LOVE LOVE LOVE - theHumm January 2026

Linda and Sam Hamilton — A New Year’s Treat! - theHumm January 2026

By Sally Hansen

Art… and Soul

This talented Almonte couple continues to brighten our world with the way they live and the art they create. theHumm is delighted to feature the art of Linda and Sam Hamilton on our cover for the second time. Illustrator (and now art instructor) Sam headlined our April 2012 issue; paper botanical artist and teacher Linda decorated our May issue of 2013. The Hamiltons epitomize the raison d’être for our monthly arts paper: “…to connect and promote peop......

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Riversong Players have Big Plans for 2026 - theHumm January 2026

Almonte’s Riversong Players is closing the chapter on a joyful and well-received holiday season following its recent production of A Christmas Story: The Musical, which brought together audiences of all ages for an evening of warmth, nostalgia, and community connection.

Audience members consistently shared how much they enjoyed the production, with children responding enthusiastically to the humour and energy of the show, while older patrons remarking that it reminded them of their own childhoods......

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Become A Friend of the Miss Mills Library! - theHumm January 2026

By Barbara Carroll

The Friends of the Mississippi Mills Public Library (FoMMPL) had another record year in 2025. By the end of September we had donated a total of $21,500 to the Library, which allowed them to purchase 100 lighter-weight chairs to accommodate the audiences at their array of in-library events, a booking management system that allows patrons to book the library meeting rooms online, and an automatic checkout system that complements the existing in-person checkout. The Friends’ donation also allowed the Fine-Free Status of our library to continue.

The Friends also had a record fundraising ......

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A Stitch in Time:The Palestine History Tapestry - theHumm January 2026

A new exhibit is coming to the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum on February 14. A Stitch in Time: The Palestine History Tapestry, hosted in partnership with Palestine Museum US, is a selection of tatreez (Palestinian embroidery) pieces from the Palestine History Tapestry — a collection of over 100 hand-stitched panels by Palestinian women in refugee camps. The tapestry will be on display at the Museum from February 14 to April 19, with an opening event on Saturday, February 14 from 1–4pm.

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Mid-Winter Milling Returns to Downtown Almonte - theHumm January 2026

Destination Almonte invites you to the 13th annual Mid-Winter Milling on Saturday, February 21. Experience the magic as psychics, mediums, card readers, tea leaf readers and more gather in downtown Almonte for this much-anticipated event. Be sure to arrive early in the day to reserve a spot on the signup sheets for your spiritual and self-awareness sessions with the practitioners, as they tend to book up quickly. Advanced reservations are at the discretion of each individual practitioner.

Ther......

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Frankenstein — The Monster and the Music - theHumm January 2026

The 1931 Frankenstein film was eerily silent, with no music beyond the titles. Early sound technology just wasn’t up to the task, and many theaters weren’t equipped to handle full scores. As a result, it was released with dialogue-only tracks. However, Perth musician and composer Mark Bailey decided to write a music score to accompany the movie. Mark is a professional musician and a published composer, and his creation of this music is a major accomplishment! He captures all the excit......

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Books to Keep You Cozy - theHumm January 2026

By John Pigeau

In 1985, Jonathan Yardley reviewed Anne Tyler’s novel The Accidental Tourist in the Washington Post. He wrote: “Words fail me: one cannot reasonably expect fiction to be much better than this.” Now that is pretty much the grand slam of blurbs. It’s also the kind of thing I hope critics and readers will end up saying about books I’m recommending. Prognosticating is an inexact endeavour, however. At the very least, I hope to send folks into bookshops with a clearer idea of what’s ......

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Don’t Dress for Dinner
Hilarious Farce Starts the 2026 Season - theHumm January 2026

Don’t Dress for Dinner, by Marc Camoletti and Robin Hawdon, is the first play in The Smiths Falls Community Theatre’s 2026 season. Set in the French countryside near Paris in a converted farm building, this dynamic farce borders on the ridiculous as the action explodes early with cheating spouses on both sides of a slumping marriage.

Bernard (Rob Glas) plans a romantic weekend with his secret lover Suzanne (Stephanie Korzeniowski) while his wife Jacqueline (Liz Stienberg) is visiting......

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SRO Big Band Tea Dances - theHumm January 2026

The classic big band Standing Room Only (SRO) with vocalist Saffron Bradbury is staging the next Almonte Tea Dance in their 2025-2026 season on the afternoon of Sunday, January 18. “Tea dances” are afternoon dances that were popular in the ’20s, ’30s, and ’40s, when big bands were king. They were held in hotels and, of course, featured a live band. As implied by “tea”, beverages were non-alcoholic.

