Holidays 2020

Christmas 2020 has come and gone leaving behind it a wide swath of feelings and emotions. Being strongly encouraged to socially isolate during a time of year that has been hard-wired to practice generosity, gratitude, appreciation, inclusion and love with those that matter the most in your life is counter-intuitive, annoying, and mildly depressing. 

I come from a larger than normal sized family, by today's standards. As I have written in the past, I have three brothers, and three of our four have two children who are now adults, or nearly so. When my immediate family gathers for special occasions, and the unmarried ones bring their significant others, it makes for quite the hoard sitting round an obviously large table, overflowing with food. If you look at a photo of our hoard, you'll immediately notice that, in general, we've never accidentally eaten anything ... I like to call us "big boned". 

It goes without saying that the Holidays of 2020 were like that new kid in class who people aren't sure about as we nervously search the floorboards whether or not to engage in conversation. It's not that we shun him/her, but we're not sure how we feel about allowing him/her into our bubble. Even with technology like Zoom and Facetime trying its best to lend a hand, I still felt a large chasm in the experience. It's often said, but as social animals, humans crave the face-to-face interactions above almost anything else, its absences leaving a vast emptiness when unfulfilled. 

We felt truly blessed this holiday to share some quality time with both of our children. With Maddi and Chris' wedding in full planning mode, we knew that we would have to share them with Chris' parents, so social distancing was always in our thoughts. Keaton made the effort for a long-ish visit, something that his work doesn't allow for very often, and we enjoyed some very satisfying catch-up time. It goes without saying that each parent yearns to ensure that their now-adult children are fairing well, feeling good, and coping with life's ups and downs. Being able to engage our kids, have them regale their experiences out from under the umbrella of the Bank of Mom/Dad, and flesh out some pretty beefy topics of discussion over some drinks or treats is really what it's all about. At least at our age, it is.

Both of our mother's have been blessed with a long life meaning this pandemic has been a never ending stream of repetitive internal questions about where we've been, who we've come in close contact with, and whether or not we're safe to visit. We were always balancing the positives and negatives.

Joyce's mom's situation is a little more gut wrenching since she lives in a Senior's building, and factoring in face-to-face visits has potentially greater reach if we miscalculate. Keeping in mind her situation, and weighing the consequences, we decided it prudent to make the trip and her reaction was all the feedback needed. She was ear to ear smiles and thanked us repeatedly for making the trip. She was going to share a meal on Christmas Day with some of her friends who also live in the building so we were pretty confident that loneliness wouldn't creep its way into her thoughts. For that, we are eternally grateful.

My mother is in our social bubble so we feel very comfortable with the recommended guidelines to enjoy face-to-face visits. She is pretty gosh darned independent and quick to attest to a good state of comfort, but I garner a visceral sense of ease when we share some socially distanced time together. Even though we were relegated to "Facetiming" on Christmas Day, it was extremely strange to be barred from our long standing tradition of a Christmas hug and kiss. 

I just keep repeating the mantra that sacrificing normality this holiday should make future normal ones possible, when we can gather our loved ones around for some much missed hugs and kisses. I hope that your situation was as positive as possible, and that you came away with a little bit of satisfaction. If we can stay the course, we should be able to tunnel our way out of this mess.

My Sincerest well wishes for the Holiday Season and my prayers for continued health as we collectively hope for a vastly improved year in 2021.

CLANG goes the door!

Like the resounding CLANG of a prison door, Ontario is locked down again in its ever-present battle to stem the proliferation of Covid-19 with hopes of preventing the anticipated impact to the provincial Health Care system's efforts to prevent unnecessary deaths. After unchecked growth of the Novel Coronavirus this fall, with cases recently exceeding 2000 a day on a consistent basis, combined with modelling that forecasts unbridled growth following the holiday break, #fordnation has taken the very unpopular steps to re-institute lockdown measures. This will affect the entire province, regardless of regional conditions, with the only variations hinging on geography as northern areas will be only 14 days.

All of this is not new to anyone who has paid attention.

The only question I have surrounds the mechanism that has allowed for such ridiculous growth? 

With the each day, the media faithfully reports the day's newest infections for each region across the province, and invariably points to the GTA as the main culprits - Toronto, Peel, York, Durham, and Hamilton. Essex is the only outlier. These areas constitute roughly 75% of the reported cases, but infections have unfortunately begun to swell in other regions as well ... like Simcoe Muskoka. I'd like to consider myself intelligent enough to understand that larger populations = greater chance of spread, but I go back to my query of HOW is it spreading?

