Winter In The Hills 2022

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FEATURES

OUR LOCAL HEROES

Our annual salute to some of the inspiring people, young and old, whose guiding principle is service to others. by Jeff Rollings, Emily Dickson and Nicola Ross

60 HOME FOR THE HOLYDAYS

Christmas tends to take centre stage, but it is hardly the only holiday that warms hearts and brings sparkle to the dark days of winter in the hills.

by

Anthony Jenkins

42

THE YEAR IN BOOKS

An impressive crop of new books by local authors and illustrators includes mysteries, biographies, self-help, gardening and charming stories for young readers, as reviewed by several of our regular contributors.

68 THE YEAR IN MUSIC

Against the Covid odds, local artists have continued to make music that captures both their personal reflections and the mood of the times.

by Scott Bruyea

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IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER

Mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles have devised a remarkable array of strategies to survive when food is short and temperatures plummet. by Don Scallen

Our readers write 23 ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Painter Lynden Cowan 25 FIELD NOTES

Get outdoors, take in a play, and capture the holiday spirit by Johanna Bernhardt 29 FENCE POSTS

Taking the learning curve too fast by Dan Needles

73 MADE IN THE HILLS

Weaver Johana Cordero by Janice Quirt

75 LOCAL BUYS

Handmade gifts to delight by Janice Quirt

77 COUNTRY LIVING 101

Feed the birds by Alison McGill

78 FOOD + DRINK

From classic bonbons to tourtière, big flavours brighten the season by Janice Quirt

82 A DAY IN THE LIFE

Snowplow operator Bruce Crawford takes on winter by Tony Reynolds

85 TAKE A HIKE

Elora Cataract Trailway by Nicola Ross

86 HEADWATERS NEST

Arrival of the Aunties by Bethany Lee 88 OVER THE (NEXT) HILL Metric resistance by Gail Grant

90 AT HOME IN THE HILLS

A very modern couple put a contemporary twist on their new farmhouse in Erin by Janice Quirt

108 WHAT’S ON

A calendar of winter happenings 118 A PUZZLING CONCLUSION by Ken Weber INDEX 102 FIND AN ADVERTISER

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publisher and editor Signe Ball

writers Johanna Bernhardt Scott Bruyea Emily Dickson Ellie Eberlee Gail Grant Anthony Jenkins Bethany Lee Alison McGill Dan Needles Janice Quirt Tony Reynolds Jeff Rollings Nicola Ross Don Scallen Ken Weber

photographers Erin Fitzgibbon Rosemary Hasner Elaine Li Robert McCaw Pete Paterson illustrators Shelagh Armstrong Ruth Ann Pearce Jim Stewart

VOL.29 NO.4 2022

art director Kim van Oosterom Wallflower Design associate editors

Tralee Pearce Dyanne Rivers operations manager Cindy Caines regional sales managers Roberta Fracassi Erin Woodley

advertising production Marion Hodgson Type & Images

events and copy editor Janet Kerr Dimond digital editors Emily Dickson Janice Quirt

on our cover Ruffed grouse, by Robert McCaw

In The Hills is published quarterly by MonoLog Communications Inc. It is distributed through controlled circulation to households in the towns of Caledon, Erin, Orangeville, Shelburne and Creemore, and Dufferin County. Annual subscriptions outside the distribution area are $27.95 (including HST).

For information regarding editorial content or letters to the editor: 519-942-8401 or sball@inthehills.ca.

For advertising, contact one of our sales managers: Roberta Fracassi 519-943-6822 roberta@inthehills.ca (Orangeville, Shelburne, Creemore, areas N of Hwy 9) Erin Woodley 519-216-3795 erin@inthehills.ca (Caledon, Bolton, Erin and areas S of Hwy 9)

© 2022 MonoLog Communications Inc. All rights reserved. No reproduction by any means or in any form may be made without prior written consent by the publisher.

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The ad booking deadline for the spring 2023 (March) issue is Friday, February 10, 2023. Canada Post Agreement Number 40015856

Birds do it, frogs do it, even rabbits in the woods do it. So let’s do it – let’s survive winter.

In this issue, writer and naturalist Don Scallen describes some of the ingenious ways local wildlife make it through the harsh weather ahead. We humans could take some notes.

Blessed as we were by a blazing fall and early November’s string of unusually sunny days, with the lingering pall of three years of Covid, the prospect of escalating food and heating costs, and the relentless drumbeat of war, climate devastation and social division, it’s going to be harder than ever to find rays of light in the dark and cold weeks to come.

Although we can’t solve all the problems, we hope the inspiring people and festive activities we’ve packed into this issue will offer some welcome respite from the Big Gloom. As always, this year’s Local Heroes represent what’s best about our community – the kindness and dedication that propel us forward. And with the holiday season upon us, we visit five individuals and families who describe the rich diversity of festivities that serve to gladden hearts and lift spirits when the days are short.

Of course, these pages also contain plenty of diversions that will get you outdoors, off to a performance or cooking up a feast. But if hibernation is more your thing and you’d rather just cozy up with a good book or some music, you’ll find plenty of options to choose from in our annual reviews of new books and recordings. Whatever your preference, we wish you some sunshine on a

Changes: With this issue, two of our longtime contributors are

Valerie Jones’s name may not be familiar to most readers, but behind the scenes she has been the indispensable brains and brawn who has kept our website and other digital platforms on track for more than a decade. It’s a job that took not only tremendous skill in a rapidly evolving tech environment, but extraordinary patience – with those of us, like me (well, mostly me), who are not what you would call early adopters. Although Valerie will continue to help us with certain tasks, her very big shoes will now be filled by digital editor Emily Dickson, who is introduced in our contributor profiles on page 16.

We’re also bidding adieu to Tracey Fockler. Although Tracey has generally written just one feature a year for us, what a one it was – our annual roundup of new books by local authors and illustrators. What started out in 1998 as a handful of titles has grown to more than three dozen (print, it seems, is not dead). Each year, Tracey read and then wrote compact, thoughtful reviews about every one of them. For this year’s reviews, it took

We send both Valerie and Tracey off on their new adventures with enormous gratitude and goodwill.

Hailing from Trinidad and Tobago, Emily Dickson succumbed to the curse (or blessing) of wanderlust at the age of 25 and left her small island home for paths unknown. Her journeys took her to Turkey, Japan, Hong Kong, Dubai and many other destinations, where she put her language skills to good use as an English teacher, travel writer and editor. (For a taste, visit her blog thetravellingtrini.com).

After spending many years bouncing around the globe, eating spicy food and generally getting lost in translation, Emily and her family put down roots in Dufferin County and learned how to shovel snow. She is thrilled to join In The Hills as a new digital editor, and also as a feature writer. When she’s not banging away at the keyboard or booking her next flight, Emily can be found hiking, kayaking, camping and exploring Canada’s incredible wilderness. Emily also has a fun side hustle, Miso Hungry she teaches people how to roll sushi at house parties.

robert m c caw

Most serious naturalists have a “spark” day when they find something in nature that triggers a lifelong passion, says nature photographer Robert McCaw. “Mine happened as a boy on our farm as I wandered along Deer Creek, near Paisley, Ontario. A pair of belted kingfishers dug a nest hole in a high clay bank and every time I appeared along the stream, I would receive a flyover accompanied by a rattled warning. Still my favourite bird!”

When Robert moved his young family to a country home in southern Ontario, he purchased a camera which fuelled an interest in documenting as much nature as possible. His motto became, “If it flowers, flies, swims, walks or crawls, I’m interested.”

Now, with a library of thousands of nature photos, Robert says he still gets a thrill out of being in nature and photographing what he finds. You can dive into Robert’s work at www.robertmccaw.com

If you live in Orangeville, you can thank David Paredes and Susanna Franco for hand-delivering your copies of this magazine. The couple immigrated to Canada from Ecuador in 1998 with aspirations of raising a family in a beautiful community. The family has always lived within the GTA area, but in 2013 they moved to Orangeville to raise their three children one is at Humber College

studying food inspection, another is at Carleton pursuing computer science and the youngest is still in elementary school. The couple loves travel, going to concerts and following La Liga, Spain’s professional soccer league.

“We began delivering In The Hills in 2017 and enjoy our time doing this every few months of the year,” David says of the gig. “We appreciate the opportunity and look forward to delivering for many more years to come.” The whole team at the magazine is grateful to David and Susanna for getting our work into readers’ hands.

emily dickson

david paredes and susanna franco

the rise and fall of the rural post office

I read with great interest Ken Weber’s article on the rise and fall of the rural post office [Historic Hills, autumn ’22]. I own and live in the house that he mentions was once the Amaranth Station post office.

I moved here in 1993 and inherited a brief written and pictorial history of the property kept by the local historian Ann McPherson. That history articulates who owned/ lived in the house and ran the post office from it.

I also found more info on the post office history of Amaranth Station in a Grey, Bruce, Dufferin & Simcoe

railway newsletter (No.17), written in November 2000. It lists all the postmasters and postmistresses from the opening of the Amaranth Station post office in May 1874 to its closing September 1950.

I feel privileged to own and live in a home with the history and longevity my house has.

Joanne Ison, Amaranth

So, this is where our father was born! The Orangeville post office! We were always told of this event on September 22, 1900. His

father, Dugald Macpherson, was the caretaker, and our dad, the youngest of six living brothers, was teased by those brothers that he was “delivered” by mail. Later on, when Dad was in high school, Grandpa became the first librarian in the new Carnegie library, where after school, Dad and his brothers filed books that had come from the Mechanics Institute according to the Dewey Decimal system, and other sundry tasks, as the librarian was also caretaker and secretary of the board.

Janet Dobrowski, Orangeville

Pit by Pit

I was deeply impressed with “Pit by Pit” [autumn ’22] by Nicola Ross. It’s impeccably researched, presents a well balanced perspective and, perhaps best of all for the readers, it’s really entertaining.

I’d have to say my favourite quote was, “Amid these forces, the latest aggregate battle brewing in Cataract will test Caledon’s image of itself with unprecedented intensity.” The quote is particularly germane when we ask ourselves, do we really want Caledon to become a full on “mining town”? Thank you for this terrific piece of journalistic enlightenment.

David Sylvester

Forks of the Credit Preservation Group, Caledon

“Pit by Pit,” your overview of Caledon’s aggregate saga, deserves a wide audience, at least to every MLA at Queen’s Park. I learned a great deal more about what is unfolding on this front. In the 1970s, I was at a cottage on Nellie Lake, outside Iroquois Falls, staying with friends, I thought anonymously, when a telephone call came through from NASA (no idea of how they found me, perhaps through my employer, the ROM, via a family member), telling me they were ground truthing some of their early satellite imagery, and they had just located a notably huge and apparently manmade object – one of the largest they couldn’t account for – in southcentral Ontario,

The Amaranth Station post office, circa 1880.

COURTESY JOANNE ISON

and they were wondering if I could help them identify it. It was Caledon, the pits already in operation in the 1970s. I’ve never forgotten how NASA knew as much or more about the far flung Caledon aggregate operations than the average Ontario citizen did. It’s still the case, more’s the pity.

John Riley, Mono

Re “Pit by Pit”: Congratulations on a well researched and well written piece. I’m glad that [former] Caledon councillor Ian Sinclair is helping out the group. I love the aerial photo/map –probably the first time I’ve seen such a map. The land of square lakes indeed.

Linda Pim, Inglewood

Thank you for a well balanced report on aggregate extraction. As I live just north of Caledon and am half surrounded by a gravel pit and an aggregate reserve, I’m aware of both the benefits and hazards of aggregate extraction.

The local gravel pit is very well operated. I have no complaint, and my township regards it as a model of good stewardship. The owner assured me that it and his adjoining land reserved for aggregate extraction will not penetrate the water table. Other pits are not so well managed, and one, a few kilometres away, may be a repository for garbage, but local government is not allowed to police it.

At one time the Provincial Policy Statement said that aggregate pits must be rehabilitated to their original use – unless they penetrate the water table. As one whose well draws from the Amabel aquifer stretching between Guelph and Orangeville, I’m concerned about the inevitable garbage, lubricants, etc that may be left in an aggregate pond.

I must object to assessing farmed land as a gravel pit. To anticipate future use as an aggregate pit and tax it accordingly would mean that the living earned by the farmer may be denied. Farm property taxes are high enough. As long as a piece of land is being farmed, it is a farm and must be taxed accordingly.

Charles Hooker, East Garafraxa

Editor’s note: The 2017 change to the Municipal Property Assessment formula shifted the active portion of the pit to farmland from industrial. Although the “farmland” is taxed at the industrial rate, the assessment revision does not take into account the value of the aggregate.

Re “Pit by Pit”: Thanks for this great article. In addition to immediate operational challenges, there are issues with a lack of timely and effective site reclamation. See the 2022 video and report called Landscape Impacts of Aggregate Extraction in the Credit, available under Blog in the menu at ontarioheadwaters.ca

Andrew McCammon, The Ontario Headwaters Institute

We welcome your comments! For more reader commentary, or to add your own thoughts on any of the stories in this issue, visit inthehills.ca. You can also send your letters by e-mail to sball@inthehills.ca. Please include your name, address and contact information. In The Hills reserves the right to edit letters for publication.

www.yorkdurhamheadwaters.ca

Lynden Cowan

The highest compliment you can pay artist Lynden Cowan is to say you feel like you could step into one of her oil paintings of local country scenes, burbling brooks, shadowy frozen ponds and moss-carpeted woods – because that’s when she knows her realism is hitting the mark. Over the years, the self-taught painter’s canvases have become increasingly detailed and tightly rendered. Lynden jokes that she goes through “triple-zero brushes by the boxload,” referring to her tiny paintbrush of choice. The award-winning, Brampton-based painter uses them to sneak at least one bird, fish, animal or insect into every piece she creates. Visitors to her studio at the Alton Mill Arts Centre have been known to stay put and stubbornly insist on finding them all. www.lyndencowan.com

BY JOHANNA BERNHARDT

Chill factor

One of the best ways to embrace winter is to get outside – and get moving – as the thermometer drops.

Lace up your skates on outdoor rinks across Headwaters. The Caledon East Community Complex has a permanent outdoor rink, and there are several more across the rest of Caledon. In Orangeville skate at half a dozen rinks at parks including Orangeville Lions Club Sports Park and Island Lake. Erin offers skating at Victoria Park while the Town of Mono has three rinks, including one behind the Mono Community Centre Visit town sites for more info.

Get up close and personal with wintery magic by snowshoeing at Mulmur’s Mansfield Outdoor Centre on designated snowshoe trails on the expansive property. When you’re done, warm up by a wood-burning stove at the lodge. (For more info see Headwaters Nest on page 86.)

At Monora Park cross-country ski over 36 forest trails with the Mono Nordic club. Bring your own skis or use their members-only affordable rental program. Kids aged five to ten can join JackRabbits to learn fundamentals, and visitors can drop in for a daily trail pass with access to over 16 kilometres of trails.

If you’d rather someone else do the work, watch for horse-drawn wagon rides at local tree farms. At Hockley Valley Farm rides are available 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends during the pre-Christmas season.

And for something a little different, consider winter archery. The Archers of Caledon offers five-week beginner archery lessons for kids and adults. Learn the basics on an Olympic-style recurve bow in their indoor facility. Once they’ve completed those lessons, archers have access to 14 outdoor targets on the 30-acre property. Longtime archer and head coach Mark D’Cunha says the pandemic brought an increased interest in the sport and believes archery can be very therapeutic.

Interested in something mentioned here? Find links to social media pages and websites at Field Notes on inthehills.ca.

Crafty Christmas

Local floral workshops are a way to make your home merry and bright and learn something in the process. At Suzanne Gardner Flowers in Orangeville, create your own “kissing ball,” a 19th-century symbol of love traditionally hung from the ceiling during the holidays. Or try their floral centrepiece workshop to create the perfect holiday showpiece December 7 and 14, respectively.

Spend the morning with Caledon’s YS Floral and Farm in their country store, where rustic meets whimsy. Craft a fresh arrangement for your Christmas table and enjoy refreshments and a light snack on December 10 or 11.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Coldest Night of the Year

Join over 300 pedestrians in Orangeville as they raise both compassion and funds on February 25. Coldest Night of the Year supports local organizations that provide help for people experiencing hunger, hurt and homelessness. Step outside the comfort of your home and sign up online for this family-friendly winter charity walk hosted by the Orangeville Food Bank.

Hit the great outdoors, take in a play or concert, and get in the holiday spirit this winter

The sound of music

The Rose Brampton is primed for the sounds of the season. Up first is Celebrate Light , a concert featuring Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas holiday tunes performed by the Rose Orchestra and choral guests on December 3.

If it’s Christmas classics you’re after, head to Christmas at The Rose with the Brampton Concert Band. This annual Christmas show features a collection of merry hits on December 10.

The third generation of the celebrated musical family, the Leahys, hits the stage with A Next Generation Leahy Christmas on December 17. They’re sure to bring down the house with Celtic-inspired music and a foot-stomping good time.

Tickets, please!

Get ready for Christmas cheer at Theatre Orangeville with The Last Christmas Turkey by Dan Needles and Clive VanderBurgh. A sister and brother take in a stray turkey not knowing it was supposed to be dinner at the local church Christmas supper! Dan Needles feels certain, “It’s a special gift this Christmas to be able to sit in a room full of people and laugh together about how people from unlikely backgrounds can find connections to each other and the land under their feet.” The play runs November 30 to December 23.

WATCH FOR IT

Paint it orange

The Town of Caledon and Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation (MCFN) are unveiling an orange crosswalk at the Caledon Centre for Recreation and Wellness. The crosswalk commemorates the Indigenous children of the residential school system as well as their descendants, serving as a permanent reminder of the ways we can work toward reconciliation.

Christmas markets

Shopping local for the holidays just keeps getting easier. From November 30 to December 11, visit the Holiday Treasures show at the Museum of Dufferin in Mulmur with over 60 vendors including makers of jewelry, woodworking, pottery and art. (See pages 75 and 88 for a few of the locally made picks.)

Sip a witchy-themed cocktail while you shop for crochet items, framed insects and more at Wickedly Weird Christmas Market on December 3 at the Alton Legion. Peruse the gift possibilities at The Alton Mill Arts Centre’s seasonal shows, open houses and always-stocked galleries, including Rare Threads, Noodle Gallery and Gallery Gemma and book your photo session with the Grinch (and Femke Photography), offered on weekends until December 11.

Head to Mistletoe Mountain at Mount Alverno Luxury Resorts December 2 to 4 to see a winter wonderland unfold.

The built environment

Museum of Dufferin features an exhibit of the work of award-winning Czech architect Martin Rajnis until January 29. For over 20 years, Rajnis has created innovative structures made from glass, wood and steel designed to complement the natural world and embody sustainability.

The Leahy family presents A Next Generation Leahy Christmas.

true confessions from the ninth concession

Taking the learning curve

too fast

BY DAN NEEDLES ILLUSTRATION BY SHELAGH ARMSTRONG

For the past two years, everybody has been talking about the invasion of small town Ontario by refugees from the city. The traffic in town is now just like Toronto; in fact, it is a little bit worse. In Toronto, you have a homogeneous traffic stream of reasonably skilled drivers hurtling toward their destination like a school of fish or a flock of blackbirds. Miraculously, they don’t bump into each other all that often. But out here in the country you have a dangerous mix of blackbirds and pelicans. There’s Mike and Vern leaving their morning driveshed coffee club meeting in their GMC pickup, meandering up the recently paved Tenth Concession and trying to recall who settled what farm 200 years ago. Behind them is a dot.com trendoid fighter pilot in an Infiniti who thinks he can get around them on Short’s Hill. This is a bad combination and frequently ends in tears at any season of the year, but winter jacks up the risk factor by a multiple of five.

The Tenth was never a great road to do anything risky. Smart cyclists avoid it. Before the rebuild it was narrow, hilly, full of potholes, and if you slipped off the road you would need a tow truck. So most people avoided the route altogether or learned to drive carefully. Highway engineers have made it far less forgiving. The road is now narrow, hilly and extremely smooth. The ditches fall away at such a steep angle you are more likely to need an ambulance before you think about a tow truck.

Several years ago, my younger daughter was learning to drive when the police issued a stern

warning about the need for caution during deer season. Nearly 30 incidents had been reported on area highways in the past month. I mentioned this to my young policeman friend and he told me, “Dan, that public service warning was actually aimed at the police. We smashed up something like ten cruisers hitting deer this fall.” My daughter helped bring the statistics back to normal.

On one of her first excursions by herself in the dark, she smacked into a deer and smashed the headlight on our Toyota van. The deer escaped with minor injuries and I replaced the headlight with a

On dark nights, my daughter hunches over the wheel like a bird of prey, scanning the road for the slightest movement in the ditches.

unit from a wrecker for 20 bucks. But her driving habits changed noticeably. On dark nights, she hunches over the wheel like a bird of prey, scanning the road for the slightest movement in the ditches.

Everybody, from the novice driver to the recently arrived urbanite to the highly trained young police cadet, all go through the same steep learning curve. In the first heavy snowstorm of one recent December, my daughter was wending her way carefully down River Road when headlights zoomed up behind her and began flashing at her to get out of the way. She

pulled over and an Audi zipped by. A few minutes later she saw flashing lights ahead and pulled up to find the Audi with a deer lying over its hood. The driver was standing in the middle of the road yelling into her cellphone. She wasn’t interested in any offer of assistance.

In the Great Blow of 1975, I was working in the family restaurant when a group of 16 people appeared at the door looking for shelter. They had been waiting in a cluster at the gas station when the snowplow driver announced he would make one last run to the next town seven miles away. Just before he pulled out, a Cadillac came sailing down from the west and promptly disappeared into a four foot snowbank across the road. They got the poor fellow out with shovels, but he had to spend the next three days sleeping on the floor of our restaurant surrounded by eyewitnesses to his driving error. I’m sure he still winces when he recalls that experience. I know it changed my own driving habits.

One of the reasons for our population surge is the realization that technology allows many of us to work from anywhere we choose. It’s the same technology that allows us to stay home in front of the fire when the winds blow and the snow flies.

Author and playwright Dan Needles is the recipient of the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour. His play, The Last Christmas Turkey, with music by Clive VanderBurgh, is onstage at Theatre Orangeville from November 30 to December 23.

TODAY TOMORROW FOREVER

The Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation is the choice of individual donors, philanthropists and family estates

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The Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation provides individual endowment funds in the name of the Donor

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An endowment fund at the Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation will support the charity of your choice in perpetuity

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The Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation currently holds over 100 endowment funds valued at approximately $ 11 million... and has allocated over $7 million to worthy charities since inception

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Support charities in our community Today...Tomorrow...Forever by creating your legacy and your permanent endowment fund at the Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation.

Serving the Headwaters Community since 2002 905-584-0895 info@bramptoncaledoncf.ca www.bramptoncaledoncf.ca 15976 Airport Road, Caledon East

local heroes

BY EMILY DICKSON, JEFF ROLLINGS & NICOLA ROSS PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROSEMARY HASNER

As Neil Morris, one of this year’s Local Heroes, reflects in these pages, “Of all the different philosophies and religions, one prevailing theme is about service to others.” Indeed, we are blessed in these hills to have so many people who embrace that concept. Community service beats inside them like a second heart. Our local heroes this year hold a diverse range of interests, from keeping us warm and fed, to making our communities more livable and self reliant. Others are creating spaces where our evolving population can get to know each other, and still another is helping to ease our exit when the time comes. They’re an accomplished bunch, and they’re doing important things. We are lucky to have them among us.

sister act

MALINI AND HEMANI SINGH

When sisters Malini and Hemani Singh found out they had won the Community Arts Volunteer Award, one of Orangeville’s annual Arts and Culture Awards, they didn’t believe it was real. “Our dad woke us up and told us that we had won. I thought he was joking!” laughs younger sibling Hemani.

