Downhome July 2023

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

Assistant Editor Nicola Ryan

Editor Lila Young

Art and Production

Art Director Vince Marsh

Illustrator Mel D’Souza

Illustrator Snowden Walters

Advertising Sales

Account Manager Barbara Young

Account Manager Ashley O’Keefe

Marketing Director Tiffany Brett

Finance and Administration

Accountant Marlena Grant

Accountant Sandra Gosse

Operations Manager, Twillingate Nicole Mehaney

Warehouse Operations

Warehouse / Inventory Manager Carol Howell

Warehouse Operator Josephine Collins

Shipping/Receiving Clerk Jacinta Squires

Retail Operations

Retail Floor Manager, St. John’s Jackie Rice

Retail Floor Manager, Twillingate Donna Keefe

Retail Sales Associates Crystal Rose, Jonathon

Organ, Erin McCarthy, Kim Tucker, Heather Stuckless, Katrina Hynes, Destinee Rogers, Amy Young, Emily Snelgrove, Brandy Rideout, Alexandria Skinner, Emily Power, Colleen Giovannini, Rachael Hartery, Cat Over, Julie Gidge, Austin Wheeler

Subscriptions

Customer Service Associate Lisa Tiller

Founding Editor Ron Young

Chief Executive Officer/Publisher Grant Young

President & Associate Publisher Todd Goodyear

General Manager/Assistant Publisher Tina Bromley

To subscribe, renew or change address use the contact information above. Subscriptions 1-Year term total inc. taxes, postage and handling: for residents in NL, NS, NB, PE $49.44; ON $48.58; QC, SK, MB, AB, BC, NU, NT, YT $45.14. US $54.99; International $59.99

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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 Pen names and anonymous letters will not be published.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

Contents

62 sights along the way

JULY 2023

42 The Next Shot

Brad Gushue and Mark Nichols break down Team Gushue’s worldleading season, legacy and endgame. Dillon Collins

62 10 Scenes to Shoot For

The East Coast Trail is a hiker’s and photographer’s dream. Here are some of the best reasons why, plus how to experience them for yourself. Dennis Flynn

70 The Arm Lads’ Legacy

96 summer sizzle

www.downhomelife.com

How the Durrell Museum tells the community’s remarkable story

Nicola Ryan

96 Downhome Recipes

Summer Skillets

JULY 2023 homefront

8 I Dare Say A note from the Editor 10 Letters From Our Readers A unique team photo, a mountainous mistake, and a short and sweet friendship

18 Downhome Tours Central America

20 Why is That? From where does Caesar salad get its name?Linda Browne

22 Life’s Funny Dirty Down Payment Orville Cole

23 Say What? A contest that puts words in someone else’s mouth

24 Lil Charmers What’s the Catch?

26 Pets of the Month Isle of Dogs

28 Reviewed Denise Flint reviews No One Knows About Us by Bridget Canning

30 What Odds Paul Warford gets a new roommate

32 Fresh Tracks Wendy Rose reviews singer-songwriter Evelyn Jess’ debut album Bare Bones.

36 Adventures Outdoors Fishing Follies and Fog Gord Follett

22 done dirty

26 roaming rovers

36 fishin’ in fog

54 take the shot

features

48 More Than a Number Life twists took her family and her name, but they also gave her a fighting spirit that has sustained her for 103 years. Renee Houlihan

76 history on hand

54 Sure Shots Featuring photographer Angel Burt explore 76 A Show of Hands A new, unique museum in Point Leamington devoted to gloves

Nicola Ryan

About the cover

Reader Karen Renouf found the perfect backdrop for Jaxx’s portrait on the Spurwink Trail portion of the East Coast Trail. Learn more about this spot and other photo worthy scenes you can hike to in our cover story, beginning on page 62.

Cover Index

Campfire Cookout • 96

No Rest For The Best • 42

10 Scenes To Shoot For • 62

114 for king & country

reminiscing

108 Flashbacks Classic photos of people and places.

110 Visions and Vignettes

Adventures of two young scallywags in an imaginary outport of days gone by. Harold N. Walters

114 Dispatched to See the King

How reservists from Southwest Arm, NL, got invited to King George V’s coronation Lester Green

118 A Tale of Three Kings The recent coronation of King Charles III and the scandal that led to his grandfather’s coronation nearly a century before Elizabeth Batstone

124 Puzzles

136 Colouring Page

138 Classifieds

140 Mail Order

144 Photo Finish

I’ve seen some wild stuff in my travels.

Sometimes I seek them out, other times they’re a complete surprise. They’re always found in a museum.

For anyone who still thinks a museum is a dusty place full of boring old history, you couldn’t be more wrong. On vacations in Canada and the US, I’ve found some of the coolest and kookiest things in museums: a horse-drawn hearse, rock from the moon, robotic dinosaurs, the DeLorean from Back to the Future. It’s especially exciting when I find a random connection to home. In St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, I found a portrait of Sir Walter Raleigh (he and his halfbrother, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, made exploratory trips to Newfoundland for Queen Elizabeth I in the 16th century); in New York, I found an exhibit on the extinct Labrador duck. Here in Newfoundland and Labrador, I’ve toured a museum filled with chainsaws and another with snowmobiles, listened to an opera singer from the 1800s, descended into a mine tunnel and seen a giant squid up close. Most of these community museums are a product of love, respect and pride, built and run by volunteers. They are not about profit, they are about reward – the reward of honouring their past, of keeping legacies alive and of giving visitors a deeper understanding of their hometown and what makes it special.

In this issue, we have two stories of two very different museums. One is brand new and devoted to the history of gloves, in a town that really, really knows gloves (see page 76). The other is in a building over 100 years old and is in a precarious position (see page 70). The manager says it best, when asked how people can support the museum, and I’ll leave off with her words. I hope you take them to heart.

“What you can do as a local is visit us this summer! And you know, tell people, anybody you visit, your friends and family, tell them be sure to go to the museum.”

Thanks for reading,

Janice Stuckless, Editor-in-chief janice@downhomelife.com

Submission Guidelines and Prize Rules

You could WIN$100!

Every reader whose PHOTO, STORY, JOKE or POEM appears next to this yellow “from our readers” stamp in a current issue receives $10 and a chance at being drawn for the monthly prize: $100 for one photo submission and $100 for one written submission. Prizes are awarded in Downhome Dollars certificates, which can be spent like cash in our retail stores and online at shopDownhome.com.*

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

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

43 James Lane St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3 mail@downhomelife.com www.downhomelife.com

Deadline for replies is the 25th of each month.

*Only 1 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. *No

Beautiful Backdrop

This iceberg in Spillers Cove, Twillingate, provided a stunning backdrop for the Corner Brook Intermediate Grade 8 Girls basketball team. They were attending the West Coast Provincial Grade 8 basketball tournament.

Krista MacDonald Massey Drive, NL

Excellent shot. Thanks for sharing!

My First Email Pal

I have been enjoying Downhome since subscribing a couple of years ago. It is a magazine I really look forward to receiving every month.

In your November 2022 issue, there was a wonderful article about Gus Harris entitled “Intercontinental Navigator.” In reading about Gus and his adventures, I wondered if he might have met my dad in the RCAF. My father, Robert H. Blackburn, born in 1919, was a navigator trainer in 1942. As Gus was trained in Winnipeg in the same year, and Dad was in nearby Portage La Prairie, I wondered if they might have crossed paths.

I phoned Gus’s daughter, Susan Tiller, in St. John’s [NL] in November, explained who I was and wondered if I could connect with Gus. She was very pleased I had phoned, but said Gus’s hearing wasn’t good – but he

would enjoy an email from me. From then to January 12, 2023, Gus and I corresponded. We shared stories and pictures. He enjoyed reading a book I sent him that my dad had written. It is a collection of short stories and poems titled Against the Snow.

Waiting longer than normal for a return message from my January 12th email, I phoned Susan for two reasons. Firstly, I wanted to hear that Gus was in good health; and secondly, to find out if Gus had received his Quilt of Valour lap quilt. My wife and I had submitted his name, and the organization presented a lap and a bed quilt to Gus the next Sunday at Susan’s home. Gus was very surprised and pleased, and Susan was good enough to send us a photo and a short video of him with his quilts.

Very sadly, on March 2, Susan emailed us to let us know Gus had

died in his sleep three days after a fall. As Susan said in her email, she was so lucky to have a father whose mind was sharp for all 100 years – as was my father’s on his 100th birthday. I was very sad to hear of his passing, as I had felt a close friendship with Gus through our emails. I hope to meet Susan on our sixth trip to your wonderful province.

Thank you, Downhome, for giving me the joy of this new friendship, as short as it was.

Harry Blackburn Brampton, ON

We’re glad to have helped you make that special connection, Harry. Thank you for sharing your story.

Heart Wrenching

I read Kim Ploughman’s article “At the Heart of It,” May 2023 issue, where the Catholic church in Patrick’s Cove (among other churches in NL) is being taken from them, and felt a sense of indignation. What right does a wealthy institution have to take places of worship from parishioners who, over many years, during good times and bad, sacrificed time and money to build and sustain the buildings? Their church is part of their life, their culture, their spirituality from birth: born, married and buried on its grounds. The institution in Rome should give restitution for sins committed by its sons, not the burden bearers who are the shareholders of their beloved estate.

Nellie P. Strowbridge Via email

No doubt many feel as strongly about this as you do, Nellie. Thank you for putting your feelings into words, something that doesn’t always come easy.

My Great Aunt Clara Hodder at age 96, making lassy buns from Gander Bay South.

NL Classifieds

At the Downhome Expo this year, we gave out our NL Classifieds playing cards in exchange for donations to the CBS Paradise Community Food Bank. Thank you to everyone who donated. Today, NL Classifieds matched the donations and presented the food bank with a $1,000 cheque.

Heather Gillingham

Bayman in Aisle 3

Camden Humby of Lethbridge, NL, doing his shopping Newfie style, at Holloways Fresh Mart in Bloomfield, NL. He is going to be three years old on June 3. Nanny’s pride and joy. His parents are Chantelle and Zach Humby.

Catherine Holloway Via Facebook.com

From his cap right down to his boots, Camden is dressed for the shed, the store and the shop!

One Rock to Another

Hello, you wonderful people of the East Coast Rock, from George on the West Coast Rock, Vancouver Island. I just received my May copy of Downhome and noticed an error on page 17 under the caption “Oak Bay.” Thanks for pointing out our mistake, as we have always called that mountain “Mt. Baker!”

I had the rare privilege of being on your island home a few years ago. My sister, who lives in New Brunswick, and myself from BC were delivering some things to her grandson, who was attending Memorial University [in St. John’s, NL]. Being from BC, one would think I am used to travelling by ferry – not so! We had a cabin for the trip over, but when we got to Argentia we waited too long before we went down to the car. I knew we had a problem when we were met by a number of staff with safety vests on. One of them got on the radio and said, “We found them.” Sure enough, when we got to the car deck, ours was the only car in sight! They must have looked at the NB plates and figured two more mainlanders got lost!

I have been told that Newfoundland is infamous for the moose on the road. Someone must have sent out a wildlife warning that a car from away was on the road because we never saw one. Is that good or bad? Now, I have seen drivers swerve all over the road many times, but I have never before seen the road swerve all over under me. The wind you have over there... oh me nerves!

My friend, who is a major with the Salvation Army so I know he would never lie, told us about all the wonder-

ful seafood on the island. Only problem was, we were there in September; all the good restaurants were closed and we ended up eating most meals at the “golden arches.” All in all, it was a grand old trip with lots of laughs, good food, sights to enjoy and new friends to meet. I hope to return someday, but during the tourist season.

Pastor George Hodgson Victoria, BC

The mistake is definitely ours, as you and several other readers from that beautiful coast pointed out to us. That peak in the background is Mount Baker. Mount Ranier is farther south in Washington and not visible from this spot. Thanks for taking the time to write to us, and we hope you get to our coast again someday.

Mount Baker

Where to see Newfoundland Ponies this Summer

Visiting Newfoundland and wondering where to see Newfoundland Ponies? Here are a few places to meet these wonderful creatures who helped build the province. And remember: DO NOT FEED THEM.

Cache Rapids Stable

Reidville

This stunning spot outside Deer Lake is home to 35 horses, including five Newfoundland ponies; Charlie, Maggie, Barney, Queenie and Skye. Ruth Story and her husband Kevin offer wilderness rides into the Tablelands (Gros Morne National Park), wagon rides, lessons, children’s camps and more. Tel: 709.635.5535 or 709.215.0742, cacherapidsstable.com

Change Islands

Newfoundland Pony Sanctuary

Change Islands

Netta LeDrew has put her heart and soul into this sanctuary and it shows! Home to 9 ponies including 42-year old grand dame, Princess. Tel: 709.884.6953 or 709.621.6381 or email: nlponyrefuge@hotmail.com. Free admission but donations gratefully accepted.

Devoe Ranch

Codroy Valley

Rumour has it 4 foals will be born here this summer. Ponies Kenneth (Stallion), Black Tickles, Sunny, Dee, Midnight and Nelly await you! Email: Sandra Piercey, sandrapiercey@gmail.com. Tel:709.955.2154

Hobbs Farm

Bunyan’s Cove

The petting farm opens in July! Danielle and Chris Hobbs and their family are proud to showcase 4 ponies; Nancy, Poppy, Einstein and Trinity. Email: daniellec_16@hotmail.com Tel: 709.427.9543 or 709.427.2106

Heritage Park and Pasture

Hopeall

Drop by this seasonal pasture to meet our summer resident ponies. We are planning to build this into a future park to showcase the NL pony along with a small museum and visitor centre.

Cache Rapids Stable

Newfoundland Ponies of Cappahayden

Cappahayden

Heading to UNESCO Mistaken Point this summer? Along the way you will spot Liz Chafe’s bright red barn and 3 beautiful Ponies with spectacular coastal views. She is an expert on the breed. Email: lizchafe001@gmail.com Tel: 709.363.2886.

NL Pony Pals

South River

The NL Pony Pals Project was started by a group of Pony owners in Conception Bay North who have their ponies on a community pasture. Contact Byron Hierlihy at byronhierlihy@yahoo.ca or Tammy Webber at 709.786.0650. Find them on Facebook too! The walk along the trail is beautiful and you will find ponies at the end of it.

Terra Nova Cottages, RV Park and Conference Centre

Port Blandford

On the edge of Terra Nova National Park, you’ll find this amazing holiday property where ponies Charlie and Finnegan are waiting to meet you! Owners Cathy Coveyduck and Jim Lewis also have goats, dogs and other sweet creatures to meet.

http://terranovahospitalityhome.com

Tel: 1.888.267.2333

Spirit of Topsail

Parson’s Pond

Visiting Gros Morne? Don’t miss a visit with the only stallion, Spirit of Topsail, on the Great Northern Peninsula. Spirit, Opal and others are located in Parson’s Pond, on Waterfront Rd. Their owner, Paige Payne, is doing amazing work to preserve this breed.

K & S Trail Adventures

57 Main Street, Gander Bay South To get here, drive through Gander on Gander Bay Road. Once in Gander Bay South, you’ll see a red & black barn, home to Frankie and his pal Flint, an Arabian/Quarter Horse. Frankie and Flint’s owners have teamed up to offer cart and trail rides as K & S Trail Adventures. facebook.com/groups/ 594272589062139 Tel: 709.676.2320 or 709.424.2515

Brockerville’s Ponies

Lawn, Burin Peninsula

Max Brockerville remembers when there were 145 Newfoundland Ponies on the Burin Peninsula back in 1985. Now there are very few left. Max and his wife Darlane keep ponies in the area. You can usually see them off of the main road in the pretty town of Lawn.

