Another Christmas is here and another year is coming to an end. At times it has felt that it took an eternity to get here since March 13th, the day we rushed home from Europe. At other times, it seems as if it was just was yesterday.
The year 2020 was meant to be memorable. I turned 70 in June and on December 26, we will have been married for 50 years. On March 12, I was looking forward to another 18 days in London but on March 13, we were flying home to Montreal. We had planned to spend a few weeks in Nova Scotia visiting family in July or August. For our anniversary, we planned an escape to the Lands of Loyal Hotel (https://www.landsofloyal.com) near Dundee, Scotland for New Years Eve. My parents would bring our family there for Christmases in the early fifties.
Instead we have been semi-secluded for the past nine months. I haven’t been able to hug my children or grandchildren. Every newscast about Covid-19 is more panic stricken than the last one. The American dream has become a fantasy. In 2020, the USA has lost its moral authority to lecture anybody about democracy and freedom. China, Russia, and North Korea are more powerful and more influential than they were four years ago. The world is a more dangerous place.
Thankfully, 2020 is coming to an end and there are a few things to celebrate. I have learned how to video conference better than Dick Tracy. For those of you that are too young to remember this comic strip character, he had a telephone watch that we thought would always belong to the sci-fi world. I have discovered a hobby, I love to write. I just hope that people enjoy reading me. Old friends have been rediscovered. These have included Wayne MacMillan and Leon Livingstone in Cape Breton; and, Mike Sefsik, Pat Rousseau, and Martin Kibsey from high school in Sept-Iles, QC. My apologies for naming you, guys, but I do like to recognize people that have been important in my life. Vaccines are coming so maybe we will be able to go to Nova Scotia for the summer of 2021 and back to Europe by mid-January 2022.
My web site, atwatersedge.co will be going live December 31st, just in time for the New Year. Newsletter content will be easier to read on portable devices. I hope to be adding additional content that you will find interesting and provocative. I think that there may be one more newsletter before then.
The usual reminders:
Buy better, buy less, reduce, repair, reuse and recycle. Shop local, support local businesses, buy from local farms, and support local artisans and manufacturers. As always, wear face masks where required, wash your hands, practice social distancing, hydrate, and exercise.
Thank you for reading. I wish you all the a very happy holiday season.Best wishes for a great 2021 – it will have to be better than 2020.
Lisbon’s seven hills and waterfront make it visually spectacular. The second oldest capital in Europe, the city has energy. Busy streets and squares, full restaurants, and vibrant night life – the city pulsates. And, the population seems young. All signs of a city on the rise? Earthquake A 1755 earthquake destroyed 85% of the city […]
People living on the street have come to symbolize the global housing crisis but they are only the tip of the iceberg. While the examples of Finland and Houston demonstrate a focussed plan pursued diligently can resolve the housing situation for the chronically homeless, addressing the affordable housing problem is much more complex. Defining Affordability […]
I love to dance. This is not something new for me. I can’t remember when I didn’t like to move to the music. My first memories of watching others dance come from my childhood in Cape Breton where I would watch the adults square dance. Then, there were the step dancers who would often accompany […]
Kings Cross, once a thriving industrial and transport centre in London, was effectively closed off to the public by the end of the 20th century. Then in 1996, the decision was made to move the British terminus for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link from Waterloo to St-Pancras. The landowner saw a re-development opportunity for […]
I have postulated that cities and towns evolve. That towns and villages first grow in areas where the basics to support life were plentiful. Typically, that means good agricultural land and good access to water. Other valuable considerations include safety, and resilience. The bonus – access to trade routes. Walt Disney and the Fully Formed […]
A Visit from Saint Nicholas A Poem by Jonathan Potter – December 2022 ‘Twas the first mask-free Christmas, when all through the stores The vaccinated children were spewing their spores;The shoppers were eagerly starting to riotAs the introverts longed for some quarantine quiet. The public healthcare workers were tracing the pathOf the flu and RSV, […]