KING COUNTRY magazine
winter 2017. volume 1, issue iii
150 years later and not much has changed page 46
The abstraction of Ernestine Tahedl page 26
No need to skip dessert page 25
Touching Christmas, the Greek Orthodox way page 20
page 2
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
Because we know we can do it together. The King Campus expansion is getting ever closer to our goal but we still have a ways to go. Generous donors have been stepping forward in support of this project, for which we continue to be incredibly thankful. During this season of giving, Seneca
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Contents Black ready beyond the dojo
KING COUNTRY
8
Everyone is a paesano at John Pastore’s Italian kitchen
10
The strength & vigour of Bev Berger
12
magazine
Promoting local agriculture since 1850
the fine print
Funding the annual spirit of Christmas
20
Between the bars
22
Upside down plum cake
24
Pass the sweets
25
Ernestine Tahedl
26
A piece of string
33
Water delivery & tank maintenance
38
What most people fail to consider
39
Worth keeping
40
Raising kids in the country
42
One hundred and fifty years later and not much different
46
Fleeting moments & afterthoughts: Walk with me
52
publisher, editor-in-chief Yevgenia Casale copy editor Eleonora Tartakovsky Leonardo Casale contributors Beverley Barra-Berger Bev Donaldson, Schomberg Agricultural Society Freyda Tartak Gary van Bolderen, Dutch Masters Karen Kastner, Keys Kathleen Adamson Marco Cavallari, Aquafinity Water Solutions Dr. Oswaldo Ramirez, Nobleton Medical Clinic Chef Victoria Field, The Summerhill photography contributor Ian Donaldson (pg 14-17) cover Cover image selected by popular vote on social media. The owl is an ornament from The Sisters Touch of Christmas (see page 20) details King Country Magazine is distributed quarterly, free of charge, via Canada Post throughout the Township of King, at select bulk drop-off locations & online at: kingcountrymagazine.com. All content reflects the opinions of the authors and advertisers respectively and does not necessarily reflect those of the magazine. It is the responsibility of those submitting content and photography to ensure that they have the legal right to use and distribute it. All content is the property of PRAS Publishing or the contributors and cannot be reproduced without express written consent from the magazine. content submission KCM proudly supports local artists and community groups. Submit content no later than March 9th, 2018, for inclusion consideration in our April issue.
Discovering purpose with No Sacrifice 18
How ideas happen: The Neater Feeder™ 53 Advertiser listing
54
Congratulations!
Join the winner’s circle! We love giving stuff away and all you have to do is let us know what you think of this issue of KCM by March 9th, 2018. Be sure to follow us online because you never know when we’re feeling extra generous! Thanks for your feedback, Suzie Kocevski! The Road to Marylake is available for sale at: • Marylake Giftshop • King Museum • Amazon online • Arcadia the History Press (Publisher) online • Chapters/Indigo, in store & online Big thanks to everybody for voting on which cover to go with and to: Hey Paesano Italian Kitchen and Sisters Touch of Christmas for sponsoring the prizes!
CONNECT WITH KCM: email: submit@kingcountrymagazine.com website: kingcountrymagazine.com Facebook & Instagram: @kingcountrymagazine Twitter: @kingcountrymag
14
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KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
editorial soapbox:
Oh, Canada! Dear Canada, I was so looking forward to Canada’s 150th year. Based on all the hype I was sure there would be more. But, I was left wanting—like that cake that looks much better than it tastes. From a retail perspective, people were happy to monetize, if not commemorate, the occasion. But aside from the federal government, and the various cultural and heritage museums, I’m not sure how many people understood what it was they were supposed to be celebrating. Canada’s 150th what? For two-thirds of the year, I thought it was Canada’s birthday, like Canada didn’t exist before then and magically poofed into its red and white glory on a specific day 150 years ago.
the Lloydtown Rebellion Association. I flagged down a car to ask if there was more to the place aside from houses. Kelly Harbridge didn’t have a ton of time to chat with me. He and his wife were on their way to a hockey awards banquet. He said they moved to the area a few years ago because of its history. Then he told me about the pioneer’s cemetery. It was a gorgeous day, and I was up for an adventure. Fortunately, it wasn’t hard to find my next stop. I just kept following Rebellion Way and asked the first people I saw. Katie and Wendy would have made for a postcard-perfect photo. But they said “no.” Instead, when Katie discovered why I wanted to know, she handed me a book and told me that it was something she had begged the library to let her have. It took me months to return it because I didn’t want to. It served as my reference for the last two issues. Finally, when I discovered that the King Heritage Museum sells copies of it my conscience gave way (I promise I would have returned it eventually). But back in April, that was the first time Katie met me, and it spoke volumes about the generous and welcoming character of the place.
It took me slightly longer to recall that it wasn’t just Canada’s I had a similar incident several months later when Bill Foran 150th, it was Ontario’s as well. Again, as though the two were took me to a home of somebody I won’t tell you about this time around. But, that person too said, “I’ve recently come mutually exclusive. into possession of these two priceless volumes,” and then At the same time, as you may have read from my last editorial proceeded to loan me original copies of The Upper Canadian soapbox entry, my year was hard and busy. So you’ll have to Rebellion, Vol. I & II, by John Charles Dent, published in 1885. forgive me if you noticed more fervour for commemorating the establishment of democracy in this country than I did. The more I read and spoke to people, like Russell Oldfield, the But, as they say, all roads lead to Lloydtown. Well, no, it’s more excited I got. But, also the less capable I felt of serving history justly. Still, I felt obliged to try; there is something Rome, but for our purposes, let’s agree on Lloydtown. poetic about publishing the story of Lloydtown’s rebellion in When I was in grade eight, our teacher taught us that the the winter of Canada’s 150th constitutional anniversary. reason only one person is allowed behind the screen and secret ballots are a big deal is because, in 1836, Lt. Governor At the same time, I wanted to talk about who lives in General Sir Francis Bond Head used incredibly dirty and Lloydtown today. Words cannot express my gratitude to underhanded tactics to return the Tories to power. She also Lloydtown’s Kathleen Adamson for trusting me with her talked about W.L. Mackenzie and the rebellion but, I think I piece of string just when I needed it most; and to the families that opened their homes to reveal an honest look at who stopped listening by that point. lives in Lloydtown now. The following year, I entered W.L. Mackenzie C.I., a great th high school but, I don’t remember anybody ever telling me While it may be Canada’s 150 , it is King Country Magazine’s anything about Mackenzie there, except that his grandson first holiday issue. I owe a debt of gratitude to the beautiful was Prime Minister of Canada, and maybe they mentioned people who contributed to illustrating this time of year. You that he was the first Mayor of Toronto. But he was a bit of jerk have made it possible for me create something that I had not dared to assume I could. in that role so; I think they may have skipped that part. In April 2017, over thirty years later, my ears perked up when Now please, sit back, enjoy, and be sure to let me know if you a friend said to me, “you know what you should do a story agree that our cake is as delicious as we think it is. Seriously, on? I was on my bike taking the back streets from Schomberg it’s on page 24 and it’s outstanding! Happy holidays! to Alliston, and I found this statue of some guy in the middle Warm regards, of nowhere. I bet nobody even knows why it’s there.”
Yevgenia Casale
I remember thinking, “That can’t be right,” and it wasn’t. , B.Tech People do know but, at the time, I wasn’t one of them. I got to the statue easily enough but, the only thing I saw was a cairn Editor-in-Chief, King Country Magazine on the other side and a community board with notices from KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
page 7
In February 2018, Sensei Giancarlo Esposito will be awarding his frst set of black belts. By now, he could have pushed through dozens of kids to make the dojo look more productive. That’s not what it’s about for him or Logan Hall and his parents, Steve Hall and Betsy Lawson.
K
shin martial arts’ Sensei Giancarlo (John) Esposito is getting excited. According to him, if he were a better businessman, he’d have turned out dozens of black belts by now. But, that’s not what he is trying to accomplish at his dojo. He’s not in a rush, and he isn’t trying to compete with other clubs for quantity. ai
Still, the prospect of awarding the dojo’s first black belt this winter is a moment to be celebrated.
Black ready beyond the dojo by Freyda Tartak
page 8
Sensei John judges a student’s fitness for grading based on readiness and quality of character, not on pushing kids ahead just because they’ve done their time and the dojo needs the numbers. Focusing on the quality of the student has always been his key motivator. Sensei John’s purpose is to help elevate his charges to their potential and to teach them to strive harder, pushing their boundaries in a way that will benefit them, not hurt them.
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
While a black belt may be a goal for the kids who enter a dojo, most parents don’t sign their kids up for martial arts for the accolades, either. In the vast majority of cases, it’s because on some level they are saying: “Here, fix my kid!” Sensei John is confident that sixteenyear-old Logan Hall will be ready for his black belt this February. From the onset, Logan’s character was never a matter of question. He was always a good kid. But, he tended to struggle in school, especially when it came to presenting things at the front of the class. His parents Betsy and Steve had a hunch that karate would benefit him. They signed him up for karate when he was ten years-old and it didn’t take long for Logan to prove that it was a good decision. He thrived with each new accomplishment. As Logan got older, his ability to stay on task started to improve and so did his self-confidence.. “I would lie a lot,
trying to impress my friends with things I never actually did over the weekend.” In school, “my teachers used to have a lot of trouble with me,” he admits. Karate replaced the stories of grandeur with actual moments of pride. “Standing up for presentations and assignments: I used to not like that. I used to get really nervous and now, that has helped me a lot. When I go to tournaments I can just get up and perform a kata in front of everybody and I just don’t think about it. I just go for it, so that’s helped me a lot with school and doing sports outside of school and inside school,” relates the kid with the winning smile. Karate improved Logan’s confidence in social situations, as well. “I get along with people, and now I can talk to anybody almost,” he states. “It improved my grades because I used to not want to perform. I’d get nervous and rush through things, as I’m doing a speech or something in front of a class. I just wanted to get out of it.” But with time he came to realize that “if I can perform a kata in front of hundreds of people I can do a speech in front of a class of people I knew.”
“You get a step-by-step plan here,” Logan says, pointing into the dojo, “as opposed to simply knowing what your goal is. You get guided to, and when you are ready, then you go to the next level.” It took five years for Sensei John to consider awarding Logan his first black belt. There was no pressure to get there. Learning that lesson was a huge thing for an impatient kid like Logan. Now, anybody who knows him, including Betsy, can rest easier at the prospect of Logan tossing himself well above sea level and willingly doing a back flip with nothing but a snowboard and a helmet to keep him safe. Logan has always had an innate desire to please people. What he was missing was the confidence of knowing that he could do that without pretending to be somebody else. Ironically, Sensei John bases his measure of black belt readiness on his sempai’s understanding that the belt no longer matters as much as what he learned through the journey to acquiring it.
There were other lessons that Logan learned in the dojo, as well. He was always drawn to the thrill of accomplishment but, as a child, did not possess the insight he needed to get to the podium. By spending time repeating and perfecting his karate moves, Logan perceived that success comes from patience, diligence and hard work. His nerves took a back seat to the confidence he earned through practice. More significantly, Logan learned to appreciate the value of not advancing until ready. That’s invaluable insight for a person like Logan, who has a way of closing his mind to the fear that would keep most people’s feet planted firmly on the ground. “I do a lot of extreme sports,” Logan admits. He loves the feeling of adrenaline and freedom that courses through his entire body while on a board, either over water or as he launches himself off the “really big hill” at Banff National Park. There’s a daredevil inside this kid that, without his karate training, would not think twice before taking a risk he wasn’t ready for. Instead, as Steve says, karate “has provided a level of fitness and body control that can be transferred to other sports and allows him to push his abilities.” Steve set up a trampoline in their front yard, where Logan spends time practicing back flips, getting ready to apply the moves on a snowboard. KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
page 9
Everyone is a paesano at John Pastore’s Italian kitchen
“Hey, paesano! What’s up,” he calls over. “Hey, John, what’s up,” replies Tony Cipressi, resting at the counter as he waits for his usual espresso. It’s a casual exchange that belies their mutual appreciation. Tony used to stop in for a coffee on a regular basis and then one day dropped in to book an event for twenty people.