Renews-Cappahaden

Liz Chafe photo

Downhome tours...

Central America

Honduras

Karen Smith of Kingston, ON, sent us this great shot of Bill Duffenais snorkelling under the dock on Guanaja Island, Honduras.

In Honduras, July 20 is Lempira Day – an annual festival named after the warrior king of the Lenca, the Indigenous people of the northern highlands of Honduras and El Salvador. In the 1530s, Chief Lempira gathered an army of 30,000 and led the struggle against Spanish conquerors. Though the revolt was ultimately unsuccessful, Lempira is a recognized Honduran national hero, and the day is celebrated with parades and fireworks.

Belize

Jan Varner of Ramea, NL, poses with a copy of Downhome at her winter home in Belize.

With hundreds of islands and a long Caribbean coastline, Belize has always had a strong fishing culture. July is an ideal month to visit for some sea, sand and snacks. The annual Lobster Festival, the country’s largest foodie celebration, heralds the opening of lobster season. Whether you like your lobster steamed and dripping with drawn butter, or want to try more exotic variations like spicy lobster soup, there are few better places to enjoy the world’s favourite crustacean.

Costa Rica

Todd Lamswood of Toronto, ON, and friends take a riverboat tour in Costa Rica in this photo from the Downhome Cruise in 2018. In Costa Rica, the Fiesta de La Virgen del Mar (The Festival of the Virgin of the Sea) falls on the Saturday closest to the 16th of July. In the town of Puntarenas, fishing boats decked in flags and flowers sail in procession to commemorate the storm of 1920 that caused widespread damage and loss of life, and to seek protection from the Virgin for another year at sea. Other celebrations include regattas, parades, music and dancing.

Expert answers to common life questions.

By Linda Browne

From where does Caesar salad get its name?

It’s a staple at many backyard BBQs and can be found on menus and dinner tables around the globe. With its crispy lettuce and crunchy croutons, with a little lemon zing, it’s the perfect accompaniment to pizza or a plate of pasta. It’s the mighty Caesar salad, and while there are several variations, its most basic form consists of romaine lettuce sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and topped with croutons, tossed in a creamy dressing.

You’re likely familiar with its contents, but did you ever wonder where this famous salad got its name? (And contrary to what you may be thinking, no, it’s not named after that Roman guy.)

A few different folks are sometimes credited for this tasty concoction. One of them, mention the late William and Mary Morris in the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins (who also wrote the syndicated column, “Words, Wit and Wisdom” about word origins and usage), is “Prince” Mike Romanoff. He operated the legendary Hollywood restaurant Romanoff’s, where the great stars and

starlets of the ’40s, ’50s and early ’60s gathered to lunch (and where that famous snap of actresses Jayne Mansfield and Sophia Loren was taken in 1957). However, the Morrises write, “Mike was, of course, not a prince at all, simply a transplanted New Yorker with a king-size supply of chutzpah.” And while he helped popularize Caesar salad, they add, “he did not invent it.”

The real credit, they note, goes to Italian chef Caesar Cardini, who operated a restaurant called Caesar’s Place in Tijuana, Mexico.

“One day, many more hungry tourists than expected stopped at his place on their way north

from the bullfights, races, beaches and other Baja California attractions. So he improvised a salad from ingredients on hand. The result was the Caesar salad, made of romaine lettuce, garlic-flavoured olive oil, lemon juice, grated Parmesan cheese, coddled egg, Worcestershire sauce and garlicflavoured croutons, all tossed lightly before serving,” the Morrises state. According to Caesarcardinis.com, which sells a line of Cardini’s® products including salad dressings and croutons, the year was 1924. The website for The Kitchen Project (Kitchenproject.com), run by chef Stephen Block, narrows the date down further to July 4, 1924 (according to Caesar’s daughter, Rosa Cardini, Block notes).

The Caesar salad was an instant hit. One of its earliest fans was the late, great cook, author and TV host Julia Child, who recounted a visit to Caesar’s restaurant with her parents in 1925 or 1926. (Tijuana, she added, was a popular spot for Americans to visit during the prohibition era.) She shared the experience in her book From Julia Child’s Kitchen. “Caesar himself rolled the big cart up to the table, tossed the romaine in a great wooden bowl, and I wish I could say I remember his every move, but I don’t. The only thing I see again clearly is the eggs. I can see him break two eggs over that romaine and roll them in, the greens going all creamy as the eggs flowed over them,” she wrote. “It was a sensation of a salad from coast to coast, and there were even rumblings of its success in Europe.”

Another interesting nugget about Caesar salad, Child shared, is that it

was initially conceived as finger food. Some 50 years after her visit to Caesar’s restaurant, Child spoke with Rosa Cardini (who was born about five years after the famous salad came to be, but was well-versed about its details) in preparation for a segment for her TV show. Cardini walked her through the steps.

“At first, she said, Caesar used only the tender inside leaves, the hearts, of romaine, and he served them whole, arranging each portion on a large chilled dinner plate, leaf by leaf; you picked up a leaf by its stem end, and you ate it in your fingers, leaf by leaf,” Child wrote. “But, she went on, since most Americans do not like plucking up sauced items with their fingers… he later changed to bite-sized pieces.”

If this tidbit of trivia is making you hungry, you could do worse than whipping up a Caesar salad – a timely snack for July 4, since it’s National Caesar Salad Day (at least, in the US). Bon appetit, and hail Caesar!

Do you have a burning life question for Linda to investigate? Turn to page 9 for ways to contact us.

Caesar Cardini

Dirty Down Payment

I was standing in the Walmart parking lot a few days ago, talking with a friend whose car was parked next to mine. He turned to look at my car, then asked, “Are you selling your car?”

I replied, “Maybe, if I get the right price. Why?”

Pointing up, he said, “That crow on the lamp post just made a deposit on it!”

Orville Cole Dartmouth, NS

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.

Say WHAT?

Downhome recently posted this photo (submitted by Gerry Guerard) on our website and social media platforms and asked folks to imagine what the puffin might be saying. Laurie Murray’s response made us chuckle the most, so we’re awarding her 20 Downhome Dollars!

Here are the runners-up:

“After I move out you’ll be empty nesters!” – Lee-Ann Belfry

“I did not steal the last capelin!” – Richard Schappert

“Look at me when I’m talkin’ at ya!” – @shackwackyglass

Play with us online!

www.downhomelife.com/saywhat

“Did you see the Dickie Berg?”

– Laurie Murray

One Fish, Two Fish

This future fisher knows that good things come to those who bait.

Monique Collins

Dover, NL

Cod Cheeks

Baby Rayia’s the cutest catch of the day.

Shianne Hardy

Pilley’s Island, NL

City Slicker

Ruby came from Labrador City to see the sights of St. John’s. Wanda Hewlin Labrador City, NL

Baycation Buddies

Duke and Winston check out Pop’s boat while visiting Hermitage. Megan Nash via DownhomeLife.com

Bay Watch

Daisy Doodle’s picture perfect in beautiful Bonavista.

Tracy Hayward Bonavista, NL

Dog Days

Tucker the American spaniel is super cute in Cottrell’s Cove.

Terrylynn Tremblett Grand Falls-Windsor, NL

reviewed by Denise Flint

No One Knows About Us

Bridget Canning

Breakwater Books

$22.95

No One Knows About Us is Bridget Canning’s first foray into short story writing after two novels. The stories concern the everyday lives of everyday people, and the setting goes back and forth between St. John’s and Toronto. Many of the characters from different stories intersect in interesting and unexpected ways, and it’s a bit of a game to try to trace the relationships.

Most of the stories capture a point in time or a particular situation – a night in a bar, a hospital visit for a scary exam, the progress of a crush. They sound mundane, yes, but they represent situations and states of mind that we all go through and are extremely relatable. Except, that is, the final story. “Mindfull,” which is really a novella, is probably one of the scariest things I’ve read in a long time. I had no idea what was going to happen next, and every new development came as a surprise. I hope Canning turns it into a novel one day. (Or maybe, given how unsettling it was, I hope she doesn’t.)

At first it doesn’t sound like a compliment to say that the sum of the parts of No One Knows About Us is greater than the whole. But there are so many beautiful sentences scattered throughout, like little jewels, that they are what make the book stand out. All in all, Canning’s latest contribution keeps you turning the pages, and you can’t say better than that.

Q&A with the Author

Denise Flint: So you’ve published two novels and a short story collection. Do you prefer one over the other as far as writing? Do you have a preference as a reader?

Bridget Canning: Honestly it kind of depends. Sometimes for writing it depends on what inspires me. If I see it encapsulated, as a moment or as a series of moments, it’s a short story. Right now I’m working on a novel, and it’s hard in the fact that I don’t know how it’s going to end. It depends on how I’m inspired. It’s the same thing when I’m reading. Sometimes I just want to read short stories. Like at the end of term, I limit myself to reading short stories or a literary journal.

DF: What’s your favourite reading platform? Ebook? Paperback? Hard cover? Phone?

BC: I’m a paper book person. I don’t even know where the charger to my Kobo is right now. I was using ereaders for a while, but I ended up buying paper copies from seeing them on the shelf in bookstores or for passing them on to others. I’m still a paper and binding person.

DF: You thanked someone for the use of a particular anecdote in one of the stories. Is it usual to incorporate things you experience in real life into your fiction?

BC: I think it’s kind of usual for most fiction. I think you hear about an incident, or something that happened, or a snippet of dialogue. So much of writing is based on your own

experiences. That was a great story and it kind of played into the larger story, and I like how it fits. It’s part of writing in general.

DF: You also mention your writing group. How does a writing group work?

BC: The writing group all met as part of taking writing courses at Memorial in Lisa Moore or Robert Findley’s classes, and it was encouraged by Lisa to keep giving each other feedback after the course ended. It’s nice to know you have this small community where you can bounce ideas off each other and benefit from mutual criticism. Writers like to meet other writers, and it beats you living in the jail of your mind all the time. Usually we give each other an excerpt. When there are a lot of people we say a max of five pieces; with smaller groups it’s 10 pages and you send it out before you meet. Two hours for four people, plus chips and wine and snacks.

DF: Did COVID affect your writing process?

BC: Oh yeah, definitely. It felt like a fallow period. So much of writing for me is going out into the world, going for a walk, popping into a coffee shop and watching people, and talking to people – your friends, family, neighbours; and you’re suddenly in your house with nothing to do. I think there’s a feeling that there’s bigger things going on than this story about someone having a crush. It was easy to lose focus and inspiration, and get bogged down with the stress of the pandemic.

here, kitty kitty

By Paul Warford

Was I in over my head?

Hey, do you remember that extremely popular science-fiction show from the 1990s, The X-Files? Did you watch it? Me neither.

I call Shane in a panic, hoping he’ll answer his phone as sweat pricks the skin under my arms. He’s often very busy, so my chances are 50-50. After a few rings, he picks up and I immediately blurt out, “I can’t find the cat. I’ve looked everywhere.” I’m startled to realize I’m near tears; a strong reaction for a pet I’ve had for less than a week.

“Calm down, dude,” Shane responds in his ever-even tone. “I couldn’t tell ya how many times I’ve looked everywhere for one of the cats – I’ve been out walkin’ up and down the road, only to come back inside to see the f#$!in’ thing walkin’ across the kitchen. She’s in there.”

Shane has had as many as four cats in one household. They always seem content, they all manage to cohabitate and – most importantly –his house never smells like a house full of cats. He’s a master in the field of the domestic feline, and therefore my first phone-a-friend when I’m not sure what to do with my newfound puss.

I know what Shane is saying is right; I know there’s no physical way my new cat could have escaped, but I’ve looked everywhere in my rather small basement apartment. Shane continues to reassure me as I double-check spots I’ve already searched, like my closet and the space behind the dryer. I open my sock drawer and she suddenly pops out of it as if we’re performing a magic trick together. Ta da!

The Warfords were not a cat family on account of my middle brother, Brian, being deathly allergic to them. Besides, our childhood energy and enthusiasm were better suited to a dog than an aloof housecat. I didn’t much care

Days later, I returned with a carrier, a litter box, a food dish and a degree of uncertainty.

for cats as a kid because the only ones I had access to belonged to Aunt Barb; a 30-something bachelorette at the time who undoubtedly exhibited a much different tone and approach to her animals than my five-year old’s brain. I’d tentatively reach out to her beautiful Himalayan only to have it hiss at me while taking a lazy swipe with its paw. As a child you don’t understand things like “threat” and “territory,” so I took this very personally.

Like most animals, you learn to like them by living with them. I found myself the roommate of cats Zoe and Burton while rooming with a friend in Banff, AB. Zoe was mad, but Burton was a large black longhair who, for whatever reason, would lie on its back on my bed while I was at work. I would come home to find Burton in this position every day. What a curious cat… I started coming around thanks to Burton.

I went to the St. John’s SPCA weeks ago with nothing more than an appointment. The friendly staff walked me from room to room to see this puss and that puss – some fat, some tall, some old, some kittensmall. Many of them were perfectly charming, but my mind was still in the first room, on the first cat I met: a timid, smallish, fluffy character, allwhite. She was tucked inside a hideyhole when I entered the room, and I fully expected a reaction like my aunt’s Himalayan as I cautiously reached inside to pet her. Instead, I was surprised to find her nuzzle back before she slowly emerged from her den. The other cats were great, but by

the time I was meeting them, I’d already found my friend.

So I paid her fee, set a date, and went around town spending upwards of $300 on cat stuff. Days later, I returned with a carrier, a litter box, a food dish and a degree of uncertainty. Was I in over my head?

When it came time to call Shane in a tizzy five days later, I began thinking that perhaps I was indeed in over my head, but I don’t feel that way now.

The SPCA said her name was Gillian, but they’re all Puss to me. White Puss, to be exact, but I said I’d keep Gillian on the paperwork.

By the time I was driving her home (while she urgently mewed all the way), I decided I’d add the last name, Anderson, for fun. Gillian Anderson was a lead actor on The X-Files, an immediately recognizable name to anyone from my generation. Like I said, I never watched the show, but she’s a cat. You can call a cat anything.

After three weeks of hiding under my suit coats in my bedroom, she finally started joining me on the couch and allowing me to pet her. Now she can’t get enough attention and there’s fur in my cups of tea, but I’d never get rid of her now. I tell her “I got the best puss in the shop” ’cause I think maybe I did just that.

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

fresh tracks

new music talk with Wendy Rose

Bare Bones

Evelyn Jess

Evelyn Jess got her stage name from her late grandmother, so it felt fitting that this young singer-songwriter launched her debut album, Bare Bones, on the Mother’s Day weekend this spring. With opening sets by Spectrum Queer Choir and Strong Harbour Strings, the album release show at Gower Street United Church in St. John’s, NL, supported not only Evelyn’s new music, but also a few community organizations near and dear to her heart.

A beautiful record from start to finish, Bare Bones opens with “Trepassey in June.” Soft acoustic guitar and light violin lead us into the opening verse. In her smooth, gorgeous voice, Evelyn details a momentous occasion in the small town – when aviation legend Amelia Earhart landed in Trepassey. “They asked, are you really gonna cross the Atlantic, she said I’mma damn well try,” Evelyn sings. This incredible tribute won the Amelia Earhart songwriting competition in 2018, and serves as a powerful album opener.