The talented pair received the accolade for promoting classical Indian dance, music and culture both at their school and in the community at large. Malini, 18, a recent graduate of Orangeville District Secondary School, explains how she began training in dance when she was just five years old and fell in love with the art form. Hemani, now 14 and also at ODSS, joined her older sister in dance when she was about 10. The two have been performing together at temples, religious events and festivals in both Dufferin County and Peel Region.

The Singh family has called Orangeville home for the past six years, and the girls have been the driving force behind a number of multicultural events at their schools and beyond. “It’s really important to promote diversity and celebrate different cultures,” says Malini, who was an active member of the school’s Diversity Student Association and enlisted fellow students to participate in making rangoli – floor art created with coloured sand – to celebrate Holi, an ancient Hindu spring festival.

While Malini’s passion is dance and choreography, Hemani is musically gifted and received her elementary school’s music award. She loves to sing and plays the western flute and the harmonium. And she recently began learning the bansuri, a bamboo flute that originated in India. “It’s really hard,” she giggled, as she shyly demonstrated how to position your fingers on the long, elegant instrument.

This year, Hemani and Malini volunteered at the Dufferin County Multicultural Event, held at the Museum of Dufferin, where they performed Kathak and Bharatanatyam classical dances. The two were happy to participate in the festival and promote their heritage. “You’ve got to keep your culture alive,” explains Hemani. “Even if there aren’t a lot of people in your area who celebrate that culture, you should promote it and be proud.”

Though the sisters have been performing in public since they were quite young, they say they still get the jitters before a big show. “Before the event, we have to practise every day for weeks,” Malini says. No mean feat considering the two have their studies to worry about, on top of part time jobs.

Now that Malini is attending university, where she is focusing on child and youth studies with a view to becoming a children’s lawyer, she doesn’t have quite as much time to dedicate to dance. Still, she intends to continue to train and perform. Hemani, on the other hand, wants to work with her hands and has developed a strong interest in welding after taking part in a welding camp at school.

Proud father Vishal Singh is thrilled his daughters received the award and hopes it will inspire more young people to promote multicultural ism: “It’s so wonderful to see all the talented individuals around our community, and I wish to see even more, especially the youth.”

—EMILY DICKSON

Malini (above) and Hemani Singh

habit of the heart · neil morris

It’s midmorning on a Monday at the Coywolf Coffee shop in Inglewood. As the place slowly fills with patrons, more than half approach the table where Neil Morris is sitting – just to say hello.

Neil is the 2022 recipient of Caledon’s Community Champion Award for both his longtime participation as a member of the Bethell Hospice volunteer team and his involvement in a wide range of Caledon environmental initiatives.

Along with his wife, Janice, an animal welfare advocate who works to rescue and adopt dogs from northeastern Quebec, Neil moved to Inglewood in 1998.

When Bethell Hospice first opened near their home in 2010, Neil says plenty of women volunteered, but not so many men. Janice’s father had recently died – “It was my first adult experience with death,” says Neil – and it inspired him to sign up for the 40 hour training program to become a hospice volunteer.

“When you’re introduced to the hospice, you

realize you know nothing about it until you’re standing in it. It’s its own community,” he says. “The cluster of wonderful people who do the volunteering often make me think of that saying, ‘Habit of the heart and mind.’”

Neil’s main role at Bethell is on the maintenance team, but that has evolved into working in the kitchen and at reception, among other things. During the pandemic, he often found himself jumping in to cover shifts for others. Overall, he says, “the goal is to support the staff and try to be a positive influence.”

As a side hustle, Neil collects the crop from apple trees on the Bethell grounds, making jellies that the hospice sells to raise funds. “Learning how to make apple jelly might be my biggest achievement,” he quips, adding this touching note: “It’s a way for people to have a little piece of the hospice.”

Though Neil believes his work at Bethell is his most important volunteer role, and the one he’s most proud of, over the years

the self employed environmental consultant has also given time to more than 10 mostly environmental causes. The most rewarding, he recalls, was his nine year stint on Caledon’s Environmental Advisory Committee, including four years as chair, and his work as a Bruce Trail maintenance volunteer, which he has been carrying out since 2000.

Neil says he would always encourage people to keep an open mind about volunteering. His first experience was donating blood as a teenager, and he says, “From the minute I took that step, it has added to the way I understand the world.”

Later he adds, “One observation I’ve had is that in all the different philosophies and religions, one prevailing theme is service to others. It gives you a better sense of the world, and of yourself.

“I like to think of that expression ‘spending time.’ Well, volunteering is a great way to spend your time.”

Common Ground

What happens when Tony Arrell, a community minded farmer and investment adviser, hooks up with Stuart Lazier, a like minded real estate magnate? Creemore’s brand spanking new, $4.5 million Village Green, that’s what.

The project, which the duo initially thought would take a couple of years to complete, opened last summer, exactly four years after they came up with the idea. The complex process involved partnering with the Creemore Horticultural Society, which already maintained gardens on part of the proposed site, persuading the TD Bank to donate an adjacent property, creating a community foundation, forming an organizing committee, consulting with the public, hiring consultants to guide them through the project, as well as architects to design it and contractors to build it, and last but not least, raising a ton of money.

Despite his history in the real estate business, Stuart says, “Building a park is so different. Most people just see a pretty park. But it’s a much more significant project.”

Part of what made the Village Green different

for the business minded pair was involving the local residents. Their advisers, a company called Small, assisted with this process. Public meetings helped them integrate the views of some 650 people – and transform the project into a community wide undertaking.

The green links Creemore’s existing Station on the Green community centre with the public gardens and the village’s main commercial district. The Station on the Green replicates a train station, and the Village Green also recognizes the village’s past with pathways that follow the route of the Hamilton & North Western Railway, which ran through the village. Along the paths, aspects of village history are etched into granite pavers that suggest railway ties, and the new stage is reminiscent of a train platform.

Like so many grassroots initiatives, this one had its share of challenges. But the result has been hugely rewarding, not only for Stuart and Tony, but also for residents of Creemore, the townships of Clearview and Mulmur, where the two men live, and beyond. The project involved more than 60 volunteers and about 300 donors

who gave anywhere from a few bucks to more than $100,000.

“We believe in giving back to our communities,” says Tony. And they’ve definitely done that. The green has already hosted many events, such as Fall Equinox and the Copper Kettle Festival. In warmer weather, kids use the splash pad, and the permanent table tennis setup is the busiest spot in the park.

Uses like these allow Stuart and Tony to believe they got it right. “It has been successful because the community has embraced the park,” says Stuart. But the two also recognize that the time will be the true test. Says Tony, “Success would be that five years from now it’s still a popular meeting place.” To ensure this outcome, they are continuing to raise funds –to create an endowment that will enable hiring a manager to organize events year round and to fund future initiatives.

In this way, the Creemore Village Green should continue to be a community building place where longtime residents rub shoulders with newcomers, weekenders and visitors.

stuart lazier and tony arrell

Stuart Lazier (left) and Tony Arrell at the official opening of the Village Green.

basia and shannon knowlton

Basia Knowlton likes to say she was born with a crochet hook in her hand.

Six years ago, frustrated after failing to sell any of her many creations at a disappointing craft show, Basia decided to string a line between the trees in her Orangeville front yard, hang her goods on it and simply give them all away.

So began what has evolved into a mission to keep people warm, fed and looked after.

Dubbed “Warmth for the Winter,” the line in Basia’s front yard has grown to include not only her own work, but also mitts, hats, scarves and winter coats donated by others. Everything is free for those in need. As a single mother of three, Basia says, “I’ve had hard times in my past, and I just want to pay it back … So here, people don’t have to explain themselves, they don’t have to beg. It’s non judgmental.”

Basia’s charitable efforts have grown beyond the Warmth for the Winter project. She added what she calls her Food Bank Moose, to collect non perishable food donations. Last year that effort resulted in about a half dozen trips to deliver food to the Orangeville Food Bank. In another Basia project, she collects $2 donations to sponsor squares in blankets that, once made, go to organizations such as Family Transition Place, the Orangeville Legion and Orangeville’s new men’s shelter. Her goal is to produce one blanket a month. And if all that weren’t enough, this year she has also been creating and selling coasters and earrings in the colours of Ukraine, with the proceeds going to support the war torn country.

If you think of Basia as the Batman of community service, then surely her daughter Shannon is Robin. The dynamic duo undertake all their projects together. In addition to working at all the craft shows, Shannon takes particular responsibility for creating bracelets and scrunchies, and contributes a critical element to the design process: “I pick the colours for stuff.”

Sadly, people have occasionally taken advantage of Basia and Shannon’s efforts to help. A few have taken much more than they need, including one group that totally cleaned out the place last year. Basia suspects they planned to sell the merchandise online. Though security cameras might help, Basia can’t afford a good system, and even with cameras, there’s a limited amount that can be done. Still, she takes a considered view: “Three bad eggs, but you help 100 people.”

Basia and Shannon accept cash donations, which are used to purchase things like bags, hangers and yarn, but Basia asks that people not donate yarn itself. “Too often,” she says, “it smells like Grandma’s attic, or Grandma’s basement, or Grandma’s ashtray.”

“You don’t have to have a lot of money to help,” says Basia. “We can all make a difference.”

Warmth for the Winter, aka “the lady with the line,” is located at 46 Centre Street in Orangeville.

Shannon (left) and Basia Knowlton

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Unity in diversity · ALTHEA ALLI

Althea Alli grew up in a world where multiculturalism was the norm. With Guyanese roots, she was raised in Toronto and Brampton, but her extended family was a mélange of backgrounds, including Indian, Chinese and Portuguese. “My nickname grow ing up was ‘United Nations,’” she laughs. “Look ing at us, you’d never know we were all related.”

In 2013, Althea and her young family made the decision to move to Shelburne. Making the transition from large, diverse cities like Toronto and Brampton was a challenge at first, but the move ultimately spurred Althea to spearhead a number of community initiatives and become a driving force behind Shelburne’s multicultural events.

She began reaching out by hosting markets so local businesses grounded in various cultures could connect with the community, and she became involved in the town’s fall fair board and the Fiddle Parade. She also spent time at her children’s school, volunteering in the classroom and talking to kids about diversity and inclusion. Then in 2017 she approached Shelburne

council and pitched the idea of a multicultural festival. “The first one was ... small,” she chuckles, describing how the 2018 event was held in one room in the town library. “But the following year I needed a bigger space because so many people wanted to participate. The size had doubled!”

After going online for two years because of the pandemic, the event was back in person this past June – and bigger and better than ever. Held at the Museum of Dufferin, the celebration saw the rolling hills of Mulmur come alive with the sounds of Caribbean steelpan and African drums, classical dances from India, performances by Scottish and Irish dancers, and more. The event brought together people from across Dufferin County who trace their roots to many places around the world, as well as representatives of Indigenous and 2SLGBTQ+ communities. There was even a cricket match.

“I was just blown away that so many people wanted to share their culture, their art, their music, their food,” Althea explains. “It was an incredible day. I remember after the festival was done, I sat back with my mom and I got

quite emotional, saying how one little idea, one humble beginning can grow and touch so many lives. I was very honoured.”

Althea was delighted when the event was named the 2022 winner of the award for creative cultural event at Orangeville’s annual Arts and Culture Awards, and she has no doubt the festival will continue to grow and flourish As evidence of that commitment, Alli’s endeavour became a registered non profit, the Dufferin County Multicultural Foundation, in 2022.

Althea, a former youth shelter director, ultimately does this for her family, so they can feel at home as they grow up in Shelburne and Headwaters. “I don’t want my children or any children to feel like outsiders in their own community,” she says. “Everybody should be able to feel a sense of pride and respect. That is my number 1 motivator. I want diversity to be seen as something to celebrate, and a great way to do that is through food, art and entertainment. Rhythm, music and food are a common language that every country understands. It’s what unites us!”

Invested in community

Gallaugher

These days, Gord Gallaugher is best known as a founding director, president and chair of the Dufferin Community Foundation, but he credits his long – and very active –participation in local politics and community service with setting the stage for this initiative: “I would never have done the foundation without my experience in public life.”

Gord’s involvement in the community should come as no surprise. For more than 150 years, six generations of the Gallaugher family have called Mulmur home – and a history of the township abounds with the names of family members who engaged in civic works.

Gord himself spent 12 years on Mulmur Township council, including six years as mayor, and on Dufferin County council, where he served as warden. These positions also required him to sit on many committees and boards, dealing with fire, library, police, hospital and other health care concerns. This service “educated me on what the social needs of the community are,” he says, and his knowledge of these needs sparked him to envision the Dufferin Community Foundation.

The community foundation concept works like this: a pool of money is donated, creating an endowment fund; this fund is then invested and the return on the investment is granted to charities and other qualifying organizations year after year, while the capital is preserved forever.

The DCF was launched in 2018 after three years of planning. Already, about $1.5 million has been donated and invested. In 2023, the foundation expects to disburse about $50,000 among Dufferin charities. Though Gord has contributed to many important community issues over the years, he sees his work with the foundation as the part of his legacy that will have the greatest long term impact.

In 2014, the University of Guelph agriculture grad retired from a career in agribusiness and as a part time beef cattle farmer. He also worked part time in his wife Sandra’s travel businesses in Shelburne and Orangeville. Since retiring, Gord estimates that his involvement with the community foundation takes up about 50 per cent of his working time. But his strong commitment to community service doesn’t stop there. He is active in Headwaters Communities in Action, and he also does some work at the Shelburne Public Library and at Trinity United Church. “I don’t have a lot of hobbies,” he says. “It gives me a reason to get up in the morning.”

Gord may have retired from farming – “My farming these days is limited to a supersize garden, though I sell a few raspberries and Christmas trees,” he says – but the next generation of the Gallaugher family carries on in Mulmur. One of Gord’s two sons works at Honda but lives on family land; the other farms full time on both the farm where Gord lives and the original family farm next door.

Of his years of public service, Gord says, “You get the best education one can ever get in a democratic country. You learn how systems work, and you learn what to do to implement change.”

—JEFF ROLLINGS

Gord

Our Keele River Adventure

In that last breath between late autumn and the bleakness of early winter, 2021, my husband Rob and I landed on the same photospread in our favourite magazine, In The Hills . “The Keele River – fast and friendly whitewater carving a turquoise path through dramatic ranges of the Mackenzie Mountains – ideal for novice to intermediate paddlers,” boasted our local Arctic outfitter, Canoe North Adventures.

“We have to do this,” Rob said with great certainty. “Now! We’re not getting any younger.”

“Okay, let’s do it! We’ll stop by Al and Lin’s pottery shop after we finish our Hockley valley hike.”

We pulled into The Farmhouse Pottery on Hockley Road where, after four decades, Al Pace still throws his signature pieces in stoneware. He and his wife and paddling partner, Lin Ward, were planning their 30th summer of Arctic canoe trips. “We’re ready to give you our money!” To their credit they didn’t take our deposit on the spot.

Soon afterwards we shared a glass of wine and traded campfire stories, what would become a constant on the trip to come.

“Are we nuts to be doing this? We’re pensioners. We lily-dip on lakes. We haven’t done serious whitewater paddling for decades.”

“You’ll do fine,” Al assured us. “The Keele River is ideal for developing skills and getting back into form.”

“Next we’ll do the Nahanni River and then the Horton River,” Rob added enthusiastically.

“Hold on. Let’s master the Keele first.” Surprise, now I’m the prudent one.

The Keele River flows 410 kilometres northeasterly from its mountain source near the border of Yukon and the Northwest Territories, emptying into the Mackenzie River 50 kilometres south of the Sahtu Dene community of Tulita. We would fly in by floatplane, landing at the confluence of the Natla and Keele Rivers to paddle 310 kilometres over 12 days. We would be the first trip of the 2022 season and the first trip since COVID shut down travel, a group of eleven trippers and three guides, with Al at the helm flanked by experienced young guides set to lead their own trips later in the season.

Over the winter the emails flew back and forth. Equipment lists. Waivers. Itineraries. Insurance. Flight plans. Food allergies. Surprise appetizers? Yes, we were each tasked with bringing the provisions for a mystery appetizer to serve our fellow canoe trippers. Bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers baked in a Dutch oven turned out to be a big hit. (Just don’t risk airport security plucking cream cheese from your carry-on. Fortunately, Yellowknife was well supplied.)

June, 2022. We fly from the NWT capital to Norman Wells, where southerners struck in 1920 the oil Dene Elders had always known was there. Our 20-something guides, Maddy and Connor, meet us, and under their close watch we turn in our smartphones, select our paddles, and repack our gear into 60-litre plastic barrels on the extended deck of the rustic timberframe lodge and outfitting centre. At dinner that night 20 of us, staff and guests alike, enjoy the first of many excellent meals – and a briefing of what tomorrow brings. Emphasis on brief. Canoe North Adventures guides believe in bite-sized bits of what’s to come.

The next morning we help load the North-Wright Airways Twin Otter and single-engine Pilatus Porter with seven canoes and the gear to fill them. My heart leaps with the roar of the twin engines as our floatplane takes off from DOT Lake. We’re here in the North. It’s really happening! Our pilot flies at peak level, the Mackenzie Mountains still snow speckled after a late spring. We learn the Keele is high – and fast. Just how fast? A very brisk 10 kph walking pace that seems much faster when we meet.

From the air we spot a caribou and a cow moose with calf. European couple Roz and Gary, behind us in the second plane, miss them. It becomes our mission to help them see the best of Canadian wildlife. Over the trip they see more moose; a gangly young wolf; osprey; and a pair of nesting Canada geese. Roz and Gary keep hoping for a grizzly bear. We are happy to see tracks only.

On day one, we are a motley crew of occasional paddlers ranging in age from 31 to 73 standing on a sandbar gazing at what seems like a raging mountain river. Anna from England is rendezvousing with her dad Phil from Toronto. Our daughter Katie, also from Toronto, is here with us. Will and Kate from Ottawa are returnees after honeymooning on a Canoe North Adventures trip with Al and Lin exactly 25 years ago! Kathy from Sudbury is our superstar, a super fit cycling granny who set up her first tent on this trip.

The guides quickly pair us off. Not as we expect.

Two of the three couples prefer to paddle together. The third declares their marriage is stronger if they remain separated! I am paired with Phil in the stern. This is unsettling. I only know that he led canoe trips in his younger days. But I am happily leaning over the spray skirt to pull my bow weight. I am not sure I am stern stuff anymore.

We number off and paddle in that order, snaking down the river, one after another following the lead canoe. There are some bumper boats in those first few hours as we shed the rust, learn new skills and terminology, and push sore arms to power into active eddies that don’t let up until we ground on the shore.

The Keele River has lots to share. Whoa – it’s wavy and lightning-fast from top to bottom. It bounces off the shore and back again to create continuous waves. It’s both powerful and kind. It will twirl you around in a moment if you let up. It’s noisy. Filled with glacial silt, it sings when you hold a paddle to your ear. It’s cold. Some of us plunge right in. Others wade. We all splash. But I’ve never been cleaner on a trip. It’s tricky. It widens out in spots and sends multiple braids across its course, challenging guides to pick the best route for the group to follow.

There are longstanding traditions on our Keele trip. After tents are set up, we gather near the river’s edge under the huge green expedition tarp to sit on folding camp chairs. Connor unpacks 14 handcrafted

BERNADETTE HARDAKER

THE AUTHOR AND HER HUSBAND ROB STRANG ON THE KEELE RIVER

Adventure Cups created in Al’s pottery studio during the winter months for what is to become our nightly gathering for Cocktail Hour. Maddy mixes and pours drinks with different names, all suspiciously green in colour. Al selects a specific cup with a unique animal motif for each guest – mine is the caribou. The next day, as if by magic, a caribou in full antler appears on the far shore. We hold our collective breath while it ferries across the channel to the other side, then walks up the creek bed further downstream, oblivious to our small presence on this vast land.

And what becomes our favourite pastime beyond card playing and whisky sipping after supper? Rock collecting. The river is generous with smooth gems – some spotted, some veined, grey, ochre, and even green. We trade and cull and boast of our best at an evening show and tell. Rock on!

Our weather over the entire trip is as spectacular as the scenery. Hot. Sunny. We’re so far north it’s never dark at night. Whether from the mountain we hike or the river we paddle, the view is the same – we are but floating specks. Tiny clumps of dwarf wildflowers pop up between river stones – brilliantly purple lupins and delicately violet-spotted roundleaf orchids. In contrast, carpets of dryas, yellow mountain avens past their bloom, explode into feathery seedheads like fairy fluff.

We have only one spot of weather – a short but furious thunderstorm that lasts an hour and leaves behind shreds of clouds and the river running half red with mud. With the smoke of Alaskan wildfires in the air and the slumping slopes of melting permafrost, the change in water colour seems almost biblical, a warning of the fragility of our planet. Connor’s drone confirms a small landslide into an upstream sidecreek is responsible.

By now we are well settled into the rhythm of the river, and I am reunited with Rob as my stern partner and rudder for days on end. I never conquer my apprehension over taking command, but I am content. The river teaches us our limits and I know mine. Our muscles are strong, our stroke is steady and our course is true. On our last day our daughter takes the stern, and we watch the muddy waters of the Mackenzie River dilute the turquoise waters of the Keele. Our hearts are full. We will never be the same.

Postscript: Months have passed since we left the Keele River. People ask how was it? Fantastic, we say. You need to do this. The Team at Canoe North Adventures, with Al and Lin at the helm, have accommodated all kinds of people with all kinds

of abilities over three decades of guiding. What skill you lack they will teach; what confidence you need they will build; what desire you have they will excite. They will keep you safe during your trip of a lifetime. Canada’s North encompasses 40% of our country’s landmass. I firmly believe you cannot know and truly understand this great land and its peoples if you have not crossed the 60th parallel. The Arctic is the canary in the coal mine for our planet. Visit it, appreciate it – and understand how we are all connected on this tiny orb we call home.

Bernadette Hardaker is an Orangeville writer. She co-hosted Mackenzie Morning on CBC Inuvik from 1980 to 1983. Prior to paddling the Keele, she last saw the Mackenzie River in 1990 with her husband Rob Strang and their daughter Katie, then two years old.

Unsinkable Lucile

How a Farm Girl Became the Queen of Fashion and Survived the Titanic by Hugh Brewster illustrated

by Laurie McGaw

In this book for young readers, Hugh Brewster tells the little-known true story of Lucy Sutherland, whose turn-of-the-20th-century innovations took the international fashion world by storm and catapulted the Guelph farm girl to Kardashian-like fame. At the helm of Lucile, her fashion salon based in London, England, Lucy overcame numerous obstacles to, among other achievements, use the first live fashion models, originate the catwalk, and design the gowns that defined Edwardian haute couture. Along the way she cemented her social position by marrying Sir Cosmo Duff Gordon, with whom she survived the sinking of the Titanic, though gossip about how the episode unfolded left the couple’s reputation in tatters fairly or unfairly.

Laurie McGaw’s evocative illustrations, along with many archival photos, help bring Lucy’s story to life and ensure her legacy is not forgotten.

Both Brewster and McGaw are former longtime residents of Mulmur, Brewster is the author of more than a dozen books for children and adults, including Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage and From Vimy to Victory (Firefly Books, $19.95)

Welcome to the Weird America

A.G. Pasquella

Lovers of an inventive and alternative read will delight in this collection of three A.G. Pasquella novellas brought together in one immersive, and often irreverent, volume. Each tale from Why Not a Spider Monkey Jesus? to Newtown and The This & the That will challenge your imaginative spirit, and make you laugh, think and consider life in ways you may never have before. Pasquella’s takes on religion, money, environmental issues, adolescence, sci-fi and retro-kitsch middle America are all presented in an often surreal style that is firmly rooted in the realm of weird fiction.