“It’s nice to have this place here,” he says. “It’s excellent coffee, and it’s nice to get an Italian meal here in town—pasta, panini... we have a competitive soccer game coming up. Parents will be spending a lot of time waiting around. This place is a perfect opportunity to come and relax.”
page 10
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
J
served his time in some of Toronto’s finest establishments before deciding to open his own place. “I’ve done the tour, so to speak. I’ve taken the best of the experiences that I’ve had and brought them forward,” he says of his Hey Paesano Italian Kitchen. ohn pastore
John chose the location because of its proximity to King Secondary, and the kids have not only taken notice but started bringing their parents, too. Hey Paesano is a no-nonsense fusion of clean, tasty food in a sleek setting. The only frills are in the flavour of the food and the great coffee, though he keeps the ingredients to a minimum. It’s a classy and unpretentious place with friendly smiles behind the counter. When he was younger, John wanted to go into psychology. But, once he found his way into the kitchen he decided that was the place for him but, he still puts a lot of weight into figuring out what it takes to make people happy. Just like the appeal of mamma or nonna’s kitchen, for John, it’s all about consistency. If you enjoy something at his place, he wants to make sure that the next time you come, it’s going to look and taste the way it did the first time. That’s what John is trying to do with Hey Paesano: deliver a user experience that is streamlined to make people’s lives easier. “I’m trying to wow you with a pleasant experience; cooking for you fresh, simple food.” “You eat with your eyes, first,” says John. For him, that includes the first thing you see when you walk into the restaurant. That was why he wanted to call the place after the common Italian greeting. “In English, it’s ‘eh, bro!’ when you know someone but, you can’t remember their name. For Italians, it’s the same thing. I don’t know who you are but, I wanna know who you are. It’s a phrase that acknowledges that we are just a moment in their day and we want that moment to be a good one,” explains John.
you longer than that pasta or that veal sandwich that you enjoyed. I want people to feel comfortable,” says John. Everything John works for is rooted in consistency and a traditional approach, even though he’s not pretending to serve traditional recipes. There’s a Canadian spin on things. Vodka al penne may not be a classic Italian dish but, that doesn’t stop it from being a staple favourite with Hey Paesao regulars and newbies alike, and it comes with the perfect amount of sauce. “For me, an Italian always eats bread with pasta. We do garlic bread with every plate of pasta. I give just enough sauce and plates usually come back wiped clean.” As hard as he tries to serve up perfection with every order, John is a realist. Sometimes, things happen. It’s refreshing to know that he’s open to feedback. “Eh, it’s not John hour over here,” he says. “If we did something wrong, come talk to me, let me fix it.” It’s not a regular occurrence but when it does happen people appreciate that they can have that rapport with their neighbourhood pizza-pasta-panini place. In the short time that Hey Paesano has been in operation, John has managed to amass a steadily growing list of regulars. It just goes to show that this man knows what he’s doing in his Italian Kitchen.
It’s true. When John and his staff greet you at Hey Paesano, you feel like you made their day by walking in. “If somebody can make you jump out of your skin for a moment and smile, especially if you were preoccupied with a rough day coming in… that moment I can make you smile that will stick with Dr. Andrew Steinman pops over on a regular basis from across the street, where he works at King City Dental. It’s a great place to share a meal with his co-worker, Kim. Though the Township of King is moving to its new location soon, we bet staff will still be spotted at Hey Paesano’s on a regular basis.
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
page 11
LOCAL HEROES:
The strength & vigour of Bev Berger
“I like doing stuff,” says Beverley Barra-Berger, of the numerous works of pottery that decorate her home. “I just have to use my hands. It’s just the way it is.” Bev is a familiar face around town and a charter member of King Township’s Accessibility Committee. It’s a role she takes very seriously. “We try to advise the general public and businesses on how they can help people who happen to have disabilities within the community… help them participate. It’s all about removing barriers,” she explains. Though she has never seen her son’s face, Bev wasn’t always blind. When she was seventeen-years-old, she used to ride horses. While at an event in Guelph, Bev decided to mount a steer, a castrated young bull. “I fell off and when I got myself out of the muck and the manure, my left eye was not working properly. Within a very short time, I was blind because I had experienced a detached retina in my left eye.” After multiple unsuccessful surgeries, both in Canada and in the US, she came to terms with her new reality. “I was monocular and that was fine. I drove a car; I did everything a fully sighted person would.” page 12
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
Then, when she was thirty years-old, Bev and her husband John took their daughter Stephanie to Disney World. The last vision memory Bev has is of touring the Mexican Pavilion at Epcot and looking up at a big paper mâché parrot. “It was beautifully coloured,” she recalls, “and all of a sudden it was like someone pulled a window blind down in front of me and I experienced a spontaneous detached retina.” There was no trauma. Nothing happened. It just let go. “I was fully blind.” The next two years were especially difficult. “Again, I had more surgery. I spent a number of years trying to regain my vision and finally, I just decided it wasn’t going to work. So part of my life I’ve had some vision,” (she was born with a focal point about an inch from the end of her nose), “I’ve had partial vision, and I’ve had no vision.” At sixty-six years old, Bev has been blind for longer than she could see. For the first two years, she was angry. “I went through a mourning process. I was very bitter. I was not a nice person to be around,” she admits. “I went through all the stages of grieving, as you would the loss of a loved one.” At first, she refused to learn braille:
“I wasn’t blind. I just couldn’t see, and there’s a difference,” Eventually she started to embrace what tools were at her disposal. She acquired a service dog and learned to read braille. “I firmly believe that any blind person cannot operate independently without knowing braille. I can say that with great conviction. Even though there are all manner of devices that assist people with vision loss. There are all manner of devices that talk, beep, squawk, and everything but they require batteries. What if the battery goes?” It took Stephanie a lot longer to accept her mother’s condition. “She didn’t resent me but, she resented the blindness. It took her a very long time to come to terms with the situation,” concedes Bev. Stephanie was four when her mother lost her sight but, it wasn’t until a grade eleven school project, when she was finally able to come to terms with the fact that “mum was different. That’s a huge thing for a child to get her head around. She could remember the mum who could jump in the car and take her down the road, and then the next day, mum couldn’t do that,” remembers Beverley. Today, Stephanie could not be more proud of her mother.
would ensure safety on film sets whenever weapons or explosives were involved. “His claim to fame is that he retired with a clean record. Nothing ever happened on a set that he worked on,” boasts Bev. John even worked closely with the RCMP to develop the guidelines that currently govern the use of weapons and explosives on Canadian film sets. His business often took him away from home for two or three months at a time. After Bev lost her sight, John continued to work. “I’ve been very fortunate that I’ve had a good support system from my mom and a lot of good friends, who have helped me along the way, and I think a lot of it is just jumping in with both feet, and see what happens and live your life.” As Bev says, “it worked for John and I because he was supportive of me and my disability, and I was supportive of him in that I wanted the independence. I probably didn’t need a husband who was there 24-hours a day, seven days a week. We’ve been married now for over 45 years but, he’s been gone for half of that time.”
Now that John is retired, “he chauffeurs me around, so that’s a handy feature,” jokes Bev. “It’s probably harder on him than on Despite her disability, Bev made me because, I just kept doing my sure her kids viewed education as a “If you approach your disability and life in general with own things.” Bev loves to keep a positive attitude, I think you are going to be more top priority. “Stephanie pretty much busy with her numerous artistic successful as an individual,” says Bev Berger. learned how to read by reading pursuits and writing. She also me the weekly grocery store flyer,” laughs Bev. “I wanted loves to cook and even took part in an episode of Menu to know what was on special so, I made her sound out the Meltdown, broadcast on December 8th, 2017, on Accessible letters and figure out what the words said.” Her son Daniel Media Inc. (AMI). adopted Bev’s love of words almost to an extreme. Growing “If you approach your disability and life in general with a up, his head was always stuck in a book. She remembers positive attitude, I think you are going to be more successful having battles with her son over not coming to the table as an individual, and as a person with a disability. That’s easy when dinner was ready because he still had a few pages to to say; it’s a hard thing to do. It is work. But, everybody’s got go in whatever chapter he was on. something. The greater percentage of people either does not As for John, “I have a great amount of respect for my husband have an identifiable disability or one that they are willing simply because he stayed.” Before this, he had a wife who was to share. So I’m going to say maybe 75% of the population is looking after their child, “and after all these years he doesn’t ‘normal’ and then there’s the rest of us,” says Bev. treat me any differently now than he did when I could see. Bev puts it this way: “Life is so full of gifts and pleasures Maybe he hasn’t figured it out yet, I don’t know,” she jokes. and just things that we should embrace. If you don’t “It’s a sad reality in the world of people with disabilities that, embrace them that moment, then poof, they’re gone. For when one of the partners in that relationship develops a me, personally, every day is special. So I go into it (even if I severe disability, 85% of those relationships dissolve. That’s wake up and I’m not feeling the best or I’m having a bad hair not a nice number but, it’s true,” says Bev. “But, he stayed.” day or something). It gets better because that day is a gift. I feel sorry for people who wake up, and don’t feel that way, John “Frenchie” Berger, is still well-known in the North because maybe they’ve got some issues that are overriding American film industry as the go-to property master. As a their ability to feel that joy.” weapons specialist, his company, Shooting With The Stars, KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
page 13
SCHOMBERG AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY:
Promoting local agriculture since 1850 by Bev Donaldson President, Schomberg Agricultural Society
Please allow me to put things into perspective. In 1867, 150 years ago, Canada’s Confederation took place. Seventeen years earlier, in 1850, the Schomberg Agricultural Society (SAS) was formed. Plans are already underway to celebrate our 168th anniversary in, May, 2018. Although primarily known and recognized for our annual spring fair, held on our privately owned and operated fairgrounds, the society is so much more than a four-day event. SAS is one of over 220 sanctioned agricultural societies across Ontario. Our mandate is to promote and educate people on topics related to agriculture in our community and to offer social relief to members in need. SAS is a member of the Ontario Association of Agricultural Societies (O.A.A.S.) and is one of the few agricultural societies that operate this close to a sprawling, heavily populated
urban area. It is still largely, though not entirely, comprised of farmers and remains a relevant aspect of the growing community around us. This symbiotic cohabitation serves to continually nourish the strong connections SAS members have with the surrounding non-farming community, as well. King Township boasts a rich agricultural history, built by its farmers over several generations. SAS is proud to be recognized by the local community as an organization with documented roots. Many current SAS members are following in the footsteps of the seven or eight generations of hard-working farmers who preceded them. Though sophisticated technological advancements often frame the face of modern-day farming, the families that formed the society, and continue to play active roles within it, thrived in agriculture long before the advent of the hi-tech tools commonly used today. Within a short distance of the SAS fairgrounds, active farming operations engaged in raising, growing or producing horticultural products, chickens, goats, sheep, rabbits, ducks, turkeys and eggs. Numerous equine facilities offer horses for breeding, racing and showing. Experts in dairy and beef cattle abound, as do growers of a large variety of fruit, vegetables and cash crops (corn, soy, hay, wheat, barley and oats), honey bees and all of their by-products. A short drive to the east and there’s the Holland Marsh, with its vineyards and abundance of more fruit and vegetable growers.
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KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
It would be delinquent of me not to mention the offshoot industries that spawn as a result of the surrounding agriculture. Equestrian centres for riding and healing, local equine Olympians, organic farms, firewood for energy and hardwood for lumber, Christmas tree farms, livestock and horse trailers, tractors big and small, and the veterinarians with domestic, exotic, bovine and equestrian expertise. Each sector of our industry feeds supporting industries such as equipment maintenance and supply, transportation, printing, and so forth.
COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS SAS’s agricultural grounds are at the heart of Schomberg for a reason. They offer a convenient location for fundraisers, car shows, Shakespeare in the park, and movie shoots. Members of the community enjoy strolling through our park, often with pets. When asked, SAS is happy to make the grounds accessible to community groups and are grateful for the help of friends who helped us put a functioning bridge in place.
page 16
SAS works closely with the Schomberg Village Association, Arts Society King and the Schomberg Lions Club to facilitate parking space for annual traditions such as: A Main Street Christmas, the annual Street Gallery, and the Lions’ pancake breakfast. We co-operate with the Schomberg Community Hall to permit parking during events held there and on school days, “the walking school bus” tends to pass through the SAS grounds, as well.
The Schomberg Hall, adjacent to the fairgrounds, came alive with camaraderie, a roast beef dinner, giveaways, dancing and the highlight of the evening: the live auction. Only Ed Gardhouse, SAS Director, event emcee and renowned local auctioneer, could auction off a rocking chair three times, and manage to make sure it ended up going home with Mike O’Hara to aid in his recovery. You had to be there to witness it!
SPRING FAIR
The attendees, including many farmers from York Region, bid lavishly on auction items such as antique milk bottles, agriculture-themed artwork and the Schomberg auction staples: fresh homemade butter tarts and pies. A multitude of volunteers and donors came together for the gala, organized to help a fellow agriculture family that has fallen on hard times.
Our four-day fair provides multiple community groups and local businesses with an opportunity to showcase themselves throughout the grounds. As a community group, we are proud of our many community partnerships. A recent highlight, that serves well to illustrate the strong bonds within our community, is the September 30th, 2017, community organized fundraiser put on to help one of our own: the O’Hara family. Local farmers and community groups came together for the Diamonds and Denim Gala and Dance.
