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Homemade Stuffed Crust
$4.99 July 2020
Vol 33 • No 02
Pizza!
Q&A with MUN’s New President
Gardening Tips for Newbies Legend of Trapper Tom
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life is better Published monthly in St. John’s by Downhome Publishing Inc. 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3 Tel: 709-726-5113 • Fax: 709-726-2135 • Toll Free: 1-888-588-6353 E-mail: mail@downhomelife.com Website: www.downhomelife.com Editorial Editor-in-Chief Janice Stuckless Assistant Editor Katherine Saunders Art and Production Art Director Vince Marsh Graphic and Web Designer Cory Way Illustrator Mel D’Souza Illustrator Snowden Walters Advertising Sales Senior Account Manager Robert Saunders Account Manager Barbara Young Marketing Director Tiffany Brett Finance and Administration Junior Accountant Marlena Grant Accounting Assistant Sandra Gosse Operations Manager, Twillingate Nicole Mehaney
Warehouse Operations Warehouse / Inventory Manger Carol Howell Warehouse Operator Josephine Collins Distribution Sales & Marketing Amanda Ricks Sr. Customer Service Associate Sharon Muise Inventory Control Clerk Darlene Whiteway Retail Operations Retail Floor Manager, St. John’s Jackie Rice Retail Floor Manager, Twillingate Donna Keefe Retail Sales Associates Crystal Rose, Emma Goodyear, Jonathon Organ, Nicole French, Elizabeth Gleason, Rebecca Ford, Erin McCarthy, Mackenzie Stockley, Marlene Burt, Marissa Little, Hayley Fitzgerald, Elizabeth Gauci, Beth Colbert, Kim Tucker, Heather Stuckless, Katrina Hynes, Tammy Keating
Subscriptions Customer Service Associate Kathleen Murphy Customer Service Associate Nicola Ryan
Founding Editor Ron Young
President & Associate Publisher Todd Goodyear
Chief Executive Officer/Publisher Grant Young
General Manager/Assistant Publisher Tina Bromley
To subscribe, renew or change address use the contact information above. Subscriptions total inc. taxes, postage and handling: for residents in NL, NS, NB, PE $45.99; ON $45.19; QC, SK, MB, AB, BC, NU, NT, YT $41.99. US and International mailing price for a 1-year term is $49.99.
Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement #40062919 The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of errors in advertisements beyond the amount paid for the space actually occupied by the portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred, whether such error is due to the negligence of the servants or otherwise, and there shall be no liability beyond the amount of such advertisement. The Letters to the Editor section is open to all letter writers providing the letters are in good taste, not libelous, and can be verified as true, correct and written by the person signing the letter. Pen names and anonymous letters will not be published. The publisher reserves the right to edit, revise, classify, or reject any advertisement or letter. © Downhome Publishing Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without permission of the publisher. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada.
Printed in Canada
Official onboard magazine of
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staycation paradise
Contents
JULY 2020
44 Isolated By Choice In their really remote homes, social distancing is part of everyday life for these two couples. Ashley Miller
58 Rocking the Art World In the painted rock movement, the fun is in the find. Jenn Thornhill Verma
66 Stay Home Year 2020
58 rock stars
www.downhomelife.com
How communities and tourism businesses are adjusting to life with COVID-19 Katherine Saunders
108 Hero of the Great War Though it was decades before he received it, Matthew Brazil earned France’s highest honour for bravery for his actions in WWI. July 2020
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Contents
JULY 2020
homefront 10 I Dare Say A note from the editor 11 Contributors Meet the people behind the magazine 12 Letters From Our Readers Graduating from a safe distance, getting creative amid coronavirus, and another mystery solved by readers
12 safe grad
20 Downhome Tours Downhome readers explore Newfoundland and Labrador
22 Why is That? Why does hair grow in some places on our bodies but not in others? Linda Browne 24 Life’s Funny A Laugh Between Friends Vera Mullins
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hair today…
25 Say What A contest that puts words in someone else’s mouth 26 Lil Charmers The Face When… 28 Pets of the Month Pandemic Pets 30 Reviewed Top 10 Summer Reads Denise Flint
34 What Odds Paul Warford stews in traffic
36 Great Gertie Lane “Supernan” turns 100 Jessica Turner
26 ack!
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isn’t that just ducky
features 38 The Canadian Dream A Q&A with Memorial University’s new president and vice-chancellor Linda Browne
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50 Duck, Duck, Goose A birder’s guide to the ducks, and a goose, found in NL Todd Hollett
explore
face of change
62
simple things
62 Keep It Simple Tips for no-fuss, all-fun family camping adventures Connie Boland
74 Travel Diary A Day Trip to St. Brendan’s Denise Chippett
76 A Space for Trapper Tom New park in Bristol’s Hope honours a local legend Dale Jarvis
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Contents
JULY 2020
80
a new family space
home and cabin 80 Disaster Turned Delight Homeowners turn a nasty septic surprise into a dreamscape for their family. Marie Bishop
84 Felted for Life A local crafter who takes knitting to the next step Katherine Saunders
88 Todd’s Table Eggs Benedict Todd Goodyear
92 Everyday Recipes Pandemic Potluck
100 Gardening for Newbies Kim Thistle 6
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88 not just for breakfast
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116
changing the shoreline
reminiscing 106 Flashbacks Classic photos of people and places
107 This Month in History Transatlantic hot air balloon race
112 Sailors Who Became Lumberjacks Three men from a small NL town whose service spanned two World Wars Lester Green About the cover This white sandy beach in Burgeo is one example of the paradise found right here in this province, and has us dreaming of how wonderful a “Stay Home Year” vacation could be. Donna Warren photo
Cover Index Homemade Stuffed Crust Pizza • 92 Top 10 Summer Reads • 30 Isolated & Loving It • 44 Stay Home Year • 66 Q&A with MUN’s New President • 38 Gardening Tips for Newbies • 100 Legend of Trapper Tom • 76
www.downhomelife.com
116 How the Golden Eagle Landed in Holyrood Tobias Romaniuk
120 Newfoundlandia Frontier Farming: The O’Brien Farm Story Chad Bennett
126 Marketplace 128 Mail Order 132 Puzzles 144 Photo Finish July 2020
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Happy 100th Birthday to Gertie Lane!
Did you know that the NL oil industry started in Holyrood?
Turn to p. 36 to read all about her.
See p. 116 for the whole story.
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Are you a big fan of food?
2020 Explore Travel Guide
We’re always cooking up something in the Everyday Recipes Facebook Group. Join us!
Digital download available for free on Issuu.com beginning in July. Plan your NL staycation! Find it under Downhome publications.
July 2020
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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 *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. www.downhomelife.com
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i dare say
There’s nowhere I’d rather be “stuck” than here.
Todd Young photo
While the coronavirus continues its march around the world and back, our freedom to vacation the way we’re used to is limited. Instead, we have to seek our adventures close to home, and I, for one, am primed for an excursion around the bay. I just want to get in the car and go. I love road trips. It could be a leisurely Sunday drive to a favourite destination, or a multi-day journey down paths I’ve never taken – the feeling is the same. It’s the relaxing way the scenery slides past and the laissez fair attitude that comes with the open road. There’s always a stop in some little shop for a cold drink or an ice cream, or maybe some snacks to make a picnic on some newly discovered bluff or beach. If our kayaks are on the roof, we’ll pick a pond for a leisurely paddle. Spontaneity is the only thing on the agenda. This is the year of the staycation, and those tourism operators and small businesses that are open now are really counting on us to help them through this lean season. I’m going to start by buying digital downloads of my favourite local artists (who have lost all their paying gigs this summer) to make roadtrip playlists. If I can’t visit craftshops and studios, I’ll look up the artists and makers online to buy souvenirs from them there. I’ll be sure to buy gas and snacks in the little communities we pass through, and use my social media to promote the places I tour. And wherever I go, I will respect the well-being of others by practising social distancing, following signage in stores and on trails, washing my hands frequently and wearing a mask where necessary. Instead of commiserating about where we can’t go or what we can’t do this year, let’s embrace the opportunities, and support the people, all around us. Thanks for reading,
Janice Stuckless, Editor-in-chief janice@downhomelife.com 10
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Contributors
Meet the people behind the magazine
Nicole Noseworthy Like everyone else these days, Nicole Noseworthy of Bryant’s Cove, NL, has had her world turned upside down by COVID-19. Nicole is the proud mommy of Malcolm, who turned one on May 24th. She’s had to adapt to raising a baby during a pandemic. For this issue, Nicole sent Downhome a photo of Malcolm being prepared for quarantine (see p. 144), a 2020 trend in baby photo shoots. Malcolm lives with his mom, his daddy Gage, his Nana and Papa Noseworthy, and the family cat, Sophie. Before the COVID-19 restrictions, Malcolm’s other grandfather and his great-aunt were supposed to travel from BC to visit for his first birthday and to meet Malcolm for the first time. This could not happen, but the whole family is looking forward to a reunion when restrictions are eased. Nicole describes Malcolm as “a very active boy who enjoys being outside and spending time with his family.” During normal times, he likes to go to Trinity Conception Playgroup in Harbour Grace and salmon fishing on the Gander River with his family. www.downhomelife.com
Connie Boland Connie Boland is a freelance journalist and creative writer from Corner Brook. When she’s not writing, she’s hiking and camping with her family. She’s been all over the island, exploring communities and pitching tents. In this issue, she shares camping stories and her top tips from her decades of experience (see pg. 62). Connie has been camping ever since she was a Girl Guide. She writes, “My second year at Girl Guide camp is probably my favourite camping memory. In the mid-1970s, the campsite of choice was Pinchgut Lake, just outside Corner Brook. Companies of young girls would struggle with heavy canvas tents and we prepared our own meals. Every night, after campfire and enthusiastic rounds of Quartermaster’s Store, we huddled in our tent, whispering ghost stories. By lights out we were too scared to visit the outhouse.” When asked about her favourite camping tradition, Connie writes, “Toutons, always toutons, for breakfast, with leftovers for lunch. Fried to golden brown, and topped with syrup and raspberry jam. Delicious.” July 2020
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Graduation COVID-19 Style May 22, 2020, was not what the graduates of Southwest Arm Academy had envisioned last fall when they started planning for graduation. Students were not permitted to enter the school for their graduating day, but stood on the school parking lot using the guidelines offered by the province’s chief medical officer. They stood the required six feet apart and wore their masks for a unique photo that will forever reflect upon a time in which the world was brought to a halt by the COVID-19 virus. The students then returned home and waited for the motorcade that began at Southport/Gooseberry Cove intersection and ended at Long Beach. The graduates joined the procession as it passed by their homes. The sound of car horns echoing off the cliffs, as the brightly decorated vehicles carrying messages of congratulations passed by the onlookers, created a moment that will be forever remembered by the graduating class of 2020. Lester Green Little Heart’s Ease, NL
Congratulations to all graduating classes of 2020. It may not have been the graduation you had dreamed of, but the story of your graduating year is literally one for the history books. Here is Southwest Arm Academy’s Class of 2020: Front Row (l-r): Brandon Seward, Grace Strong, Mackenzie Baird and Saraha Stringer. Back Row (l-r): Hunter Seward, James Marsh, Emily Wiseman, Amber Nicholle and Mason Seward. 12
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Masking My Disappointment I thought I would share a little sewing project that I completed for myself. I was born and raised in Newfoundland and Labrador, now living in New Brunswick. I am disappointed that my trip home this summer is now on hold. Last time I was home I bought some souvenirs, so I dug out my cup towel to make a few masks. What do you think? I have had multiple offers [to buy it]... LOL! But it’s a keeper! Valerie Connors Via Facebook.com
So many people are disappointed that they can’t come home this year – and so many people in this province are crushed that they can’t welcome people from away this summer. Thank you for finding and sharing your way to deal with the disappointment in a creative, uplifting – and useful! – manner. It’s the kind of attitude we all need now.
www.downhomelife.com
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find corky sly conner Hidden somewhere in this issue is Corky Sly Conner.
Can you find him? Look carefully at all the photographs and in the text of the stories. If you spot Corky, send us your name, address and phone number, along with a note telling us where he’s located. Your name will be entered in a draw and the winner will receive a coupon worth 25 Downhome Dollars redeemable at our store, or through our website.
Send your replies to: Corky Contest
Congratulations to Greg Clowe of Renews, NL, who found him on page 7 of the May issue.
43 James Lane St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3
mail@downhomelife.com www.downhomelife.com *No Phone Calls Please One entry per person
Deadline for replies is the end of each month.
Mystery Solved I think the mystery item on page 16 of May’s Downhome magazine is a wrench to unscrew the plugs from a 45-gallon drum. The top or small part of the wrench opens the small plug or vent, and the bottom (as it sits in the picture) opens the large plug. A 45-gallon drum of gas years ago was called a “cask” of gas and the plugs were called “bungs.” Kevin Butt Via email
Thanks to the many readers who contacted us following the publishing of this photo in the May issue. By the volume of responses, this was a very common tool back in its day.
Continued p. 16
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A Hijacking Remembered A friend of ours gave us some of your magazines to read; his wife was from NL. Upon reading “The Untold Story of Mary Dohey” in the September 2017 issue, our hearts beat faster! In 1971, my husband’s company transferred him from Edmonton to Winnipeg, where we still reside. On Friday, November 12, 1971, I was waiting with my three small children (4-8 years old) to board flight #812 coming from Calgary (then to Winnipeg and Toronto). We were told after some waiting that the flight was delayed due to being hijacked. One passenger berated the poor clerk. I just waited, as I had no place to go. After two or three hours, another plane came and we landed safely after midnight in Winnipeg. My husband and others waiting for their people were never told what was happening. And after all those years, we finally learned the wonderful story with all the explanations. Thank you so much. Elke May Winnipeg, MB
For readers who don’t know, Mary Dohey was a flight attendant on flight #812 who was credited with keeping the armed hijacker calm and saving the lives of all of those on board. In December 1975, she became the first living person to receive the Cross of Valour, Canada’s highest commendation for bravery. She died in 2017, in Mississauga, ON, where she had been living in retirement, and her remains were returned home to Newfoundland and Labrador. You can read the entire story online at Downhomelife.com (search “Mary Dohey”).
Found on Facebook
Kim Hynes Want to know how to kill a couple of hours... Dad hands you his copy of the Downhome magazine... read all the stories and the best part ... THE PUZZLES WEREN’T DONE YET!!! WOOHOO!
Coronavirus Creativity Just awhile back, the May issue of Downhome arrived in our mailbox, much to our delight! It was interesting to note Janice’s comments on page 10, “I Dare Say,” in regards to it being tough at Downhome to get this issue out to the readership due to the unexpected setback in our nation because of the coronavirus. This COVID-19 has caused basically all of us, except necessary services, to self-isolate in our homes. It has truly brought a strain on all of our lives. A single senior lady, living alone, told me the other day that she was sick and tired of talking to the walls! I’m thinking there are many who can relate. So in the midst of this, we might say dark time, the arrival of Downhome magazine was a bright Continued p. 18
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Everyone Loves a JamJam! JamJam is a 17-year-old Newfoundland Pony (Registration # 632) who lives in Seal Cove in Conception Bay South, NL. Her proud owner, Dominique Lavers, has had her for nine years and says that before she got JamJam, she had two foals: Barney and Bam Bam (of course), both of whom live in the Deer Lake region. Dominique says, “JamJam was my first Newfoundland Pony and I loved the breed from the start. I also have a quarter horse named Butter, so I guess you can say that I own Butter and Jam!” She uses ‘Jam’ with the cart in the summer and hitches her to a sleigh in the winter. She says that JamJam was only halter broke when she got her in 2011, so she had to do all her own training to get her ready for the cart and sleigh. Newfoundland Ponies are known for both their intelligence and trustworthy nature, so it was no surprise when JamJam learned to handle both quickly and easily.
JamJam and her best friend, Waffles
Like all ponies, Dominique says that Jam loves getting treats and that she spent most of the Newfoundland winter, which saw a record snowfall, out rolling in fresh snow. JamJam is not alone. She lives with her best friend, Waffles, who is part Newfoundland Pony. If you want to help Newfoundland Ponies, learn more about the breed, or give access to pasture land for summer grazing, please contact the NPS rehoming committee at: membership@newfoundlandpony.com or atlarge1@newfoundlandpony.com.
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light to bring some much-appreciated comfort. So special thanks is extended to the staff for the efforts made to make it happen. The COVID-19 event has caused many of us to resort to things to help relieve the boredom, including a hobby that we may have set aside. I’m a novice woodworker, so I’ve spent time in my workshop making some things. I decided to make some wig stands for ladies with cancer who have lost their hair through treatments. This is an avenue to reach out and touch lives in our community in a positive way. The wig stands are channelled through a local organization to the medical field. There has been much positive feedback from the patients who have received these. This setback in our lives can give us incentives to reach out and be a help to others, even if it’s in a small way.
Again, I express my thanks to Downhome magazine for all the great articles and fun things that come our way each month. I will be keeping an eye out for the arrival of the next issue – in the meantime, everyone, keep safe! I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a trip to Newfoundland this summer. Calvin Perry Oshawa, ON (formerly of Laurenceton, NL)
What a creative and lovely thing to do with your time and talent, Calvin! 18
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We’d love to know what other readers have been doing to pass the newfound time in our lives. Send us a picture of a project you’ve been working on and tell us a bit about it, and about yourselves. Email us at editorial@downhomelife.com, share your story online at DownhomeLife.com/submit, or write to Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3.
Downhome Brings Us Comfort Thank you to all your staff who, I know, are working as hard as they can in these different and challenging times. Getting Downhome *does* bring us comfort and routine – normally and even more so now. I grew up on the Atlantic coast and I miss, daily, the view of the sea and the familiarity of coast culture. These days, I can’t help but wish I could be soothed by beachcombing, or that I could sit somewhere and let the wind and waves do their subtle, meditative magic. Until I can do that again, I so look forward to each issue of Downhome that we receive. I applaud that you have been able to pull off issues even with all the distractions and disruptions. I hope that your staff can stay well and know that there are so many of us out here who cheer for you and your publication and look forward, every month, to feeling like we’re downhome. Sue McDowell Michigan, USA
Thanks, Sue. Your encouraging words are very much appreciated. It’s a pleasure and a privilege that we continue to publish Downhome throughout these trying times, and we couldn’t do it without the support of our loyal readers. 1-888-588-6353
life is a celebration
Announcemets
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Happy Birthday Mom
Margaret (Pike) Batten July 20th Born and raised in Port-Aux-Basques Margaret was a teacher and taught in Corner Brook before marrying Douglas Batten in 1942. They then lived in Nova Scotia before moving to Boston in 1954 with their two daughters and later retiring to Cape Cod. Travelling by train by herself until the age of 97, she spent winters in Florida where she has made many new Newfoundland friends. She maintains close contact with the Batten families in Corner Brook and St. John’s. Margaret is the proud grandmother of 3 grandsons and 3 great-grandsons.
Love from your family & friends www.downhomelife.com
Happy Anniversary Robert & Cardella (McLean) MacAulay Married in North West River, Labrador July 4, 1970
Love from your daughter, son-in-law and grandsons
Edith (Richards) Collins, the oldest of six girls, born July 2, 1920, to William and Mary Richards of Channel, Port-aux-Basque. Mom is still active, living independently in her own home. She enjoys cooking, baking, knitting and spending time with family and friends. There are 3 sisters remaining, Mom, Evelyn and Alice, the youngest, who just celebrated her 90th. birthday in April. Mom has 3 daughters, Mary Lou, Patricia and Susanne. We all reside in Sydney close to her. Mom has 4 grandchildren and 5 greatgrandchildren. Her family and friends would like to wish her a very happy 100th birthday.