Pasquella grew up in Mulmur and now lives in Toronto. He is also the author of the Jack Palace series. (Buckrider Books, $25)

Jimmy Crack Corn A Novel in C minor

by Glenn Carley

Like the folk song on which it draws, Glenn Carley’s latest novel lays bare line after line of deeply felt, often achingly familiar truth. In Jimmy Crack Corn, Carley assembles a chorus of vivid, precisely imagined characters grappling with questions of freedom and innocence as only a writer with four decades of social work experience can. Still, the plot, which traces the lived rhythms of “DoGooder Jimmy the Bleeder,” plays second fiddle to Carley’s full-bodied, typically playful and always poignant language to produce a raw, warm and lyrical work.

Also the author of Il Vagabondo, Good Enough from Here and Polenta at Midnight, Carley lives in Bolton. (Rock’s Mills Press, $20)

The year

our annual review of new books

Thicker socks, longer sweaters, extra quilts, early darkness and the sounds of the furnace coming to life. It’s the cozy season. Time to hunker down with a good read.

If a soothing hot cuppa is essential to your reading enjoyment, Julia Dimakos explains in Tea Gardening for Beginners how you can round out the experience by growing your own tea leaves. But if something stronger is more to your taste, Unscripted Spirits, Theatre Orangeville’s followup to 2020’s Raise Your Spirits, may provide a cocktail recipe that will do the trick very nicely.

For non fiction lovers, Hugh Brewster’s Unsinkable Lucile tracks the ups and downs of a trailblazing fashionista long before the advent of social media and “influencers,” and Outside the Gate, by Carol Marie Newall, is a biography of a British home child who spent much of her life near Hillsburgh.

Chasing Greatness Stories of Passion and Perseverance in Sport and in Life

by Barrie Shepley

Best-known to Headwaters residents as the founder of the not-for-profit C3 Canadian Cross Training Club at the rehabbed James Dick Construction quarry near Caledon Village, Barrie Shepley chronicles his journey from discovering triathlon (swimming, biking and running) in the early 1980s through the twists and turns of his quest to find out how to help the human body achieve “faster, higher, stronger.”

Written with untethered and infectious enthusiasm, Chasing Greatness guides readers on their own journey through the world of high-performance endurance sports, including the Pan American Games and the Olympics, which Shepley has attended as both coach and commentator.

Co-owner of Personal Best, Shepley has coached hundreds of people to national and international endurance sport medals. He lives in Palgrave. (Balboa Press, $25.95)

in books

by local authors & illustrators

In the autobiographical Chasing Greatness, Barrie Shepley, founder of the Canadian Cross Training Club in Caledon, recounts his journey through the world of high performance endurance sports. And in Skipper Ches, Fred Dyke remembers his father and mother, whose hard lives represented a triumph of the Newfoundland spirit.

There’s also plenty of fiction for readers of every age, such as Robert Hough’s The Marriage of Rose Camilleri and Michael Decter’s first novel, Shadow Life. And kids will love Mary Scattergood’s imaginative fairy stories, as well as Charles Bongers’ Do Trees Have Mothers and Emily Mallett’s Sydney’s Best Friend. Whatever your literary taste, you’re sure to find the perfect read among this past year’s offerings by Headwaters writers and illustrators. So curl up and enjoy!

The Marriage of Rose Camilleri

by Robert Hough

They’re an ordinary couple, Rose Camilleri and Scotty Larkin. They do ordinary things: worry about money, fret about their two children, deal with eccentric relatives, rub each other the wrong way and manage to forge a profoundly loving and happy marriage. Until the unexpected happens, and together, the two face a calamity neither had foreseen.

With sensitivity, compassion and humour, Robert Hough relates this tale of an everyday marriage through the voice of Rose, an immigrant from Malta. A compelling narrator, Rose shapes the story of her marriage in spare, matter-of-fact prose that will captivate readers and leave them deeply moved.

A Toronto resident and the author of six previous award-nominated novels, Hough is a self-described “Erin-area weekender.” (Douglas & McIntyre, $24.95)

Outside the Gate

The True Story of a British Home Child in Canada by Carol Marie Newall

When Carol Marie Newall began sorting through a box of her grandmother’s mementoes, she didn’t know the chore would spark a 10-year quest to decode the tantalizing clues lurking among the old photos, letters and documents. Newall’s grandmother, Winnie, had been a home child, one of more than 100,000 British children shipped to Canada between 1869 and 1948 either because they were orphans or because their families were unable to care for them.

Like Winnie, these children often worked on farms or as domestic servants, and when they grew up, they kept their origins secret. Being a home child was considered shameful.

Although Newall lives in Muskoka, her grandmother’s story will resonate with Headwaters residents, for Winnie spent much of her life in the Hillsburgh area. (Barlow Books, $24.95)

Spike

Poems in the Time of Pestilence edited by Harry Posner et al

Though life has, we hope, returned to normal (more or less), we all carry with us the collective emotional trauma of the Covid-19 pandemic. Spike is a collection of verse that explores the pandemic-inspired pain, fear, uncertainty and isolation and celebrates the resilience that drives people to carry on and find comfort, joy and, yes, even humour in everyday things. The personal voices of 40 contributing poets from Grey County and environs, including Headwaters wordsmiths Harry Posner, Elaine Coish, Garth Stiebel and Judy Zarowny, speak of the grief and confusion, the desire to “rage at the unknown, unseen, everywhere plague,” and the curses of too much time alone and not enough toilet paper. But they also provide a poignant snapshot of our humanity at a time when avoiding other humans was a survival strategy.

Harry Posner, Dufferin County’s first poet laureate, was among those who compiled, edited and wrote the poems in Spike (Cannon’s Creek, $15.95)

Shadow Life by Michael Decter

At 60-something and lurching toward the end of a semi-political career, Matthew Rice answers a summons to jury duty with equal parts dread and curiosity. Chosen jury foreperson, Matthew, along with his fellow jurors, carefully follows the intricacies of a three-month trial that reveals in stark detail the horror of a child’s brutal murder. But when the jury is hung and the accused walks free, Matthew’s trust in the logical world is damaged.

Diagnosed with PTSD caused by the grisly trial, Matthew retreats to Quarry Island in Georgian Bay. There, his life becomes even more complicated when he discovers his birth certificate is forged.

Author of several works of non-fiction, a recipient of the Order of Canada and a former Ontario deputy minister of health, Michael Decter divides his time between Toronto and Mono. Shadow Life, the first in a planned trilogy, is his debut novel. (Cormorant Books, $24.95)

Christmas A Night of Sweet Dr eams and A Heart Full of Love

Auston the Sidecar Dog Saves Christmas

by Wayne Sumbler

Local residents of Headwaters may already be familiar with Wayne Sumbler who can often be spotted travelling the hills on his red Vespa scooter with his dog, Auston, perched in the sidecar, complete with goggles and helmet. Now, the charismatic mini schnoodle is the star of his own Christmas book. When a desperate Santa loses his sleigh and his reindeer are sick, it’s Auston to the rescue. He teams up with the jolly old saint and aboard Auston’s magical scooter they deliver gifts to youngsters around the globe. Their adventures are charmingly illustrated by M.K. Komins. Sumbler lives in Orangeville. He previously published a cookbook called Sex, Drugs and Pots and Pans (Austin Macauley Publishers, $12.50)

Tea Gardening for Beginners

Learn to Grow, Blend, and Brew Your Own Tea at Home by Julia Dimakos

The quest for the perfect cuppa is a thing among tea devotees and no brew is fresher than one made with leaves harvested from your own tea garden. Tea Gardening for Beginners is an insightful and delightful guide, detailing everything you need to know about growing your own tea, from soil conditions to the best varieties to plant in Headwaters, pest control and harvesting the crop. Put the kettle on and snuggle up with this how-to book that will be an invaluable addition to your horticultural library.

Gardening expert and influencer Julia Dimakos, aka Gardening Girl, lives in Mono. (Rockridge Press, $19.99)

Ghosts of Angels

by A.E. Lawrence

Dejected by the recent breakup of his marriage and stymied in his investigation of the murder of a 19-year-old anthropology student whose near-naked body was found kneeling outside a cathedral, Chicago homicide detective Nick Palmer figures things can’t get

much worse. Then he starts seeing apparitions.

But clues offered by the apparitions lead Nick and his partner, Gabriela, to a secretive and powerful 16th-century cult whose members have been performing ritualistic human sacrifices for more than 500 years. As the pair sets about casting light on the scope of evil perpetrated by the cult, they find themselves caught up in an international pursuit.

A.E. Lawrence is the pen name of Caledon resident Lawrence Ayliffe, founder and chief executive officer of a Toronto ad agency. (Friesen Press, $21.99)

The Traitor’s Brand

by Hugh Russel

On the eve of the Great War, retired British army officer James Wilson Horn’s curiosity is tweaked in a local graveyard when he notices a curious and insulting symbol from the Boer War carved on the headstone of a young man. Soon enough, Horn and his friend, a fellow officer, are embroiled in a race to break up a German espionage cell on English soil. In prose highly evocative of the prewar period, Russel weaves a tense, twisting and tantalizing thriller about the early days of British counter-intelligence.

A sculptor and author, Russel’s previous books are Kat in Harm’s Way and To Kill Kat He lives in Mulmur. (Negative Space Publishing, $19.95)

Rise Again

by Ann Randeraad

A survivor of domestic violence, Ann Randeraad says her collec tion of poems was written to “show the raw edges, vulnerability and the rough path of enduring abuse and finding a way to climb back out.”

In “Barricades,” she writes:

Maybe, if I stop ... stop trying to build a wall, and quickly gather the pieces left I can build a shield instead

These heart-wrenching, but ultimately hopeful poems are panels in that shield.

A poet and potter, Randeraad lives in Amaranth. For many years she has sponsored Empty Bowls, a soup and handmade bowl fundraiser in support of local food banks. (Ann Randeraad, $21.95)

Afro, No!

by Amaya James

Sometimes your hair can feel like it has a personality of its own. This is doubly true for young Emmie whose Afro is so big and powerful that it’s actually the star of the story. As Emmie explains, Afro can be soft and silky or puffed and rough depending on the day, and it sometimes even steals the comb! Afro’s least favourite time is Wash Day, when it dreads the thought of all the pulling and brushing and braiding. But despite the pain and challenges of her hair-care regimen, Afro is what Emmie likes most about herself.

Afro, No! takes a lighthearted look at the often complicated relation ship that Black girls can have with their natural hair. Amaya James, who illustrated and wrote this book, is a nine-year-old who lives in Shelburne, and the book is dedicated to “all the tender-headed girls who cry, like I do, on wash day.” (Summerhill Publishing, $14.95)

Me First

A Guide to Honoring Your Truth, Uncovering Your Power, and Cultivating More Joy!

by Julie Cass

Life and business coach Julie Cass believes that making yourself the priority is essential to both personal and professional success. In this self-help book, Cass details why putting yourself first is not selfish, but rather essential to happiness and personal betterment. In the introduction, she lays out exactly what to expect from this thoughtprovoking read: “The whole meaning of this book is to understand why we have to put ourselves first and fall deeply and completely in love with ourselves in order to live a life that not only looks good on the outside but also feels good on the inside.”

Based in Inglewood, Cass is the founder of The Positive Change Group, which helps clients take a holistic approach to maximizing their potential. (YGTMedia, $22.95)

Scotsdale

An Ontario Rural Dream by Margaret and Douglas Derry

Just south of Ballinafad sits beautiful Scotsdale Farm, now owned by the Ontario Heritage Trust and open to visitors, Bruce Trail hikers and those interested in the lives of 20th-century Ontario gentleman farmers. Two of those farmers, Stewart and Letty Bennett, bought Scotsdale in 1938, and transformed a hardscrabble farm into a preeminent shorthorn-breeding showcase.

In meticulous detail, Margaret and Douglas Derry interweave the Bennetts’ story with the evolution of cattle- and horse-breeding in Ontario, the history of Acton’s Beardmore tannery and the development of Scotsdale and how this 500-plus acre estate came into public hands. And the Derrys do not spare the Ontario Heritage Trust for its perceived neglect of the Bennetts’ rural dream.

Margaret Derry, artist, historian and former cattle breeder, and Douglas Derry, a fellow of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario, live in Caledon where they operate Poplar Lane Press. (Poplar Lane Press, $30)

Katie and Her Dinosaur by Constance Scrafield

Kids love dinosaurs, but Katie really, really loves dinosaurs. So when she hears about a scientist who’s trying to clone a real dinosaur from 65-million-yearold bones found in Manitoba, she begs him to involve her. Katie watches as the cells she first sees through a microscope develop into a baby dinosaur, which she dubs Magnifitop. When Katie and Magnifitop form a close bond, Dr. Boggles must figure out what would be the best home for the unique creature.

An Orangeville resident, Constance Scrafield also writes for the Orangeville Citizen (Xlibris, $14.95)

Sydney’s Best Friend

by Emily Mallett illustrated by Aneik Wilson

Sydney’s Best Friend tells the tale of a girl who thinks her cherished canine, Bella, is the best dog ever. But when a schoolmate is afraid of Bella, Sydney is hurt and confused. So she and her mother hatch a successful plan to change the boy’s mind. Recognizing that many people fear dogs, especially certain sizes or types of dogs, Emily Mallet weaves advice about how to safely interact with all dogs into this heartwarming story.

An animal advocate, Mallett lives in Orangeville. Part of the proceeds of the sale of her book are destined for the Throw Away Dogs Project. (Emily Mallett, $19.99)

The Fairies Have a Problem + Pierre Series by Mary Scattergood

Young fans of author and artist Mary Scattergood will be delighted by The Fairies Have a Problem, the third in her There Are Fairies series, set at the bottom of her granddaughter Mary’s garden. When the fairies discover that a naughty elf is pulling up the flowers and making Mary sad, they set about making things right. (Burnham Publications, $19.95)

Inspired by her own Old Montreal series of paintings, Scattergood has also written and illustrated two books about Pierre. Written for young readers, the gentle stories Pierre and Pierre at School illustrate that although change can be scary, it can also inspire new understanding about kindness and respect. (Burnham Publications, $9 each)

All Scattergood’s books are enchantingly illustrated in her primitive, folk art style. The artist and writer lives in Orangeville.

Frog of Arcadia

illustrated by Matlock Bobechko dreams of visiting the lands invitingly in the open books he can perch in his terrarium home. When glass walls one day, he finds himself adventure that takes him to Arcadia, clans are feuding in a “quarrelsome fending off their traditional frogs find a way to unite? Blake imaginative tale of amphibian derringyoung readers with a taste for swashbuckling fantasy. brother, Matlock, contributed the delightful illustrations. The Bobechko brothers live in Orangeville, where Blake is involved in children’s ministry at his church. (Friesen Press, $14.95)

Hannah Series + Bruno Series + Chances Are…

by Kelly Leslie

In both the Hannah Series and the Bruno Series for children aged four to eight, Kelly Leslie celebrates neurodiversity and the strengths of child ren with special needs. Join Hannah the anxious caterpillar and Bruno the autistic panda and their friends as they learn important lessons about kindness and inclusion. With characters like a caterpillar with cerebral palsy and a butterfly with asthma, these illustrated books are a wonderful resource for young children. Each concludes with activity suggestions that provide a gateway to meaningful conversations about friendship and acceptance. (Kelly Leslie, $9.99 each)

Chances Are…, Leslie’s first novel for young adults, explores the trials and tribulations of the tumultuous teenage years. Seventeen-year-old Chance is known as a daredevil, though she would rather just curl up with a good book. When she’s invited to spend the summer at a Muskoka mansion with her wealthy boyfriend, Troy, she faces challenges related to peer pressure, young love and friction between friends and “frenemies,” as well as the inevitable teenage urge to take stupid risks. (Kelly Leslie, $11.99)

Co-founder of Believe Beyond Bounds, an organization dedicated to highlighting the capabilities of children with special needs, Leslie is a retired school principal who lives in Erin.

Do Trees Have Mothers?

by Charles Bongers

The title of this gently inspiring picture book, beautifully illustrated by the author, poses one of those questions that often stump parents of very young children. Charles Bongers to the rescue! He provides a heartwarming, science-based answer that will encourage children and their parents to pause in the forest with fresh appreciation for the ways mother trees protect and nurture their offspring and connect to other trees, as well as the vital role trees play in the overall health of the natural world.

A Toronto-based designer and illustrator committed to creating a sustainable future, Bongers is an occasional contributor to In The Hills. He has also written and illustrated The Family Forest Field Guide (Douglas & McIntyre, $19.99)

Revernota

by J. Mitchel Reed

Three boys Sammy, his best friend, Howie, and school bully Tommy find themselves drawn into a world of mind-bending, shape-shifting alternative realities after a mysterious neighbour introduces them to a hidden dimension. As the boys tap into a realm of powerful frequencies and possibilities and learn their neighbour’s true intent, Sammy must overcome his fears and discover his own destiny to become a “Revernota,” tasked with the great responsibility of protecting this fragile planet from exploitation.

An editor, cinematographer, videographer and director, Reed lives in Orangeville. Revernota, a work of fantasy for middle schoolers, is his first work of fiction. (Chicken House Press, $19.99)

www.inthehills.ca

WINTER ONLINE

LACE UP!

Hockey season is upon us. Delve into notable local hockey traditions, players, outdoor rinks — and more, across Headwaters.

COMFORT AND JOY

Looking for holiday baking inspiration? Dip into our recipe archives for ideas on upgrading your cookie platter, perfecting your rum cake or whipping up a batch of scones.

WINTER WONDERS

ROBERT M C CAW

PETE PATERSON

JOANNE CREASE

Naturalist Don Scallen’s been taking notes on the wide variety of feathered friends to watch for at your birdfeeder — from redpolls to chickadees.

Skipper Ches As Tough

as It Gets

by Fred Dyke

With a view to passing on to his children and grandchildren the family stories of bygone times in an outport on the rugged northeastern coast of Newfoundland, Fred Dyke tells the story of the industrious and courageous lives of his parents, Elsie and Ches Dyke. Ches began life as the son of a single mother who left him with a relative and started a new life. By the age of nine, Ches was working at sea, viewing the ocean as both playground and workplace, and he went on to become “Skipper Ches,” a respected sea captain, boat builder and more. A strong woman for an equally strong man, Elsie’s “in-service” background equipped her for life as a supportive wife and mother who raised seven talented, caring and ambitious children.

Born and raised in Newfoundland, Dyke is currently the pastor of Belfountain Village Church. (Flanker Press, $22)

Feed Your Soul

Creating a Healthy Mindset

by Tina Haller

We are what we eat or so the saying goes and Tina Haller wants us to do better and be better. In Feed Your Soul, Haller starts with the basics of why nutrition is important and why we need to pay attention to it, then goes on to tackle the common excuses many of us use to avoid fuelling our bodies with healthy foods, and offers strategies for finding the path to physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellness. Part self-care, part practical exercises, Haller’s book also challenges us to put pen to paper and reframe our brains by writing about our food-related thoughts and behaviours.

A resident of Palgrave, Haller is a subconscious mind coach and holistic nutritionist. (RenewYou, $24.95)

Dead Man’s Doll + The Conned Lady

by Diane Bator

Audra Clemmings is back in Dead Man’s Doll, the second instalment of Diane Bator’s Sugarwood Mysteries. When Audra visits the shop of Miss Lavinia, Sugarwood’s herbalist, and finds the town’s former butcher stabbed to death and Miss Lavinia badly injured, the incident sets in motion a series of events whose consequences threaten to turn deadly.

In The Conned Lady, the fifth book in Bator’s series of Wild Blue Mysteries, Katie Mullins is startled when romance writer Mimsy Lexington confides that she killed her husband many years earlier. Katie wonders whether her aging friend, always a tad eccentric, has completely lost her grip on reality. Especially as Mimsy can’t recall the details of the murder and asks Katie to help figure out how she committed it.

When Katie agrees, she and Danny Walker, her detective

boyfriend, find themselves drawn ever deeper into a maze that shouts danger at every turn. Can the two sort out the clues before lives their own and others’ are put at risk?

Also the author of the Glitter Bay Mysteries and the Gilda Wright Mysteries, Bator lives in Orangeville. (BWL Publishing, $12.95 each)

Restore Your Life Powerful Life Strategies to Navigate Menopause

by Kelly Nolan, BScPharm

Integrative practitioner Kelly Nolan says the motivation for writing her guide to navigating the hormonal rollercoaster of midlife came from personal experience. “At 49 years old, I woke up one morning and looked at the stranger in the mirror,” she writes. “That moment was a jolt and the beginning of my journey.” This approachable and informative self-help book is divided into two parts. In the first half, the Grand Valley-based author digs deep into particulars of perimenopausal and menopausal change. In the second half, she offers coaching and case studies to create an effective game plan for coping with, even embracing, what can be an empowering life phase. (Prominence Publishing, $19.99)

On the Edge

A Cole Buckman Novel

by Marina L. Reed with Don Hawkins

When Marina L. Reed sat down to write On the Edge, she found herself in uncharted territory: the arcane world of security intelligence. But Don Hawkins, a former police officer, had a story in mind, and he believed that Reed was the person to write it. Their collaboration resulted in the first book in what is slated to become a series featuring MI6 agent Cole Buckman.

When Cole’s father, a crown prosecutor, narrowly survives a courthouse shooting that kills several others, his son swings into action, assembling an off-the-books team to track down the assassins. The team’s mission leads them on an international hunt to foil the criminals who are intent on bringing down world governments.

Reed, who lives in Orangeville, has written several novels, as well as the Remember, It’s OK series with Marian Grace Boyd. A former police officer, Hawkins has a background in international security. (Chicken House Press, $16.99)

Kelly Silveira has a passion for real estate — and helping clients achieve their goals. A top-performing agent at Re/Max Real Estate Centre, she has lived in Amaranth for the past 10 years, and with her extensive experience in Dufferin County has brought many investors to Shelburne and Alliston.

Des Silveira brings the advantage of an architectural and construction background, and together Des & Kelly have dedicated many years to helping clients buy and sell properties. They have a good relationship with their clients, being very accommodating and fulfilling needs beyond expectations.

In their free time, Des & Kelly participate with local businesses and enjoy their country lifestyle, enhanced by hobbies such as gardening, tennis and badminton, and spending time with their beautiful huskies.

One Toke Over the Line + Mirrors of Invention, 1 & 2

by David Courtney

David Courtney’s new novel is, well, a trip. It follows narrator Caulfield through nightly fever dreams wrought by both Covid and a society seemingly in the thrall of lunatics and fanatics. There is a story line, but this weighty tome is more prose poem than novel, and it’s probably easiest to consume Caulfield’s stream-of-altered-consciousness but often astute and epigrammatic social commentary in small, satisfying doses.

Like his novel, Courtney’s paintings, presented with the artist’s commentary in two volumes of Mirrors of Invention, are an exploration of the subconscious. Rendered in a bold brushwork and strong colours, his style pays homage to the likes of the Fauvists and Basquiat.

Courtney grew up in Orangeville and now lives in Belwood. (David Courtney, $25.95; Mirrors of Invention, $34.95 each)

Kelly’s Cell 416-300-5153 Des’s Cell 416-558-8947 offers@desnkelly.com desnkelly.com

Unscripted Spirits!

Cocktails from Friends of Theatre Orangeville with Artistic Director David Nairn

The sequel to Raise Your Spirits: 21 Cocktails in 21 Acts published in 2020, Unscripted Spirits follows Theatre Orangeville artistic director David Nairn and Friends of Theatre Orangeville as they continue the high-spirited and goodhumoured exploration of favourite cocktails that made their first book such a hit. Seventeen tested and tasted creations shaken and stirred by the likes of Bernadette Hardaker, Rod Beattie and Trevor Cole make this collection the perfect stocking stuffer for each of your fun friends.