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
It took an army of cooks to carve up such a wonderful dinner. The most prominent supporters of the night, and leading up to it, were members and volunteers of York Federation of
Agriculture, Schomberg United Church, King Curling Club, and of course, SAS.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH Every autumn SAS gives back to the Schomberg community. September 16, 2017 marked our annual tradition of the Community Spirit Bonfire Night. The fairgrounds have activities for anyone attending. There is our stage entertainment, children’s crafts and of course, the bonfire with marshmallows for roasting. Local farmers supply straw bales and corn stalks to set the stage and the mood. (When SAS isn’t using the portable stage, we make it available for rent to other events). The Community Spirit Bonfire Night is another way for us to serve our mandate by reaching out to our rural and urban neighbours to encourage interest, promote improvements and advance the quality of life standards in agricultural community. In preparation for the Bonfire, we assess agricultural needs within our community. SAS promotes the production and marketing of agriculture
and encourages the development of life skills that involve youth in agricultural activities. We support our local 4-H Club and make our facilities available for initiatives that the existing SAS executive deem appropriate for the enrichment of rural and community life. OurHomecraft Division is striving to keep the arts, crafts, and domestic arts alive. SAS encourages healthy competitions that perpetuate culinary and domestic skills that include jams, baking, sewing, knitting and horticulture. SAS celebrates and promotes awareness of techniques performed by our ancestors. Who doesn’t enjoy homemade efforts at their finest?
VOLUNTEER DRIVEN As Schomberg continues to grow, so does our potential to educate newcomers moving into King Township from traditionally urban lifestyles. We face this challenge with a terrific number of volunteers and only one SAS manager. Just like any community group, our agricultural society is no exception. We need volunteers to continue our events.
You don’t have to come from a farming background to have a vested interest in agriculture, and we’d welcome your help and expertise. Farms of yesteryear had livestock a grew their own produce. Today, most consumers buy what they need at stores, far removed from the intimate knowledge of where their food came from. The work and purpose of SAS in bridging that knowledge gap are becoming increasingly more important. We are fortunate to live in a community with such a diverse population, where farmers and non-farmers mingle and socialize on a daily basis. Our kids go to school together, attend the same extra-curricular activities and form bonds in mutual friendship and respect. The same is true of adults who partake in the opportunities that SAS and other community organizations present in ensuring that agriculture is recognized as a vibrant part of King Township. You probably commute past many of these farms daily so remember: if you ate today, thank a farmer!
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Discovering purpose with No Sacrifice®
Donna Lehtonen’s No Sacrifice Bags Inc. started as a vanity project. She was creating products for her personal use and ended up with more than she needed because of minimum order requirements. Then she learned how good it felt when other people found her ideas useful, too.
I
to call herself a ‘product developer’. Initially she considered her company, No Sacrifice Bags Inc., as something between a vanity project and a hobby. The products evolved out of things she wanted to make for herself, based on her own needs. She soon discovered that she has a knack for designing winning solutions for common problems. In other words, she has a talent for developing products that sell. t took donna lehtonen a long time
It does sound materialistic: a line of products built around her own handbag collection, travel habits and expensive boots. Her flagship product is a purse organizer that comes in a variety of sizes that can easily caddy the guts of a handbag from one fashionable accessory to another. But, at the root of everything Donna does is a deep-seated need to care for the people and things that she has chosen to have in her life. For most of her life Donna never envisioned herself as either creative or handy. Her first product, le Mobile®, is a luxury purse organizer. It, like the vast majority of her other inventions was born out of frustration. “I just couldn’t find anything that was nice enough.” Everything she tried was either functional but unattractive or attractive but not functional. “I hadn’t found one that was really working for me,” relates Donna. So, “in 2008 I submitted a design for a purse organizer to Hermès, in Paris. I have to say, it was a little vanity project for me to design one and see if Hermès would accept to make page 18
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it, because they won’t make everything. They’ll try to help a person out but, it has to be something they can do within their leather crafting shops.” Donna couldn’t decide between colours for her organizer liners so she ended up with five iterations of her design, “and then the price was outrageous, and really out of reach for anyone.” Plus, it took a year and a half to receive the product. By that point Donna had discovered something about herself: She really enjoyed the process of making something, going from concept to completion. At the same time, she couldn’t help but wonder if that organizer she had designed could be produced in a more economical way, without sacrificing its look, feel or quality. After several failed attempts to perfect the pattern, she finally had what she wanted: a nice faux lambskin organizer that retails between $40 and $150, depending on size. That’s not bad for an accessory to handbags that retail for two to four thousand dollars. Donna’s le Mobile is a luxury product that is functional, beautiful and solidly constructed, with both a subtle elegance and a vibrant splash of gorgeous colour. To make them, Donna had to agree to purchase a minimum order. Suddenly, on completing the project she realized that she needed to sell them. First, she needed to recoup at least some of the money she had sunk into it and second, she really didn’t need sixty purse organizers, so she marketed them through Etsy and on her website, nosacrificebags.com.
“My biggest customers are women who have Louis Vitton bags. I don’t know how they find me. They’ll find me and buy them for their bags.” So far, No Sacrifice Bags Inc. was a hobby. That is until she made her first sale. Donna was surprised by the rush of validation that came with discovering that somebody liked what she made enough to buy it. “I wasn’t looking for it and I didn’t think I needed it. I just thought I need to sell some of this because what am I going to do with it?” After that Donna started wondering what other products she could come up with. She discovered a new purpose and started to look at the world with fresh eyes. She stared looking for problems to be solved by products she could create. Turns out the answer lay in the lining of the le Mobile line. To get the colour she wanted she had to order a lot more material than she needed. At the same time, she knew from experience that leather purse straps are notorious for depreciating the value of a handbag if not handled with extreme care. This led to Love Handles. The faux leather pads are available in a wide variety of each season’s fashion colours, blending into the look of a purse, discretely protecting its most vulnerable area: the handles. Turns out Donna was bang on with her analysis of her target demographic. Love Handles quickly became Donna’s biggest seller but she still had a lot of material left over and continued to look for other products to introduce, while at the same time introducing the hugely popular ultrasuede alternative to her initial handle savers. The answer came with a sharp turn of a steering wheel. “Honestly, I should have known better. When I was twenty my boyfriend was killed as a result of distracted driving. Back then we never used the term ‘distracted driving’ but that’s what it was. Danny was a passenger in the van when the driver reached over to change the tape in the tape deck. He took his eyes off the road, went onto the shoulder and flipped the van.” Forty years later, the memory is still raw. What brought it to the forefront again was an uncanny reminder. Donna, as so many other women do, uses the empty passenger seat beside her to rest her handbag as she
drives. She was approaching one of those lights that you either run or break hard for and she decided to break. Naturally, the bag started to fly off the seat. She reached for it and accidentally swerved into the oncoming lane. By pure luck there was nobody else around. But it was a sobering moment. She realized right away that had another vehicle been in that spot at that time she would have gotten into a terrible accident and it would have been her fault, “and I thought: ‘well, I’m never going to do that again!’” Donna’s brain went into overdrive, developing a solution to keep her bag from flying off her seat and her attention on the road. Suddenly, it dawned on her to use the extra lining material to create The Purse Snatcher; available in black, red and tan and retailing for $35. The Purse Snatcher attaches with ease to the car’s head rest, with no need to be removed when somebody uses the seat. Donna’s husband Bob, a retired entrepreneur who was extremely successful in his own right, didn’t pay too much attention to what Donna was up to. He was happy that she found something she liked doing but didn’t take her away from home too much. “He’s supportive. He doesn’t take an active interest because it’s all handbag related. Well one day, he took one of the dogs to the vet when she was still a puppy and he put her on the front seat. And, of course she's scampering around and then finally he decided to hook her onto The Purse Snatcher, so she couldn't jump over into his lap when he was driving. He came home and said: ‘That thing you made, that's pretty good. It actually kept the dog in the seat.’ Then he started telling people about it. That was the turning point when he felt: ‘Oh, this is something useful.’” It is useful. That’s the deal with all of Donna’s products. She never starts out making something for somebody else. It’s always something she can’t find but needs for herself. Since coming up with The Purse Snatcher, she has used it for everything from purses to making sure her take-out food or grocery bag stays put. It took Donna a long time to take herself seriously as a business owner and product developer. Now that she has the inventor bug though, there’s no stopping her and it’s a good thing. We can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.
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I
t isn’t for everyone.
Those who do decide to enter monastic life say it is the result of an undeniable calling. Nuns are female ascetics who choose to voluntarily leave the world and live life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery. In the Greek Orthodox tradition, these establishments are not referred to as nunneries.
st. kosmas aitolos greek orthodox monastery’s holiday touch:
Funding the annual spirit of Christmas page 20
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The sisters submit themselves to a life of voluntary servitude. “It’s a calling from God,” agree Sisters Philothei and Theophano, who graciously invited KCM for a tour of their seasonal Christmas store, The Sisters Touch of Christmas. When Sister Philothei reached out to KCM to promote the store, she made sure to highlight the unique, artisan nature of their annual fundraiser. Aside from the virtues of the store itself, we asked to learn more about what the funds raised were going to support. Since 2003, the initiative has been the main source of “funding for the many programs that we do throughout the year and support various private families,” she explained.
The Sisters of St. Kosmas Aitolos Greek Orthodox Monastery, located on the border of King and Caledon are renowned for their efforts in and service to the community. Of course, the heart of monastic life is the church. “It gives you inner peace, happiness and fulfilment,” explains Sister Theophano. “You are serving your Lord and trying to do good works.” Congregants, many of whom come from diverse orthodox backgrounds, travel from across Ontario on a consistent basis in order to attend. The monastery is open for regular services, after which the sisters like to hold small social gatherings, with light refreshments. In that relaxed atmosphere congregants feel at ease to share their burdens or knowledge of others in need within the community. Much of their time is spent in prayer, delivering hot meals to the elderly, visiting the sick and performing works of compassion. They’ll often serve as liaisons within the community too. “There’s a lot of good people with a lot of love in their hearts,” explains Sister Philothei, “We’ve never heard ‘no.’ People genuinely want to help other people.” They seek out opportunities where they feel they can help, and work with Greek Orthodox youth by coaching on spiritual matters and hosting day retreats. During Christmas the sisters hold a charity drive for new clothing, toys and food donations to give to those who are struggling or have temporarily fallen on hard times. Volunteers frequently donate their time and resources to the monastery, helping maintain the grounds, working at the gift shop and performing other work that frees up the sisters to focus on their core duties and responsibilities. Members of the community are just as generous to the sisters as the sisters are in their outreach, often bringing gifts of food from their farms or gardens. The Sisters Touch of Christmas is an exclusive gift shop, stocked with carefully selected unique items sourced from around the globe and with artisan products made by the
sisters. Much of the year is spent in preparation for the store with each sister lending her talents to the effort. “It’s a touch of everything,” beams Sister Philothei, pointing to the fine assortment of nativity scenes, jewellery, baked goods, hand-painted ceramics and ornaments (which they are happy to personalize for their customers), exquisite seasoned olive oils, artisan bath and beauty products, and so much more. The handpainted dishes and ornaments are done in the traditional Greek style by the Mother Superior. Each is one-of-a-kind and often embellished by the sisters as a contribution to the group effort of stocking the store. “We really try to bring things of good quality that you can’t find anywhere else. We put a lot of effort into finding things. It takes a year to put all this together,” explains Sister Philothei, “The hand painting never stops.” All of the sisters pitch in with the baking, a highlight of the Christmas store. “We do it the old-fashioned way. It’s fresh, and that’s why it tastes so good,” states sister Philothei. As much as The Sisters Touch of Christmas is a team effort, individual talents shine through for the progress of the monastery. The calibre of the store is evidence of mastery in pastry making, sewing, graphic design and fine art. But, after all, the purpose of the store is to raise money to support their community outreach efforts. To this end, while they all support it, not all of the sisters take the lead in stocking various accents of the store. Instead, some focus more intimately on sourcing community outreach opportunities such as support for the Yellow Brick House, a place for abused women and children in York Region. It’s nice to know that when you buy something so delicious and beautiful for Christmas, your hard earned money is going to support the community work done by The Sisters of St. Kosmas Aitolos Greek Orthodox Monastery.
