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The Book Nook in Perth is delighted to present two special events in December featuring two very different authors.
On Saturday, December 3 from 1 to 3pm, former diplomat Gary Smith will be in the store to share some of his experiences that have been documented in the book Declassified. The book also includes short stories by former lieutenant governor of Ontario James Bartleman, as well as other Canadian diplomats.
Gary’s résumé is extensive and impressive. Following assignments at the U.N. in New York, Moscow, NATO headquarters in Brussels, and Israel, he became Director for Arms Control and Disarmament in Ottawa and a member of Pierre Trudeau’s International Peace Initiative. As Acting Assistant Deputy Minister for Asia, he took part in the first Team Canada Trade Mission to China in 1994. A Fellow at Harvard University’s Center for International Affairs, Gary became Vice-President (Advancement) at York University in Toronto upon leaving government.
Then on Sunday, December 11 from 1 to 3pm, author, radio personality and journalist Ron Corbett will be at The Book Nook with his newest release, The Last Guide’s Guide (to family, fishing, money and everything else that matters).
Why you should fish. Twelve things you’d be crazy not to have in your home. How to raise good kids and spot bad ones. These are just some of the lessons contained in The Last Guide’s Guide, the sequel to Canadian bestseller The Last Guide.The Last Guide told the story of Frank Kuaick, the last full-time fishing guide in Algonquin Park, and was called “an homage to a vanishing way of life” by The Toronto Star. Acclaimed author Roy MacGregor said the book would “feed the soul forever.”Now Frank is back with a guidebook to everything he has learned in seventy years of fishing. Written over four years, The Last Guide’s Guide is a rollicking return to Algonquin Park with Leacock-like tales of politics, heat waves, bass fishing, the Ambassador of Rock Lake, and Frank’s eightieth birthday party at Arowhon Pines Resort.The Last Guide’s Guide is the guidebook the world has been waiting for: “A how-to manual to fishing, making money, cooking a shore lunch, falling in love, and everything else that matters. Not the stupid stuff.” Other titles by Ron Corbett will also be available.
The Book Nook is located at 60 Gore Street East in Perth. For more details, call 267–2350.
Lights, camera, Puppets Up! The Puppets Up! International Puppet festival is taking a new approach to raising money for its 2017 season with some fundraising events, the first of which will be a puppet production of the Charles Dickens’ classic. See A (Mississippi Mills) Christmas Carol on December 16 and 17 in the Almonte Old Town Hall. This fun (and somewhat naughty) show will not only be a source of funds and seed money for the following season, but also a terrific night out!
Many of the stars of this production are the look-alike puppets of area residents and business owners, which have performed in various local theatrical events in the past, but will make their first appearances as Bob Cratchit, Mr. Fezziwig, The Ghosts of Christmas, and other beloved characters from the classic holiday story. In total, the production will include 48 puppets, one mascot, and a few human performers, including Toronto actor David Frisch. CBC Radio’s gardening expert Ed Lawrence will voice his own puppet (who plays the Ghost of Christmas Past), while Noreen Young does the actual puppeteering for that character. A member of the Order of Canada, Noreen has a long history within the puppetry community as an award-winning puppeteer and puppet builder, including her creation of the popular TV series Under the Umbrella Tree, which has aired on CBC, YTV and The Disney Channel, among others.
The production will also showcase the costume work of Ingrid Harris, a professional historic costume designer residing in Almonte. Ingrid’s work was recently featured at the National Gallery of Canada as part of the Elizabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun exhibit. For A Christmas Carol, Ingrid has created Victorian clothing for all 48 puppets as well as the actors.
The cast will be supplemented by members of Almonte’s Rhythm and Song Community Choir under the direction of Jennifer Noxon, who will sing period Christmas carols between the scenes. Local musicians Ric Denis and Tony Stuart will provide a mini-concert of seasonal tunes before each show. Perhaps most amazing of all — everyone participating in this production is working on a volunteer basis to ensure the success of the popular festival that provides high-quality family entertainment and celebrates the art of puppetry, while contributing to the economic development of Almonte in Mississippi Mills.
Why A Fundraising Show?
In the 2016 season of its 12-year run, the charming children’s festival ended with a shortfall. Noreen Young, the festival’s artistic director and one of its founding members, explained that approximately a third of the funding for the downtown Almonte festival comes from tickets sales at the gate, but that certainly doesn’t cover all expenses. The rest of the money comes from private sponsors and donors within the community as well as grants, which are sometimes difficult to maintain. “People in the town are friendly and seem to like having a puppet festival right in the downtown,” explains Noreen, “but if you keep asking the same people for the same money year after year after year… it gets a bit much after a while.” The competition to enlist a title sponsor for the festival is high, since there are few large businesses in town, and those are all in great demand from other events. The reliance on grants also contributed to the festival’s financial shortcomings, as the loss of three significant grants that they had in previous years placed the festival in a deficit position.
However, Noreen feels that the board and supporters of the festival have risen to the challenge of ensuring its continued success. Since August, Puppets Up! has been fundraising via donations from the community, and she reports that they’ve just about covered the shortfall. Noreen is hugely appreciative of that support, and also feels that it is an indication of how much the town appreciates the festival. Young explains that back in 2004, Puppets Up! emerged from an idea generated by some members of the Almonte Chamber of Commerce. They thought it would be good for the town and might help attract businesses into the storefronts on Mill Street — and in fact in the years since the festival’s commencement the street has grown to the point that there are now no unoccupied retail spaces left! The downtown is the perfect location for this type of festival, with its picturesque look that attracts lots of visitors. In past years, the festival has attracted crowds of up 15,000, with over 250 volunteers signing on to help out.
Along with Noreen Young, the cast, crew and 48 local puppets all cordially invite you to enjoy a festive evening out in support of Puppets Up! A (Mississippi Mills) Christmas Carol runs on two nights only — Friday, December 16 and Saturday, December 17 — at the Almonte Old Town Hall. Curtain time is 7:30, but come early to hear some great live music and grab a drink at the cash bar! And because the look-alike puppets love to get up to raunchy mischief, this show is recommended for ages 16 and over. Tickets are $25 from Baker Bob’s and Mill Street Books in Almonte, or online at <puppetsup.ca/tickets>.
It all started with an email. “Hi! I am a singer/songwriter and guitarist from Pakenham. I am doing a solo acoustic show at M3 Eatery in Arnprior on Nov. 18 as one of the shows I’m booking in preparation for the release of my first original CD, and was wondering if anyone at theHumm would be interested in coming out and reviewing the show?” Along with the email, there was an intriguing promo video, so how could I resist? And that was how I found myself in Arnprior on a lovely, crisp November evening.
The original plan was to visit the newly opened 2 Grands Piano Bar, but they were completely booked (a return visit and write up is already part of the plan for 2017). Fortunately, there is another new restaurant in town and although it was packed, they managed to make room for our party of two at the bar.
The Lumbertown Ale House is a gastropub right in the heart of downtown Arnprior with a mission to serve high quality food and drinks in a comfortable and sophisticated environment. They offer a seasonal menu and feature Ontario craft beers (and wines!) on tap. Everything we ordered looked, smelled and tasted wonderful, and the restaurant’s atmosphere was very hip. From the copper bar top to the cedar ceilings, exposed brick walls, pine floor and wall-mounted fireplace, everything conveyed a sense of urban comfort. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there and I highly recommend that you check it out (but, just in case you aren’t as lucky as we were, you may want to make a reservation).
They do have occasional entertainment, so keep an eye on their Facebook page for updates <@lumbertownalehouse> and see our calendar.
Act II
From Lumbertown, we proceeded to the Kenwood Centre (originally the Kenwood Mills woolen mill), which has been completely renovated and is now home to several businesses, including the M3 Eatery <facebook.com/m3eatery>.
The M3 Eatery is a charming little restaurant that is normally open from 7:30am to 4pm, Monday to Friday. On special occasions, owner Melissa Mosher opens the doors at 7:30pm for ticketed music events, and creates a special dinner menu. The night we were there the menu included a layered dip, quesadillas, shrimp vegetable nests, bacon-wrapped scallops and custom-built charcuterie boards (pick what you like!). To accompany these fine offerings there was an excellent selection of local beers, in addition to wine, cocktails, martinis, and specialty coffees.
Of course, the main reason for our visit was to see and hear Brad Scott, the fellow who sent us that very polite email back at the beginning of this article. Although he is only 24, Brad already has quite a musical résumé. He has played on stage at the Ottawa Valley Country Music Hall of Fame shows, and been a side musician and collaborator with several local bands. His own song releases get regular airplay on Valley Heritage Radio.
Among his influences, he includes Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, and local Telecaster-legend Steve Pittico along with the distinctly less country-inflected guitar work of Newton Faulkner. Brad’s guitar playing alone is enough to make it worthwhile for you to check out his next show. He has a hybrid country-picking/percussive folk playing style that is intricate and always musical. As a singer, Brad has awesome vocal control and range, and a beautiful warm tone with tasteful use of a great vibrato. But that is not all! Brad is a true triple threat: vocalist, instrumentalist and songwriter. His original tunes are very well crafted and compelling.All in all, his music was a perfect blend for the intimate space at M3. And his rendition of a Wagonwheel/Don’t Stop Believing medley was a crowd favourite that had the M3 staff out of the kitchen dancing with the patrons. Improbably but delightfully, his second set turned into a dance party.
Brad’s next local gig will be at the Waterfront Gastropub in Carleton Place on January 13, and I think you should catch this rising star while you can still see him in an intimate venue. This lad is going places! Keep tabs on him though his website <bradscott.ca> or on Facebook.
“Dutchie” Tribute Concert
Dutch Mason was one of Canada’s premier blues musicians. He started performing in the mid-50s mainly in the Halifax area. During the ‘70s he became a very popular act across the country, touring tirelessly as part of the Dutch Mason Trio and earning the nickname “Prime Minister of the Blues.” Dutch was one of the original inductees to the Canadian Jazz and Blues Hall of Fame, and in 2005 he became a Member of the Order of Canada.
On December 28, at the Valley Food and Drink Co. in Calabogie, some of Ottawa’s greatest blues musicians will be performing a tribute show in honour of Dutch Mason on the tenth anniversary of his death. Blues artists Steve Lund, Steve Marriner, Steve Lauder and Drew Nelson have all performed with Dutch over the years. They will all be performing together with Sean Burke and Wayne Dagenais on stage starting at 8pm. Tickets for this event are $45 for dinner and show or $25 for the show only. For more information check out the restaurant’s events page at <thevalleyfoodanddrinkco.ca>. They can be purchased at Eventbrite.ca or by calling 762–2676 x311. Tickets are limited so don’t wait too long.
One of my favourite places in Almonte is the Ron Caron auditorium on the top floor of the Old Town Hall. The spacious stage, vaulted wood ceiling and exquisite acoustics have played host to numerous events and performances over the years, but the old boy is really going to get a workout this December! To help you plan your month, I’ve compiled a list of everything I know about that’s going on in that august edifice and around Mississippi Mills. Get your planner out — it’s gonna be a wild ride!