The title track, “Bare Bones,” is next. The lyrics speak of her passion for music: “Now I don’t need

drums to keep me in beat, and I don’t need bass to keep me in key, I just feel the rhythm within my soul, I just let the music take control.”

The third track, “Bird on the Wing” opens with soft guitar picking, drawing comparisons to Leonard Cohen in both style and song title at first, but it takes a heavier turn than Cohen’s “Bird on the Wire.” Evelyn sings the song title repeatedly in the chorus, creating an immediate “earworm” – a song that easily gets stuck in your head.

The young songwriter penned the ultimate folk song for homesick expats with “Home to Newfoundland,” which describes all the reasons why there’s no place like home. “Want to feel that northeast wind,

blow through my tired bones, watch the fog rolling in, it’d be so good on the soul,” she sings.

In the next song, “Waves,” the theme of home and belonging continues, as Evelyn describes how we watch the waves crash on the shore as kids, later watching the waves crash with our own children.

Provincial pride continues in “Weather out the Storm,” a cover from renowned NL band Figgy Duff’s 1989 album of the same name. Evelyn reached out to Pamela Morgan of Figgy Duff for her blessing to record this song. The pair haven’t met yet, but wow – wouldn’t it be incredible to see these two musicians perform it together?

In “Like a Song” Evelyn gives listen-

ers a straight-up country ballad, filled with admiration and care as she searches for the perfect gift for her lover. “I don’t want to buy you cards with silly little words, with verses and poems that you’ve already heard. Give you a piece of my soul that to you will always belong, like a song.”

The second last track, “One Big Mess,” is another love song, featuring an impressive horn section that brings a “big band” element of fun to this piece.

Bare Bones wraps up with “Cape Cod by the Sand,” a tender, slowertempo song describing memories of growing up in a house built by hand, with love. Fans of The Ennis Sisters, Fortunate Ones, Figgy Duff and The Once will enjoy this record.

Ritchie Perez photo

Q&A with the Artist

Wendy Rose: Tell us a little about yourself, and how/when you got into creating music.

Evelyn Jess: I was… raised in a little town called Ragged Harbour, located on the Kittiwake Coast in the municipality of Musgrave Harbour. My parents named me Jessica Evelyn Bemister after my Grandmother Evelyn. She passed when I was seven, but I remember her well. At the age of 13, I taught myself how to play the guitar and began writing lyrics. I immediately fell in love with the art of songwriting. I attended [College of the North Atlantic] at the age of 19 for music but didn’t return to the craft professionally until almost 10 years later… I adopted the name Evelyn Jess as a tribute to my grandmother, her legacy and the impact she had on me.

WR: What’s the theme/concept of this album? (If none, what inspired you to write these songs?)

EJ: This collection of songs are compositions that have come into existence over the past decade, with all of them coming to me at different points in my life. Each song is an extension of who I am, hence the “Bare Bones” title. It is me at my core and expresses a lot of who I am and what I am thankful for – love, home and family.

As a nod to all of the local musicians who came before me to help pave the way, I decided to include one cover on this album that I believe is a masterpiece composition –“Weather out the Storm” by Figgy

Duff. I’ve never heard anyone do a cover version since its release in 1989, the year I was born. I took this as a sign that this was the right song to include on the album…

WR: You’ve already released a number of music videos of songs featured on Bare Bones… What kind of feedback have you been hearing about these songs and their videos?

EJ: The feedback... has been amazing. I have had people reach out from different parts of the world even. “Trepassey in June” has especially been getting fair notoriety lately, since this coming June will mark the 95th anniversary of famous aviator Amelia Earhart’s Atlantic crossing. This video showcases the beautiful town of Trepassey, and with the other videos being shot outside also, audiences can witness other areas of our gorgeous island which they’ve enjoyed. They also appreciate the stories behind the songs, and my genuine love and pride for Newfoundland.

WR: At the time of writing, your new album is about to be released at Gower Street United Church, with opening sets by Spectrum Queer Choir and Strong Harbour Strings, with proceeds from the event going back into the community via SQC and SHS. What inspired you to ask these groups to perform on this bill?

EJ: I’ve been working on this album since 2019, and it has taken a village. Without the people around me, I would not have the product I have

today that I am so very proud of, and it left me feeling compelled to pay it forward.

I first met the Spectrum Queer Choir when they asked me to perform at their 10-year celebration concert in the summer of 2022. I was in awe of their performance and was impressed to know they are the first community choir in Newfoundland and Labrador for 2SLGBTQIA+ people and their allies. Their mission is to create a space of celebration, belonging and safety, and they welcome all who wish to join, regardless of experience or ability. My heart was warmed by this sentiment and [I] thought how impactful this choir would have been on me in my early years of self-discovery…

Strong Harbour Strings is a mentoring artist program based on the belief that our communities can be strengthened through the learning and sharing of music… I met its director and founder, Carole Bestvater, on a board of directors we were on together. [She] is a skilled violinist and came to mind when I began assembling a core band for the

album. Another member of Strong Harbour Strings was on the same board during that time, Amy CollyerHolmes – a talented cellist who also became a guest artist on the record. I was inspired by these women and their work of supplying classical music lessons to low-income families and neighbourhoods.

WR: What’s in store for Evelyn Jess and Bare Bones in 2023?

EJ: With the release of this album, I have decided to hold back from making it available on streaming platforms. Since the streaming game has come on the scene, I find it has devalued the artistry and depth of music, from the audio quality and track order, to the album artwork and credits. Physical copies allow you to immerse yourself in them for that full-on music experience...

Through collaboration with different filmmakers, each song will eventually be released track by track and video by video until each single from the album is completed. It is then that Bare Bones will be added online in its entirety…

Alick Tsui photo

By Gord Follett

Fishing Follies and Fog

My text message from the supermarket: “Hon, what was it you wanted besides butter, bread and cheese slices to make grilled cheese sandwiches for the girls (our three granddaughters)?” Send.

Thirty seconds later comes the reply: “Just some fruit and yogurt.”

To say this happens every second or third time I go to the supermarket would not be an exaggeration. Yet there are events from decades ago that I can recall with amazing accuracy.

Despite not-so-pleasant fishing experiences with me over 40 years ago, I’m still great friends with Brian, right, and Keith, centre.

Going back some 40-41 years, for example, I remember a troutin’ trip with a childhood buddy, Brian Levesque, who was in the military and vacationed at home each summer.

We drove from St. John’s to Placentia Junction, then walked about 40 minutes over up-and-down barrens, with Brian – being in prime physical condition as an army guy and all – carrying a dozen beer in a cooler. I offered a couple of times to carry it for a while, but Brian said he was fine, just had to switch it from a regular carry to his shoulder now and then. It was a warm July day and Brian was sweating from the lug. Finally, we spotted the pond about 250 metres away. I was leading the way with 100 metres to go when I heard a bang. After carrying it all this way, the cooler had slipped off Brian’s shoulder straight onto a boulder. Ten of the 12 glass bottles of beer in it were smashed.

No sense crying over spilled beer. We came here to go fishing, so let’s do it.

I was casting from a bank a couple of feet above water level, while Brian had waded out to the top of his knee rubbers. We were each hooking some pan-sized mud trout until I caught an eel.

Did I mention that Brian had

Brian and I did manage to catch a few trout that day in Placentia Junction.

ophidiophobia, an overwhelming fear of snakes? As a member of the airborne regiment, he had no fear of jumping out of airplanes, but anything resembling a snake was a different story. And here I was 10 feet behind him with a three-foot-long wriggling eel in my hand.

“I’m not keeping this,” I said as I tossed it at my buddy.

In a flash, he churned the water like a 150 Yamaha outboard, panicking and trying to get away from this creature. I’m fairly certain he called me a few nasty names in the process.

It was also in the early ’80s that I took Brian’s brother Keith, another lifelong Queens Road buddy, fishing for trout in Lord’s Pond, a 35-40minute hike southwest of Soldier’s Pond, just outside St. John’s. I’d been to Lord’s Pond a few times before on my own and usually returned with my limit of pan-sized trout. Keith and I did not get a single bite that day – and that was the good part!

I noticed heavy fog moving in even before we started fishing, but never

thought much of it because I was somewhat familiar with the area and didn’t expect to have much trouble finding my way back. Big mistake!

As for my belief that getting lost and “going in circles” was a fallacy and I couldn’t understand how anybody could let that happen... I was wrong. Through the fog and heavy mist, we headed out, walking 90 minutes before spotting a huge rock, larger than a minivan, which offered a bit of protection for our first unscheduled break. There we shared a two-cent sucker – we had taken no grub with us – and a couple of my cigarettes. Keith wasn’t even a smoker up to that point.

We could see no more than 80-90 metres in front of us, so I suggested we “head for that tree straight ahead, and from there we’ll find something else as a marker, then another...”

Wrong again.

On two more occasions – each after anywhere from 60-90 minutes of stumbling over barrens, bog holes and boulders – we ended up back at that large rock. I kid you not.

A recent photo of Soldier’s Pond, which is just off the TCH, while Lord’s Pond is over these farthest hills, to the southwest

Three more exhausting and muscle stiffening hours later, we literally crawled up a bank and onto pavement. Yes!

I was still somewhat disoriented and it took me a while to figure out that we were on Witless Bay Line, about 10 kilometres “as the crow flies” from my car. But we had actually wandered at least 25 kilometres, zig-zagging the countryside.

After dragging our aching young bodies for another couple of kilometres while trying to hitch a ride, a man pulled over in his pickup and told us to hop in the pan. I had my left foot on the back tire and was swinging my right leg over the side when I heard him ask, “Where you guys heading?”

“To the TCH to get my car,” I replied.

“I hate to tell you this, fellas, but the highway is back the other way; you were walking towards the Southern Shore.”

Long story short, we did eventually make it home, seven long hours after leaving the pond for our 40-minute walk to the car.

Last June my buddies trusted me to go fishing again... After capelin. In Middle Cove. On a clear, calm day.

Gord Follett was editor of the Newfoundland Sportsman magazine for more than 30 years and co-hosted the Newfoundland Sportsman TV show for 15 years. Email gordfollett@gordfollettoutdoors.com.

Brothers Keith and Brian Levesque figured it was relatively safe to go fishing for capelin with me on this beautiful day last summer.

BY DILLON COLLINS

Brad Gushue and Mark Nichols break down Team Gushue’s world-leading season, legacy and endgame.

Shameful puns aside, curling is the chess of the winter sports world: delicate, precise and as much mental as it is physical. If parallels are to be made, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Team Gushue are the Bobby Fischer of curling – tactical, ballsy and, above all, passionate.

“I think for our team we really try to focus on what our strengths are, as opposed to playing other teams’ weaknesses. For me, it’s really just a little bit more like playing poker. You try to leave yourself the best odds,” shares team skip and multi-time Olympian Brad Gushue, during a recent candid sit-down with Downhome alongside longtime teammate and brother-on-ice, Mark Nichols.

Poker, like chess, is a game of strategy, of manoeuvres and counter-manoeuvres, the prerequisite of which often sees a player thinking multiple moves ahead. Gushue, trusted third Nichols, longtime team lead Geoff

WHAT do you do when you’re between a rock and a hard place? You sweep the stress away.

All photos courtesy Curling Canada/Michael Burns

Walker and newly minted second, E.J. Harnden, play the game as well as anyone. And in the 2022-23 season, better than anyone. Team Gushue topped the rankings of the 2022-23 Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling, securing the Pinty’s Cup and etching their name as the top men’s team in the world for the calendar year – a well-earned stamp of approval on a global scale.

“We put a lot of emphasis on this Pinty’s Cup, which is the points from all the Grand Slams throughout the year,” Brad explains. “It gives you a better indication of who the top team is and who has played well over that period of time. And we’ve always been close. This year we won it, which was great. We take a lot more pride in that than just the kind of one-off event.”

“Brad touched on it, and we’ve gotten a lot better at not focusing on the one moment. But human nature is to kind of focus on that – that one miss

or that one game or anything like that,” interjects Mark, weighing the reality of balancing high-octane wins with deflating losses over the course of a season. “But when you look at, over the course of our year and the last number of years, the consistency that we’ve been able to uphold with this team and our previous teams [it] has been great. And it’s a lot easier to kind of sleep at night knowing that we’re still doing everything possible to give us a chance to win.”

That consistency has resulted in Team Gushue earning what sports pundits may call “big dog” status. At any event, on any given night, any team could walk away with an unexpected victory regardless of rank or status. But when you’re as hot, and as good, for as long as the Gushue rink has been, opponents are wise to take notice and study the tale of the tape.

“We had some other moments before that, little flashes for a year here or half a year, where we were

considered favourites. But in the last 10 years, each and every time we go into an event, I think we’re on the short list of teams people would expect to win,” Brad shares proudly.

“But that’s just the culmination of 25 years of hard work for both of us, on and off the ice. And then also surround yourself with a good team and good support team. And we’ve done a really, really good job of that over the

work together on the ice, I think it’s really, really good.”

With their name newly minted on the Pinty’s Cup, yet another historic Brier win to balance a hard fought, albeit disappointing, silver medal at the World Men’s Championship in Ottawa this past April, and one could hardly be faulted for thinking Team Gushue was only hitting their stride. This despite past glories that include an Olympic gold medal in 2006 and a stunning first ever Brier title for NL on home ice in 2017. Which begs the question to perhaps the greatest homegrown sporting stars our island has ever seen: What means more in the grand scheme? The first win? Or the last one?

last 10 years, of getting a good support group around us and getting good teammates and really developing it.”

Enter Harnden, a pro of over 25 years who called Team Jacobs home for the bulk of his career. He replaced Brett Gallant for the 2022-23 season, with Brad joking that his newfound second hasn’t even begun to tap into his full potential within the club, despite the successful campaign.

“The exciting part is, I would say E.J. would tell you he hasn’t played his best this year. So there’s more room for growth for us as a team. But as far as fitting in and the chemistry and how we get along and how we

“I think for me it’s about the next one, to be quite honest,” Brad says with a grin. “It’s just about how do we be as ready as we can for the next big event, the next Brier and hopefully the World Championship? And how do we make ourselves better? That’s kind of where my focus is, as opposed to looking back on what we achieved. And you talk about legacy and, again, that’s not something that we look at.”

He continues, “We kind of solidified that, to be quite honest, with what we achieved in 2006 and then 2017. I think everything that we’re doing now is a little bit of gravy, and that’s kind of a nice place to be in our career where we can have that attitude – and not just have that

attitude, but it’s reality. There’s not much we can do between now and the end of our career that’s going to amplify where we are in the sports community in Newfoundland.”

“It depends on the day you ask,” Mark adds with a chuckle. “Sometimes it’s like, yeah, we won the Olympics in ’06. And then other times, but do you remember the Brier? Like, that was such a big moment. The way everything happened this year, in London, was unbelievable. For me, that was the first time I had my boys in the stands; and for them to witness something like that, that made it extra special for me. And it had been 10 years since E.J. had won a Brier, so to see the reaction on his face, just the way everything kind of fell together for this one, was so cool that it just makes you want to sit back and go, OK, how do we get to do it again?”

Mark continues, “We proved that we’re still at the top of our game, and when we play really well we’re really hard to beat. So why not, over the next few years, be able to experience that as many more times as we can, at least give ourselves a shot to do it?”

As for the road ahead, both men are honest and open about being in the twilight of their respective sparkling careers, current successes notwithstanding. They are proud, unabashedly supportive family men with interests outside the world of competitive curling and, creeping past 40 years of age, time atop the pantheon of the greats may be borrowed at this stage. Though Father Time should expect a fight before he takes back the keys to the curling kingdom from these island boys.

