As you will know if you have been reading this blog for a while, I am a defender of the monarchy and Commonwealth (to be clear, I mean the monarchy based in the UK). I understand how both institutions work in the present day and am continuing to refine that understanding, so that I canContinue reading “Chipping Away at Ignorance, One Word at a Time”
Tag Archives: canada
Emily’s Victoria
Have you ever heard of the artist Emily Carr? If you live outside Canada, there is a good chance you haven’t. She was a painter from Victoria, known for capturing the landscapes and indigenous culture of British Columbia’s coast. Her style was bold and untraditional, influenced by the time she spent training abroad, and laterContinue reading “Emily’s Victoria”
What is Anodyne Liniment? (and other questions)
It’s time for one last post about Anne of Green Gables, because why not. The Anne books are set in the later nineteenth century (Anne of Green Gables is roughly the late 1870s to early 1880s), and although they have a somewhat timeless feel to them, there are the occasional things that I, at least,Continue reading “What is Anodyne Liniment? (and other questions) “
Queen Anne (but not that Queen Anne)
I did a previous post about Anne of Green Gables and L.M. Montgomery’s work. That post was partially an exhortation to read some (more) of her work, and partially an opportunity to explain why the recent Anne adaptation went so terribly wrong. I’ve decided I want to talk about Anne some more. First I needContinue reading “Queen Anne (but not that Queen Anne)”
Inform and Improve
It’s the first of the month, and that is always a time to think about how to improve oneself and make a fresh start. The month in question today is July, which means it is Canada Day. This year there are calls to cancel Canada Day, and instead to think about how Canada has wrongedContinue reading “Inform and Improve”
Read the Book!
Have you ever read anything by L.M. Montgomery? You’ve probably heard of her work, even if you don’t recognise her name: she wrote Anne of Green Gables, along with nineteen other novels and many, many, other short stories. There has been a recent TV adaptation of Anne of Green Gables, which, I do not hesitateContinue reading “Read the Book!”
Just Because X, Doesn’t Mean Y
One thing I cannot stand is something I’ve started to call ‘black and white’ thinking’. This may not be exactly the best term for it – ‘blinkered’ thinking might be a more accurate term perhaps – but it’s what I call it when people don’t know a lot about a topic, but seize on oneContinue reading “Just Because X, Doesn’t Mean Y”
Nuancing Some Stereotypes
This is being posted on Commonwealth Day, so, Happy Commonwealth Day! Have a read of my previous post on here about the Commonwealth if you want to know more about that. This post, though, is about my favourite Commonwealth Realm: Canada. There is so much I would like to say about Canada: we’ve already hadContinue reading “Nuancing Some Stereotypes”
Island-Exploring
If you’ve read the previous posts on this blog, you’ll know how much I love a good city map. A map can tell you quite a lot, which is part of the reason I like them so much. When I was reading about place names in Victoria (see ‘I Shall Find It On The Map’Continue reading “Island-Exploring”
‘I Shall Find It On The Map’ – Part 2
In the previous post, we talked about the street names in York, particularly some of the more obscure names. These were, in many cases, streets which have been around, in generally the same place, for centuries, preserving a flavour of the layers of York’s history. Street names show the occupation of a place over time,Continue reading “‘I Shall Find It On The Map’ – Part 2”
How It Was Because 