The obvious guess, since I couldn't possibly know for sure, is that the people in those "hot spots" are not cooperating with the guidelines as dictated by Health Care and the province. It's easy to point fingers at "Joe Public" when I am confronted with the nightly news broadcast's video footage showing large groups of socially huddled, unmasked hoards doing whatever strikes their fancy as they rush around like so many mice hankering for a morsel. Acknowledging the risk of spreading misinformation, what I can't know is whether the video footage I watch is recent or file footage from a time prior to the pandemic. 

I'm a rule follower ... 

a glass is half full guy ... 

I trust first until proven unwise ... 

so I naturally incline toward giving the news broadcast the nod for using pertinent footage.

Answering my own question, I would venture a guess that it's a healthy dose of negligence combined with the virus' ridiculous infectiousness, spiced up with a helping heap of pandemic-infused exhaustion. With news of a new strain of the coronavirus in Britain ... Covid-21 ... that scientists are reporting is more infectious, we Canadians need to give their collective heads a big shake and come together in a common mindset to do whatever is required to reduce the spread. I acknowledge that the mortality rate is not as high as first thought, but I'll go to my own grave with the opinion that even one preventable death is too many.

I grant you that there are no easy solutions or answers, and some parts of Canada are far more successful than others, but my fear is there will be a breaking point in the capacity of the Health Care system, and one of my loved ones is caught on the bad side of it.

Consider this a personal request from me to you. I am imploring all who may read this to join me, my loved ones, and good friends in our united acceptance of the conditions being imposed over the next few weeks to lessen the spread with a figurative "shot to the gut" of the virus. Vaccinations will make a difference, if they are available and voluntarily taken, but the timing of national inoculation plan leads me to believe that the Health Care crisis will crest before the various vaccines have a chance to make an impact. 

For my view, the simplest and easiest way to quickly make an impact is to follow the now oft repeated guidelines of WASH, WEAR and WATCH. It's a simple to understand as baking a cake ... you need all of the ingredients to work together to make something good. Using only the WEAR, or the WEAR with WASH, will not make it work, regardless of the time of year or any other such excuses. 

Again, please consider this post an impassioned request to join me in sacrificing a relatively short span of time for the greater good. Only working together can we truly have an impact on eradicating this scourge of humanity. Besides, with the way it's been going, you can bet your bottom dollar that this will not be the last pandemic that you face before the Reaper makes his visit. We need to get good at this.

Think about that as you enjoy your amazing Canadian quality of life. 

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

Queen's once! Queen's Twice!

I am a proud graduate of Queen's University and an even prouder Football Gael alum ... although it was a Golden Gael when I played in the golden yellow uniforms of the early 80's. 

I can still hear the student section's chant, "They're BIG! They're YELLOW! They're BIG YELLOW guys!"


I recently participated in a Zoom meeting with some of my former team mates that was aimed at getting to know the new Head Coach, Steve Snyder, while he shared his plans for the future successes of the team. Coach Snyder was looking to former players for an enhanced alumni presence as he puts his thumb mark on an already storied program. Coach's presentation was impressive, thorough, passionate and Uber exciting.

My team mates from those years are still some of my greatest friends, and in particular, the lads from the '83 team. We get together on a pretty regular basis since our playing days, and we are quick to slip back into a friendly war of good natured barbs about all facets of varsity life, past and present. To say that we're a pretty tight-knit group would be an understatement.

The question of the underlying reasons for the camaraderie was by put forth by Coach Snyder following his explanation surrounding his coaching group's insistence of developing a sense of family as one of his primary goals early in his tenure. Those of our group who went on to a professional career were queried how their post-Gael experiences compared to those in good old Kingston. What was already known to many was enthusiastically affirmed by all who had a voice to lend to the question, almost as if deep down they thought the question was ridiculous in nature.

Of course being a Gael was the best time in our life!
We have a 1000 stories that we re-hash each get together to prove it!