SRO dances feature a variety of music for ballroo......

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Mississippi Mills Film Society Presents DJ Ahmet - theHumm January 2026

Don’t miss the first TIFF movie in the Mississippi Mills Film Society’s Winter/Spring 2026 series! DJ Ahmet will be screened at the Almonte Legion on Sunday, February 22 at 2pm.

Directed by Georgi M. Unkovski, DJ Ahmet tells the story of a 15-year-old Yuruk boy from a remote Macedonian village who escapes into music amidst parental expectations, societal conservatism, and forbidden love for a promised girl. This movie garnered multiple nominations and awards at film festi......

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“Cabin Fever” Antiques Show - theHumm January 2026

One of Canada’s premier antiques shows, the “Cabin Fever” Kingston Winter Antiques Show will be held at the Portsmouth Olympic Harbour Centre in Kingston on February 7 and 8. This show is a not-to-be-missed event that draws in both seasoned and novice collectors.

A diverse selection of some of the best dealers from Ontario and Quebec offers a treasure trove of antiques, vintage, retro and nostalgia, covering all collecting interests, periods and styles.

Fur......

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CP Rotary Wine Tasting - theHumm January 2026

The Carleton Place Rotary Club invites everyone to a delicious night out on Saturday, March 7 at 7pm at the Carleton Place Curling Club (120 Patterson Crescent). This special evening brings together great wine, great food, and a great cause — an easy way to enjoy a memorable night while supporting Rotary’s work in the community.

Guests will be guided through a curated tasting of five wines by Sommelière Louise Boutin, with each selection chosen to engage the senses and spark a littl......

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Arts CP Call for Artists - theHumm January 2026

Arts Carleton Place invites applications for booth space at its signature juried fine art show, taking place on May 2 and 3 at the Carleton Place Arena. They are looking for 45–55 talented artists, and their application deadline is midnight on January 31. This year’s show will showcase primarily wall art (oil, acrylic, aquarelle, charcoal, fibre, mixed media, watercolour, pencil art, photography, etc.). Other forms will also be considered, including pottery, glass art, jewellery, sculptures, metal and woodwork.

The judges’ decision is final, and a waiting list may be compiled. The cri......

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Finding Hope Despite the Despair - theHumm January 2026

On Monday, January 19 at 6:30pm, CFUW Perth & District presents a Zoom with Canadian feminist lawyer and women’s advocate Pamela Cross. Pamela will speak about “Finding Hope Despite the Despair: Moving Forward to End Gender-Based Violence”.

In this powerful talk, Pamela draws on more than 30 years of frontline experience in the violence against women movement to explore why our legal systems continue to fail so many survivors — and where real hope for change can still be found.

At a ......

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Luna Blackwood at the Corridor Gallery - theHumm January 2026

Until February 21, the Almonte Library’s Corridor Gallery is pleased to present artwork by Luna Blackwood (Melissa Labrecque), an Indigenous multimedia artist and photographer. Luna’s work has a strong focus on realism and abstract realism. She loves to draw and paint in darker tones with highly detailed subjects that portray deep emotions, and incorporates animals into her pieces, often wolves or ravens. Much of her artwork includes hidden Indigenous elements, and she has recently adopted a woodland s......

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Perth’s Frost & Fire Winter Festival - theHumm January 2026

Perth Tourism invites residents and visitors to bundle up and head downtown for the return of Frost & Fire Winter Festival, taking place on Saturday, February 14 as part of Family Day Weekend.

This year’s festival offers a full day of winter fun for all ages, with activities running from 10am to 4pm. Events and attractions will take place throughout Perth, both indoors and outdoors, including the much-loved tubing run, making it easy to explore, play, and warm up along the way.

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Personal Touch Country Gifts
Welcoming a New Business in Gillies Corners - theHumm January 2026

By Colleen Gray

Just a short drive from Carleton Place, Perth and Smith Falls, there’s a new shopping experience blooming in the snow at 1127 Perth Road. Sherrie and Dan Imbeau quietly opened Personal Touch Country Gifts on November 1, 2025, extending an invitation to local artists and craftspeople to showcase their items for sale.

Originally from Atlanta, Georgia and Sudbury, Sherri and Dan are a retired trauma nurse and border services worker who have long dreamed of owning a fine quality gift store wh......