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Between the bars by Karen Kastner The year was 1992. Deep in the bowels of “The Tower” at Brock University, Dr. Peter Landey seated himself at the battered Steinway in the front left corner of his bleak, beige classroom. For the next four minutes and thirty-three seconds he did absolutely nothing. The class sat, watched, anticipated, waited and fidgeted. A suppressed giggle answered the annoyed scrape of a metal chair leg on the institutional tile floor. Once finished, the room erupted in blistering discussion around the definition of music and the roles of composer, performer and audience. Twenty-five years later, after much reading and discussion, my ever-evolving interest in these topics continues to shape my thoughts about teaching, performing, and listening. Dr. Landey’s performance of John Cage’s 1952 composition 4´33˝, consisting entirely of sounds of disgruntled responses to confusion, was not the first time I experienced the piece. So I had the advantage of context over my fellow students. But it didn’t matter. Each experience is unique. Last time, chickadee descant accompanied the thrum of traffic. Before that it was the crinkling of soft rain on parked car windshields over a pedal point of car tires slithering on wet asphalt. At its foundation, music is the interplay between the presence and absence of sound, within a prescribed time parameter. Everything else is contextual. Musical sound is the complex interplay of pitch, timbre, pulse, tempo, dynamics, texture, rhythm, density and articulation. By contrast, the absence of sound in music is relatively simple. It is subject only to the length of its silences and their placement within the musical (sound) line. Rests are used to provide a moment of pause and to slow the pace of forward movement within a composition. They are also used as an articulation devices. Placing a rest (silence) on either side of a sound (note) effectively accents the sound, not unlike the unexpected guffaw from a reader in a quiet library. Composers manipulate sound and silence within a specific form such as a folk song, raga or symphony to inject novelty into their music and in this way contribute to the cultural evolution of sound. Musical forms are often related to cultural practices. This is reflected by the venues in which they are typically performed. Deviations from standardized forms or uses of standardized forms outside of their cultural contexts are often steps along their evolutionary paths. Various musical forms have evolved and continue to evolve over centuries, across a myriad of cultures, based on how they are used to frame context. page 22
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There comes a day for each of my students when I must break the news to them: those notes on the page are not music. They are just ink on a piece of paper. It’s up to the student to turn those markings into something worth listening to. Music does not exist until it is performed. Composer and performer are co-creators. To be a fully involved member of this co-creative team the performer benefits greatly from understanding the historical, social and personal context within which the composer made creative choices. So much of that understanding comes from examining the rests and how to play them. Hopefully the performer is sufficiently self-aware of how their own perceptions, technical skills and the circumstances of the performance create an additional context for the composition. After that, the choice of how to co-create the music is up to the performer. In my opinion, as long as performers can account for their choices, their performances are valid, even if I disagree with those choices. Traditionally, composers learned their craft by apprenticing with seasoned composers. The role of the music teacher is not unlike that of a museum guide. Starting in the front hallway, the student begins to learn the basic practical elements of the craft. As their skills and understanding increase, more doors are gradually opened. There are wonders from the past and the present. There is the music of different genres from many cultures. New rooms are added all the time, as composers and performers create. There are always new ways of listening to and thinking about music, always a new perspective, a new context. Each student comes with their own set of strengths and interests. They will choose to simply glance into some of the rooms. Other rooms will grab their interest and they stay there awhile, closely studying each detail. The joy of teaching is opening the door to each of those rooms for students and watching them learn that, yes, that too is music. The more closely the student is acquainted with the tools of good musicianship, the more profound and enjoyable their musical listening experience will be, as well. To learn the language and practice of music, students need an emotionally safe environment where then are free to explore and to make errors as they hone their musical skills. Learning any language is a gradual, long-term process. They key in all of this is to actively acknowledge the absence of sound as keenly as you do its presence. Like spoken language, musical ability is innate and universal. It ranges from the practical to the poetic. There is a place for everyone along that spectrum. As students develop their musical skills and understanding, they can slip and slide along that spectrum in any direction, at will. But, to truly express and appreciate music they must first learn to listen to silence.
KCM asked The Summerhill’s pastry chef, Victoria Field to create a satisfying, reduced sugar dessert to illustrate Dr. Oswaldo Ramirez’s holiday dining survival guide. The result (and yes, it did taste heavenly!) is this light, just right, upside down plum cake. Chef Field modified a traditional pineapple upside down cake with plums and Christmas spice. The result is a definite must try! This cake can be served warm or cold, and the sauce is optional (for an even lower glycemic index). This dessert is a great way to cut down on the sugar, and the guilt, this holiday season! Serves 10!
Upside Down Plum Cake by Chef Victoria Field, The Summerhill Ingredients: 6
lrg plums, halves, pitted & sliced 1 ½ C all purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder 12 tbsp unsalted butter 1 C brown sugar 1 C sugar 1 tbsp honey
½ C milk 2 eggs ½ tsp ground cinnamon ¼ tsp nutmeg ⅓ tsp salt ½ tsp vanilla to taste lightly sweetened whipped cream
Instructions: 1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. 2. Combine brown sugar, honey and 6 tbsp of butter in a heavy saucepan, over low heat, until thick and smooth. Pour sauce in bottom of pan and arrange plums on top. 3. Mix flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in bowl. Use electric mixer to beat remaining butter and sugar until light and creamy. 4. Add eggs and beat until fluffy. Do not over beat. 5. Add vanilla. 6. Add dry ingredients, alternating with milk. 7. Mix until combined. 8. Spoon batter evenly over plums. 9. Bake until golden brown and tester comes out clean (about 1 hour, depending on your oven). 10. Cool for 30 min. 11. Use knife around edge to loosen cake. 12. Place on a platter and turn upside down. 13. Top with lightly sweetened whipped cream. page 24
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No need to skip dessert
IT’S DRESS UP SEASON. COME SEE WHAT WE’VE GOT!
by Freyda Tartak
Sugar gets a bad wrap. While overeating it is not healthy, sugar is and always will be the body’s first pick for fuel. The trick is not so much in moderation but, in what else you eat, and in what order. According to Dr. Oswaldo Ramirez, you should keep two things in mind: First, if you want cake, skip the mashed potatoes, pasta and other simple carbohydrates. Second, eat your fats and proteins before dessert, not after. There is a right and wrong ways to indulge in sugary goodness. Your body reacts differently depending on the order in which you eat refined sugars and carbohydrates. Just to be clear, carbs are the sugars, starches and fibres found in fruit, grains, vegetables and dairy products. Your body, starting with your brain, uses glucose as its primary energy source because it’s quick and easy. When it can’t burn sugar, it burns fat but, that takes more than twice as long and even longer after it has decided to stick around in the comfort of your belly, thighs or wherever else you want it least. According to Dr. Ramirez, if you eat fat and protein before eating dessert you are actually helping your body digest that holiday roast beast.
12994 Keele St., Unit 1, King City. 905-833-KIDS(5437). kidscountry.ca
As Dr. Ramirez explains, fat and protein slow down your metabolism, consequently slowing the rate at which your meal is broken down. Sugar and alcohol temporarily speed up your metabolism, increasing your body’s ability to break down the food. The good doctor is not suggesting that you should inhale an entire cake to lose weight. But he is saying that, in moderation, dessert can help prevent you from gaining those holiday pounds if you eat it after a fatty, protein-rich meal. Same goes for that pre-meal cocktail, glass of wine, or pint beer. You may not have eaten anything yet but, your body is already rolling out the red carpet for the sugars coming down your pipe, by way of mashed potatoes, pasta and dessert. If you have to have a pre-meal drink, “opt for a vodka and club soda,” says Dr. Ramirez. It’s the ultimate diet cocktail and, one you can nurse for hours if needed. While sugar releases endorphins (the body’s morphine), dopamine (molecule stimulator) and serotonin (maintains mood balance), your body will use only what it needs and bank the rest for later (in the event on an extended hunger strike). That’s just how you’re built. The more often you overindulge, the more fat will get stored away for when you embark on your protest on the poor working conditions of those baby kittens in the Himalayan pink salt mines.
LESSONS ♦ BOARDING ♦ PONY PARTIES ♦ HORSES FOR SALE
So, the next time you feel like having dessert, go ahead. You can be sure that Dr. Ramirez doesn’t neglect his sweet tooth, either. Happy holidays!
(905) 859-0057 13955 8th Concession
ERNESTINE TAHEDL
W
ords are funny little things .
We created them to communicate with each other. People used to point and grunt. Over time we developed patterns of sound that meant the same thing all the time: rock, food, danger—simple words that we could agree on. Then, as we got better at using them, living longer, and doing more than looking for food and shelter all day long, our dialects got more complicated.
without definition. We can argue all day about what art is and is not. We might as well be arguing about what God is and is not: a concept that is different for everybody and only matters in that it has an impact on at least some people.
Most experts believe that speech developed long before cave art, and somewhere between learning to express ourselves orally and visually, we learned to use language to mask and misunderstand each other.
“Obviously those paintings are a summary of sixty years of painting. If one says is there a traditional painting or does it go out of tradition? Sure it does. That’s needless to say because everything you do in your life is a summary of what you’ve experienced, what you have learned. The important thing is to keep it fresh, to try to find some new things which are important for your development of work,” confirms Ernestine.
Humans are forever looking for ways to evolve and all too infrequently succeed at understanding one another. Despite the dismal chances of ever getting our meaning out there, we try. It begs the question: Are we communicating to be heard or for the experience of exploring the thought more fully? Take for example the term ‘abstract art.’ It’s probably the most misunderstood genre out there. There are many ways of defining it but, mainly just two: the classic and the modern. By classic I mean technical. When you look at an abstract, you acknowledge that before you is something that is a segment of a greater whole. In this sense, Ernestine Tahdel is an abstract artist. We can argue that she is an abstract artist in the modern sense as well, though she firmly avows to being nothing of the sort. Of course, by ‘modern sense’ I mean the Google definition: art that does not attempt to represent external reality but, seeks to achieve its effect using shapes, forms, colours and textures. The truly ironic part of all this is that the incongruity exists not in the term ‘abstract’ but in the word ‘art,’ which is
Autumn Splendour, 1979, acrylic on canvass, 134 x 142 cm
Ernestine Tahdel understands that definitions are relevant. People like to classify things. But, while possessing immeasurable class, Ernestine Tahdel, like her work, is beyond description.
She is the daughter of the celebrated stained glass, mural and mosaic artist Professor Heinrich Tahedl, whose work graces a hundred buildings, including many churches. Thanks to her father’s circle of friends and willingness to include her, Ernestine grew up surrounded by the leading artists of his day. His tutelage, along with his insistence on doing everything possible to allow Ernestine’s talent to develop unencumbered by the oppression of classic art instruction, yielded a protégé who can connect intrinsically with art patrons. Ten people may enter a solo exhibit, and each of them will gravitate toward a different painting. But, each of them will find something that draws them in from within her work, which, if nothing else, is honest. Ernestine grew up with full access to her father’s studio and would often spend hours on end, alone, creating. “Interestingly
Early Snow, Tibet, Diptych, 2003, acrylic on canvass, 147 x 153 cm
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ERNESTINE TAHEDL Currently living and working in King City, Ontario, Ernestine was born and educated in Austria and received a Master’s Degree in graphic art from the Vienna Academy of Applied Arts. Following graduation in 1961, she collaborated with her father, Professor Heinrich Tahedl, in the design and execution of stained glass commissions. In 1963, Ernestine emigrated to Canada and has since enjoyed an illustrious career as an internationally acclaimed artist. Her work is represented in public, corporate and private collections and galleries in Canada, United States, France, Switzerland, Austria, and Japan. Her biography includes a long list of awards and medals, as well as gallery representations, and both group and solo exhibits. Her professional experience includes numerous elected executive positions with Ontario Society of Artists, Arts Toronto, Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. She has also served as a juror for exhibitions at The Fredrick Horsman Varley Art Gallery of Markham, Living Arts Centre, Mississauga, Mississauga Arts Awards, Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Art Salon 98, The Serbian Heritage Academy of Canada and Singidunum.
Graphic II, 1963, acrylic on paper, 69 x33 cm
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Rigoroso, 2009, acrylic on canvass, 137 x 200 cm Nocturno II, 2010, acrylic on canvass, 92 x 183 cm
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enough, when I was very young, I worked abstract,” says Ernestine. She, like her father, was profoundly influenced by the interplay of light; how it appears when obstructed by opaque and translucent objects; and transformed beyond its refraction and reflection off the surfaces it passed through and over when the object has colour or texture that further manipulates the light that affects it. As she matured and earned her Master’s Degree in graphic art from the Vienna Academy of Applied Arts, her work took on more realistic, easily recognizable shapes. “The definition of abstract is very broad. I mean, personally, I don’t see those paintings as abstract, as probably some other people don’t see figures, you don’t see landscape but I still see a very strong, organic influence from whatever I was inspired by. Even when she paints in the style of realism her work betrays her experience with stained glass. It sings on the dances between light and glass. Each of her pieces is based on things
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she has seen but, not sketched, that have passed through the lens of her mind’s eye. Her travels have taken her to every continent, from the Arctic to the Antarctic and everywhere in between. She has painted all of them but, was never inspired more than by the beauty of the panoramic views of Canada. She covered numerous giant canvasses with mountain ranges but, found that the joy was in the details. “I got very involved in doing detailed photos of just small, close-ups of a stream and the reflection of leaves and so on in the stream: which is amazingly abstract but, it isn’t abstract. It’s nature. If you want to look at that aspect, you can find abstraction, so to speak, everywhere. Those close-ups were quite a bit of inspiration for my paintings, and if you look at those paintings now, they are still quite organic.” “That were twenty years that I painted only landscapes,” reflects Ernestine. “Then I saw those water lilies in Giverny that Monet painted in his garden. Suddenly I started painting
water lilies because I felt that was the only way I could express the beauty of it.” Slowly, her work progressed into an exploration of music. As Walter Pater said, “all art constantly aspires toward the condition of music.” It was something that was always an essential part of her life but, there came the point when exploring where her mind would take her when focusing intently on detailed images gave way to trying to capture the essence of sound. The finished works appear as a series, exploring master compositions such as Vivaldi’s Four Seasons but, for the artist they are all one work, initially painted as one. Each piece is separated from the group and worked on individually and periodically reconnected, played like an accordion. They are complete when Ernestine is done with them—when she perceives a satisfaction that her deep dive into her psyche and its reaction to the music is satisfied.