Love from your family July 2020
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homefront Downhome tours...
Newfoundland and Labrador
Taken at Gaultois, Canada Day Helen Clarke and her companion enjoyed a Canada Day ferry trip to Gaultois.
It’s about a 20-minute ferry ride from Hermitage in the Coast of Bays region to the remote outport of Gaultois. Its population suffered from a downturn in the fishery in the 1980s and 1990s, but a year-round population as well as summer residents still call this pretty town home. It is recognizable for its boardwalk that connects parts of the village, and it’s an ideal destination for those seeking a true Newfoundland and Labrador outport experience. 20
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Viking Site-ing
Wayne Otterbeck and his girlfriend, Amanda, explore the Viking Site at L’Anse aux Meadows on her first trip to Newfoundland and Labrador. Recognized as the only known Viking settlement in North America, L’Anse aux Meadows on the tip of the Great Northern Peninsula is a National Historic Site and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The sculpture at the entrance, created by Luben Boykov and Richard Brixel, is called “Meeting of Two Worlds” and symbolizes the point where cultures migrating east from Asia met those migrating west from Europe, as in when the Norse Vikings encountered and briefly shared space with indigenous people here.
Belles of Bell Island
(L-r) Sisters Marina Coxe, Annette Fairbarn, Helen Lucas and Lillian Cruickshank reunite in their hometown of Bell Island, after 55 years away. These sisters and their six siblings moved to Georgetown, ON, with their parents, Lillian and William Kent, as the Bell Island mine was near closing. Iron ore mining began on Bell Island in 1895 and ended in 1966. The mine’s closure threw most Bell Island earners out of work, and many families left to find employment elsewhere. www.downhomelife.com
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Expert answers to common life questions. By Linda Browne
Why does hair on the head stop growing in the case of balding, while hair elsewhere (e.g. the face) continues to grow? We all go through plenty of trials and tribulations as we age. For instance, you may notice certain body parts creaking and cracking that didn’t previously. Or perhaps you’ve found yourself having to make the text on your computer screen a bit larger in order to be able to read it clearly. Or maybe you’re discovering hair where you’ve never seen it before, and noticing its absence in places where it formerly flourished. While it’s a difficult topic to discuss for a lot of people, hair loss is quite common and there are many different reasons for it. According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), hair loss can be hereditary or it can be chalked up to ageing, illness, stress, hormonal imbalances, damaging hair treatments or any number of things. “The big surprise is that the hair really does not stop growing. When men or women begin to show signs of hair loss consistent with female or male pattern hair loss [a.k.a. androgenetic alopecia], the process that is happening is a slow and progressive shortening of the hair growth cycle,” explains Dr. Amy McMichael, professor and chair of the Department of Dermatology at Wake Forest Baptist 22
July 2020
Medical Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. To understand hair loss, says McMichael, one first has to understand the phases of hair growth. “The hair growth of the hair follicles on the scalp consists of the growth phase (anagen) that lasts approximately three to five years; a short cycle called catagen that lasts three weeks and is the time that the hair follicle begins the process of shedding; and finally, a resting phase of the hair follicle (telogen) that lasts three months and is when the hairs on the head shed,” she says. “At any given time, 10 per cent of the hairs on the head are in the telogen phase.” In those folks who have the genetics that predispose them to pattern hair 1-888-588-6353
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loss (which, according to the AAD, is the most common cause of hair loss worldwide), McMichael says the anagen phase gets shorter and shorter until eventually “the hairs do not stay on the scalp long enough to contribute to density. This is thought to happen due to genetics, as mentioned, and the effects of certain very strong male hormones.” As for those pesky little hairs that pop up and stick around like unwanted guests, McMichael says other parts of the body don’t have the same hormonal influence, “because hair follicle cells on the body do not have the same hormone cell receptors, so the hair will often stay in place or get thicker.” “Hair on the scalp and face are the most sensitive to the hormonal influence. Interestingly, the area on the scalp that is usually most affected in pattern hair loss is the vertex (or crown) of the scalp – thus the name ‘pattern hair loss,’” she adds. So why then can a person with an almost naked noggin have, at the same time, such a glorious, bushy beard? The answer, again, lies in hormones.
“A bald man with a beard is showing the signs of hormonal effects of androgens (male hormones). Androgen effects cause male pattern hair loss on the scalp and influence beard growth on the face. This is proof that the androgens can have differential effects on the hair follicles depending on location. And to make this even more complicated, the scalp hair on the posterior scalp is not affected by the androgens,” McMichael says. (Other parts of the body, she adds, like the legs, “are less under the control of androgens, if at all.”) “The effects are under genetic control and probably evolutionary control as well. If we understood the entire genetic control of this, we would be able to better influence these effects, but these differences are still poorly understood.” Scratching your head at the whole hairy situation? Don’t feel bad. The process of hair growth, McMichael says, is a very complicated one with many moving parts, and “with many different genes and other factors that determines how the hair grows.”
Do you have a burning life question for Linda to investigate? Turn to page 9 for ways to contact us. www.downhomelife.com
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homefront life’s funny
A Laugh Between Friends My friend and I played darts together for years, on Thursday nights. This one night after supper, my friend called to see if I was going to darts. After I said yes, she asked if I had any moose at my place. I said yes and she asked, “Can you bring me some when you comes up?” I said OK and went to the freezer to get two bags: one was a roast and one was for soup. She didn’t say what she wanted it for. When I got to my friend’s house she was in the bathroom, so I went ahead and put the moose in her freezer. She came out and asked, “Where’s the moose?” I said, “I put it in the freezer.” “The freezer? Why? I wanted it to finish doing my hair.” It was then I realized she wanted my styling mousse, not my wild moose. Vera Mullins Harbour Breton, NL
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. 24
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t have pu d l u o h s o t “I ought in more th ould ‘double who I wble’ with.” bub eGrow aL
– Regin
Say WHAT? Downhome recently posted this photo (submitted by Natasha Porter) on our website and social media platforms and asked folks to imagine what this cat might be saying. Regina LeGrow made us chuckle the most, so we’re awarding her 20 Downhome Dollars!
Here are the runners-up: “Isn’t there supposed to be six feet of space between us?” – Tammy Canning “How many lives does she get?” – Robin Cuff “Get a load of the humans. They haven’t been outside in weeks.” – Steve Spracklin
Play with us online! www.downhomelife.com/saywhat
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homefront lil charmers
The Face When…
Petrified of Petals
Three-year-old Jack wants nothing to do with these flowers! Jaime Connors Cambridge, ON
What the…? Baby Kelsey wonders what’s she supposed to catch with this tiny hand-line? Crystal Locke St. Alban’s, NL
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Not What I Ordered This is Michael, one month old, getting burped by Daddy – and not at all impressed by it. Amanda Donahue Norris Arm South, NL
Lard Lipton!
Beau Budden shows the face when you see a moose, but you didn’t get picked in the draw. Sami Budden Fort McMurray, AB
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homefront pets of the month
Quarantine Clipped Cookie doesn’t know what to think of her new haircut that her family gave her! Jaelyn Brenton Marystown, NL
Pandemic Pets
Break Time Yet? Cosmo the pitbull mix and Blaze the cat show up in the “lunchroom” for treats. Candace Reid Roddickton, NL 28
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Bubble Buddy Finley enjoys a day outside with his human. Nicole Emberley Mount Pearl, NL
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homefront
Top 10
Summer Reads By Denise Flint
It may be summertime,
but the living isn’t exactly easy. As of this writing there’s no telling whether we’ll still be largely confined to our own property or able to bask on the beach (appropriately distanced, of course). In either case, it’s no time for heavy reading. The following suggestions run the gamut from new and old classics to modern genre novels and kids’ books. There’s enough variety in these local offerings that everyone should find something on the list to interest them.
Mystery This list is all about reading easy, and what could be easier than starting a new series? Not only do you get one new book to read, you get a whole bunch of them. For fans of mysteries with a laid-back vibe and as much emphasis on food and friends as on crime, there’s no better place to start than The Walker on the Cape, the first of eight (so far) Sgt. Windflower mysteries by Mike Martin.
Romance If romance is more your cup of tea, visit Heart’s Ease, the setting for Victoria Barbour’s five-book series of sweet stories loosely revolving around a luxury B&B where guests (and locals) can’t help falling in love. The first book is called Against Her Rules, but there’s no rule that says you have to read them in order. 30
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Science Fiction Younger readers, as well as those who don’t scorn a well-written young adult novel, can dig into Susan M. MacDonald’s Tyon collective (Edge of Time, Time of Treason, Treason’s Edge), a sci-fi trilogy about teenagers catapulted into a broader universe who must learn to both get along with each other and save all of humanity.
For Children For much younger readers (or young listeners), Dawn Baker’s The Puffin Patrol is a gentle picture book that lays out the plight of young pufflings confused by the lights of Witless Bay and describes how people are helping them get back where they belong.
Classic Novel Margaret Duley is an author who doesn’t get enough attention. She’s been called Newfoundland’s first novelist and Breakwater Books has committed to re-releasing all her books, which have been out of print for some time. Cold Pastoral is their first offering. The story of an outport girl supposedly taken by the fairies, who grows up as the daughter of a wealthy St. John’s family, is as fresh now as it was when it was first published in 1939.
Food Whether people are getting tired of baking bread by now or not, it doesn’t hurt to widen one’s repertoire. So, why not exercise some cooking muscles with Liz Feltham’s A Real Newfoundland Scoff: Using Traditional Ingredients in Today’s Kitchens? Any cookbook that includes a recipe for Salt Cod Eggs Benedict with Toutons and Savoury Hollandaise deserves attention.
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Family Saga Probably the most challenging book on this list comes from Duley’s natural successor, Michael Crummey. Galore is the story of generations of people who live in Paradise Deep, where one day a strange man arrives inside a whale. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but Crummey has no hesitation in calling it his favourite, so who are we to argue? Give it a whirl.
New Novel A very different outport story is told in Carolyn R. Parsons’s The Forbidden Dreams of Betsy Elliot. It’s the 1930s and Betsy doesn’t moan about her life as an orphan married to a difficult man much older than herself. She just gets on with it, grabs what opportunities she can and accepts the consequences without bitterness.
Historical Fiction For a Newfoundland historical novel that isn’t quite so Eurocentric, Gary Collin’s The Last Beothuk literally can’t be beat – or at least it wasn’t. The tale of Kop, the titular character, won the first ever Newfoundland Reads competition against some worthy competitors.
Short Stories Finally, for when you just want to dip your toes in, there’s Ed Kavanagh’s Strays, a collection of short stories just right for summer days, no matter where you’ll be spending them.
Look for these books at your local retailer or public library, either in print or e-reader versions. Several of these authors and titles are also available to order at ShopDownhome.com (turn to p. 129 for more information). 32
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Send us your 500-800 word story about your most memorable day trip or the dream vacation you took in Newfoundland and Labrador. And be sure to include a photo or two, so we can see what you’re raving about.
How to Submit Online: www.downhomelife.com/submit By email: editorial@downhomelife.com Mail: Downhome, 43 James Lane, St. John’s, NL, A1E 3H3
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homefront what odds
no way around it By Paul Warford
What do you “If you can drive here, Paul, you can miss the least drive anywhere!” My mother used to announce this on the hottest summer days, her oversized since COVID-19, sunglasses winking in the sun as our ’93 Buick that nasty Skylark idled. I was 16 then; pale, thin, pimply eager. After years of having to depend on my contagion, reared and older brothers and their unpredictable personal its noxious head? schedules in order to get a ride anywhere, I’d For me? Easy. finally be the one with his foot on the gas. Sure, my dad would take me wherever I needed to go, Newfoundland but girls were important by then – their movetraffic. ments and mysteries, and the movies I could be
watching with them in their parents’ basements. I’d take Brian or Colin as chauffeur over my doting dad. Of course, I wasn’t going on any dates, but still. Every teen wants their driver’s licence, and I was no different. “If you can drive here, you can drive anywhere,” she’d repeat, snapping a bubble of chewing gum while our maroon sedan crawled at an aching pace from McDonald’s to the stadium, a distance of about 100 yards. The car was a disastrous rig, by the way, easily the worst lemon the Warford family ever owned. The Skylark was plagued by transmission issues and minor foibles that dogged it ‘til Dad finally sold it or rolled it off a cliff (I don’t actually know what became of the car). It was long speculated that the Skylark behaved this way because my middle brother Brian had thrashed it with too many donuts in the high school parking lot, but I guess we’ll never know. Real quick, without thinking: What do you miss the least since COVID-19, that nasty contagion, reared its noxious head? For me? Easy. Newfoundland traffic. Let me begin by saying, “It’s my fault.” I’m the kinda guy who would show up late to my own coronation, and I’m terrible at organizing my
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time. Consequently, I tend to rush to appointments, three minutes late, brushing my teeth as I unlock my car, or biting hunks of muffin at a stop sign. My point being, if you’re always in a rush, others are never going to move as quickly as you’d like. And they do not. They do not move as quickly as I’d like. This time last year, when Kenmount Road looked like a four-year-old’s sandbox, I’d be sitting there, in front of the road crew, disgusted, waiting for them to flip their sign from STOP to SLOW. Finally, the gatekeeper would grant me passage with a nod and a tip of the hardhat bill, and I’d wait as the cars ahead of me oozed forward like thick gravy. I’d spit and utter curses in the heat, frantically wrenching the knob of the radio, searching for a station that would tell me “it’s gonna be okay” while I slowly became more and more late for work. The building where I worked loomed in the distance – taunting, out of reach – as traffic continued its snail pace. I live near Rawlin’s Cross. The city recently reverted the “roundabout” pilot project at the notorious intersection and most seem to be decrying the decision. I used that cursed knuckle of asphalt every day I had to drive somewhere. I have had strong opinions on the pilot, and my wife is urging me to share my thoughts with all of you. “I could,” I thought, but it wouldn’t be fair because I’m not a city planner and I’m always in a rush. My opinions are necessarily tainted. Besides, I don’t like to get political here at What Odds www.downhomelife.com
– if anything, I want my pages to break from that stuff. So, I’ll just share with you what I told every rational friend who defended the roundabout style versus traffic lights this past year: I’d ask them to cross the street. Each angle, each direction, once during daytime traffic, once at night. I’m not sure if any of them tried this, but I hope they did. Anyone who followed my advice and lived would realize the truth: whatever the roundabout did for traffic flow, it jeopardized St. John’s pedestrians in the process. I saw a guy almost get creamed by a taxi on the pilot’s second day. The driver wasn’t at fault, and neither was the guy; they just couldn’t see each other. But I saw, as if in slow motion, this guy coming within inches of meandering in front of a car doing 40 km/h. When I got home, I wrote a letter to the city, citing the roundabout’s safety issues, and I never write letters to the city. I miss being stuck in traffic with all of you. You don’t have to speed up for me, once we’re all back to our routines. I’ll take a slower pace if it means I’m among people who care about each other. Just make sure you’re looking both ways before you cross the street. 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 July 2020
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homefront in your words
A young Gertie Lane with one of the work horses at Newman Sound.
Jessica Turner, the first great-grandchild of Gertie Lane, tells the century-long story of the woman who earned the nickname “supernan.”
My great-grandmother, Gertie Lane, is an avid Downhome reader. Guaranteed when I’d go visit her, the first thing she’d ask is if I had found Corky yet. She always found him first. She just turned 100 in June, and I would like to share a short story of her incredible, hardworking life. Gertie (Heffern) Lane was born June 28, 1920, in Broom Close (or Bloom Close according to handwritten documents), Newfoundland, around the Salvage area. She was one of eight children (five girls, three boys) of James and Irene Heffern. At age 10, my great-grandmother moved to nearby Eastport, to live with her Aunt Hilda and Uncle George. The next year, tragedy struck when her father and 36
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two brothers were lost at sea while fishing (13 years later, she lost her last brother to the sea as well). Her uncle George owned a sawmill up on Newman Sound, in what is now Terra Nova National Park. During the winter months, they’d pack up everything they needed – including sheep, goats, pigs, chickens and horses – and move to a settlement of about a dozen families in Newman Sound. 1-888-588-6353
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While the men worked at the sawmill, my great-grandmother learned many life skills – everything from embroidery, quilting and knitting, to snaring rabbits and ice fishing, and even first aid for the sick and injured, as there were no doctors nearby. Their days consisted of all that plus collecting wood for the night, hauling barrels of water by sled, and having a warm, hearty meal ready on the table. Come May, they’d return to Eastport for the summer, where she tended to the livestock, milked the cows, collected hay and grew vegetables. At 18, Gertie married Walter Lane. They continued going back and forth to Newman Sound for many years. They had their first daughter during that time, my great-aunt Marie. They stopped going to Newman Sound after my great-great-grandmother (Gertie’s mother) developed a brain tumour that took her sight, and she needed full-time care for 26 years until her passing. My great-grandparents built a home in Eastport and had two more children: Lorraine (my grandmother) and Baxter. All my life, I never knew Nanny Lane to slack at anything. One time she was wanting to rip up and redo her floors, and one of my uncles had volunteered to help her. By the time he came up the next day, he found her down on her hands and knees ripping up the floor all by herself. “You took too long!” she said. I think she was in her late 80s then. Another time, we walked in to find her up on a chair changing a lightbulb, and she in her mid-90s! We would scold her and remind her that she shouldn’t be at it, though we knew these were the types of things that kept her going. When I had my son Wilhelm in late 2018, Nanny Lane broke out her www.downhomelife.com
sewing machine and, despite struggles with numbness in her fingers, made him three beautiful fleece blankets. She’s an incredible woman who has done so much and been through so much. She has sacrificed, worked hard and loved unconditionally.
Gertie Lane holds her great-greatgrandson Wilhelm Dambitis, surrounded by her daughter Lorraine Turner, grandson Kirk Turner and her great-granddaughter Jessica Turner .
Up until last fall, Nanny Lane lived at home, doing all her own cleaning, laundry and cooking. Now she lives with her daughter Lorraine (and husband William) and looks forward every month to receiving your magazine in the mail. She also enjoys seeing her grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren. We were supposed to all be flying home this summer to throw a big 100th birthday party for her. But with the coronavirus and travel restrictions, that couldn’t happen. She’s a very strong woman, but I know deep down it crushed her. It absolutely crushed me. July 2020
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features
Dr. Vianne Timmons, Memorial University’s new president, talks life, leadership and the lure of Labrador. By Linda Browne
Dr. Vianne Timmons
has embraced many roles in life: educator, marathon runner (with five under her belt so far), mother of four, grandmother of three, volunteer, and officer of the Order of Canada (awarded for her lifetime contributions to inclusive education, family literacy, Indigenous post-secondary education and women’s leadership). And this April, she stepped into her new role as president and vice-chancellor of Memorial University – during a worldwide pandemic, no less. But she has never been one to shy away from a challenge. It’s a true homecoming for the proud Labradorian, whose parents instilled within her a love of reading and learning at a young age. Downhome caught up with Timmons in April to chat about childhood, her new job, the importance of keeping connected and the thrill of going downhill (skiing that is). 38
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Memorial University photo
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Downhome You moved to the province during a pandemic, which means you’ve had to start your new job in isolation and offsite. What has that experience been like for you? Dr. Vianne Timmons It has been challenging, I would say. To try to meet people online – I’ve met over 100, like hundreds of people, online – and to remember them and to get to know a little bit about them personally, after doing that for a couple of weeks, it is challenging. And I chaired a meeting with 81 people the other day by video conferencing; that was more than I had anticipated, for sure (laughs). But people have been very generous and patient and kind, and so I really appreciate that. DH: There’s quite a bit of excitement over the fact that you’re the first female president and vice-chancellor of MUN, and you were also the first female president and vice-chancellor of the University of Regina. What do you make of that?