First of all, there are two shows that you need to file in the “should have gotten tickets earlier” category, as they are already sold out! The Festival of Small Halls is bringing The Once to town on December 1, and Almonte in Concert presents The Ewashko Singers on December 3, but your best bet is to check out <thefestivalofsmallhalls.com> and <almonteinconcert.com> respectively so you don’t miss their 2017 shows. Fortunately there are plenty of other diversions that weekend — Almonte’s annual Light Up the Night <lightupthenightalmonte.com> will be celebrated in fine style on Friday, December 2 beginning at 7pm, with Ottawa Valley music legend and host Gail Gavan, in a wintry open-air concert featuring fabulous guests and a breathtaking display of fireworks! The very next day, the good folks who bring us the Almonte Farmers’ Market all summer long invite everyone to attend their Christmas Market on December 3, from 9am to 3pm at the Almonte Community Centre <almontefarmersmarket.com>.
The Mississippi Mills Santa Claus Parade hits the streets in Pakenham on December 3 at 1pm, and then comes to Almonte the very next day at 5pm for a parade of lights. Free skating, hot dogs, hot chocolate and visits with Santa add to the family fun — for more details visit <exploremississippimills.ca> or call 256–1077.
The seasonal strains of the Ewashko Singers will still be reverberating around the Old Town Hall when Almonte in Concert’s Youthful Music Club takes to the stage on Sunday, December 4 at 1pm. Anyone (of any age) who is interested in availing themselves of the opportunity to perform on that stage (and on AiC’s stunning Steinway Concert Grand) is invited to attend this year’s first performance and find out more about the club — please email <musicclub@almonteinconcert.com> for more information.
Also on the 4th, everyone is invited to drop in at Current Works of Glass (right next to the LCBO) for their Holiday Open House from noon to 4pm. The seven artists of CWOG’s glass guild will have works for sale including handmade jewellery, functional pieces and sculptural art.
Can’t believe how many events we’ve already covered? Me neither! But don’t worry, folks — we’re over halfway through… the first week of December.
The second weekend of the month is a musical embarrassment of riches. On Saturday, December 10, The Juliet Singers will present The Virgin Mary to the Child Jesus at 7:30pm in the beautiful, intimate space of the Almonte Presbyterian Church. JazzN.ca has arranged to have this wonderful cantata — inspired by the poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning — come to Almonte for a special evening of vocal and instrumental music. Not jazz, but an inspirationally seasonal concert! Seats are just $20, and can be reserved at <jazzn.ca/cantata-concert>.
On Sunday the 11th you can spend the afternoon in the wonderful company of The fiVe Woodwind Quintet. The fiVe play at St. Andrew’s United Church in Pakenham at 2pm, and you can read more about them on page 20 of this issue.
That evening brings two annual concerts of seasonal music that locals have grown to love (but have to choose between, sadly). The Valley Voices Community Choir begins singing at 7pm at the Almonte United Church — tickets are $7 at Baker Bob’s or from Valley Voices members, or $10 at the door, and you can find more details on page 10. Over at the Almonte Old Town Hall — of all places — three-time JUNO winner David Francey returns for a special Christmas show with special guests Kathryn Briggs, Terry Tufts and John Geggie. The David Francey Christmas Show begins at 7:30pm, and tickets are $30 from <davidfrancey.com>.
And speaking of things that locals have grown to love, the following weekend is all about the puppets. With apologies to Dickens, A (Mississippi Mills) Christmas Carol plays on December 16 and 17 only, and you can read all about it on the facing page. Get your tickets early!
Once the puppets have cleared out, it’s time for local songstress Kelly Sloan and Ottawa’s Lynn Miles to take to the stage on Friday, December 23 at 7pm. We can tell you more about this show too (on page 4 this time), and we can guarantee that this will be another instance of “get your tickets early”!
Well, that’s about all I’ve got room to cover this month, but do see our calendar for even more local happenings. And do me a favour — as you exit the illustrious Almonte Old Town Hall, give the old lad a pat on the balustrade for me — he’s had quite a workout for a 131-year-old!
Just in time for New Year’s resolution time, Learning in Almonte presents two appealing options for continuing your education! Two new non-credit courses begin in January, offering food for thought and great opportunities for discourse.
On Tuesday afternoons, from January 17 to February 21, Jane Horner will teach about Native Arts of the Southwest. Enjoy beautiful images and lively discussions about the ancient and contemporary arts of the Pueblo, Hopi, Navajo and Apache peoples of the Four Corners region. The course will also include videos and biographies of several renowned artists.
And on Thursdays, from January 19 to February 23, join Michael Gnarowski for a course on Sex in Literature! Well, not so much sex as “sexuality becoming part of the fabric of literary discourse in an enlightened and emboldened cultural ethos”. This course will pivot on a discussion of five classics or near-classics of English language writing, beginning with Daniel Defoe’s Moll Flanders and going on into D. H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer, Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita and John Glassco’s The English Governess. The intention is to range widely and to include the conventional as well as the less conventional forms of human sexual self-expression in literature.
Learning in Almonte lectures take place in the Almonte Library classroom from 1:30 to 3:30pm over six weeks, and each course costs $75. There are no textbooks or exams, but plenty of opportunity for dynamic discussion! To register, please email <don.wiles@carleton.ca> or call Don at 963–1736.
The evening of December 28, betwixt and between Christmas and New Year’s, will see a community dinner dance held at the BVM Hall in Stanleyville for Tay Valley residents and others wishing to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the European settlement of this area.
Reeve Keith Kerr explains: “A community dinner followed by traditional Scots/Irish ‘called dances’ was organized by Maberly area residents between Christmas and New Year’s for a number of years. Tay Valley knew early on it wanted to end its 200th anniversary celebrations with an even bigger Betwixt and Between event for the whole community and our neighbouring municipal partners who make up the Perth Military Settlement.”
The event will take place on Wednesday, December 28 from 5:30 to 11pm at the BVM Hall in Stanleyville (844 Stanleyville Road), with a traditional winter and harvest dinner served at 6pm. Dress is anything between 1816 and 2016. Tickets are $35 per person, available from the Tay Valley Township Office (217 Harper Road) or by phoning 267–5353.
The Betwixt and Between theme continues through the music also. Councillor Jennifer Dickson, chair of the 200th Anniversary Working Group, points out: “Music from the 1800s to the 21st century will be enjoyed. The Maberly group Lost for Words will start out the evening with traditional songs and tunes from our English, Scottish, Irish and Celtic background, then the caller with The Ever Hopeful String Band will lead us in the dances of the past and present in rounds, circles and squares.”
Susan Freeman, volunteer organizer of the event, says: “I hope people come out and learn a bit more about how the settlers would have celebrated as a community. If you have never danced a traditional dance, don’t worry. The caller directs the group clearly and a dance emerges from the chaos!”
To purchase tickets, or if you would like to volunteer, please contact the Planning Administrative Assistant, Kristine Swaren, at 267–5353x129.
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The fiVe Woodwind Quintet will be returning to St. Andrew’s United Church in Pakenham on December 11 at 2pm. In their four previous concerts at St. Andrew’s, they have delighted audiences with their masterful playing and entertaining introductions to a wide variety of classical, popular and jazz works.
For this year’s concert, entitled “Celebrate”, the quintet will be marking the four hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare’s death by performing music from Romeo and Juliet. Also on the program will be folk songs and music celebrating all that is wonderful in life.
The quintet will be joined by the St. Andrew’s Choir to perform Christmas and seasonal pieces, and the audience will have a chance to sing along. A freewill offering will be taken, and refreshments will be served following the concert.
Members of the fiVe are Elsa Slater (flute), David Sale (oboe), Gordon Slater (bassoon), Robert Brown (French horn) and Angela Blackwell (clarinet).
History lovers and proud Canadians of all ages take note: Charlotte Gray, one of Canada’s best-known writers and author of ten acclaimed books of literary non-fiction, is coming to Almonte.
Charlotte will make a presentation about her most recent book The Promise of Canada: 150 Years — People and Ideas That Have Shaped Our Country. The author has woven together compelling portraits of nine influential Canadians and set them within the larger context of our shared history. Readers will get to know characters ranging from Emily Carr and Tommy Douglas to Elijah Harper, Naheed Nenshi and Shad, and learn how their ideas contributed to our sense of Canada. The book is lavishly illustrated so readers can also enjoy a visual narrative of Canada’s development.
This event has been organized by Mill Street Books as a fundraiser for the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum. It takes place on at the museum on December 4 at 1pm. Attendees may also enjoy the current exhibit of A Penny Rug by Danielle Potvin.
Tickets ($5–$7) are available at Mill Street Books at 256–9090.
The Perth Citizens’ Band will be holding its annual Christmas Concert on Tuesday, December 20, starting at 7:30pm. This year marks the 24th year of the event, which once again will be held at St. James Anglican Church, at the corner of Drummond and Harvey Streets in Perth.
From the 1920s to 1940s the band had played concerts during the Christmas season, and the longstanding tradition of the Christmas Concert at the church was revived in 1993 by conductor Brian Tackaberry.
Guests for this year’s event will be Perth’s Town Crier Brent McLaren, and The Redhawk Rhythmics. The Redhawk Rhythmics are a vocal group comprised of students from Smiths Falls District Collegiate Institute, under the direction of music teacher Kristine MacLaren. The annual Christmas Concert will feature a variety of sacred and popular tunes for all ages. Admission for the evening is $5 per person or $10 for families. For more information visit <perthband.ca> or phone 256–4221.
As we ramp up our busy schedules to include Christmas shopping, I wanted to pass on some reminders from your loved ones:
We would rather you arrive late than have a car accident.
We would rather you take an hour to respond to our text/call than have a car accident.
We would rather you call us for a lift at 1am than drive unsafely.
We would rather receive a small token of your affection than have you increase your debt load by buying extravagant gifts. Of course, if you can afford it… knock yourself out!
We would rather spend time with you, eating a simple meal, than hang out at your house without you, while you stress in the kitchen preparing a complicated feast.
Your local shops may not have dresses, ice scrapers, and chocolate all under one roof, but what they do have are great gifts and helpful staff who will help you find just the right thing! Plus, shopping there supports the local shop owners and local staff, which in turn supports the town’s tax base as well as benefiting the other shops where the first shop’s staff will then do their shopping…
And a personal request from me… Please tell these shops/events when you’ve seen their ad in theHumm. Shopping there then supports the local shops, local staff, local paper, and staff of said local paper! That’s, like… getting four birds with one stone! [Note: no birds were harmed in the writing of this article.]
On the heels of its award-winning 2016 summer season, the Classic Theatre Festival is gearing up for a 2017 theatrical celebration with a nod to Ontario’s and Canada’s 150th anniversary.
The Perth-based professional company — which garnered Capital Critics Circle Awards nominations for Best Actress (won by Lana Sugarman), Best Actor (William Vickers), Best Production (Arms and the Man), and Best Director (Laurel Smith) for last summer’s comedies Arms and the Man and I Ought to Be in Pictures — produces classics from the golden age of Broadway and the London Stage. During 2017, two of its productions will feature the most successful works ever exported from Canada.
The season will open (June 23 to July 16) with Canadian Bernard Slade’s classic comedy Same Time, Next Year. The Tony- and Oscar-nominated story tells of two people, each happily married to someone else, who get together for one weekend each year for 26 years, sharing their lives, dreams, hopes and challenges from the early 1950s through the mid-70s. It ran for three years on Broadway and became a beloved Hollywood film starring Alan Alda and Ellen Burstyn.