Anton Bruckner Motet Ave Maria, acrylic on canvas 240 x 144 cm recently part o
Once complete, Ernestine is finished with it. She harbours no attachment to a finished work once birthed, happy to sever the cord and send it off for display. Sometimes work returns unsold after a couple of years at a gallery, and she is thrilled to get it back and paint over it, preferring to paint over a canvass that has something on it rather than start with a blank. For Ernestine, the reward is the exploration, the ability to discover what’s in her head. “That’s why I’ve been able to keep it relatively fresh, for me. I’m not talking about the quality of work. What is important to me is that I still feel that I’m searching for something and trying to move ahead in a direction which is a bit risky,” confides the internationally celebrated Ernestine Tahdel. “Those abstract works, for some people are not that abstract.”
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“Arbeit macht frei” is a German phrase meaning “work sets you free.” The slogan is known for appearing on the entrance of Auschwitz and other Nazi concentration camps. Throughout the Nazi regime, there were people who had everything to lose but risked it anyway, there were people who simply turned a blind eye, and there were people, like Wernher von Braun, who could have done more but chose not to.
A Piece of String by Kathleen Adamson As a humanities student in an esoteric department at the University of Toronto, years ago, majoring in languages so ancient that they made Latin look modern, I would often attend extra-curricular concerts, poetry readings and scientific lectures in fields outside my own, to broaden my education. One particular lecture, given by famed astrophysicist, Wernher von Braun, in a packed lecture hall, stayed with me. Back then, von Braun was lionized with rock star status for his rocket and space research at NASA and his directorship of the Marshall Space Centre. An iconic image of the day was the ticker tape parade with him and President John F. Kennedy, in New York. In person, he was beyond dazzling. At once drop-dead charming, imposing and masculine. He held the audience in thrall for the entire presentation, illuminating America’s plans for the first space stations, which were to form the foundations of our future: colonies in space!
American space programme. Our conversations reinforced my already positive impression of von Braun and his gigantic dreams. Thousands of people, including western governments, were swept up for years to come, with the stardust thrown in our eyes in the form of moon landings, explorations, and journeys to Saturn and Mars among hundreds of other staggering scientific achievements. To this day we are still partaking in the von Braun’s legacy. Our new Governor-General, Julie Payette, a product of the space programmes, recently told us, unflinchingly, during her installation, that we should “trust in science,” the mantra of von Braun and his scientists for our collective future.
I recall walking out of the lecture into the chilly night air on St. George Street and looking up at the stars in ways I had never done before, barely able to comprehend the reach of his projected future for humankind. To say I, and all the attendees, were blown away, would be an understatement. The effect of von Braun stayed with me for many decades. Some years later, I acquired the friendship of a German, part of his team, who worked in shock tube research at Huntsville, Alabama, building rockets that formed the basis of the Wernher von Braun with is wife, Maria Luise von Quistorp and daughters Iris Careen and Margrit Cécil
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The human mind is capable of rationalizing unspeakable atrocities. The human spirit has an infallible ability to survive insurmountable odds history, when we ignore its lessons, has a way of delivering ample need for fresh string.
But, as I learned later in life, the adored von Braun had another side and a background that JFK and the scientific community downplayed for the benefits that could come from such a mind. They did not tell the general public about his World War II activities as scientific director of the infamous installations at Peenemünde on the Baltic, and Dora in the Harz Mountains. There, underground research facilities and factories were dug deep into the intestines of the earth to house research and manufacture of the Vergeltungswaffen rocket series, a set of long-range artillery weapons designed for strategic bombing.
Wave after wave of victims were imported from camps such as Auschwitz, to work in subhuman conditions of cold, starvation and filth, never seeing the light of day, until they were dumped in heaps of dead for disposal, away from the works. Some 60,000 worked constructing Dora and 26,500 perished in the final massacre, as the Americans approached in 1945. The labourers worked on huge ladders, thirty feet above the floor, underground walls, lugging heavy spoil from the mine, or working in the factory assembling rocket components. There were no latrine facilities. Weak from hunger and fatigue, prisoner-workers frequently fell to their deaths, died from disease, or were executed on the spot by their SS guards.
The V1 and V2 rockets were used to bomb Britain with deadly accuracy. The Polish Underground courageously stole one of the V2s from its site of manufacture At the end of the war, and stealthily transported American liberators it to England for retroclosed or flooded the engineering and study. mine sites but, in recent The V3 was much fartherdecades, the study of these Buchenwald survivor Petro Mischtschuk reaching than the V1 and hellholes revealed rough Photograph by Lisi Niesner (Weimar, Germany) V2, with potential to reach bunks stacked four high, North America, and the sinister V4 was on the drawing board darkness, dampness, starvation, outbreaks of cholera, daily by war’s end. beatings by the SS guards, cruel labour and despair beyond comprehension. The facilities at Peenemünde and Dora were more than simply wartime manufacturing sites. Dora was the largest oil and fuel A few survived to testify to the horrors they had endured depot in Germany. These were slave labour camps under the but, Peenemünde and Dora were outstripped in public tender ministrations of Kommandant SS Brigadier General awareness by the infamous camps such as Auschwitz, Hans Kammler, builder of Auschwitz-Birkenau and other Dachau, Ravensbrück, Sobibór and hundreds of others. The death camps. page 34
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rocket facilities were, to put it mildly, underrepresented in the collective human consciousness. Books, interviews, and a museum have recorded what happened there, though most are unaware of the significance of these installations. What separates them from the better-known camps is that their purpose was more than to create advanced weapons to ensure German victory, as an expedient of war. These camps were intended to hack a pathway to the heavens by wielding knowledge, thereby gilding the reputations of the most brilliant scientists in the West during the war, and even after it. Somehow, the scientific dreams whereby a man’s reach far exceeds his grasp, were made a reality and became the thrust of much scientific thinking, albeit “cleaned up” in postwar years, in a Faustian bargain. Survivors accused von Braun of visiting the sites frequently, of witnessing victims hanging in the galleries as punishment, and of standing devoid of emotion alongside piles of corpses of men who dug the galleries and assembled the rockets at his behest, all under the watchful eye of the SS Kommandant. Von Braun maintained that he knew conditions were miserable but, there was nothing he could do about it. Given that his brain, and his alone, held the plans for the V-series, he was too valuable to the Reich to be punished had he suggested that the workers would produce better labour if they were better fed and housed, a purely practical measure that he could have sought. If Schindler could improve conditions for his “workers” von Braun was even more able to do so, since Hitler told Speer that von Braun was to be protected “at all costs.” He was in an even more secure position to save lives. He chose not to. By contrast, deep in the gloom of Dora, a flame burned in some breasts: the urge to fight. The prisoners were overwhelmed by forces that stripped them of everything, deprived them of food, drink, rest, warmth and kindness. Their ragged clothes clung to their starving frames and sickness racked their bodies. But, some of them still fought. American reports of the installations, written after the war, attest to small bits of metal secreted in the inner workings of some of the rockets; sabotage punishable by instant death. The most poignant sabotage in one rocket consisted of the only thing the prisoner had, a tiny piece of string, trammelling the heart of a rocket. We do not know if the saboteur survived. Chances are he did not and knew he would not survive. Yet there is the string. When I reflect on the dazzling sky of my youthful post-lecture imagination, filled with von Braun’s dream, and juxtapose that tiny piece of string from his fiefdom in hell, the searing irony of that dream twists at my heart.
By late 1944, it was obvious to von Braun that Germany would be destroyed and occupied, and he began planning for the postwar era. Before the Allied capture of the V–2 rocket complex, von Braun was sent south, eventually to Bavaria and surrendered to the Americans there, along with other key team leaders. For fifteen years after World War II, Von Braun worked with the U.S. Army in the development of ballistic missiles. As part of a military operation called Project Paperclip, he and an initial group of about 125 were sent to America where they were installed at Fort Bliss, Texas. There they worked on rockets for the U.S. Army, and assisted in V-2 launches at White Sands Proving Ground, New Mexico. (source: nasa.gov) At right: Bust of Wernher von Braun at Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL - Redstone Arsenal
Dr. Wernher von Braun (1912–1977)
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NOBLETON OPTOMETRY:
Dr. Siragusa’s holistic viewpoint Season's
! s g n i t e e r G
“My mother used to take my sisters and I every year to the optometrist. I always had 20/20 vision until grade six, when I was told I needed my first pair of glasses,” relates Dr. Melisa Siragusa. It wasn’t until after she got her specs that she understood there had ever been a problem in the first place. “I remember driving down the street wearing my glasses and seeing the trees so vividly. It was nice,” she recalls. That experience changed her life. “It made a huge difference for me. I didn’t realize how badly my eyes had deteriorated over the year. Since then, this is what I wanted to do.” As she got older, Melisa’s fascination with optometry deepened. She started to explore the mechanics of ocular science. The more she learned, the more she wanted to study of ocular diseases. “The eye is the only direct access to blood vessels that we can see in the body.” The blood vessels in the eyes are usually one of the first to be affected by certain diseases, such as cholesterol, diabetes and hypertension. Since it is one of the first organs affected, annual eye exams are a great, non-invasive early detection tool for many diseases in the body. On numerous occasions, Dr. Siragusa has discovered various findings in patients’ eyes that have led her to coordinate with their family practitioners. Through routine eye exams, she has been able to detect holes/tears in the retina, choroidal melanoma (a form of eye cancer), certain forms of disease such as Crohn’s colitis, ankylosing spondylitis and many more. In many cases, the conditions were in their very early stages and therefore much easier to treat. Beyond regular health checkups, certain professions have strict colour vision requirements, such as pilots and firefighters. That’s another great reason to have your children’s eyes tested early, as it may avoid disappointment down the road with your children’s chosen line of work.
EAT IN • TAKE OUT • CATERING 2118 King Rd, King City
(905) 833-3301
Melisa’s childhood obsession with the eye translated to a lifelong commitment to learning. She has earned an Honours Bachelor of Science with a Concentration in Anatomy and Cell Biology, from Western University, a Doctorate of Optometry from the Illinois College of Optometry, and is certified by the Board of Examiners of Optometry in the use of Therapeutic Pharmaceutical Agents. Dr. Siragusa is also accredited by the National Board of Examiners of
Optometry and the Treatment and Management of Ocular Disease in the United States. Each year she continues to dedicate a significant amount of time to professional learning and development. Dr. Siragusa’s approach to patient care is all-encompassing and holistic, stressing the importance of whole body health. “I always counsel my patients on diet and eye health. Diet is so important: Something as simple as dry eye can stem from your diet if you are not drinking enough water or not getting enough omega-3 fatty acids. Our diets can also influence diseases like macular degeneration.” Dr. Siragusa is thrilled to have a practice located so close to home. She enjoys the less hectic pace of King Township and ensures that client appointments are spaced in a way that allows for sufficient time to fully understand the visual needs of her patients. Here, she is able to build relationships with her patients. “You see the whole family. I have sponsored their children’s hockey and soccer teams. I have watched them go off to college or university and I enjoy seeing these patients when they stop in for their annual eye exams.” Melisa looks forward to continuing the growth of her practice with the community.