VT: I’m really pleased to have this opportunity. But I often say that I’m a little bit sad because I’ve been a number of firsts because of my gender. And when I think about my daughters – I have three daughters and two granddaughters – I hope that they’re never going to be the first. Because I look at my mother and my grandmother, and what they fought for and how hard they worked for women and equity, and it’s taken a long time, and continues to take a long time. DH: What will be the focus in your new role?
VT: When I initially had planned to come, I wanted to start a strategic planning initiative, a very inclusive one that would give me an opportunity to get to know the campus really well, and the history and the stories. That’s put on hold because that has to be done face-to-face and with a committee to be effective… But as soon as the pandemic lifts, we’ll be looking at a number of initiatives: one [is] strategic planning. Post-
Dr. Vianne Timmons (fourth from left) with her son Samuel, daughter Nancy, husband Stuart and mother Georgetta at the Order of Canada investiture ceremony in 2018.
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things with the resources that you get when you have tuition invested. So I’m not a big fan of free tuition. In an ideal world, yes, but not in the world we live in right now with limited government funding, with challenging deferred maintenance and infrastructure, with the need to make sure we provide a quality experience for students, and you need the resources to do that.
DH: I understand you grew up in Labrador City. Did you leave there in your teenage years? Dr. Vianne Timmons with her mother, Georgetta. pandemic planning will be critical, to look at what we have learned; how can we be better prepared if this ever happens again; what legacies, in terms of the online and remote teaching – is there something that we can continue? Can we look at enhancing our online offerings? The other [initiative], of course, will be looking at enrolment and budgets and the challenges that we’ll have there; looking at how to support the province to get through the postpandemic mission.
DH: What are your thoughts on free tuition? VT: I think it’s very challenging, especially with the financial situation at Memorial which, for many years, has had significantly reduced tuition. Investment in a university education is the best investment you make. It pays back many, many times, both in quality of life, and health and wealth… And also what it provides for a university is the opportunity to be innovative and do innovative www.downhomelife.com
VT: I left during high school. My parents moved to Nova Scotia. That was traumatic, I’ll tell you, because I loved growing up there. And to leave all your friends when you’re a teenager and move to a place where you don’t know anyone and you’re only going to be there a short period of time before you go off to university, it was a real challenge. My heart broke when I left Labrador City.
DH: What was it like for you growing up there? Did you come from a bigger family? VT: There were six of us [children]. We moved up there when I was about three and a half, four. We grew up on Howley Avenue, and it was a street full of kids. My parents were very late getting a television, so I grew up without a TV, but many of my neighbours and friends had a TV. My parents didn’t have very much, but they were really interested in making sure we were busy. So we… all downhill skied, and that was a big part of my life growing up. Every weekend we went to Smokey Mountain and had so much fun… My childhood July 2020
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memories are full of sports, playing outdoors all the time, tons of kids everywhere. We would leave the house in the morning and come back for curfew or for supper.
DH: What’s your fondest childhood memory from Labrador? VT: … the Smokey Mountain ski hill. We lived there. My mother would pack us lunches in a little brown suitcase, because there were so many of us. So we had sandwiches in this little brown suitcase. My older brothers would help the youngest, because we were eight years from the oldest to the youngest, and all six of us downhill skied.
DH: Do you have a favourite Newfoundland and Labrador food? VT: I grew up with boiled dinners (laughs) and my husband still cooks it for me. And every time he does, I’m nostalgic… oh, I know what my favourite, favourite food is: it’s fish cakes. My husband makes the best fish cakes. DH: Do you have a favourite saying from Newfoundland and Labrador? VT: You know what I enjoy when I come back? I enjoy when I get into the taxi at the airport and the taxi driver says, “Okay my ducky, where are you going?” So when I hear “my ducky,” I know I’m home. DH: Do you have a favourite Newfoundland and Labrador musician? VT: Well, Alan Doyle. Everybody 42
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loves Alan Doyle, right? The Ennis Sisters, that’s a group that I really enjoy, too.
DH: If you had to write one today, what would be the title of your autobiography? VT: (Laughs) Boy oh boy (pause). I think I’ve lived “The Canadian Dream.” My dad was a miner, my grandfathers were both coal miners, and they had a hard, hard life, like a tough life. And when I look at where my life has come, and how much I’ve experienced in life, and how, you know, coming from a mining family where university was not part of the history of my family, I would say that I’m truly an example of the Canadian dream.
DH: What’s your favourite thing to do to relieve stress? VT: …I love, love, love to read. When I get into a book, I disappear. And that’s partly from growing up in Labrador, where every Wednesday night, my parents made us go to the public library… For Christmas, my parents didn’t have much, but we got the classics and we got book series all the time… So even to this day, if we’re all together, my brothers and sisters, it would not be uncommon to see all six of us reading a book in a corner somewhere. So the love of reading relieves my stress. And getting out and going for a run. I’m not a fast runner. My husband says he’s never seen someone run so hard and go nowhere (laughs). But it doesn’t matter to me. I don’t run for competition, I run for stress relief and just to be out there and just breathing. I really enjoy that. 1-888-588-6353
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DH: Is this the first time your husband and children have spent time in the province, and if so, what do you hope they get from the experience?
VT: My husband has been here many times. He worked, in the 1970s, at the Gander Airport. He was military police with the Air Force. So he was stationed in Gander for a while. And he’s a wannabe Newfoundlander. He loves it here, he loves this province. But for… my youngest daughter, it is her first time here... she ended up coming here with me to Newfoundland, where she has to self-isolate at 27 years old and where she knows no one. After she finished self-isolating she went out running and exploring, and she loves it here. She can’t get over how beautiful it is. So in a very difficult situation, she’s made the best of it, and I’m pretty proud of her for that.
Dr. Vianne Timmons and her daughter Nancy skiing at Kicking Horse, BC, during Christmas 2015. It’s easy to be a leader in good times. It’s when things are tough that true character comes out. And my kids have taught me that also, that when things get tough, that’s when you need to dig deep.
DH: There’s so much going on in DH: What’s one of the biggest lessons that your kids or grandkids have taught you?
VT: Oh my kids have taught me a ton of things. My two youngest children are very, very environmentally and socially conscious, and they definitely have taught me that I need to pay attention to that. Our generation, we didn’t grow up with the same focus. And they have been pretty amazing in terms of educating me to be open and accepting of different people and different views. And so I think that they taught me a tremendous amount. I think the biggest lesson that I tried to give my kids is that it’s easy to have dignity and to be positive when things are going well. www.downhomelife.com
the world right now. What helps you stay positive through it all?
VT: What keeps me positive right now is my daughter’s attitude. Her life has been turned upside down: she doesn’t have a job, she doesn’t know where she’s gonna be. And so many young people are like her, and yet they’re resilient and positive… And I’m proud to be Canadian at this time, because I look to south of the border where people are not handling it as well. I think more than anything right now, during this period, I’m very, very proud to be Canadian. Ed note: This interview has been edited for length. July 2020
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features
In their really remote homes, social distancing is part of everyday life for these two couples. BY ASHLEY MILLER
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THIS SPRING, as Canadians struggled to
adjust to public health measures put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19, Chris and Melissa Battiste, and Mike and Georgina Parsons were enjoying life as usual. Downhome first introduced you to both couples last fall as they embarked on remote, off-grid living (“Yurt Life,” Nov. 2019, and “Keeping a Light On,” Dec. 2019). Recently we caught up with them to learn about the challenges they’ve faced so far, how they weathered the winter and what it’s been like watching a global pandemic unfold from afar.
A YEAR IN A YURT
Each day for the past year, Chris and Melissa Battiste have had a decision to make: Where will they enjoy their cup of tea? “We can go to the top of the mountain, we can go to the base of the mountain, we can go up the brook, and we got two waterfalls we can visit,” beams Chris over the phone from the couple’s cozy yurt located deep in the woods of the Codroy Valley. The couple moved into the circular dwelling last summer, after purging just about all their belongings in order to fit into their unconventional, off-grid home. They did it all in the name of living simpler, more meaningful lives following a devastating car crash that left Chris with a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Now, after a year without basic amenities like electricity and indoor plumbing, they’re still loving their pared-down lifestyle. While their lives might be simpler, they’re still busy. The pair accomplished a lot over the www.downhomelife.com
Chris, Melissa and their dog, Baloo, pose in front of a waterfall they recently discovered during one of their many wilderness walks. July 2020
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Over the winter the Battistes added a porch (the entrance to which can be seen to the right) and kitchen to the interior of their humble home.
winter. Trained cabinetmaker Melissa built a porch and a full kitchen (including cupboards, a propane stove and a sink that empties into a bucket) inside the yurt. One addition, though, was born out of necessity rather than comfort or design. “The wind has been the most terrible so far,” says Chris, adding they’ve experienced gusts up to 160 kilometres per hour – strong enough to set their hammock beds bobbing up and down at night. The installation of a metal pole through the centre of the yurt solved that problem. Besides the Wreckhouse winds, wintry weather kept them afoot, literally. Following each snowfall, Chris and Melissa worked to maintain paths to all the essentials: their outhouse, the nearby brook where they fetch water etc. – but they didn’t use shovels or snow blowers. “We’ve learned to put snowshoes on, beat it down, and over the winter 46
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In addition to gardening and construction projects, Melissa is a talented crafter. She spends countless hours quilting, sewing and knitting. 1-888-588-6353
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Melissa has big plans for her garden.
our paths just kept getting higher and higher,” says Chris. They transported firewood on their own steam, too. “We have a big sled each, and we pull it ourselves,” says Melissa. Spring brought its own challenge. A sudden snowmelt washed away their bridge, part of a long, winding path to the main road. Others might have felt stranded, but Chris insists it just left him feeling lucky to be “stuck” on the same side of the water as his wife and the home they dearly love. Having thrived in all seasons, Chris and Melissa continue to forge ahead on an ambitious five-year plan towards full independence. Their major goal this summer involves ramping up food production. In their 24 x 16-foot garden, Melissa plans to www.downhomelife.com
grow everything from peas and peppers to lettuce, kale, tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus and all the root veggies they can suffer. She has dreams of building an outdoor kitchen complete with a bread oven, and would like to construct a solar dehydrator (allowing them to preserve fresh-picked fruit). They do admit to “cheating” on one aspect of yurt life, however: laundry. They make the trek to their house and use a modern washer and dryer for this chore – but not for much longer. They’ll eventually construct a bathhouse, complete with a tub and space for off-grid laundering, near their yurt. “Eventually it will be all over here and we won’t have anything to do with the house,” says Chris, adding they’ll consider renting or selling their former home (located on the same 10-acre property as the yurt) when the time is right. Looking back over the ups and downs of the last year, they have no regrets. Watching the world scramble to cope with a global pandemic only reinforces their faith in the selfreliant lifestyle they’ve chosen. “That really cements for us that we made the right call,” says Chris, who says they feel extremely safe in their big wilderness bubble. Then again, they aren’t ones to worry. “We both have our medical issues. Melissa has lupus; I have TBI, which comes with seizures. So we full well know that something could happen. But we don’t live life by worrying about what could happen,” says Chris. Instead, they’ll continue living each day to the fullest. “No matter what, we will be fine,” says Chris, confidently. “Bring it on!” July 2020
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Georgina and Mike spent all winter alone and off the grid in newly resettled Little Bay Islands.
Still Loving Little Bay Islands
Last New Year’s Eve, people around the world tuned in on Facebook to watch Mike and Georgina Parsons’ live video of the MV Hazel McIsaac’s final call at Little Bay Islands, the Notre Dame Bay community that voted to resettle last year. For the lone couple committed to staying on sans government services, it was an emotional scene. “When the ferry went out and all that was over, we just stood on the dock, myself and Georgina, and we didn’t say anything. We just held each other for the longest time,” says Mike, who grew up in the remote island community. Leading up to that final castoff, they’d spent months preparing for life without the electrical grid, plowed roads and ferry service – and all that planning paid off. Their solar power system served them well through the winter, only requiring use of a back-up generator on a handful of occasions. Using their 48
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snowmobile, they forged paths where once there were plowed streets. And while they had their own boats at the ready to take them to “mainland” Newfoundland, they rarely made the trek across the bay. Georgina left to spend a night with friends on only a few occasions. “I literally emailed Mike at daylight and said, ‘Ok, I’m ready to come home,’” she says. (After ferrying his wife to the wharf in Miles Cove, a 20minute boat ride, Mike would beat it back to the island.) The couple estimates they’d stockpiled more than a year’s worth of food, so they didn’t even come close to running out of supplies – nor were they low on activities to keep them busy. They spent the winter exploring on snowshoes and skis, gathering fresh eggs from their chickens, and enjoying the solitude they both yearn. Mike’s also been labouring on one project he’s particularly excited about: a cliff-side retreat. “I’ve taken advantage of the shape of the cliff to actually build the cabin 1-888-588-6353
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into it,” says Mike. Located at Lighthouse Hill, once the main navigational point for the bay, it’s long been one of his favourite spots and boasts a view second to none in this province, he says. “Even though it’ll be mine in the sense that I built it, it’ll be there for anybody to use,” he adds. While they certainly soaked in the
Mike has kept busy building a cliff-side cabin. Located on Lighthouse Hill, it’s one of his favourite places to watch whales.
solitude during what was a very quiet winter, by spring Mike and Georgina were anticipating the return of many former neighbours. Though things may not be quite the same. “It will be unusual for us to scream ‘hello’ from a distance,” says Georgina, referencing COVID-19’s influence on the world. Mike adds, “We’ve been so far removed from it because we’re kind of in our own little bubble… obviously we’re concerned about it from our families’ and friends’ perspective, but it really hasn’t changed our lives in any way.” www.downhomelife.com
For the many folks struggling with social distancing and boredom, these experts in solitude have some advice. “Very rarely in your life do you get an extended period of time like this where you have time on your hands. Use it to work on yourself. Do something that you wouldn’t normally have time to do,” says Mike. He adds, “You can’t overestimate the importance of vitamin D, even if it’s just to walk around your block a few times. Just get outdoors.” They certainly live those words of wisdom. Mike wakes at 4:00 each morning and heads out for the first of several walks, regardless of the weather. “I never miss a morning walk, I never miss a sunrise,” he says. Particularly in the immediate wake of the community’s closure, there was a sense of sadness during his treks through the empty town. “Especially when I passed my parents’ house,” says Mike, whose mother and father moved reluctantly to nearby Springdale. “Every house I could tell a story about.” Speaking to them in late April, they were looking forward to summer. Georgina loves boating in the hot sun; Mike is eager for his parents’ return, to enjoy his mother’s cooking and to fish with his father. But no matter the season, the pair feels truly blessed. “I just love it,” says Mike. “I’m living out my dream, which is what very few people get to do.” July 2020
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Wildlife expert Todd Hollett helps us identify the ducks, and a goose, you might meet in Newfoundland and Labrador. 50
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Northern Pintail Anas acuta This freshwater dabbling duck is found in marshes and open areas with ponds and lakes. Pintails are among the earliest ducks to arrive on their breeding grounds in spring, showing up as soon as the ice clears.
Voice Males make a wheezy two-toned whistle, and the female makes a low kuk.
Distinguishing Characteristics Males have a chocolate brown head with a black-brown nape, and white on the underparts and breast that extends up the sides of the neck. Upperparts are grey with black scapulars, and green to bronze purple speculum with a reddish-brown bar. The tail is white and has long, pointed, blackcentre feathers. The bill and legs are slate-blue. The eclipse male is paler overall with shorter tail feathers. Females have a pale brown head with a reddish-brown crown with dark streaks. Upperparts are dark brown with buff grey markings, and wings have a dull brown or green patch. The bill is dark and mottled. Good Place to See Them Bowring Park in St. John’s.
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Todd Hollett photo
Todd Hollett photo
Canada Goose
Green-winged Teal
Native to North America, Canada geese live in barrens and marshes among abundant berries and plants for food. They also inhabit lakes, streams, bays, riversides and coastal estuaries. They are extremely successful at living in human-altered habitat and have established breeding colonies in urban areas and cultivated fields. In 2000, the North American population of Canada geese was estimated at 4-5 million.
They’re usually found in river deltas and forest wetlands, but during migration season, look for teals near the coast. These small ducks are a popular game bird for hunters and are frequently associated with black ducks and domestic mallards.
Branta canadensis
Voice Canada geese emit a deep musical honk-a-lonk.
Distinguishing Characteristics They have a black head and neck with a distinctive white “chin strap” that stretches from ear to ear. The body is brown or greyish-brown, while the bill, feet and legs are black. In flight, notice the large dark wings, white Ushaped rump band, white undertail and long, outstretched neck. Flocks of geese migrate in V-formation, making loud honking noises.
Good Places to See Them The Clarenville Canada Goose Sanctuary, Frenchman’s Cove Barasway on the Burin Peninsula, and Salmonier Nature Park.
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Anas crecca
Voice Males have a short, clear whistle or peep; females emit a crisp quack. In flight, they sometimes chirp.
Distinguishing Characteristics Males are chestnut brown on the head and upper neck with a wide glossy green stripe running from eye to nape. The chin is black. The upperparts are greyish-brown with fine black lines, and a white stripe separates the grey breast and sides. The wings are grey with bright green or black speculum, with a tan leading edge and white trailing edge. The undertail is black with two yellow triangles. The bill is black, and the legs are bluish-grey with black feet webs. Females are mottled brown with darker brown on the forewing. The chin and belly are white, and the bill is grey or olive.
Good Places to See Them Mundy Pond and Bowering Park in St. John’s; shallow roadside ponds at Goobies; Salt Pond and Jane’s Pond trails on the Burin Peninsula. 1-888-588-6353
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Alvin Buckley photo
Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris The ring-necked duck prefers shallow freshwater wetlands with stable water levels and lots of aquatic plants, as well as marshy ponds in boggy or wooded areas. It resembles greater and lesser scaups, as well as the tufted duck.
Voice Males make a low-pitched chirp; females give a high-pitched growl or burr. Distinguishing Characteristics Male upperparts are black with a
purple, green or blue sheen on the head, a white eye ring and a small, white chin patch. Its narrow, cinnamon collar is hard to see in the field. Underparts are pale grey or white and extend in front of wings. The bill is slate blue with a white or blue band and a white base. Females are greyish-brown overall with a darker crown and nape, while the face and throat are paler. They have a thin, white eye ring with a line extending back. The upper belly is pale grey and the side and lower section are greyish-brown. The bill is dark grey with a pale tip.
Good Places to See Them Ring-necked ducks can be seen in most areas of Newfoundland where suitable habitat exists.
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American Widgeon Mareca americana Also called bald pate, this common duck was recently established as a breeder on the East Coast of Canada. Widgeons forage in fields, marshes and shallow freshwater wetlands. In the past Widgeons were seen mainly in winter in NL; however, their numbers have been increasing in the eastern provinces since the 1950s.