It’s followed by George Bernard Shaw’s Candida (July 21 to August 13), a witty skewering of Victorian notions of love and marriage in which the title character must choose between her clergyman husband and a passionate young poet.
The mainstage season closes with Canadian Peter Colley’s I’ll Be Back Before Midnight (August 18 to September 10), a Hitchcock-styled psychological thriller that is the most successful play ever staged in Canada and the most produced Canadian play abroad (in over thirty countries). A young couple from Toronto buy an old country farmhouse, and that’s when apparitions start to appear, strange noises are heard, and every moment draws audiences to an edge-of-their-seat finish.
The CTF’s always popular theatrical walking plays will return with brand new stories set at the time of Confederation. The morning Perth through the Ages will continue running five times a week, while the Lonely Ghosts Walk will double its number of shows, running Thursday and Friday nights, from 7 to 8pm.
The Classic Theatre Festival is currently running its annual holiday sale, with savings of up to 25% on their 2017 shows, with the option to pick dates later. For details, visit <classictheatre.ca> or call 1–877–283–1283.
This year, thousands will take part in Audubon Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs) across the Americas; the 117th annual count, to be exact. The first was held in 1900, when conservation-minded ornithologist Dr. Frank Chapman suggested an alternative to the usual holiday bird-shooting competition, proposing teams count the birds they saw instead. People at 25 locations, including Toronto, took part in a “Christmas Bird Census”, challenged to identify and record as many birds as possible for the day.
The CBC is the longest-running citizen science project in North America and take place all over the western hemisphere. The more than 76,000 volunteers taking part in the counts can track wintering bird populations on a much larger scale than scientists alone can hope to do. Data collected from the counts has been used for a multiplicity of research studies and to monitor climate change. As the Audubon report on the 116th count states: “The cumulative efforts of all CBC participants over the past five decades has enabled Audubon and other groups to document how species have shifted their early-winter ranges in the face of a changing climate”. Of the record 2505 counts taking place in the western hemisphere last year, 471 took place in Canada, tallying over 3.7 million birds! Will you participate this year?
You do not need to be an expert, but it helps to be familiar with local species. You can get involved in two ways: in the field or at home. Field counters are placed in a field team led by an experienced birder. Bring your binoculars. Residents with bird feeders within a count area can participate from home by recording visiting birds on count day. Feeders are a very important part of the survey, as birds frequently show up at these sheltered winter food sources that are not recorded elsewhere in the circle. Organizers of the Rideau Ferry CBC had very few reports from feeders in 2015, so they are particularly anxious to hear from potential feeder watchers this year. At the end of the day, field and feeder counters gather to socialize at the “count-in”, and share stories and refreshments.
The Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists <mvfn.ca> are sponsoring CBCs centring around Carleton Place, Watson’s Corners, and Rideau Ferry, and the Macnamara Field Naturalists <mfnc.ca> sponsor one in Pakenham-Arnprior.
Rideau Ferry
This count takes place on Saturday, December 17. The Rideau Ferry CBC area is a 24-km diameter circle centred on Rideau Ferry and covering the town of Perth, most of Smiths Falls, Murphy’s Point Provincial Park, several conservation areas, and a variety of habitats ranging from open fields and dense woodlands to wetlands and lakes. Register with Alison Bentley at <alisonbentley@gmail.com> or 273–4428. Feeder counters contact Judy Buehler at <goodlife@myhighspeed.ca> or 264–8856. The count-in potluck will be in Perth.
Pakenham-Arnprior
Taking place on Monday, December 26, this count is centred just west of Pakenham and is managed by Michael Runtz — this is his 51st consecutive count! Contact him at <mruntz@start.ca> to register as a counter.
Carleton Place
This count takes place on Tuesday, December 27, in a 24-km circle centred on the bridge over the Mississippi River in Carleton Place (including Almonte, Appleton and Ashton). Contact Iain Wilkes at <iain.wilkes@hotmail.com> or 250–0722. Feeder counters register with Georgina Doe at 257–2103.
Lanark Highlands
The area’s final count takes place on Wednesday, December 30. The count circle is centred on Watson’s Corners and includes Brightside to the north, Middleville to the east, most of Dalhousie Lake to the west, and south to within a km of Balderson. To register, contact Marilyn Barnett at <mvabarn@superaje.com> or 259–2269. Feeder counters register with Marj Montgomery before Christmas at <mateetukm@sympatico.ca> or 259–3078.
Weetabix recently reported on a new chef with a new venture; it is now our pleasure to report on a well-established chef with a new venture. Many of you know Richard and Brandy Kletnieks’ excellent dining establishment, the Heirloom Café and Bistro in Almonte. The couple’s restaurant has attained significant stature in the National Capital Region and will be the subject of a future article. On a recent visit, Weetabix noticed a discrete display of jars with an unfamiliar logo. Investigation revealed that the “Almonte Canning Co.” is a new vehicle for Richard’s talents that takes him away from daily presentations to a live audience and into the no-less-exacting realm of enhancing “at home” dining. With the help of the editor of this fine publication, Weetabix is very pleased to provide assistance with your holiday shopping as Richard offers answers to the eternal vexatious question: What can I get [name here] for [occasion here]?
Sauces and condiments can make or break a meal. The difference between satisfactory food and truly satisfying food is frequently a matter of subtle flavours and textures brought to the otherwise mundane. Home cooking is often good cooking, but not as often great or memorable cooking. Many of us who strive as amateur cooks are all too aware of falling short in comparison to professionals in our acquaintance. Assuming that one starts with quality ingredients and avoids degrading them by poor or inappropriate technique (overcooking is only one of the common sins), how is it that so many cooks fall short in the “wow” department? Are our senses tricked by surroundings or our psyches so sensitive to being served that we are simply suckers for the elegance of a restaurant setting? Weetabix thinks not.
An experimentalist at heart, Weetabix retreats to his kitchen via a short visit to a grocery store and quickly validates the basic premise of this article: sauces and condiments DO make or break a dish. A simple plate of lightly grilled chicken breast became significantly more satisfying when accompanied by some peach chutney, and significantly less so when slathered with ketchup. There are some cases where well enough should be left alone (raw oysters come to mind), but in general, modest amounts of sauces and condiments add interest and depth to the base. Pasta in all its varieties is so closely associated with sauces that it is fabricated in shapes designed to embrace an appropriate amount of sauce. The union of main course ingredients with sauces and condiments is critical to good cooking, and elevates it from simply providing nutritional availability of basic components such as proteins and starches, to an art that can greatly enhance the fundamental biological function of eating. (Note to editor: there are other fundamental biological functions arising from ingestion of food, but Weetabix is too delicate of sensibility to even think what you are thinking he might be thinking.)
Sauces, condiments and the combination of them with basic ingredients and preparation techniques allow and encourage wide-ranging discourse. Books have been written on these subjects. Wine pairings are simple by comparison — although the making of fine wine is comparably demanding to the making of fine cuisine. At this point the worthy editor puts a stop to Weetabix’s prolixity and demands he gets to a point so, here it is:
You can take a bit of Heirloom Café home in a jar.
Beginning with an offering of eight condiments and sauces, packaged in handy 500ml jars and priced comparably to an inexpensive bottle of wine, the Almonte Canning Co. can enhance your home dining experiences and provide an alternative to the ceremonial gift of a bottle of wine to your hosts.
It is a great holiday gift and, if you feel expansive, several bottles of a favourite or an assortment can raise the level of your perceived generosity to that which rivals hosting a potlatch. Finally, Weetabix confesses to having simply opened a jar of Richard’s excellent peach chutney and consuming the contents — very satisfying and no hangover! So, here is an answer to a holiday problem and a solution for year-round improvement of home dining experiences. Best to all for the New Year!
Grist Mill Art Gallery
Artists of the Grist Mill Art Gallery in Westport invite you to join them on December 3, at their annual Christmas art show and sale. The Grist Mill, a part of the area’s heritage, was founded in the 1800s on the banks of the Upper Rideau, and the current owner has turned it into an art gallery and retreat. The building is easily recognizable, with its red roof at the base of Foley Mountain, at the conjuncture of Sand Lake and the Upper Rideau. The building is divided into two galleries, plus private living quarters. The lower gallery, with a waterfront view, has a large fireplace with partially exposed original Grist Mill walls and a stunning restored wood floor. The upper gallery hosts a grand piano.
There is plenty of free parking in Westport, so come and enjoy the village at Christmastime, a shopping mecca and a delightful day trip destination. An original piece of art is a thoughtful way to acknowledge a special person in your life, or just yourself!
The gallery is a co-op of regional artists who teach art, have won awards, have been featured in art publications, and who participate in local and regional shows and galleries. Artists Ina Black, Sharon Benson, Jill Ferguson, David Holland, Barbara Jordan, Pat Purdy, Jenn Raby, Dayle VanAlstine and Wayne Williams have filled the showrooms with their unique and distinctive creations. Custom-made benches and glass art, delicate watercolours, Paverpol and alcohol ink on tiles, acrylic landscapes, professional photographic images, resin and ink paintings, batik, felt art and mixed media are available. Smaller items, such as magnets, coasters, tiles, vases, delightful whimsical felted figures and art cards, are also for sale to fill those Christmas stockings.
Grist Mill is also affiliated with sculptor Chaka Chikodzi, whose work is shown and available for purchase through the gallery. Chaka is originally from Zimbabwe and works in stone.
The Grist Mill gallery will be open weekends until December 18, from 11am to 4pm. The official opening is Saturday, December 3 at 1pm. Please come for refreshments, conversation and an opportunity to meet the Grist Mill artists!
The future is changing for the Grist Mill gallery, so please stay tuned for news updates to learn what the future holds. Change can be exciting!
2nd Anniversary Show in Almonte!
Throughout the month of December, the 2nd Anniversary Show continues at Sivarulrasa Gallery in Almonte. The show features paintings, sculpture, drawings, watercolour and photographic works from all twelve artists represented by the Gallery: Sue Adams (Almonte), Deborah Arnold (Almonte), Adrienne Dagg (Toronto), Dale Dunning (Almonte), Barbara Gamble (Ottawa), Marcus Kucey Jones (Wakefield), David Kearn (Ottawa-Gatineau), Gayle Kells (Ottawa), Eliane Saheurs (Ottawa), Sanjeev Sivarulrasa (Almonte), Susan Tooke (Halifax), and Mary Wong (Toronto). The gallery recently expanded and moved to their newly designed space at 34 Mill Street, in the heart of Almonte’s historic main street. Find more details at <sivarulrasa.com>.
For twenty years, the Lanark County Camera Club has existed to further the interests of its members in the photographic arts. It has survived and flourished by providing a non-competitive atmosphere where members can pursue their interests in both the technical and artistic sides of the craft.
The club was founded in 1996 by Graeme Crabb, a newcomer to the Perth area who saw a need for a forum for photography enthusiasts. Together with a half-dozen or so founding members, Graeme got the club established and served as its first president. Membership grew steadily over the years, to the point where larger and larger meeting facilities were required. Today, the club meets monthly at Algonquin College in Perth where, among other advantages, it can utilize the college’s excellent audio-visual equipment.
From the beginning, the club has offered a varied programme of guest speakers, workshops and outings to provide its members with every opportunity to increase their knowledge of photography and to put what they have learned into practice.