Water delivery & tank maintenance by Marco Cavallari According to the notice that residents received on June 8th, 2017, The Region of York should be about half way through with their planned activities at the Schomberg water treatment plant, located at 210 Western Avenue. Crews there are working on the plant’s water filtration system. Per the response I received, “The Filter Rehabilitation project is a maintenance activity being conducted by The Regional Municipality of York to optimize the performance of the filters at the treatment plant to improve operability.” During this time two filtration trailers have been providing the residences of Schomberg with clean, safe municipal water, by-passing the plant to allow its maintenance to be conducted without service interruption. Though, as promised, we have not experienced any interruption of service, as owner of Aquafinity Water Systems, I have received many calls from fellow residents in the area concerned with brown or yellowish water. Based on my understanding, and the official answer to my own inquiry, I am confident that the increased level of pigment in the water is unrelated to activities at the treatment plant. Per The Region, “Although the Township regularly flushes the water mains, sediment is a somewhat inevitable aspect of ground water sources.” In addition to the planned manual flushing of the water mains, we know that heavy rainfall can also result in increased amount of sediment in tap water and coincidentally, we have not seen as much rainfall in three or four years, as we have in 2017. “Sediment” is defined as suspended solids such as sand, silt, clay and numerous mineral elements that remain in water after filtration has taken place. Sediment is a specific problem in this area due to our groundwater source. In addition to affecting the appearance of tap water it impacts our water heaters by settling at the bottom, effecting efficiency. Other issues include build-up evident in our cold water lines closest to our home’s water main shut off. Introducing a whole home sediment filter with a 5-micron rating is an effective way to prevent sediment from carrying throughout the home. Costs vary with providers but can range from $200 to $500. In addition, it is highly recommended that you have your hot water tank maintained every three, six or page 38
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twelve months, as required. Homeowners with rental units should consult with their provider as this may be covered by your rental contract. Tank maintenance MUST be done with extreme caution. Flushing a hot water heater tank involves pressurized, scalding hot water. If not controlled properly, it may also result in accidental flooding of the area surrounding the tank. Additionally, if the tank has not been flushed in many years, it may require additional maintenance by a certified water heater service technician. If you do decide to attempt to flush your tank: 1. First shut off the electricity to the tank if your heater is electric or shut off the gas valve to the tank (make note of where the hot water tanks thermostat is currently set so you can dial it back to the same setting later). 2. Shut off the cold water valve feeding the cold side the tank. 3. Turn on the hot water on any faucet located above the water heater, let it run for a bit and test to make sure the water in the tank has cooled off sufficiently. 4. Attach a garden hose to the drain valve at the bottom of your tank and find a good place to drain the water (either in the floor drain by the hot water tank or outside (there may be muddy sediment if this has not been done in a while). 5. Open the drain valve and allow your hot water tank to drain. This should take about 10 to 30 minutes. 6. When the water runs clear close the valve. 7. Turn the cold water valve back on and let the tank fill within 5 to 10 minutes. 8. Then go up to the open hot water faucet and shut it off once all the air is out. 9. Turn the electricity back on, or for natural gas, turn the gas valve back on, light the pilot, and turn the hot water heaters thermostat back to where it was set before. Note: If no water comes out, contact a water heater service technician as there may be an obstruction in the valve and it may have to be removed.
As for the maintenance activity at the water treatment plant, that project is taking place to maintain the quality of our water in Schomberg. According to latest reports, the project is on schedule and due for completion in mid 2018 (refer to public notices at york.ca/waterconstruction for details). PRAS Publishing, King Country Magazine and AquaFinity Water Systems, and their representatives, are not liable, nor is any warranty extended, for the results or consequences of any attempt to adopt any of this information. This article is for information purposes only.
project. Infractions will be documented and may result in significant fines, as well as a potential “stop work” order. The project could be delayed for weeks.
CONSTRUCTOR LIABILITY:
What most people fail to consider by Gary van Bolderen If you thinking of taking on a construction or reno project make sure to protect yourself by considering your role, as regulated by the Ontario Health & Safety Act (OHSA). Too many property owners are unaware that they could unintentionally be taking on the burdens of a constructor. In Ontario this designation is critical, and it is not a responsibility you want to take on casually. The OHSA defines who is responsible for the safety of the worker(s) at a workplace, regardless of the size or type of project in question. It could be your roof, horse barn or anything else that you have in mind. You, as the owner, cannot claim ignorance of this Act. The OHSA’s intent is to have one party with overall authority for health and safety matters on a construction project. That party, it could be an individual or a company, is called the constructor of the project. The constructor is the entity with the greatest degree of control over the health and safety of the entire project and is ultimately responsible for the health and safety of all workers. The constructor must also ensure that all the employees and workers on the project comply with the Act and its regulations. When the owner, such as a farmer building a new barn, undertakes a project by contracting with more than one employer (contractor) the owner is undertaking the project and is the constructor. If the owner hires a general contractor to do the complete project, the general contractor becomes the constructor. It’s an important distinction.
A general contractor is responsible for providing all the materials, labour, equipment and services necessary for the project. This includes hiring any subcontractors and ensuring that everything is done legally and to code. When the general contractor performs all of the work for the project, he or she becomes the constructor. By hiring a general contractor to perform the entire project the owner is no longer responsible for ensuring that all employees and workers comply with the Act. It is a critical decision and one that the property owner must understand before work begins. The constructor is the final authority on the worksite and therefore is the one who will be held responsible for any accidents, and for enforcing the Act. Included in the responsibilities of the constructor is the need to have documentation at the workplace proving that: all workers have Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB) coverage; each trade has signed its Form 1000 (Registration of Constructors and Employers Engaged in Construction); an up-to-date Health and Safety Policy is posted in a prominent location at the site; a Notification of Project (for all projects greater than $50,000.00) is sent to the Ministry of Labour; and that all documentation is on-site for certified compulsory trades. The constructor must have a record of safety meetings when required, evidence that all equipment has been approved for use, and so on. The Ministry of Labour (MoL) has the legal right to enter a site and do inspections at any time throughout a
Ensuring that all workers have WSIB coverage also protects the constructor against lawsuits. If you hire someone who does not have the WSIB coverage they can sue you for damages, longterm care, retraining, and more. The seriousness of this Act comes into sharp focus in the event of an accident or death at the workplace. In addition to hefty fines, there is also the potential of criminal charges resulting in jail time. In fact, the OHSA is the only law in Ontario that presumes your guilt and puts the onus on you to prove your innocence, if you are charged with an infraction. By law, all accidents must be reported to the MoL. If a person requires a hospital visit, the hospital must notify the police and the MoL, resulting in an immediate response by both the police and the MoL, who will visit the workplace and may shut everything down. In the event of critical injury, no one will be allowed to touch anything, including materials and equipment. All workers will be interviewed and asked to sign witness statements that may result in legal actions based on the inspectors’ investigation. Given the gravity of the responsibilities, anybody wishing to undertake a construction project should do their due diligence before inadvertently taking on the role of the constructor. The best way to avoid that risk is to hire a general contractor. A professional construction firm, acting as the general contractor, will offer you, as the property owner, a layer of protection by being intimately aware of and complying with the requirements of the OHSA. Be informed. Do your due diligence. Plan and plan again before starting a project. If you are not prepared to be the constructor of a project, be careful to avoid unintentionally taking on the added liability. For more information, you can contact the MoL at www.labour.gov.on.ca.
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Worth keeping by Freyda Tartak “I don’t find there’s any fact in trying to hide it because I find the more open it is, the more people understand,” explains Mitch. I came over looking for Katie Kaiser, a visit that was long overdue. This was my first time meeting her son. The last time I stopped by was in search of the pioneer cemetery. Katie had generously offered me the loan of a well-loved book to learn about King’s past. Months later, I finally found a copy of my own, for sale at the King Heritage Museum. Full of apologies for taking so long to return it, I pulled into Katie’s driveway not expecting to meet the tall, friendly guy bustling about the place. He greeted me the same way everybody greets you in Lloydtown: welcoming and entirely devoid of pretension. “Oh, good,” he says, “she’s been asking about that,” pointing me to the front door of the once Wesleyan Methodist church that serves as their home. The place is much less a house than it is an eclectic collection of stuff, betraying the family’s affinity for love, life, joy and acceptance. “I guess you sort of take things as they are and if they bring you joy, you keep them around,” I comment. “Pretty much,” agrees Mitch as he opens the door to the sun-room and offers, “she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s about a year ago, so her memory isn’t what it used to be.” Inside, Katie was thrilled to get her book back but, I’m glad for his casual forewarning. It helps me keep my balance even in this brief encounter. Though still able to hold her own, the signs of Katie’s memory loss are like an eager puppy vying for attention at the sight of a visitor. “You’ll have to excuse me, I had a bad fall last year, my memory isn’t what it used to be,” she says. page 40
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Katie did have a bad fall. She had been drinking and after two bottles of wine refused a ride home, walked through her front gate, tripped and fell, breaking her leg and then smashing her head as she fell backwards. “The doctor thinks that’s what set off the Alzheimer’s,” says Mitch. His parents divorced when he was young. He likens his childhood years to the back-and-forth flight of a ping-pong ball. When Katie was around, things were great but, she was rarely home. When Mitch turned sixteen, he got to choose where he wanted to live and picked his mom’s place, where he had the most freedom. “Before this, she was not around very much, I can tell you that. She used to be very bad with the wine—to excess. So this is actually probably the best thing for her. I hate to say it that way. But this, her issue now, is probably the best because she can’t drink. She gets the odd beer but, the beer isn’t going to kill her over two litres of wine,” states the twenty-eightyear-old. Mitch has been living in a state of shock since his mom’s diagnosis. The bills had gotten “to a point where she was going to lose the house,” he confides. He got a bank loan and bought the property. Then he laid down some ground rules for his 62-year old mother and any friends who used to drink with her: No alcohol. Amongst Katie’s friends is Wendy Glasow. “I have a funny feeling she has a hunch that I can’t take care of her, or I don’t want to, or something like that, which I do. But, it might just be a little over my head,” says Mitch. “She’s always there, ever since I was little. Wendy is my saving angel. Wendy’s husband was in a bad car accident, and now
she’s trying to help me because of my mom, so it’s ten times as tough on her.”
a tremendous help, supporting him as they can. The most significant thing is just making sure he doesn’t feel alone.
Wendy puts up a strong front; jokingly referring to her husband and Katie as Mr. and Mrs. Daisy for all the driving she has to do. She’s also the one to talk to the doctors, which Mitch is thankful for. He stays informed but, prefers to not complicate matters by getting too deeply involved, trusting Wendy’s lead in those matters.
Every once in a while the pressure reaches a fever pitch. Work is his refuge. Ever since he was five years old, sitting on his father’s lap on a job site, he’s been in love with playing with trucks in a sandbox. As he grew up “the machines grew bigger, and the sandbox grew bigger with them,” he jokes.
As hard as it is for Mitch, what Wendy is going through is perhaps even more difficult. Katie, once Wendy’s dearest confidant, is now full of conversation corners to avoid, easily agitated and quick to descend into disconnected thoughts, hard to engage with and impossible to ignore.
“When I’m at work, I have to give it all my attention. You’re working with heavy equipment. One wrong move and you can just splatter somebody up against a wall,” he reasons. At the beginning Mitch didn’t know what it was so, there wasn’t much to tell people. “But once I found out, I started slowly telling people that were closest first; then telling people the severity of it; and then having people turn around and say: ‘Well I was in a situation.’ Or, talking to a friend’s mom and they were in a similar spot with their father or something, and sitting down and talking to them. Hearing people say, ‘oh, yeah I know it’s tough, like keeping your stress level down and biting your tongue,’ and it’s nice having people who have been through it before.”
“The conversations change as fast as the fan spins. It’s hard to keep up with her but, when she’s on a topic, she won’t let it go,” agree Katie’s personal care team. “When it, happened, shock is a good word for it. Something I have to work my way into— patience-wise, which I don’t feel I have a lot of. But what are you going to do? Get mad at the situation, turn around and leave?” Instead, Mitch goes outside and finds something to do around the house. “Leaving occurred to me. But I’d never be able to do it. It’d kill me on the conscience-wise. I want to, some days. It’s almost the tables have turned. When you’re growing, and your parents take care of you, it’s almost like the flip side now. Here’s payback. Now it’s my turn.”
“It makes you feel like you’re not alone,” he continues, “Having people there, accepting and every once in a while saying, ‘oh, hey, Mitch looks a little stressed. Maybe he needs to sit down and talk.’ It’s awesome having that.”
At twenty-eight years old, Mitch Kaiser would love to settle down and start a family. “In my mind, it’s hard to bring somebody into this type of situation.”
The only thing Mitch knows for sure is how completely unready he is for what’s to come. “How prepared are you?” I ask. “Not. Not whatsoever.”
Mitch is looking forward to Katie’s eighty-six-year-old mother’s upcoming move into the nearby retirement community. Right now, he struggles between having to spend time at work and making sure Katie isn’t left at home alone. “The last thing I need is to come home to a pile of ashes because she’s done something silly.” His grandmother is “pretty well, health-wise and she’s got her head on her shoulders.” He’s grateful for his friends, too. They have been
Mitch hasn’t exactly had a charmed life but, “I don’t feel sorry for myself. I wasn’t brought up that way,” he says. His dad and grandmother instilled in him the mantra: “If you fail, try harder.”