The core of the 100's of players who represented the university in the early part of the 80's decade share one particularly awesome experience ... the 1983 Vanier Cup and it's last second loss to the Calgary Dinos. So many people over the years have shared their wide-eyed amazement when they first find out that I was a part of the "underdog" '83 Gaels, but I am quick to retort that we never felt like we wouldn't win that game. For those that don't know about the 1983 CIS Football season, we were on the lips of many as we stumbled our way through the OQIFC division that fall. We burst out of the gate to win the first 4 games, causing a bit of a stir, but then slipped a little with back-to-back ties against Ottawa, and completely flopped with a Homecoming loss to McGill. Fortunately, we rallied in the playoffs, summarily defeating first Carleton (32-18) and then McGill (36-5) to earn a berth to the Churchill Bowl vs the University of Toronto in a national semifinal. I guess I would have to admit that losing to McGill in front of our feverishly passionate homecoming fans started the "underdog" label as detractors predicted a choke was in our future.

Sure, we were all a little nervous in the locker room the morning of the Carleton playoff game, wondering if we really had what was needed. Fortunately, the first quarter action was the nudge needed and it started a swelling collective belief, much to the relief of the student body and the coaching staff. The following weekend, OQIFC final vs McGill was over early and we were relieved that we had turned the season around.

If we harboured any doubts about our future, the week leading up to the national semifinal vs the U of T could have shaken our resolve as every newspaper ... you remember those, eh ... predicted a decisive U of T victory. We were more than happy to play the role of spoiler.

I remember the morning of the Churchill Bowl, looking out my window, and realizing that we were gifted with a thick blanket of snow. Arriving at Richardson Stadium early that day, I marvelled at the efforts being extended to clear the field, but the footing looked to be a potential problem. When the kickoff finally arrived, the sun was shining, and Richardson was rockin' and rollin' as the student fans put on a show of school spirit for the national TV audience that was rarely seen in Canada. Despite U of T scoring on their first possession, we slowly discovered our groove on route to our own lopsided victory, winning 22-7.

Leading up to the Vanier Cup, it was again predicted that Queen's was the overwhelming underdog, but the energy of the crowd (it was estimated that 80% of the Queen's student body of 11,000 were rockin' the stands) was almost palpable. I was playing O-Line that year, but at only 215 lbs, the guy across from me out-sized me by at least 70 lbs. Early in the game, we struggled to move the ball, putting our defence in terrible field position, but our defence intercepted three passes to keep the game close despite being vastly outplayed in offensive yardage. The action was all Dinos as they led 17-3 at halftime.

Just before the first half ended, the coaching staff pulled out our starting quarterback in favour of our backup quarterback, Pete Harrison, running the triple-option, an offence that the Calgary defence had not prepared for. It's difficult to execute, rarely used in those days, but we had great faith in it. Pete ran it brilliantly. It made my job a whole lot easier since I would be pulling and using my agility on people more my size like LBs and DBs.

We scored a couple of times in the beginning part of the 2nd half, and with 3 minutes left, we finally took the lead 21-20. The go-ahead touchdown was almost a catastrophe for us when Pete fumbled in the end zone on a QB sneak, but O-Line mate Steve Hudson recovered it and is still the only lineman in Vanier Cup history to score a TD. When you think about it, the final score doesn't really indicate how close and exciting that second half was. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric, the stands were full of Queen's people, and I remember them getting louder and louder with each passing minute.

In the end, it wasn't meant to be and Calgary scored a late TD and FG to win 31-21.

There are a TON of memories of that experience stored in my brain cells! One of the most crystal clear was one that helped me deal with the disappointment of that last second loss. The final whistle had just sounded, Calgary was celebrating, I was completely spent, and obviously, pretty emotional. The thousands of Queen's fans had rushed the field, and from where I knelt, I could clearly see a young man, purple faced, wearing dyed coveralls, Queen's tam cocked to one side, on his knees, throwing haymakers into a stuffed dinosaur, sending chunks of stuffing into the air. I couldn't help myself. A smile emerged and I started to giggle, pushing the disappointment out of my core.

We had plenty to be proud of, despite the loss. Our head coach, Doug Hargreaves, was named Canadian Intercollegiate Coach of the Year. We had narrowly lost a Vanier despite our arguably two best players, FB Larry Mohr and LB Mike Schad, being sidelined with season ending injuries. We silenced all of the critics with our inspiring play, and dare I say, made some converts that day.

There's lots of stories ... not all fit to print.
Every year that passes, we get better and better.
I love those guys!