The existence of the club has coincided with the technological revolution in photography that has seen the development of digital technology and the almost complete disappearance from use of film. Within the club this resulted in a growing tension between die-hard film users who regarded digital as a passing fad, and a growing core of members who were enthusiastically exploring the potential of the new technology. At one point these differences threatened the continued existence of the club, but under the leadership of the late Ralph Buttrum cooler heads prevailed and the crisis was weathered successfully.
The development and growth of digital photography has opened up a whole new field of interest, particularly in the editing and amending of digital photographs. To cater to this, the club established a special interest group centred on the post-processing of images. A second special interest group explores the basics of photography, for those members who wish to refresh their knowledge or who are just starting out, while a third group meets to critique members’ images.
The club is non-competitive in nature, its core purpose being to provide a space where people can learn and develop as photographers as they pursue their personal goals for excellence. Members are encouraged to participate and to share what they know with others. Presentations by members, some of whom have worked as professional photographers, are a feature of each year’s activities, and it is this kind of cooperation that leads to images of ever-improving quality.
At each monthly meeting there is an opportunity for members to display their photographs, either pursuant to a monthly theme or simply as “anything goes”.
The club meets at Algonquin College on the fourth Tuesday of each month. The special interest groups meet on different Tuesdays throughout the month, so there is plenty of opportunity to participate.
The Club’s twentieth birthday will be celebrated on December 20, and all present and previous members are invited to attend. For more details, visit <lccameraclub.com>.
Here at theHumm we’re big on local economies. The retail and service businesses in the small towns that we cover play a huge role in the cultural life of those towns. Each store, restaurant, or small enterprise attracts and serves a particular clientele — some inside the community, some from outside. Some businesses host their own special events; others join together with local festivals to make the whole experience more vibrant. Many provide support in cash or in kind to local initiatives. A healthy local economy is an essential component to a healthy community.
It is with this in mind that we bring you theHumm’s 16th annual Gift Giving Guide. Our hope is that you’ll find two kinds of inspiration in the many lists that appear throughout this month’s issue. As you peruse the “Gifts for Coffee & Tea Lovers”, “Gifts for Environmentalists” and “Gifts for Funky People”, we hope you’ll discover the perfect gift for everyone on your list. But we also hope that you’ll be inspired to investigate even more of the independent, locally owned and run businesses throughout our coverage area. In doing so, you’re likely to encounter not only friends and neighbours, but also some old-fashioned small town peace and joy at this potentially hectic time.
If you’ve been reading theHumm for a while, none of this is news to you. You’ve been shopping locally and feeling pretty good about it. So how about putting your mouth where your money is? When you find a local service or establishment or product that gives you joy, let your friends and neighbours know (and perhaps bestow a kind word upon the owner or employees as well!). That kind of investment is so much more powerful and useful than outrage and despair when a beloved business closes its doors.
The gifts we buy locally do double-duty by giving pleasure to the recipient and at the same time supporting the business of a friend or neighbour. If the gift happens to be fair-trade, environmentally-friendly or made by a local grower or artist, then it does triple-duty! We would like to thank the participating merchants for taking the time to send in their Gift Giving Guide suggestions, and to thank our readers for shopping locally and thereby supporting both the shops and our paper.
Wishing you all a happy, healthy holiday season, and a local New Year!
Help the Humane Society
The Arnprior Humane Society was selected as one of two recipients for Valley Heritage Radio’s Holly Jolly Radiothon, which will be held on Saturday, December 3, from 10am to 2pm. Valley Heritage Radio personalities will be on the air accepting pledges. All are welcome to attend the open house and enjoy live music, at 3009 Burnstown Road. The Radiothon will feature musical guests The Countrymen, Dan Paul Rogers, Steve Agnew, Marleen Fawcett, and more. Donations of $20 or more to Arnprior Humane Society are eligible for a tax receipt. Pledges can be made the day of the event via telephone (432–9873 or 1–888–532–9870).
Mark your calendars for the Arnprior & District Humane Society’s annual Pet Pics with Santa. On December 10 and 11, from 10am to 4pm, Santa will be at M. Sullivan and Son Ltd. at 236 Madawaska Blvd. (next to RONA in Arnprior) for pictures with your pet. Children and families are also welcome to get their photo taken with Santa. They will be offering prints as well as digital copies, to easily share with family and friends via email and social media. The digital copy costs $10, prints $15, and you can get both digital and print for just $20.
Valley Voices Christmas Concert
Director Becky Schweizer and the Valley Voices Community Choir invite you to join them for their annual Christmas show! Hear some of the traditional sounds of the season, coupled with some new spins on old themes. We’ve all heard of the extensive gift list from a generous true love, but do you know what happened in the twelve days after Christmas?
Find out at the Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 11 at 7pm at the Almonte United Church. Tickets are $7 at Baker Bob’s or from Valley Voices members, or $10 at the door.
Ho! Ho! Ho! Help the CPDMH Auxiliary
The Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital (CPDMH) Auxiliary is pleased to announce its Christmas Raffle. It’s a win-win! There are three great prizes, and the proceeds will support patient care equipment.
“We’re excited to ring in the festive season with our raffle,” notes Marg LeBlanc, Auxiliary President. “We are grateful to those who have donated the prizes and to everyone who is supporting our raffle.”
First prize is a five-foot bronze Santa to enhance your Christmas decorating; second prize is two box seats to an Ottawa Senators game and a signed book by Wendel Clark, and third prize is a local dining package including a $25 gift certificate from The Beckwith Kitchen, a $40 gift certificate from The Good Food Company and a $50 gift certificate from Your Independent Grocer.
Tickets are one for $3 or two for $5, and are available at the CPDMH Gift Shop, Graham’s Shoes and The Beckwith Kitchen. For details, call the Auxiliary office at 257–2200 x323. The draw takes place on December 16.
Tay Valley Choir’s Christmas Concert
The Tay Valley Community Choir is pleased to once again stage a Christmas concert, this year titled “An 1816 Christmas” to help celebrate the 200th anniversary of the founding of Tay Valley Township. The Choir has selected a series of songs for everyone to enjoy, ranging from some that the settlers of long ago might have sung to help them through “the bleak mid-winter”, to modern-day arrangements that spread joy around the hearth.
“For this concert, our choir will be even larger than last year’s,” says conductor Rebecca Worden. “Get ready for a big holiday sound that will reach out and embrace you! Also, come ready to sing along with favourites for this time of year. We’re really looking forward to a beautiful evening in Maberly Community Hall!”
Accompanying the choir once again will be skilled pianist Mary Lou Carroll. Several choir members will have solo singing opportunities, and joining as a special guest will be flautist Jane Cunningham. As well, word has it that Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus — and possibly The Grinch too — will make an appearance! Oh, and The Andrew Sisters and Elvis will also be on hand!
An 1816 Christmas will take place on Saturday, December 10 at 7pm at the Maberly Community Hall. Admission is $10 per person and refreshments will be on hand following the concert. Food or other donations to The Table can be made that evening and will be most welcome. Special thanks to Tay Valley Township and Blue Skies Community Fiddle Orchestra for supporting this event!
The snow has hit. Love it or hate it, this is the time of year to escape that frigid air and see some movies. December is the month for movie watching. Production companies always keep their best for last, keeping the movies fresh and hot for the Oscar nominations the following month. Some will be hits and some will be misses, but the anticipation for each never ceases.
On that note, the absolute best film I have seen this year so far is Arrival. The film, from Quebec filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, is unlike anything you’ve seen in recent years. It harkens back to the days when 2001: A Space Odyssey and Soylent Green and The Day of the Triffids were expanding our concepts of science fiction. Villeneuve is new to the film scene but already has an unblemished oeuvre. His films are all contemplative slow burns that throw you for a loop (in the best of ways) in the final acts. He wants to keep you guessing. His previous films Prisoners, Enemy and Sicario all provided such effects and are brilliant expositions of control and style, masterfully orchestrated. With Arrival, Villeneuve has perfected his craft and brings us his most mesmerizing film to date.
Arrival stars Amy Adams as Louise, a professor of linguistics who is brought in to learn and hopefully communicate with aliens who have unexpectedly landed on Earth. She and a scientist named Ian (Jeremy Renner, giving an altogether understated performance) are led up into these hovering alien spacecrafts by stressed-out Army Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) to try and make contact with these strange beings. The team calls these aliens “heptapods” due to their seven legs. Communication goes better than expected. Once Louise figures out what it all means, it threatens her mind, and ours as well, forcing us to think abstractly and subsequently about our whole lives, our faith, the choices we make and what the future holds for us. These “heptapods” do not think of time in linear, sequential ways like we do. And that is a key to the film. I dare not say anymore for fear of spoiling the film, but what you will embark on when seeing this film is a cerebral, eye-opening journey of… well, I’m not sure. And that is the genius of the film; it is left to interpretation. Everyone will get something different from the film.
Based on Ted Chaing’s short story Story of Your Life, Arrival brings us slow, skillfully paced suspense until we finally get to engage the aliens. The scene where the humans enter the alien craft is spellbinding. They enter the craft through a hallway of sorts where the gravity changes and the team are suddenly shifted 90 degrees. It’s filmed like a sci-fi ballet. Indeed, I was reminded of the Fred Astaire film Royal Wedding (1951) with the magnificent scene where Astaire dances up the wall and onto the ceiling. But in Arrival, the scene is unbelievable. When the gravity shifts and Ian lets out an awe-struck “holy f**k”, I couldn’t have put it better myself. Those words fit perfectly to every aspect of the film. I’m not going to say any more, but go out and see this movie. Immediately.
Another great film is playing in theatres right now — Mel Gibson returns to the director’s chair after a decade (and it was worth the wait) with Hacksaw Ridge. The film centres on Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield, an overused actor in my opinion, but one who delivers his best performance to date here), the first and only conscientious objector to win the Medal of Honor for single-handedly saving over 70 wounded soldiers while facing almost certain death at the Battle of Okinawa during WWII.
The film showcases two of Gibson’s favorite subjects: religion and violence. And both are in excess here. Private Doss takes the commandment “Thou shalt not kill” literally. While he finds the war somewhat justifiable, he does not find killing justifiable, no matter what, and volunteers to help his country — on the front lines, no less — by saving men, not killing them. He is at first berated and ostracized by his sergeant (Vince Vaughn) and his fellow soldiers for not even wanting to touch a gun, but once his courage and grit are on full display in battle, everyone realizes how wrong they were.
The battle scenes are some of the most gruesome and realistic put on film since Saving Private Ryan, and Gibson puts you right into the middle of the horror of war and never lets you go. It is the kind of Hollywood fare that the Oscars love, so keep an eye on this one. And I’m thrilled Gibson is directing again.
Surreal sci-fi thinkers and war movies aside, we have one of the most touching and honest films I have seen in a long time, Jeff Nichols’ superb Loving. Nichols’ films are contemplative and are purposefully paced and framed to tell his story his way. No scene or dialogue in the final cut is gratuitous or ill-advised. Everything that is needed is there. No more, no less. Nothing feels strained or unnatural in his films. Nichols has quickly become one of the finest filmmakers working today, and Loving is by far his most tender film to date.