“You know, I’m 42 and Mark’s 43. We’re definitely on the back nine

“You’re not going to be able to play for an infinite period of time,” Brad remarks honestly, with Mark adding that, while conversations are being held about their endgame, don’t expect Team Gushue to go gentle into that good night.

of our curling career. There’s no doubt about that. You’re not going to be able to play for an infinite period of time,” Brad remarks honestly, with Mark adding that, while conversations are being held about their endgame, don’t expect Team Gushue to go gentle into that good night.

“I think knowing that we’re closer to the end of our career, it drives you a little bit more to continue doing what we’re doing. And it adds that motivation,” Mark says, impassioned. “I only have so many years left, so I’m going to make it worth it

and make it worth it for me. I’m going to make it worth it for my family, our fans and everyone that supports us. That’s important to me.

“I don’t want to kind of mail-in another few years. It’s not fair to me. It’s not fair to my teammates. It’s not fair to anyone who supports us. We’re going to work really hard. And obviously those chats will happen with our families and teammates as it goes on. But you’re preparing for it. When it happens, who knows? But we’ve been lucky to do what we’re doing. Hopefully we’ve got a couple more left.”

Team Gushue players (l-r) Geoff Walker, E.J. Harnden, Mark Nichols and Brad Gushue.

Life twists took her family and her name, but they also gave her a fighting spirit that has sustained her for 103 years and hasn’t failed her yet.

outport beginnings more than 100 years ago, without indoor plumbing and electricity, to living in the utopian future promised by The Jetsons, Nora Normore has seen it all. She’s lived through the Great Depression, the Second World War, Newfoundland’s Confederation with Canada, the devastating cod moratorium and, most recently, the COVID-19 global pandemic. Yet Nora is unfazed, shrugging off the blur that most of us feel at the speed the world is changing. “If you’re in this world for over 100 years, you’re bound to learn something about dealing with the ups and downs of life,” she says with a chuckle.

A difficult start

Nora’s illustrious life journey began in the small, picturesque outport of St. Vincent’s, St. Mary’s Bay. She was born in the dead of a Newfoundland winter, on February 17, 1920, to Aiden and Theresa Martin. Her life has unfolded like a novel, with tragedies and triumphs of almost equal measure. The first chapter held a plot twist that would alter the entire course of her life. When Nora was just 10 months old, her mother died after an excursion for one of the safest of Newfoundland pleasures, picking berries.

Theresa and Aiden had packed a picnic that morning and headed up the pond in their small boat to fill their flour sacks with a winter’s worth of partridgeberries. According to Nora, “the weather turned on them and the wind came up; big lops washed over the side of the boat, drenching my mother with the freezing cold water. By the time they reached shore, my mother was chilled to the bone. My father carried her to their house in his arms and gently laid her on the bed, covering her with warm blankets and hot bricks, and [snuggling close to her] provided her with his own body heat. My mother was frail, not like my father. She was gone by morning...”

Nora was raised by her father and grandparents until she was seven, when she was sent to live at the Belvedere Orphanage in St. John’s. It’s a testament to the true grit of our heroine that after losing her mother, her hometown and the embrace of her close-knit and extended family, there was one more blow to be endured. Upon

Above: Nora, left, and her older sister, Jane Gen, pose with their father the day that Nora left St. Vincent's. Right: Aiden Martin, the Two-Fisted Boxer

arrival at Belvedere Orphanage, Nora was stripped of the name bestowed upon her by her beloved mother. From this point on, she was to be known by her new identification number: 87.

Nora recalls the first time they beckoned her over the intercom: “Number 87, please go to the sewing room.” Ever pragmatic, when asked how that made her feel, she says, “In these situations, you just have to make the best of it, take the good with the bad. Besides, I knew who I was – whatever they decided to call me wouldn’t change that. I may have been Number 87, but I was as tough as a hagdown even back then.”

A natural-born fighter

Despite the institutionalization she experienced, Nora has always maintained that life at Belvedere and being educated by the Sisters of Mercy was a positive experience. It afforded her a stellar education with a focus on her

passion, music. She carried that passion throughout her life, teaching music well into her 80s. At 103, she remains the choir director of the Local Vocals at Alderwood Retirement Centre in Witless Bay, NL, where she now lives. Her Latin rendition of O Come All Ye Faithful always gets a standing ovation at the annual Christmas Pageant. When asked the inevitable question – What’s the secret to her longevity? – she cites, “Get an education and work hard.”

In her 10 years at the orphanage, Nora remained close to her father despite the geographic distance between St. Vincent’s and St. John’s. Her love and admiration for him has not wavered over the decades.

She says Aiden didn’t know the meaning of the word frail; he was all guts and grit. An excellent athlete, he proved to be one of the best boxers Newfoundland ever produced –known simply as the Two-Fisted Boxer. When asked about her

father’s nickname, Nora explains while grinning with pride that his famous boxing strategy was simple but effective, and it made him virtually unbeatable.

“My dad would throw two punches: one to try him out and one to lay him out. He didn’t do much fighting, he did the winning,” she quips.

“One of my favourite stories about my father was the time he was up in Halifax with a group of men from St. Mary’s Bay. They got laid off and didn’t have enough money to get back home to Newfoundland. In those days there was street boxing on the Halifax waterfront. All of my dad’s friends wanted him to take on the local boxing champion, an African American boxer who was known to be unbeatable.”

Aiden refused at first, telling his buddies he couldn’t beat this boxer.

When he did agree to fight, he “warned them that he was only going to throw his customary two punches, and if that didn’t work, he would high tail it out of the ring and they’d be stuck in Halifax for the winter. My father’s strategy proved effective and he won the prize money – just enough to get himself and friends back home to St. Mary’s.”

After graduating high school, Nora attended Littledale College in St. John’s and afterwards landed an office job on Bell Island. There she met her future husband, Fred Normore. Fred worked with Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation, the company that ran the iron ore mines on the island. This industry would prove lethal during the Second World War, as Nora herself would witness.

German submarines were known to stalk the waters of Conception

Bay, especially near the shipping docks where ore from the mines would leave for international markets. She recalls having to shutter their windows at night to hide the lights, to avoid being targets.

It was a scary time for Bell Islanders. On September 5, 1942, German U-boats torpedoed and sank two ore carriers docked at Scotia Pier. Two months later, on November 2, they struck again and destroyed two more merchant ships. In all, 70 Allied sailors died in those attacks. Nora says windows were shattered in homes and other buildings, and the explosions were so massive that pieces of airborne steel and debris fell from the sky like hail.

Not all of Nora’s memories from the war are sad. Because supplies of certain foods were cut off, Nora’s family had to go without onions, a mealtime staple. So as soon as onions became available again after the war ended in September 1945, Nora and her family celebrated by having a bag of onions with supper.

These days Nora can eat as many onions as she wants at Alderwood Retirement Centre. However, retirement is a foreign concept to Nora. She spends her days volunteering. She is president of the Puffin Patrol Club, which rescues wayward seabirds, and chairs the Witless Bay Knit Wits, who routinely knit for The Gathering Place in St. John’s. She also performs in and consults on all of Alderwood’s fun-loving videos, which often go viral.

There’s just no way to keep this woman down. Even during the darkest days of COVID, when the residents had to be isolated in their rooms for weeks, Nora organized her days into three exercise sessions. She’d walk laps around her room counting out 20 paces to keep herself moving, all the while, chuckling to herself. “This COVID won’t get me!”

Nora’s defiance wasn’t about fear of dying – at 103, she says she has no fear. Rather, it was about winning or losing a fight. After all, she is her father’s daughter!

Nora helps rescue and release stranded seabirds as president of the Puffin Patrol in Witless Bay.

life is better

Peaceful morning in Trinity, NL

Sheldon Hicks, Bonavista, NL

Angel Burt gets it. Some of her favourite photos are ones that she knows exist only in that moment. “I have several pictures taken in places where wharves have since been torn down and my photos were the last ones taken. I have photos of massive icebergs just before breaking and gorgeous rainbows reaching across the sky right as the sun peeks after a rainstorm. Those pictures can never be retaken.”

Born and raised in Oshawa, ON –“we didn’t grow up wealthy by any means, but our lives were rich with adventure and friendship” – Angel married Leon Burt of Virgin Arm, NL, in 1998. In 2016, they decided to make the move with their two young daughters to Leon’s hometown. Angel now works as a bus driver and custodian for New World Island Academy in nearby Summerford. Wherever she’s living, whatever stage of life she’s in, Angel is always drawn to photography and collecting images of life as it happens.

“My first experience with photography was with a wind-up camera that belonged to my mother. I was a teenager and saved up my money so that I could afford to have my photos developed. I had to send them via mail and wait for what felt like forever for my pictures to arrive,” she recalls. “A few years later, as a young adult, I went on a camping trip with

my best friend to Kakabeka Falls, near Thunder Bay, ON. I bought a disposable Kodak camera for the trip. This was my first experience photographing waterfalls and the place where I remember falling in love with photography as a whole.”

Leon is a loving supporter of her photography hobby, Angel says. “Not long after our youngest daughter was born, my husband surprised me with my very first digital camera.” With that one, she documented their girls as they grew, so much so that she wore that camera out!

Currently she shoots with a Canon T6 with an EFS 55-250mm lens. “As a hobby camera, it has served me well,” Angel says. “I love the versatility of this camera and have spent countless hours adjusting settings to find what works best in different environments. In the future, I hope to invest in a Canon EOS 90D, an upgrade from 18 to 32.5 megapixels.”

It was Leon who arranged a weekend getaway for them to Elliston a few years ago, so Angel could get some photos of those adorable puffins that congregate there. It led to one of her most memorable photography outings – though it didn’t look very promising at the start.

“When we arrived at the puffin viewing site, the fog had rolled in so heavily that we couldn’t see more than a few feet ahead of us. I was so

Life is fleeting, light ever changing, and photographers understand more than most about the importance of “taking your shot.”

disappointed! My husband and I continued along the trail trying to make the best of it, but with the fog, there was no way to get a clear shot and I tucked my camera away,” she recalls. But knowing that Newfoundland weather can change without notice, Angel said a desperate prayer for the fog to lift.

“About half an hour later, I looked up and could see the sun breaking through the clouds. All of a sudden the fog lifted and we could see

hundreds of puffins across the embankment. It felt just like Christmas morning!” To the amusement of others around her, she says, Angel was very obviously in her glee and snapped more than 300 photos that day.

To quote André Kertész, famous photo essayist of the 1900s, “The photographer’s art is a continuous discovery which requires patience and time.” And, sometimes, a break in the weather.

The East Coast Trail is a hiker’s and photographer’s dream. Here are some of the best reasons why, plus how to experience them for yourself.

Article and Photos by Dennis Flynn

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus

is often attributed as saying, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” A similar observation can be made about the worldclass East Coast Trail (ECT) on the Avalon Peninsula of Newfoundland. Every time I return to hike any portion of it, I see it with fresh eyes and the trail is never the same hike twice.

I’ve been very fortunate to hike the entire 336 kilometres of the ECT at least twice over the years, though never all at once – although others have. These excursions were done in sections, mainly as day hikes or overnight camping trips, with friends or as solo ventures. They were mostly spring, summer and fall excursions, but also some winter hikes/snowshoe trips on rare excellent weather days.

While I loved it all, I really would have benefited from carrying even the most basic camera with me on every hike, as well as insider tips on what to watch for in terms of the most interesting sites, scenes and subject matter. I like to say (with good humour, but more than a tinge of regret) that many of the greatest photos I never took happened along the ECT. I literally didn’t know ahead of time what I might be missing. To save others from similar regrets, I’m happy to share what I’ve learned about the paths that I travelled. Here, in no particular order, are my tantalizing 10.

1 • Sea Arches

While sea arches abound on the ECT, many of them are not easily visible from the land and are best photographed from the water by small boat or kayak (with experienced paddlers and/or qualified guides would be strongly recommended). The most visually stunning sea arch to photograph from the trail itself is the Berry Head Sea Arch (left). It’s found on the 20.4-km trail from Aquaforte to Port Kirwin. The path is difficult to traverse in places and it’s a 7-10 hour journey one way, but it’s well worth the effort for experienced hikers.

2. The Spout

It is said to have been first mentioned in the journals of a ship’s doctor, James Young, back in the 1660s and has been a major landmark for mariners and hikers along the coast ever since. The path to the Spout is a challenging (rated strenuous) 6-9 hour, 16.2-km hike from Goulds (after a 6-km hike from the end of Shoal Bay Road) to Bay Bulls. A small freshwater river flows into a crack in the rocks above a sea cave and wave action makes it “spout” back in a fashion resembling a geyser. There can even be a small rainbow in the mist under the right conditions, making for great images.

3. Sea Stacks

It would be difficult to count the number of sea stacks along the ECT there are that many, but the two I like to visit and photograph the best are the Iron Gate and Drop Cove Rock. Both are located along the Spout Trail and are favourite hangout locations of sea birds and eagles in season.

4. Beaches

Beautiful beaches are ubiquitous along the ECT, but I like ones you have to work a bit to get to, and Lance Cove Beach along Cape Broyle Head Path meets that bill. This strenuous, 6-10 hour (one way), 19.4-km hike runs from Cape Broyle to Calvert. Lance Cove Beach is roughly halfway; a side trail leads down to the beach, which is also the site of another favourite sea stack known as Long Will. Legend has it that British vessels in the days of sail sometimes used Long Will for cannon target practice, but you can take that with grain of salt (or gunpowder).

5. National Historic Sites

Cape Spear, just outside of downtown St. John’s, is billed as the most easterly point in North America. It is a National Historic Site with two lighthouses – a current, working one and the original – and a remarkable series of WWII bunkers. There is also a gift shop and small visitors interpretation centre. A moderate 5-7 hour, 15.4-km hike between the nearby communities of Blackhead and Maddox Cove takes you through Cape Spear. Other historic sites on the ECT are at Signal Hill and Ferryland.

6. Waterfalls

There are probably hundreds of these hidden along the ECT, from small rattles to cascading torrents. My personal favourites are along the Spout Trail and near the bottom of Shoal Bay Road, heading towards Petty Harbour on the Motion Head Path. The latter is a 13.8-km trail plus 6.3km walk in or out from the Shoal Bay Road parking. There are also stunning waterfalls at Stiles Cove along the moderate 15-km path running from Pouch Cove to Flatrock. Finally, in Aquaforte, a side trail leads down to the beach and a short hike inland to a waterfall that is a favourite detour if you have the time.

Aquaforte

7. Bridges

There are scores of bridges along the ECT, but the most iconic is the roughly 50-metre suspension bridge at the resettled community of La Manche Village. There are a number of access points to this bridge along the ECT including a 6.4-km hike from Tors Cove; a 4-km hike from St. Michael’s and a 2.7-km hike from Bauline East. There is also a trail from the end of La Manche Road or 1.25-km path from nearby La Manche Provincial Park. Wherever you start, it is well worth a visit.

8. Icebergs

These can appear almost anywhere along the ECT in season depending on currents, winds, temperatures and a host of other variables. In recent years, parts of the trail in Conception Bay, sections near Cape St. Francis and around Cape Spear, as well as in Ferryland have given views of large bergs that came early and lingered around well into the late spring, making for stunning photos. This, of course, varies each year, which is part of the fun.