Remember the important stuff!

I think that we can all agree that 2020 more or less sucked! 

However, despite how bad it appears on the surface, taking stock of the most important things in life realigns our wants and needs with things that really matter ... see the graphic to the left. 

Despite Canada's #1 ranking in the quality of life for the 5th straight year (CLICK HERE), and while she still has communities of people that wouldn't be able to put check marks beside all 10, that doesn't change the fact that a high percentage of Canadians could. Anyone looking at the graphic should come to the realization that there are very few of those 10 signs that involve the size of your house, the allure of your vehicle, the version of your cell phone, or the threads that hide your nakedness. 

With thoughts of this list at the forefront of my thoughts, I was slapped upside the head this week when I received word that one of the young men that I coached in the Rugby Ontario program had passed away at the way too young age of 27. A quick survey of Social Media reveals 1000's of posts from people about the negative impacts of the pandemic, but the photos that adorn their Social Media profiles indicate the overwhelming majority are surrounded with the love of their immediate family's embrace, the warmth of shelter from our Canadian climate, and ready access to a wide variety of services and utilities. 

Jake Webster (Obituary), at 27 years old, won't enjoy any of that anymore.

Jake hailed from Fenlon Falls High School when I first met him, was an active member of the Lindsay RFC, and was a penultimate human being. An avid hunter, farmer, and athlete, Jake is being remembered as a devoted husband to wife Maggie and loving father to William and Millie. Being a member of the Pickering Fire Department, Jake was a parent's dream. I will personally remember Jake for both his prowess on the rugby pitch (representing Canada in both 7-a-side and 15-a-side internationally) and the quality of human being he was, even at an early age. His smile was always genuine, his friendship warm, his work ethic admirable, and his unsurpassed passion for life. 

I am deeply saddened by this news.

It is often said that one of the greatest tragedies of human life is the outpouring of profound love and admiration shared at the funerals of people we respect in lieu of sharing those sentiments with them when they are still with us. Judging by the words, pictures, videos and testaments being shared about Jake, he packed a lifetime's worth of goodness into a relatively few number of years, significantly impacting those who were obviously proud to call him a friend. As a testament to that sentiment, Courtney Tinkler, a close family friend, set up a Go Fund Me account with a goal of raising $10,000 to help Jake's family deal with their loss (CLICK HERE), but at the time of writing, it had raised over $184, 000. The outpouring of generosity is an incredible consequence of the impact Jake had on so many. 

Go grab your loved ones, hug them tight, and tell them how much they mean to you because you never know how much time you'll be given in this life. 

God Bless you Jake.
God grant you strength you Maggie, William and Mille.
God's grace to his parents Duane + Christine Webster, siblings Griffin, Oliver, Arianna and his relatives.

Driving in the last nail

In a recent virtual City Hall meeting, the last nail in Barrie Central Collegiate's coffin was driven home with finality when the city council reluctantly agreed that Fisher Auditorium, the last remaining vestige of the school, would be scheduled for the wrecker's ball. Despite the sadness that this decision brings, the reasons behind it are more than understandable, especially when factoring a multitude of mitigating circumstances, not the least of which is the huge financial implications of maintaining an out-dated shell. For a more complete background, click this link for the Barrie Today story surrounding the edict.

"Sitting" around the City Hall horseshoe (the meeting was done virtually thanks to C19) were a few that were emotionally connected to Barrie Central as alumni. In particular, both Mayor Jeff Lehman and Councillor Keenan Aylwin are proud graduates from BCC and are former members of the internationally acclaimed Barrie Central Band during their time inside it's walls. Having had conversations with both at various times over the years surrounding the demise of Central, I can certainly empathize with the internal tug-of-war each would have battled with making this decision, as each is a passionate as I am about our alma mater. 

Councillor Aylwin summed the situation best for me personally, “It’s about the people, not the building,” he said. “To just keep the building is a waste of money. I know we can honour the history of the Fisher auditorium.” 

As testament to that statement, the resulting chatter surrounding the decision amongst the retired Central teachers that I Zoom with each week echoed Alwyin's sentiments that the "magic" was in the relationships that were forged, not in the paint or bricks or mortar. 