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Petra’s Chocolate Bourbon /Rum Cake - theHumm January 2026

By Petra Graber

This month’s recipe was a special request from a reader who used to buy the cake for her husband’s birthday. Petra Graber writes: “This was The Good Food Co. twist on a ‘mud’ cake. I had a terrible habit of using coffee or liquor to pep up chocolate recipes — this one has both!”

Chocolate Bourbon /Rum Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

5 ounces unsweetened OR extra dark chocolate

1 cup unsalted butter

1 cup strong coffee

½ cup bourbon OR dark rum

½ cup buttermilk OR sour cream

3 eggs + 1 yol......

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Goin’ to Hadestown
Mudds Youth Bring Greek Myth to the Stage - theHumm January 2026

This February, the Mississippi Mudds youth take on Hadestown, Teen Edition, a bold, nearly sung-through musical filled with tight harmonies and a jazzy groove. The show is a modern retelling of the Greek myths of Orpheus and Eurydice, and Hades and Persephone, weaving themes of love, faith, and defiance into a powerful story about choosing hope in a harsh world.

Set in a post-apocalyptic landscape that blends the feel of a lively speakeasy with an industrial underworld, ......

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What is an Art Quilt? - theHumm January 2026

Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) is an international organization dedicated to promoting the art quilt — art that is layered and stitched, or that references layering and stitching. This broad definition allows many techniques, materials and styles to be used by artists in their creations. SAQA holds many juried shows exhibited in art galleries and museums around the world, as well as more local exhibits. A regional group named the Land Between Pod started in 2018 with members in t......

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Valley Youth Sing High and Low! - theHumm January 2026

By Helen Rutledge

As Dr. Seuss himself said: “Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!”

We can’t be sure, but it’s possible that he was thinking about children and the joy of singing when he spoke about thinking low and high. The Valley Youth Singers like to think of fun, teamwork, and music education all rolled into wonderful experiences for kids! Valley Youth Singers, a choir for Perth and area children, was launched in September ......

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Almonte in Concert Offerings for 2026 - theHumm January 2026

There are still three exceptional shows left in the 2025/26 Almonte in Concert season. Their most recent concert, A Piano for Christmas, sold out, so grab your calendars now and your tickets soon!

First up, on Sunday, January 25 at 2pm, is All the Mornings with Elinor. Alone on stage, surrounded by her string instruments, JUNO Award-winning cellist Elinor Frey invites you to discover each one’s distinct personality, tones and colours while she tells their story. A reference to the film Tous les matins du monde, All the Mornings with Elinor is a recital both intimate and rich in discov......

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Jeff Rogers Trio to PlayCarleton Place - theHumm January 2026

On Saturday, March 7, the Jeff Rogers Trio will perform at the historic Carleton Place Town Hall Auditorium at 7:30pm. Tickets are $25 per person and are available at online.carletonplace.ca/jeff-rogers-trio .

Singer/songwriter Jeff Rogers’ unmistakably soulful voice often evokes weighty comparisons to the past — whether that’s Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles or even Otis Redding — however, his tone, range, phrasing and......

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Call to Artists:The Tunic Show - theHumm January 2026

Organizer Laura Jean Starkey invites artists and makers from all disciplines to take part in a large-scale, immersive exhibition titled The Tunic Show, taking place on August 1 at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte. This ambitious exhibition will bring together creators from all walks of life, each contributing a single, artist-designed tunic. The vision is to fill the museum hall with mannequins dressed in tunics that reflect the individuality, creativity, and stories of their ......

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Suzie Ungerleiderin the Library After Dark - theHumm January 2026

Suzie Ungerleider (formerly Oh Susanna) returns to the Perth & District Library for a Library After Dark concert on January 30. Library After Dark is a special fundraising concert series that offers a chance to see top-notch artists in an intimate and uncommon space.

After 23 years away chasing dreams in Toronto, three-time JUNO nominee Suzie Ungerleider returned home to Vancouver, drawn by its salt air and towering trees. Her new album, Among the Evergreens, is a ......

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Meditation in Clay
How Joanne Nimmo Bulsara Helps Us Rediscover Creativity - theHumm January 2026

By Kim Lulashnyk

When artist Joanne Nimmo Bulsara and I set out to design a workshop pairing clay sculpting with guided meditation, we weren’t sure the concept would land. Still, we believed that a practice grounded in the hands and another anchored in the mind might enable a deeper, unique creative experience. We discovered that meditating while making encourages people not just to make something, but to feel something shift as they do.

For Joanne, creativity has always been elemental. “As far back a......