There’s a difference between looking for sympathy and facing life honestly. “It’s tough. I want my own life. I want a girlfriend in my life. I want kids. I want this, I want that but, it’s hard to do it while you’re trying to pull all this off, too.” “In my mind, it’s hard to bring somebody into this type of situation. If they can deal with it, ‘winner,’ but it’s tough. It’s not like I’m asking anybody to ease the load off of me but, to ask someone to come into that is a big thing. Who wants to be in those shoes? Nobody. But, when you get placed in them, you just have to deal.” KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
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HOBBY FARM IN LLOYDTOWN:
Raising kids in the country Every ten years Veronica Segarra, 44, does something big for her birthday. When she turned 30, she went to Hawaii. Her plan, for her 40th birthday, was a trip to the African savanna but, a lot can happen in ten years. She met John Molloy, they had a couple of kids, and plans changed. Instead, they ended up in Lloydtown, once considered second in importance only to Toronto but now, just a sleepy hamlet adjacent to Schomberg; long since forgotten for its part in dismantling the Family Compact and leading to electoral reform in Canada. “I dug deep and realized that what I always wanted was a horse,” remembers Veronica. At the time, the couple and their two girls, Juliana and Victoria, were still living in Veronica’s stunning Victorian house in Leslieville. These days, the area is a posh neighbourhood in Toronto but, when she bought it, “there were prostitutes around the corner. It was what I could afford.” The couple always loved animals. “We still have our two cockatiels, a ferret, and Scruffy,” Veronica’s favourite breed of dog: a Chinese Crested. The ferret has enjoyed a freakishly long lifespan and shows no sign of slowing down. “I love animals but, not to the extent that she does,” confides the 52-year-old John. His true passion is working with his hands, “I love doing carpentry.” Nodding appreciatively, Veronica adds, “he renovated my downtown house before we sold it, this place is John’s playground. It was a sore site but, we loved the area. It’s still ongoing; we’re still renovating.” page 42
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“I love my John Deer tractor,” agrees John. Their new property came with a tractor but, it quickly fell apart. It was no match for the “thistles that stood as high as you are. When we got here we had to take all the weeds down, put up all the fences,” says Veronica.
commuting to the country. When they got there, they faced other challenges: “boarding was difficult because I really wanted to care for and be with the horse, and barns have a lot of politics. It was a difficult environment for me,” admits Veronica.
Their new finishing mower solved the problem in an hour but, not before Veronica drained all her energy trying to hack away at it manually, after their tractor died. Their hard work had a mighty motivator behind it. Veronica didn’t just put her mind to getting a horse. She got several, and without a suitable property of their own, she boarded her horses in Stayner; not an ideal state of affairs.
Now, with horses of her own, she was out riding every weekend. “I rode other horses, whatever they had there. It was too much.” So, once the duo decided to move out to the country, and bring their horses home, they couldn’t wait to get started.
“I grew up in Richmond Hill. I had a creek in my backyard, I had a forest,” recalls Veronica. “My grandmother used to jump horses in Mexico, she was an animal fanatic, and my father loved animals. He never said no on the animal front. I used to spend my summers in Mexico.” Living in Toronto, Veronica had somehow managed to suppress her connection with animals until she started looking for an alternative to that rugged African safari that she had set her heart on, ten years prior.
That year Santa gave the girls a pony for Christmas.
Their first one, Mini, was a touch too grumpy and couldn’t be trusted with the girls so, Chico took her place, living in the backyard of their Toronto Victorian house. It’s a good thing that the neighbours were understanding. “When she gets her mind set,” says John, “it’s happening.” But looking back, sometimes John wishes he’d gone to Africa instead. “I snuck in a couple of horses overnight. I went trail riding and met Moose and fell in love with him and thought he would be a perfect husband horse. So we made a deal, and we got back pretty late and snuck him
“I want to jam pack everything as much as I can, life is short. I follow my gut.” Veronica Segarra ~
Once she jumped into her new life, all she wanted to do was be with her horses. If John and the girls wanted to see her, they had to come along, routinely KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
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into the paddock,” confides Veronica. The next morning John looked over the rim of his coffee cup and wondered, “Did Chico grow? Did the pony grow into a full-size horse?” John has long since resigned himself to such antics. New animals began magically popping into view, and the game was afoot. The girls would count the days, hours and on occasion, the weeks before he’d notice that something new had arrived. Eventually, there were baby goats, and both John and Veronica lost count of which one was pregnant, only realizing what happened when the seemingly wrong goat cared for a new kid. By now, John was starting to get used to his new norm. He knew who he fell in love with and this was all part of the deal. “I want to jam pack everything as much as I can, life is short. I follow my gut,” explains Veronica. With every animal she’d bring home, Veronica said it was the last. “Every time we brought something home, this is the last.” “First year, we focused on horses. Program number one was to modify the property so we could have horses. Job one was bringing the horses home,” explains Veronica. “Year two, we did the chicken thing. I do not count the chickens. I always
wanted chickens. I researched everything and decided I was comfortable with them. Fluffy was our first.” After that, things spiralled quickly. “The local SPCA was looking for a home for a couple of geese, so I took them,” states Veronica. Then came the pot-bellied pigs. “I always wanted a pot-bellied pig. I like the menagerie. The chickens I don’t think really got to him.” The chickens are the only aspect on the farm that John hasn’t fully come to terms with, and probably never will. But the girls love them. “We’re just learning as we go,” the pair admit. A lot of the decisions come straight out of the pit of Veronica’s stomach. She’ll see a Facebook post that resonates with her and goes to investigate. According to John, though, “You never just go look at anything. If you go look, you’re buying it.” “You have 10 acres, what are you gonna do? You have to fill it up with things,” shrugs Veronica. Within four years the family has amassed three pigs, seven horses plus one lease horse, two geese, countless chickens, three sheep, an Angora, a flock of goats, two Chinese crested dogs, a couple of Šarplaninacs (Yugoslavian Shepherd Dogs known to be ferocious guardians but, terrific with kids). At least that was the count when KCM came for a visit back in August. Since then poor Fluffy has passed away and judging by Veronica’s Facebook posts, there have been a few more additions to the farm. “Animals teach people so much. Horses teach people so much,” enthuses Veronica. By day, she is the Senior Vice President of product development at an international cosmetics firm, routinely working with A-list celebrities and developing cosmetic lines from concept to execution. But, she’d love nothing more than to spend her time in rubber boots, “where I can do the horse thing and sustain three horses and a pony.” As for John and the girls, they’re happily along for the ride because one thing is for sure, there’s never a dull moment at their house. KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
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attended by many of the same families who can relay stories from around the dinner table of great-great-grandfathers that took part in the same Canadian Rebellion of Upper Canada that the rest of the country glosses over in eighth grade. Its founder, Jesse Lloyd, the son of Welsh Quakers, was a man of jovial character and high principles. It is a matter of some importance that his family migrated from Pennsylvania, where they had resided since 1639 after fleeing religious persecution during the Bishop Wars of their homeland. Their immigration from America also arose out of the need to avoid persecution for their beliefs and refusal to pick a side in the War of 1812. Instead, they subjected themselves to starvation and great peril, crossing the Niagara Gorge, on foot and in the depth of winter, before arriving in Upper Canada, what we now refer to as Ontario, and settling in King Township. It says a great deal about the state of affairs in Upper Canada that by 1837 Jesse Lloyd was willing to sacrifice everything to help William Lyon Mackenzie. He recognized the risks, deeding all of his property to his wife Phoebe, in case victory proved to be more elusive than Mackenzie professed. That was a wise move since by year’s end he was on the run, hiding amongst his Pennsylvanian relatives, with five hundred pounds on his head.
150 years later and not much different
C
hurch street ends at rebellion
Way, connecting Brownsville, now known as Schomberg, to Lloydtown, a sleepy village of great importance to our national heritage. As you proceed, you might notice a Heritage King plaque on a home announcing that it once belonged to Doctor Robert Ramsay and some forty years later to the butcher, George T. Skinner. History is full of violent ironies.
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If we are to consider its impact on the removal of the Family Compact and the subsequent rise of responsible government in Canada, Lloydtown remains second in importance only to Toronto. But outside of the area, few even know it exists. Further along, churches of various denominations constructed a long time ago, betray the diversity that spanned the community from its earliest days. Today, they are merely churches, actively
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
No doubt for Jesse, it was a matter of moral obligation to play the part that he did. He had a large family and was responsible for the well-being of the families belonging to the workers engaged on his farms and in his mills. As Overseer of Roads, serving two terms while refusing remuneration, Jesse would have been intimately familiar and affected by the issue of clergy reserves. According to the Constitutional Act of 1791, one-seventh of all lands granted was reserved to support the Church of England. The majority of the population of Upper Canada was not Protestant, and the clergy reserves were mostly unused, unmanaged portions of land that served no purpose other than interrupting the continuity of settlement and making it difficult to
expand roads. The clergy reserves were little more than a form of political and religious oppression. As stated in W. Stewart Wallace’s, The Encyclopedia of Canada, “The province became a sort of chequer-board in which the black squares represented unimproved lands. This economic grievance, added to the religious, no doubt explains the feeling which the Clergy Reserves roused.” Whether an intentional means to control the general population or a slaphappy approach with little regard for consequence, the Government’s want of care in the countryside did nothing to ingratiate itself to the peace-loving people who comprised the radical segment of the reform movement. Distribution of property rights and the intermingling of church and state were, according to Mackenzie, “the most important single cause of the rebellion of 1837.” The men who stood alongside Lloyd and Mackenzie were not soldiers. They were farmers, shopkeepers and tradesmen who got angry enough to be used by Mackenzie for his designs on avenging his pride, under the guise of doing what was right for the common people. They trained to use arms late at night, in remote corners of farmers’ fields and marched on Montgomery’s Tavern three days early without proper provisions, leadership or a firm plan. When the jig was up, Mackenzie gave them up for slaughter, conveniently leaving a detailed register of names to be found by the loyalist soldiers as he departed. To this day, few suspect any act of willful betrayal on Mackenzie’s part. But, it is not outside of reason to guess that even as he ran for the safety of the American border, he secretly blamed the rebels, including Jesse Lloyd, for acting out of turn. The rebels arrived at Montgomery’s Tavern foot-sore and hungry, to the hospitality of an innkeeper who was neither friendly to their cause nor prepared for their arrival. Mackenzie had invested a lot of effort into planning a rebellion which was supposed to take place on December 7th. His arrogance, lack of discretion and hunger for notoriety had as much to do with the panic that led to the early arrival of the Lloydtown rebels as anything else. But, Mackenzie likely laid all the blame at the feet of others. All the while, Jesse was an invaluable and dependable resource to the man who was returned to his riding of York numerous times, yet denied access to his seat at the assembly. Jesse readily offered a key stronghold for the radical reform movement in Upper Canada. He also frequently served as an emissary, travelling to Lower Canada and so forth, in Mackenzie’s plot to overthrow a system of government that felt ill obliged to accept the voice of the people, and perpetuated abuses on the public purse to pad those of the Family Compact. During its heyday, the village that Jesse Lloyd established had, as the cairn erected opposite his statue declares, a grist-mill, sawmill, woolen mill, two tanneries, stores and numerous
pioneer industries. The community had a post-office, two churches, and a two-room schoolhouse that, according to the History of Toronto and County of York, Ontario: Containing an Outline of the History of the Dominion of Canada; a History of the City of Toronto and the County of York, with the Townships, Towns, General and Local Statistics; Biographical Sketches, Volume 1, published in 1885 by C.B. Robinson et al., was the best school outside of Toronto, with a student average of forty-eight per cent. The impressive brick building still stands, though it is now a private residence. These days, all of the buildings in Lloydtown are private homes. Public meeting places and businesses either closed entirely or relocated to Schomberg. The only hints of its historical relevance to our modern democratic advantages are thanks to the efforts of The Lloydtown Rebellion Association and the plaques put up by the King Township Historical Society. The number continues to dwindle of people who would serve to remind us that our democratic system of government is fragile and hard fought for. According to Bill Foran, the retired school principal and King Township Councilor, only three meetings remain for the Rebellion Association due to a lack of interest among the younger generations. That, too, is a bitter irony. The violence
of the rebellion was the result of a toxic cocktail between a small, tightly knit set of petty and corrupt men; a little man from a poor background with a giant grudge and ego to match; and the reluctance to stand up for themselves on the part of moderate reformers. The Family Compact did little so well as establishing that seeking responsible government was akin to disloyalty and therefore treason against the King. At that time, loyalty to the Crown trumped all else, and though many moderate reformers sympathized with the radical element, they refused to support it. By the time the wheels of the rebellion set into motion Mackenzie was gunning for revenge and willing to sacrifice absolutely everybody to achieve his cause. The injustices that drove hundreds of men headlong to the gallows, prison and exile were nothing compared to the rage that Mackenzie felt at being snubbed by the Executive of Upper Canada and subsequently by the King of England. But regardless of his true motives, that violence was necessary. England was in a very delicate position. It’s not that the monarchy cared if people were suffering or that there was blatant, widespread corruption. It’s just that they couldn’t risk people getting upset enough to declare independence, as the Americans had done in The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). The vapid arrogance of Lieutenant Governor Sir Francis Bond Head made him oblivious to the extent of the rancour felt amongst the general population, particularly amongst the poor, uneducated farmers who comprised Mackenzie’s former constituency. Sir Bond Head and the Family Compact were of the firm opinion that the vast majority, though possibly unhappy, would never succumb to action at the impetus and ravings of the radical reformer who was so badly beaten out of power during the election of 1836. Any modern voting citizen who marvels at the strict rules around secret ballots at the polls should read about the way Sir Bond Head returned the Family Compact to majority rule. After the election, the community of Lloydtown, as was the case with the rest of Upper Canada, was firmly split in three: loyalists, moderate reformers and radicals. Moderate reformers hesitated to support the future rebels for fear of being seen as disloyal to the Crown. It was a non-linear as page 48
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
connection, impregnated in the minds of all but the radicals by the Family Compact. This combination of willful ignorance and reluctance to take action attributed to the Home Government’s lack of insight into the discontent in the provinces. The information received by Great Britain was that the majority of people were perfectly happy. When Mackenzie arrived with a petition in hand, he was barely heard and only as a private citizen rather than an elected representative of the legislative assembly. It’s hard to say if the debacle of December 4th, 1837, truly changed anything. By the time of the Rebellion, the British Colonies consisted of an increasingly literate populace and were moving away from the antiquated mentality which permitted the Family Compact to exist, let alone prosper. Upper Canada was just one example where people were learning to organize and think for themselves. Moderate reformers were bound to eventually, through more diplomatic measures, accomplish much of what came about as a result of the Durham Report. In the short term, due to Mackenzie’s many character flaws and the possible blind contempt he held for anybody who had the misfortune of standing either with or against him, people who would never have been suspected of treason otherwise were identified as rebels and rounded up. The wrath of the loyalist army did not stop there. Rebels’ family homes were raided routinely, robbed of the last crumb of food. Phoebe Lloyd suffered many such attacks, on at least one occasion the soldiers even fled with the baby’s milk. As Russell Oldfield relates, the repercussions lasted for a very long time. He grew up in the area and is a direct descendant, six generations forward, of Jesse Lloyd. Following the Rebellion, Jesse narrowly escaped capture by returning to his relatives in Pennsylvania. It was too dangerous to send letters to the Lloydtown post office. Instead, he had them carried to Newmarket, addressing them to Phoebe by her maiden name of Crossley. She would travel to get them and stoically tuck the letters into her skirts for the return journey, dangerous adventures in their right. That’s how she learned of his passing, though the story goes that she had some premonition of that letter’s contents before reading it.