I'm not in a position to point fingers. I'm just feeling a little down that the coffin lid will be forever sealed, and all that will be left of my beloved school will be the memories, videos and pictures. Like Councillor Aylwin, I whole heartedly acknowledge that buildings are shells with finite lifespans, and once their solid structural strength wanes, they require a transition plan. Even the most magnificent mountain will eventually succumb to the pressures of nature and time as its grandeur fades with each passing second. I have previously written about my feelings surrounding the decisions made by the SCDSB's treatment of the 174 year history of Central ... re-hashing serves no purpose ... but I will say that I am optimistic that the city will consciously decide to honour the legacy when future builds become reality, unlike the school board's neglect to honour Central's impact on the city, That continues to be a personal source of consternation.

On that fateful day when the last remaining vestige falls, an ethereal bugler will sound Taps as our collective chins will rest on our chests, a personal eulogy will be recited and we will embrace our precious memories as we would our own children in a caring embrace of love, avowing to never forget the impact Central had on us. The sense of loss will last for a short while, soon replaced with a stoic sense of pride, and we'll lift our chins and face the remainder of our lives without reservation. Dwelling on the past has never served the future well, and our Red, Black and White souls will simply not allow any more mourning. 

"... and when we die, we'll be Central dead."

Who knew?

After my last post, I felt a need to lighten up the mood, and maybe even bring a smile or grin to someone's face. There are obviously a large number of ways to do that, but being an educator, I think that learning something new to you that also makes you smile is the Dynamic Duo! There is no theme to these questions since they are just things that made me smile. I freely admit there are a lot of questions here from the world of sports, which will come as no surprise to those that know me well.

I've always been amazed by the sheer volume of useless information that we humans can store and retrieve, yet struggle to remember some of the most important, simplest things. In this day and age of Smartphones, most people can't recall a phone number of a loved one, yet can immediately recall ones for random individuals from their past. I know, at least for me, that some of that is due to my Kinesthetic learning style since I had to dial (on a rotary phone and yes, I'm that old) or push buttons to connect the call. The little bit that I have retained from learning about memory and recall, in the truest sense of irony, has to do with the concept of association, or the idea that finding connections between things you wish to remember, allows me to recall them more readily.

For each of the following little Trivial Challenge questions, scroll to the bottom for answers:

1) In what stadium would you be if you were looking down at Touchdown Jesus?
2) A line drive ricochets off the pitcher's mound into the 1st base dugout. What base does the batter go?
3) What are the colours of the 5 rings in the Olympic emblem?
4) A field goal kick grazes the helmet of the offensive lineman before clearing the uprights. Does it count?
5) Who has the longest tenure of any broadcaster with a single club in Pro Sports history?
6) Who is the only NBA Hall of Famer to have his Harlem Globetrotter uniform number retired?
7) What is the rarest M&M colour?
8) In the football movie "Brian's Song", Brian Piccolo and Gayle Sanders were played by which actors?
9) Who is arguably the best athlete to come out of St May-St Vincent HS, in Akron, Ohio?
10) Who is the only player in North American sports history to wear a Roman numeral on his back?
11) Name the 4 NBA nicknames that don't end in an "S".
12) Who is the only man to set world records in both the 100m and 200m sprints in the same Olympics?
13) Alabama's Bear Bryant once famously said, "A tie is like kissing your _______."
14) Who is the "Say Hey Kid"?
15) Which country consumes the most chocolate, per capita?
16) Lambeau Field is named after which founder, player and head coach of the Green Bay Packers?
17) The official length and width of which professional playing surface is 200 feet x 85 feet?
18) Which Canadian hockey legend invented the goalie mask?
19) What is the largest type of deer?
20) Who is a former Heisman Trophy winner, Pro Football player and Major League Baseball player.
21) Who was the 1st athlete to appear on the Wheaties box?
22) Which Hall of Fame head coach was know as the "Wizard of Westwood"?
23) What year were the first Air Jordan sneakers released?
24) What is the tiny plastic piece at the end of a shoelace called?
25) In what year was the first Wimbledon tennis Championship held?

Doing a little Internet sleuthing, it turns out there are some biological reasons behind the rush of excitement we feel when we get a trivia question right. According to psychologist John Kounios, answering a trivia question correctly triggers a release of dopamine (a neurotransmitter associated with ensuring we remember important keys to surviving) in the brain that gives the person answering a sense of pleasure. Beyond that short-term benefit, collecting and deploying information can exercise the brain as we age, supporting healthy neurological function. Trivia is like taking your brain to the gym, without the need to shower afterwards.