Voice They have a variety of calls. Males whistle – whee-wheewhew – and females make elongated, quack-qua-ack sounds. Distinguishing Characteristics Males have a conspicuous white
forehead and cap. The sides of the head are iridescent green. The cream-coloured cheeks and upper neck have fine black bars and the undertail coverts are black. The body is pinkish brown with a white belly. The wings have a white patch and a dark green speculum with a black border. The bluish-grey bill has a dark tip. Females are greyish-brown barred with buff overall, with a brown, cream-streaked head.
Good Places to See Them The Codroy Valley on the west coast, Quidi Vidi Lake and Bowring Park in St. John’s, and Salt Pond walking trail on the Burin Peninsula.
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American Black Duck
Mallard
Anas rubripes
Mallards are often found in flocks on or near freshwater in urban areas, where they eagerly take food from humans. They also inhabit wetlands, ponds and rivers in farmland, forested areas and parks.
The American black duck inhabits freshwater ponds, salt or freshwater marshes, and coastal islands and meadows. They prefer rapid streams entering ponds, where eelgrass and other plants are abundant, and hang out in saltwater areas in winter. American black ducks often associate with, and will crossbreed with, both domestic and wild mallards. In fact mallards are replacing black ducks in some areas due to frequent hybridization.
Voice It emits two kinds of quacks; the female’s is loud, while the male’s is lower and shorter. Distinguishing Characteristics Males are black-brown overall, with lighter U-shaped feather edges on the breast. Their head and neck are pale grey with fine streaks; the crown and nape are darker with a dark eye stripe. The wings are darker brown with a bluishpurple speculum with black border, while the underwings are white. The feet and legs are reddish-orange and the bill is yellowish-green. Females resemble the male, but are paler with an olive-green bill with dark markings. Good Places to See Them They can be observed on most water bodies throughout the province. www.downhomelife.com
Anas platyrhynchos
Voice Males have distinctive loud quacks. Females make softer rhabrhab or kwek sounds. Distinguishing Characteristics Males have a glossy green head, thin white neck ring and reddish-brown breast. The body and wings are brownish to light grey with iridescent violet-blue speculum bordered by black and white stripes. Rump and undertail coverts are black. The outer tail feathers are white, and inner feathers are black and curve upward. The bill is yellow, and the feet and legs are reddish-orange. Females have a pale brown head with darker brown or black streaks and a dark eye line. The body is brown overall with grey, buff, white and black mottling that is lighter on the underparts and tail. The feet are orange, and the bill is orange with large dark blotches. Good Places to See Them Mallards are relatively easy to find overwintering in St. John’s. The domesticated variety are common in most areas of the province, particularly where they are fed by people. July 2020
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Tufted Duck
Tina O’Rourke photo
Aythya fuligula
This is an uncommon visitor to Newfoundland, sometimes spotted in St. John’s during the fall and winter, although there are occasional summer records. It breeds in temperate and Northern Eurasia. The tufted duck was first reported in Newfoundland in October 1986, with sightings increasing dramatically in the early 2000s. It associates with mallards and other diving duck species in the city. Its natural habitat includes ponds, rivers and bays, often sharing the space with ring-necked ducks and especially scaup.
Voice Males have a harsh, growling karrrr call; females are mostly silent but may make whistles, a simple wit-ooo, during courtship. Distinguishing Characteristics In males, the head is rounded with a distinctive thin crest on the back. They are all black except for white flanks, a bluish-grey bill and golden yellow eyes. Females are brown with paler flanks and are easily confused with other diving ducks. The head crest is much smaller.
Good Place to See Them Bowring
Park in St. John’s.
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Greater Scaup Aythya marila
In the breeding season, these ducks are found mainly on the Southern Avalon, but are also commonly seen on the west coast and the Burin Peninsula. They prefer calm freshwater bodies, though in winter they move into saltwater bays, inlets, estuaries and coves. These birds are ungainly on land, as their legs are set far back on their body, so they reluctantly come ashore.
Voice Its quack sounds like its name:
scaup, scaup. Males also make soft whistles: weeeek-weeeek, wheew. Females emit soft, low growls and burrs.
Distinguishing Characteristics Males
are black on the back, wings and tail, while their sides and belly are white. An elongated white patch is very noticeable on the trailing edge and underneath the wing. Their head is glossy green, and their dull blue bill has a black tip. The legs and feet are dark grey. Females are dark brown overall with a distinctive white patch around the bill base. Like the males, they have an elongated white wing patch and belly, dark grey legs and a dull bluish-grey bill with a black tip.
Good Places to See Them Bowring Park and Mundy Pond in St. John’s. In winter, they are seen in many bays and coves around Newfoundland. 1-888-588-6353
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Long-tailed Duck Clangula hyemalis Once known as the oldsquaw, this duck’s European common name, “long-tailed,” comes from the male’s two long, slim tail feathers – but its Latin name means “noisy winter duck.” In winter, the longtailed duck frequents ice-free waters around Newfoundland. They usually stay offshore, though they may be seen in bays, particularly during rough weather. This is a deep-diving sea duck that has been known to become entangled in fishing nets set at depths of 60 metres or more while trying to capture their main food of shrimp, fish, mollusks and other marine invertebrates.
Voice They make a variety of sounds: distinctive nasal squawks, howls and brays.
Distinguishing Characteristics The male’s head is white with black on the back of the neck and a grey patch around the eye. There are black bands on the breast, and the upperparts are black with light grey or white on the flanks and belly. The black wings have long, grey scapulars. The distinctive long, pointed, central tail feathers are black. The bill is grey with light pinkish or yellowish-orange colouration near the tip. Males become mostly dark, with pale facial patch and bicoloured scapulars, by late spring; during a second moult, the crown turns paler and shorter, the scapulars become edged with buff and a white patch around the eye, and brown breast streaking and white sides become more noticeable. Females are dark brown overall with a white belly, face and neck, and light grey around the eyes. The tail is pointed, but does not have the long central tail feathers.
Good Places to See Them It is best to look for these waterfowl at Cape Spear (St. John’s), Cape St. Mary’s (Cape Shore), Cape Race (Irish Loop) and Tide’s Point (Burin).
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In the painted rock movement, the fun is in the find. By Jenn Thornhill Verma
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Bill Short was out for a walk with his dog last summer
when he spotted a painted rock along Tipping’s Pond Trail, a two-kilometre loop at the top of Massey Drive in western Newfoundland. As he continued along, he spotted another painted rock and then another, eventually finding a half-dozen that day. Painted in various colours with no particular design or pattern, Bill figures the rock paintings were the work of children. But he’d quickly learn the hobby was more than child’s play. He flipped over one of his finds, revealing the name of the NL Rock Art public group on Facebook. “I didn’t know it was a thing,” Bill says of rock painting and hiding. The NL Rock Art group has nearly 39,000 members. Its primary goal is to post pictures of rocks that members paint and/or find, tagging them with the hashtag #NLRockArt. This social group is as much about linking members to new trails as it is about the rocks themselves. Their rock photo inventory dates back to August 2017, when the group started on the island’s east coast, in Paradise. It was summer of 2019 when Bill decided to get involved. “I wanted to add a few [rocks] to the walking trails and add to the experience for other people as well,” he says. Born and raised on the west coast in Corner Brook, Bill visited nearby Brake’s Cove to gather smooth, flat rocks. His initial designs were motivated by the shape of the rocks he collected. One he painted to look like a baseball, another like the cartoon character, SpongeBob SquarePants. “It was just something to put on the trail,” Bill says modestly. But soon he had moved on from painting one-off pieces to entire collections. After he’d painted one to look like a Kinder Bueno chocolate bar, he wound up designing an entire set: Mars, www.downhomelife.com
Mirage, Aero, Big Turk, Coffee Crisp, Crispy Crunch, Smarties and more. In the year since, Bill has painted upwards of 400 rocks and gained a legion of fans. Though he hesitates to describe himself as an “artist.”
By day, he works as a counsellor at a group home for young offenders in Corner Brook. Painting provides him a means to “express a creative side, pass time, get exercise by hiding and finding rocks, and see the happiness on people’s faces when they post that they found one of [my] rocks.” These days, his work has become more elaborate, with pieces ranging from cartoon characters such as Care Bears, Garfield, Scooby-Doo and July 2020
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Peanuts’ Charlie Brown, to realistic scenes like the Rose Blanche lighthouse, beached dories against a backdrop of fishing sheds, and St. John’s row houses. Among the works he’s received the most attention for are his collection of quintessential Newfoundlandia food items: Carnation Evaporated Milk, Fraser Farms Gravy and Meatballs, Hawkins Cheezies, Maple Leaf Vienna Sausage, Zest Sweet Mustard Pickles,
Brown piece, Heinz Ketchup, Mr. Noodles and Hawkins Cheezies. “That was super flattering,” says Bill, “because we listen to [Snook’s] Christmas [album] every year when decorating the Christmas tree, my nephew and I. That was a rush.” Nowadays, Bill hides about half of what he paints, saving those that took the greatest amount of time and effort for his own personal collection. However, he is willing to part with
Some of Bill Short’s Purity inspired rock creations
and Purity Jam Jams, Cream Crackers and Lemon Cream Biscuits. Maple Leaf Foods picked up on his social media posts and even sent Bill coupons for their products along with a note: “Thank you for sharing your ‘stone’ cold awesome artwork with us. We think you ‘rock’!” Bill is especially chuffed he’s found a fan in Pete Soucy, Newfoundland comedian and actor with a long list of TV, film and comedy credits to his name, but most popularly known locally for his alter-ego, Snook. Soucy reached out to Bill via Twitter to inquire about a few of his favourite pieces for purchase. Although Bill is not open for business yet, he’s happy to negotiate sales one-to-one. Soucy took home four pieces: a Charlie 60
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his most treasured painted rocks. Fans may connect with him directly via his Facebook (Bay of Islands Rock Art Group), Twitter (@cbnl84) or Instagram (@hirudooo) accounts.
The pursuit of rock painting For those interested in purchasing a customized piece of The Rock, professional rock artist Diane Budden is the one to call. Diane lives in Conception Bay South and is originally from Fogo Island. Her husband jokes that Diane “used to carve Christmas trees out of rocks” (a cheeky reference to the windswept landscape of the Town of Fogo). “I’ve painted rocks from the time that I could pick up a rock and paint it,” she says. The inspiration for her 1-888-588-6353
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Diane Budden uses cutting and gluing techniques to create traditonal Newfoundland shapes with rocks.
artwork largely comes from a 1996 book by Lin Wellford, Painting Houses, Cottages and Towns on Rocks. But Diane’s NL rock artistry has set itself apart with its broad array of designs, mostly iconic structures such as saltbox houses, row houses, lighthouses, churches and outhouses. More recently – and in an effort to appease her broad fanbase – Diane has begun creating village structures such as a general store, bakery, fire and police stations, post office, town hall and even a hospital (a particularly popular item during the coronavirus pandemic). This professionally trained artist/ entrepreneur has been perfecting her craft since 2001. She’s even mastered techniques to cut and adhere rocks, allowing customized features such as an added porch or chimney. Last year, Diane created and distributed 1,200 painted rocks, which retail for anywhere from $40 for wholesale items to as much as $200 for commissioned works. In summer, her work usually features in gift shops across the province from St. LunaireGriquet on the tip of the Northern Peninsula to St. John’s on the Avalon Peninsula. In winter, she joins the craft fair circuit. This year, the www.downhomelife.com
pandemic has hampered Diane’s business plans, with retailers reducing and cancelling their usual summer orders. It’s a tough blow, but she pivoted quickly, launching a retail website (Dianebuddenrocks.com) in April. She’s also on Facebook as Diane Budden’s Newfoundland Collectibles. The pandemic has influenced Bill Short’s practice, too, in that it prompted him to create a COVID-19 collection, complete with Cashmere toilet paper, Lysol disinfectant wipes and a portrait of a masked nurse. Recently, a curator from The Rooms provincial museum and archives contacted Bill to enquire about including his collection in an upcoming pandemic exhibit. Plans are not yet formalized, but Bill is flattered by the recognition. For both Diane and Bill, rock is their preferred medium. The shapes of the rocks require creative ingenuity, inspiring their designs. Both enjoy the thrill of the find – spotting the perfect rock to transform into a beloved character or structure. For Bill, hiding painted rocks is every bit as important since it literally connects people from different walks of life. July 2020
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explore
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My daughter was six years old
the first time we overloaded our pick-up truck and headed out on a family camping trip. There was no plan, no set-instone destinations. We had a tent, a desire to visit places we had never seen before, and our fingers crossed the weather would cooperate at least 80 per cent of the time. Fourteen years and several adventures later, that camping trip across Newfoundland and Labrador is still my favourite family vacation. We spent two weeks wandering from community to community, park to park, picnic table to picnic table. Near Twillingate we watched an iceberg roll over, crashing into the sea with a tremendous roar. We chased whales, running along shorelines, following the blow of several humpbacks. We visited museums and toured the Random Passage film site. We participated in the Trinity Pageant and became Vikings at the Norstead Viking Village at L’Anse aux Meadows. The weather was postcard perfect. In 10 days, we felt not one drop of rain. Fast forward to summer 2019. Feeling nostalgic, my Significant Other and I overpacked our SUV and headed out on a camping/hiking staycation. Our daughter, now 20, declined to travel with us. We wandered from west to east. That first night, at King’s Point, it was 10°C. I slept in a wool hat and three layers of clothing, one quilt inside my sleeping bag and one outside. The next day, it was 20°C. Such is the weather in Newfoundland and Labrador. www.downhomelife.com
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Quality Family Time
Terri Donohue and her family of four have been camping since 2006, starting out in a tent and graduating to a travel trailer. Her oldest daughter, Shawna Marie Stuckless, slept in a tent before her first birthday. “I always loved the outdoors and camping, the family time, and the memories that are created. I wanted my children to have that experience,” Terri says. “I wanted to introduce an outdoor and active lifestyle at a young age, so they would hopefully love and enjoy it. “Spending time together makes a great family camping trip,” the Corner Brook resident adds. “We take a little more time to connect with each other when we are camping. Life is busy and hectic, but when camping it seems everyone slows down and relaxes.” “Hiking, swimming, running and riding bike, or doing anything you 64
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enjoy as a family makes for a great trip,” Shawna-Marie, 13, agrees. “Be careful at whatever activity you are enjoying,” Terri advises. “Teach children fire, water, road and stranger safety. Wear the right clothing and safety equipment for the activity, such as helmets, hiking footwear and lifejackets. We keep first-aid kits in our backpacks if something does happen.” A Band-Aid wouldn’t have saved them one night, though, when they almost lost their shelter in the middle of the night. “One story we often tell is the time we tented, and our friends were in a small travel trailer,” Terri says. “The rain and wind picked up overnight. 1-888-588-6353
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Our tent poles started cracking. We had to take down our tent quickly, run into the trailer and get creative with the sleeping arrangements. We had such a laugh and made the best of our weekend. “We don’t let rainy days slow us down,” she adds. “We always ensure we have our rain gear, and we often hike and bike in the rain. Rainy days are also good for curling up with a book, playing card and board games, and exploring the area, museums, craft and coffee shops.” So, what are the ingredients for a memorable camping trip? “Nice weather, activities, family, and friends,” says Olivia, 11. “My favourite memory is playing spotlight at night with a bunch of kids.” “My favourite camping memory is when my family and friends were going to Fogo and we had to spend the night at the ferry terminal in our vehicles,” says Shawna-Marie. “We made a bed in the back of the van, which was uncomfortable. We had to get ready in the morning without a sink to brush our teeth or wash our faces, but it was such a cool experience.” “I’ve lived in Newfoundland my entire life, but last summer was my first trip to Burgeo,” Terri adds. “I loved this trip because my girls are older and still enjoy camping. We worked together to pack for the trip, load the vehicle and set up our site. We slept in a small, four-person tent. We had so much fun exploring the beautiful beaches and spending quality time together as a family and with our friends. It was a trip I will never forget.” www.downhomelife.com
Eleven-year-old Olivia Stuckless suggests rainy days are made for colouring, crafting and watching movies. Here are some other suggestions for keeping busy: Inside • Read aloud to each other • Make up stories to tell each other • Make shadow puppets • Dance • Play a guitar or other instrument • Play on electronic devices Outside • Skipping stones • Fishing • Swimming (with a life preserver) • Boating |canoeing | kayaking (with PFD) • Water sports • Water balloon fight • Play Tag, Red Rover or Hide and Seek • Bike riding • Hiking • Animal watching • Bug collecting • Collecting pinecones, rocks, flowers etc. • Berry picking • Scavenger hunt • Find shapes in the clouds • Stargaze • Sing campfire songs • Play a guitar or other instrument • Bring an inflatable wading pool and fill it with water July 2020
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Don’t forget the food
You need to be food smart when you’re camping, where you likely don’t have access to refrigerators and freezers, or all the kitchen aids you’re used to. You have to keep your family fed while keeping the food safe to eat. Planning meals and snacks is the best way to make sure your family is well fed. Some, but not all, parks and campgrounds have grocery stores and other shops that sell food and other necessities. Think about how much food you will need to feed all your campers. Make a list and purchase food beforehand. Consider starting meals at home – pre-cutting vegetables, or preparing a pasta sauce in advance – to cut down prep time at the campsite. Bring pre-packaged meals and nonperishables, such as canned foods, that are easily stored. Healthy breakfasts and lunches do not always need to be heated. Cheese and crackers, bagels, fruit, cereal, pita and hummus, fresh veggies and sandwiches make great meals. Cook outside at home with your camp stove to become more familiar with your stove and cooking meals outdoors. Never use a camp stove 66
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inside a tent, trailer or other enclosed space. If it’s raining, many campgrounds have kitchen shelters. Bring just what you need – put condiments in smaller, reusable containers, for example. The same can be done with large cereal boxes, pasta packages, pancake mix etc. Store food and liquid in plastic containers rather than glass. Plastic is generally lighter than glass and does not shatter if dropped. Use a large plastic bin to carry food that does not need to go in the cooler. This will make it easy to store food and keep it out of reach of wildlife. Meals with ingredients such as milk and meat should be eaten earlier in the trip. Where possible, freeze foods before you leave home; they will last longer in a cooler and then can be eaten later in the trip. Drinking lots of water is important, especially on hot, sunny days, to avoid dehydration. Only drink water from reliable sources. Water in streams, rivers and lakes may look good enough to drink; however, it may contain harmful bacteria or parasites. 1-888-588-6353
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Always respect the natural environment and other campers. Take your garbage home with you or dispose of it in designated sites at the campground. Leave your campsite clean and ready for the next person to enjoy. Don’t forget to book campsites ahead of time to avoid disappointment. Treats around the campfire are a big part of camping. Oliva and Shawna-Marie share their favourite camping recipes:
Shawna-Marie’s Cinnamon Apples An apple Cinnamon Sugar Yogurt (if desired) Also necessary: A fire Roasting stick Take the cinnamon and sugar and mix together to make cinnamon sugar. Take a roasting stick and stick it into your apple, then place it over a fire until cooked to your liking. Cut up your apple and shake your cinnamon onto your apple slices. Add the apples to your yogurt (optional). Enjoy.
www.downhomelife.com
Olivia’s S’More Wraps Tortilla wraps Nutella Mini-marshmallows Milk chocolate chips Tinfoil Put tinfoil on a plate. Put your wrap on tinfoil. Spread Nutella on wrap. Add chocolate chips. Add mini-marshmallows. Fold your wrap and tinfoil. Roast your s’more wrap on the fire until golden brown. Unfold and enjoy.