All proceeds from the sale of Unscripted Spirits go to Theatre Orangeville programming. Copies are limited and can be purchased only at Theatre Orangeville and BookLore. (Theatre Orangeville, $20)

Waaskone

by Ron McCormack

Inspired by local legends, Ron McCormack’s latest novel is set near the North Channel of Lake Huron. At an early age, twins Marie and Andrew Baxter were forced to deal with the death of their parents in a boating accident, and they come to believe what locals call the “Baxter curse” pushed the boundaries of family misfortune. So when their grandfather dies mysteriously, the twins decide to take a closer look and find themselves caught up in a mystery with deadly consequences. Also the author of The Big Play and The Secrets of Mudge Bay, McCormack lives in Bolton. (Ron McCormack, $19.95)

Shadow Phoenix

Volume 1, Episodes 1–4 and Episodes 5–8 by MJ

Moores

In these episodic Victorian-era steampunk jaunts, spunky female protagonist Louisa is stuck working as a maid until her smarts land her a new position as assistant to her employer, an inventor desperate to make it rain and end London’s long drought. After Louisa rescues a young boy from the clutches of thugs, she finds herself portrayed in the newspapers as the masked guardian of the city and her adventures begin. Over the course of eight fastpaced episodes, MJ Moores follows Louisa as she treads a path between high society and the lower rungs, and takes her rightful place in the world.

A Caledon Village resident, Moores has also written The Chronicles of Xannia series, as well as several fantasy and romance novels. (Infinite Pathways Press, $20 each)

What If Jack Wasn’t So Nimble?

Mother Goose Characters Reimagined — A Collection of Light Verse for Adults by Colin McNairn illustrated by Rosie Pittas

In this followup to last year’s Signs of the Times, Colin McNairn once again turns his quirky sense of humour to casting a contemporary turn on the nursery rhymes many of us grew up with. From Humpty Dumpty unable to make up his mind and so perching firmly on the fence, and Pussy Cat who went to visit the queen only to find that the exterminator had already been, to the titular Jack at risk of setting his tush alight, McNairn’s reconceived rhymes are sure to elicit smiles.

McNairn, who divides his time between Mulmur and Toronto, is also the author of Sports Talk and In a Manner of Speaking (Friesen Press, $22.95)

A Beginner’s Guide to Separation Anxiety

by Jo van Hoogmoed

This very contemporary tale starts with what else? a Zoom meeting, as protagonist Portia Weaver faces the most unsettling of personal changes: retirement and divorce. And these distressing events are complicated to say the least. Jo van Hoogmoed’s narrative takes more than a few unconventional turns and this is a read you need to be fully immersed in because if you miss a minute, you miss a lot! One of the most appealing aspects of the book is a talking greyhound who boasts very special attributes that help guide Portia through her life.

Van Hoogmoed lives in Orangeville with Hillary, her own very special retired racing greyhound. (Tellwell Talent, $17)

The Ongoing

by Joni Grâce

Inspired by her time contemplating the scenic shores of Georgian Bay, as well as her travels throughout North America, Joni Grâce’s third collection of poetry reflects her lifelong passion for the “greening” of soil and soul, an “exquisite, even extravagant, movement toward home.” Her writing shows an affinity for the natural world and its deep interconnection with human

nature. To read Grâce’s work is to enter a realm of lush landscapes, glorious suns, fertile soil and changing seasons.

Writing under the nom de plume Joni Grâce, the poet lives in Mono. Her previous collections are Feeling in the Gap and Carried Away (Bluegreening Press, $20)

Lethal Keystrokes

by John D. May

John D. May’s character-rich page turner plunges deep into the world of virtual assistant technology, and how volatile and damaging it can be in the hands of hackers and extremists. May thoughtfully and methodically develops several plotlines, eventually merging them in surprising and shocking ways. Structured over eight consecutive days in June 2018, the narrative moves quickly and succinctly, making this story hard to step away from. You’ll need to dedicate a day to starting and finishing this one. May divides his time between a home in Mulmur and another in the south of France. (Granville Island Publishing, $19.95)

Compiled by Emily Dickson, Gail Grant, Alison McGill, Dyanne Rivers, Ellie Eberlee and Signe Ball.

IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER

BY DON SCALLEN PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROBERT M C CAW

The temperature along the Boyne River struggled to reach −10 C at midday. A wan sun illuminated the spires of spruce and cedar in the riverine landscape. Silence prevailed, broken occasionally by the croak of a distant raven or the chatter of foraging chickadees. Through boot high snow, I struggled to follow the tracks of a white tailed deer. Then a surprise. In the snow at my feet lay the body of a tiny bird. I knelt, picked it up and marvelled at its perfection. There was no evidence of injury, no discernible clue as to why it had died. The grey green feathers were unruffled. A brilliant orange yellow cap marked it as a golden crowned kinglet, weighing less than a loonie. In Headwaters, only the hummingbird is smaller.

Golden crowned kinglets are winter residents of these hills, and in a few areas where spruce trees prevail, they remain in spring to raise their families. They are likely unknown to most readers for a variety of reasons. These birds are thinly dispersed across the winter landscape, and their winter calls are so faint that many of us simply can’t hear them. Thus far I’ve been fortunate. Despite a lifetime of listening to rock and roll, I still can. Another reason we don’t often see them is that, unlike chickadees, woodpeckers and other overwintering birds, they ignore our bird feeders. Their tiny beaks are not designed to crack seeds.

This leaves kinglets reliant on insect fare, even in winter, and this dependence sets this diminutive songbird apart. Most insect eating birds – the warblers, flycatchers, swifts and swallows – make haste for the South long before the first dusting of snow brightens the landscape. Others, such as nuthatches and chickadees, supplement scarce insect fare with seeds and offerings from our feeders. Woodpeckers also visit our feeders, of course, but get much of their food by hammering their stout beaks into wood, something kinglet beaks are ill equipped to do.

Bernd Heinrich, an American biologist, professor and unabashed fan of the golden crowned kinglets living near his cabin in the Maine woods, committed himself to finding how they pulled off the seemingly impossible feat of surviving temperatures that routinely dropped to −30 C at night. One of his goals was to identify the food that fuelled kinglets in winter.

Heinrich’s methods will not sit well with many readers. He shot kinglets to examine their stomach contents. Regardless, he got his answer: the kinglet stomachs were packed with tiny moth caterpillars. Heinrich then searched for these dormant caterpillars himself and found them secured by silken strands to the branches of trees. Though his experimental approach may rankle, his discovery led him to conclude that “if you care about kinglets you need to care about moths.” Perhaps more broadly, he might have said, “If you care about kinglets, you need to care about the trees, the caterpillars and the moths that make their lives possible.”

Heinrich took a gentler approach toward uncovering another key to kinglet winter survival. He wondered how kinglets, even with full stomachs, survive long winter nights. Channelling the grit of his study subjects, Heinrich and his students slogged through snow drifts and dense forest in freezing temperatures at dusk to find the kinglets’ nighttime roosts. For years they came up empty.

Then Heinrich got lucky. He saw a small group of kinglets fly into a pine tree without emerging. Parting some boughs, he found them huddled side by side with their heads tucked into their breast feathers. The kinglets were keeping one another warm, just as we would if we were caught outdoors on a winter’s night with our companions.

So why did my kinglet die? Winter is harsh, even for creatures that have evolved ways to temper its severity. Heinrich reports

The beaks of golden-crowned kinglets are too small to crack seeds, so the birds are entirely reliant on insects for their sustenance – even in winter!

How the creatures in the hills have learned to survive

that the mortality of golden crowned kinglets averages more than 80 per cent annually! Most of this mortality occurs in winter despite the kinglets’ adaptations to the cold, a sobering reminder of how unforgiving the season can be. Thankfully, the kinglets that survive winter restore their numbers in the spring by raising eight or nine young.

Kinglets are not alone, of course, in facing the dual challenges of keeping warm and finding food in winter. These challenges must be met by all the animals that remain active during Ontario winters. But for some of our overwintering animals, the answer is to dampen their metabolisms and hunker down until spring. One of these animals is the humble painted turtle, resident of nearly every water body in our hills and a Herculean hibernator.

Anoxia and ectotherms

Like all reptiles and amphibians, painted turtles are ectotherms, which essentially means “outside heat.” The term cold-blooded , used more frequently, is imprecise – a painted turtle basking in 30 C weather will be far from cold blooded.

Ectotherms assume the temperature of their surroundings. This means painted turtles must take shelter when temperatures fall in the autumn. They do this by digging into the mud on the bottom of wetlands. But though this behaviour protects them from freezing, it also seems to simply swap one death dealing condition – freezing – for another: death by asphyxiation.

Anyone who lives in Headwaters knows our winters are long. In fact, the surfaces of our ponds can be frozen for four months or more, preventing atmospheric oxygen from mixing with the water. During that time, pond water can be depleted of dissolved

oxygen. So how on earth do painted turtles survive?

When painted turtles enter hibernation, or brumation, a term used by biologists to describe winter dormancy in ectotherms, their metabolism grinds nearly to a halt. A heartbeat of about 40 times a minute in warm weather falls dramatically when painted turtles are settled comfortably in the mud. Some accounts report 10 beats a minute, others report only 10 beats an hour! Regardless, a diminished heart rate greatly reduces a turtle’s need for the oxygen that reacts with glucose (sugar) to create energy.

Hibernating painted turtles extract the precious gas from the water while they can, and their method of doing this bears mentioning. They absorb oxygen through the membranes of their cloaca or, more prosaically, their anus. But there comes a time in many ponds when the dissolved oxygen is completely gone – a condition called

Snowshoe hares turn white in winter to camouflage against the snow. Wood frogs hide under leaf litter, unmoving but kept alive by “antifreeze” in their organs. Woodchucks hibernate through the winter, waking up only occasionally for a privy run.

“anoxia.” Butt breathing no longer works. There is no oxygen to be had. This anoxic condition would signal death for nearly all vertebrates. But painted turtles carry on for weeks or months without any oxygen at all. They still need some energy to run their reduced metabolisms, and to do this they use a substance called lactate, derived from glucose.

Other animals, including humans, also use this alternative energy pathway, which doesn’t need oxygen.

Human runners, for example, supplement their energy production by using lactate when their laboured breaths can’t supply enough oxygen to keep up with their energy demands. The downside of lactate, however, is that too much can lead to debilitating levels of lactic acid. The legs of human runners burn in response to this acid, and their muscles weaken. Enough lactic acid can shut down vital organs. But painted turtles buffer this acid

BLEAK MIDWINTER CONTINUED FROM PAGE 55

Keeping warm and finding food in winter are challenges that must be met by all the animals that remain active during Ontario winters. For some of our overwintering animals, the answer is to dampen their metabolisms and hunker down until spring.

with calcium from their shells, much as we neutralize stomach acid with Tums and baking soda. This feat enables the turtles to do the seemingly impossible: survive without oxygen for months.

This is likely a major reason painted turtles are our most common turtle species. They can overwinter in almost any body of water, even stagnant ponds that are hostile habitats for some other turtle species.

Supercooling the blood

If adult painted turtles exhibit near superpower abilities to survive winter, so do their babies. Most painted turtle hatchlings remain in their nests over the winter. They become entombed in rock hard frozen earth as they await the spring melt in March and April. If the temperature of their earthen chamber doesn’t fall too low – protracted periods of −8 C will kill them – their circulatory systems, powered by just one heartbeat a minute at 0 C, will continue to function, and they will survive.

This ability has been attributed to a natural antifreeze, such as glucose, in the hatchling turtle’s circulatory system. But in 2001, researchers at Colorado State University offered another explanation. They found that instead of relying on natural antifreeze, a hatchling painted turtle undergoes “supercooling,” which basically means its blood remains fluid despite dropping well below the freezing point.

The mechanics of this astonishing feat are somewhat complicated. Water needs something to trigger the freezing process, so here’s a mouthful: “ice nucleating particle.” These particles, including dust, spores and pollen, are necessary for ice to form, though vibrations can also play a role. These particles are largely absent in the bodies of hatchling painted turtles, and the turtles lie in a quiet, vibration free environment. This means ice can’t form. Temperatures can drop far below zero and fluids will remain liquid – in a supercooled state. The little hearts of the painted turtles

continue to beat, albeit very slowly, pumping supercooled blood through their bodies.

Pumping up glucose levels

Though painted turtle hatchlings may not use antifreeze to keep their vital tissues from freezing, some frogs do. One of them is the wood frog, the species we hear “quacking” in early spring.

Wood frogs are found farther north than any other amphibian in North America. Their range extends beyond the Arctic Circle. Near Inuvik in the Northwest Territories, wood frogs routinely survive January temperatures that average −22 C during the day and −29 C at night. And yet they don’t bury themselves or dive into mud at the bottom of wetlands. They simply hide under leaves on the forest floor.

First, ice forms in their body cavities, surrounding their vital organs and cells. But those organs and cells don’t freeze because they are full of glucose, the same glucose that circulates in human blood. The frogs produce this sugar in prodigious quantities and flood their cells with it, inhibiting the formation of ice within. Their blood sugar levels skyrocket to as high as 100 times normal, an increase that would be lethal for humans.

Because sugar infused wood frogs can survive in leaf litter on the forest floor, they are reanimated by the spring sun, while frogs hibernating underwater are still deep in slumber. This enables wood frogs to make their way early to their breeding sites in vernal pools, a crucial survival strategy because vernal pools are ephemeral and dry up later in the spring. The tadpoles have only a limited window to grow and change into froglets before this happens.

Pond hibernating frogs include bullfrogs, green frogs and leopard frogs. Some of these, facing the same anaerobic conditions as painted turtles, perish if the ice cover is prolonged. After a late ice out, I’ve found dead leopard frogs floating in

The sharp ears of red foxes may be assisted by a “compass” that allows them to successfully detect the location of mice under the snow. Ruffed grouse remain active during the winter months, but hide away from storm and cold of night beneath the snow in cavities formed by their body heat.

the large kettle pond at Forks of the Credit Provincial Park.

Adapting to snow cover

Like frogs and turtles, some Headwaters mammals hibernate through the winter. These include chipmunks, woodchucks and jumping mice. Chipmunks waken periodically, rub their eyes, and see what they can find to eat in an underground larder stocked with food gathered in the fall. Woodchucks and jumping mice, however, rely on layers of body fat accumulated during feverish bouts of feeding before hibernation. They occasionally wake up to use the privy, but that’s about it.

But in this area, most mammals remain active through the winter. Hiking the Bruce Trail in Caledon one November afternoon, a friend and I came upon a snowshoe hare that was moulting. Much of its brown fur

had been shed and replaced by winter white. Snowshoe hares, along with long tailed and short tailed weasels in Headwaters, go through twice yearly moults that render them white in winter and brown in summer.

This colour change, governed by temperature change, cloaks these animals with seasonal camouflage that helps protect them from predators. This strategy works – if the weather co operates. The largely white snowshoe hare we saw that November afternoon stood out like a beacon on a snowless landscape, shouting “Here I am!” to predators such as hawks.

Snow has shaped the evolution of snowshoe hares and short tailed weasels and, in fact, dictates where they live in North America. They can survive only in areas of reliable winter snow cover. Long tailed weasels, however, can range much farther south because their evolutionary alchemy enables them to remain brown in areas

that are largely snowless.

Snow also plays a significant role in the lives of other Headwaters animals. Ruffed grouse dive into it to pass cold winter nights, snug in cavities formed by their body heat. And they have the option of remaining under the snow should a winter storm be raging above.

Snow cover also creates a temporary ecosystem called the “subnivean zone,” the area between the surface of the snow and the ground. Temperatures approaching 0 C can prevail in this zone, even if surface temperatures are well below freezing. Small mammals such as mice, voles and shrews flourish in the warmth of the subnivean zone and enjoy some safety from predators under the snow’s protective cover.

In nature, though, no protection is absolute. Owls hunt in Headwaters year round. Faces shaped like satellite dishes direct the sound of the tiny footfalls of mice to this bird’s offset ears. This means each ear receives

sound at a slightly different time, allowing the owls to precisely detect the location of prey, whether in the open or concealed under snow. They launch themselves on silent wings, thrust their talons into the snow and often rise with a struggling rodent in their grasp.

The finely tuned hearing of owls is a marvel, but red foxes may be endowed with an astonishing sense that owls don’t have – one that enables foxes to be very effective hunters of animals in the subnivean zone. These canids leap into the air to pounce on mice they hear under the snow, in a hunting technique fittingly called “mousing.”

The amazing aspect of this mousing is the possibility it may be assisted by an internal compass. Foxes in a Czech study were found to align most of their jumps northeasterly toward magnetic north. The mechanics of how this helps foxes target prey is complicated, but it seems to work. The foxes had

Snow cover also creates a temporary ecosystem called the “subnivean zone,” the area between the surface of the snow and the ground. Temperatures approaching 0 C can prevail in this zone, even if surface temperatures are well below freezing.

far greater success catching mice when they jumped in a northeasterly direction.

Last winter I hiked the Mizzy Lake trail in Algonquin Provincial Park and was delighted when a pair of Canada jays found me. I rummaged in my backpack for my lunch and ended up sharing much of my ham sandwich with the jays. The Royal Canadian Geographic Society has endorsed this jay as Canada’s national bird, but the federal government has yet to move on the recommendation.

Why Canada’s national bird?

Canada jays are present in every province and territory, and if offered tasty tidbits, they are charming, trusting animals that readily land on the outstretched hands of besotted human beings. Alas, they are not found in these hills, however, and though you may find this hard to believe as January blizzards rattle your windowpanes, this is likely because winters here are too warm.

It’s all about refrigeration. The ham and bread these jays persuaded me to part with was not eaten immediately. Rather, the jays took the morsels, flew off a short distance and soon returned for more booty. The food these jays gather, if more than they need immediately, is cached – glued with sticky saliva to clefts of tree bark for later retrieval. This is one reason Canada jays are so successful across Canada’s North.

The jays’ food caching ensures a ready supply of calories through the long winters. But there’s a problem, one that may explain why Canada jays do not live in Headwaters. Much of the food they store, like my ham and bread, and like berries and bits of meat scavenged from the carcasses of deer and moose, is perishable. This isn’t a problem where winters are reliably cold, keeping the food refrigerated until required. But where winters see saw between freeze and thaw, as they often do here, much of this food spoils. With warming winters, Algonquin Park is no longer immune to these stark temperature changes, and this

appears to be hurting the Canada jays that live there. Dan Strickland, a former Algonquin Park naturalist, has studied Canada jays for decades. His research has revealed a steady decline in their numbers as winters in the park have been getting warmer. Along with moose and wolves, Canada jays are among the most celebrated Algonquin animals, but they may eventually disappear from the park.

Here in Headwaters, blue jays, like their Canada jay kin, also cache food, but usually less perishable items such as acorns. A blue jay might hide 3,000 acorns throughout its territory in the autumn and successfully relocate most of them days or weeks later. But jays and other caching animals still sometimes forget where things are, just as we forget where we put our car keys. And while a forgetful blue jay may miss a meal, the forgotten acorn can grow into a tree, a win for the oak tribe but also, ultimately, for future jays that will harvest acorns from that tree when it matures.

I’ve only scratched the surface of the remarkable ways our birds and animals survive winter. Many other stories could be told, and no doubt biologists like Bernd Heinrich will continue to discover new and wonderful ways animals cope with this unforgiving season.

But for most of us, it is enough to pause and marvel at the tenacity of our local wildlife. We stay alive in winter with fireplaces and furnaces, warm clothing and regular visits to supermarkets. Our wild companions don’t need any of these artificial assists. Instead, they tap a stunningly diverse array of survival strategies to endure, and sometimes even thrive, in the season of snow.

Don Scallen is the author of Nature

Where We Live: Activities to Engage Your Inner Scientist from Pond Dipping to Animal Tracking. You can read more of his observations on local flora and fauna in “Notes from the Wild” at inthehills.ca.

The amber woods and crisp afternoons of fall have faded. Thoughts of frost, snow and ice creep like winter winds through skimpy mittens. But as the year fades, the cheerful sights and sounds of Christmas help to banish the darkness and cold. And Christmas, though it tends to take centre stage, is only one of a rich variety of spiritual celebrations that add sparkle to the season. Now begins a succession of holidays in which people, each in their own way, express gratitude for gifts past and share hopes for bounty and renewal for themselves and humankind – as greetings of goodwill ring across the hills.

Happy Hanukkah! Happy Solstice! Sat Sri Akal! Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Peace on Earth!

Holydays home for the

BY ANTHONY JENKINS PHOTOGRAPHY BY PETE PATERSON

Hanukkah

DECEMBER 18–26, 2022

Sometimes spelled “Hannukka” or “Chanukka,” the joyous Jewish Festival of Lights falls on different dates from late November to late December every year and commemorates the rededication of a Jerusalem temple. Though not the most important holy day of the Jewish calendar, Hanukkah may be the most popular, for it is a time of celebration that is especially enjoyed by children.

To mark each sunset of the eight spanning Hanukkah, Shelburne chiropractor Richard Magder, his wife, Alexandra Georgakopoulos Magder, and their young daughter, Rivers, recite a short

prayer of thanks and light one candle of the menorah, a nine branched candelabrum. The ninth candle is used to light each of the other eight candles.

The prayer reaffirms their faith and celebrates a centuries old miracle, a day’s supply of temple lamp oil that lasted for eight days.

The traditions of the holiday, handed down by his grandparents, bring warm memories to Richard. “All four of my grandparents were very big into the Jewish religion. I went to my grand mother’s place,” he says. “She always made fresh latkes (potato pancakes), cut the potatoes with us, took us through the whole process of preparing the meal. My grandfathers would teach us the prayers, the traditional values.”

Hanukkah geld (chocolate coins) was hidden throughout the home

for the children to hunt for and find. Manishewitz, the traditional sweet red kosher wine, would always make an appearance.

“Being able to spend time with the family, learning the traditions, was the most engaging and fun part of the holidays for me,” adds Richard. “We’ve started to impart that to our own daughter.”

Though Richard is Jewish, Alexandra is Christian, Greek Orthodox. Their blended faith family practises inclusive holiday traditions.

They will meet their four year old daughter, Rivers, by the Christmas tree each evening of Hanukkah. She will hide her eyes excitedly while Mom brings a little gift, perhaps a colouring book or a small figurine. “We do small gifts every night of Hanukkah, just

for the children,” says Alexandra, who looks after the business end of Richard’s practice. “Some families do one big gift. It varies. It’s more a cultural thing.”

The family also celebrates Christmas around that decorated tree, as well as Orthodox Christmas – as observed on the Julian calendar – in early January. Santa Claus is in the mix as well.

“Because of the mixed culture, our primary focus isn’t so much the reli gious aspect,” Alexandra says. “More the family values that come out of the religion – togetherness, support for each other, being thankful for our blessings.”

Richard is not bothered when holidaymakers wish him “Merry Christmas!” “It’s not something I ruminate on. I’ll say, ‘Thanks, and a Happy Hanukkah to you as well.’”

But this is happening less frequently,

Holydays

Alexandra notes. Richard now gets Hanukkah gifts from patients. “You can definitely see it. From a general society standpoint, people are more and more embracing and respecting other people’s holidays.”

Yule

DECEMBER 21, 2022

In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice, which usually occurs on either December 21 or 22, marks the shortest day and longest night of the year. The solstice is also the day witches celebrate Yule, an ancient festival associated with other Pagan traditions that focus on reverence for nature.

The English word witch morphed from the Old English word Þiċċa (pronounced wittsha), and witchcraft refers to the practice of magic, or energy manipulation. Witches connect to the physical and spiritual world to create change through divination, spell work and spirit work.

“I’ve never had any other religion. I think I was a witch all my life, I just didn’t realize it,” says Meghan Wellsbury, co owner with her sister, Alyssa Elstone, of Healing Moon in Orangeville. In fact, says Meghan, she views witchcraft as a lifestyle rather than a religion, and she emphasizes that witchcraft practices are as varied as the individuals who identify as witches.

But all witches have at least one thing in common. They celebrate Yule,

the day of the winter solstice, because it marks the return of the light and signifies rebirth.

“Some do full celebrations, food, dancing, bonfires,” says Meghan. “Some go far out, and some do it much more quietly. It depends on the witch. We’re all so different. Because my family (her husband and son) are not part of it, I go very low key.”