According to the site Man-Telligence, "Trivia is essentially cross training for our brains. When you answer trivia questions, you’re using your brain to answer questions on multiple topics, from language to sports or mathematics to history. In addition, our brains need not only to think critically, but also creatively, to find answers."

I got 21 of these 25 correct when I was researching questions to include ... just saying.
Hope that you found yourself learning ... and smiling.

Answers:

1) Notre Dame Stadium
2) Home - foul ball
3) Blue, Yellow, Black, Green and Red
4) Nope
5) Vin Scully with the Dodgers
6) Wilt Chamberlain #13
7) Brown
8) Piccolo was played by James Caan and Gayle Sayers by Billy Dee Williams
9) LeBron James
10) Robert Griffin III
11) Miami Heat, Utah Jazz, Orlando Magic and Oklahoma City Thunder
12) Usain Bolt in 2008
13) "A tie is like kissing your SISTER."
14) Willie Mays
15) Switzerland
16) Earl Louis "Curly" Lambeau
17) An NHL hockey rink
18) Jacques Plante
19) A moose
20) Bo Jackson
21) Lou Gehrig in 1934
22) UCLA's John Wooden
23) 1984
24) An Aglet
25) 1877

Seriously 2020? What else?

I'm not at all confident that in some way, shape, or form, I may get some backlash for this post. While it is rare that I actively seek to "land in hot water", I feel this occasion is warranted since it caused me quite the emotional reaction.

I recently received the quarterly College of Teachers magazine, Professionally Speaking, and viewing the front cover, the image of an adult male hand around the neck of an adolescent girl under the title of "Professional Boundaries" immediately created a queazy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Why would they choose this to be the first-impression image? What was the intention?

Once I recovered from the fleeting sense of nausea, I felt an all overwhelming sense of indignation ignite in that same place as I struggled to come to grips with the thought processes of a media team that thought it an appropriate image to adorn the cover of a professional magazine. Admittedly, I am not so naive as to disavow the presence of predators in education, nor to espouse keeping the issue in the shadows, but considering the mandate of the College of Teachers, to have an image of questionable taste sit atop the dinner, coffee, and kitchen tables ... and now this Blog ... of each Ontario educational household crosses a line IMHO. The issue deserves to be acknowledged, addressed, discussed, and proactively dealt with, but the perpetuation of a stereotype that this is (a) prevalent and (b) a male phenomenon is both perplexing and concerning as the cover image of professional college's communique.

I will be the first to admit that I am not in favour of the College's existence, its mandate, or its role in my educational life, and I annually begrudge the mandatory membership fee of $170 for a group that I see has little or no value to me. I am told that to teach in any form ... full contract, LTO, or occasional ... I must "be a member in good standing" with the College which translates solely as "I've paid them their money." I faithfully read the magazine every time it arrives hoping to find some nugget of information, some recommendation, some morsel of guidance that will justify my forced membership, but I have never come away with a feeling of satisfaction. 

Perhaps some of my colleagues have, but I have not. 100%.

One of the more contentious portions of the publication are the "blue" pages. For those not familiar with the publication, this is the portion that lists all of the people in Ontario's educational profession who have been discovered to have stepped across the line of decorum, in one shape or another. If warranted following an investigation, each subsection lists a name, a brief synopsis of the transgression, and the formal ruling, be it reprimand, suspension, or revocation. I have always felt very uncomfortable with this section of the magazine, acknowledging the severity of each situation and the appropriateness of the ruling, since it lists full names and consequences. I fully support formal proceedings that dole out consequences for the extremely poor choices listed in those pages, and I am glad that the "bad apples" are removed, but the magazine goes out to all members, all across the province, in almost 120, 000 homes, where it can be viewed by both immature and impressionable eyes. If it was important enough for me to know about these situations, I would actively seek out the knowledge, and would be much happier it it was in a password protected section of the College's membership site.

You might ask, "If you don't like it, why not just tell the College not to send it to you?"

A supplemental issue I have surrounding this magazine is the fact that I cannot "unsubscribe" to its delivery since the only options available are to receive it in its very expensive full colour, glossy absurdity or to receive it via email as a PDF. There is no choice to not receive it, and even though I take care to recycle it each time, I would wager that the amount of money its production must demand is significant. In this day and age, would not the prudent choice be to relegate the distribution to ONLY the e-form? Perhaps removing its printing costs would have a desirable effect on my membership fees? 

