Today, Smugglers’ Cove in my home town of Victoria, British Columbia, is a peaceful place where families visit to picnic or just admire the scenery. Not so a few decades ago! The capital city of British Columbia, Victoria, is known for many things today—tea at the Empress Hotel, the world-famous Butchart Gardens, and all the
SMUGGLING IN THE DAYS OF YORE! Read More »
Christmas 2020 is going to be very different for us all. This year there will be no large family Christmas dinners and most of our pre-Christmas celebrations have already been cancelled—no parades, no Christmas parties, no magical trips walking through a wonderland of lights and no large gatherings anywhere. As we stagger along under mounting
Now that Labour Day is over, I am looking ahead to Thanksgiving. As 2020 has been such a difficult year for so many people, we all have to scramble to think of things we can really be thankful for. But I still believe there are many. But first a little Thanksgiving history because, as you
If, like me, you’re feeling a wee bit “witchy” during these COVID-19 days, here’s a piece of witchcraft history to ponder on. For instance, did you know that it was on September 22nd in 1692, 328 years ago, that the last eight witches in Salem were hung for their so-called crimes? The history of witchcraft
Witches and Wizards Read More »
Anton Chekov had it right—especially for writers like me. As an established non-fiction writer in British Columbia, Canada, I am now branching out into fiction and the issue of “telling” versus “showing” is paramount. The biggest problem for writers going from writing non-fiction to writing fiction is being able to switch from telling the story
From Fact to Fiction Read More »
Are you passionate about saving our heritage? If so, read on . . . . Many historic sites around the world that rely on visiting tourists for income, are suffering badly this year because of COVID 19. Many will not survive without more financial support—either from government, private donations or tourism. In British Columbia’s capital
Tomorrow, June 2nd, will mark sixty-seven years since a young Princess was crowned Queen in London, England, in 1953. Elizabeth II was following in the path of her illustrious ancestors. Exactly 462 years earlier in 1491, one of her ancestors, King Henry VIII, known primarily for the number of wives he had, was born that
On this Day in History! Read More »
A QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY A QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY A QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY Lately I have been pondering on the passing of time and in particular on certain dates throughout history—like May 24th for instance—a Queen’s birthday anniversary celebrated every year on the Monday preceding May 24th. This year in my hometown of Victoria, British Columbia, the holiday will
A Queen’s Birthday Read More »
In this very strange world of self isolation, social distancing and not being able to travel, I doubt any of us are giving much thought to a man who was so passionate about automobiles and travel in the early years of the 20th century that he decided to make a big difference in the world.
PANDEMIC! 3/29/2020 0 Comments Portrait of Sir James Douglas courtesy of “The Afro News” dated January 8th, 2015. The word PANDEMIC sends shivers down everyone’s spine so I’ve started today’s blog with an adorable picture of little girls in pink carrying on with their ballet lessons during frightening times such as the SARS epidemic in
