Recent Comments

1. 14 days ago on Betty

   As a Canadian he could be referring to his local Home Hardware store, part of a Co-op. Home Depot also exists in Canada, but the Home Hardware might be close by in his neighbourhood. And you can buy a single screw or bolt from a large selection if need be. The closest one to me is the delightfully named Blight’s Home Hardware in Vancouver. “Easy Peasy” seemed to be out of use until recently – now I hear it all the time.

2. 4 months ago on Fred Basset

   My father started to take Kodachrome slides in 1954, and they still retain their vivid colours. Others like Agfachrome have turned weird colours or faded away.

3. 4 months ago on Betty

   Speaking of snacks, I just had a craving for Hawkin’s Cheezies – from Belleville, Ontario. More robust than Cheetos and made with cheddar cheese. But only available in Canada, so if you are an American next time you head north over the border try some.

4. 4 months ago on Betty

   I grew up in the 1950s with a party line phone and our number was WHitehall 5-9998. The challenge was that calls had to be short, and you never knew if your party was listening in. When I moved out on my own in Vancouver in 1967 the only service available was a two-party line, for $5.15 a month. I still maintain a landline for most calls, but also have an iPhone.

5. 5 months ago on Ben

   Three years ago a fan exactly like this one was put out for disposal in the back lane where I live. It was dirty and wouldn’t run. I cleaned it up, disassembled the electric motor and found the lubricant had dried out. I used high temperature grease on the bearings and it has hummed away through all the heat waves we have had. My 1928 home in Vancouver BC does not have AC but with double hung windows I keep the house comfortable.

6. 6 months ago on Ben

   Tabernac.

7. 6 months ago on Betty

   In Vancouver B.C. we have just received the first Vidalia onions from Georgia, and by August the Walla Walla onions from Washington state will arrive. These are both seasonal and the best sweet onions to cook with. The rest of the year we have to “make do” with regular sweet onions from California.

8. 8 months ago on Ben

   76 and counting. Retired as a city trolley bus driver fourteen years ago. Still keep my Class 2 licence and volunteer to drive buses with a transit museum society. Cycling, hiking and morning exercise at home help me stay fit. Calendar is full. Increasing number of deaths of long time friends is the hardest part of ageing.

9. 9 months ago on Cornered

   I live in Vancouver and use my clothesline all year if it isn’t raining. Many homes in Vancouver have a working clothesline, while a trip to Seattle reveals they are seldom seen. Clothing off the line has a great fresh scent and feel, and bed sheets are welcoming at the end of the day. Wringer washers outsold automatics in Canada until 1968, while in the USA that change took place in 1951.