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explore
How communities and tourism businesses are adjusting to life with COVID-19 By Katherine Saunders
The view from Lodge’s Loft in Catalina 68
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In the community of Catalina,
two homes are nestled side-by-side along the coast. One, a new three-storey structure with all the modern amenities you could want. The other, a smaller historic building with a marvelous view of the ocean. These homes are owned and operated by mother and daughter Brenda and Julie Lodge as vacation rentals. The Lodges were looking forward to a busy summer of bookings, but their plans came to a standstill in March when the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a staggering halt. www.downhomelife.com
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After mass cancellations due to Covid-19 travel restrictions, Brenda Lodge (right), owner of Catalina Home With A View, is still optimistic for the summer. Brenda’s B&B is called Catalina Home With A View. The house was built more than 100 years ago for the widow of Walter Pierce, who died in the Sealing Disaster of 1914. Mrs. Pierce was pregnant at the time with her first child, and her neighbours built her the home on her grandmother’s land. Brenda bought the property 30 years ago and turned it into a bed and breakfast in 2018. At the start of 2020, Brenda was preparing her B&B for its third season. “I actually had returning guests for this summer and had over 80 nights booked before the travel restrictions,” she tells Downhome in an interview in May. The public health state of emergency came into effect in March, throwing all her plans – and her guests’ plans – up in the air. “I sent my guests messages about the current travel restrictions, and guests for May and June have 70
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cancelled, most for July and some for August,” she laments. Julie Lodge, Brenda’s daughter, had been working in Fort McMurray, AB, when the wildfire broke out in 2017. She was pregnant at the time and escaped the fire with a car full of possessions, including her son’s gerbil, Thunder. She returned to Catalina for what was supposed to be a temporary visit while she got back on her feet. During that time, she got the idea to build a house next to her mother’s and run her own vacation home, Lodge’s Loft. “I built it with the vision of being a little more executive, upscale, type of accommodation for people in the 1-888-588-6353
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area,” she explains. The vacation home has five bedrooms and can accommodate up to 10 visitors. There is a built-in playhouse on the bottom floor, and ducks and chickens outside. She describes the house as “over the top, a bit crazy. I built this because when people walk in, I want them to feel good, to be wowed.”
Julie Lodge, owner of Lodge’s Loft, is seeing a surge of bookings from local residents seeking a staycation. www.downhomelife.com
This summer was to be Julie’s first full season. She already had 80 nights booked when the travel ban came into effect. Sheila Fitzgerald, president of Municipalities NL, can sympathize with the struggles and uncertainty the Lodges are facing. “Communities all around are concerned, from a
financial stability perspective,” Fitzgerald says. Municipalities NL (MNL) is a non-government organization that advocates for the interests of incorporated municipalities within the province at both the provincial and national levels. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ve been helping their members navigate the new restrictions and plan for the economic impact. One of the biggest concerns, particularly in rural communities like Catalina, is the impact on the tourism industry. “A lot of these small towns survive because of small businesses and tourism in their areas,” Fitzgerald explains. Because of the restrictions on visitors to the province, as well as travel bans in other parts of the July 2020
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world, communities will not see the usual influx of visitors from cruise ships, tour buses and road trippers. In late May the province announced a $25-million grant for the tourism and hospitality sector, to help offset coronavirus-related financial difficulties that some small businesses are facing. Fitzgerald says, “[This is] an important step toward helping operators at this time.” However, there is still a lot of uncertainty about what the year will bring, and some businesses are preparing for the worst.
received confirmation that hotels, inns and B&Bs can operate. Still, Julie has met with criticism from people who do not want her to bring outsiders to the community. Fitzgerald reports that MNL has received questions from members about the application of the restrictions, and MNL has been doing their best to provide clarification. She explains that while municipalities themselves are not policing authorities and do not have the power to enforce regulations, they still need to
“My advice to the people of this province is, go out and enjoy your summer! We live in an area where there is so much open space, and so many different landscapes. Go explore! Have fun!” Sheila Fitzgerald, president of Municipalities NL “Last year, when my business was late opening, I had to incur my first full year of business fees in the winter on my own. It was a rough winter,” Julie recalls. “The thought of not being able to be open this year was… a hard thought to have.” And as Fitzgerald explained, it’s not just owners of accommodations who are impacted. Take-outs, convenience stores and gift shops are also facing the unknown this summer, and most will not know the full impact of the pandemic until next tax season. In addition to financial woes, businesses and communities have been dealing with confusion over the provincial restrictions. Julie received a message from a person in her area warning she could be fined for operating her B&B. Julie knew this to be untrue, but she double-checked with the provincial government and 72
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follow all guidelines and provide the correct information to business owners. As restrictions are eased, some municipalities are nervous about opening. Fitzgerald says her members generally have faith in the provincial regulations, but they do not know what to expect over the summer months, as the alert levels have not been completely defined. “As time goes on and the new regulations start to unfold, there are more and more questions,” she says. “And I don’t know that all levels of government really know what all the answers are because I think they’re figuring it out as they go.”
Welcome Staycation With all the chaos and uncertainty, there has been a glimmer of hope for communities and businesses, and that is the fact that Newfoundlanders 1-888-588-6353
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and Labradorians are embracing the “staycation” – vacationing within the province. The staycation is an emergent trend of the past few years, but this year, it is more important than ever because it is the only possibility for a summer holiday. A new Facebook group, StaycationNL, gives business owners and communities a place to share what they have to offer, and potential vacationers can seek recommendations. In Newfoundland and Labrador, the possibilities for exploring during a pandemic are ample. And for business owners like Brenda and Julie Lodge, staycations could be a saving grace. They are optimistic about what the summer holds. “For me, as an established operator… I’m sure I’ll get some bookings, I’m not worried about that,” Brenda says. She was initially worried about Julie’s business, because it is brand new, but Julie has had a surge of bookings from Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who are determined to make the most of their summer holidays at home by trying something new. At press time, Julie is almost completely booked for July, and she has a wait list of people who are interested in booking the house for August. “I think that things are going to be fine for me now,” she says with relief in her voice. Fitzgerald is all for the staycation, suggesting it’s a great opportunity for people to get out and explore the natural beauty that our province has to offer. “You want to see a sandy beach? We have sandy beaches! You want to go places where there are unique trails? We have unique trails,” she enthuses. “My advice to the people of this www.downhomelife.com
province is, go out and enjoy your summer! We live in an area where there is so much open space, and so many different landscapes. Go explore! Have fun! You can do it right here at home; you don’t have to go anywhere else to get that experience.” She adds that we are lucky to have so much open space that it is easy to get
“You want to see a sandy beach? We have sandy beaches!” Sheila Fitzgerald
Wanda Adams photo
around outdoors while keeping a safe physical distance. She encourages people to follow safety guidelines while being a tourist at home. When asked what keeps her optimistic, Fitzgerald points to the cooperation she has seen between neighbours, businesses and communities to help each other through these difficult times. “We’re Newfoundlanders at the end of the day. Nobody gets left behind, and whatever you can do to help your neighbour, you’re going to do it.” July 2020
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explore travel diary
A Day Trip to St. Brendan’s By Denise Chippett • Appleton, NL
It started out as a very beauti-
ful summer day, perfect for a ferry ride. We had been planning our day for a while, just waiting on family to arrive from Nova Scotia so that we could put our plans in motion. So last summer, on an August Sunday morning, off we went, all eight of us, in vehicles loaded with coolers full of cold plates, desserts, snacks and a little wine to celebrate our family adventure of making memories. We decided on St. Brendan’s because most of us hadn’t been there before and thought it would be a wonderful day trip to take. We took a ferry from Burnside, a journey of about an hour. The boat ride was awesome and the sun was shinning so bright, I knew this day was gonna be one to remember!
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My fellow travellers (l-r): Dolly Chippett, Michael Best, Colin Chippett, Denise Chippett, Jacob Chippett, Grayden Jennings, Stephanie Kerner and Corina Chippett
As soon as we docked, we exited the ferry and started exploring. We toured the island, then combed a beach, where we found the town’s very own inuksuk and, of course, had our pictures taken with it. We saw a few abandoned buildings and an old boat that I believe was named Island Lady. We drove the gravel roads looking for a place to set up our picnic and found a beautiful place by the water. There the town had numerous brightly coloured chairs put around, if one should like to sit for a spell, relax and enjoy the view. So we did, and what a lunch we had! After our picnic we went for a walk and came upon an abandoned twostorey house. The remains of what was left behind inside still haunt this home – the stories those boards could tell! I believe the population of St. Brendan’s is somewhere around 114 now, but it’s no trouble to see signs of what was once a great outport fishing community. Times have www.downhomelife.com
changed and people have moved on, but they still call it “home.” We visited the cemetery to look for the resting place of a friend of my sister-in-law. This man’s mother and family moved from St. Brendan’s years ago to Glenwood, probably to find a better life. I often wonder if this is another small community on the verge of resettlement. We took the afternoon ferry ride back to Burnside and ended our day with an ice cream cone in Eastport, pondering our wonderful day on St. Brendan’s Island making memories as a family for our kids to pass on to their kids. It certainly was one of the most memorable day trips that I had last summer because it was shared with my family. Every year I try to plan out a trip or two somewhere on this wonderful island of ours because you don’t need a plane ticket to travel one of the best places in the world when it’s in your very own backyard! July 2020
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explore
Dale Jarvis photo
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“Like so many places in Newfoundland, it is a little bay within a bigger bay, in this instance within the bigger bay of Conception in the Avalon Peninsula. It consists of two short arms running out into the sea, and joined by a short beach. It has perhaps two score houses, square and wooden, standing in their gardens of hay and vegetables and separated for the most part by the unpainted rustic picket fences, typical of a Newfoundland outport.” In 1947, this is how Newfoundland author Grace Butt described the community of Bristol’s Hope (or Mosquito, if you’re feeling historically inclined). The town lies off the main road, nestled in against the spruce-covered hills between Carbonear and Harbour Grace. And while modern houses and paved driveways have replaced many of the biscuit-box houses and hay fields of the 1940s, it remains very much a community that values and honours its history. One of the newer public spaces in the town is, at the same time, one that pays homage to its past: the Tom McCormick Memorial Park. On a sunny afternoon, I met up with local Richard Johnson, who showed me around the park. Richard is one of a small group of enthusiastic volunteers who have been working to preserve and promote the town’s history and natural beauty. This includes the lovingly restored Mosquito Schoolhouse, constructed between 1818 and 1828, as well as the Tom McCormick Memorial Park. The park is located at the intersection of Main and Pondside roads. There is a small parking area, and an open central space with a covered gazebo for picnicking and musical performances, a series of memorial benches commemorating the loved ones of local families, a new children’s playground, a spot for hopscotch and a basketball net. The park www.downhomelife.com
is encircled by a short groomed trail, perfect for a post-picnic stroll. As we walk through the grounds, Richard regales me with the stories behind the park’s features, many of which were constructed with volunteer labour or donated materials. We pause beside a stone monument to the park’s namesake, “Trapper Tom” McCormick. Here, Richard tells me how he and others had been chatting about a need for a park, when they got an unexpected visit from Patrick McCormick. “He had a meeting with myself and another fellow here,” Richard recalls, “and he said, ‘Boys, there’s paperwork being done up, and land will be provided for your park. We’re going to donate the land. There’s only one stipulation, and that is that I want it July 2020
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Tom and Alice McCormick with baby John, circa 1942. Courtesy John McCormick
named after my late father.’” Thomas “Tom” McCormick was born in 1896, son of Francis “Frank” and Rebecca (Wiseman) McCormick. The 1898 McAlpine’s Directory lists Francis as a farmer. He died quite young, leaving Rebecca to care for five children: Michael, Thomas, Mary, Johanna and John (or Jack). Michael, the eldest, left home to work in the mines on Bell Island and later the coalmines in Sydney, NS. Tom, on the other hand, was more inclined to work above ground, and went to find work in Central Newfoundland. He started in the lumberwoods, but his time as a woodsman was brief. “You went in clean, and you came out lousy,” Tom’s son John told me later. “The work didn’t suit him.” So Tom left Badger with a buddy and started his adventures as a trapper. Beaver, muskrat, lynx and rabbit were all fair game for Trapper Tom, and what pelts he got working his lines around Grand Falls, Bishop’s 78
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Falls and Buchans he sold to the Hudson Bay Company. “Them days, you walked or went on snowshoes,” says John. “He went in, built a lean-to and was gone for weeks at a time.” One winter, he and a companion were trapping somewhere around Badger, and they had been in the woods for about two weeks. As they were out checking slips, Tom heard a terrible din of squeals and howls up ahead of him on the trail. He found his trapper buddy facedown in the snow with a lynx tearing at his knapsack for food. Tom couldn’t shoot the animal for fear of hitting his friend, so he hauled off and smacked the big cat with the stock of his gun, knocking it clear enough for him to get in a killing shot. “My father was about 5’10” or 10 ½”,” Tom’s son John told me. “He was about 175 lbs, and there might have been five pounds of fat on him. He was pretty rough and tumble.” Once a year, Tom would take the furs he’d collected and sell them to the Hudson Bay Company agent in St. John’s. With the money he made, he would buy supplies. Some of it was ordered by mail from the legendary S.I.R. Outfitters company in Winnipeg, founded by Sidney Isaac Robinson in 1924. Tom would order things like traps and scent, which came in a bottle that still conjures up olfactory memories for John. “Ohh! You wouldn’t want to smell it,” John remembers with a grimace, “but the muskrats liked it!” When John was about 10 or 11 years old, he was sent with his father into St. John’s. At that time, the Hudson Bay Company was buying pelts for a dollar or 50 cents each. If 1-888-588-6353
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a trapper had a load of skins to sell, he might be lucky to get $10 or $12 total. Tom had heard that another outfit in St. John’s was paying better prices, and sure enough, a store on Water Street offered him close to what would be around $1,000 today. Young John’s job was to make sure his father got back to Bristol’s Hope before the cash was all spent. Tom McCormick was the sort of person who seemed able to do a bit of everything. In addition to trapping, he worked as a pipefitter/ steamfitter. He worked on the Harmon Air Force Base in Stephenville, and as a plumber on the construction of the BOQ Building in Argentia – a 10-storey barracks for officers often referred to as the “Argentia Hilton” and once the tallest building in the province. At one point, he even worked for the Polar Star Whaling Company out of Hawke Harbour, Labrador. Later in life, Tom settled down in Bristol’s Hope with his wife Alice, but he didn’t slow down much. He continued to trap alongside his protégé, Jim Harris, and got to work clearing land and setting potatoes and turnips. He also raised three sons (John, Patrick and Michael), some Rhode Island Red chickens and a flock of sheep. The flock started with three sheep and grew to around 30, including an imported Cheviot ram. A breed of sheep used in the north of England and Scotland for several centuries, Cheviots have been described as independent, strong-willed, vigorous and very hardy – all adjectives that certainly described Tom’s ram. www.downhomelife.com
“He was a big bastard and didn’t like my father,” says John. “Every time he turned his back, the ram would butt him.” In 1963, Tom passed away. His obituary remembers him as being “well liked and respected by all.” Alice followed him in 1970, and they were buried side-by-side in the Harbour Grace Roman Catholic Cemetery. Today, the park serves as a fitting memorial for a man who spent much of his life outdoors.
Dale Jarvis photo
“We had an official opening of the park and the family came down from all over,” Richard Johnson says. “We had a celebration here, a full day in the park, and we unveiled the monument in memory of Tom McCormick.” If you are in the area, it is the perfect place to stop for a rest, take a leisurely walk or enjoy your lunch in the open air. While there, take a moment to stop by that stone monument and give a nod to Trapper Tom – woodsman, farmer, adventurer and one of Newfoundland’s littleknown historic characters. July 2020
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HOME and Cabin
DISASTER turned
Delight
How these homeowners turned a nasty septic surprise into a dreamscape for their family
By Marie Bishop
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Summer – finally! After the most challenging winter and spring on record, what a treat to finally be outside, puttering in the garden. Maybe this is the season to focus on that garden project you’ve been thinking of, in this year of “stay at home” regulations. Last year my husband and I did a total revamp of our front garden – though not exactly by choice. We had an unexpected septic system “event” that... let’s just say was messy. So we decided it was time to hook up to the town water and sewer. This decision meant a trench had to be dug through our front yard, eight feet wide and six feet deep, from the main road to the foundation of our house, a distance of approximately 40 feet. The biggest surprise, after we came to terms with the moonscape left in its wake, was how much privacy we had lost. Trees that had grown up over the past 30 years disappeared and left us exposed to the sight and sounds of traffic. The upside, and there’s always an upside, is that we had a clean slate to work with, more or less. Luckily we did manage to keep a few of the mature trees and two rhododendrons that were close to the house, but basically we were starting from scratch. For our front yard, we wanted as much privacy as we could manage, but also a space for our three grandchildren to burn off some energy, and a place to sit and enjoy the afternoon sun. Our first thought was to put up a fence, but hours of internet searching rendered a file www.downhomelife.com
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A boulder exacavated during the water and sewer installation was incorporated into a new seating area.
folder of ideas and much confusion. The ideal fence needed to be open enough for the wind to blow through it, not against it, and strong enough for vines and shrubs to grow on – bringing back the privacy we had lost and also adding colour and interest to the border. For the grandchildren, a level lawn with a soccer net on one end was a given, along with a place for the grownups to sit and watch them play. First job was to level the ground. A boulder the size of a stove had been pulled from the trench, and we decided it might make a nice feature in one corner. The rest of the tumbled ground was raked level and the rubble built into a low rock wall – which sounds simple enough, but requires patience, endurance and a good eye. Luckily for me, my husband has an abundance of all three. This also created a base for the fence, 82
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a barrier from the road and a support for a raised bed area outside the fence for planting climbing vines and shrubs. On the levelled ground, topsoil was spread and sods were laid – voilà! We had a lawn. Second step – the fence. The design we decided on was a cedar openlattice type of fence. Using one-inch square strips of cedar to create 10inch squares in a six-foot-wide panel, attached to 4"x4" posts, we built a fence that fit the bill. The real test was that it survived Snowmageddon – yay! The third item on the list was a place to sit and enjoy the view. Under the 35-year-old Flowering May tree, which managed to escape the excavator, was the perfect spot. Using our “new” boulder, some stone that was in the previous garden and a beautiful outdoor bench, we created an oasis. It’s the ideal location to sit 1-888-588-6353
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and enjoy the noisy energy of our three Wee Ones. Finally, and this is a work in progress, came the planting of new vines, trees and shrubs. We chose a combination of native and purchased plants, all in an effort to create an interesting, colourful view from the house, the garden and the road. This year will be the test to see what survived the winter snow, road salt and soil conditions. We will add, adjust, prune and remove as needed. We won’t have all our privacy back right away, but it’s interesting to see what grows and how quickly. This project wasn’t exactly on our priority list – until it was. And now I am so grateful that our septic tank disaster inspired a great space for all of us to enjoy, not only in the summer, but all year long.
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HOME and Cabin
Felted for
Life
A local crafter who takes knitting to the next step By Katherine Saunders
Sometimes in life,
you just have to do what your gut tells you, what you feel like. In 2017, Hilary Simpson followed her heart, quit her job and took her business, Because I Felt Like It, to a whole new level.