9. Shipwrecks

There are thousands of shipwrecks around the coast of the province and remnants of a number of them can be encountered along the ECT (or just off of it) including at Ferryland, where the boilers of the Torhamvan can be seen on the shoreline. The barachois beach at Deadman’s Bay is another famous location for multiple wrecks between Fort Amherst and Blackhead. Finally, the Florizel shipwreck commemorative site in Cappahayden is very near the southern terminus of the ECT and well worth a stop.

10. Marine Life and Seabirds

All manner of seabirds, from puffins to eagles, can be spotted in season from the shoreline in places like the Beaches Path, Tinkers Path, Mickeleen’s Path and areas within or close to the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve. The same can be said for whales, seals and dolphins. For an always fun, familyfriendly experience to photograph, try to take in the summer capelin scull (when these small smelt-like fish roll ashore to spawn) in places along the ECT such as Middle Cove Beach and similar beaches in Conception Bay and on the Southern Shore.

Deadman’s Bay

How the Durrell Museum tells the community’s remarkable story

By Nicola Ryan

The sun will rise on a July morning,

like it always does, and sunrays will crown the hills of Durrell, illuminating the picturesque arm on the southern island of Twillingate. Morning light will glint through the windows of the former Arm Lads Brigade armory perched on Old Maid like it has every morning for more than 100 years. Throughout its long history, the hall has been a part of the social fabric of Durrell: serving as the Lads’ home base for more than 60 years, as a venue for social gatherings such as concerts and receptions, and now as the home of Durrell’s treasured community museum. Maybe on that July morning, the sun will glint off a marching band horn, the gold buckle of a parade belt or the frame of a black-and-white photo –illuminating the town’s history, bringing it to life.

All photos courtesy Durrell Museum Corporation

As the manager of the Durrell Museum for more than 10 years, Courtney Bulgin knows the history of the Arm Lads Brigade (ALB) inside and out, and tells it at double speed with irresistible enthusiasm. As the story goes, she says, one day, a stranger came to town. It was a cold, wet day in 1908 when he stepped off the boat in Durrell. It was a long journey to Newfoundland’s Notre Dame Bay from the island of Jersey in the British Channel Islands off the Normandy coast of France, where he’s said to be from. What was his name? No one remembers. What was his business there? He’s recalled as a businessman, a veteran of the Boer War, but details are scant. In any case, this militaryminded mystery man disapproved of the fatalistic attitude in the outport’s saucy youngsters.

“He felt these boys should be in an organization where they could participate in physical activity, be trained in discipline, and build up their self-esteem and their self-worth,”

Courtney says. “And being an experienced soldier, he brought in military drills and skills, and from that the Arm Lads Brigade was started.”

Boys’ brigades based on military ideals were popular at the time. Two or three times a week, the former solider gathered more than 40 Lads in the net loft of a fish store on Howlett’s Island to practise military training and physical exercise designed to promote character and fitness.

By 1910, they had outgrown the Howlett’s Island store. So the Lads went to Friday’s Bay, New World Island, to cut the logs needed for lumber to erect their own building. The logs were brought to Durrell by horse and dog teams over the ice in winter, and the new armory, built entirely with volunteer labour, was finished by spring. By this time, the mystery man was long gone, but not before inspiring the young people and the community to be better versions of themselves.

When war broke out in 1914, 32

The Durrell Museum building was once was the armory of the Arm Lads Brigade, a military-style organization for young men and boys.

members of the ALB enlisted with the Newfoundland Regiment and went overseas to fight in France. “They were so well trained that apparently they didn’t have to complete basic training when they went over there,” Courtney says. “There was an officer that questioned them about their training – and I’ll quote the words of the story that have been passed down to me from the older generation – they said that this officer said to the lads, ‘Well, someone

did a goddamn good job!’”

The Lads were a vital part of life in Durrell. “This was a very prestigious organization to be in when you lived in Durrell,” Courtney says. The Lads looked dashing in their uniforms and were admired as they paraded through the community with a full marching band at special functions such as Armistice Day, the Silver Jubilee of King George V and the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

That the original 113-year-old armory building is still standing today is a bit of a miracle. In the late 1960s, with memories of the wars fading, ALB membership dwindled and then ended in 1968. The hall stood empty until 1972, when the Executive Committee of the Arm Lads Brigade donated the building and its contents to the Town of

Above: Durrell native Wilfred Troke was a captain in the Arm Lads Brigade. Troke and many other members of the brigade served overseas. Their service is remembered with displays in the museum (right).

Durrell on the condition that it be used to commemorate the ALB and the legacy of its members.

“It’s historical, the building,” Courtney says. “It’s a true gem, really. When the ALB ended in the late ’60s, a few years later the community came together, volunteers, and said, you know, we need to honour these men that were in it, and especially those who went and fought in WWI and WWII. And this is what they did, they turned it into a community museum.”

It also hosts wonders of the region’s natural world. See a replica of the great auk, the mysterious bird hunted to extinction on the nearby Funk Islands; or come face to face with Titus, the polar bear that now inhabits the museum after an unexpected visit to Twillingate just over 20 years ago.

In 1978, the former ALB armory opened its doors to the public as the Durrell Museum. Along with memorabilia from the Lads, the museum houses a collection of community artifacts that depict a way of life in a typical Newfoundland outport in the early 1900s, telling Durrell’s story through the everyday items used and cherished by its residents at work and at home.

A community’s history makes up so much of its identity. Community museums preserve that history and make it accessible to experience and understand. “Look at how much times have changed,” Courtney exclaims. “My daughter, she has no idea. We don’t even have a landline

The Lads looked dashing in their uniforms and were admired as they paraded through the community with a full marching band.

in our house anymore! We need to show the newer generations how it was. Once this information is gone or no longer seen, was it even real? You know what I mean?”

When Durrell amalgamated with Twillingate in 1992, ownership of the museum was transferred to the Town of Twillingate. But the upkeep of a 113-year-old building brings expensive challenges. When the Town consulted their legal representation about their obligation to the armory’s upkeep, the legal team reported back with the Town’s options: sell the building or lease it to the Durrell Museum Corporation (DMC), or tear it down.

“Even though they didn’t want it demolished, that’s what they said, you know, ‘these are our options.’ That’s where the hoopla came,” Courtney recounts. “So we released a statement; we put it out there to let people know what was going on. And we had such an outpouring of support, it was unreal. I wanted for people to realize the importance of this building and the ALB, and that really shone through [in their response]. They know it’s not just a museum, it’s more than that.”

The DMC is now looking to purchase and take ownership of the building from the Town of Twillingate.“What our goal is at the end of the day,” Courtney says, “is to fully

own this building and to build up a good pot of money so we got it when we apply for some grants, or slowly get something done, like the roof for example. That’s our goal now.”

Courtney says it’s easy to show your support for a community museum: “I was talking to someone and they said ‘What can we do?’ And I said, ‘What you can do as a local is visit us this summer! And you know, tell people, anybody you visit, your friends and family, tell them be sure to go to the museum.

“My heart and soul is here,” she concludes with a laugh. “As I told someone the other day, I said, ‘The Durrell Museum will stand tall up on Old Maid for many years to come yet. Many, many years, as long as I’m a part.”

Along with the town’s history, the museum explores natural wonders of the area, past and present, including a display on the extinct great auk.

A new, unique museum in Point Leamington is a destination devoted to gloves.

By Nicola Ryan

Road

trips are as much a summer tradition in Newfoundland and Labrador as capelin rolling and regatta days. The best ones veer off the beaten path, where you’ll always find some new and wonderful hidden gem. In central Newfoundland, Superior Gloves points the way to a fascinating new spot in Point Leamington. You might be surprised to know that the town is home to the largest glove manufacturing plant in Canada. This summer the factory opened a true jewel for your road trip bucket list: The Canadian Glove Museum, the only museum in the country dedicated to – you guessed it – gloves.

Left: A pair of work gloves worn by Elvis Presley in the late 1950s while he was in the army.

The museum’s opening coincides with Superior Glove’s 35th year in Point Leamington. As the story goes, in the late 1980s, Ontario was full of homesick Newfoundlanders. In smalltown Acton, northwest of Toronto, Frazer Stuckless worked at Superior Glove Works Ltd., a familyowned manufacturer of work and safety gloves, but dreamed of moving back home to Point Leamington. Company boss Frank Genge, reluctant to see Frazer go, made a trip to Point Leamington and decided it would be an ideal place to set up a new manufacturing operation. From its earliest beginnings – a community effort and three sewing machines in borrowed space in the town hall –Superior Glove Works’ factory has grown to be the largest in the country and now employs more than 600 people in the region. And Frazer? He manages the entire operation.

When we caught up with Carleigh Roughley, Superior Glove’s market-

ing and community engagement specialist, in Acton in April, she was busy putting the finishing touches on plans for the grand opening in May and her first trip to Newfoundland.

“We’ve been making gloves in Canada since 1910,” she says. “We’re truly passionate here about protecting hands and anything to do with gloves. If anybody was going to open a museum about gloves, it would make sense that it would be us.”

All Hands on Deck

Point Leamington is located about a 90-minute drive north of Gander, on the shore of Southwest Arm, which extends southward from Notre Dame Bay. This picturesque small town of about 600 is probably the last place you’d expect to find a national museum.

The Canadian Glove Museum is the realization of the dream of Superior Glove’s current president Tony Genge, Frank’s son. Tony is an avid

collector of glove memorabilia. Among the more than 100 gloves on hand, there are some exceptional items Tony has collected over the past 30 years. They include an authentic chain mail glove from a 500-year-old suit of armour; a Royal Air Force gunner’s gauntlet from WWII; and mittens once worn by a soldier in the Japanese Imperial Army. There are also gloves on display with celebrity status. See a pair of photography gloves worn by Roberta Bondar, learn why a glove once belonging to David Suzuki is almost missing a finger, or check out the work gloves worn by Elvis Presley when he served in the US army in Germany in the late 1950s.

Other gloves are out of this world. No really – on loan is a pair of spacewalking gloves worn by astronaut Chris Hadfield. He made history as

the first Canadian to float freely in outer space, and he was wearing these gloves when, as part of the crew of the shuttle Endeavour, he installed the Canadarm2 onto the International Space Station. There’s also a pair from the Sokol spacesuit worn by Russian cosmonaut Roman Yurievich Romanenko. The collection of gloves and the stories they tell deserve a round of applause.

Gotta Hand it to Them

Superior Glove knows gloves. Passionate about hand safety, they’ve been designing, manufacturing and supplying work gloves for more than 100 years. The 3,500 different types of gloves they produce are used in a variety of industries including oil and gas, mining, automotive and food services. One of the museum’s main goals is to give visitors an

One of the exhibits highlights history from the museum’s creator, Superior Glove. Here is the first glove designed by the company.

appreciation for how glove styles and manufacturing technologies have changed over time.

“We thought that people would be interested in the technology we use to make all the different, advanced gloves that we do,” Carleigh says, noting that the industry’s come a long way from the early days when gloves were hand-stitched one at a time. The museum has an excellent collection of Superior Glove products

from the earliest designs up to and including today’s hi-tech, punctureresistant, nitrile-coated styles. A complimentary tour of the manufacturing plant, to see the specialized work 150 skilled team members perform, helps stitch everything together.

Young visitors to the museum can take part in some engaging hands-on activities, too, including making their own gloves. “Our mini dip gloves give people a chance to see how gloves are

On loan to the museum is a pair of gloves worn by Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield when he flew on the space shuttle Endeavor.

dipped, on a smaller level, and then they can take their gloves home with them,” Carleigh says. This part of the museum experience is popular with visiting school groups, and inspires kids to develop an interest in science and technology, she says. Maybe the next great innovator in the glove industry has been among them.

The launch of this unique attraction is a symbol of the ongoing goodwill between Superior Glove and their host community of Point Leamington. It’s a partnership that has served them both well for more than three decades.

“The town has just been so great to

us,” Carleigh says. “We wanted to give back to the community and help draw some visitors to our beautiful town.”

No doubt about it, the glove factory and museum nestled in this small town around the bay is one the province’s best-kept secrets. If you’re exploring this summer, set a course for Point Leamington and see this interesting and distinctive place first-hand.

To learn more about the Canadian Glove Museum, follow them on Facebook @TheCanadianGloveMuseum or visit www.thecanadianglovemuseum.com.

The museum welcomes school groups, where kids can participate in some hands-on activities, like dipping their own gloves.

Submit your favourite photos of scenery, activities and icons that best illustrate the down-home lifestyle. We’re looking for a variety of colourful subjects – outports, wildlife, laundry lines, historic sites, seascapes, hilltop views, and so much more – and photos from all four seasons.

This is your chance to get in on our most popular reader contest and try to woo the judges into choosing your photo for the 2024 Downhome Calendar. These calendars are seen by tens of thousands of subscribers and displayed all year long.

What are you waiting for?

Submit today, using one of these ways: by mail: Downhome Calendar Contest

43 James Lane St. John’s, NL A1E 3H3 online:

www.downhomelife.com/calendar

Must be original photos or high quality copies. Digital photos must be at least 300 dpi, files sizes of about 1MB.We can’t accept photocopies or photos that are blurry, too dark or washed out. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want your photos returned.

HOME and Cabin

stuff we love by Nicola Ryan

Something to Spout About!

OLD BLOWHARD

A unique accent to your cabin or summer home’s nautical theme, this ceramic whale sculpture measures approximately 20" long and contains a custom-fitted piece for easy mounting on the wall. Choose from different species including humpback, orca and blue whale. KingsPointPottery.com

A WHALE OF A TALE

Join a humpback whale calf and her mama as they explore the waters surrounding Newfoundland in A Baby Whale Ventures North. This sweet, uplifting book written by Samantha Baker offers a fascinating look at whales, and kids will love searching for sea animals and wildlife in the bright illustrations by Dawn Baker. ShopDownhome.com

SEA SPARKLE

Whales are a symbol of good luck, strength, freedom and joy. Add a splash of sparkle to your outfit with these small humpback tail earrings from Saltwater Pewter, a local pewter design studio creating beautiful jewellery inspired by nature since 1996. Whinkinc.com

WARM WHALECOME

Add a touch of whimsy to your seaside space and cosy up with the frolicking whales on this 100 per cent wool hooked pillow. We spotted this one at Posie Row in downtown St. John’s. PosieRow.com

WHALE, HELLO THERE!

The mother-daughter duo behind Saucy Puffin Crafts make a variety of cuddly crochet sea creature plushies, including this adorable whale, which comes in turquoise or blue.

SaucyPuffinCrafts.com

Ask Marie Anything

Interior designer Marie Bishop takes your questions

In with the Old and the New

Q: How can I incorporate antique furniture and accessories into my everyday modern decor?

I get this question a lot. No one wants to part with pieces that hold meaning, value and a special place in your family history. On the other hand, unless you’re maintaining a designated heritage house, you don’t want your living space to feel like a museum either.

First of all, let’s clarify the difference between “antique” and “vintage.” Antique refers to any item – art, furniture, jewelry, household items – that is at least 100 years old. Vintage, on the other hand, can start at 20 years old but more commonly refer to items 30-100 years old. These are pieces that hold a certain appeal for collectors.

The good news is that it’s easy to incorporate and live with antiques and vintage pieces if you keep the 80/20 rule in mind. This means you dedicate 80 per cent of your space to your personal design style – whether that is modern, contemporary, rustic, country etc. – and leave the remaining 20 per cent for the accents, antiques and vintage finds that give the space your unique character. The best solution is to assess your treasures and decide which ones you cannot live without and which ones can be offered to family members, sold at auction or online, or donated to a second-hand store.