It tells the true story of Mildred and Richard Loving (Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton), a married interracial couple in the early 1960s, right around the time of the civil rights movement, who are banished from their friends and family in Virginia because the state feels strongly that interracial marriage is wrong and that bringing mixed race children into the world is an even greater sin. What the state and the courts failed to see is that love transcends race. These two people love each other and will do anything to be together. That’s true love. They just want to be left alone and raise their family like everyone else. While the outcome is a positive one (they took their case to the Supreme Court and changed the laws on interracial marriage), the journey is hard on the family, and on the audience too.
Speaking of civil rights, we have yet another astonishing film about racial equality in the U.S., Ava DuVernay’s brilliant documentary 13th, about the 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution, where it states that “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States.” The fact that this amendment has been essentially ignored and/or abused is absurd. Director DuVernay (Selma) has outdone herself here. She has pieced together interviews and archival footage to make her point on the matter crystal clear, and the result is unnerving and startling and very educational. What African-Americans have been through over all these years has never been displayed or explained more vividly or more passionately than it is in 13th. It has been produced by and can be seen on Netflix, which is a smart move in getting it circulated more widely. It needs to be seen. It will be one of those rare films that will be mandatory viewing in high schools. Or should be, at least. I will also say, with absolute assurance, that 13th will take home the Oscar for Best Documentary.
These are just a few of the wonderful films available for viewing this holiday season, and carving out some time to see them will be more than worth your while. I cannot recommend either of them highly enough. Oscar season is upon us and it’s looking good.
Prepare yourself for an exciting December.
A captivating concert by Lynn Miles and Kelly Sloan is scheduled for Friday, December 23 from 7 to 9pm at Almonte’s Old Town Hall. Proceeds will be going to the youth centre to help with the costs of getting supplies and equipment for programming in the New Year. The youth are extremely excited to spread the word about the concert. The artists have enlisted youth to put up posters and participate in set-up on the day of the concert.
Lynn Miles is one of Canada’s most accomplished singer/songwriters. With twelve albums to her credit, as well as multiple Canadian Folk Music awards (2011 English Songwriter of the Year) and a 2003 Juno award for Roots and Traditional Solo Album of the Year under her belt, she has certainly made her mark on the Canadian music scene.
Kelly Sloan has been awarded the Galaxie Rising Star Award, has performed at Ottawa Bluesfest, Folk Festival and Jazz Festival, and has opened for Basia Bulat, Josh Ritter and Jim Bryson. She continues to work full-time as a touring musician and soloist for hire.
Tickets for this epic evening can be purchased at Baker Bob’s in Almonte for $30. Get yours soon as seats are limited.
Mississippi Mills’ New Youth Centre
To learn more about the new Mississippi Mills Youth Centre that this concert supports, why not attend the grand opening of their new site? Since September, the youth centre staff have been running programming from various locations in Almonte while the permanent site was under construction. Youth and community members alike are excited to see the doors open at 134 Main Street in Almonte. On Thursday, December 8, from 6 to 8pm, see it for yourself and share in a celebration that will include a ribbon cutting and words from some of the proud youth and community members.
For more information about the concert or youth programming at the Mississippi Mills Youth Centre, email <info.mmyc@gmail.com> or check out <MississippiMillsYouthCentre> on Facebook.
The vernacular meaning of “gold standard” is “the best, most reliable, or most prestigious thing of its type.” For 38 years Michaela Wolfert has worked passionately and successfully to create jewellery that meets that gold standard.
Her Kehla Jewellery Design Studio and workshop in Almonte showcases ready-to-wear collections of Kehla jewellery and one-of-a-kind pieces individually created by Michaela Wolfert and her team. All feature clean lines and an elegant, feminine style often described as having a European sensibility. They are designed for comfortable wearability, and they range metaphorically from the understated but chic little black dress, to the stunning creation that makes a statement on the haute couture runway.
Her modern interpretation of classical designs, coupled with her meticulous goldsmithing skills, has garnered a showcase full of prestigious awards. Several pay tribute to her sculptural talents, honouring pieces that are for display as well as adornment. Wolfert draws inspiration from nature, from the paintings of the Group of Seven, and mostly, from the intrinsic beauty of the precious metals and jewels she loves to work with.
Another Wolfert specialty is working with clients to design jewellery customized to individual tastes and styles, both with new materials and by remodeling outdated and/or inherited pieces. These commissions are both exciting and enervating because the outcome has such significance for each owner. Wolfert has converted a woman’s father’s ring into an anniversary sculpture, and created a ring inspired by the Legend of Zelda video. The Kehla Design team also does repairs and restorations.
On the Right Path
When I interviewed Michaela sixteen years ago for our December 2000 issue, she told me why she had studied and worked so diligently to become a highly qualified goldsmith and jewellery designer: “Twenty-two years ago I walked into a jewellery studio, and I’ve been hooked ever since. Metal is my medium and jewellery is my art.” Today her passion for the path she chose remains unabated.
Wolfert started her career in 1978 as an apprentice in the workshop of a master goldsmith in Germany. After a lengthy and arduous program of education and work experience, she achieved the prestigious designation of Master Goldsmith from the “Meisterschule fur Goldschmiede” in Munich. In 1990 she moved to Canada to accept a position as a jewellery designer for an established Ottawa firm. Three weeks later she met her future husband on Thanksgiving Day.
Within a few years she enjoyed double success in the 1994 Canadian Craft Museum’s national jewellery design competition. Wolfert was one of only four designers to have two pieces selected from a field of just under 300 entries from across Canada. In 1996 she opened her own studio as Kehla Design in Carleton Place.
The Excitement of Challenge
Remembering her adventurous streak from our previous encounter (she had spent four winter months in Iqaluit and Arviat establishing the Diploma metalworks program for Nunavut Arctic College), I nevertheless was surprised to learn how she seeks excitement a decade and a half later.
In 2008 Michaela embarked on her biggest business adventure — the creation of her own beautifully appointed showroom and studio. She took the plunge and moved to Almonte to invest in her own business future, and now works with a team that includes award-winning jeweller Ann Lumsden. Today Kehla Jewellery Design Studio at 88 Queen Street is a literal cornerstone of the town’s thriving arts business area. Every inch reflects its owner’s uncompromising devotion to beauty, quality and perfection. It was a big step, especially for a woman who describes herself as a task-oriented introvert. She credits the local arts community and her loyal husband, Brad Basnett, with the encouragement and support she needed to open her own retail business.
The jewellery Wolfert creates is much more exciting than “just” flawlessly executed classical adornment. Many of her pieces express her unflagging spirit of adventure that leads her to challenge herself by entering national competitions. Her website lists some of the many awards she has won with her original and highly sculptural pieces, one inspired by a painting by Lawren Harris. She is particularly pleased with winning the Judges Choice Award and “Steel Trophy” for best in show at the Metal Arts Guild 60th anniversary exhibition in 2007.
Michaela takes issue with the oft-cited goal of achieving “balance”. “It’s a myth,” she sputtered. “It’s great as a goal, but you can’t maintain it; you can’t control all aspects of your life.” Instead, in her life as in her jewellery, she eagerly steps out of her comfort zone and embraces challenges. Even though I am familiar with her move from Germany to the comparative wilderness of Canada, her work in the Arctic and her entrepreneurship, I am still astonished to learn how she exposes herself to the “danger of being — doing!”
Her more moderate pastime is piloting gliders. Nature and solitude feed her soul, and this goal-oriented introvert loves soaring over the Canadian Shield, contemplating its magnificence. What surprises me more is learning that Wolfert practices Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a method of physical fitness and “learning to work well with your body.” After many years of suffering the flings and harrowing ground fighting of much younger opponents, she has earned her Blue Belt. The sport helps her to face her challenges and to keep on trying. Her mantra is borrowed from musicians — “just pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again.”
20th Anniversary
Wolfert may think balance is overrated, but she knows that persistence pays off. She is celebrating her 20th year as an independent goldsmith and jewellery designer by offering her entire stock of gorgeous creations at 20% off throughout the month of December. One of the trends she has noticed over the past decade is that more and more women are buying jewellery for themselves, so don’t challenge your significant other with choosing the right piece. Drop in at Kehla Jewellery Design Studio and find the piece that is perfect for you. For a preview, take a look at some of the best jewellery photography I’ve seen at <kehladesign.com>. If you’re looking for the perfect wedding rings, or you’ve just inherited Great Grandma’s Victorian jewellery, Michaela Wolfert is up for the challenge.
Studio Theatre Perth is busy preparing a wonderful holiday treat for you: a play that combines an entertaining evening with literary flare. Appropriately entitled Murder by the Book, and written by Duncan Greenwood and Robert King, it promises to entertain with its comic variation of the classic whodunit.
Since the play is all about books and murder, we’ve invited the public libraries in Perth and Smiths Falls, as well as Backbeat Books and Music, The Book Nook and The Bookworm bookstores in Perth, and Arlie’s Books in Smiths Falls, to be a part of this great offering. Each establishment will feature the play posters alongside a display of their favourite murder mysteries, as well as ballots for you to fill out to win a pair of tickets to see this clever little play, where you will no doubt marvel at the twisted plot and nimble wordplay.
We all have our favourite authors, many of whom have written their own original thoughts about murder and mayhem. There are a number of lines in Murder by the Book that are every bit as clever and insightful as those of the masters. Allow me to pair up a few famous quotes with cryptic lines from the play, to whet your appetite for an evening of unpredictability and chess-like strategies.
In the words of Oscar Wilde: “Murder is always a mistake. One should never do anything one cannot talk about after dinner.” One could assume that, according to Wilde, if a wife feels it necessary to murder her husband because he won’t give her a divorce, it would be acceptable as long as it doesn’t interfere with the sherry and cigars served after an enjoyable meal. It may seem a little drastic, but if the dastardly deed is done with professional flair, the husband would not be offended. In Murder by the Book, one character explains that: “I’ve made such a good living out of murder it would be churlish to cavil at finding myself the victim of one. Only not the victim of an amateur, please.”
In Hamlet, William Shakespeare wrote: “No place indeed should murder sanctuarize; revenge should have no bounds.” There is so much that needs to be revenged in this play. Greenwood and King note that: “You’ve misjudged your man, you know. I’m afraid the insurance money wasn’t sufficient compensation for having to put up with you for the rest of your life.”
This sentiment in Euripides: “I love the old ways best, the simple way of poison, where we too are strong as men,” is also echoed to a certain extent in the play: “These are the originals. I kept them just in case. Of course, as you say, they’re completely harmless.”
A talented cast of well-known and new faces from Perth, Smiths Falls and Ottawa will be happy to entertain you, starting on December 8, for seven wonderful performances. What a great early Christmas gift: a ticket to see Murder by the Book, followed on Christmas morning by a book recommended by one of the local libraries and purchased from one of the supporting businesses mentioned above.
Murder by the Book opens at the Studio Theatre in Perth on Thursday, December 8, for seven performances: December 8, 9, 10, 16 and 17 at 7:30pm, and December 11 and 18 at 2pm. Tickets are $22 at the Book Nook (60 Gore St. E., cash only), and $22 plus convenience fee at Shadowfax (67 Foster St., 267–6817, shadowfax.on.ca) and Tickets Please (in the Matheson House Museum Visitor Centre, 11 Gore St. E., 485–6434, ticketsplease.ca), both of which accept in-store, phone, online and credit card purchases. Tickets are $24 at the door, and $10 at the door for students with ID. Attend opening night and save $5!