I am not alone in this fight. I have become aware of a number of actively teaching and occasional teacher friends that were also quite put off when the magazine arrived in their mailbox, and are equally frustrated with the decisions that the College is making, supposedly on our behalf. Some are taking the next step and mailing the offensive front cover back to the College in a show of displeasure and protest. I will combine that act with a print out of this post, clearly outlining my objection.

Seriously, what else can 2020 bring to my doorstep?

On this day ...

Some people think the study of history is a waste of time.
I'm not one of those types.

From my perspective, history serves two vital roles;
(1) To celebrate the accomplishments of past successes or remember the losses of past tragedies
(2) To learn lessons valuable for decisions of the present.

As a sport-loving Canadian, two pretty cool things happened on December 4th in history:
(A) The first CFL Grey Cup was awarded in 1909 when the University of Toronto Blues defeated the Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club 26-6 at Rosedale Field, preserving the Blues undefeated record, and enshrining the Grey Cup as the crowning achievement of Canadian Football.

Some interesting notes regarding the Grey Cup include a transformation from what Gov Earl Grey desired as an amateur championship to its present form as the championship of the CFL, Canada's professional football league, and a change in direction from the original focus on rugby to its present focus on the football Canadians envision when they hear the word. In the early years from 1909 to 1924 (minus the years during WW1), university teams were invariably the Grey Cup champions. From 1925 to 1945 the representatives from senior city leagues were supreme, and they continued to contest the cup until the early 1950s, when the professional teams that later comprised the CFL began to dominate. Interestingly, in 1962, the Grey Cup became an instrument of national unity when Parliament forced the hand of the Canadian televisions networks to make the game available so that the entire country could watch, a decision that has made the game consistently one of the nation's highest-rated programs.

(B) The oldest still-operating NHL franchise was established when J. Ambrose O'Brien and Jack Laviolette created the "Club de Hockey Canadien", or as it is better known these days, the Montreal Canadiens.

I am not really a hockey guy, but if pressed, I would admit that I cheer for the Boston Bruins to hoist Lord Stanley's Cup each season, a fact that is a consequence of a bet lost to my father many years ago when the Blanc, Bleu et Rouge squared off against the Bruins in the 1971 semifinals. Les Canadien won, and my object of my hockey fanaticism was forever cemented, much like my head as it would turn out, considering their prolonged periods of futility over my life. I shouldn't be too hard on the Bruins though, Montreal has had more than their fair share of success, winning more cups than any other NHL franchise with 24 in all, and at least one every decade from 1910 to 1990. Montreal also boasts consistency, being the only NHL franchise to win 5 Stanley Cups in a row from 1956-1960. After winning 4 out of 5 years from 1965-1969 (spoiled by the Maple Laughs ... I am a Bruins fan remember ... in 1967), and 4 in a row from 1976-1979, they amassed an immensely impressive 10 cups in 15 years. 44 of the Canadien's players have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Learning lessons from the past to make great decisions for the present is, IMHO, the single biggest reason to study historical events. As George Santayana is quoted with saying, "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Using the lessons of the past to bolster the decisions of the present is highly recommended, not only to prevent egregious error, but to better understand the potential consequences of today's decisions. We humans are a vicious lot, extinguishing both each other and the natural world with alarming regularity and sweeping finality. We don't have to think very hard or look very far to find events from the past that could grant us wisdom for the present ... climate change, pandemics, social revolt, or ecology to site a few ... but I fear deeply that we are collectively failing.

The web site History Today provides an interesting read with its post on a historical turning point (https://www.historytoday.com/archive/making-history/historic-turning-point), posing the question, "Will historians see 2020 as the peak of a global crisis – or will the world continue on its perilous course?" Author Suzannah Lipscomb, a Professor of History at the University of Roehampton and published author, poses some powerfully spiced thoughts that certainly weigh heavily on the minds of many, asking the question if we are collectively ready to learn from our past grievances. Even if you don't agree with her, she makes you pause and contemplate the things that you think you know.

No, the study of history is NOT a waste of time.
It is an integral to civilization's survival as oxygen is to our's.
It's not too late to make a good decision about that.