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LOVE LOVE LOVE - theHumm January 2026

Come out to Sivarulrasa Gallery on Valentine’s Day for the opening of their first exhibition of 2026! LOVE LOVE LOVE will run until March 20, with a vernissage/artists reception on Saturday, February 14 from 2–4pm.

The show brings together works by artists Sarah Anderson, Gayle Kells, Mary Pfaff and Peter Wood, exploring themes of love and life. Sivarulrasa Gallery is located at 34 Mill Street in Almonte. For more information, visit

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Indigenous River Project Moves Ahead in CP - theHumm January 2026

By Colleen Gray

This summer, construction for a beautiful installation at Riverside Park in Carleton Place will begin, thanks to the Town’s approval for the funding required to build “The 4 Directions Stones”. The installation will honour the historical and existing presence of the Algonquin Nation along the banks of the Mississippi River. Historically, the river has been an important travel and trade route for the Algonquin people.

Under the guidance of the planning committee, the inst......

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Load Up the Calendar! - theHumm January 2026

By Glenda Jones

Good grief, we’re barely through with 2025 yet, and already I’ve got things on the calendar way into spring. I’m supposed to be signing up for April events, and I haven’t finished with December yet. By April I should be thinking about the garden, and here I am shovelling snow — and yes, I know we’ve already had enough, but there’s more to come, count on that.

I intended to uncomplicate my life by doing less in the new year, and now I see that’s not going to happen. We go into Janu......

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Neighbourly ReUse in Lanark Highlands - theHumm January 2026

By Jeff Mills

In response to the recent closure of the Hub’s Rebound Centre in Almonte, a small group of engaged citizen advocates has rallied in Mississippi Mills. By examining other nearby community programs that are successfully reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill by returning reusable items to the community, this group is looking for future solutions in Mississippi Mills. They are also actively addressing the closure of the Hub’s Rebound.

“Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” The 3-R mantra has been adopted ......

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Join MMLT on Nature’s Path to Wellness - theHumm January 2026

The Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust (MMLT) was founded on and is guided by two core principles: conserving ecologically important lands and encouraging people to experience the healing power of nature. In today’s fast-paced, screen-focused society, many have become disconnected from nature — often at the expense of mental and emotional wellbeing.

In partnership with Pinegrove Productions, and with support from the Perth and District Community Foundation and MMLT individual donors, MMLT has p......

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January is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month
Help Raise Awareness and End Stigma! - theHumm January 2026

By Submitted The Alzheimer Society Lanark Leeds Grenville

The Alzheimer Society Lanark Leeds Grenville invites you to participate in this year’s Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. There are approximately 4,000 people living with dementia in Lanark, Leeds, and Grenville.

Last year alone, we had over 12,000 visits to our Day Program (offered in five locations). Each visit equals a 6-hour day. That is 72,000 hours of care we offered families living with dementia. In our Overnight Weekend Respite Program, we had 600 overnight stays (in two locations).

“Forget No One” is the Alzheimer Society’s national anti-stigma campaign for January 2026. It f......

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The Perfect Garden… - theHumm January 2026

By David Hinks

In the long winter months, I don’t spend all my time salivating over glossy seed catalogues and planning next season’s perfect garden. I must confess that I spend many happy hours reading murder mysteries, in particular British crime fiction. In addition to enjoying descriptions of plants that I cannot successfully grow in the Ottawa Valley, I love encounters between British sleuths and old duffers in their garden allotments. The detectives find that the allotment gardeners make the most reliable wi......

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Call for Artists for 2026 - theHumm January 2026

By Laurette Lafleur

The 2026 Art in the Attic Show and Sale is sponsored by the Almonte & Area Artists’ Association and will be held at the Old Almonte Town Hall on Mothers’ Day Weekend, May 9 and 10.

Beginning January 26, we are extending an Invitation to Participate to other artists in our community. We invite you to apply.

There will be limited show spaces in this amazing venue as current members have had the first option to secure their spaces. New members may apply for membership and to participate in the show. Please visit almontearea......

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Pipes, Fiddles, Jigs and Reels!
RCMP Pipes, Drums and Dancers to Play Perth & District Collegiate Institute - theHumm January 2026

Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 28 for “An Afternoon of Pipes, Fiddles, Jigs and Reels” featuring the RCMP Pipes, Drums and Dancers with special musical guests The Oakfield Players and the Celtic band Shabraque. This lively event starts at 2:30 in the Mason Auditorium at Perth and District Collegiate Institute, and is presented by generous local sponsors Oakfield Park, Coutts Coffee Roastery & Café, Riverwood Pizza Company and the Perth Academy of Building Arts & Science, along with ......

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