8.
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HIDE & SEEK VEGETABLES
The words can be across, up, down, backward or at an angle, but always in a line.
ARTICHOKE ASPARAGUS BEET BROCCOLI CABBAGE CARROT CAULIFLOWER CELERY CORN CUCUMBER FENNEL KALE
G T L G A A V S N J T N D P A V M N
H A J R X E W R Y E M W O R O K W I
I C O O J O Z E E E N T T O N G X O
T O M A T O F B G A A I C A I G B R
K E S B H E R H J T C J U Z O J A C
O A D B N Q Q H O H H V C F N O H A
C E L N M O Z W O C Q K U T M O S R
www.downhomelife.com
SPINACH SQUASH TOMATO TURNIP WATERCRESS YAM ZUCCHINI
LEEK LETTUCE ONION PARSNIP PEPPER POTATO RADISH E J W H X R Q R M D O R F Z E T Y W
Last Monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Answers
C U E E H S Q K C J E A M A G M U R
D L J T B V E Z E N S S B O K R O O
S Q K F T J E A U C Y T E E Z Y U T
T S V S O Y W S A C E E R W V T C X
Y U E N V X F N D M C H P E I Y D V
A I W O A J I A Y M I K E G J O O L
R D R R L E E K W M H H G V T K G O
R D N L S O P L J B D N N L V O L X
M A L O P E S C B U N B A D X N O X
E P Y N C L K X W T P A I W F V R O
F O D D O S P W X S D F Z R I I Z A
D M E P N L E G K R N A K M K E V W
W C Q N I R T A F G B G V N K H W Y
E S D W N G B F E F H Y O U O D U H
T L R U L Z L A V U F U T V L R J Y
O R U P I P E H X B D F R P I M Y Q
V Q U O K L L M K Z A A M A T A J N
O N O W E E I Z A E D N T B E M L V
L E B T M F S T A H C A N I P S A N
J G G R W Q A P Z S X Q K W B J P O
U D M T A K U K Y E H V V O U X Y G
F P Z W T I H C A B N R R N C F S Y
E Q K C I J T J S N H I K F L Y R U
K K E L U D I R H A M J L O B D Q T
I P N J D E S S S W Y H O S P H Y R
G E V O H D C L E K E H S L B D W U
F R A N C U N N D O J G O R I L U R
L E C A E P L Q A E X A C R R F K O
G O L D G Y O U S E S G U J A N O H
D Y V L F R X S O P U P G G R T G C
U P R Y V N E A D U O S Y A D A M E
L V G B K L I T Q P E R P Y I O K I
Z J G M G L A D G E P M O B A Q R Q
A S L N D V I R E X Q V I P T K F Z
Q D A W V Y S D N A R Q L S N V A W
P V G E K S J X B Y E I U W F B M F
C J U P A M V Y C K G S M F E Q P H
I B R O L P N P T V E R W K C O G P
W G I V K X D Y P W W N A A V I R G
S U G A R A P S A X Z G C C Q R M F
September 2018
P V C E L B U R P O Z L Q C X B X G
Y R E L E C F F L U B R O C C O L I 159
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photo finish
A Wild Walk in the Park
While camping in Barachois Pond Provincial Park, Briea Clothier and Jada Strickland discover someoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taken over their favourite swimming hole. Corey Clothier Corner Brook, NL
Do you have an amazing or funny photo to share? Turn to page 9 to find out how to submit. 160
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