The Ironic Restaurant reopened last week, with Vivian once again serving as the waitress, chef, and owner. She made her way around the room, taking our orders with an accent that could have been charged roaming fees. “What vould you like to drink?” she asked her dad. He looked up from his crossword. “What do […]
Leanne Shirtliffe
16 Reasons to Love or Leave Canada
I am thrilled that Clay Morgan is guest posting here today. He is a very hot commodity. In the past two weeks, he’s landed an agent, been Freshly Pressed (featured on WordPress’s homepage), spoken at a large conference, and been a star at Muckfest (see photos below, except the alligator one). You’ve seen his name […]
Thing 1 & Thing 2's Excellent Adventure: Stop 1=Tennessee!
Earlier in July, Thing 1 & Thing 2 had the first stop in their around the world adventure. They were hosted by the generous and hilarious Jessica Buttram, who writes beautifully at Meet the Buttrams. The things went by airmail in a padded envelope from Calgary, Alberta to Knoxville, Tennessee (2922 kms/1816 miles). If you’re […]
What To Do with a Dead Chicken
I am thrilled to bring you a guest post today by Kim Wilson. Kim is a great writer who works with college students and encourages people to achieve things they never thought possible. In her free time, she runs marathons, eats sushi, enjoys CrossFit, takes pictures, and tries new things. She also is an undertaker of chickens. All […]
On Being a Farm Girl and a Younger Sister
Autumn 1996 I walk onto my apartment’s balcony holding the cordless phone to my ear. “So,” I tell my brother who’s taking his PhD in Agriculture in Manitoba, “I’ve signed up to take a six-week self defense workshop.” “That’s cool,” he says. “Any particular reason?” “No, not really. My friend wants to take it, and […]
Adult Doodling Gone Wrong
I like to doodle, not because it’s a skill I possess, but because my hands seem to belong to another body, gesticulating wildly when I speak. Doodling sometimes contains them. The other day, my mom, dad and I were having our nightly, pre-dinner game of cribbage. While waiting for my mom to deal me a […]
My Celebrity Look-alikes Are Men
The blogging world vibrates with great ideas. Clay Morgan has a ton of them. Months ago, he wrote a post about all the celebrities people say he resembles. Suffice it to say that Clay’s look-alike squad could almost fill a deck of cards. Then earlier this week, one of my sisters-from-another-mister, Lori Dyan, posted her […]
10 Examples of Vacation Weirdness
My twins and I tend to spend most of July at my parents’ house in Manitoba. My husband joins us for a week, then hightails it back to Calgary, where he is now. I love being a kid again. And I’m lucky: being at my parents’ house is comfortable and easy. But the first week […]
Ode To Bizarre Interviews
I love bizarre interviews, maybe because weird questions make me feel closer to normal. My first interview was over at Knox McCoy’s blog and focused on this writing thing I do. Today, I am thrilled to be featured by Ellie Ann Soderstrom at her blog. I’m wearing my other hat, that of teacher. When I […]
If your kids want a pet, lie
This week’s post-from-the-archives originally appeared in November 2009; it marked only the seventh time I hit publish. Vivian and William, of course, are now 7, and they still talk about getting a pet. They also talk about flying to the moon on a broomstick. My 5-year-old twins desperately want a pet. They’d love a cat, […]