Don’t forget to pick up tickets to the play, and visit the local libraries and bookstores listed above for a chance to win tickets to this delicious little mystery.
During the last several years, public libraries have been advocating the idea of community hubs. Libraries are offering much more than books and computers; we are connecting people with resources, ideas and other people.
Librarians are always keen to help introduce new programming to meet the demands of their community. Many have embraced new collections, such as seed libraries, music lending collections and signing out recreational gear, to name a few.
Arnprior recently launched a new community-wide initiative that connects the library to seniors, and has created a new lending collection in the process.
Following a screening of the Alive Inside documentary at the Arnprior Public Library, audience members and library staff were inspired to start a Music and Memory initiative — specifically directed to each of the sixty residents at the Grove Nursing Home. This particular music therapy program assists people living with Alzheimer’s or dementia. As the documentary demonstrates, providing individuals with personalized playlists helps them in profound ways. The music evokes emotion, emotion brings back memories, and, in some cases, medication can be reduced due to the music’s calming effect.
The community fundraising campaign was launched in June after a few meetings between staff of the library and the nursing home. Service clubs showed their support with financial contributions. Individuals started to donate their gently used iPods in addition to music gift cards and cash. By the end of the summer, most of the money required to launch the program had been raised.
September was spent busily compiling music preference surveys with the help of family members. Finding the right songs became a crucial component of the project. The first batch of loaded iPods was delivered by the end of September. Joyous photos of the residents enjoying their music attracted even more donations and, by mid-October, the library had enough iPods to loan one to each resident of the Grove. The second phase provided playlists specific to each of the participants in the Grove’s Adult Day Program.
With the community’s full support, the third phase was launched. Patrons are now signing out iPods for family or friends who could benefit from the program. This individually-tailored Music and Memory iPod lending program is the first of its kind for a Canadian library, and it all started with an idea generated at the Arnprior Public Library.
If you’d like to launch an initiative, start your journey at your local library. It’s where you can research your options, connect with the local groups, and perhaps partner with the library to build something new and exciting for the entire community.
The Middleville and District Museum established a bursary this year to be presented to a young person to help further their post-secondary education. The Museum is proud to present the bursary to their first recipient, Karen Phillips, who has worked in many areas of the museum over the past few years. Karen is shown above with museum curator Alice Borrowman.
Raise your glass and your paintbrush and leave your mark at the next Lushes with Brushes: Paint Night on December 8 from 7 to 9pm. Bring a friend or some coworkers and spend a memorable night relaxing and creating your own masterpiece! This event makes for a wonderful Christmas gift or simply a great night out with the office.
For over a year the Heritage House Museum has been hosting Lushes with Brushes, which has become a favourite in the community due to the relaxed environment, delicious refreshments, and talented instructor, Jenine McCann. In this installment, Jenine will be guiding guests as they recreate their own version of the Winter Cardinal painting.
Jenine grew up in the Westport area and has followed her career to Carleton Place, where she currently works as a chiropractor. Art has always played a role in Jenine’s life, but it was only in the last four years that she has truly developed her love for painting with acrylics. Inspired by landscapes and wildlife, Jenine incorporates different textures and many bold colours in her work. Her techniques are always changing and developing, and she finds this to be one of the most exciting features of art.
No painting experience? No problem! The event welcomes all painters, no matter their level of experience. Supplies and refreshments are provided by the museum. The only suggestion is that you wear clothing you feel comfortable painting in.
Looking to give a unique gift this Christmas? The museum has Lushes with Brushes gift certificates available for purchase!
So grab a friend, a paintbrush, and a glass, and join the museum for this fun event! Pre-registration is required, and you must be 19 or older to participate. Doors open at 6:30pm. For more details or to register, please contact the museum at 283–6311 or <heritagehouse@smithsfalls.ca>, or drop in at 11 Old Sly’s Road, Smiths Falls.
The popular Goulbourn Male Chorus is preparing for its Christmas Concert, which will take place at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Richardson Side Road in Kanata on Sunday, December 11 at 2pm. Once again audiences will enjoy the rich harmonies of male voices in a variety of seasonal pieces covering a range of genres from classical to humorous, and a lot in between!
Special guest this year is Ken Ramsden — a popular local singer, songwriter and storyteller, who will be the master of ceremonies and guest entertainer. The a cappella ensemble Men of Note will also perform.
Members of the chorus come from the Ottawa Valley — Carleton Place, Calabogie, Almonte and Constance Bay — as well as Stittsville, Kanata and Ottawa West. The chorus has built a regular following now through its spring and Christmas concerts and its sing outs at seniors’ homes, as well as other events. Watch for them during next year’s Canada 150 celebrations!
Tickets are $15 (children under 12 are free), and are available at Gaia Java and Brown’s Independent Grocer in Stittsville, from members and at <goulbournmalechorus.com>.
A villainous villainess, two fabulous felines, and a host of delightful characters brought together in a zany slapstick comedy. That, in a nutshell, is Sleeping Beauty, the British-style pantomime playing at The Smiths Falls Station Theatre from December 2 to 11. Written by the legendary Ben Crocker and interpreted by experienced director Emily Duberville, the panto offers holiday hijinks for the whole family. And to make it easier to bring along the youngsters, they are offering matinées at 2pm on both Saturdays and Sundays. In the best tradition of British pantos, the audience is encouraged to get into the act by heckling the villains and urging on the good guys. Kids and adults alike love it!
As the curtain opens, Princess Aurora is about to be christened, and royals, assorted fairy godmothers, and people of the land are gathered to celebrate and bestow their gifts. But it appears that someone has been forgotten, and soon Carabosse storms in with her disreputable feline companion Spindleshanks; they are not happy. Things go from bad to worse when Carabosse puts a curse on the princess to die on her 18th birthday.
In classic pantomime the “Dame” (Queen Dorothy) is played by a male actor, in this case veteran Mike Adams. The beautiful and awfully tired Princess Aurora is played by SFDCI grade 11 student Bethany Duberville; her handsome but slightly bewildered prince is SF graduate Justin Yanosik. Krista Duff takes on the supremely evil Carabosse, and traditional comic antics are provided by Billie the Butler (Ursula Rice Leech) and King Norbert (Stef Robar). Rounding out this stellar and experienced group are newcomers Jennifer McCloskey as Spindleshanks and Maya Gordon as Kitty. Heather Mitchell Adams returns to the stage as fairy Peaceful, and her magical sisterhood is completed by Lela Fox-Doran, Emily Chatwood and Caitlyn Lesnick/Hayley Allan.
A talented group of high school students and area veterans makes up the versatile chorus, performing music by Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake and Pentatonix.
Sleeping Beauty features superb Victorian Steampunk-style costumes, created by experienced costumer Susan Adams, which bring a striking visual decadence to this very funny and engaging family show.
Tickets for the show are $20 for adults and $10 for children and students. Special group rates are available. Tickets are available from Seasons Greetings, 8 Russell St. E. (cash only), online <smithsfallstheatre.com> (Paypal/credit card), by phone 283–0300 (credit card), and at the door a half-hour before the performance (cash only).
Winter Tidings Concert
Coming to the stage of the Station Theatre for the fourth and final concert in the 2016 Music Series are the Steel City Rovers, a Celtibilly musical group offering a toe-tapping, sophisticated and hypnotizing cross-pollination of Celtic and North American traditions. Their musical arrangements and expressive, clever lyrical compositions have delighted audiences at home and abroad.
In their ambitious first few years, the Rovers have risen to perform internationally on coveted stages, to be nominated for numerous music awards, and to have their original works top the traditional radio charts. Commanding and dynamic performers, this act is a blend of both seasoned and young talent who are simply electric to witness in person.
Their performance is at 8pm on Friday, December 16. Tickets are $30, at the outlets listed above.
2017 Play Season
The 2017 season of plays has now been announced by the Smiths Falls Community Theatre and it’s a delightful mix of a farce, a classic psychological drama, a comedy, the world première of a play of local historical interest, a mystery, and a British-style Christmas pantomime — in that order.
The season opens in late February with the farce No Sex Please, We’re British, by Anthony Marriot and Allister Foot. The hilarious play, which ran in London for eight years and also delighted Broadway audiences, is directed by Nancy Keech.
Next up is Enid Bagnold’s classical psychological drama, The Chalk Garden, directed by Lynda Daniluk. The play explores the secret world of childhood through the prism of a British dowager. Following that will be Bare Bear Bones, a Canadian comedy written by Michael Grant and directed by Sheila Jasiak, which exposes the lack of spark in the marriage of two empty nesters.
The August slot is filled by Fort Hemlock, written by Emily Duberville and directed by the author and Lynda Daniluk. The characters are fictitious, but the play is based on a true story about early life in what came to be known as Smiths Falls — an offering that fits right in with the town’s 150th anniversary.
The fall brings Who Dunit? by C.B Gilford — one of the most original comedy-mystery plots of all time — which will be directed by Katharine Coleman. Closing out the year is another Ben Crocker pantomime, Aladdin, directed by Emily Duberville. Great comic parts abound, including a feisty Kung-Fu fighting Princess. More fun for the whole family!
The theatre is offering patrons an opportunity to attend all six plays for just $99. This season ticket comes in the form of a “Six-Pack Flex Pack”. Patrons can select how they want to use their six vouchers to purchase tickets to any of the six shows in the 2017 season. The deal — which offers a savings of almost 20% compared to the regular adult ticket price — begins now and will available during the run of Sleeping Beauty and until the last day of the first play in 2017 (March 5). For details of the ways to purchase the vouchers and the many different ways to use them, visit <smithsfallstheatre.com>.
The holiday season is here again: a time to celebrate with family and friends, a time to be grateful for all of our blessings, and, perhaps most important of all, a time to give. Every December now, oh, for the last ten years perhaps, my parents have said to me, “We don’t want you to get us anything for Christmas. We have all we need. We just want you to be well.”
Happy and healthy, they mean — and I love their thinking. It gets me to thinking that, above all, the best gift we can give one another is love and friendship, kindness and compassion. Giving is always good. And generosity matters.
With that in mind, there are some great organizations in Perth you can give to this holiday season that do some pretty amazing things for the community. Your gift to them, perhaps in the name of a family member, will help others while strengthening the community.
The Table Community Food Centre is one of the organizations I’ll suggest donating to this Christmas (or whatever holiday you might be celebrating). Ramsey Hart, Executive Director at The Table, says donations are always gratefully accepted.
“Making a holiday gift donation to The Table is a great way to show someone you care about them and that you care about our community and the 2,000 plus people that benefit from our programs each year,” Ramsey says. “Your donation will contribute to life-changing programs that use the power of good food to build health, hope and community, including the Good Food Bank, Community Meals, food skills for everyone from toddlers to seniors, the After School Program, Advocacy Office and Community Gardens.”
Ramsey says it’s easy to give on behalf of a loved one too. “The Table has regular and e-cards that can be used to share your generosity with your colleagues, friends and loved ones.”
Donations to The Table can be made online at <thetablecfc.org>, or by dropping them off in person or mailing them to 190 Gore Street East, Perth, ON K7H 1K3.
Another invaluable community resource is the Perth & District Union Library. Lots of folks think of books, of course, when they think of libraries, but libraries offer so much more than literature. They are vital community hubs of information, imagination, and inspiration.