If we’re talking about large furniture items, such as a dining room set or upholstered pieces that you plan to use regularly, you will need to dig deep and decide if these pieces meet your comfort level. The design styles from 50-100 years ago are much different than they are today. Lifestyles have changed and so have body shapes. The furniture then was made to last a lot longer, but the upright styles and rigid seats didn’t always provide comfort or encourage lounging for very long. However, if you have antique pieces that bring you joy, make you feel good and put a smile on your face, then clearly you should keep them in your house. There aren’t too many items that fit that bill these days. I had a client once who measured the value of things by asking herself, “Will I like it or will I LOVE it?” So, if you’re in love with the beautiful, hand-crafted, well-worn, lovingly polished dining room table that belonged to your great-grandparents, make it a focus. But consider replacing the uncomfortable matching chairs with ones that you and your guests will want to linger in while having great conversations long after dinner is done.

If you have a table showing its age and you’re keeping it because it’s quite functional, fits the space and has been in the family for quite a while

Antique refers to any item that is at least 100 years old. Vintage, on the other hand, can start at 20 years old but more commonly refers to items 30-100 years old.

– paint it. There’s nothing sacrilegious about painting wood. You will give it a new life, make it a showpiece in your dining room, and enjoy it with friends and family for years to come.

Upholstery pieces are a different matter altogether. Sofas and loveseats would have to rank pretty high on the comfort scale to qualify for the “let’s keep it forever” list. However, if you are seriously attached to them, most likely you will need to reupholster them, which can be a costly venture. Fabric will run anywhere from $30 to $90 a metre, and labour between $40 and $80 per hour. If you shop around and are an avid DIYer, then you can save a bundle. But you really need to weigh the cost against the end result.

Maybe you have a single chair from a certain period in history, or a piece that has a unique history or family story and you just cannot part with it. Why not create a vignette around it? Give it its own space or special corner; make it a feature in the room. Surround it with pieces from the

same period, even if they are reproductions – framed prints, a vintage lamp, a small scatter rug. It will be a little piece of history you can visually enjoy every day.

Accessories are easier. Even though design trends today lean toward a cleaner, more modern look, we still incorporate floating shelves and shelving units to showcase the things we love and that tell our story. By placing antique pieces next to modern ones, you create a contrast that allows you to appreciate each piece for its own period.

Other vintage finds such as rugs, lamps, chandeliers, mirrors, picture frames, leather-bound books etc. are easy to incorporate into today’s look. Use old books to prop up a new lamp; put a new piece of art into an antique frame; hang a vintage chandelier over a modern dining table. It does require a little thought and a degree of control. But if you keep the 80/20 rule in mind, there are all kinds of fun ways to bring the old into the new – all kinds of fun ways to love your space.

Got a design question for Marie? Email editorial@downhomelife.com.

Maybe you have a piece that has a unique history or family story and you just cannot part with it. Why not create a vignette around it?

life is better

Atlantic Puffins in Elliston, NL

Harold Feiertag, Kingston, ON

Todd’s Table

By Todd Goodyear

There is literally not enough room in this column for me to list all the benefits of eating salmon, and eating it regularly. We should all make a point of adding this wonderful fish to our diet, if we haven’t already done so.

Let’s touch on a few health benefits of regularly eating salmon. Please note: I am not a medical professional, I have no formal training in all things salmon, but I read a lot and these are some of the things I have learned over the years about Atlantic salmon. Also, don’t misunderstand my claims when I speak of the great Atlantic salmon, also known as the “King of Fish,” as these benefits also exist in other salmon species such as chinook, sockeye, pink and Pacific salmon.

Wild salmon is low in saturated fat and is a great source of protein. Because of its combination of omega-3 fatty acids, salmon consumption has heart-health benefits that include reduced artery inflammation, lower cholesterol, and reduced risk of heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure and high triglycerides. This is just the tip of the iceberg, and I encourage further reading on the benefits of eating wild salmon. On top of all that, it tastes great!

I am very fortunate that I married into an inshore commercial fishing family; most of my wife’s brothers and brothers-in-law at one time or another were involved in the cod and salmon fishery. That, of course, was many moons ago, when their isolated hometown on the south coast of Labrador was a bustling enterprise of loggers, fishers and trappers. Nowadays the salmon that my family avails of comes simply by way of the recreational fishery. I believe, in some way, it tastes even better today.

In our home we have many ways of cooking salmon. Pan fried, grilled on the barbecue, smoked, boiled and, of course, oven baked. This method has to be the simplest way and, in fact,

When he’s not dreaming up or cooking up great food, Todd Goodyear is president and associate publisher of Downhome. todd@downhomelife.com

one of the easiest meals to master. It all comes down to temperature and time. In my experience of baking wild salmon fillets or salmon steaks, this temperature and time method has never failed me, not even once.

Here is what you need to feed four adults or two adults and two hearty eating youths. I don’t write much about sides, as everybody’s preferences are different and you choose your own sides. Anything goes with salmon, as long as the salmon is on the plate first.

Oven Baked Salmon Fillet

4 wild salmon fillets, or farmed salmon if you can’t get wild

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp dried basil

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp honey

3 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and lay out the salmon fillets skin down (if they have skin) on the paper. Rub the olive oil all over the fillets, then sprinkle with basil and just a little coarse kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Mix the honey and brown sugar in a small bowl with a spoon and evenly spread it over top of the salmon.

Place the sheet pan in the preheated oven and set your timer for 20 minutes. Not 18, not 22 – trust me, 20 minutes – and you’re ready to eat the most amazing meal.

Set the salmon on your plates with whatever side(s) you chose. Squeeze that lemon juice over the salmon and enjoy!

I keep referring to “wild” salmon as this, of course, is our number one choice when it comes to eating this

wonderful fish. I have no position for or against farmed salmon, as I have eaten my fair share of that as well over the years. Keep in mind, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, by the year 2030, fish farms will provide close to two-thirds of the global food fish harvested for consumption. If you are fortunate enough to get wild salmon at a fair price, try it, please – you’ll love it.

Todd’s Tips

Preheat the oven fully to 400°F. Adjust the seasoning to your personal taste. Bake for 20 minutes only. Always cook with confidence.

Summer Skillets

Whether you’re cooking at the campsite, the cabin or over your backyard pit, you can make just about anything you crave with one well-seasoned cast iron skillet. Here are six skillet recipes that’ll get you all fired up!

Camp Nachos

1/2 lb lean ground beef

1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 bag tortilla chips

1 cup shredded cheese (Mexican blend or your favourite)

1 (14.5 oz) can black beans, drained

1/2 cup red and green jalapeños, sliced (or green onion, or omit altogether)

Cilantro for garnish (optional)

1 small jar chunky salsa

1 small tub sour cream

Cook the ground beef in a cast iron skillet on a campfire or BBQ grill until beef is browned. Remove beef from skillet and set aside. Add enough vegetable oil to the bottom of the skillet to lightly coat it. Cover the bottom with a layer of tortilla chips. Sprinkle chips with half the beef, beans, jalapeños and cheese. Add another layer of chips and top with remaining beef, beans, jalapeños and cheese. Cover skillet with aluminum foil and cook nachos over the fire for about 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted. Garnish with cilantro (if desired) and serve with salsa and sour cream. Serves 2-4

Breakfast Skillet

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 medium potatoes, peeled and grated

1/4 tsp salt and pepper (to taste)

1/2 red bell pepper, sliced or diced

1 small yellow onion, peeled and diced

1/2 lb bacon, diced

1 tbsp maple syrup

2-3 large eggs

Sliced green onions, for garnish

Warm the skillet over the campfire or BBQ. Toss potatoes in oil, season them with salt and pepper, and add them to the pan. Cook about 5 minutes, turning them as they lightly brown on the bottom. Stir in onion, red pepper, bacon and maple syrup. Cook, stirring occasionally, until bacon is crisp and vegetables are tender. Crack eggs over the top; season with salt and pepper. Cover skillet and cook until eggs are done the way you like them (check on them every couple of minutes). Garnish with green onions and serve. Serves 2-3.

Fire Roasted Bacon-Wrapped Chicken

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

1/2 lb bacon (or turkey bacon)

1/2 tbsp cayenne or chili pepper

1/2 tbsp garlic powder

1/4 cup brown sugar

Combine spices and brown sugar in a resealable bag. One by one, toss the chicken strips in the spice mix. Wrap each strip with a slice of bacon and place it joinside down in a cast-iron skillet. Cook over medium heat (over a lower flame or hot coals) for about 25 minutes, turning occasionally so the bacon cooks evenly. The trick is to cook slowly so the chicken can fully cook before the bacon cooks too much. Chicken is done when the internal temperature reads 170°F on a meat thermometer. The chicken should no longer be pink inside and juices should run clear. Serves 2-3.

Campsite Mac and Cheese

1/2 box shell pasta (or elbow, or whatever you have)

1/2 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk

1/4 cup melted butter

1/2 tsp mustard

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

In a large pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. Lightly grease a cast-iron skillet. Add pasta and stir in milk, melted butter, mustard and cheddar cheese. Stir until everything is evenly distributed. Cover and cook on a fire or BBQ grill for about 15 minutes, until cheese is melted. Serves 4.

BBQ Blueberry Cobbler

2 1/2 cups blueberries

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp flour

3/4 cup water

For the topping

1 cup flour

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp butter

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup milk

Stir the berries with the sugar, flour and water in the skillet. Cook over low (indirect) heat for a few minutes, until fruit is tender. In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Cut in butter. In a smaller bowl, combine egg and milk. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir until a soft dough forms. Drop batter by spoonfuls on top of the berry mixture. Do not stir. Cover skillet and cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes or so, until dough is cooked. Serve warm. Serves 4.

Camper’s Corn Bread

4 tbsp butter

2 eggs

3 tbsp honey

1 cup milk

1 cup cornmeal, medium grind

1/2 cup flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Melt butter in a 10" cast-iron skillet, then remove from heat while making the dough. In a large bowl, beat eggs with honey until smooth. Add milk and 2 tbsp of the melted butter; mix well. In another bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry to wet ingredients and stir to combine. Return the skillet to the campfire grill or BBQ to reheat the remaining butter. Swirl the pan to coat the bottom. Pour the batter into the skillet in an even layer. Cover the skillet tightly with aluminum foil and slice a few vent slits in the foil with a knife. Cook over medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, then remove from heat and let the bread rest (still covered) for another 5 minutes. Cut into wedges. Cornbread makes a delicious side to soup, stew and chili; or drizzle it with honey and serve warm for a sweet dessert. Serves 8.

BY KIM THISTLE

If you like rich, gamey meats such as duck or lamb, you haven’t lived until you enjoy them with a bit of red currant sauce. Black currant jam on scones is to die for. And how about a frosty glass of white currant gin (or alcohol-free gin) on a hot summer’s day? Currants are so versatile and so delicious.

All currants are high in antioxidants and deserve equal opportunity. These tiny, delicious berries are loaded with Vitamin C, Vitamin K and potassium. We think of bananas as the potassium fruit, but be aware that a cup of currants has three times the potassium of one banana. Black currants are sweet and may be eaten fresh. White currants are slightly sweeter than red, but both are tart and acidic and should be fully ripe for fresh eating. Hopefully, I have just encouraged you to run right out and purchase one of each of these shrubs. That was the easy part. Now, don’t let them die in the pots. Follow these tips for planting and growing currants.

Planting

These bushes are self-fertile, so you only need one bush to produce berries. Get one of each colour.

Currants grow best in cool summer climates, so our province is a shoe-in. They prefer full sun but can be grown in partial shade. Try not to put them in the middle of a hot field, but rather give them a bit of protection from the hot midday sun. Once your shrub is growing, if the leaves turn brown on the edges, it could be a sign of scorch and you may need to move your plant.

Choose a spot that is not low lying, as that is where the late season frosts settle.

Plant red and white currants five feet apart. Black currants grow larger, so give them a bit more space.

They don’t like wet feet. Avoid waterlogged soil.

Currants like a slightly acidic or neutral soil. In the gardening world, a soil test can save you a lot of disappointment. If your pH is less than 6.5, add a bit of lime. If it is over 7, which in not likely in this province, dig in a bit of peat.

Like any plant, avoid planting on a hot, dry day, especially if it is out in leaf. Be sure to water it well once you have planted it.

Plant red and white currants at the soil mark that they are in the pot. Plant black currants a couple of inches deeper, as they sucker and branch out from the soil.

Pruning

Any shrub likes to have an open, vaselike structure and currants are no different.

The first year, choose three or four strong main branches and prune out the rest. Cut these branches back by about half. Always choose an outward facing bud, as this bud will be a new branch and you want to keep the branches growing outward. Remove smaller branches that may be crossing over another branch where they will rub together. Prune out anything that is broken.

Year two, choose another three or four stems that are growing away from the middle of the plant. Prune out the rest.

Do the same in year three. This will give you a nicely shaped, healthy plant on which you will have a good yield.

Be sure to mix some compost or organic matter with the soil that you remove from the planting hole and shovel back in around your plant.

A high-phosphorous fertilizer such as 10-52-10 or bone meal will give your roots a boost. You can’t have a healthy plant without healthy roots.

Be sure to keep these shrubs wellwatered as they grow, especially in the first season when they are trying to establish themselves. Cracked skin on the fruit is often a sign of irregular watering.

Now, pay attention: This is where I always fool up. In the fourth year, you want to prune out your oldest stems and keep three or four new stems. Do this each year going forward so that you always have approximately 10-12 healthy branches. I find it best to use different coloured flagging tapes each year to avoid confusion.

Currants fruit on older wood, but don’t do well on wood over four years old, so pay special attention to the pruning.

Black currants do not have one main stem, but rather several growing up from the ground. Often these branches tend to grow parallel to the ground. Be sure to prune off these lower branches to help prevent diseases.

A few things to watch for

Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizer. If your plant has lots of green, healthy leaves and few berries, it is getting too much nitrogen.

Even though currants are hardy, you may need to protect the buds from a late frost. Use a row cover or frost blanket if it calls for low temperatures.

Birds. We love them and they love currants. Row cover is excellent for this purpose. Once you see the fruit starting to ripen, be sure to protect your crop. Avoid netting as this may cause injury to our feathered friends if they become entangled.

Sawfly larvae are not our friends. Neither are aphids. At the first sign of defoliation or curled leaves, get out your insecticidal soap and be diligent.

Diseases such as powdery mildew, leaf spot and botrytis can be an issue. Trim off any brown leaves immediately and spray with a solution of one part baking soda and nine parts water. A drop of liquid soap added to this mix will help it stick. Avoid spraying in the heat of day.

Orange blisters on the leaves is a sign of rust. Trim off the leaves and spray with compost tea or fungicide.

Never drop diseased leaves on the ground, but be sure to dispose of them with household garbage. (Don’t add them to compost.)

Diseases are often aggravated by improper pruning and poor air circulation, so be sure to pay rapt attention to your pruning methods.

Whether you’re a gardening enthusiast or simply appreciate the beauty and taste currants bring to your landscape, currant shrubs are a fantastic addition to any garden. So, why not embrace these versatile plants and enjoy the many rewards they bring? Happy gardening!

Kim is a horticultural consultant, a retired garden centre owner and a dedicated garden enthusiast!

Peace in the Valley

Friends Ray Gallagher and Loretta Mahoney of St. John’s, NL, pose at the Gallaghers’ summer cottage – then called “The Shack” – on Park Avenue in Mount Pearl in the 1940s.