So no dancing by a midnight bonfire under a frigid winter moon? “Oh, no! Indoors. I’m not a winter person. I’d rather do bonfires in the summer!

“People were hunters and farmers. Winter was stark. Even now, we get tired of it being so dark. A Yule log was burned as a symbol of the sun. I don’t do a Yule log. I like evergreens as a symbol of love through the hard times. I’ll have boughs in every room.

“A lot of witches will create a solstice altar, a space in their home to put very specific things to celebrate. I don’t do one every year. It depends on the year. On mine, I’d have evergreen, holly, certain stones. Some work with a deity, some work with Gaia, the goddess. I work with the elements: fire, water, earth, air, spirit and the universal energies to create magic. Positive magic.

“I work with candle magic. I’ll set my intention – what I want the New Year to bring – write it into the candle, sit and meditate on it. My intention for 2022 was to have a calming existence, to quiet the crazy that has happened the last couple of years.

“I use essential oils, herbs, crystals and candle magic. The oils you pick, the herbs and crystals all relate to the spell you are working on.”

Hanukkah

Alexandra GeorgakopoulosMagder, Richard Magder and their daughter, Rivers. Their blended-faith family practises inclusive holiday traditions.

www.chestnutparkcountry.com

But is this witchcraft more than simply good intentions?

“It is a physical process, as well as an intention, and the fact that you are moving energy to make it happen. You are working with the energies. I am doing something. I am present in the moment, creating the magic that I need. I’m carving into candles. I’m focused. I’m not just making a wish and hoping something happens.

“There is magic behind it.”

Christmas, Jamaican style

DECEMBER 25, 2022

Though most Christians celebrate Christmas, or Christ’s mass, on

December 25, the Bible makes no mention of the birthdate of Jesus Christ, which leaves his actual date of birth open to debate. Some speculate the Catholic Church chose December 25 to co-opt Pagan winter solstice festivals that fell around that time. The first celebration of Christmas – called “Yule” at the time – is thought to have occurred in 336 CE, but the festival didn’t become a widespread Christian celebration until the 9th century.

Jamaica doesn’t get snow, most homes are without chimneys, and traditional Christmas carols are often sung with a reggae lilt, but Father Christmas does visit the Caribbean island.

Yule Meghan Wellsbury celebrates winter solstice with cut boughs and candles to invoke the natural energy of the elements.

Grandison. “Our Santa was usually a grandpa from our local church or the community who volunteered to bring the village children some Christmas cheer wearing a homemade red Santa suit stuffed with a pillow.”

In the rural Jamaican town of Alexandria, in the mountains of the parish of St. Ann, modest homes weren’t lit up for Christmas, but they would be repaired, tidied inside and out and maybe freshly painted in bright colours.

Though conifers are not unknown on the island, “chopping down trees to decorate would be confusing to people,” says Polvier, who works with World Vision Canada. “You cut down a tree for cooking (firewood) or to make furniture.”

A single string of lights was often suspended on the veranda. Stockings were hung at the foot of beds. Gifts were mostly practical: new shoes, a purse,

or a new outfit to wear to church.

“Christmas was all about family. All about food,” she adds. “You’d buy a pig. Someone would come in and butcher it, cure and prepare the ham, boiling it in brine, from scratch. Share the meat. It would be a big community event. There would be beef, pork, chicken, goat, fish, oxtail, black (fruit) cake and sorrel (a drink made from hibiscus flowers and often spiced with rum).”

Christmas centred on church, school and, on Christmas Eve, the Grand Market and lively Junkanoo street parade, a pan Caribbean celebration of the emancipation of enslaved Africans, featuring music, dancing and costumed revellers.

“Grand Market night was a time kids would look forward to,” says Polvier. “It was a time of excitement and joy, access to sweets, being with friends, rushing down to the main street to

see the parade, the biggest shopping event of the year. You’d have enough allowance to buy gifts: stocking fillers, novelties, little toys like pinwheels or board games, things you could share with your friends. Not like now – ‘I want a PlayStation 5 for Christmas!’”

In Canada for 22 years, Polvier and her husband, Gregory, along with their two teenage sons who were born here, decorate a Christmas tree together, add ing gifts throughout December. But in a tradition brought from home, they serve a huge buffet style meal on Christmas Day. “A whole array of meats, a large collection of options,” says Polvier. And their post Covid home will be opened once again to extended family and perhaps someone who lives alone.

“Christmas is a time to share,” she says.

Christmas, Jamaican style from left Evadney and Robert Folkes, Graden Grandison, Gregory Grandison, Spencer Grandison and Polvier FolkesGrandison. The family’s Christmas feast includes a traditional sorrel beverage, hot chocolate, and rum-soaked black cake.

Martyrdom of the Sahibzadas

DECEMBER 26, 2022

The Sikh faith is based in the state of Punjab in northern India and focused on the Golden Temple of Amritsar. Sikhs follow the philosophies of a line of longdeparted gurus, or teachers. Among Sikhs, however, the title “guru” is an honour accorded only to the 10 gurus who founded the religion. Many Sikh festivals and holidays celebrate the lives and strife of these gurus.

Hungry or just curious, all are welcome in the gurdwara.

The community kitchen at any gurdwara, or Sikh temple, offers

from left Sisters Alisha Grewal, Bubleen Bahga and Jasmine Bahga with their mother Amanjeet Grewal, dressed in their temple-going finery.

simple vegetarian meals to anyone, of any faith, free of charge. It is an ancient charitable tradition.

Should you find yourself in the gurd wara around the Sikh celebration of the Martyrdom of the Sahibzadas, don’t be puzzled by the smiling faces, happy families, upbeat songs and music.

Many Sikh festivals celebrate the birth, famous battles fought by, and sometimes brutal deaths of the line of gurus, and their families, whose teachings Sikhs follow. The word Sikh itself means “learner” or “seeker.”

The martyred Sahibzadas, or young princes, were four sons of the final in the line of gurus. Rather than renounce their faith, the two youngest chose to be bricked alive in a wall by their persecutors.

“We don’t celebrate the martyrdom. It is hurtful, but we are remembering and honouring as well. It is the feeling of sacrifice that I revere. It touches my heart,” says Shelburne resident Amanjeet Grewal, the mother of a teenager and two younger children. The celebration stretches over five

days at home and in the temple. At home, the family lights small oil clay lamps, or diyas, for the duration of the celebration.

At gurdwaras in Orangeville and Mono, “You’ll be greeted, hands together in welcome,” says Amanjeet. “You smell the fragrance of food, curry, rose scented incense. We sit cross legged on the carpeted floor, men and women in traditional clothes, sitting separately. There will be sweets, snacks, decorations. There is music, singing, hymns and drumming. It is a fun ceremony. It brings inner peace.

“I don’t go all day, every day. I drop in and out. I take the kids during the day. My husband, Vanderjit Bahga, works. Because of Covid, in the past two years, I’d limited it. We go in the evenings, five days, as a family. There are no gifts given.”

But there are gifts at the family home for Christmas, coloured lights on their house, inflatables in the yard and a big Christmas meal on the table.

“To me all faiths are the same,” Amanjeet adds. “I’m teaching my kids

to grow. There is a tradition of Santa for the kids. We’re in Canada. I have my door open for my kids and my family. We learn about each and every culture.”

Nichiren Buddhist New Year

JANUARY 1, 2023

Buddhism has many branches, each with its own cultural traditions, focus and New Year’s Day. But for all Buddhists, the transition from the old year to the new is a time of reflection, renewal and self-improvement.

Steve Ray laughs when asked whether any of the devotees who usually gather from across southern Ontario at the SGI Canada Culture Centre in Toronto on New Year’s Day arrive hungover. “We don’t have any regulations on that. We’re all about the middle way,” he says, still laughing. “No extremes

about most things.”

A Caledon resident and the operations manager for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Steve has practised Nichiren Buddhism, established in Japan the 13th century, since 2013. “Buddhism is a religion, but I don’t think of myself as a ‘born again’ Buddhist. It is a philosophy for daily life.”

In Headwaters, Buddhists usually get together in one another’s homes, though the pandemic has meant these meetings have become virtual. On New Year’s Day in non pandemic times, they would assemble with others from across southern Ontario for special ceremonies at the SGI Centre. SGI – Soka Gakkai International – is a support network for Nichiren Buddhists, who are dedicated to the principles of Buddhist humanism. But out of an abundance of caution and concern for the health of all, this coming New Year’s Day, the ceremonies will again be virtual.

No matter what the venue, though, says Steve, “People are excited. They

Martyrdom of the Sahibzadas

Nichiren Buddhist New Year

Steve Ray with his prayer beads and a chiming bowl. Both are aids to meditative relaxation.

have a big smile, or if they don’t, you are the person who encourages that. Everyone is making a great start to a new year together. Great positive vibes.”

During the 90 minute ceremonies, Nichiren Buddhists chant for 10 to 15 minutes with a leader’s guidance. They intone, “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,” a repetitive mantra intended to awaken dormant wisdom, their enlightened Buddha self.

Devotees face the gohonzon, a scroll written in Japanese and Sanskrit characters and resting inside a wooden altar. Much bigger than altars found in private homes, the centre’s altar would be adorned with candles, a basket of fruit and a bell, rung to punctuate chants and event speakers.

While chanting, devotees may be thinking about their “determination.” But, says Steve, the idea is to “let the mind go where it needs to go.”

The determination of the youth division, which Steve leads, is “engagement,” to help the isolated. “People are Zoom fatigued, not just for our meetings, for work and socially,” he

says. “It has become a challenge to connect. Our determination was to have more dialogue. To re establish contact with as many people as safely as possible.”

Steve’s personal determination for 2022 was to buy a house, something he achieved this past summer when he bought a house near Snelgrove.

How does a Buddhist’s “determination” differ from a prosaic New Year’s resolution? “Maybe it is in the way you follow through,” he says. “I want to chant to overcome and achieve in my life.

“We chant for ourselves and for others. We all do different things, come from different walks of life, different cultures, have different goals, but we are all striving for one thing: to be happy. How are we going to actualize that?

“That is what brings us together. It is quite moving. Two hundred people chanting are a force.”

L IA F ALZON

Registered Psychotherapist

Addiction Trauma Depression Anxiety Grief Relationships

I focus on client-centred and relationally sensitive psychotherapy. Together you and I will work to interrupt patterns that may once have been helpful but no longer serve you. Let’s talk about how I can help you heal and grow from within.

Contact me for a complimentary 30-minute consultation 647-501-0747 liafalzon @ gmail.com therapytoronto.ca/lia falzon.phtml In-person and online options Main Street in Erin

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The year in music

BY SCOTT BRUYEA

Artists often can’t explain why they start their creations and fiercely continue their devoted work until the project is complete. Despite doubt, procrastination and the spectre of criticism, magic gets concocted.

Then the artist moves on.

The art remains and is exposed for others to view, wag tongues, praise or judge wanting. And the call to produce original art remains incessant.

Michelangelo was a sculptor rather than a painter, yet decorated the glorious Sistine Chapel ceiling using an unfamiliar painting method, against his better judgment. The glorious result compromised the artist’s back and neck, and damaged his eyesight irrevocably. But the masterpiece was completed.

The creative engine of an artist can be sparked from seemingly anywhere and the engine engages to develop something unique. Extraordinary music is part of that expression, and the determination and courage to transmute a quiet signal into glory astounds me.

It is with admiration and respect that I review the music discussed on these pages, with an understanding of the odds against it being created, recorded and performed at all. I salute the courage required to wrestle and then share something that is passing through you to an audience.

Monkey House

Remember The Audio ( EP )

Sometimes when times are challenging, we can’t see the good things coming ahead.

Don Breithaupt and Monkey House released a musical reward this year with Remember The Audio, an album that is the welcome light approaching from the end of the tunnel.

The title track, “Remember The Audio,” recalls days of listening to music on a classic transistor radio and punching presets on the car radio to draw in the sounds of Booker T. Jones, the Rolling Stones and Marvin Gaye.

Although there is an aura of impending trouble embedded in the lyrics of some of the material, such as “The Future Is Almost Gone” and “Before You and After,” Breithaupt is no pessimist.

The overarching spirit of this album is uplifting, revolving around superb musicianship from the core tribe with solo appearances from luminaries such as Drew Zingg, Michael Leonhart, Guido Basso and Randy Brecker.

All 11 tracks are exceptional and Mark Kelso’s second line drum groove on “Skin in the Game” supporting trombonist Chris Butcher’s solo work was a highlight for me.

Monkey House has absolutely surmounted their previous best yet again.

our annual review of new recordings by local musicians

Afterwald

Embrace (single)

Jacob Lang, a former resident of Mono Mills, has been creating unique and alluring music in the form of structured dialogues between baritone vocals and meandering instruments since 2011.

Now based in Montreal, under the pseudonym Afterwald, Lang presents listeners with “Embrace,” an ethereal collaboration of voice, strings, saxophone, bass and synth, all beautifully mastered by Lorenzo Frati. Michele Marini is featured here on alto saxophone along with experimental cellist Ocean Radio Station (aka Wiktor Francikowski).

Afterwald is also a featured vocalist on the 2022 single releases “Bebel” and “Annie” from Caesar Mirage’s EP, Negative Land, as well as on “Twilight Alone (Reimagining Infinitum Bye’s Ocean of Tears”).

Afterwald has collaborated with jazz and experimental artists based in Estonia, Italy, the U.K. and the U.S., deploying a background in both organic and electronic music and has also been involved in multimedia collaborations.

All the musical explorations channel traditional and electronic sounds to stretch the singer-songwriter form and the results are like a musical calming blanket.

The Weather Station – Tamara Lindeman

How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars ( EP )

After the boldness of The Weather Station’s Ignorance, one-time Mulmur resident Tamara Lindeman, aka The Weather Station, has gone back to expressing music modestly on How Is It I Should Look at the Stars This collection of songs was written along with the music released on Ignorance but is expressed with a different temperament.

Ignorance advanced at us, but How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars beckons us to listen to thoughts whispered out loud, chaperoned predominately by piano.

There is much to huddle up with on this recording, including “To Talk About,” which shares a view of intimate love away from late nights attempting to fit the world into a song.

“Ignorance” is also the name of a track on How Is It I Should Look at the Stars and contemplates messages received and the idea of “dragging every river for meaning.”

“Sway” was an uplifting highlight for me, with its resonating chord progression topped by brawny and buoyant vocals that somehow landed differently.

This recording is about an artist creating and expressing the way all masters do. Doing the work, then giving it away. How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars is certainly a well-received gift.

The Jay Kipps Band

Little Black Train, Dumb Luck, Hot Crossed Buns (singles)

Before the pandemic, the Jay Kipps Band had their heads down at Pacha Sound in Toronto, working with producer Guillermo Subauste to finish a followup record to How to Polish Your Longhorns

After being shut down from recording, things are back in process with final touches being added to five original tracks and individual releases appearing in short order. I recently enjoyed an under-the-radar listen and things sound better than ever.

“Little Black Train” has the signature rebel sound that this Mono-based artist has become well known for. Once the pistons and cylinders engage and the harmonica sounds, hang on for a punchy blues ride.

“Dumb Luck,” a traditional country/bluegrass shuffle, showcases Kipps’ aunt and cousin from The Blue Ridge Mountains area on banjo and fiddle respectively. It’s all about a wonderful blue VW Vanagon Westfalia adventuring toward the East Coast.

“Hot Crossed Buns” is a surf-like rocker about Simon and extra baked goods that somehow make their way to Jay Kipps during a delivery to Hockley Resort.

There are more tunes on the way and I look forward to what this rootsrock band offers up next.

Ruby Waters Open Arms & Harder (singles)

I swear that Ruby Waters visited here in a past life, basking in the music of the ’60s, absorbing the vibe of the times while preparing to make her own musical statements.

Everything this unique artist, who originally hails from Shelburne, writes and performs feels raw, confident and pounds with an honesty that connects. Just like the days of Joplin, Baez, Melanie and Grace Slick, Ruby Waters performs with a passion intended to convey her convictions straight from the soul. It’s refreshingly inspiring.

She sings like she’s been sharing her songs for decades and this year she released two singles, “Open Arms” and “Harder.”

“Open Arms” is an invitation to sing an anthem about welcoming life with open arms, despite some days being tougher than the previous, and “Harder” is a sassy relationship song with a pleading chorus that could not possibly be repeated enough.

Ruby Waters is a musical force. Hearing this year’s singles led me to return to her earlier music and it all might be the soundtrack we need in our lives right now.

www.suzannelawrence.ca

Cameron Tania

Alone On Fire ( EP )

Cameron Tania’s vocal dexterity is on full display throughout the 2022 EP release Alone On Fire, contain original compositions that share experiences of devastation, grief, forgiveness and hope. been written for the ages that love hurts, and reiterates the theme and the deterioration of that can happen in a demeaning relationship.

You Stopped Loving Me,” which this Mulmur wrote at the young age of 17, is a gospel-bluesballad concerning breakup and the resultant featuring Carson Freeman on saxophone and supporting vocals from Trevohn and Rianna Jones.

Regret Loving You” is a sweeter recollection of fragments of a second-rate past relationship.

Cameron Tania conveys the emotion in her original songs by way of a refined voice and a specialty in musical performance that translates well here. Alone On Fire is akin to a one-woman show, expressing stories one thing so many of us have shared, with Tania’s voice downstage centre, serving as the source.

Ethan Luce Airplane Mode (single)

Ethan Luce typically likes to take a playful approach to making music as mirrored in earlier songs such as “I’m Done” and “Fam Jam.”

Associated videos are jocular and uplifting, but there’s more substance to this artist.

With an EP still in the works, Luce, who grew up in Orangeville, released the single “Airplane Mode” this year with a deeper message to convey.

The pandemic kept us physically apart, yet digital routes to our senses with their sometimes threatening messages continued to proliferate.

“Airplane Mode” touches on this and the result ant need to get off the grid and away from the digital noise, including questionable news media.

Emily Gilbart

From The Road ( EP )

Gilbart is a singer/songwriter from Mono who faculty for painting experiences and feelings songs that attracts listeners like bees to a

From the Road is the followup EP to her inaugural release, Long Gone, and the focus is once again where it should be, on this artist’s distinctive and warming singing voice.

All five songs on From the Road are invitingly performed by Gilbart, with producer Bruce Ley providing a discriminating splash of accompani ment and production.

This collection begins with the pleading “Throwing Rocks,” drawing you in after only a single verse. The reflective love ballad “For You” is unabashedly shared with the listener before the album wraps up too soon with the country-flavoured tip of the hat, “From the Road.”

Emily Gilbart believes in the healing power of music to connect and inspire others to shine. She is pursuing that vision further via her current academic studies.

From the Road was a delightful listening experience from start to finish, demonstrating that Gilbart is already using her musical powers to great effect.

Ethan Luce’s welcome signature vocals are up front and as silky as ever, but the chorus is punchier with a new solemnity that beats of concerning business.

The genesis of the single came from a blissful night flight with restricted internet access and how being removed from the din of the world left ample room for quiet reflection.

Get set for more music soon from this prom ising talent. Ethan Luce is more focused on his craft than ever and that’s a good thing for us.

Scott Bruyea is a musician and web content writer who lives in Orangeville.

MEET THE MAKER

Johana Cordero

For this weaver, the warp and weft of life is much more than a metaphor.

BY JANICE QUIRT

he afternoon sun streaming into Johana Cordero’s white walled, cork floored studio illuminates a pale wood spinning wheel, warping mill and loom. One could be forgiven for thinking these are decor pieces, so seamlessly do they enhance the minimalist esthetic of the small space. These beauties are functional; however, their purpose is to make textiles – handcrafted art that invites touching.Dressing is the painstaking, step by step process of threading the warp strands through the loom. From rollers to reeds, and heddles to treadles, the names of a loom’s parts sound a bit like a magical spell. And, in truth, some high level sorcery seems to be required to get things just so.

“People are used to art being beyond reach at a gallery or museum,” says the weaver. “I love textiles because they often have a function, such as with scarves, rugs or blankets. Even wall hangings can usually withstand a light caress.”

Johana enjoys the process of weaving, including the extensive preparation required. Size, fabric, density and balance are all factors – a rug must be rigid, a blanket or scarf malleable.

Once Johana makes those decisions, aided by a pattern and a sample, the preparation begins in earnest. The required length of strong yarn for the warp – threads that provide the foundation of a piece – is wound on a warping mill. Then it’s time to “dress” the loom.

Then it’s time to prepare the weft by winding its fibres onto bobbins. “I prefer to use natural fibres for both the warp and weft – cotton, wool, linen or bamboo,” says Johana, adding that synthetic fibres also have their place.

Once the bobbin is inserted in the shuttle, she starts the sequences defined by the pattern. Johana presses the treadle, or foot pedal, like an organist coaxing out a sacred hymn. She passes the shuttle through the shed, a space between the warp threads, and pulls a beater bar forward to lock in the row, repeating the pattern’s sequences until the piece is complete.

It all seems to require great skill, but Johana is quick to say that even young children can easily master simple, smaller looms. She offers various workshops, including kids’ birthday parties and courses for retirees, and is happy to see an increasing number of teens drawn to the craft.

ROSEMARY

T

“I always knew that I wanted to have a teaching studio,” she says. “So when I moved back to Ontario six years ago after attending Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University, that was my focus.” She and her partner, Tyler MacKenzie – the two met at Sheridan College where both studied craft and design – moved to Toronto’s Roncesvalles neighbourhood where she opened Loom Studio. Three years ago, when Johana was eight months pregnant, the couple bought a house in Bolton.

After the pandemic moved everything online, she migrated her studio to the Alton Mill and now her primary studio space is in her in laws’ house, also in Bolton. But she still has a pop up studio in Toronto, as well as a smaller workspace at home.

Though Johana appreciates the beauty of nature that is more accessible in Headwaters, she also misses the city vibe of Toronto and Bogotá, Colombia, where she was born. Her family moved to Mississauga when she was 14.

“Textiles, like many other crafts, play a huge role in the history of Colombia, and there are still many artisans making handmade goods and passing on their skills to their families,” she says. “Colombia is an inspiring and beautiful country with so much natural beauty and vibrant colours. That’s why I’ve always been drawn to nature and have wanted my craft to include natural elements.”

Both the black walnut tree and the dye garden in her backyard provide a readily available source of natural dyes, which yield beautiful results, such as the ombre blue blanket spread gracefully over a midcentury modern armchair in a corner of the studio.

Along with her own projects, Johana is also busy with commissions, such as the wall decor for Summerhill Market in Toronto and various hotel lobbies. Other clients, often families, ask to have their life experiences immortalized in a hanging woven in her modern, abstract esthetic.

But she also derives satisfaction from making traditional rag rugs. “Clients often give me fabrics that have meaning to them, like their mother’s quilt or their dad’s shirt. I love weaving a whole family’s story into an item that can be used and passed on.”

Johana considers herself fortunate to make a living from an activity she loves. “I take joy in honouring fabrics and fibres by giving them an ultimate purpose. This is why I went into craft versus art – so that people can touch, use and benefit from my creations and participate in the story the end result embodies.”

Janice Quirt is a freelance writer who lives in Orangeville.