Erica Heesen, CEO and Chief Librarian at the Perth & District Union Library elaborates: “The Perth & District Union Public Library works to be a key to a stronger community by connecting people to information, to each other, and by being a place for learning, discovery and growth. Donations to the library are used to enhance library services, such as collections and programming for children, teens and adults. You can direct your donation to a specific cause or make a general donation. Donations over $20 receive a charitable tax receipt.”
The Perth & District Union Library is located at 30 Herriot Street in Perth. Please note they will be closed from December 5 to 15 to make some changes to their space. Visit their website at <perthunionlibrary.ca> for more information.
When it comes to family and friends, why not give them the gift of your time? Take them to dinner. Treat them to a night out. You could do that early in December, too, when BarnDoor Productions stages its adaption of Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol.
BarnDoor is putting a fresh spin on this holiday favourite, which promises to be “fast-paced, funny, moving, and above all entertaining — an all-around crowd pleaser.” The folks at BarnDoor will be using the text from Dickens’ book, bringing his words back to the story. There will also be songs, but they will be given decidedly modern beats that should surprise and delight, one and all.
Performances will take place on December 2, 3, 8, 9 and 10 at 8pm and December 4 and 11 at 2pm, at Full Circle Theatre, 26 Craig Street. Reserved tickets will be $20; $22 at the door. Students and children are $10. For information or to reserve tickets, call 267–1884 or go to <barndoorproductions.ca>.
And if you’d like to put something truly elegant under the tree, why not ring in 2017 in style with your certain someone at the Perth Manor New Year’s Eve Dinner? You will be greeted with party favours at your table, and then wowed with a multi-course meal that includes hors d’oeuvres, amuse-bouches, appetizers, soup, salad, an entrée and dessert — the very definition of the whole nine yards! A champagne toast at midnight is included, and there will be a cash bar as well. There’s even a private dining room available for a group of 8–18. For more details or to reserve your spots, visit <perthmanor.com> or call 264–0050.
There really are so many delightful ways to give. Food is a wonderful gift. Bring someone a meal — something delicious and comforting, or maybe something they wouldn’t normally make for themselves, something special. Spend some time with them, too. So many folks who live alone get lonesome at the holidays. There is great joy in the seemingly simple things, like sharing laughter and conversation. It seems to me these are the gifts that people remember and cherish most, with tremendous joy and gratitude.
Treats are nice too, like a yummy pie from Perth Pie Co. or delicious cake from the Sunflower Bake Shop. Seasonal flowers from Apropos on Foster Street would be a lovely gift as well, sure to brighten anyone’s holiday spirits. One of the nicest gifts I’ve ever received was a gift certificate for a haircut and a gentleman’s shave at a local barbershop. I bet the Father & Son Barber Shop at the corner of Foster and Wilson Streets would be the ideal spot for that, and I bet any father, son, husband or friend would be thrilled to get pampered!
Of course, there are a whole lot of events happening in Perth this month (which you can find on The Humm’s event calendar): plenty of music, art, crafts, theatre, and special shows and Christmas events. What better time to be with family and friends, to share in the joy of the season, no matter what you chose to do over the holidays. Why, you could all shovel out the driveway together! And hey, snowball fight!
However you spend the holiday season: be well, give. And from my family to yours, from me to you, cherished reader — Merry Christmas!
To the surprise of many, Canadian Geographic officially crowned the gray jay — also known as the whiskey jack or Canada jay — as Canada’s National Bird. The 3-phase project kicked off in January of 2015 by asking residents across the Great White North to vote on what they believed should be chosen as our country’s national avian species.
Recently, at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s College of Fellows Annual Dinner, it was made official, and the iconic Canadian publication will feature a complete story surrounding the gray jay in its upcoming December 2016 issue.
Where to Find the Gray Jay
When announced, many were surprised that the gray jay was chosen over iconic birds such as the Canada goose or common loon. Many took to Twitter and other social media outlets to voice their confusion and in some cases, frustration at the results. A closer look, however, would paint a much different picture for many.
The range of the gray jay is as wide as our country and almost as deep. Those residing south of the 401 may never have witnessed a gray jay, nor will they be likely to. Heading up toward Algonquin Park, however, will paint a much different picture. These birds are found throughout British Columbia, large portions of Alberta and Saskatchewan, most of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec, and are very common across the northern Territories and the eastern Maritimes. When it comes to distribution across our large landmass, the gray jay has most of it covered.
When it comes to locating them, stick to evergreen and mixed evergreen-deciduous forests in most of the country. In the far west, they are also found up high in the picturesque mountain ranges.
Identification
As part of the jay family, you can expect a fairly large songbird, equipped with a short and stout bill. As their name suggests, look for primarily gray plumage, with darker coloured feathers on the top portion of the birds and lighter shades of gray down below. Their heads are nearly white in colour, with a black partial hood that covers most of the back of the head and runs into the eyes of the bird.
When it comes to song, gray jays let out what is known as a “whisper song”. These songs are quiet and melodious notes, mixed with quiet clicking noises, that can usually go on for about 60 seconds or so. These birds, much like the all-too-familiar blue jay, have a variety of calls they use in different situations.
One of the most interesting behaviours of this bird is that gray jays will actually imitate the calls of their predators such as owls, hawks, merlins and crows.
Gilligallou Bird shines the spotlight on a different bird each month — to find out about more intriguing local species, visit <gilligalloubird.com>.
Along with many fans across North America, I’ve been waiting ten years for Brock Zeman’s The Carnival is Back in Town CD… something he’s been promising, providing occasional teases through intimate story-songs he’s written through the years and included in sets, sharing various glimpses of carny life.
Just hearing the word “carnival” conjures up a plethora of images often created originally via childhood experiences, books or watching scary movies utilizing the theme; including the Big Top, circuses, death-defying acts, big animals, clowns, flashy midways, Ferris wheels, games of chance, freak shows, cotton candy and carnies. Historically, it was a big event when carnivals arrived in communities large and small, the magic and mystery all rolled out for a few days of incredibly memorable entertainment. Carnivals are pretty much a thing of the past now; local fairs being a mere shadow of what used to be. Thankfully, this CD brings it all back masterfully, in technicolour. The acoustic sound lends credibility to the nostalgic theme: banjos, accordions, fiddle, tinkling piano, saxophone, all weaving through the guitars and percussion, with tasty harmonizing vocals augmenting the overall carnival sound… that mysterious circus calliope sound intimated. A full concept presentation, from arrival, erecting the tent, touching snapshots of various carny folk, and romance, to the sad leaving.
Zeman had my butt on the bleachers; all the magic and mystery of the Big Top’s inner heart musically marching out before me. The musical production enhances the colours, from the dank underbelly of carny life, with its unique characters, to the intoxicating excitement and fear the carnivals throw our way. Brock and his multi-instrumental sidekick, Blair Michael Hogan, bring jugglers, knife throwers, clowns, the rides… all musically concocted before our eyes. His twelfth CD and well worth the wait! Masterful.
Brock is hosting a CD Release party at the Carleton Place Legion: December 3 at 8pm. Tickets are $10 in advance (at SRC Music or the CP Legion) or $15 at the door. Should be a wonderful evening.
One of Canada’s greatest troubadours, one who touched and affected the hearts of so many around the world, Leonard Cohen, left our world, but left a legacy of poetry and music for generations to come. His ability to scribe so many issues of the heart has provided a soundtrack for many people’s young lives. I saw him in Ottawa a few years ago and was amazed at the wide variety of ages attending. Two women, 70 years young, sitting beside me had driven from Sault Ste. Marie and had tickets for all his performances in Ottawa. Beside them were a couple of teenagers who had fallen in love with his music, thanks to their parents’ record collections. The sweet musicianship that surrounded his vivid lyrics made it a memorable evening. Thanks Mr. Cohen.
We also lost one of my favourite musicians, known as a “musician’s musician”, in that he gained more notoriety through musicians’ circles than the average public. Leon Russell’s keyboard and songwriting skills spanned many generations. In the early days he was a member of Wrecking Crew (the go-to studio musicians of Los Angeles that played on many of the hits we remember from the '60s and '70s). It was his involvement as musical director with Joe Cocker’s memorable 1970 Mad Dogs and Englishmen album and same-titled movie that first caught my ear, with hits he wrote such as Delta Lady and Superstar. Leon’s styles ranged from rock and roll to blues to gospel, often sounding like a singin’ southern preacher, but he also enjoyed country, making music under the alias “Hank Wilson”. Elton John, among others, called Russell one of his true mentors and, in 2011, they recorded the CD The Union together. I saw him last at Bluesfest on a side stage, sitting 15 feet away as he toured through his catalogue, chatting with the audience for the first time, in all the previous shows of his I’d seen. Gone too soon, his creativity will continue to affect music for years to come. Support live music everywhere!
Upcoming Events
Sunday, December 4 at 7pm: Dakota Martin (flute) & Kristan Toczko (harp) give a recital at St. Paul’s United in Perth. Dakota is creating quite a name for himself across the continent, so this is a “lucky chance” opportunity to catch him. Tickets are $20; students $10.
Thursday, December 8 at 6pm: Leahy at the Sharbot Lake Inn. Two generations of the famous Leahy family, joined by cousins, combining to make fiery fiddle music, dance and song. You will love it! $70 for dinner and show. Call Sandra at 279–2198 for reservations.
Sunday, December 11 at 2pm: Men & Women of the Tay’s Christmas Concert at St. James Anglican Church in Perth. Come enjoy the festive sounds of this combined chorus; something that’s become a real kick-off to many families’ Christmases. Freewill offering.
Almonte is an amazing town for so many reasons, and just one more is that we have our own music store and music school right in the community. Mississippi Mills Musicworks has been in business for almost ten years, providing a one-stop space for music lessons, instruments, music books and strings, as well as a drop-off and pick-up place where students can rent instruments through Music Care.
With the loss of so many music stores — such as the Ottawa Folklore Center (after 38 years) and St. John’s Music in Kitchener (after 92 years) — it is a treasure to have this local resource, especially as schools are cutting back on music programs. Large corporate chain stores and online retailers definitely make it harder for the smaller, privately owned stores to survive. The ability to walk in and try out a guitar or ukulele before buying one, as well as to sign up all the kids at the same time for weekly lessons within walking distance, is something that not many Ontarians can enjoy. Many Musicworks students are seniors enjoying their new free time to pursue a hidden passion to play, to improve, and to expand their repertoire.
Owner George Turcotte has used great innovation to recreate the interior of the store by recycling skids from Equator Coffee into eco-friendly décor. The space now features a Ukulele Tiki Bar and stage where students can showcase what they have learned at mini-recitals. The music school offers a wide range of experienced teachers, each offering a variety of skills and specialties; they bring the opportunity to study over a dozen instruments, as well as offering singing lessons. Space is available now for lessons, and February brings on the new term as well as new teachers, new opportunities and new students. With eight soundproof rooms — three with pianos — Musicworks is ready to meet the musical needs of our community. Are you ready to play? Call 256–7529 or visit <mmmusicworks.weebly.com> for details, or drop in at 453 Ottawa Street in Almonte.