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Because I Felt Like It specializes in felted products. Hilary makes many things, including mittens, hats and cute little bunnies. One of her best-sellers are her felted mice cat toys (middle left), which are nearly indestructible. “Cats have to work hard to kill those things,” Hilary says. Born and raised north of Toronto, ON, Hilary has lived in Torbay for 18 years, following her sister and mother who had previously relocated to Newfoundland and Labrador. Hilary learned to knit in her mother’s lap as a child. As an adult, she stumbled upon a felt pattern and taught herself the craft. There are three different methods of felting – knit felting, needle felting and wet felting. Hilary’s method of choice is the first: knit felting. She founded Because I Felt Like It in 2013 as a part-time thing. Now, she says, “every bill in my house is paid for by knitting.”
The process
Knit felting begins with Hilary knitting her item 30-50 per cent larger than the final product will be. Then, she runs it through a cycle in the washing machine. The hot water and agitation cause the stitches to shrink to a smooth fuzz, creating a final product that is soft, yet durable. Felt makes a great outdoor fabric; Hilary’s hats and mittens are almost completely waterproof and windproof, as well as stylish. In addition to clothing and cute novelties, Hilary makes products with the conscientious consumer in mind. Dryer balls are a reusable alternative to dryer sheets that can significantly cut drying time. Hilary experimented with making some for her customers, and they were an immediate success. In the spirit of community collaboration, Because I Felt Like It partnered www.downhomelife.com
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with Essential Creations, a local essential oil producer, to make scented dryer balls. “I think everybody is looking for more eco-friendly options,” she says, “and I think the dryer balls are really beginning to find a hold for things like that.” Hilary puts a lot of work into perfecting her designs and is always looking for a new product to offer, like her travel mugs: mason jars wrapped with felt cozies to keep drinks warm and hands cool. They are topped with special lids that convert the jars into easy-to-seal drinking cups. When asked how she managed to get the perfect-size mason jar cozy, she replies, “I’ve been [felting] so long, I start to know what will do what. Every wool felts differently, every colour felts differently. You start to get a feel for what [the wool] is going to do.” But she admits, “There’ve been times with the mitts when they come out of the washing machine and they’ve been two inches different [in size].” 86
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New designs come partly from online inspiration, and partly from Hilary’s own imagination, which sometimes acts as her boss. “Sometimes you’ll have an idea that’s been sitting in the back of your head, and you’ll wake up one morning with a pattern in mind. And then there’s nothing you can do about it until you make it… you have no other choice, basically,” she states. Last year, she designed little cats stuffed with lavender to make cute drawer fresheners (opening photo). At Christmas, she made them with balsam fir tips for a festive twist. In normal times, Hilary does the market circuit, selling at the St. John’s Farmers’ Market, Some Good Market and the Etsy fairs. She also sells her products in a couple of local shops. Since the onset of COVID-19,
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Hilary has joined many local businesses in adapting the way she operates. She has been selling on Etsy and on her Facebook page, and doing weekly local deliveries. “You have to learn how to adapt, to make things work,” she says. She is looking forward to the day when she can get back on the market circuit and sell to her customers faceto-face. “There’s nothing better than having a kid step up to the table and spot a bunny. The look on their face… it’s magic.” She loves working alongside other crafters, who have become her friends. “Being a crafter and doing markets every weekend and seeing people, you become part of a family,” she shares. “Crafters are uniquely optimistic people… it’s kind of fun to be a part of that.”
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HOME and Cabin
Todd’s table
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Eggs Benedict Todd’s Table By Todd Goodyear
When he’s not dreaming up or cooking up great food, Todd Goodyear is president and associate publisher of Downhome. todd@downhomelife.com
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There is just something special
about eggs Benedict. It’s not a breakfast that I order or make often, but when I do there is simply no substitute. I love everything about it: the English muffin, the bacon/ham and, oh my, that hollandaise sauce. Eggs Benedict was named at the famous New York City restaurant Delmonico’s, located in the financial district of Manhattan. It was called the restaurant of firsts: the first to use the word “restaurant,” the first restaurant to use tablecloths, the first to use printed menus and the first restaurant to hire women. It also claims to be the first to serve eggs Benedict. According to Delmonico’s legend, eggs Benedict was created for and named after restaurant regulars Mr. and Mrs. LeGrand Benedict in the 1860s. Apparently this couple had tried everything on the menu, were getting tired of it, and wanted the chef to try something different and new. Chef Charles Ranhofer, along with the Delmonico brothers, owners of the restaurant, came up with what is now known as eggs Benedict. It’s food heaven that not only tastes great, July 2020
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but also looks fantastic on the plate. Plating food is something I have been taking great pride in lately. I not only want my dish to taste flavourful, I also want it to look delicious and smell irresistible before the first bite is even taken. In the past I have struggled with getting eggs, boiled and poached, to turn out the way I want them. Chefs will even admit that this can be challenging. The temperature and time has to be exact. Short a minute or over a minute will make or break that perfect delivery. I sometimes will exchange friendly banter with a restaurant server when asked how I want my eggs. I’ll say, “I can tell you, but I don’t think you can deliver.” The reaction is always fun, but I simply say this to make the point that I fully understand that it can be a little tricky to poach the perfect egg. But don’t think that poached eggs are too hard to make; really they’re not if you follow a few simple steps. Try this great brunch dish, cook with confidence, and let me know how you made out. Feel free to email me your photos of your dish and any tips that you may discover and want to share.
Eggs Benedict 4 egg yolks 3 1/2 tbsp lemon juice 1 pinch ground pepper 1 tbsp water 1 cup butter, melted 1/4 tsp salt
8 1 8 4 2
eggs tsp distilled white vinegar strips Canadian bacon or prosciutto ham English muffins, split tbsp butter, softened
Start with the hollandaise sauce. Partially fill the bottom of a doubleboiler with water. (I don’t have a double boiler, so I use a steel bowl set over a medium pot of water.) Bring water to a gentle simmer. In the top (or the bowl), whisk together the 4 egg yolks, lemon juice, pepper and water. Add melted butter 1-2 tablespoons at a time while constantly whisking. If the sauce gets too thick, add a teaspoon or two of hot water. Continue until all butter is incorporated. Add salt, whisk, remove from the heat and cover the top (or bowl) to keep the sauce warm. Fry the bacon (or my favourite, prosciutto ham, folded) in a 90
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saucepan. Once browned lightly, remove and set aside. Meanwhile, put about 3 inches of water in a large saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer, then add vinegar. (Vinegar helps coagulate the egg white, so you lose less of it when the egg is first added to the water.) With a spoon, create a whirlpool in the pot of water. This will keep the eggs in the centre and keep the white from splaying off. Crack eggs, individually, in a ladle and gently release them one at a time in the centre of the spinning water. Some of the egg white will spin off; this is normal. Allow eggs to cook, untouched. For soft poached, slightly undercooked 1-888-588-6353
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white with a very runny yolk, cook for 3 minutes. For medium poached, fully cooked but tender white and runny yolk, cook for 4 minutes. For hard poached, firm white and semi-firm yolk, cook for 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove eggs and hold over a bowl to let all the water run off. Add butter to the same pan used to fry the bacon or ham. Heat the pan to melt the butter and toast the English muffin in the pan, letting it soak up 1-888-588-6353
the butter and flavour from the meat. (Or you can simply toast your English muffin.) Top each muffin half with meat, then one egg; drizzle top with desired amount of hollandaise sauce. Serve immediately. Crispy bacon and/or roasted potatoes make great side dishes. You’ll see in the picture that I added crispy bacon and pan-seared asparagus (a popular eggs Benedict complement) as sides. July 2020
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HOME and Cabin
everyday recipes
One thing we missed during these past few months of social distancing was being able to get together over food. So Downhome held a virtual potluck on our Everyday Recipes Facebook Group and had a wonderful day of sharing delicious recipes online with whoever dropped in on the group. Here’s a selection of the recipes shared that day.
Macaroni and Cheese By Sharon Muise
2 1/2 cups elbow macaroni 1 cup crushed crackers 2 tbsp melted butter 1/2 cup old cheddar cheese, grated
Cheese sauce 3 tbsp butter 3 tbsp flour Dash of salt and pepper 1 1/2 cups milk 1 cup old cheddar cheese, grated
Cheese sauce In saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper to make a paste. Add milk and whisk until sauce starts to thicken. Add cheese and stir till melted. Remove from heat. Cook and drain macaroni. Mix cheese sauce and macaroni together, and pour into a greased casserole dish. Combine crushed crackers and melted butter; sprinkle over top of macaroni. Top with remaining 1/2 cup grated cheese (or more if you want). Bake at 350°F till cheese is melted.
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Lasagna By Tiffany Brett
2 pkg lasagna noodles 2 lbs lean ground beef 1 tsp garlic powder pinch of salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce 2 onions, finely chopped 4 stalks celery, finely chopped 2 cans sliced mushrooms (or 2 cups fresh mushrooms, chopped)
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes 1 can three-cheese pasta sauce 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 3 tubs ricotta cheese 1 lg block of mozzarella cheese, grated 1/4 block cheddar cheese, grated (if you like)
Fill a large pot with cool water and place on the stove to boil. Meanwhile, cook ground beef in a large skillet. When beef is about halfway cooked, add garlic, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. When the water boils, add lasagna noodles. Cook just to al dente – they will finish cooking in the oven when you bake your lasagna later. Drain and rinse noodles, taking care you don’t break them. Add onions, celery and mushrooms to ground beef. Cook until vegetables are soft. Add crushed tomatoes and four-cheese sauce. Simmer on low. Layer the lasagna: Start by putting a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan, then your first layer of noodles. Top with a layer of sauce, a layer of ricotta cheese, and a sprinkle each of Parmesan, mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. Start again with the second layer of noodles and repeat these steps until your pan is full, ending with a layer of noodles. Top that with sauce and the majority of the grated cheese for a good cheesy topping. Bake lasagna at 350°F for 25-30 min. or until cheese is melted on top and sauce is bubbling. Then broil on high for 5 minutes or less, until cheese is bubbling and brown. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving. www.downhomelife.com
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Salted Bourbon Bacon Brittle By Maureen Galway
For the Candied Bacon 12 strips thick-cut bacon 3 tbsp bourbon 3 tbsp brown sugar
For the Brittle 1/2 cup chopped pecans 1 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup light corn syrup 1/2 cup water 2 tbsp bourbon 1 tbsp unsalted butter 1 tsp vanilla 1 tsp baking soda sea salt for sprinkling
For the Candied Bacon Preheat oven to 400째F. Lay bacon strips on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush bacon with bourbon and sprinkle with brown sugar, both sides. Bake for 13-15 minutes, until it starts to caramelize and becomes crispy. Chop the bacon with a knife into bitesize pieces.
For the Brittle Spread pecans on a baking sheet and lightly toast them in the oven at 400째F for 7 minutes. Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat or parchment paper. Make sure you have all the rest of your ingredients measured and ready to pour in the brittle when it gets to the candy stage. You can mix the bourbon, bacon and pecans together to make it easier. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup and water over medium heat. Stir constantly until sugar dissolves and the mixture starts to boil. Increase the heat to high and cook, without stirring, until it reaches 290째F using a candy thermometer (or until it takes on a golden amber colour). Add bourbon, bacon and pecans. Mix and allow mixture to get to 310째F. Immediately remove from heat. Quickly stir in butter, vanilla and baking soda. Pour mixture onto the prepared baking sheet as quickly and thinly as possible. Use a wooden spoon to spread it if necessary. Sprinkle with sea salt right away and cool for at least 20 minutes. Once it sets, break into pieces. Store in an air-tight container (good for about a week). 94
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Codroy Valley Casserole By Carol Howell
1/2 (12 oz) pkg egg noodles 1/2 lb bacon, cut in 1/2-inch pieces 3-4 sticks celery, cut in 1-inch pieces 1 green pepper, chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 1/2 lbs ground beef 1 can mushrooms, drained 1 can tomato soup
1 (7 1/2 oz) can tomato sauce 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 2 drops Tabasco sauce 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1 tsp chili powder Grated cheese to taste
Preheat oven to 300°F. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse. Pan fry bacon until crisp, but not too crispy. Add celery, green pepper and onion. SautÊ for three minutes. Add beef and mushrooms. Continue cooking until beef is lightly browned. Remove meat and vegetables to a large bowl. Stir in soup, sauce, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and seasonings. Add cooked noodles. Mix well. Place in one large or two small casserole dishes. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until mixture is bubbly. Remove from oven and garnish with cheese.
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Wine Sauce By Grant Young
8 tbsp butter 3/4 cup finely chopped onion 1-1/4 cups Vinland Red wine 3 cups beef broth 2 tsp thyme
1 tsp salt 1 tsp ground black pepper 1 tsp sugar 2 tbsp all-purpose flour 3/4 cup cold water
Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add onion and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent. Add wine, beef broth, thyme, salt, pepper and sugar, and bring to a boil. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced by about half. Mix flour and cold water to make a thickener paste. Once the wine mixture is reduced, turn the heat down to low. Whisk the thickener, 1/4 cup at a time, into the simmering sauce. Simmer for a few minutes, until sauce is thickened. Serve hot, drizzled over prime rib or other roast of meat. (The sauce can be made and refrigerated up to three days ahead of time, then reheated before serving.)
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No Bake Cheesecake with Snowball Crust By Jackie Rice
1/3 cup butter 1 cup sugar 1 can evaporated milk 6 tbsp cocoa powder 1 1/2 cups oats 1 cup coconut
1 block cream cheese 1 can sweetened condensed milk 1 1/3 cups lemon juice Whipped cream Strawberries or your favourite toppings
In a large pot, melt butter, add sugar, milk and cocoa powder. Boil for 5-6 minutes and keep stirring. Remove from heat and stir in oats and coconut. Set aside and line an 8" x 8" pan with parchment paper, then spread snowball mixture over the bottom of the pan. Let cool.
Cream Cheese Filling Mix cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sweetened condensed milk and lemon juice; mix for another 2 minutes. Pour over snowball mixture and freeze for 2 hours to set. Top with whipped cream and strawberries.
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Stuffed Crust Pizza with Homemade Sauce By Cory Way
Sauce (makes 5+ pizzas)
Pizza
1 1 1 1 1 5 1 1 1 1 1
Oven baking stone Your favourite pizza/touton dough Mozzarella cheese Italian blend cheese Charcuterie meats Olives Sesame seeds Olive oil
(28 oz) can tomatoes celery stalk carrot onion tbsp capers cloves garlic tbsp brown sugar tbsp oregano tbsp basil tsp chili flakes tsp salt
Set oven to broil and add a sheet of parchment paper to a large oven pan. Strain the liquid from a can of tomatoes into a saucepan. Add tomato solids to outside perimeter of the oven pan. Chop celery, carrot and onion. Add chopped vegetables, whole capers and garlic cloves to oven pan and broil for 5 minutes. Turn over vegetables and broil a few minutes more. Check often and remove from oven before vegetables start to blacken. Set saucepan of strained tomato juice to medium heat and add brown sugar, oregano, basil, chili flakes and salt. Cook for 10 min, stirring occasionally. Add broiled vegetables to food processor and blend into a paste. Add paste to saucepan of tomato juice and spices. Simmer for 5 minutes. Set oven to highest temperature and roll out pizza dough to the size of your pizza stone. Flour underside of the dough so that it will slide easily. Sprinkle Italian blend cheese around edge of dough and roll end over to seal cheese in. Spread homemade pizza sauce over crust and top with charcuterie meats, olives and mozzarella. Brush olive oil on crust edge and sprinkle with sesame seeds. When highest temperature has been reached, transfer pizza to the hot pizza stone and bake for 10 minutes (depending on oven, check often). When crust and the underside of the pizza brown, remove pizza and let it rest for a few minutes before cutting. 98
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Gluten-Free Taco Mac and Cheese By Katherine Saunders
1 lb ground beef (or turkey or chicken) 1 (28 oz) can tomatoes (with green chilies are my favourite) 1 cup gluten-free chicken or beef broth 1 cup milk
1 1 1 1
pkg taco seasoning small can tomato paste 1/2 cups gluten-free macaroni 1/2 cups grated cheese
Brown the ground beef (or turkey or chicken) in a large pan. Add tomatoes, chicken or beef broth, milk, taco seasoning and tomato paste. Let it all come to a gentle boil. Add gluten-free macaroni. Let it simmer 15-20 minutes, or until noodles are cooked. Then mix in grated cheese. Once the cheese is melted, it’s ready to serve!
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HOME and Cabin
down to earth
Gardening for Newbies by Kim Thistle
There has been a shift in the universe. That is probably the understatement of the year. It’s early April as I write this article for July publication. It’s difficult to know now how far the pendulum will have swung by the time you read this. I am going to focus on the positive changes that I have seen during the past few months. The biggest one is the renewed interest in gardening – gardening for food production, gardening projects for children and gardening for pleasure now that we seem to have a lot of spare time on our hands. I think this is great! It is high time we all got a little closer to the earth and relearned a few life skills.
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The hard part for me is that I have a large audience of novice gardeners who need to know how to start from square one and grow themselves a successful vegetable garden. The first thing you need to ask yourself is where you plan to grow your vegetables. There are three options: • Dig up a plot in your yard; a 10’ x 10’ area is plenty for a beginner. • Create some raised beds and fill them with soil. Most plants need a minimum of six inches of soil, but 10-15 inches is ideal. Any higher and it will be harder on your back trying to tend them. It is best to keep the width at a maximum of four feet for the same reason. • Do not underestimate containers. You can grow just about any vegetable in a five-gallon bucket with drainage, just not as many of them. Containers are ideal for apartment dwellers, people with health issues, and gardeners with large patios or decks.
those. If you are a first-time gardener, you probably won’t have success with peppers and you will be easily discouraged. However, if you put in cold weather greens, such as lettuce and kale, you will be rewarded with delicious salad greens all summer long.
