A Christmas Message 

2016 has been a most unholy of years. What term did Queen Elizabeth use that time? Annus horribilis? Well, I don't know what kind of stuff she's into but it seems particularly apt this year. So fill your glass past half full with your favourite indulgence and make the most of this mess of a year - a Cheery Messmas, if you will.

I was planning on being in St. John's a day earlier this year but Winter had other plans and about 90 minutes into my flight I looked out from my window seat to see a stunningly beautiful sunset above the clouds. The only problem was, the sunset should've been behind me and I wondered why were turning the wrong way. That was quickly answered by the captain telling us high crosswinds and low visibility meant landing in St. John's impossible. Back to Toronto it was and thus the return of a fine and (not so) cherished Christmas tradition: delayed travel due to poor weather.

A Canadian Roadtrip Sextodecimo Playlist for Americans 

Image via Lonely Planet



You told all your friends, “If Trump wins, I’m moving to Canada!” Now that day has come. You can’t believe it. Thanksgiving has come and gone and now you have less than a month before the President-Elect becomes the President. So? Do you really want to go through with it or do you just hope no one remembers what you said? Perhaps this playlist will help you with your feelings as you test drive for the border. Read more »

The 2016 Absurdly Quotidian Omnibus 

It's been sent to the printers. The first batch is in the post. At 281 pages, the tenth annual Omnibus (previously The Almanac of General Knowledge) may be one of the longest ever. Here is a preview: warts, grammatical errors, mistypings and misgivings for all to see.

Most years, this tome of timely nothings, takes a leisurely two weeks to assemble (three weekends, with the two weeks in-between). Each time I do it feels more like the end. For some reason I always finish with the Film section and usually have the TV on in the background (which may explain the typos) and a bowl of roasted chestnuts, or some chocolate or a peeled clementine or two beside me. It feels like closing up a shop for the season. A way of revisiting the year and remembering all that has happened. It was a hell of a year and it's not done yet – but I think we can all agree, we're all done with it.

No promises but I may make this available as either a downloadable PDF or ePub in the near future. If I do, I'll make a real effort to fix all the weird typos and grammatical errors that are driving me nuts!