MAKER CONTINUED FROM PAGE 73

Johana uses a shuttle to create rows of natural fibres in a weaving she’s creating on her loom.

local buys

Handmade gifts to delight

BY JANICE QUIRT

Lavender Love

Hereward Farms’ lavender-infused face serum, made with lavender grown on the East Garafraxa property, is racking up the accolades. This fall the non-toxic, crueltyfree, vegan and all-natural product took fourth place in the Clean Beauty Awards held by Toronto-based CertClean. “We started Hereward Farms in 2020 purely on a whim but have grown from 40 test plants to 6,000 this year,” says owner Julie Thurgood-Burnett. “Our business is about our natural home and skincare products – with the farm as a bonus for visitors to see where the products are developed.” (Lavender-infused face serum, $28, Orangeville Sobeys, Henning Salon and Holiday Treasures)

World Surrounded by rolling hills near Creemore, it’s no wonder Jamila Monahan’s wheel-thrown pottery comprises refined curves and organic textures –albeit with a modern sensibility. “My love of the natural comes out in a Scandinavian esthetic, which emphasizes simplicity, functionality and light,” says the local artist. From the petite espresso cups to larger platters, pieces embody usefulness and beauty. (Prices vary, Jamila Monahan Pottery)

Hold My Beer

From Honduras to Hockley

Living in Hockley Village inspires jeweller Heidi Pineda, whose work blends nature motifs and country style with elements of her Honduran heritage. Heidi Atelier jewelry showcases brass, pearls and semiprecious stones such as jade in a collection influenced by ancient cultures and pre-Colombian art. “I have a background in fashion design and appreciate beauty in all things,” Heidi says. “I love to use brass and a mix of materials and processes to create unique wearable art.” (Earrings, from $33, necklaces, from $34, Heidi Atelier and Holiday Treasures)

Life, Captured

Mono’s Jo Thomson captures faithful images of foraged organic leaves and other flora, all without using a camera. Instead, she leans on some of the earliest photographic techniques: vivid blue cyanotypes and reverse black-andwhite photograms. After over 20 years in a mostly digital creative environment, Jo says she had a strong desire to return to these forms.

“My work uses a ‘direct-contact’ method. It’s a slow process that reveals the beauty of the subject in true life-scale.” (Art card, $18.50, prints, from $65, Florigin and Holiday Treasures)

Holiday Treasures Show, Nov 30 – Dec 11 Museum of Dufferin, Airport Rd & Hwy 89, Mulmur 519-941-1114, www.dufferinmuseum.com

Hereward Farms, East Garafraxa www.herewardfarm.com, IG @herewardfarms

Henning Salon, 193 Broadway, Orangeville 519-942-4297, www.henningsalon.com

Looking for something different for your gift recipients this holiday season? Josh Friesen of Dirty Leather Work near Creemore has thoughts. He brings a background in bartending to his handmade heirloomquality leather goods, offering beer holsters, four-pack holders, and Mason jar mugs. “Every stitch, snap, rivet and cut are done with my own hands, no machining whatsoever,” he says. (Mason mugs, $40, beer holsters, $50, four-pack holders, from $100, Made on Oak)

Is Nicola Kidd of Resurfaced a photographer, printmaker or woodworker? All three, it turns out. Coasters, prints and even postcards feature the Mulmur artist’s original photographs of iconic Canadian symbols and landscapes skilfully printed on canvases of thin wood Nicola cuts herself. “Wood is such a warm material to work with. Its grain brings out so many different variations in the pieces, making each a one-of-a-kind creation.” (Four coasters, $35, postcard, $17, art print, $45, Resurfaced and Holiday Treasures)

Sobeys, 500 Riddell Road, Orangeville 519-941-1339

Jamila Monahan Pottery, Glen Huron www.jamilamonahan.com, IG @chickensandlaserbeams

Heidi Atelier, Hockley www.heidiatelier.com, IG @heidiatelier

Dirty Leather Work, Stayner

FB Dirty Leather Work, IG @dirty_leather_work

Made on Oak, 200 Oak Street, Stayner IG @madeonoak

Florigin, Mono. www.florig.in, IG @florig.in Resurfaced, Mulmur. Resurfaced.ca, IG @resurfacedca

Potter

FEED the birds

Looking to bring colour and joy to those grey winter days? Setting up a feeder for our fine feathered friends is a mutually beneficial move.

BY ALISON M C GILL ILLUSTRATION BY RUTH ANN PEARCE

“Feeding birds helps people connect with nature. It’s incredibly peaceful to watch them flutter about your yard,” says Brett Lagerquist, owner of Caledon Mountain Wildlife in Caledon Village. “It’s also a wonderful way to teach children about the importance of the environment.”

If you’ve toyed with the idea of installing a bird feeder, winter is a good time to start. As soon as the temperatures dip in late fall, birds look to supplement their diet – and rely on feeders as a major food source through late spring. Fun supporting fact: In 1994 U.S. congressman John Porter named February as National Bird feeding Month because it’s the most challenging month for wild birds.

Feeder fine points

When you install a new feeder, it can take time for word to get out. So plan to place it in a spot that’s highly visible, allowing birds to know you’re in business. You can also sprinkle a little seed on the ground around the area to encourage traffic.

As for the type of feeder to buy, Lagerquist says the best are ones that keep squirrels away, have a large capacity, and come with a warranty because they are constantly exposed to the elements. Lagerquist recommends a cylindrical cage like feeder such as Brome’s Squirrel Buster, which comes in different sizes and will appeal to a broad range of fowl.

For beginners, Susan McIntosh, co owner with her husband, Scott, of Orangeville’s For The Birds Nature Store, also recommends a traditional wood house style feeder which likewise attracts a variety

of winged visitors. Also available in a range of sizes and styles, the lids lift easily to make filling a cinch.

Hinterland who’s who

What bird species can you expect to see stopping by your feeder? Lagerquist says not only is Southern Ontario home to a wonderfully diverse variety of birds, but it’s also a breeding ground and migratory highway for birds coming from the north for the winter – in other words, plenty of excitement for amateur ornithologists. “The birds you attract will be determined by what seed and feeders you have available,” Lagerquist says. Some of the most common types you can expect to see include nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, hairy woodpeckers, dark eyed juncos, northern cardinals, American goldfinches, pine siskins, blue jays and mourning doves.

If you’re interested in a particular species, McIntosh suggests adding species specific feeders to your collection – a suet feeder for woodpeckers and nuthatches, or a nyjer seed feeder for goldfinches, for instance.

Seed savvy

Black oil sunflower seeds are the top choice in bird food. The seeds are smaller than striped sunflower seeds and have very thin shells which makes them easy to crack open. The kernels inside have a very high fat content which is critical in the harsh winter months. You can serve these seeds straight up, or as part of a nutrient rich and tasty seed mix.

Mixes frequently combine black oil sunflower, striped sunflower – their bigger, harder shells are

no match for larger birds such as cardinals – peanuts and safflower. Mixes are often filled out with corn and millet. Check that your mix is mostly sunflower, especially if you notice birds are favouring those and leaving behind other ingredients while they wait for the next refill.

The amount of seed you’ll need for the season depends on how many feeders you have and the volume of birds you attract. It will take a winter of feeding to really determine how much you should budget. Many people continue to feed birds in the warmer months too, but traffic will be slower as birds have natural foods to forage.

Chore time

Regardless of what feeder you choose, McIntosh suggests you clean them regularly with gentle dish soap and very hot water. Feeder trays collect mouldy and decomposing shells which can cause illness in birds. McIntosh also suggests cleaning after wet weather – especially a feeder using tiny nyjer seeds because they tend to clump.

How often you fill your feeder (or feeders) will depend on demand, but expect to head outside anywhere from every two days to at least every five. Also be sure to top up your feeder if you know a snowstorm is coming; this allows birds to prepare for stretches of being unable to feed, McIntosh says.

Alison McGill is an editor, writer and podcaster who lives in Halton Hills.

big flavours brighten the season

From classic bonbons and tourtière to new beers and café treats, a winter of good taste lies ahead.

BY JANICE QUIRT

Holiday chocolates make gifting, hosting and even decorating a cinch. Consider local options, such as a white chocolate sleigh, festive foil-wrapped “presents,” hard candy and a Santa lollipop from Debora’s Chocolates in Erin. The Chocolate Shop

in Orangeville fills sleighs with their famous chocolate-covered Oreos in a variety of holiday designs, from snowmen to snowflakes. Cream centres and truffles add to the spoils. Pick up Giddy Yo Chocolate’s organic, plant-based dark chocolate in Mono or order online – festive options include Mint Crunch and

Raspberry. Head to Caledon East for Gourmandissimo’s trademark Peppermint Bark, which marries semisweet and white chocolate with crushed candy cane – or opt for chocolate-dipped peppermint meringues and chocolate Santas, among other treats.

ELAINE LI, CRAVE AND CAPTURE

A most chocolatey time of the year!

Milk chocolate sleigh and chocolates from The Chocolate Shop. White chocolate sleigh, mints and foil-wrapped chocolates from Debora’s Chocolates. Raspberry dark chocolate and crunchy mint chocolate bars from Giddy Yo.

A golden oldie

The holidays have been magical at Holtom’s Bakery in Erin since the bakery opened back in 1946. Favourites include Christmas cake (with generous lashings of rum) and classic buttery icebox cookies full of fruit peel and nuts. Gingerbread people and shortbread are other must-buys, while tourtière makes a quick main course in the runup to the main event. For a showstopper, consider their braided rye, a huge loaf that doubles as an eye-catching centrepiece.

Coffee culture collab

New country brews

Picture the scenery of Mono Cliffs Provincial Park. Now imagine a brewery just down the road where you can try flavourful beers made onsite, next to a sea of pines. There’s a spot to play lawn games in the nicer weather while enjoying a lighter brew like Island Lake Pale Ale. Or, come winter, cozy up in the bright indoor space with a darker option like Relessey English Brown Ale. In any season, that’s the great vibe at the newly opened Mono Centre Brewing Company, headed up by friends Paul Wratten and Zach Gammage on Zach’s property, which has been in the family since 1987.

“Beginning this journey, we appreciated there were a number of good local breweries but felt that our location was underserved and central to Orangeville, Shelburne and Alliston,” says Zach. “We have been blown away by the community response. I hope I’m not wrong, but our brewery is quickly becoming a place where folks meet, catch up and come for a relaxing, enjoyable time.”

Zach says he’s grateful to the nine local restaurants that have shown their support and serve Mono Centre Brewing Company brews. Plans include expanding to offer food options beyond the snacks currently on offer perhaps via food trucks or local chef partnerships along with music-themed events or popup markets.

Winter is filling

It’s winter, why not eat? The Headwaters Food & Farming Alliance’s Winter Harvest Dining Series unfolds January 21 at Shelburne Golf & Country Club, February 23 at Mrs. Mitchell’s Restaurant, and March 23 at Mono Cliffs Inn. Each event is an exquisite dining experience prepared with locally sourced ingredients.

Rose De Marco celebrates two coffee powerhouses, Jamaica and Italy. In a nod to Rose’s Jamaican background and husband Antonio’s Italian heritage, De Marco’s Caffè in Shelburne offers mouth-watering desserts from both cultures. Rose employs two bakers, one specializing in Jamaican sweets like rum cake, and another in Italian classics. Otherwise, red velvet and caramel pecan cheesecakes are top sellers, and Rose also stocks gluten-free options. Lovers Leap is the cafe’s smooth signature coffee blend, and a chai latte soothes after a long day of holiday shopping. Let’s not forget the iced versions or a smoothie for a hit of fruit.

The Craft’s Teglia Romana pizza features roasted garlic, ricotta, spinach and bacon.

Mystic pizza

There’s a new pizza player in downtown Orangeville. The Craft Pizza Bar & Italian Kitchen offers already-popular Neapolitan- and New York-style pizza and Italian street food, from veal sandwiches to arancini rice balls (and cannoli for dessert). Meanwhile, Grand Valley doesn’t get to keep those wafer-thin pies from Biegel’s Stone Oven Pizza to itself – the small but mighty new Orangeville outpost is at the west end of Broadway. Try the excellent gelato, too.

BREWERY AND PIZZA BY ELAINE LI, CRAVE AND CAPTURE / CANNOLI COURTESY DE MARCO’S CAFFÉ

SPOTLIGHT

Owners Zach Gammage, left, and Paul Wratten at Mono Centre Brewing Company.

Listen up, order’s up

Want to be able to cook better Italian at home? The Kitchen at Mono Mills offers cooking classes perfect for date nights, team-building gatherings or kids’ birthday parties. In the Art of Italian Cooking you’ll learn how to make everything from chicken parmigiana to gnocchi, and enjoy the fruits of your labours over six sessions.

You heard about Orangeville’s new social enterprise CommonFare Kitchen in our fall issue (now selling homemade granola – yum). Their six-week food program focuses on low-cost meals and battling food insecurity, as well as learning kitchen knife skills. For a social offering, Get Your Bake On sees attendees choose a recipe for the day, and share coffee and sweets in good company.

After sunset, snow begins like a fog, dusting the trees and skittering across roadways. Cold gusts herald the coming wind. By midnight, snow fills the air, hurled by the storm. The wind howls at our windows and blows cold drafts through chinks in our walls. As we burrow deeper under the covers, Bruce Crawford’s feet hit the cold floor. Bruce is public works foreman in

Bring It On!

BY TONY REYNOLDS

Mulmur Township – and one of the unheralded snowplow operators who work the small hours, clearing the winter roads, so we can drive by morning. His beat is the southeast corner of Mulmur, north of Highway 89, both sides of Airport Road.

2:30 a.m. The alarm on the bedside table begins to sound and Bruce shuts it off right away. He’s already half awake, listening to the wind. He

checks the forecast on his phone and sees he’ll have his work cut out for him this day.

2:45 a.m. In the kitchen, he’s making coffee, a couple of sandwiches and snacks. “It’s too early to have anything to eat,” he says. He’ll do half a day’s work before breakfast.

3:00 a.m. The pickup is just starting to get warm as Bruce leaves home in

Stayner, headed toward Terra Nova. When the night is clear, he may take a longer route to check the condition of a couple of roads on the way down, but when the snow is already drifting, he heads straight for the works yard to get a good start.

3:30 a.m. He arrives at the Mulmur Township works yard deep in the Pine River valley, north of Terra Nova. Cold gusts swirl snow around the lights like

When the winter wind blows and the flakes fly, snowplow operator Bruce Crawford is ready to go to work.

PETE PATERSON

If the sun is up, snowplow operator Bruce Crawford is nearing the end of an overnight shift clearing roads for residents of Dufferin County.

bugs in the summertime. Bruce is one of the early crew’s six people who drive the three graders and three trucks with plows attached to the front. A fourth truck is available in case one of the vehicles breaks down.

“There are roughly 300 kilometres of roads in the township, but some of them we don’t look after in winter,” says Bruce. Each vehicle has a designated route. “We do two passes – on the way out and on the way back – to clear both sides. That takes about four and a half hours, and there are some days where you get done and you’ve got to go back out and do it again.”

The graders are ready to go first. They clear the gravel roads and, with carbide teeth on the bottom of their blades, scratch into the gravel to break up the surface to provide better traction. Meanwhile, the trucks are taking on mixed loads of salt and sand.

4:00 a.m. Bruce climbs into his plow, a Western Star tandem axle truck with a 430 horsepower engine and a plow that will clear a four metre swath. With a full load of sand and salt, it weighs 27 tons. He has done the inspection – oil level, tires, lights – and filled the dump box. He heads south on the Fifth Line from the 20th Sideroad to Highway 89, then north on the Seventh Line, pushing the snow off the road and spreading salt and sand as he goes.

“We try to leave some snow on the shoulder to help slow down any vehicles that go off the road,” says Bruce. “But if it’s going to rain, we clear them so the roads drain.”

Bruce knows these roads well. He has lived in the area all his life. Growing up south of Honeywood, he attended Centennial Hylands Elementary and Centre Dufferin District High School in Shelburne. For many years he drove transport with long hauls into the United States. He has two grown kids but is not with their mother. “The trucking industry is hard on relationships,” he says. “You’re away from home a lot.”

Ten years ago he decided to stick closer to home and started clearing roads in Mulmur. “I thought I’d settle down,” he says. Then he met his fiancée, Brenda Rabson, and they bought a house in Stayner.

“I really enjoy the snow removal, so that’s what made me venture into

this,” he says. He relishes a challenge and there’s a steep learning curve to driving a plow on Mulmur roads. “I started here with a good bunch of guys who taught me a lot.”

Although Bruce knows where the tough spots are along his route, he still sometimes finds himself sliding backwards down a hill or up against a drift that his 430 horses can’t budge.

“On the Fifth Line near Mansfield Ski Club, it can blow in ... Sometimes it plugs right up and we have to get a tractor mounted snowblower to clear the drifts.”

7:00 a.m. Time for breakfast. The school boards have decided schools will be open, so the buses are setting out. Bruce pulls over, out of the way, and takes a few minutes for coffee and a snack.

7:15 a.m. Back on the road. He has pushed the snow off the main roads, but now there are five subdivisions to clear.

One thing Bruce would like from some drivers is a little more patience. “We go slow for a reason ... on narrow roads we’ve got to be more careful ... or we need to get the right coverage of grit on the road ... or we have a tight turn coming up. When we have a chance, we’ll slow right down or pull over to let drivers go by.”

8:30 a.m. He’s back in the yard. He’ll likely go out again, so he refills the dump box before taking a break for lunch.

9:00 a.m. The storm isn’t letting up, so Bruce heads out for another round. He knows where the bad spots are along his route and where he’ll need to clear off the snow again.

12 noon He drives the truck back to the yard, fuels up, inspects the tires and oil level, and puts the rig back in the garage. The afternoon shift is arriving, two people to continue keeping the roads clear for the drive home. They’ll work till 8:30 p.m., about the time Bruce will be setting his alarm for the next morning.

Tony Reynolds is a freelance writer who lives in Orangeville.

One could call this route “Evergreen Alley“ I saw 11 species of conifer along the 10-km trail between Hillsburgh and Cataract. All but two (blue and Norway spruce) are native to Ontario. See if you can identify them all on your hike! (Most have needles and cones.)

Erin Village makes a perfect stop for some mid-hike sustenance.

EASTERN WHITE CEDAR

Thousand-year-old white cedars (Thuja occidentalis) thrive on the Niagara Escarpment.

RED PINE

Red pines (Pinus resinosa) love growing in sandy soil.

JACK PINE

Pinus banksiana’s small cones open when exposed to fire.

HIKING ETIQUETTE

Hike only on marked trails. Obey all signs. Carry out all litter, including dog poo. Keep dogs leashed. Don’t disturb people, animals, plants or trees.

WHITE SPRUCE

The roots of Picea glauca were used to make lacings for birchbark canoes.

EASTERN WHITE PINE

Ontario’s provincial tree, Pinus strobus.

BLUE SPRUCE

Blue spruces (Picea pungens) appear blue due to the wax on their needles.

TAMARACK

Larches (Larix laricina) are our only native deciduous conifer.

BLACK SPRUCE

Picea mariana is Ontario’s most common tree.

NICOLA ROSS IS THE AUTHOR OF THE BESTSELLING LOOPS & LATTES HIKING GUIDE SERIES

Arrival of the Aunties

BY BETHANY LEE ILLUSTRATION BY SHELAGH ARMSTRONG

Happy trails!

Take a peek at the map of the trails at Mansfield Outdoor Centre – this incredible local gem boasts dozens and dozens of kilometres of trails for you and your kids to discover, and they’re open all winter. Take your little snow bunnies on hikes, fat bikes or snowshoes for some outdoor fun and exercise. Mansfield Outdoor Centre is located just up Airport Road, about ten minutes north of the Mansfield General Store. Their Winter Limited Access Pass ($149) is valid from now until the end of March and gives you access to bike, hike and snowshoe trails.

Want to add in cross-country skiing? Check out the Winter All Access Pass ($249; students/ seniors, $199). See the website for upcoming Family Pass details. www.mansfieldoutdoorcentre.ca

The season of sparkle is upon us. Feathers of snow fall from the sky, twinkly lights blink from behind laden windows, and as the door is opened, invisible cold curls sneak in. Boots are quickly kicked off, sugary drinks are snapped open, glasses are clinked, and nibbles are noshed. For many of us, as the daylight grows shorter and shorter, it’s a time to gather with friends and family.

Inevitably, the Aunties arrive! They smell so good wrapped in their various perfumes, as we greet them one by one. They burst across the threshold, their partners and young ones in tow – forgotten for a moment in the rush of hugs and kisses. Jackets in bright colours peel off to reveal their prettiest outfits. The coats are thrown in the spare room, a pile of fashionable down and wool to be retrieved at a much later hour.

And then they unpack: I brought this for you! Here is the sweater I borrowed! I am finally returning this platter. Here is that spice mix you love. In comes the extra food, store bought platters wrapped in cello and homemade specialties in janky old tins worn from generations of use. All seem wonderfully familiar and OTT (over the top!) at the same time. All the sweets we wouldn’t normally eat are here; the rules go out the window when the Aunties are on the scene.

At this time of year, the Aunties are in their wonderful glory. They love up the kids that aren’t theirs. At other times, they’ve been known to give a 50 dollar

bill to the kids to “go get all the candy your mom won’t let you have,” at the fair or the theatre. When you stay over with them, they let you stay up late. As you get older, they’ll talk to you about sex and birth control before your parents will, and listen to stories about your friends and foes, your teenage highs and lows.

Aunties come in many forms – some older, some younger, some by chance and happenstance – and I was lucky to have some fabulous Aunties. I didn’t call Greta Reid “Auntie,” but she and my mom’s other friend, Joan Day, were very special to me when I was growing up.

Greta is a writer, a designer and knitter, with a shocking burst of snowy white hair and bangles up her arms. Her British accent drew me in at every gathering. We would talk about fashion and art, and movies I’d never heard of. She brought expensive bread in a paper bag from Toronto bakeries, with crunch and floured crusts unlike those from any local grocery store. She sent thick Vogue magazines to me, with the pages dog eared: “For B,” in her elegant scratch – “Fabulous!”

Joan was short, round and grounded – with dyed red hair that stood in wild curls and large sunglasses that didn’t come off, even when she was inside. And wild caftans – how cool! Her house was dark and exotic and filled with lacquered furniture from far away. “Hi, Beth!” she would say in her jewelled voice and envelop me in her musky cloud. Her hugs were epic and strong, and this went on all my life until cancer blanketed her fire.

Marcia is also an Auntie to me – my mom’s best friend for most of her life. She saw me through my teenage years, from awkward and sporty on through my years of black clothing and heavy eyeliner, boyfriends, schools and jobs. Her first marriage let me peek at opulence. I learned about decor and fashion from her, and wild ’80s parties imprinted on my mind – the loud music on the record player and the stirring of mixed drinks.

Later, Marcia became a fabulous baker – soft cookies and decadent cakes, either as quick fixes when someone arrived unexpectedly or all day affairs of whipping and folding. We love each other like true blood. We still email, connect on social media and have the occasional phone call. She is not afraid to give me advice, and I take it well because I know how intimately she knows my family and me. One of my favourite places in this world is sitting across from Marcia, sharing tea and cake.

The Aunties in our lives play a special role. They are close, but on the outside looking in. They can see you and your family with a lens you don’t have when you’re related by blood. They spoil you like your parents never would, eat foods unfamiliar, smell dif ferent. They are truth talkers who open exotic worlds, yet provide a safe place.

In my life, one of my favourite successes is to be an Auntie to some of my friends’ kids. I’m on the sidelines when I can be, cheering on the only player I can see on the field, greeting their beloved horses by name, or talking art or upcoming thesis work. I am also so happy my son Adrian is blessed with Aunties in his life. This holiday season, they will soon be blowing through the door again. Each with a perspective unique from mine, they see Adrian’s spark, admire and celebrate him, and love him madly.

Frosty farmers’ market?

The Orangeville Farmers’ Market is not frosty at all! Step inside the warmth of Orangeville Town Hall on Broadway any Saturday between November 5 and December 17, and between January 7 and April 22 to be delighted by local vendors of lovely fresh produce, baking and meats; makers of tiny treats for little ones; and crafty folks selling their wares. We always miss the summer street meetups on sunny mornings, so the winter indoor market is worth putting on your list. Who knows, you may run into a friend or two! www.downtownorangeville.ca

A classical experience

Are you looking to open your ears and minds to classical music?

The historic Gibson Centre in Alliston may have something for you beginning in March. Take a look and book tickets now for Joonghun Cho or Xiting Yang (pianists), Caroline Kim (cellist) and others during their spring classical music series. These world-class musicians may be just the inspiration you or your young one is listening for, in a stunning setting close to home. www.gibsoncentre.com/our-events

Emergencies can happen — be prepared

Bethany Lee is a freelance writer who lives in Mono.