Joni Richards via

DownhomeLife.com

Private Island

“My family, from Foxtrap, NL, spent summers living in a cabin on Kelly’s Island,” writes the submitter. “Pictured (left to right) in this photo from 1947 are Emily Bussey, Mary Bussey (Morgan), Samuel Bussey Jr., Gordon Bussey and Samuel Bussey Sr. My father and grandfather spent the summers fishing on Kelly’s Island.”

Mary Bussey Conception Bay South, NL

On Ocean Pond

“When I was courting my wife, Marie Shute [in the 1940s], I remember spending quality time with her family at their cabin on Ocean Pond. Heating was by wood stove and lighting by kerosene lamps,” writes the submitter. In this photo, the family’s gathered at the cabin in July 1954. Rear (L to R): mother Beatrice, sister Ernestine, housekeeper Beatrice Hounsell, father Ern Shute Sr. Front: Marie with dog Bonzo. John Cornick Halifax, NS

This Month in History

The Dauntless was a steam-powered tugboat that piloted ships through the St. John’s Narrows in the 1850s. In April 1858, after guiding another boat out through the Narrows, the Dauntless returned too close to the south side, struck Cahill’s Rock and sank. All on board were rescued. Charles Fox Bennett, businessman and future prime minister, subsequently bought the Dauntless despite its temporary location in Davy Jones’ locker. On July 24, 1858, he had the sunken vessel raised and taken up to the dock at Riverhead for repairs. Despite being in close quarters at the dock, in October the Dauntless broke its moorings and sank again. It was raised again and repaired, and by the spring of 1859 was shipshape and seaworthy.

Gnat, do you mind…

Slingshots?

By Harold N. Walters

“Champion once again,” said Harry after the Mason jar on the Bottle-Breaking Rock exploded into more pieces than Granny’s crystal vase did when Harry accidentally knocked it off its pedestal and it shattered on the floor.

“Bugger!” said Gnat and kicked at a chunk of the bottle’s bottom that fell near his feet.

“Best slingshot in Brookwater,” declared Harry, waving his rustic slingshot as if it were a marvel.

Frustrated because once again Harry had broken the most bottles without missing a shot, Spud Spurvey ripped apart the Y-arms of his slingshot and hove the pieces into the nearby brambles. “Every friggin’ time!” he cursed and booted the dirt.

Taunting Harry a tad, Olsen Tetford shuffed his slingshot into his arse pocket and said, “Good thing I can sing.”

“I never stood a chance,” said Otto Cook, who lived over in the Bogs, as he struggled to untangle the stretchy rubber bands on his misshapen slingshot.

“None of yous will ever beat me,” said Harry, leaping on top of the Bottle-Breaking Rock like the king of the castle.

For generations, despite adult chastisement, Brookwater boys had smashed bottles of all sorts on the Bottle-Breaking Rock, a slab of rock shaped like the Arizona mesas seen in comic books. Cod-liver oil bottles were popular in season. Soft drink bottles perished by the score. Jam

jars and assorted blue medicine bottles hit the dirt. Cold-packing bottles, too, if they could be pinched from pantries. If, ages hence, the BottleBreaking Rock ever became an archeological dig site, layers of glass shards would be discovered three feet deep.

Harry jumped off the rock and wound the rubber cords of his slingshot around its handle. He tucked it into a hammer-hanger type holster on his belt. His chest puffed out like a cocky-rooster’s.

“Hello chaps. What is today’s pastime?” Harry’s chest deflated –psssssth! – as he watched Clarence Bramwell approach.

“Breaking bottles,” replied Gnat while Harry hissed like a punctured inner tube.

“Jolly sport,” said Clarence, “but beware of slivers of flying glass.”

“Pfft.” The last exhalation of Harry’s triumph blew scorn at Clarence.

“Are there rules and regulations for your competition?”

“Nah,” said Gnat. “We just collects bottles for a week or so, then we comes here with our slingshots and whoever breaks the most bottles without missing is the winner.”

“What is the winning marksman’s prize?”

“No prize, just glory,” said Gnat.

“Sounds straightforward,” said Clarence. “Might I be permitted to join you next time? I have a slingshot that requires baptism by fire, as it were.”

“Sure thing,” said Gnat.

“You won’t beat me though,” said Harry, his chest reinflating like a revived bellows.

Clarence smiled as inscrutably as

Charlie Chan of murder mysteries fame.

“I bet I can break more bottles than you at twice the usual distance we uses,” said Harry. “Me and ol’ Hawkeye have never been defeated.” Harry patted his slingshot.

The boys – Gnat and Spud and Olsen and Otto – cocked their eyebrows in unison. This was the first time Harry had named his slingshot.

“Hawkeye?” said Clarence.

“That’s right,” said Harry, quickdrawing Hawkeye and brandishing it in Clarence’s face.

Hawkeye was a neatly trimmed, Y-shaped fork of sturdy witchhazel with thongs of strong rubber securely fastened to notches at the top of the Y’s arms. A leather pocket, worn soft from constant use, connected the ends of the rubber bands.

“Well then,” said Clarence after studying Hawkeye’s impressive design.

“You better start collecting bottles,” said Harry, reholstering Hawkeye and striding away like a banty rooster.

“Hope he’s met his match,” said Otto Cook, watching Harry depart.

Days passed. While most of the boys searched rubbish dumps behind fences for empty bottles, nobody saw Clarence anywhere in Brookwater. Spud Spurvey said he’d heard Mrs. Butt, Clarence’s aunt, say Clarence had gone back home to St. John’s.

“I ’low he chickened out,” said Harry.

“No, he didn’t,” said Spud. “Mrs. Butt said he’s coming back next week.”

“You better put the polish on Hawkeye,” Gnat said to Harry, just to tick him off a smidgen.

“Humph,” scowled Harry, and patted Hawkeye’s ever-present holster.

As the days passed, a stack of bottles – an accumulation of targets –grew in the weeds and moss skirting the Bottle-Breaking Rock. Occasionally, one of the boys placed an imperfect bottle on the rock’s flat top and used it for target practice. When everyone else missed a bottle, Harry and Hawkeye nailed it.

After a week and a half, Clarence arrived back in Brookwater. Harry and Gnat happened to see him climb out of Merchant Butt’s long-haul truck and reach back inside to lift out a box with a handle like a briefcase.

“What’ve you got there?” asked Harry.

“My slingshot,” said Clarence. “I went home to fetch it.”

“Yes, b’y,” said Gnat.

“Indeed,” said Clarence.

“Guess you’m ready for a shootout tomorrow,” said Harry.

“Quite so.”

Holding the case by its handle, Clarence entered his uncle’s yard and let the gate swing closed behind him. On the chance Clarence might look back over his shoulder, Harry whipped Hawkeye from its holster, loaded it with a chunky rock from the road’s loose gravel, and slaughtered an innocent roadside thistle.

Tomorrow came. With the July sun casting early afternoon shadows, the contestants met at the Bottle-Breaking Rock armed with their various slingshots. Harry, of course, touted Hawkeye’s prowess and his own keen eye. Clarence, on the other hand, said nothing. He stood with his slingshot case hanging in his hand.

“Gonna open it?” asked Gnat.

“Not yet.” Clarence winked at him. “Let’s build some suspense.” Then he winked at Harry’s scowl.

Otto Cook, who didn’t intend to compete with his makeshift slingshot, picked 10 bottles from the pile and lined them up on the rock. Then, targets arranged, he said, “You go first, Olsen.”

Olsen selected a suitable stone from his pocketful of pebbles and fitted it into the leather pouch of the slingshot he’d constructed that morning from a freshly cut alder. Ping. Six times. Four misses.

Olsen shrugged. Might as well needle Harry again. “Good thing I can sing,” he said.

Otto stacked another set. Spud Spurvey loaded his slingshot and hauled stony ammo nearly back to his ear. The rubber bands snapped. The stone ejected and whacked Spud’s wrist. “Frig sake!” Spud flung his useless slingshot into the nearby bushes to join its fallen and faded brother.

“Only me and you left, Clar,” said Harry, limbering up his shoulders. “Time to open that box.”

“Indeed,” said Clarence, “but first I have a proposition.”

“Yeah, what’s that?”

“The rock is wide enough for more than 10 of the smallest bottles.”

“So?”

“Let Otto line up two sets and we shall shoot alternately. Make it slightly more challenging.”

“Humph,” said Harry, but he nodded yes.

Spud and Olsen joined Otto to pick out 20 small bottles: Friar’s Balsam, Milk of Magnesia, Sloan’s Liniment, and the even smaller mercurochrome and iodine bottles.

“Only fair that the village champion shoot first,” Clarence offered and stepped aside.

Loading Hawkeye with one of the roundest stones he’d found days ago on Brookwater beach, Harry took his stance – not twice the usual distance from the targets, but a few steps back. His left elbow crooked out, Hawkeye tilted a bit to the easterly, Harry stretched rubber and fired… a Friar’s Balsam bottle died.

“My turn,” said Clarence, and commenced to open his slingshot case. The boys gaped at Clarence’s slingshot. Its Y was stiff wire and solid plastic with grip grooves moulded

– missed a Sloan’s Liniment bottle, his 10th target.

Clarence’s final target was a tiny mercurochrome vial about two inches tall. Clouds braked and the sun lingered – perhaps the earth itself paused its revolution – as Clarence stepped up to the line. Gobs agape, the gallery of boys stood on the brink of drooling, as Clarence pulled back the power cords and unleashed the silver marble – the silver bullet.

into its handle. Its stretch cords were industrial strength elastic. Its ammo pouch was a permanently dented pocket. And, b’ys oh b’ys, it even had a metal forearm rest for wrist support. The case also contained factorymade ammo – dozens of shiny pellets the size of marbles.

Clarence stood like Robin Hood at the Nottingham fair, his left arm fully extended. He drew back the rubber bands to their fullest extent and released the pouch. An iodine bottle bit the dust.

So it went, turn after turn, until Harry – surely it was Hawkeye’s fault

erupted. The dregs of fluid left inside it splattered on the Bottle-Breaking Rock like blood.

Poisoned, Harry stomped on the traitorous Hawkeye, retrieved its broken corpse and chucked it into the bushes, where it fell defeated alongside Spud’s already rent asunder slingshots.

Mind that slingshot shootout, Gnat? From that day forward, any bottles Harry smashed on the BottleBreaking Rock he did by hand.

Harold Walters lives in Dunville, NL, doing his damnedest to live Happily Ever After. Reach him at ghwalters663@gmail.com

The mercurochrome bottle’s heart

How reservists from Southwest Arm, NL, got invited to King George V’s coronation

By Lester Green

OnMay 6, 2023, the world witnessed the coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. While many of us watched this one from afar, a century ago the only way to see a British coronation was to be there in person. And in 1911, several young men from Newfoundland and Labrador did just that.

For a week in June 1911, there was much rejoicing and celebration around the accession of George V and his wife Mary to the throne, held on June 22. Local newspapers of the day reported that the citizens of the colony of Newfoundland were also in the festive mood.

George was not born to be king. His older brother Albert was. George dreamt of a career in the Royal British Navy. However, with the untimely death of Prince Albert on January 14, 1892, due to pneumonia, Prince George became next in line for the throne. He ended his naval career to prepare for his future role as head of the United Kingdom. Prince George married Princess Mary Teck, his brother’s former girlfriend, on July 6, 1893.

George’s father, King Edward VII, died at Buckingham Palace on May 6, 1910. Preparation began immediately for the coronation the following year. Due to Prince George V’s keen interest in the Royal Navy, he requested that the British fleet be present for this occasion. Invitations were sent throughout the Empire for colonies to send a detachment. They would be guests of His Majesty’s government during their stay.

The Evening Telegram reported on March 30, 1911, that the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reservists had received such an invitation. This article was followed by another published on June 3, which reported that 20 reservists of HMS Calypso had been selected and would be sailing from St. John’s harbour aboard the SS Mongolian that night. Among the article’s published names were two Southwest Arm sailors: James Crann (Cramm) of Queen’s Cove and Seaman William Peddle of Hodge’s Cove.

William had enlisted with the reserve shortly after marrying Ethel on December 29, 1905. He completed and signed his first commitment papers for enlistment in March 1906. He reenlisted on March 13, 1914, shortly before the outbreak of the First World War. For the next six years, William completed 28-day sessions, mainly during the spring or fall around the summer fishery. By the time of the coronation of King George V, he had completed 168 days of naval training. James signed his enlistment papers in March 1908 and had several years completed before being chosen to represent the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve at the King’s coronation.

After their arrival in Liverpool, the Newfoundland reservists prepared for the ceremonies with approximately 60,000 other soldiers and sailors from the British Empire for the inspection of the Grand Fleet.

William Peddle of Hodge’s Cove (above) and James Crann from Queen’s Cove (below) set sail for England in 1911 to take part in King George V’s coronation celebrations.

On June 24, King George V and Queen Mary attended the coronation review of the fleet at Spithead, near the naval base at Portsmouth. The Royal couple and their party manoeuvred through the maze of ships aboard the royal yacht, HMY Victoria and Albert. In attendance were 167 warships manned by thousands of representatives from the Royal Navy Empire, and 187 ships of foreign navies. The ships were arranged in five rows strung over 10 kilometres. The cheering crowd onshore was estimated at a quartermillion souls. For the small contingent of Newfoundland sailors, particularly James Crann and William Peddle, from tiny communities, observing such a display of royalty while representing the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve must have been a proud moment.

During a special ceremony on June 30 at Buckingham Palace, 300 recipients were given a special medal as a personal souvenir of the coronation by King George V. Later, the medals would be distributed to all soldiers and sailors who attended, including the Newfoundland contingent. On July 1, the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve coronation contingent left Liverpool aboard the SS Carthaginian and arrived in St. John’s harbour on July 9.

When the First World War began in 1914, 16 of those who had represented the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve at King George V’s coronation were called to serve, including Seaman William Peddle and Seaman James Crann. Both served until the end of the war and returned home.

Soldiers and sailors who attended the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary were presented with medals as a souvenir of that special day.

The recent coronation of King Charles III brought to mind the scandal that led to the coronation of his grandfather nearly a century before.

BY ELIZABETH BATSTONE

Likemillions of other

people around the world, I spent most of May 6, 2023, watching the TV coverage of the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. It may not have been overly lavish compared to coronations of the past, but it certainly had the pomp and pageantry for which the British are famous. Yet it wasn’t just the pageantry we all tuned in to see. There was also a curiosity about how the various royal family dynamics would unfold.

In the months leading up to the coronation, the personal scandals that have plagued the new King and Queen got resurrected in both the mainstream and social media. Everyone recounted Charles’ highly publicized affair while still married to Princess Diana, the ugly divorce that followed and his determination to marry the also-divorced Camilla after Diana’s tragic death. Fresh material came from the family’s ongoing dysfunctional relationship with his younger son, Harry.

Scandals are nothing new to British royalty. Almost a century earlier, Charles’ grandfather, George VI, came to the throne in the wake of a national crisis caused when his brother, Edward VIII, abdicated in order to marry the twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson. The British public was appalled. My father, the Rev. Sydney Bradbrook, who was born and raised in London, England, was a 24-year-old theological student at Queen’s College in St. John’s, NL, at the time. He recorded the events in his diary, starting with the death of King George V.

Saturday, January 18, 1936 News comes through that the King has been ill since Friday.

Monday, 20th

Very mild weather and terrible under foot. This afternoon the King was sinking... King George V passed peacefully away at 11:55 p.m. (G.M.T.) May his soul rest in peace.

Tuesday, 21st

It hardly seems possible that King George is dead. Ever since I was a boy it has been “King George.” Now it is “King Edward.” The papers are full of the King’s passing. It has come at a time when there is much unrest in the world.