First choose the second coldest day before Christmas — reserve the coldest day for putting up your light display — to “assemble your supplies and decide on a colour scheme” (green works well). Next, select an appropriate container. The planter with the remains of wilted geraniums and that crazy vine that refused to die would be acceptable, and in fact is the only one in sight. I’ll have to empty out the half-frozen dirt and old plants though. Now I need to find the shovel and refill the container. If the container is showing signs of wear, paint it before making your decoration. What? Now I have to lug the thing inside, wash it out, and repair it? Not happening!
Make this a family excursion. If the dog will come, I’ll be lucky. Enjoy a wintery walk while you search for those perfect boughs. So, here I go wearing warm mitts and rubber boots to trek half way to the North Pole looking for greenery, which is going to be heavy to haul home. Scented pines, graceful hemlock, fragrant cedar are all on my list. Don’t forget some dogwood, red can make a visual statement. Yes, yes, whatever. Never mind that the dogwood is surrounded by water!
There is one item I can’t ignore: a curly vine of bittersweet that I’ve been eyeing all summer. However, when I go to cut it, I need to balance on a rotting log and stretch about a foot higher than I should. Grabbing the branch, I lean with the clippers, and just as I think the piece is mine, the log rolls, the branch breaks, and I’m left with scraps instead of my lovely vine. I’ll have to make do.
Before you start, set out your supplies. The porch is now a mess of branches of all sorts, including one that smells oddly of cat, some “interesting weeds” like milkweed and that bittersweet, a few pinecones I resurrected from a long-ago decoration, a couple of plastic poinsettias, and one of those pre-tied red bows, scissors, the clippers, the wretched unwashed container, the overflow of dirt, and the dog.
Begin with your tallest branches, three is best. They’re all the same length, so I just haul out three, and shove them into the planter, where they promptly fall over. Maybe if I put in the bushy stuff first it’ll hold the rest up. By now my fingers are frozen, the rush of Christmas spirit is long gone, and I just want this thing finished. With disgruntled abandon, I cram the branches in, not caring if some trail over the edge, hoping the whole assembly will stay in place at least 'til Christmas Day.
When you’re satisfied with your creation, add a festive red bow as a final flourish. Get out some wire, and with bare hands and grazed knuckles from the prickly juniper I should have left out, I jam the stupid bow into the front of the whole thing.
So it’s green and red, just like I planned back in step one, and what do you know, when I stand back, far back, it actually looks pretty good in a rustic sort of way. But wait, I can add one more decorative touch. Gold spray paint tastefully wafted over your assembly will add a hint of sparkle. Done!
The clean up only takes a half-hour, and with the leftovers I get all excited about making a swag of greenery for the mailbox. I shouldn’t have gone there: now I need another bow, some more wire, and another dose of that gold paint. What I really need is a warm fire, some hot chocolate, and a sweater.
Enough of this decorating business. We still have to fling the lights hither and yon through the trees before we can declare Christmas is upon us. But for now, Martha Stewart would be proud of me.
This gorgeous creation will be on display likely until spring, since once it’s in place it freezes pretty solid, and the greens stay decent. You’re always welcome to come by for a visit, a ski, a walk in our woods, or simply to marvel at my artistic creation. No laughing allowed!
May your holidays be all you desire, with just enough excess to take you to the January guilt season.
Christmas wouldn’t be complete without hearing something from Tchaikovsky’s evocative Nutcracker Suite. Two Perth pianists, Val Leavitt and Brad Mills, will be performing a four-hand arrangement of the work on Wednesday, December 21, at 7pm at St. Paul’s United Church in Perth, followed by a Christmas carol sing.
Val Leavitt is the Assistant Music Director at St. James Anglican Church, and has a large private piano studio. Brad Mills is the long-time Director of Music at St. Paul’s United Church and taught music for many years at Carleton Place High School.
The two embarked on a project of preparing the challenging work approximately two years ago, and have decided to make it their personal contribution to the Perth Bicentennial year, which wraps up at the end of December.
Tchaikovsky’s ballet, The Nutcracker, premièred at the Marinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in 1892 to a less than enthusiastic response. It was the suite that he extracted from the ballet that same year that has made the music as familiar and popular as it has become, particularly after Walt Disney featured it in his 1940 animated film Fantasia. Eduard Langer, who taught piano to Tchaikovsky’s wife Antonina Milyukova, completed the four-hand piano arrangement in 1918.
The eight movements — Miniature Overture, March, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Russian Dance, Arab Dance, Chinese Dance, Dance of the Reed-Flutes and Waltz of the Flowers — all paint rich images with gorgeous Romantic melody, harmony and rhythm.
Admission is by donation at the door, with proceeds going to Yak Youth Services and the Perth Community Christmas Dinner. St. Paul’s is located at 25 Gore Street West in Perth, and is handicapped accessible.
As I sit and type this message, the snow is falling and the brightness of the season is definitely upon us. The season for giving is rapidly approaching, so look through this issue of theHumm and find your perfect gift ideas. But there is nothing quite the same as a handmade gift. Whether you knit or sew, paint or sculpt, make your own greeting cards or any other creative art, there are a couple of things to consider.
First of all, try to fit the gift to the recipient as best you can. A hand-knit muff for granny would likely be very much appreciated, but a — hold it a moment, I think I am stereotyping here — never mind, you get the picture I am sure.
However, do consider the interests and preferences of the person to avoid gifting them with an unusable or undesired item. Of course this goes for a purchased gift as well; however, our feelings are not quite so invested in them.
The second thing is to remember that once given, the gift belongs to the giftee, so don’t get your feelings hurt if it isn’t displayed prominently for all to see and admire.
For myself, and my friends, as we have all reached a certain age, we give gifts of food — specialty items that perhaps are much loved but a bit too expensive for the senior budget. All in all, however, this just fortifies the need to think about what you are giving to whom, and make sure it is wonderfully appropriate.
A gift certificate to some of the wonderful events at The Cove <coveinn.com> would likely be very much appreciated by music lovers on your list. Some of the fine events coming up in December include Logan Brown with funky folk rock on December 2, and A Jeff Callery Christmas featuring folk/rock on the 10th. A Country Christmas with Shawn McCullough Band on December 3, and A Jazz Night Christmas with Spencer Evans on the 17th are both only $35 each for buffet and show — what a lovely early present that would be!
If you want to give the gift of both time and music, why not bring a friend to The Cove for their Annual Christmas Eve Eve Jazz Night with Spencer Evans Trio on December 23, or A Turpin’s Trail New Year’s Eve featuring East Coast folk on December 31? And if you’re looking for tickets to put under the tree, check out the 2017 line-up of Blues on the Rideau shows at <bluesontherideau.ca>.
Here in Westport, the Santa parade will have already taken place by the time you read this, but my favourite aspect of the season here — the lovely tree lit up on Foley Mountain — will come to life again. From my home, I can admire the tree from the warmth of my easy chair. When I first saw it, years ago, I had no idea what it was, but it has come to be the symbol of Christmas in Westport for me. I am sure, however, that the spirit of this symbol crosses all belief systems and brings cheer and love to all who see it.
With that, I wish each and every one of you a most blessed and wonderful holiday with friends and family. May your days be filled with wonder and your hearts with love.
Welcome to “A Brew in Review”, the column dedicated to the true pursuit of happiness: enjoying a great pint of beer! For the past number of months, the beer-geeks in my little town of Almonte have been giddy with hoppy anticipation waiting for the opening of Almonte’s own Crooked Mile Brewing Company. After many months (nay, years) of hard work, dreaming, and scheming, the folks at Crooked Mile opened their doors to the public on October 24, 2016, an event that that was covered by my brother-in-beer, Rob Riendeau, on p.26 of the November Humm. Well, I’m more than a little bit embarrassed to admit that I wasn’t on hand for the glorious grand opening. So in order to make up for my own personal poor decision-making, I stopped by Crooked Mile recently to sample their offerings and to sit down with brewmaster Nick Pruiksma and partner Dylan Bouleau (the partnership is completed by Vicki Pruiksma) to talk all things beer and brewing. This is what I found out.
As many brewing geeks would understand, the craft-brewing “bug” hit Nick Pruiksma years ago, all because he was unable to source in Ottawa a favourite beer he had discovered while travelling in Britain. This lead Nick down the long and slippery path of home-brewing, where one can often recreate one’s favourite beers through hard work, trial and error. First, he cut his teeth brewing beers made from canned malt extract and a few specialty malts; soon enough he was buying sacks of malted barley, building brewing equipment such as grain-crushers, brew pots, wort chillers, mash tuns, etc., and producing high-quality all-grain craft beer in his garage. About a year or so into this journey, Nick purchased a commercially-made, sophisticated and infinitely controllable home-brewing system. This bit of kit allowed Nick to replicate many aspects of the commercial brewing process by experimenting with procedures that are not easily achieved by the typical home-brewer, including step-mashing (steeping the malts at two different temperatures to achieve different taste/body characteristics), and using precise temperature controls that enable a more precise replication of recipes from batch to batch. Soon enough the home-brewing passion turned into a commitment to make brewing his livelihood.
Fast-forward several years later, when the beers of Crooked Mile are inspired by the classic British brewing tradition. Not surprisingly, their products carry evocative names such as “Druid’s Dusk” Irish Red Ale, “Standing Stone” British IPA, and “Highland Hillwalker” Scottish Export Ale. Recipe development for each of these beers started years ago on home-brewing systems, and has been painstakingly adapted to Crooked Mile’s 8-hectolitre (800-litre) brewing system. According to Nick, while it has been great fun “playing with the big-boy toys”, it has been quite a challenge to adapt both the recipes and the brewing processes they employed on small home-brew systems to commercial scale while achieving the desired outcome. Luckily for Nick, Dylan is apparently quite the jack-of-all-trades handyman and electronics whiz — skills that have been indispensable in making this process easier.
The beers speak for themselves. Of the three I sampled while at the brewery (unfortunately, they were out of the Crow’s Castle when I was there), all were fresh, clear, tasty, well-brewed and well-fermented ales. Crooked Mile uses really fresh products to brew their recipes, ordering their grain bills a couple of days before using them in the mash tun. All of their beers are based on a blend of high-quality British Maris Otter malt, augmented with fresh, clean Canadian 2-row malts, various specialty malts and “noble” British hops varieties such as East Kent Goldings, Fuggles and Challenger. Mash temperatures range from 152°F to 154°F, and are painstakingly met and maintained using a clever heat-exchange system within the mash tun and hot liquor tank, high-tech software and attention to detail. Recently, Crooked Mile experimented with a yeast strain known as US-05, which is renowned for producing crisp and clean fermentation that enables the recipe ingredients to shine through without adding flavours during the fermentation stage. Nick says this new yeast really complemented the recipes they had designed years ago, so they decided to use it for all the beers they brew. Crooked Mile beers are also crystal clear without being filtered, likely resulting from the use of glycol-jacketed fermenters that enable very precise, consistent temperature control over the fermenting beer. The end results are very well-brewed beers that are true-to-style in the British tradition, brewed in a manner that allows the imbiber to enjoy a gentle balance between malts and hops. I was very impressed and think you will be too.
Currently, Crooked Mile beers are available at the brewery located at 453 Ottawa Street, in Almonte. Because they aren’t shipped, they are super fresh and delicious and available in 900ml squealers and 2-litre growlers. If you like them, and I’m sure you will, start asking for Crooked Mile beers at your local pub. Bottoms up!