During an emergency, your family (including pets) needs a 72-hour emergency kit and a plan for how you will communicate. Emergencies might include storms, power outages or even public health measures. See the Emergency Management Ontario website for everything you need to guide you, including activities to get the kids involved, such as the 72-hour emergency kit Bingo game. Be prepared and be safe this winter! www.ontario.ca/page/ be-prepared-emergency

Metric R esistance

50 years later, conversion doesn’t come easily.

BY GAIL GRANT

Are you all in with Canada’s conversion to metric? If you are, congratulations, but you are in the minority of the over 55 group in our country.

It’s been over 50 years since Canada’s Metric Commission was established to oversee our metrification; however, a recent survey by Research Co., a Canada based polling company, reported that 38 per cent of those in the 55 and over age bracket would happily return to the imperial system. (Not surprisingly, this number decreases as respondents get younger.)

Furthermore, a half century later, 80 per cent of Canadians continue to measure their height in feet and inches, 76 per cent determine their weight in pounds, while 59 per cent still measure oven temperature in Fahrenheit. But for linear dimensions, speed and outdoor temperature, metric is the way most Canadians prefer to go. Really? For me, this is an eye opener.

I still think in Fahrenheit for inside and outside temperatures, and visualize floor space in square feet and fields in acres rather than metres and hectares. I studiously ignore the madly

flipping gauge on the pump at the gas station, stopping when the handle jerks. And in spite of the fact that all speed limit signs in the country were changed to kilometres per hour in 1977, I still mentally translate them to miles per hour.

Thinking about it, I haven’t converted at all.

My smarter friends tell me that metric is a more efficient way of measuring, but I just can’t seem to get there. Visualizing a foot comes naturally, but nothing registers when I try to picture 30 centimetres. And on the golf course, I can’t imagine asking someone, “How many metres to the pin?” Not only would it sound downright weird, but that game truly doesn’t need more complications.

Just for fun, take a look at the awkward hodgepodge of containers in your kitchen. A quick look through my fridge turned up volumes of 177ml (pickled ginger), 148 ml (mint sauce), 8.8 oz / 250 g (coffee), and the one I found most interesting, a Compliments (the “proudly Canadian” manufacturing arm of Sobeys) jar of coconut oil contains 404 ml. Wouldn’t 500 ml, or even 400, somehow make more sense?

Geoff Dilley

Like so many of us during the pandemic lockdowns, Geoff Dilley was casting about for something to fill his time. And he found it. The retired finish carpenter crafted a “memory box” and then made 129 more.

Many of those boxes, which each have a different inlay design on the lid and measure 12 by 6 by 4 inches, will be for sale this December at the Holiday Treasures show at the Museum of Dufferin. They are variously crafted from oak, maple, Brazilian mahogany and sapele mahogany, all woods used to make the propellers of World War I aircraft.

Geoff’s connection with vintage propellers came about through his volunteer work at the Great War Flying Museum near Cheltenham. There, with funding help from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, he rebuilt

the museum’s artifact section, and he completed a hangar extension with the aid of funds from the Town of Caledon’s annual golf tournament.

Geoff originally studied carpentry and joinery in England, where he also met Anita, a Toronto teacher, at the wedding of a mutual friend in his hometown of Bristol. With a romantic spark ignited, he soon immigrated to Canada. The couple, proud parents of three grown children, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

Geoff started his career in Canada building custom kitchens, and you can detect a tiny scoff in his voice when he talks about today’s component kitchens.

“In the early 1970s, I created each cupboard from scratch, beginning with sheets of veneer plywood, and often adding custom-laminated countertops,” he says.

This is apparently the result of manufacturers creating containers that work in the massive American market.

The U.S. is one of only three countries around the globe still on the imperial system (the other two are Myanmar and Liberia). But if you’re travelling to the States, remember, those gas prices look so cheap because a standard imperial gallon is about 20 per cent bigger than an American one.

Helen Mason emigrated from Scotland to Canada in 1966 in her mid 20s. She quickly resumed her teaching career in her new country, specializing in K to 8, but it wasn’t without challenges. “In the beginning I jumped in at the deep end, learning the night before what I was going to teach the next day,” says Helen. “In Scotland at the time, weight was measured in the avoirdupois system. For example, one stone equalled 14 pounds.

“My Canadian students were focused on learning the imperial system; I certainly didn’t want to add to their confusion,” she says.

Helen worked to learn the imperial system, but when she was forced to switch to metric, she did it reluctantly. “The imperial system served me well over the years, and still does. My old cookbooks use teaspoon and cup mea surements, so by and large I stick with the imperial system in the kitchen, although I’m now comfortable with my car speedometer registering kilome tres, and I think distances in metric.”

There was a time when the road signs in my little community boldly declared 25 maximum. Come on! That was too much of a dawdle even for the most cautious driver. We later learned it had been a mixup in speed conversions. The 40 maximum we now see makes much more sense.

People may be right about the logic of the metric system, but my mind wanders to the delightful metaphors that are still part of our speech patterns. We still go that heroic “extra mile.” Offer a “cup of kindness.” Feel “ten feet tall.” And “an ounce of prevention” is still worth “a pound of cure.” There is no confusion about what any of those mean, but what does the metric child call an inch worm? These figures of speech are ingrained in my world.

My friend Bernie Rochon is one of those marvellous men who enthusiastically takes on full kitchen duties, much to the delight of his partner, Pat. “My cooking has evolved beyond precise measurements,” he says. “For me, it’s more fun to think of a pinch, a dollop or a splash when I’m creating in the kitchen.”

There you have it. We have found our workaround.

Gail Grant is a happily retired senior who lives in Palgrave.

Each of Geoff Dilley’s memory boxes has a unique inlay design, crafted with the types of wood once used to make propellers for World War I aircraft.

Eventually he started his own business, “building decks, bump outs and second storeys in and around the Caledon area.”

Now 75, Geoff says, “I’m thankful to Canada and par ticularly to Caledon for the opportunity to earn a good living during my active business life, and I’m happy, too, that I have found opportunities to give back.”

And give back he has. In addition to his recent work for the flying museum, he put his skills to use as a long time volunteer with the Palgrave Rotary Club, where he undertook many projects, including building the gazebo in Palgrave’s Stationlands Park and revamping spaces at the Palgrave Park baseball diamond. His contributions were recognized when he was named a Paul Harris Fellow, one of Rotary International’s highest honours.

modern family

BY JANICE QUIRT PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN FITZGIBBON

There should be a caution sign on this stretch of road, just outside Erin Village, for passersby likely to rubberneck at the site of the contemporary farmhouse with its grey hemlock exterior and black windows, perched just so on a picturesque field with trees hugging the property. Come winter, the whole scene could be set in Iceland or another rugged Nordic landscape.

The ethos continues inside, with clean lines and hygge comforts that are anything but twee. “Roland and I refer to our style as modern, minimalist and warm organic,” owner Jade Skuce says, referring to her husband, Roland, who is co owner of Caledon Timber Frame. “We pride ourselves on creating good energy in all of our homes.”

This is the second home Roland and Jade, a real estate agent and stylist, have built together. New builds are

often described as akin to giving birth. But here, that analogy is even more apt, as the couple was in full nesting mode at the time. Their daughter, Meadow, was just four weeks old in January 2021 when the family moved in. “We so wanted to spend time with Meadow in this new house, so we really crunched the timeline to make it happen,” says Jade. “Then again, everything about this project has centred around major life events, so why not?”

Jade and Roland Skuce’s passion for building from scratch dovetailed with the birth of their daughter and resulted in a remarkable modern farmhouse.

Indeed, when they first encountered the property in the summer of 2019, the couple was just about to get married. They were approached about a vacant lot in Caledon that wasn’t yet publicly listed. Jade and Roland and Roland’s parents, Patrick and Martina Skuce, who own Caledon Build, all fell in love with the land overlooking a farm field and grove of trees. Even though they were more than a bit busy at the time, they decided to buy it. The

deal closed November 2019. Despite dealing with Covid related and other constraints, the 4,000 square foot house was finished in less than a year.

The couple’s modern farmhouse style comprises the large, heavy Quebec pine timbers that are Roland’s stock in trade, wide open spaces and natural stone offset by antiques, vintage items and new custom pieces. Jade, who handled all the interior design, says the house expresses their

penchant for layering wood with other earthy and natural elements. (In her work, Jade’s niche lies in helping buyers style and curate their spaces after they have moved in, adding value and a sense of home in one fell swoop.)

In winter, the family is most at home in the living room where they cozy up by the wood burning fireplace, listening to the crackle of flames. A sumptuous Beni Ourain Moroccan

above Roland, Meadow and Jade Skuce in the spacious living area of the modern, minimalist Erin farmhouse they finished building in early 2021. The home’s hemlock exterior and black-framed windows stand out against a wintry backdrop.

opposite A wood stove, textured throws and a Moroccan shag rug keep the main space cozy in the winter.

top In the living area, a midcentury modern burnt orange swivel recliner adds a hit of colour. The stairs behind the dining area lead to a loft currently used as an exercise and games room.

top right The living area’s ceiling is an ode to the solid Quebec pine timbers Roland used in constructing the home.

right and above The kitchen features natural limestone on the island and the backsplash – and dark olive green paint on the cabinets. Even everyday containers and kitchen tools hew to Jade’s sleek design sensibility.

wool shag rug in neutral tones offers warmth and texture. Jade’s favourite piece is a new to them burnt orange midcentury modern swivel recliner and matching ottoman from Toronto based Jacob Morris, who sells vintage furniture via his Instagram shop @goodfurnifurnifurni. Complementing that find are the simple lines and deeply grained natural wood of a coffee table made by Roland. A teak sideboard serves as a media centre and is a treasured piece that follows the family from house to house. A custom ash dining table made by Caledon’s Brandon McGinnis Designs

adds to the Scandinavian feel. Large plants, including an eight foot rubber tree and a beautiful bird of paradise, are examples of one of Jade’s go to methods of grounding a space.

The kitchen is a busy hub where Jade and Roland can be close to Meadow, who plays there or in the living area while they prepare food. The huge island with limestone countertops and a waterfall ledge is the spot for eating and gathering; the limestone detail is carried through to the backsplash.

Cabinets are painted in Benjamin Moore’s Forest Floor, a dark olive green. “We love the limestone – it has a very warm feel,” comments Jade.

Broker

“The brass taps and black cabinet pulls in the kitchen hardware provide a modern touch, a look that is reflected in the black and brass sconces framing the white open shelves.”

The three bedrooms are on the main floor. The primary suite, in its own wing, features expansive windows that look out to the farm field and a boardwalk lined with coneflowers in the warmer months. In early to late spring, Jade says she never tires of watching grazing deer in the field. A stone sculpture by Roland’s mother, Martina, holds a place of prominence in the outdoor living zone. Jade and Roland also enjoy their space as a

tranquil spot to read. Like the rest of the house, the room is painted Super White by Benjamin Moore, a classic white that balances all the yellow in those timbers. The ensuite features a heated porcelain floor with a stylish poured concrete look and a sleek soaker tub with brass hardware.

In Meadow’s nursery, the lower half of the walls is painted in the terracotta tones of Farrow and Ball’s Setting Plaster; it seems to emit warmth. That room, along with a bathroom, guest suite and guest bathroom round out the main floor. One highlight in the first floor laundry room is a vintage

www.veronateskey.com

top left A sculptural light fixture contrasts with the timber ceiling.

top right The bright primary bedroom overlooks the farm field and a boardwalk.

centre and far right Clean lines and spare style extend to the bathroom designs throughout the home.

above Meadow’s serene bedroom seems to glow with soft terracotta accents.

crystal light fixture salvaged from a Queen Anne style Victorian home in Wroxeter, Ontario, that Roland’s Oma and Opa had purchased in hopes of renovating. While they ended up tearing the structure down 35 years ago, they saved this light fixture and it’s been in the family ever since.

The airy loft is multifunctional, currently serving as an exercise and games room, as well as extra play space for Meadow. With its full bathroom, Jade and Roland also envision the loft as another bedroom.

Jade and Roland have enjoyed every season here but cite winter –

and especially the holidays – as the period they most looked forward to.

“I love to have a real tree and garland, and I decorate with big, colourful ornaments for impact,” Jade says.

“Fresh cut winter greens and pretty branches complete the look.” Jade buys her greenery from Snowberry Botanicals, adding that owner Krystal

Young was the first person she met in Erin when the family first moved in. Jade and Krystal are now good friends and Jade has a long standing flower subscription. “Having real greens and flowers is important to us during every season.”

Jade says she adores the village

of Erin for other reasons too. “The proximity to the gorgeous countryside is another bonus. One of our favourite things to do is to grab a coffee at the Tin Roof Café and then go for a family hike. We also really enjoy shopping at the local farmers’ markets.”

Both Roland, who grew up in Caledon, and Jade moved multiple times during their childhoods –with Jade’s family finally landing in Cheltenham. (She calls her mom a superwoman who helps her with every move, especially this most recent one with newborn Meadow.) Roland and Jade met and dated in high school in Caledon, then reconnected years later

after Roland completed carpentry and timber framing studies at the College of the Rockies.

Now their stay in this home is also coming to an end, as the couple scratches the itch to build anew –though still in Erin. The cycle of design, build, style and sell might seem exhausting, yet the couple thrives on it.

“When inspiration and opportunity strike, it is time to move on – that’s what we do,” says Jade. “As nomadic designers and builders, we get a kick out of creating beautiful spaces with good energy that feel like home.”

Bennett

drive shed About 40 acres currently being farmed Approximately 35 acres in mixed forest with majestic trails, and a whimsical 2+ acre pond with dock and gorgeous weeping willow is viewed from the house A once in a lifetime oppor tunity! 45 mins to Toronto Inquire as to pricing

This char ming 1 1/2 storey, 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom centur y home in the gothic revival style, is situated on a picturesque half acre lot surrounded by towering trees and perennial gardens, with stream, small pond, and screened in gazebo Highlights include gingerbread trim, pine and hardwood flooring, stamped tin cladding in the kitchen, and the Eastlake style covered verandah A 1 bedroom detached timber frame coach house residence with separate septic and hydro offers potential for in law, rental income, and in home studio/office (legal non conforming) High speed inter net Minutes from the Caledon Ski Club, the famous Forks of the Credit, golf, cideries, breweries and more! Walk to coffee shops, public school, and the conservation area 45 minutes nor thwest of Toronto Inquire as to pricing

bath, “Jasper” model with open concept great r m w/ gas fireplace, pot lighting, hardwood flooring, eat in kitchen w/ Wolf gas stove, SS appliances, centre island w/ breakfast bar, quar tz counter tops Walk to schools, shops, rec centre, Caledon Trailway 45 mins to Toronto $1,498,000

H E R I TA G E D E S I G N AT E D “ G I N G E R B R E A D C O T TA G E ” C A L E D O N

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dining

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Forage 81

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Judy’s Restaurant 81 Mono Cliffs Inn 79

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Hockley Valley Resort 115 Holiday Treasures 111 Home for the Holidays Gala 115 Winter Fest 52

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Budson’s Farm & Feed Company 52 Peel Hardware & Supply 20

food + drink + catering

Davis Family Farm 76

Debora’s Chocolates 53

Dufferin County Meats 76 Giddy Yo 76

Heatherlea Butcher Shoppe 76

Landman Gardens & Bakery 76 Lavender Blue Catering 81 Le Finis 66

Lost Bear Market 76 Muse & Thrill Imports 65

Ontario Honey Creations 76

Orangeville Winter Famers’ Market 67 76 Pommies Cider 30

Rosemont General Store and Kitchen 62

Son of a Chef Bakery 67

Spirit Tree Estate Cidery 76 The Chocolate Shop 67 Wicked Shortbread 66 generators Tanco Group 11

home décor + furnishings

Caledon Lighting 89

Decor Solutions Furniture & Design 66

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Granny Taught Us How 120

Heidi’s Room 120

Orangeville Furniture 4 Pear Home 26

Sproule’s Emporium 66

The Sisters Touch of Christmas 49

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home improvement + repair

All-Mont Garage Doors 83

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Caledon Tile 71

CBG Homes 36

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Karry Home Solutions 9

Kinetico Home Water Systems 51

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Orangeville Home Hardware 28 Pave Co Ltd. 84

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home security TAG International 46

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Larry’s Small Engines 59

fashion + jewellery

A.M. Korsten Jewellers 28 Amorettos 53

Gallery Gemma 57 72

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Seconds Count Hospital Thrift Store 66 Sweet B Studio 52

fencing McGuire Fence 83

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Healing Moon 67

Hills of Headwaters Collaborative 65

Lia Falzon, Registered Psychotherapist 65

Oxygen Yoga & Fitness 87

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landscaping + gardening

Jay’s Custom Sheds 84

Matthew Gove & Co. 18

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Sarah Aston win22_layout

Sue Collis win22_layout 22-11-04 10:34

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Bosley Real Estate 46

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Moffat Dunlap, John Dunlap, Murray Snider, Nik Bonellos, Elizabeth Campbell, Courtney Murgatroyd, Sean Wynn, Mark Campbell, David Warren

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Rita Lange

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Wayne Baguley

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Dillon Holden

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Jim Wallace

Sutton-Headwaters Realty 105 Sarah Aston

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Ailsa Craig at the

Village of Arbour Trails 17

Avalon Retirement Lodge 16 Headwaters Home Care 89

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Phillips Imrie win22_layout 22-11-04 10:38 AM Page 1

What’s on in the Hills

A CALENDAR OF WINTER HAPPENINGS

arts+letters

NOW – DEC 4 : RISE AGAIN – POTTER ANN RANDERAAD Ann’s latest solo show at the Lavender Lounge & Boutique. Proceeds to Family Transition Place. Nov 12: reception, 11am-3pm. Wed-Sun 10am-4pm. Hereward Farms, 141051 15 Sdrd, East Garafraxa. 519-938-2092; annranderaad.com

NOW – JAN 8 : ARTFUL GIVING Local, handmade gifts for that special someone. Wed-Sun 10am-5pm. Alton Mill Arts Centre, 1402 Queen St, Alton. Headwaters Arts Gallery, 519-943-1149; headwatersarts.org

NOW – JAN 21 : ROSEMARY

MOLESWORTH: FROM THERE TO HERE A posthumous, educational overview of potter Rosemary’s journey with clay over 40 years. Tue-Sat 11am4pm. Airport Rd & Hwy 89. 1-877941-7787; dufferinmuseum.com

NOW – JAN 29 : ARCHITECTURE IN HARMONY WITH NATURE – MARTIN RAJNIŠ Modern architecture and traditional construction materials work together. Tue-Sat 11am-4pm. Airport Rd & Hwy 89, 1-877-9417787; dufferinmuseum.com

NOW – APR 9 : FACING CLAUDE CAHUN & MARCEL MOORE Groundbreaking photography of these Surrealist artists and genderqueer pioneers. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905-791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

NOV 29 : CRICUT 101: HOLIDAY CARDS Design a card using Cricut Design Space. Supplies provided. Library devices with the software available. 6:30pm. Free, register. Caledon Library, 35 Station St, Alton. 905-8571400 x228; caledon.library.on.ca

NOV 30 – DEC 11 : HOLIDAY

TREASURES Annual juried sale of 60 artists and craftspeople in various media. 11am-4pm. Museum of Dufferin, Airport Rd & Hwy 89. 1-877941-7787; dufferinmuseum.com

CCS Caledon Community Services

CPCC Caledon Parent-Child Centre

CVC Credit Valley Conservation

DEC 3 : PRINTMAKING WORKSHOP FOR ADULTS Carving, gel block printing, negative and positive space, and colour theory. 10am-noon. $10.50. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905-791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

DEC 10 : SIP + SHOP Vendor marketplace, charcuterie, wine and music. 2-8pm. $5, includes $5 gift card for our Lounge + Boutique. Entry fee proceeds to a charity of choice. 141051 15 Sdrd, East Garafraxa. 226-779-4973; herewardfarm.com

DEC 15 : CONNECTIONS ART & BOOK CLUB In-person discussion about In Your Face: Law, Justice, and Niqab-Wearing Women in Canada by Natasha Bakht. Tour UN/COVERINGS: Mennonite & Muslim Women’s Heads and Hearts.

7-8:30pm. Brampton Library, PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

community

NOW – DEC 16 : CCS SEASON OF HOPE Support your community. Drop food or gift cards at The Exchange. Dec 5: Register your need to receive items. Dec 12-16: Drop in to pick up items. 9am4:30pm. 55 Healey Rd, Unit 10, Bolton. CCS, 905-584-2300 x202; ccs4u.org

NOW – DEC 24 : THE SISTERS

TOUCH OF CHRISTMAS Handpainted, personalized ornaments, bakery, wreaths, illuminated decor, seasonal linens and nativities. Thu Fri 10am-7pm. Sat 10am-6pm. Sun 11am-4pm. Dec 19-23 10am-7pm. Dec 24: 10am-3pm. St. Kosmas Aitolos Greek Orthodox Monastery, 14155 Caledon-King Townline S, Bolton. 905-859-8077; thesisterstoc.com

NOW – APR 22 (SATURDAYS) : ORANGEVILLE WINTER FARMERS’ MARKET Local food produced on local farms or by local purveyors. Closed Dec 24 and Dec 31. 9am-1pm. Orangeville Town Hall, 87 Broadway. Orangeville BIA, 519-942-0087; orangevillefarmersmarket.ca

NOW – APR 30 : WE ARE HOCKEY An examination of persistent racial inequalities in how the game has been presented. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

DCAFS Dufferin Child and Family Services

DPSN Dufferin Parent Support Network

EWCS East Wellington Community Services

MOD Museum of Dufferin – Regular admission: $5; seniors $4; children 5-14 $2; under 5 free; family $12

PAMA Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives – Regular admission: $5; students, seniors $4; family (2 adults & 5 children) $12

NVCA Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority

OAS Orangeville Agricultural Society Event Centre

SBEC Orangeville & District Small Business Enterprise Centre

www.therosebrampton.ca

NOW – MAY 15 (MONDAYS) :

EXPLORER’S BIBLE STUDY In-depth study of I & II Timothy and Titus. Online discussion groups also available, email tabitha.ebs@gmail.com for info. 7-8pm. $60. ebsbramptonontpm2034. churchcenter.com

NOW – MAY 31 : UN/COVERINGS:

MENNONITE & MUSLIM WOMEN’S HEADS & HEARTS Multimedia instal lation challenging biases and stereo types around religious head coverings. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905-791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

NOW – ONGOING (FRIDAYS) : ALTON

LEGION – FRIDAY NIGHT FUN DARTS

– 19+ Drop-in evening with new and experienced players. Darts available to rent. $5/week. Cash prizes. 7:309:30pm. Alton Legion Br 449, 1267 Queen St, Alton. altonlegion.ca

NOV 30 : CALEDON EAST & DISTRICT HISTORICAL SOCIETY MEETING

The History of Mono Mills with Kurt McMurray. All welcome. 7:308:30pm. $5; members and students free. St. James Anglican Church, 6025 Old Church Rd, Caledon East. 905-584-0352; cedhs.ca

NOV 30 & DEC 7 : BETHELL HOSPICE: DRAWING ON YOUR GRIEF – ADULT GRIEF SUPPORT GROUP Held via Zoom or in-person with Louise Sallese and Aldona Morrison. 7-8:30pm. Free, register with Louise at 905965-2534; bethellhospice.org

DEC 2 : CALEDON COMMUNITY SERVICES’ HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

GALA Black tie affair. Auctions, live music and more. 6pm-1am. $175. The Royal Ambassador Event Centre, 15430 Innis Lake Rd, Caledon East. 905-5842300 x 230; ccshome4theholidays.com

DEC 2 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE

CHRISTMAS DINNER & DANCE Takeout or sit-in. Turkey and all the fixings, dessert. Pick-up 5-6pm. Dine-in 6pm. Entertainment by One Man Band Alexander Tristan. Proof of vaccination required. $30; local delivery $2; register. 5-10pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

DEC 2 & 3 : LANDMAN GARDENS

CHRISTMAS OPEN HOUSE Preserves, baked goods, gift baskets, specials, swag and a raffle! Donations to local food bank. 10am-4pm. 322345 Conc 6-7, Grand Valley. 519-938-6163; landmangardens.ca

DEC 2 – 31 : CHRISTMAS IN THE PARK Opening Night Dec 2: 6:30pm. Entertainment, hot chocolate and festive cheer! Dec 3-31: 5:30-10pm. Kay Cee Gardens, 29 Bythia St, Orangeville. 519278-6100; orangevilleoptimists.com

DEC 3 : KNOX CHURCH CHRISTMAS MARKET & BAKE SALE Fantastic vendors. Wheelchair accessible. 9am-2pm. Knox United Church, 2976 Charleston Sdrd, Caledon Village. 519-927-3320; knox-united-church.org

DEC 3 : PALGRAVE & AREA COMMUNITY TREE LIGHTING & HOME DECORATING CONTEST Decorate your home by Dec 2 to win the Home Decorating Contest. Crafts, carols, Chuckwaggon goodies and Santa! 5:30-7:30pm. Stationlands Park, 45 Brawton Dr, Palgrave. Rotary Club of Palgrave, rotarywow.com.