Some easy to grow, cool-climate crops are: • Potatoes • Carrots • Beets • Lettuce, Kale, Mizuna, Mustard, Arugula and Mache • Turnip tops • Onions, leeks and green onions • Peas – shelling peas as well as edible pod Once you have a list of what you want to grow and where you plan to grow it, you must calculate what is reasonable to grow in the space you have. Reading the back of the seed packet can help, but if that’s too confusing, google it. Your next thing to consider is soil. Good soil for vegetable gardening is
The next question you should ask yourself is “What do I like to eat?” It is no good to put in a salad garden if you are a cooked dinner person. Make a list of the foods you eat and do a bit of research to find out which ones are easier to grow, and start with 102
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rich in organic matter and soil organisms. If soil is too sandy, it will be nutrient-poor and not retain moisture. Silty soils are dense and do not drain well. Soil that has a high clay content tends to be hard and cracks when dry. If you have any of these types of soil in your garden, you have your work cut out for you. Adding compost, composted manure and seaweed, and top dressing with grass clippings (avoid using clippings that have had pesticides used on them) or mulching consistently will improve your soil. And regular applications of organic fertilizers will help growing in poor soil. Mulches should be applied to the top of your soil and not dug in, as this depletes the nitrogen your plants need. Over time, they’ll break down and become nutrient-rich soil, just as they do in the forest. It can be costly to purchase bagged soil, but for container gardening and raised beds, it’s probably your ideal solution. Irrigation is important for any gardener, so have a valve for attaching a hose nearby. I love drip irrigation, as it waters deeply and slowly without getting the leaves of the plants wet. Water droplets in the heat of the day can scorch your plants, and leaving water on the leaves in the evening can encourage disease. If using a hose or sprinkler, water in the morning before the sun is too hot. Watering too often will create shallowly rooted plants that are easily uprooted in the wind. You want to encourage the roots of your plants to hunt for water and anchor them in well. So, you have created your garden space, planted your seeds or plants, and the first green shoots are emerging through the soil. You are quite www.downhomelife.com
chuffed with yourself. And then… the morning comes when you see those lovely little shoots chewed off and lying on the ground. ARGH! Most people reach for the Raid. I would strongly advise against this. Gardens contain thousands of insects and only a few are evil. By spraying an insecticide, you are killing all the good guys along with the bad ones. When you see signs of insect damage, note which crop is being attacked and do a bit of research. For instance, if you are growing cabbage and you see a green caterpillar on it, google “cabbage green caterpillar.” Right away it will show you images of the cabbage looper and the damage it does. Don’t assume it is a slug and treat your garden with slug bait. You may be wasting your money and lose your cabbage anyway. Find the right treatment and follow directions. A healthy environment where birds and toads are encouraged will help reduce many insect populations naturally. Planting flowers among your vegetables will attract good insects such as tiny parasitic wasps (not gonna hurt you) that will fight off your insect pests. You can do this. You will have failures and you will have successes. Concentrate on the successes and learn from the rest. Got a gardening question for Kim? Email her at downtoearth@downhomelife.com. Kim Thistle owns a garden centre and landscaping business on the west coast of the island. She has also been a recurring guest gardener on CBC’s “Crosstalk” for almost three decades. July 2020
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We’re wasting no time preparing for the next Downhome Calendar, . . . and neither should you! 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. In addition to free calendars and a one-year subscription to Downhome for all those chosen for the calendar, one lucky winner will receive a free trip for four aboard O’Brien’s famous whale and bird boat tours!
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.
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From
Fighting to Fishing “Dad was a prisoner of war after the Battle of Monchy [April 1917]. He played dead while the Germans went through the battlefield shooting all wounded that were left alive. He was eventually taken to a hospital and operated on, without anaesthetic, and carried a bullet in his leg for the rest of his life,” the submitter writes. Here’s an excerpt from his own official account of his time in capture: “Operated on in France. Strapped to a table and cut in left leg about three inches long. No chloroform or any other method to relieve pain, and removed a piece of shell from leg. Then removed to Darmstadt Hospital; spent five months there, had to dress my own wounds while there. Removed to Guesseu (?) Camp for one month, then to some place in Prussia, I do not remember the name; hard labour in the mines for 16 months, without anything to eat but a pound of black bread, and not a drink of any kind but water. While 106
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Francis (Frank) Hynes, born in Bay L’Argent, NL, in 1897, was just a teenager when he signed up to fight in the First World War. there, 54 Allied prisoners were admitted but only 15 came out alive. When a prisoner would die, they would strip him of all his clothes, and dump the body in a handcart and away with him. I have seen three bodies dumped in a cart at one time. Made three attempts to escape, but captured each time… After my recapture they would brutally beat me about the head with their rifles, and every method of brutality…” Pte. Hynes was released from captivity on December 2, 1918. He 1-888-588-6353
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Frank Hynes (back row, far left) and his brother Aloysius (next to him) in a wartime photo. Aloysius was gassed on the battlefield and later died at home in 1917 as a result. eventually arrived home in Bay L’Argent, NL. He later moved to the U.S. and took up fishing with his brother Alphonsus (Fonce, also a WWI veteran) out of Boston and Gloucester, MA. He was among the last of the schooner captains when he retired from it in 1951. Lorraine (Hynes) Louanis Reading, MA, USA
This Month in History On July 26, 1978, British balloonists Donald Cameron, 39, and Major Christopher Davey, 34, set off from Bannerman Park in St. John’s, NL, in the hot air balloon Zanussi, hoping to make the first successful transatlantic voyage in a hot air balloon. Cameron was an aeronautical engineer and the founder of Cameron Balloons. He had developed Britain’s first modern hot air balloon in the early 1970s. Four days and 1,780 nautical miles (close to 3,300 km) into their journey, Cameron and Davey were forced to abandon the Zanussi 110 miles (approx. 200 km) off the coast of Brest, France, due to foul weather and a tear in the balloon. They were rescued by a nearby trawler and taken back to the UK. They planned a second journey, but three weeks later, the Double Eagle II hot air balloon successfully completed a transatlantic voyage. In 1982, Cameron and Davey published a book about their experience, Zanussi, Transatlantic Balloon. In 1992, Cameron finally realized his dream of crossing the Atlantic in a hot air balloon when he participated in the first ever transatlantic hot air balloon race. He flew from Bangor, Maine, to Portugal and came in second place. 1-888-588-6353
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Hero of the
Great War Though it was decades before he received it, Matthew Brazil earned France’s highest honour for bravery for his actions in WWI. By Burton K. Janes
The Spaniard’s Bay branch of the Royal Canadian Legion is named in memory of Cpl. Matthew Brazil, a First World War veteran and native of the town. In 1983, a quarter-century after his death at 63 in 1958, the French government bestowed on him the Croix de Guerre, the highest decoration the French government can award for bravery while serving in war in France. Jack Chipman, a Spaniard’s Bay Legionnaire, remembers Brazil from the 1950s and ’60s. Quiet, modest and unassuming, he was “what we would call years ago a wiry man.” However, the relatively short Brazil “wasn’t the type of person who would say, ‘Look what I did,’” Jack says. During those years, Jack couldn’t imagine Brazil’s war life as a 21year-old. “I didn’t know Matt Brazil did what he did until I joined the Legion years ago,” he says. “A person today who did what he did would be a hero and receive national recognition.” 1-888-588-6353
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Spaniard’s Bay to Brazil enlisted in the award Brazil’s widow, Royal Newfoundland Agnes, the military decRegiment on March 25, oration remembering 1915. He suffered severe Brazil’s acts of heroism frostbite at Gallipoli. At involving combat with Beaumont-Hamel, he enemy forces. was wounded in his face “It was one of the and left leg. A bomb biggest events here at attack left him with a the branch,” Bill says. scalded right hand and a One wonders how bullet wound in his right Brazil himself would wrist. At Boulogne, he have reacted to the was gassed several honour. “I think he times. Still, he remained The Croix de Guerre would have been, not in action until the war reluctant altogether, but rather ended, and he was discharged on sheepish about it, in terms of I-don’tMarch 31, 1919. want-this-publicity sort of thing,” “Obviously he was brave,” Jack says. Jack suggests. “He wasn’t the type of “There was no question about it.” person who sought publicity. He just Brazil was awarded several hondid what he had to do for his counours, including the Military Medal, try.” Indeed, Brazil was never even a for conspicuous bravery under heavy Legion member. machine fire in full view of the Jack compares naming the enemy. The Distinguished Conduct Spaniard’s Bay branch in Brazil’s Medal recognized his bravery and memory to hockey heroes like Gordie devotion to duty during an attack. Howe and Wayne Gretzky lending Brazil also played a crucial role in the their names to worthy causes. “I action which saw fellow Newfoundthink the fact that we call this the lander, Thomas R. Ricketts (1901Matt Brazil branch distinguishes us 67), receive the Victoria Cross. from many other branches,” he says. Back home after the war, Brazil Bill says it’s commonly agreed that lived on the edge of Brazil’s Pond, a “Cpl. Matt Brazil was the most highly favourite swimming hole in their gardistinguished veteran from our area.” den at Spaniard’s Bay. Having Brazil honoured by the local “I can remember Mr. Brazil coming Legion is a way of “seeing that the out and watching us swimming in the youth of our day are given the opporsummer and playing hockey in the tunity to learn some of [our] past hiswinter,” says Bill Titford, a past tory, the sacrifices and heroic things branch president of the Legion. “He done by our own sons,” he says. appeared very friendly.” He recalls the “many stories of Brazil’s son, Michael, was instruthese gentlemen who, at a very tenmental in having the Croix de Guerre der age, went overseas as boys, but awarded to his late father. Both Bill returned as men.” Those were the and Jack recall the momentous occaones, Bill adds, who “sacrificed their sion on October 6, 1983, when the youth for our lives today.” French consul general visited 110
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Many volunteers stepped forward to serve in the
Royal Newfoundland Regiment and the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve during the First World War. It is much rarer to see veterans from the Great War volunteering to serve again in WWII. When the Newfoundland Commission Government (est. 1934) asked for volunteers, three Hodge’s Cove WWI veterans removed their sailor suits, grabbed their bucksaws and axes, and sailed overseas. They were among fellow Newfoundland lumberjacks who levelled the forests of the highlands of Scotland to supply the war effort.
Seaman Silas Boone
Seaman Albert Drover
Courtesy Eric Peddle
Courtesy Albina Bursey
Seaman James Drover Courtesy Frank Drover
Silas Boone, the oldest of the three, had enlisted with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve in 1912. He had completed 84 days of training aboard HMS Calypso when war broke out and was among the first deployment of sailors from St. John’s, NL, on the SS Franconia on November 6, 1914. Upon arrival in Europe, he was assigned to HMS Pembroke. Five days later he was deployed to HMS Fiona, an armed boarding steamer. He carried out his duties until December 1915. Silas returned to the shore-based facility at HMS Pembroke and remained there until granted leave to return home to HMS Briton on August 2, 1917. He returned overseas on November 13, 1917, where he remained attached to HMS Vivid III at Devonport, serving on different trawlers. He returned home after the war and married Julia Ann 1-888-588-6353
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Peddle, widow of his best friend Alexander, who was killed on May 25, 1918, while serving on HMS Dirk. Albert Drover, born May 24, 1897, was the son of Samuel and Hannah Drover. His career with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve began on April 5, 1916. Three weeks later he boarded RMS Pretorian and sailed to England. Upon arrival, he reported to HMS Vivid I and completed two months of intensive training before joining HMS Berwick, the ship where he would spend his entire naval career. The Berwick offered protection to convoys and patrolled the Atlantic Ocean from England to the Caribbean.
Hodge’s Cove. Family folklore has it that James, Harvey Peddle and Leander Drover ran away to St. John’s to enlist with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve. James’ enlistment records his birthday as January 8, 1899, making him two years older than he actually was at the time. He arrived in England and was assigned to HMS Vivid III. After completing his training, James was assigned to HMS Hildebrand. The ship was requisitioned by the British Admiralty and assigned to Force B of the 10th Squadron, Northern Patrol. James joined this ship at Devonport on August 20, 1918, and spent the next four months between
All three former Newfoundland Royal Navy Reservists from Hodge’s Cove once again left their families and travelled overseas to do their duty in defending their motherland. Data extracted from Royal Naval Log Books for HMS Berwick indicates that Albert completed at least four trips across the Atlantic from England to Halifax and down into the Caribbean Islands. On August 19, 1918, Albert was transferred to HMS Vivid III at Chatham, England, where he remained for the next five months, serving on smaller vessels. On February 19, 1919, Albert returned home to HMS Briton, where he was demobilized on April 10, 1919. He settled at Hodge’s Cove with his new wife, Olivia Spurrell, on November 5, 1923. James Drover, born January 5, 1901 (January 8, according to baptism records), was the son of Willis and Elizabeth Jane Drover of 114
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Devonport, England and Dakar Roads, Senegal, Africa. His final weeks overseas were spent at HMS Vivid III waiting for orders to return home to HMS Briton. An Evening Telegram article reveals that James arrived at Halifax aboard the SS Adriatic on March 9, 1919, and from there returned to Newfoundland. He remained at HMS Briton until demobilization on April 10, 1919. He returned home and married Selina Peddle. They had nine children, of which five lived to adulthood.
Answering the Call Again On November 9, 1939, the Dominion of Canada sent a request to Newfoundland Governor Sir Humphrey Walwyn to recruit 2,000 men for a 1-888-588-6353
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Overseas Forestry Unit camp in Scotland new civilian unit assigned to cut timber in the United Kingdom for the war effort. They would be paid $2 per day ($12 per week), with half of that automatically sent home to their families. Accommodation, transportation and medical requirements would be supplied. The men would supply their own appropriate clothing and footwear for logging. By the end of the war, 3,600 loggers would serve with the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit. All three former Newfoundland Royal Navy Reservists from Hodge’s Cove once again left their families and travelled overseas to do their duty in defending their motherland. On January 23, 1940, Silas Boone boarded the SS Chrobry at St. John’s and sailed to Halifax. Onboard were close to 1,000 men who would harvest the timber of Scottish forests for pit props needed for the coalmines of Great Britain. The ship crossed the Atlantic, sailed up the Firth of Clyde and docked at Glasgow, Scotland. Three hundred fifty men, including Silas, were taken by train to Gourock, then ferried across the Firth of Clyde. On the other side, they walked a few 1-888-588-6353
miles on the road to Glenfinart Camps at Ardentinny. The exact dates for Albert and James’ enlistment and travel overseas are unknown, but records show that they served with the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit. All three returned home after the war. Silas passed away in Hodge’s Cove in 1969. He is buried next to his wife at St. Mary’s Anglican Cemetery. After the death of his first wife, James married Bertha, daughter of John and Belinda Dodge, of Little Heart’s Ease. They had two children. James passed away on January 19, 1967, and is resting at the new St. Mary’s Anglican Cemetery in Hodge’s Cove. On December 23, 1976, Albert experienced one of the greatest tragedies of his life: the loss of his son, Hedley. Both Hedley and his friend, Willis Thomas, drowned after their boat was swamped near Mooring Cove, Southwest Arm. Two years later, on May 26, 1978, Albert died, they say, of a broken heart. He is buried at the new St. Mary’s Anglican Cemetery. Olivia died 10 years later and is buried next to him. July 2020
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reminiscing
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It’s late, way past sundown. Gerald and Evelyn Devereaux have put their children to bed and are now, themselves, asleep when there’s a knock on the door. Gerald rises, heading to the door with a pretty good idea of who might be on the other side. Sure enough, it’s a tanker truck driver. It’s time to go to work. This routine is becoming regular, but is still somewhat new for the young family – as it is for many families in Holyrood, NL, now that the Golden Eagle refinery is built and operating. The construction jobs are gone, replaced by plant operation jobs that have allowed the town’s breadwinners to remain close to home. It’s 1961, and Holyrood is already a town where many of the residents must travel for work. It was never really a fishing town, aside from the squid jigging, recalls Evelyn, now in her late 80s. Before the refinery, travelling for work was normal, with Gerald previously finding work far away in Greenland.
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Former managers of the Holyrood refinery at the 20th anniversary celebrations in 1981. One day in the late ’50s, recalls Evelyn, a man came knocking on her family’s door, looking for land to buy down by the water. He knocked on several doors, and, like they would, the townsfolk began to talk of this man looking for cheap land to buy without saying exactly why he wanted it. There was, says Evelyn, a certain amount of suspicion about his activities and his secrecy. Evelyn and her neighbours got confirmation something was afoot during a children’s concert at Holy Cross school, when local Liberal MHA Philip Lewis took the stage to announce good things coming to Holyrood – although he was not presently at liberty to say what, exactly, those good things were. Evelyn remembers Lewis asking the children and parents to pray that this good thing would, indeed, come to pass. They would later come to realize that he was referring to the Golden Eagle that would soon land in Holyrood. 118
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Before the man who knocked on their doors, and before the politician who asked them to pray, there was another figure: an American accustomed to working in secrecy who had been in conversation with Joey Smallwood and his government. John Shaheen had served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), a precursor to the CIA, during WWII, where he befriended William Casey, director of the CIA under President Ronald Regan. Then in the 1970s, Shaheen became a special ambassador to Columbia. He was, in other words, well connected. In a roundabout way, Shaheen was responsible for the career of John Hawco, who got his start as a summer student at the Golden Eagle refinery in Holyrood during the 1960s. Those summer jobs in high school got John interested in chemical engineering, which he pursued at Nova Scotia Tech, since Memorial University didn’t have a chemical engineering program at the time. 1-888-588-6353
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This led to him becoming refinery manager from 1975 to 1980. These days, he’s retired and has a keen interest in history. Through his research, he’s learned a fair bit about how the refinery came to be in Holyrood and the role Shaheen played. “It’s a fascinating story,” says John during a recent phone call from his home in Ontario. He relates what he’s learned through years of research. The refinery belonged to Britishowned oil company Ultramar, which at the time was a fairly small outfit. They were extracting oil in Venezuela and were looking for opportunities to refine the oil and bring it to market. Shaheen, meanwhile, had come to learn of a small refinery, built and sitting on a wharf in Los Angeles waiting to be shipped to Thailand. But that plan had fallen through, and the refinery owners were looking for a new buyer. Through the jigs and the reels, Shaheen convinced the Smallwood government that an oil refinery was exactly what they needed and convinced Ultramar that the refinery should be the one on that L.A. dock. Although unsure of the true reason Holyrood was chosen for the refinery site, John says it’s a sensible location, with a deep harbour for ships and proximity to the bulk of the island’s population. Originally built to process 7,000 barrels of crude oil per day, through constant improvements and upgrades, the refinery would grow its capacity to 15,000 barrels per day. This was due in large part, notes John, to the ingenuity of the plant’s management team and staff, who were constantly looking to improve refinery operations. About half of 1-888-588-6353
this production was bunker oil, which for 20 years was sold on contract to the nearby power generating station. The other half of production was a combination of gasoline, diesel and heating oil. “It really was the lifeblood of the community,” says John, wrapping up his tale. By 1965, Shaheen was no longer involved in the Holyrood refinery, which John notes had always been owned by Ultramar. Shaheen’s next project would be the Come By Chance refinery, which was up and running by 1973. By 1976, it was shut down, falling victim to what, at that time, was Canada’s largest bankruptcy. While Come By Chance was failing, Holyrood was succeeding, although it was not successful enough to weather the storm of the international oil trade’s economics. It was shut down in 1983, with Evelyn’s son getting the news the day her granddaughter was brought home from the hospital, forcing him, and other Holyrood townsfolk, to once again leave home in search of work. Next year, 2021, marks the 60th anniversary of Holyrood’s Golden Eagle refinery opening, and the beginning of Newfoundland and Labrador’s oil industry. The refinery has been immortalized in the chorus of “The Holyrood Song” by Willie Arsenault: Down in Holyrood where the squid jiggin’s good And the oil refinery’s a hummin’ away The flame from the Eagle, the cross on the hill The prettiest picture in Conception Bay July 2020
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reminiscing
Frontier Farming: The O’Brien Farm Story by Chad Bennett
Held in the protection of Mount Scio lies a
small family farm, once one of hundreds around St. John’s. Now only a handful remain. The O’Brien family farm is our story and it begins in 1818 with good, clean earth, an Irish Lumper potato, and a Mr. John O’Brien.