Wednesday, 22nd

The day of King Edward VIII’s accession. The principal gave us the day off. At 11:30 we all went to Colonial House, where a great concourse of people had already gathered. At noon the Governor, looking a splendid figure in his naval uniform, with his A.D.C. (his son), his Private Secretary, his

Governor Sir Humphrey T. Walwyn and, just behind him, his wife, Lady Eileen Mary Walwyn, outside the Colonial Building in St. John’s, NL, on the day of King George VI’s coronation. The same governor had announced Edward VIII’s accession to the throne just 11 months earlier.

wife, and a party of other eminent people, came out onto the steps of the house and read the Proclamation of the accession of Edward VIII. It was an historic occasion, and one of these times I shall relate to my grandchildren!

Sunday, 26th

To the Cathedral for Mattins as usual. The Funeral March was played after the blessing as a tribute to our late King.

Tuesday, 28th

The day of the King’s burial. We all got ready and assembled at the Cathedral for the 11 o’clock memorial service. When the Governor and other officials had arrived, the choir took their places, and two minutes’ silence was observed as a tribute to the memory of our late beloved King. The service went very well, the choir singing excellently. The pillars of the Cathedral and the Governor’s pew were draped in black, and the service was broadcast. The day

seemed a very dismal one, and a raging snowstorm didn’t make things any brighter. My thoughts were frequently on the sad ceremonies that had taken place in London. It must have been a sorrowful and tiring day for the Royal Family.

Eleven months later, my father wrote about the abdication.

Thursday, December 10, 1936

It seems certain that the King will abdicate. It seems awful that he should give up the throne for a woman such as Mrs. Simpson. We all feel it very much, and it shows how closely we are bound to the Throne. It is a sad business.

Friday, 11th

King Edward VIII abdicated this morning. His brother, the Duke of York, is now King George VI. At night I heard [the] ex-king give his farewell speech over the radio. It was as dignified as the circumstances allowed, and very sad to

hear. The whole matter, boiled down, was that he felt he could not carry on without her as his wife.

Saturday, 12th

An awfully warm day. About eleven a.m. we went to the Colonial Building to hear the proclamation of the accession of King George VI. Took snaps of the ceremony.

Sandwiched in between the two coronations that were beset with controversy, there was the crowning of Queen Elizabeth II. On June 2, 1953, when 27-year-old Princess Elizabeth was crowned, we were living in Belleoram, Fortune Bay, NL, where Dad was the Anglican minister. I was seven years old. The excitement leading up to the coronation day was off the charts!

It was pouring rain in London that day, but in Belleoram it was a rare fog-free, sunny day. A school holiday had been declared. Dad held a church service that morning, and the remainder of the day was filled with celebration. Games were held; I earned a prize in the skipping contest held on the Government Wharf. A community picnic was followed by singing and dancing that evening. Each school-age child was given a commemorative coin and a tin of English toffee. The tin was

beautifully embossed with the picture of the new Queen on the lid. The day ended with the singing of the national anthem, where the new words “God save our Gracious Queen” sounded strange on our lips.

The only controversy around Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation had to do with televising the service. The Archbishop of Canterbury, along with Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and his cabinet, turned down the initial request to have the ceremony televised They reasoned that it would not be appropriate to allow cameras and harsh lights to turn this somber and sacred service into a media spectacle. However, the young queen (strongly encouraged by her husband, Prince Philip) thought differently. She overruled the church and her government, making it clear that the ceremony would indeed be televised. In her words: “Nothing must stand between my coronation and my people’s right to participate.”

Though many of her children and grandchildren have fallen into disrepute, she herself reigned for 70 years with almost no black marks on her record – a remarkable achievement in this modern age. Only time will tell if King Charles III and Queen Camilla will be able to command the same loyalty and respect that she did.

School-aged children in Canada received a medallion to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953.

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Send to Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3 or call 1-888-588-6353

Tony McGrath photo

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, when unscrambled, will spell out the name of the above community.

Last Month’s Community: Bellevue

Tanya Northcott photo

Downhomer Detective Needs You

After 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.

Last Month’s Answer: Petite Forte

Picturesque Place NameS of Newfoundland and Labrador

by Mel D’Souza

Use these 5 clues to identify where Ragged Rick is now:

• seasonal visitors include icebergs and polar bears

• north of St. Anthony

• name reflects its French Shore history

• hyphenated name connects a bay and harbour

• home to the world’s only wild berry economusuem

Last Month’s Answer: Grates Cove

Barbie Bussey

photo

In Other Words

Guess the well-known expression written here in other words.

Last Month’s Clue: Not one period akin to the current one In Other Words: No time like the present

This Month’s Clue: I am unable to place my digit upon the thing

In Other Words: _ ____ ___ __ _____ __ __

A Way With Words

Last Month’s Answer: Somewhere over the rainbow

Rhyme Time

A rhyming word game by Ron Young

1. To keep your distance you ____ _____

2. To not cause a fuss is to ___ with the ____

3. To instruct oral communication is to _____ _____

Last Month’s Answers 1. see a tree, 2. like a hike, 3. float a boat

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.

SOMEWHERE THE RAINBOW Answer: ___ ____ C R A E I W

’ ’

A L G K L N

E E R Y

A V E T U W

E I P R

F T E H T U

H L V A E O F R U G O S Y

H M R I M T A L O E I N R

D N O I O T H N N S

E E G E M R L Y D I

Last month’s answer: Nothing in education is so astonishing as the amount of ignorance it accumulates in the form of inert facts.

Rhymes 5 Times

Each answer rhymes with the other four

1. serious____________

2. rescue____________

3. donated____________

4. courageous____________

5. yearn____________

Last Month’s Answers: 1. surprise, 2. rise, 3. wise, 4. chastise, 5. revise

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!

Nose Hole Is Sitting __ __________

Muss Tough Bend Ream Inn

Last Month’s 1st Clue: Red He Forth Erode. Answer: Ready for the road. Last Month’s 2nd Clue: Thud Era Belt Ooze. Answer: The terrible twos.

A

nalogical A nagrams

Unscramble each of the five groups of letters below to get 5 Newfoundland and Labrador place names.

1. NORREC ROBOK

2. SANEDAPA

3. LAGSTALN

4. SNHJO HABEC

5. DESIREMUMS

Last Month’s Answers:

1. Harbour Deep, 2. Jackson’s Arm,

3. Pollards Point, 4. Hampden,

5. Westport

Unscramble the capitalized words to get one word that matches the subtle clue.

1. AUNT CAR FUME ~ Clue: make from scratch, for scratch

2. SIRE LENT ~ Clue: one who keeps their mouth shut and their ears open

3. HEEL CLANG ~ Clue: if it were easy to get no one would take it

4. RAFTER TOWN ~ Clue: where surf meets turf

5. PARADED PIES ~ Clue: there it was, gone!

Last Month’s Answers: 1. anniversary, 2. friendship, 3. certificate, 4. marriage, 5. leftovers

Four-Way Crossword

ForeWords • BackWords • UpWords • DownWords

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: erroneous

1-91: irrelevant

3-33: region

4-2: toilet

4-64: concealment

5-7: mongrel

7-10: merit

7-67: roamed

9-29: small child

11-15: idiot

13-15: Pres. Reagan

15-18: closeby

18-58: evict

23-43: consume

25-22: kiln

26-23: ramble

26-56: downpour

29-27: male feline

30-27: molecule

32-62: story

35-32: chair

36-39: adjoin

37-34: foundation

39-37: half barrel

41-21: beret

41-43: knit

42-62: beer

42-82: watchful

43-47: path

fibber

become sick

quiver

noisy

75-78:

75-80:

86-84: tavern 86-89: buddies 89-86: smack

title

98-78: every 100-10: tremor 100-60: soil Last

Month’s Answer

The Bayman’s Crossword Puzzle

by Ron Young

ACROSS

1. “___ the b’y that builds the boat”

4. ___ Savoury of Simani

5. Bald Nap Marsh (abbrev)

6. 1969 Bond girl, Julie __

7. tilt (abbrev)

8. tellurium symbol

9. Spielberg’s movie alien

10. foul language (colloq)

19. Newfie Bullet

21. Scottish John

22. “I snared my first rabbit when I was

11, and when _ ___ it I cried” (2 words)

24. short for Harvey

25. “peacock” TV broadcaster

26. short for Gwendolyn

27. Victory in Europe (abbrev)

28. magnesium symbol

29. Light Training Helicopter of North Atlantic Defence (abbrev)

31. born

33. “Well it was on this Monday morning and the day __ calm and fine”

34. The ______ Connection – NL band

35. drong

37. Little Harbour (abbrev)

38. European Hockey Federation (abbrev)

40. chlorine symbol

41. overseas

44. “Indeed I __ me ol’ cock”

45. over (poet.)

46. spa

47. brother (abbrev)

48. lane (abbrev)

49. creator

50. Santa ____

52. “I wrung more _____ out of me mitts than you sailed over”

53. bosom

DOWN

1. “A warm smoke __ ______ ____ _

___ fog” (5 words)

2. undershirt

3. ant (colloq)

10. fisherman’s apron (colloq)

11. exist

12. “I’d throw him __ anchor”

13. ____ Charles III

14. “They got the gift of ___” – chatty

15. _____ Al Clouston

16. “I’m _____ afraid of meself today”

17. late night nightmares (colloq)

18. curve

20. Roberts Arm (abbrev)

23. educate

28. “__ nerves is rubbed right raw!”

30. tender loving care (abbrev)

32. “The Ghost of _____ Dower”

33. boat left behind in Newfoundland after the summer fishery

34. seat

36. each (abbrev)

37. failure

39. The _____ 500 of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment

42. skinny as a ____

43. Nintendo __

44. “____ hands are the devil’s workshop”

47. public transit

49. Pa’s mate

50. crescent (abbrev)

51. battery size

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.

k

Last Month’s Answer: Your opinion is important as long as you don’t offer it.

CRACK THE CODE

Each symbol represents a letter of the alphabet, for instance = T Try to guess the smaller, more obvious words to come up with the letters for the longer ones. The code changes each month.

H Y

L L

f t Q

h b k

Y T Y T \

z 3 3

\ \ \ \

Y C

Y T Y T Y T

C ;

H

k

Q p Y T

3 h

3 3

L

Y T \ \ i m 7 7 L L

L L

k H

3

z

Last Month’s Answer: Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.

1-888-588-6353

© 2023 Ron Young ©2023 Ron Young

© 2023 Ron Young

Food For Thought

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.”

Last Month’s Answer: I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.

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 IN CONCEPTION BAY

Last Month’s Answers: 1. Ridge, 2. Inuksuk, 3. Base of inuksuks, 4. Hiking pole, 5. Backpack, 6. Cap, 7. Trousers, 8. Jacket, 9. Coastline, 10. Coastal ferry, 11. Man, 12. Boulder

“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, 212 Pine St., Collingwood, ON, L9Y 2P2

HIDE & SEEK CANADA

The words can be across, up, down, backward or at an angle, but always in a line.

N O C S L W

G C X E O V Q N Q A K O Y I K X M A X L O F E B R

L E J T L T O H W M O U N T I E S P V E Q M R J N

K S C T D W R O E I N O O T Z N P M X G T I V C J

D C T E K E C H E S T E R F I E L D P O U T I N E

H A R R A N Z P R O V I N C E S S Q J U G O E R C

W N P Q U O P J T E R R I T O R I E S Q F K T K E

Q U G Y O R Q D Z S H O C K E Y R E V A E B T G T

W C U X W T O C Y R R O S Z A T I M M I E S E F E

K K W S N H C O M M O N W E A L T H U U Q C B C D

Colourful Culture

The drawing on the opposite page is the work of Newfoundland Mi’kmaq artist Marcus Gosse, a member of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band. His grandmother, Alice Maude Gosse (nee Benoit) is a Mi’kmaq Elder from Red Brook (Welbooktoojech) on the Port au Port Peninsula.

Marcus’ work has been exhibited in the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in Halifax; The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery in St. John’s, NL; and the Canada 150 Art Show at the Macaya Gallery in Miami, FL; and his work is in private collections around the world.

He has generously offered a series of colouring pages that run monthly in Downhome. Each image depicts a NL nature scene and teaches us a little about Mi’kmaq culture and language. Each colouring page includes the Mi’kmaq word for the subject, the phonetic pronunciation of the word, and the English translation. And you’ll notice a design that Marcus incorporates into most of his pieces – the eight-point Mi’kmaq Star. This symbol dates back hundreds of years and is very important in Mi’kmaq culture. Marcus’ Mi’kmaq Stars are often seen painted with four colours: red, black, white and yellow, which together represent unity and harmony between all peoples. Many Mi’kmaq artists use the star, and various Mi’kmaq double curve designs, to decorate their blankets, baskets, drums, clothing and paintings.

To download and print this colouring page at home, visit DownhomeLife.com. To learn more about Marcus and find more of his colouring pages, look him up on Facebook at “Mi’kmaq Art by Marcus Gosse.”

GREAT GIFT IDEAS!

Tough

Tough

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving: 400 Delicious and Creative Recipes #84287 | $24.95

The Room Upstairs: A Novel - Ida Linehan Young #84708 | $21.00

This is the House that Luke Built - Violet Browne #84228 | $22.95

Hollow Bamboo: A Novel - William Ping #84700 | $25.99

Bifocal: Curious Tales & Their Reflections - Andrew Peacock #84699 | $29.99

Viral - Andrew Peacock #84698 | $19.99

Hunting Helena: A Novel - Natalie Carter-Giles #84802 | $21.00

Plants for

Places: Invincible Plants for Every Situation - Sharon Amos #84288 | $24.95

As Loved Our FathersMatthew LeDrew #84804 | $24.99

The William Cormack Story: NL Explorer & Beothuk Advocate - Ingeborg Marshall #85167 | $22.95

If We Caught Fire - Beth Ryan #84914 | $22.95

All That Glitters: A Sgt. Windflower Mystery - Mike Martin #85166 | $24.95

Kate’s Magical Playdates: Nope, Not Me! - Courtney Wicks #84787 | $13.95

Love You Forever - Robert Munsch #84229 | $6.95

Long Walk - Virginia E. Berry #85063 | $19.95

Walter & Seymour: Let’s Play - Kim Osbourne #85165 | $9.99

The Island - Lori Doody #84806 | $12.95

The Case of the Singing Ocean: A Gumboot Kids Nature Mystery - Hogan & Hungerford #84230 | $6.99

Carnation Milk Ornament #79659 | $6.99

Big Stick Ornament #85152 | $9.99

Fussels Cream Ornament #79658 | $6.99

Newfoundland Screech Ornament #79670 | $6.99

Vienna Sausages Ornament #79657 | $6.99

Tetley Tea Ornament #79668 | $6.99

Purity Hard Bread Ornament #79669 | $6.99

Purity Lemon Creams Ornament #79664 | $6.99

Purity Jam Jams Ornament #79666 | $6.99

Mummers Boil-Up Fleece Throw #82864 | $22.99

Mummers in Port de Grave Fleece Throw #82865 | $22.99

NL Mummers Gift Wrap #82723 | $1.99

NL Mummers Window Clings #80344 | $2.99

NL Mummers Gift Tags #82721 | $1.99

Mummers Boilup Gift Bag - Small #83241 | $1.10

Mummers Indoor Floor Mats • $10.99 ea Port de Grave #82069 Mummers Parade #82067 Mummers Boil-Up #82068

Wingin’ It