DEC 3 : SILENT AUCTION & BOOK SALE Find those unique Christmas gifts and treasures. 10am-4pm. Shelburne Library, 201 Owen Sound St, Shelburne. 519-925-2168; shelburnelibrary.ca

DEC 5 – JAN 8 : RECREATION WINTER PROGRAM REGISTRATION Sign up for swimming, skating and more! Programs begin Jan 9. Registration opens Dec 12 online or by phone (311). 9am-5pm. City of Brampton Recreation, 2 Wellington St W, Brampton. Brampton Recreation Division, 416-358-8864; brampton.ca

DEC 7 : WORLD CUP TRIVIA – ALL AGES Wear your favourite player’s jersey. Prizes. Register or drop in. 6:30-8pm. Free. Caledon Library, 150 Queen Street S, Bolton. 905-8571400 x228; caledon.library.on.ca

DEC 7, JAN 11, FEB 8 & MAR 8 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE SPECIAL LUNCHES Dec 7: Fish & chips. Other dates: TBD. Pick-up 11:30am-noon.

Sit-in at noon. Proof of vaccination required. $10; local delivery $2; call two days before by 3:30pm to register. 11:30am-1pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

DEC 8, JAN 12 & FEB 9 : PROBUS CLUB OF ORANGEVILLE MONTHLY MEETINGS Dec 8: Singer Leisa Way (Christmas lunch). Other dates: TBA. 10am-noon. New Hope Community Church, 690 Riddell Rd, Orangeville. 519-938-8934; probusorangeville.club

DEC 14 : COPING WITH GRIEF DURING THE HOLIDAYS Strategies and positive ways to honour your loved ones. In-person or virtually on Zoom. 7pm. Free. Caledon Library, 150 Queen St S, Bolton. 905-8571400 x228; caledon.library.on.ca

DEC 15 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE CHRISTMAS LUNCHEON Take-out or sit-in. Roast beef and all the fixings, desert. Pick-up 11:30am-noon. Sit-in at noon. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. $30; local delivery $2; call to register. 11:30am2:30pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

DEC 16 : ERIN WINTER FEST: APRÈS VILLAGE Horse-drawn carriage rides, food trucks, choir, festivities and après lounge. 6-9pm. Free. Village of Erin Main St. 519-855-4407; erin.ca

JAN 7, FEB 4 & MAR 4 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE FUNDRAISING PANCAKE BREAKFASTS Dine-in or take-out. Pancakes, sausages, syrup and beverages. Dine-in 9am or 10:30am. Pick-up 10-10:30am. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. $10; children 12 & under $8. Register by phone or online. 9-11:30am. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

JAN 12 : BETHELL HOSPICE – “I AM NOT MY ILLNESS”: MAINTAINING A HEALTHY SELF IMAGE –VIRTUAL Strategies to buffer the negative impact of illness on self-image. 7-8pm. Free, register. bethellhospice.org

JAN 21 : CREEMORE FARMERS’

MARKET BREAD CONTEST Bring your loaf (yeast bread) to the market by 9am for judging by the community. See website. 8am-noon. 10 Caroline St W, Creemore. 705-440-9298; creemorefarmersmarket.ca

JAN 21, FEB 23 & MAR 23 : HFFA WINTER HARVEST DINING SERIES An exquisite dining experience prepared with locally sourced ingredients. Jan 21: Shelburne Golf & Country Club. Feb 23: Mrs. Mitchell’s Restaurant. Mar 23: Mono Cliffs Inn. 6:30-8:30pm. hffa.ca

JAN 21 : SHELBURNE HEALTH & WELLNESS EXPO 40+ local practitioners and professionals, demos and workshops. 10am-2pm. Free. Centre Dufferin District High School, 150 4th Ave. 519939-6861; theshwe.info@gmail.com

JAN 21 & MAR 18: CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE EUCHRE TOURNAMENTS & LUNCH Sign-in 9:30am, tournament play 10am. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. $15, includes snack, lunch and prizes; call to register. 9:30am-2:30pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

JAN 27 & FEB 24 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE MONTHLY DINNERS Dinein or take-out. Menu TBD. Pick-up 4:30-5pm. Dine-in 5:30pm. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. $15; local delivery $2; call two days before by 3:30pm to register. 4:30-6:30pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

JAN 28 & 29 : FIRE & ICE Ice carving, pond hockey, skating, food and drink, a super snow slide, art workshops and more for all ages. 10am-9pm. 1402 Queen St, Alton. 519-941-9300; altonmill.ca

JAN 31 : LITTLE TASTE OF SCOTLAND! SCOTCH NOSING & DINNER Dinner includes three courses, and nosing and tasting three Scotches. Prizes – wear your kilt! $125, register online. Proceeds to local Rotary projects. 6-9pm. Mill Creek Pub, 25 Mill St, Orangeville. 519-939-1298; orangevillerotary.ca

FEB 11 : CALEDON SENIORS’ CENTRE BINGO TOURNAMENT & LUNCH Sign-in 9:30am, tournament play 10am. Free Centre membership required. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. $15, includes snack, lunch and prizes; call to register. 9:30am2:30pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

www.dufferinmuseum.com

sponsored by

FEB 15 & MAR 15 : CREEMORE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY MEETINGS Feb 15: Paul Zammit, The Soul of the Garden. Mar 15: David Cameron. 7-9pm. Free. St. Luke’s Anglican Church Hall, 22 Caroline St W, Creemore. gardenontario.org

FEB 16 : ACTIVE LIVING FAIR Health, wellness and services for the older adult. Free lunch, entertainment and demos. Proof of vaccination required or negative Covid test. Free, call to register. 10am-2:30pm. 7 Rotarian Way, Bolton. 905-951-6114; caledonseniors.ca

FEB 23 : BETHELL HOSPICE –LOOKING FOR YOUR PURPOSE: FINDING MEANING DURING TROUBLING TIMES – VIRTUAL Louise Sallese speaks on self-reflection and self-awareness. Free, register online. 7-8pm. bethellhospice.org

FEB 25 : COLDEST NIGHT OF THE YEAR Orangeville Foodbank’s annual family-friendly walk and fundraiser for local charities serving people experiencing hurt, hunger and homelessness. 4-7pm. 3 Commerce Rd, Orangeville. 519-942-0638; orangevillefoodbank.org

kids

SANTA CLAUS PARADES

DEC 3 : CALEDON VILLAGE Parade, then tree lighting. 5-7pm. Hwy 10 and Charleston Sdrd. caledonvillage.org

DEC 3 : CREEMORE Parade. 1:303pm. Mill St. creemore.com

DEC 3: BOLTON Parade. 11am. Hwy 50. boltonkin.com

DEC 7 : SHELBURNE Parade. 5pm. Route map at shelburne.ca

NOW – DEC 22 (FRIDAYS TO SUNDAYS) : DOWNEY’S CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM Visit Santa, the farm animals, enjoy a wagon ride and much more. 9am-5pm. $21.95 per person. Downey’s Farm Market, 13682 Heart Lake Rd, Caledon. 905-838-2990; downeysfarm.com

NOW – MAR 31 : FRIDAY NIGHT IS YOUTH NIGHT! AGES 6 10 Variety of sports and activities. 6-9pm. $2 per child. Gore Meadows Community Centre, 10150 The Gore Rd, Brampton. 416-270-8065; brampton.ca

NOV 30 – DEC 23 : THE LAST CHRISTMAS TURKEY Two kids take in an abandoned turkey supposed to be a church dinner. Written by Dan

Needles, music by Clive VanderBurgh. Thu Fri 8pm. Sat 7pm. Sun &Wed 2pm. Dec 22-23: 7pm. Dec 14: relaxed performance 7pm. Town Hall Opera House, 87 Broadway, Orangeville. 519-942-3423; theatreorangeville.ca

DEC 2 : WINTER FEST – KIDS’ DAY Festivities under the twinkling lights. Santa is coming too. 6-9pm. Free. Village of Erin Main Street. 519-855-4407; erin.ca

DEC 2, 3, 9 & 10 : THE FORGETFUL ELF: A CHRISTMAS EXPERIENCE – ALL AGES Wagon rides, hikes, visit Santa and shop at the Christmas Market. 5-8pm. $48 per vehicle (up to six people), tickets online, register time slot. Albion Hills Conservation Park, 16500 Hwy 50, Caledon. 905-880-1515; trca.ca

DEC 6 : SNOWY NIGHT STORY TIME Wear your warmest pjs for winterythemed stories, songs and activities. 7pm. Free. Caledon Library, 15825 McLaughlin Rd, Caledon. 905-8571400 x228; caledon.library.on.ca

DEC 13 : WINTER CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE WORLD – AGES 6 9 Stories and activities highlighting winter celebrations. 7pm. Free. Caledon Library, 225 Dougall Ave, Caledon. 905857-1400 x228; caledon.library.on.ca

DEC 27 : APPLEFUN PUPPETRY

SHOW The forest is a peaceful place until some silly space explorers arrive. 10:30-11:15am. 2-2:45pm. Included with admission. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

DEC 27 – JAN 6 (MONDAY TO FRIDAY) : CITY OF BRAMPTON WINTER BREAK CAMPS – AGES 4 13 Create, explore and play while making new friends! 8am-5pm. City of Brampton Recreation, 2 Wellington St W, Brampton. brampton.ca

DEC 27 – 30, JAN 2 – 6: WINTER BREAK AT PAMA Express your creativity with fun and artistic activities. Dec 27: Paper Puppets. Dec 28: Winter Prints. Dec 29: Fantastical Worlds. Dec 30: Countdown to 2023. Jan 2: Dots and Dashes. Jan 3: Creature Feature. Jan 4: Scenic Views. Jan 5: Cartoon Mania. Jan 6: Art and Science. Drop in anytime from 10am-3pm. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

DEC 27 – JAN 6 (MONDAY TO FRIDAY) : INCLUSIVE WINTER BREAK CAMPS – AGES 6 21+ Create, explore and play while making new friends of all abilities! Options for ages 6-13, 24-20 and 21+. 9am-4pm. Register now. Century Gardens Recreation Centre, Loafer’s Lake Recreation Centre. 416-358-8864;brampton.ca

FEB 7 : PADDINGTON GETS IN A JAM Will Paddington fix everything before Great Aunt Matilda arrives? 6:30-8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

FEB 20 : FAMILY DAY AT PAMA A day of exploration, connections and creations. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905-791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

MAR 13 – 17 : MARCH BREAK AT PAMA Creative projects, special guests and unique exhibitions in our historic spaces. PAMA, 9 Wellington St E, Brampton. 905-791-4055; pama.peelregion.ca

MAR 23 : THE UGLY DUCKLING –AGES 4+ Lightwire’s dazzling visuals, choreography and creative music bring this story into a new light. 6:30-8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

music

NOV – MAR: LIVE MUSIC AT ROSE THEATRE All performances at 8pm unless noted. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

DEC 3 : ROSE ORCHESTRA – CELEBRATE LIGHT Diwali, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Christmas, this truly is a season of light for everyone. 7:30pm.

DEC 9 : CHOIR! CHOIR! CHOIR! No auditions necessary for this ‘80s evening. The audience is the choir!

DEC 10 : BRAMPTON CONCERT BAND –CHRISTMAS AT THE ROSE A joyous collection of holiday favourites.

DEC 13 : JAZZ @ LBP HOSTED BY JAYMZ B – AVATAAR Deep musical traditions of India, Africa and Brazil. Lester B. Pearson Theatre, 150 Central Park Dr, Brampton.

DEC 15 : GOWAN A successful solo career and member of Styx since 1999.

DEC 17 : A NEXT GENERATION LEAHY CHRISTMAS This high-energy, Celticinspired music will get you dancing. 7pm.

JAN 20 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: DRIVEWIRE SounDrive Records is Brampton’s 1st indie record label.

JAN 21 & MAR 10 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: RISING VIBES A hip-hop cabaret featur ing the best in emerging local talent.

JAN 26 : THE ORIGINAL WAILERS Continuing the legacy of Bob Marley & The Wailers’ music.

JAN 27 : CLASSIC ALBUMS LIVE –PAUL SIMON, GRACELAND Exactly as you remember it.

FEB 2 : JANN ARDEN Bold, beautiful and empowering sound.

FEB 5 : FREEDOM CABARET The spirit and legacy of Black music.

FEB 11 : THE ROSE ORCHESTRA –MAGIC OF THE MOVIES A collection of movie melodies sure to spark excitement. 7:30pm.

MAR 3 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: HYPE A talent showcase featuring local artists and dancers.

MAR 11 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: CRATE CLASH A DJ battle with origins in Jamaica. 7pm.

MAR 17 : CLASSIC ALBUMS LIVE: U2, JOSHUA TREE Played note for note, cut for cut.

MAR 18 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: BLUEBIRD BRAMPTON Johnny Rivex curates an acoustic country music night.

MAR 24 : BACHMAN & BACHMAN Randy and his son, Tal, tell stories and perform iconic songs.

MAR 25 : THE ROSE ORCHESTRA –OPENING NIGHT AT THE OPERA A world of dramatic melodies and passionate arias. 7:30pm.

NOW – JUN 1 (THURSDAYS) : BEGINNER BAND – HOSTED BY THE ORANGEVILLE COMMUNITY

BAND – AGES 9 99 Learn theory and the instrument of your choice. Please rent or buy your instrument. 6:30-7pm. $75, register online. The Salvation Army New Hope Community Church, 690 Riddell Rd, Orangeville. orangevillecommunityband.ca

NOW – JUN 9 (THURSDAYS) :

ORANGEVILLE COMMUNITY

BAND Make music and be an active community member. 7-9pm. The Salvation Army New Hope Community Church, 690 Riddell Rd, Orangeville. rangevillecommunityband.ca

NOW – JUN 26 (MONDAYS) : FREE SANDHILL PIPES & DRUMS LESSONS

For beginners or those who wish to play again. 6-7pm. Free. Sandhill Pipes and Drums Practice Hall, 13899 Airport Rd, Caledon. 519-215-8569; sandhillpipesanddrums.com

DEC 10 : ACHILL CHORAL SOCIETY

PRESENTS A WINTER DAY Visions of a frosty day and glistening snow. Members are fully vaccinated and masked. Attendees please wear a mask. 3-4:30pm. Tickets online. Westminster United Church, 247 Broadway, Orangeville. achill.ca

DEC 10 : MUSIC OF CHRISTMAS

An evening of traditional holiday music. 7-9pm. The Salvation Army New Hope Community Church, 690 Riddell Rd, Orangeville. orangevillecommunityband.ca

DEC 10 : CALEDON CONCERT

BAND CHRISTMAS CONCERT

Enjoy a selection of Christmas songs. 2:30-5pm. $20; students & seniors $15; children free, tickets at the door. Caledon Hills Fellowship Baptist Church, 16595 Airport Rd, Caledon East. 905-9517979; caledonconcertband.ca

DEC 13 : HAWKSLEY WORKMAN

This Juno winner shares the magic of the 2001 album Almost a Full Moon. 8pm. $40, at aveninghall.ca or the Creemore Echo. St. John’s United Church, 192 Mill St, Creemore. Avening Hall, 705-466-9906; aveninghall.ca

DEC 21 : HILLSBURGH SPARKLES: A COMMUNITY CAROLLING EVENT

Festive celebration featuring the Erin Young at Heart Singers. 6:30-8pm. Free. Hillsburgh Library, 9 Station St, Hillsburgh. 519-855-4010; wellington.ca

FEB 11 : CALEDON CHAMBER CONCERTS PRESENTS ANGELA PARK (PIANIST) & SHARON WEI (VIOLINIST) Epic Bloch Suite for viola and piano, as well as Gabriela Lena Frank’s Cinco Danzas de Chambi. 7:30-9:30pm. $40; 16 & under free. St. James Anglican Church, 6025 Old Church Rd, Caledon East. 905-8380888; caledonchamberconcerts.com

MAR – APR: CLASSICAL CONCERT SERIES AT THE GIBSON CENTRE

All performances at 2:30pm unless noted. 63 Tupper St W, Alliston. 705-435-2828; gibsoncentre.com

MAR 5 : KYUYOUNG LEE & HYOUNG WUK KIM This tenor and pianist have played concerts the world over. 1pm.

MAR 19 : XITING YANG (PIANO) Expressivity and communication in performance.

APR 2 : JOONGHUN CHO (PIANO) This chamber musician and pedagogue has performed all over the world.

APR 16 : CAROLINE KIM (CELLO) A versatile performer and motivating teacher.

theatre+film

NOV 30 : SHAUN MAJUMDER – LOVE TOUR The new dad flips the narrative. 8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

JAN 17 : PROPHECY FOG Actor, singer, musician, storyteller, playwright and dancer Jani Lauzons draws you into her voyage. 8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

JAN 21 : ALI HASSAN – DOES THIS TASTE FUNNY? Deconstructing a chef’s journey from food to comedy. 8pm. Lester B. Pearson Theatre, 150 Central Park Dr, Brampton. Rose Theatre Brampton, 905874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

FEB 8 – 26 : BENEATH SPRINGHILL: THE MAURICE RUDDICK STORY “The singing miner,” an African-Canadian who survived nine days underground during the Springhill mining disaster of 1958. Thu Fri 8pm. Sat 7pm. Sun Wed 2pm. Feb 8-9: 8pm, preview. Feb 10: 8pm, opening night. Feb 22: 7pm, relaxed performance. Town Hall Opera House, 87 Broadway, Orangeville. 519-942-3423; theatreorangeville.ca

FEB 11 : THIS IS BRAMPTON: STAND UP STITCHES Where comedians, comedy lovers and entertainment seekers convene. 8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

To submit your community, arts or nonprofit event:

Go to inthehills.ca and select ‘what’s on’ from the menu bar.

That will take you to the listings page. Select ‘submit your event’ and complete the easy form.

For the spring (March 2023) issue, submit by February 10.

For up-to-date listings between issues, click ‘what’s on’ on the menu bar at inthehills.ca.

We reserve the right to edit submissions for print and web publication.

FEB 16 : HYPROV: COLIN MOCHRIE & ASAD MECCI Improv under hypnosis. 8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

FEB 17, 18, 24 & 25 : JENNY’S HOUSE OF JOY – A COMEDY BY NORM FOSTER The oldest profession and making ends meet. Fri Sat 8:15pm. Sat 2:15pm or dinner theatre. $20. 18365 Hurontario St, Caledon. 519-9275460; caledontownhallplayers.com

MAR 15 – APR 2 : THE BLUFF BY KRISTEN DA SILVA · WORLD PREMIERE The ghosts of the past may not be the only thing haunting. Thu Fri 8pm. Sat 7pm. Sun Wed 2pm. Mar 15-16: 8pm, preview. Mar 17: 8pm, opening night. Mar 29: 7pm, relaxed performance. Town Hall Opera House, 87 Broadway, Orangeville. 519-942-3423; theatreorangeville.ca

MAR 18 : PAUL REISER Voted one of Comedy Central’s “Top 100 Comedians of All Time.” 8pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905-874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

MAR 30 & 31, APR 1 & 2 : BRAMPTON

MUSIC THEATRE: KINKY BOOTS The exhilarating true story of a struggling shoe factory. Thu Fri 7:30pm. Sat 1 & 7:30pm. Sun 1pm. Rose Theatre, 1 Theatre Ln, Brampton. 905874-2800; rosetheatre.ca

PUZZLING SOLUTIONS

FROM PAGE 118

Hanging letters

All six letters are consonants and all but the L are made with three strokes. Replace L with H . (In a sans serif font A is also made with three strokes but is not a consonant.)

Keep your eye on the prize

Bluebird (for December). The number of letters in the wildlife names in the columns corresponds to the number of letters in each of the twelve months of the year. “An eye on the prize” is a calendar hint.

A random code

Six and three. The exchange can begin randomly because the response is the number of letters in a previous utterance. Jen’s “thirty,” if correct, will provoke “six” in response, and that in turn, “three.”

Note the time limits!

A Mits ake is the mistake.

B Minu scule, sacr ilegious and exorbitant are misspelled.

Thinking outside the circle

[ 2 ] Each 4-digit number has circles found in 6, 8 and 9. ‘ 0 ’ (zero) is an oval and unlike a circle does not have a common distance from the centre.)

Overlaps

a Puzzling Conclusion

BY KEN WEBER

Hanging letters

All but one of the letters that adorn this garland have two features in common. Replace the misfit letter with another in the alphabet that has both common features.

Keep your eye on the prize

Everyone solving this puzzle at the Alton Fair was entered in a draw for a brass desk calendar with removable month, day and date cards. Would you have been eligible? Choose the one example of Canadian wildlife from this list that best completes the column below:

A random code

Jen didn’t know the code to get in the door at the annual In The Hills puzzle symposium, so she arrived early and lingered near the entrance to pick up possible clues. She got a hint right away when a well-dressed woman, obviously a veteran attendee, walked confidently up to the door monitor and said, “Sixteen.” The monitor responded, “Seven,” and when the woman in turn said, “Five,” he smiled and opened the door.

sixteen seven

To Jen it was clear the code was a numbers exchange, likely with a number starting in the teens, but then the next regular to approach said, “Twenty-seven.” This time the door monitor responded with “Eleven,” and when that got a “Six” in reply, he again opened the door. Still, what she overheard was enough to convince Jen the code began with a random number followed by specific responses. This gave her an idea, so she walked up to the door monitor and said, “Thirty.”

If Jen has the code figured out correctly, what number will she hear in reply, and what will she say in turn to be welcomed to the In The Hills symposium?

Note the time limits!

A

In under ten seconds identify the mitsake in this puzzle:

1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19

B Take all the time you need to figure out whether any of these words are misspelled: miniscule descendent moccasin hemorrhage withhold exhorbitant sacreligious desiccate liquefy

Overlaps

Enter single letters in the empty boxes above so that an 8-letter word is spelled out around each solid box.

Each 8-letter word may read clockwise or counter-clockwise and may start at any of its letters.

Thinking outside the circle

Examine these 4-digit numbers carefully. What number goes in the empty bracket?

8084 [ 4 ] 2630 [ 1 ] 7978 [ 3 ] 5143 [ 0 ] 4062 [ 1 ] 6061 [ ] 0686 [ 4 ] 2988 [ 5 ] 1735 [ 0 ] 6790 [ 2 ]

E E P P H O E S I E N A T I R P I N G I N R A M A Y G O P T L O

bluebird fox smelt groundhog loon marten lemming CARIBOU

BISON SKUNK ELK NEWT

BEAR SALMON WOLVERINE MUSKRAT SQUIRREL