I went ice skating over the weekend. I really couldn’t say no, though I was quite nervous – scared really – that I would fall on my keister and embarrass myself. I even wore a bulky hat in the event I fell and hit my head. At this age, I don’t need a concussion. You…

With apologies to Katrina and the Sunshine Band! If you scroll through social media, there is an entire cottage industry, advising on all manner of things we go through on a day to day basis. How to handle day to day life, how to be happy, how to avoid depression, how to turn the other…

With apologies to Katrina and the Sunshine Band! “Walking on Eggshells” has the potential to be a hit country song. After all, that is where heartbreak is laid bare. We spend a lot of time worrying about what others think of us. What part of our brain decides that what other people say, or how…

Ahhh the end of another year and beginning of a new chapter, a blank canvas, with which to write a new story. I have a lot to be thankful for, as a husband, father, and grandfather. I wish we could all be as gracious and appreciative to others all year round, rather than making a…

I am approaching 70 like a freaking freight train! I have heard a lot about these so called “golden years”. My parents used to talk about them in derogatory tones. We self flagellate with desultory lines like “there is nothing golden about the damn golden years” – promptly hike up our pants, let our big…

Becoming a parent is not for the faint of heart. I know countless people that have either not had kids yet, or have chosen not to have them, but yet know exactly how to raise your children.  Parenting styles are often based on two people bringing their own learned parenting skills to a relationship, combining…

“To spur on, impel, or motivate. To fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence. To produce or arouse a feeling or thought. To cause something to happen or be created”. When I think of the word inspire or inspiration, my mind immediately goes to Terry Fox. Selfless, courageous, a symbol of hope and perhaps…

Much to my surprise and everlasting gratitude, I had a couple of people come to my rescue after I tendered my resignation from Bell. You never know who you might have impressed along your professional journey. Colour me shocked, to have both Gary Leitch and Al Hobbs contact me to ask how they could help.…

I was back in Aylmer and working for Amtelecom once again. Things were good. We were back close to friends and family and I was happy with my new role. Geoff was born around 11PM on Oct 8, 1985. I had been on a 2 week course in Toronto with Ron Mervis and had to…

I started my career at Bell Canada with a lie. And now I had to somehow live up to it. The question from George Walker, my interviewer, was “Have you ever worked in a Central Office?” “A Telecom Central Office is the main switching facility for a telco, providing access to the Plain Old Telephone Service…