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John O’Brien was born in Kilkenny, Ireland, circa 1791, during the creeping crush of the Irish Penal Laws. Under these laws, no Irish Catholic person was allowed to own or even lease any scrap of land. They were relegated to the lot of tenant farmers and subject to ever increasing rents. If the Irish Potato Famines were the quick shock horrors of the 1840s, then the century of the Penal Laws before them were the slow bleed that made them possible. John must have seen colour in the dark, for he arrived on our shores with the courage to imagine a new self-determined life for himself, his family and all those to come after – not in fishing, but in farming. In 1818, John, though still a young man at 27, had lived a long, thin stretch of time and knew only too well that the difference between success and failure was a mere shade one way or the other. There was no fanfare as Mr. O’Brien’s foot fell squarely on our island; it is unlikely anyone even noticed a man of such meagre possessions among their ranks. John had a small case of clothes, a few trunks of Irish forged iron and nothing more. That’s all there was standing between him and not standing at all. The bits of iron were his tools – various farm implements, small hand tools: pick, axe, shovel, hammer. Their oak handles were left behind in Ireland in order to transport them all. These tools had seen many lives, generational tools passed 1-888-588-6353
down through the line, and as chipped and worn as they were, they needed to work one last time. First a rest was needed, and then information. He must get the lay of the land, and being an Irish speaker he sought out familiar voices. In those days, Irish was spoken as commonly as English, and the melodic sounds of Gaelic filled the streets of St. John’s. John quickly found a bed for the night and the information he needed, though not what he had hoped. The land surrounding St. John’s in all directions for the better part of five kilometres as the crow flies was already occupied; he would need to go much farther out than he had anticipated. His countrymen were congregated in the Freshwater region around St. John’s, so that’s where he would head. He lay down and closed his eyes. Tomorrow would decide a lifetime. “Mr. O’Brien,” the landlady’s sharp voice could peel the paint off of a freshly painted eyeball, “will ye be needin’ another night stay?” “No, with kindness,” began John, securing his things. “Best I be pushing off today, I allow. Where might I find a few provisions, hard bread and the like?” The landlady cocked her head to one side. “You’re not one of dem land seekers is ya?” John shrugged. “I’m something of the sort I suppose.” “You really think you can survive out there for 20 years?” Newfoundland’s laws at the time allowed for July 2020
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the informal possession of any unoccupied crown land. And if the land was cleared, worked and occupied for 20 years, then you could claim it as your own, apply for a land grant and be given the deed and title, becoming the official owner free and clear. John took a breath, “I mean to survive somewhere, so I may as well try to earn some land in the process.”
Boggans’ and the Egans’. Out past the Dwyers’, O’Neills’ and Wickhams’. Past the Duffs’, Malones’, Flinns’ and Burkes’s. Out beyond the O’Learys’, Tobins’ and Bulgers’. Here, after the best part of a day spent in an increasingly worrisome and painful trudge, John found a wilderness he could make his own. He set his things down and slept right there among the trees and the
Here, after the best part of a day spent in an increasingly worrisome and painful trudge, John found a wilderness he could make his own. The landlady chortled. “Provisions can be had out that way to the left and around the bend, and when you’ve had enough out there in the sticks, you can come back and wash dishes for me,” she snorted, before bustling off to some backroom. “Thank you,” said John to a retreating backside. If nerves hadn’t already been munching their way through his lower intestine, then after provisioning with the last of his worldly wealth before heading out into an unknown land to push the frontiers of settlement into the wilderness, well, let’s just say that these nerves had real teeth. John headed out of town, dragging his iron with him through the woven ribbons of lanes, paths and rutted scars leading to the wilderness. He moved out past farmsteads both long established and new. Out past the Kennedys’, the 122
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smell of the woodland floor. Next morning he awoke covered with an intricate mosaic of mosquito bites and uncontrollable shivers. For one terrifying moment he couldn’t remember where he was, but with a few sharp breaths he arose, started a fire, warmed, dried, ate and began day 1 of year 1 of at least the next 20. The work would begin. First he would need to make handles for all his tools. Instead of oak, he would use Newfoundland birch. A shelter, locally called a tilt, would need constructing, something that could get him through the first winter and more likely the first halfdozen winters. The materials for this tilt would be taken from the first bit of cleared land, and the ground made ready for planting. John would need to plant soon enough to raise a crop to get him through the winter, or he would likely starve. He would have to 1-888-588-6353
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O’Brien Farm Foundation photo
The O’Brien farmhouse, Thimble Cottage, still stands on the farm on Mount Scio Road in St. John’s produce enough firewood – chopped, dried and stored – to make it through the winter. And to make matters worse, the soil was thinner and rockier than anticipated, which would mean large stones removed by hand and more land being cleared to achieve the necessary yields. Now the hard part: all of this would need to be done by himself with only hand tools against raw wilderness, with food stores running out. It was to be an all-out sprint to beat the setting of the sun, each and every day. Now you can be forgiven for thinking that such a thing couldn’t have been done, not with hand tools, not against raw wilderness, on starvation rations, against the clock, by yourself. Understandable, but you’d be mistaken. John planted the Irish Lumper potatoes he’d brought with him from Ireland that year and survived. He survived the next year, too. In fact, he would go on to establish a farm and 1-888-588-6353
dairy operation of some 30 acres, which would continue for over 180 years, and feed and raise and nurture generations. By the 1840s, there would be more than 400 family farms surrounding St. John’s just like O’Brien’s. And in 1843, Mr. John O’Brien became a landowner; his land grant had been made official and was approved. In 2011, the O’Brien Farm Foundation was established to preserve, develop and operate the farm, according to the wishes expressed by Aloysius O’Brien, John O’Brien’s great-grandson, in his will. The O’Brien family farm – together with the residence, Thimble Cottage – stand now and always open to the public, to learn from and experience. It is a monument to the hand of welcome, refuge and hope that Newfoundland has given the world. These special places remind us, if we should ever lose sight, that here in this earth good things grow. July 2020
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2007Mktplace_0609 Marketplace.qxd 6/5/20 2:23 PM Page 126
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puzzles The Beaten Path
Norman Purchase photo
By Ron Young
Block out all the letters that are like other letters in every way, including shape and size. The letters that are left over will spell out the name of the above community in letters that get smaller in size.
B
J
K
E
V
S
T
m
H
T p
n
H Y
J AR
U
x
Q
R T
T
G
J
H
p
U
m
Q
T
E
n
O
H
A
S x
A
T V J K E T S S B A H P p T Y J E R T J J J V T B S H R m R S K V E Q p H K x Y n
G
G
m
B
H T n
U
Last Month’s Community: Springdale 132
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Sudoku
from websudoku.com
Skill level: Medium Last month’s answers
?
Need Help
Visit DownhomeLife.com/puzzles for step-by-step logic for solving this puzzle
www.downhomelife.com
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Downhomer Detective Needs You 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.
Use these 5 clues to identify where Ragged Rick is now: • Its lighthouse is made of granite • It’s a ferry ride from LaPoile • The name is derived from the French for “white rock” • Settled since the early 1800s • Married to its neighbour Harbour Le Cou
Last Month’s Answer: Flatrock
Picturesque Place NameS of Newfoundland and Labrador
by Mel D’Souza Last Month’s Answer: Gambo 134
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In Other Words Guess the well-known expression written here in other words.
Last Month’s Clue: Your estimation is as worthy as my own In Other Words: Your guess is as good as mine This Month’s Clue: One cent to give for your notions In Other Words: __ ______ ___ _____ _______
A Way With Words
INSIDE
Rhyme Time A rhyming word game by Ron Young
Last Month’s Answer: Inside Out
1. A stupid firearm is a ____ ___ 2. A soaked doggy is a ___ ___
This Month’s Clue
HEAD HEELS
3. Mickey’s home is a _____ _____
ANS: _____ _____ _____
Scrambled Sayings
Last Month’s Answers 1. rude mood, 2. cat mat, 3. top pop 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.
F A F S W
H I M O
.
’
’ ’
E L E D E E H E E A A G N T H H T S E J E C I N Y T I T V P T U R R W S
’ A N I R A E S S E R S T N T T O
A T I H E R R T O N E S R T V G T Y I
Last month’s answer: Happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy simply, to think freely, to risk life, to be needed. www.downhomelife.com
July 2020
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Rhymes 5 Times Each answer rhymes with the other four
1. whimper 2. eat 3. improve 4. sabotage 5. cat
____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________
STUCK? Don’t get your knickers in a knot! Puzzle answers can be found online at DownhomeLife.com/puzzles
Last Month’s Answers: 1. teachers, 2. preachers, 3. bleachers, 4. creatures, 5. features
Tangled Towns by Lolene Young Condon and Ron Young
Unscramble each of the five groups of letters below to get 5 Newfoundland and Labrador place names.
Sound out the groups of words below to get a familiar expression. For best results sound the clue words out loud!
1. TUBERTEN SDNLAI
Eggs Purr Hey Shunned Eight __________ ____
3. NECRTRONE STEA
May Gun High Tough Fit _____ __ ______ ___ ___ Last Month’s 1st Clue: Hum Era Con Egg Suppress Answer: American Express Last Month’s 2nd Clue: Stay Cows Answer: Steak house
2. SJREEY ROBUHRA 4. BLAREMOLE 5. ISNAT QUASCEJ Last Month’s Answers: 1. Lushes Bight, 2. Brighton, 3. Beachside, 4. Coffee Cove, 5. Rattling Brook
A nalogical A nagrams Unscramble the capitalized words to get one word that matches the subtle clue. 1. GRACE AIR ~ Clue: turns into a pumpkin when the time is right 2. PERCH IT ~ Clue: doesn’t like walks and hates runs 3. MOM HACK ~ Clue: a summer sling 4. NO PLY GUARD ~ Clue: welcome to the jungle, Jim 5. BE BULB ~ Clue: just about to burst Last Month’s Answers: 1. cellphone, 2. notepad, 3. surgeon, 4. porridge, 5. tarpaulin 136
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Four-Way Crossword F o re Wo rd s • B a c k Wo rd s • U p Wo rd s • D o w n Wo rd s By Ron Young
Unlike regular crosswords, in Four-Way Crossword each letter is not necessarily related to the letter in the adjacent row or column, but is part of one or more words in some direction.
1-31: pal 1-10: writing thief 1-91: excusable 2-4: fall behind 2-32: ogle 3-23: question 4-2: female 6-96: affectionately 9-7: knight’s title 9-39: box 9-49: extra 10-100: greenhorn 13-11: waterway 13-16: spoke 13-43: epidermis 16-19: profound 20-17: dueling sword 21-1: modern music 24-26: male sheep 24-54: precipitation 24-94: downpour 26-21: signpost 29-59: region 30-10: seine 30-28: henpeck 32-62: lease 33-73: northern Indigenous people 35-32: bazaar 35-55: merriment 37-40: string 39-69: behind 43-41: new 46-26: edge 46-43: devastation 46-76: phone 47-50: aspen 51-31: Cain’s given land 51-71: arrest 58-28: amphibian 58-60: distant www.downhomelife.com
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62-92: group 64-62: seizure 64-66: devotee 64-94: autumn 67-7: spectator 67-27: timepiece 70-66: scowl 73-93: gratuity 75-55: sprinted 76-79: emit light 82-84: be sick 85-55: Arab country 86-89: fat 88-58: housetop 91-61: Napoleon island 91-96: hire
91-100: work 93-96: tactic 97-99: crewmembers 100-80: also Last Month’s Answer
G R A N D C H I L D
N S A I N T U N E E
O P U P E T N I A F
R A T S R O T C A F
T I R E D O R E T U
S DA L EN YNO HTO S E L BMR A P T NT E AER CDN July 2020
E D O L L A P A G A
H E N C E F O R T H 137
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The Bayman’s
Crossword Puzzle 1
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by Ron Young
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ACROSS 1. teacher’s title 4. fuss 5. tree 6. “___ da b’y that builds the boat” 7. province in India 8. “Michael row the boat _____” 12. mischievous boy (colloq) 16. ____ as a cucumber 17. overhead railway 18. old postal abbrev for Newfoundland 19. road (abbrev) 20. “And give me _ ____ for poor Kit on the pond” (2 words) 23. garden tool 25. “A-tisket a-tasket, a green and yellow ______” 27. mown grass 28. light switch position 29. emperor (abbrev) 30. “How’s ya getting’ on, __ ol’ cock?” 31. “A ____ smoke is better than a cold fog” 33. tissue thickness 35. grain 37. snake-fish 40. talk using meaningless words (colloq) 43. Earhart 44. stately woody plant (2 words) 45. thole pin (colloq) 46. “I’se the __” 47. finish 48. “___ to Newfoundland” 49. negative answer DOWN 1. “He treated me kindly _____ ____ ___ __ you” (4 words) 2. “Beware the ____ of March” 3. “As I ____ ______ ____ __ www.downhomelife.com
schooner close by” (4 words) 9. “Blowing __ hard it would take two men to hold down one” 10. “___ as Buckley’s goat” 11. pitch tent for awhile 12. drip 13. game marble (colloq) 14. “__ ___ ____ Canadian waters” (3 words) 15. Bay __ Islands 21. “Had __ come in the mail” 22. boat left to overwinter by English fishermen 24. “You can’t tell the mind __ _ squid” (2 words) 25. “I can’t marry all or in chokey I’d __” 26. connected 32. barley 34. pleasant 36. gross weight 38. stack 39. lake bird 41. clergyman’s robe 42. number of legs on a crab 45. act H E C A U G H T T H A T W H A L E
I S A T N R A I A G H A T F O O R B H A E F F O I R N
ANSWERS TO LAST MONTH’S CROSSWORD T L E T E E L D S A O A R N R F T T T E T R E N A T S P H
O F W O E O N E
N G U O U R A N A R N D O V T H O U E E R O I
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S A T G L E A L E R I D I I N S E A D D D O
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DIAL-A-SMILE © 2020 Ron Young
Pick the right letters from the old style phone to match the numbers grouped below and uncover a quote which will bring a smile to your face. _ 4
____ 2665
_________ 766384637 __ 48
__ 86
___ _ 948 4 _ 4 ___ 843
____ 9463
____ 3836
’
_ __ 2 33
____ 3663
Last Month’s Answer: I never drink water because of the disgusting things that fish do in it.
©2020 Ron Young
CRACK THE CODE Each symbol represents a letter of the alphabet, for instance b = T Try to guess the smaller, more obvious words to come up with the letters for the longer ones. The code changes each month.
_ _ T _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 0 m b X O O 0 DX m BX _ _ T _ _ _ T n 0 b i 7 kb _ _
0h
_ _ _ _
O 0 xX
_ _ T _ _ _ T n 0 b i 7 kb
_ _ _ _ T _ _ _ zZ \ 0 b 0 7 m _
z
_ _ _ _
\0 l t
_ _ _ _ _ n 0 m Dh
Last Month’s Answer: Give a man an inch and he'll think he’s a ruler. 140
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Food For Thought
© 2020 Ron Young
Each food symbol represents a letter of the alphabet. Find the meanings to the words then match the letters with the food symbols below to get a little “food for thought.”
slash =
wander =
grin =
holiday =
_ _ _
]vz _ _ _ _
[sx c
kpIy c
_ _ _
_ _ _ _
yv]t
_ _ _ _ _ _
_ _
z my cez Ik _ _
_
se c _
m
_
listens =
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
_
w c m[tc e k
plane trip =
_ _ _ _ _
zw c
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
xm]mz Ise
_ _ _ _
pvkz _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _
sq
qyIwwz
_ _ _ _ _ _
wmxIew
_ _ _
esz _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _
c esv ww
myks _ _ _
z my cez qs[
_ _ _ _ _ _
;
_ _ _ _
w mx c _ _ _ _
yv]t
Last Month’s Answer: Silence is golden, unless you have kids, then silence is just plain suspicious. www.downhomelife.com
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Different Strokes
Our artist’s pen made the two seemingly identical pictures below different in 12 places. See if you can find all 12.
ERN PLAYS DARTS WITH FRIENDS
Last Month’s Answers: 1. Calendar; 2. Ern’s arm; 3. House; 4. Sofa; 5. Broom handle; 6. Sleeve; 7. Chair leg; 8. Acetylene torch; 9. Cylinder; 10. Rope; 11. Drill; 12. Broom length. “Differences by the Dozen”- A compilation of Different Strokes from 2002 to 2014 (autographed by Mel) can be ordered by sending $9.95 (postage incl.; $13.98 for U.S. mailing) to Mel D’Souza, 21 Brentwood Dr., Brampton, ON, L6T 1P8.
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HIDE & SEEK LAKES OF CANADA
The words can be across, up, down, backward or at an angle, but always in a line.
KLUANE KOOTENA MELVILLE MOLSON NETTILLING ONTARIO
ABERDEEN ASHUANIPI ATHABASCA BAKER CEDAR CHAMPLAIN COLD CREE DEER ERIE GANDER GRAND HURON INGA
C D X R E E D N I E R A E R N K N I
S H A B O G A M O U C J B B O U X X
G O A G A N D E R B E H V B S T F Z
Q E N M B H U R O N D S W A L O I H
R P O A P H R O Q D A B O Z O H Q S
A E K C B L P Q L P R S K Q M Z U Y
R P R N L I P D V A X J B D Y K E D
Last Month’s Answers
K E E Z M W A O T O I G L J E P U O
www.downhomelife.com
R E O D D I C I N W B C E J E U D S
Y D L V I E S O N K U F J R Y M E F
G N I L L I T T E N J N I O X N C C
W B O I I S V E I R E O Y G A H B S
M P N N I V I Q A X R H F U R S M Y
L E T O R G A B H K O S T E A T P N
U G C L T A L S O T I Y L I C A M Y
G R W I S F G X Z G M Z G B F I X L
B E S O F E G C I L E Y S L S H S T
A E L O Y A H E B A T K W D I R N Y
REINDEER SHABOGAMO SIMCOE SUPERIOR THETIS WILLISTON
A D R O L V E B Z U V Q B I D K K Y
I I D A P F X O C A R N A T I O N I
V I Z O K U R O M B W A O W V G J D
Y I N M N X N D D O E E R S H K N Y
L Y J U Q I L U P R V B E A Y O D J
W E O I A G J I J V A Z S V M G S O
T N E R T O U G S U L M W Z I G B U
Q O G L G E N M C G D Z W L I L Y Y
K T X N B L V A O O H H X J X H P K
K E N I N I P I L U T N E X W Y I E
T G I E Y O H T D B J V G S R R D R
L P R F J Q B Z U Z X D L O T U S N
F A M O J R A U K H N Z N I O Y J V
P P K E H U G H X P W A N J T B G U
M E T X A M S W T A U B W J C O K S
I C E G O K T X D T R J H S R J U J
I H O D C H N A R K Y L X W Z P E B
C A A L C H E Z C R E B H C B Y K V
E N O O W F R N B T O R H S S D S T
D C O R C N T B U I U Y Q W U J E A
U I G V P L X E Z J R I C N G L Y Q
N H X E S X A J Y L D P A U T I Y U
S I T E H T T A X M G B J V X R R W
F C R S U C O R C P X P K E P L A E
I E D Z I Q E O W K P T B H N Y V S
K K E B W Z Q S K Q J F I N O Q C L
L L E B E U L B Y H J O Q T X E B U
F B V C I V J H D T P D P H R O L L
I I N A W S K C X T F O Z J J C Q Q
July 2020
Z H Y A C I N T H T M T A H Y W H A
Z W G Z W Y S V B J R X O L X Y D J
V F A D O G J A E K Y U V Y J D F Y 143
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photo finish
We’re All
New at This
Malcolm’s first year is turning out to be a memorable one for everybody. Nicole Noseworthy Bryant’s Cove, NL
Do you have an amazing or funny photo to share? Turn to page 9 to find out how to submit. 144
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1.800.563.2800 1.800 .563.2800 |
@PALairlines @P PAL A airlines
palairlines. palairlines.ca ca