Eventually, even the loyalists and moderate reformers could no longer tolerate the ill-treatment of their neighbours. Traitors though their husbands and fathers might be, they were still Christian. For his part, Sir Bond Head realized that the proverbial writing was on the wall but, he was committed to standing by the Family Compact and fighting democratic reform as long as he had the power to do so, in defiance of direct orders to the contrary. Ironically, unbeknown to the reformers, Sir Bond Head was already supposed to be on his way back across the ocean by the time of the Rebellion. More than one person advised Mackenzie to wait until spring, and by that time, perhaps it would no longer have been required. He acted in December on the urging of rebel organizers in Lower Canada but had he heeded the advice things would have turned out much better in both situations. The rebellion of Lower Canada would have held off, as well and a new Lieutenant Governor, a product of a more sympathetic Home Government, would have taken up residence in place of Sir Bond Head. While both Great Britain and France continued to grow in acceptance of rights for all citizens, the pompous who controlled both Upper and Lower Canada remained ignorant of such progress. By 1832, the Representation of the People Act was passed in Great Britain, signifying electoral reform there even as it was so bitterly contested in the Canadas. In 1838, the People’s Charter formed the foundation of a widespread movement for political reform in favour of the working class. Even as early as the middle of 1837 Sir Bond Head was given express orders to support prominent moderate reformers, encouraging representative self-government but, he stood his ground and offered to resign rather than comply. By 1837, at the time of the rebellion, the United Kingdom was a constitutional monarchy where the king held relatively little direct power. What’s more, the king died in June and Queen Victoria’s whose subsequent reign was a period of terrific industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change as Europe continued to evolve beyond the Industrial Revolution, ascended to the throne. Immediately after the rebellion, British Whig John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, was sent over to investigate its cause. In true British fashion, he made many astute observations but, as per his infamous Report on the Affairs of British North America, commonly referred to as the Durham Report, Lord Durham concluded that what Canada lacked was more British people. The document became a charter that some liken to the Magna Carta as it related to the establishment of representative self-government in colonies such as Australia, New Zealand and Canada. But for French Canadians, it introduced a new set of challenges, some of which continue to plague Anglo-French relations in this country to the present day. As a direct consequence of the conniving and extreme actions taken by Mackenzie, provincial lines were redrawn,
Russell Oldfield standing not far from the final resting place of Phoebe Lloyd, his direct ancestor, at the pioneer’s cemetery.
with anything that this country was built on because that was never their Canada in the first place.
a system for responsible government was implemented, the role of governor general became ceremonial, and the legislative assembly gained much more power than it had previously enjoyed. The elevation of British loyalists above all other citizens within Canada continues to affect our country, even 150 years after receiving its Constitution. Perhaps it is little wonder that what was designed to be a year of trans-Canadian celebration blew by with an almost pathetic lack of regard by the vast majority of the population. The media and the Federal Government did their parts but, most people nodded politely without any appreciation of what they were supposed to be commemorating. Perhaps the reason is that the British loyalists who established the Canadian Constitution have never represented the voice of the people who now comprise its majority and while we espouse the virtues of multiculturalism we are no better organized than the radicals of Mackenzie’s rebellion. In many ways, we, as a country, are still paying for the complacency and hesitation of the moderate reformers of Jesse Lloyd’s day. To this day there are two factions in Lloydtown and its surrounding areas: those descended from families that have lived here since the early 1800’s and those who are attracted to the charm and quiet of the place but harbour little appreciation for the part it played in establishing everything we take for granted. How is that different from the rest of Canada? We cannot define Canadian identity by its multiculturalism or extreme tolerance and excessive concessions to political correctness. In truth, as citizens, our country deserves our loyalty and we deserve an understanding of what we are loyal to. In Canada, moderate reformers are still the passive ruling class but, modern apathy is not driven by the fear of being branded as disloyal. It is rooted in general feelings of disaffection and mixed with an influx of people who flatly do not identify page 50
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The universal ideals of the Enlightenment, where equality for all, including equal justice under the law by disinterested courts, are natural consequences of any literate society. They are not unique to Canada and cannot be used to define any one culture, even if it is Canadian and only 150 years-old. Humans have been on Canadian soil since 30,000 BCE, and they got here by crossing the Siberian land bridge at the end of the last Ice Age. There’s no excuse for appropriating the culture of others as an avoidance of acknowledging our own. Yet in Canada, we routinely, as the winds of fashion blow, raise and compare the identities of our various segments based on who won the most recent self-vindication battle against the federal government. Educational institutions are mandated to teach history in isolated bubbles, placing preferential treatment on fad sympathies, with entire generations growing up ignorant of global cause and effect. Quite possibly, without Mackenzie’s need to be recognized as important, Jesse Lloyd might have lived for another forty years alongside his wife, children and grandchildren. But, we will never know. On the other hand, perhaps such rebellions were interdependent and without them things would have gotten worse, not better. Maybe we owe a debt to those who are willing to be branded as radicals, fighting for democracy, rather than fearing the repercussions of speaking up against administrations and institutions that do not reflect the will of the people they are supposed to represent. Rebellion Way follows a bend in the road. As you get to it, you could park and chance upon the Lloydtown Pioneer Cemetery where Jesse and Phoebe donated land to inter their beloved indentured servant girl upon her unexpected demise. There, many of the rebel families buried loved ones, including Phoebe, who married Jesse when she was only fourteen-years-old, gave birth to seven children, survived the persecution that followed the failed rebellion and died at the ripe-old-age of eighty-nine. The gates to the cemetery path are flanked on one side by an opulent mansion on sprawling grounds and the other by Mitch and Katie Kaiser’s house. The latter, a private residence that was once the Wesleyan Methodist Church, where wanting to remember is not taken lightly. You’d miss it if you weren’t looking for it. You probably wouldn’t pay much attention to the quiet intersection of Rebellion Way and Centre St, once the bustling hub of Lloydtown. Instead, you’d wonder at the impressive statue of an armed man dressed nothing like a soldier, pointing off into the distance. You might park, walk up to take a closer look, then notice a cairn on the opposite side, and remember that we shouldn’t take what we have for granted because it wasn’t easy to come by.
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Fleeting moments & afterthoughts...
Bev with Lotus and Jasper.
even want to speak of vehicle exhaust fumes ugh! From time to time along the walk route there is the grand event: the pumping of a septic tank. Although, at least that odour is natural! Our home lies downwind of a horse farm, and it carries with it a unique “Eau de Cheval” – again, at least it is natural.
Walk with me
by Beverley Berger Freshly cut grass is more than a fragrance, it represents green. If a colour has a smell, this is it. Even some of my other blind friends (who have never seen green) associate the cut grass odour in their minds’ eye as “green.” Did I mention that I am blind, as well? Alongside my dog guide, I have taken the time to smell more than just the grass, and I would like to share some of my sniffing.
Walk with me and explore by following your nose. It is a guaranteed stress reliever. If the wind is right, you can explore a residential street and inhale all manner of olfactory delights: a veritable feast! The odours of garlic and basil, cabbage and dill, cumin and coriander may be your neighbours’ calling cards: a welcome opportunity to share recipes. Explore your world through kitchen exhaust fans. Someone is making fruit pie; the smell of sugar is caramelizing as it bubbles over into the oven is enough to make one drool. How page 52
about the grill? Even a veggie lover will admit to a smile at that BBQ-ness. A few steps further to the Nonna sauce brigade in the garage—the earthy, comforting wafts of tomato turning into a homemade sauce is worth standing at the end of their driveway with a Mason jar! The smell of a bakery, too: the centuries’ old fragrance of yeast and flour coming together is classic nose joy. Did you know that a retriever has over 200 million scent receptors in its nose? A human has roughly eight million. This fact, however, does not prevent me from sniffing the air when walking downwind of a fast food joint; perhaps I am turning into a Labrador! Why does grease never taste as good as it smells? Sadly, some folks experience environmental sensitivities, and their noses are not happy. The unnecessary perfume of fabric softeners float on dryer vent breezes, bleach used as an antibacterial wash on porch steps smell toxic, blacktop driveway sealer is scary, and I do not
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
Rain. Try walking in it; it can be cleansing both literally and emotionally. The bonus is the odours released by the raindrops. Smell the worms on a concrete path, catch the grittiness of freshly turned earth [someone has just dug up their potato patch!), and the acrid smoke of a dampened pile of burning autumn leaves. Your nose can take you away from a hurt heart. I admit there is one downside to rain-walking, and that, of course, is my dog guide: there is no pleasure in the smell of a wet dog! Our sense of smell protects us, enhances our mealtimes, creates a sensory memory bank and often offers the opportunity to escape sadness. All our senses are interdependent, and particularly since I am blind, I am very aware of their value. Walk with me again sometime, to explore a world of sound: come along and hear what I hear.
How ideas happen: The Neater Feeder™ Design evolution
The idea
An easy to clean pet feeding system to contain spills, reduce property damage and prevent spilled water from saturating spilled food. The concept
The Process
Elevate the bowls to suit a variety of height requirements to address:
• Concept ideation and sketching • Creation of 3D computer assisted design (CAD) model and prototypes to confirm the concept fit and function • Modification and adjustment of initial model for fit • Development of marketing strategy • Preparation and distribution of manufacturer request for quotation (RFQ) package • Tooling build and first-off samples tested, tweaked and approved • During tooling cycle, colour scheme, packaging and graphics were developed to match the marketing strategy
• gastric distress and bloating associated with feeding from a bowl that is on the floor, resulting from swallowing large amounts of air during feeding while constantly holding its head lower than its chest; or • development of chronic shoulder and back fatigue due to repetitive lowering of the head as the animal first retrieves its food.
The outcome
The Neater Feeder™ is a multi-award winning pet feeding system with protective walls to contain splashes and spills. It is available in large, medium, small and cat sizes and sold through at Petsmart, Petco, Pet Valu, Pet Supermarket and Pet Supplies Plus.
KING COUNTRY magazine . volume 1, issue iii
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ng? ethi of m o ink in s a w you th ght n n i Wa hat em us w and w ith l l e T e issu e you w om this ris d fr surp ing goo ss! eth sine som cal bu o al
See your work in print!*
across
Send in your poetry or short story (400 to 1,700 words) to: submit@kingcountrymagazine.com by March 9th, 2018 for a chance to be featured in our April issue!
2. 5. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.
what Bev shared misunderstood art form what Nicki Penheiro won Jesse’s wife where to find jazzy treats he decides if you’re ready instrument of sabotage how old Stephanie was when she went to Epcot 15. what Veronica lost count of 18. first mayor of Toronto 20. owl or pine cones 23. they’ll make cookies for your tree 26. it kept the puppy still 27. 168th ________________ 29. who John lives with 30. cause for cave grunting 32. something to organize 34. where to find innovation 35. location of mistreated kittens 36. what they are doing in Schomberg
down 1. 3. 4. 6. 7. 8. 10. 16. 17. 19. 21. 22. 24. 25. 26. 28. 31. 33.
promoted by SAS what Dr. Landey did when Melisa got glasses what Donna won’t do what Katie did it goes well with diamonds what Bev makes what Logan likes how John greets you what art aspires to where to dress kids where to find the upside down it took an army of what who might you be without knowing they brought gifts loved by Hitler and JFK who offers cross-border shopping what to skip for dessert
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