While I’m not as active in the Dunvegan Recreation Association as I have been in years past, I’m still a branch on their e-mail “tree” and enjoy following the largely good news stories that emerge. For example, last week Ben Williams announced that last Saturday’s ‘bee’ to tuck in the Dunvegan field for the winter had been cancelled. Apparently, when Bruce MacGillivray went to do a preliminary survey of the pitch last week, he discovered that most of the nets had already been taken down, so he grabbed his ladder and finished the job. As for who the Good Samaritan was who beat Bruce to the punch, my best guess is Robert Campbell. I don’t know what this community would do without volunteers like Robert, Bruce and all the others. Thank you.
FRIDAY Night at the Movies
Because of a scheduling issue, October’s “Saturday Night at the Movies” event will be held on Friday, October 18th. However, it will start a half hour later — at 7:30 PM — to give folks a chance to get home from work and have supper.
Laurie Maus and Bob Garner tell me they are going to start off the fall season with The King’s Speech. As you may recall, they tried to screen this flick in the spring, but ran into technical difficulties. Starring Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech is a historical drama about King George VI’s struggle to cope with a stammer by working with an Australian speech therapist. After his brother, Edward VIII, abdicates the throne in 1936, George VI relies on his new Australian friend to help him make his first wartime radio broadcast: Britain’s declaration of war on Germany.
Released in 2010, the movie has grossed $ $414,242,458 worldwide, which suggests it may be worth seeing… given that so many others forked over hard-earned cash to purchase a ticket. Come judge for yourself. Join us at the DRA hall, 19053 County Road 24 on Friday, October 18th at 7:30. As always, the DRA will provide free hot-buttered popcorn. However, it’s up to you to supply any other refreshments and a comfy cushion or chair. There’s no formal admission, but donations will be gratefully accepted. Remember, this is not intended as a family event; the idea is to provide a grownup’s night out close to home.
Musical free-for-all
I’m pleased to see that Dunveganite Denis Lavigne is having a certain degree of success with his musical jam sessions. I base this observation on the fact that, with two of them under his belt, he’s hosting another one. Jam session #3 is slated for October 12th at 7:00 PM in the Dunvegan Recreation Hall, 19053 County Road 24.
If you’d like to get together other musicians and play a little County, Blues or Rock & Roll, Denis extends a warm invitation to stop by. There’s no admission and everyone is welcome to bring his or her instrument and jump in… or just come and listen and mayhap, dance. If you want more information, give Denis a call at 613-363-8562.
Prize-winning event?
Like the Toronto-born stage magician and sceptic James Randi, I take claims of paranormal activity with a big grain of iodized salt. Until his retirement in 2015 at the age of 87, Randi and his Educational Foundation sponsored the “One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge.” It offered a prize of one million dollars US for concrete evidence of “any paranormal, supernatural, or occult power or event under test conditions agreed to by both parties.” In all the years it was offered, no one successfully claimed the prize. Nevertheless, there are many who walk among us who are true believers in the occult, and it to these persons who I direct this next item.
To help you get into a Halloween frame of mind, the Glengarry Pioneer Museum has put together a spine-tingling evening dedicated to exploring the world of spirits and listening for cries from the other side. Entitled “When Worlds Collide,” the phantasmagorical event includes: paranormal investigations of the Star Inn and Trapper’s Cabin; séances by a psychic sensitive (or “medium” to us older folks); lectures on Victorian spiritualism; a creepycollection of artifacts from the museum’s collection; a Victorian ‘professional mourner’ or two; ghost stories around a bonfire and more. Baked goods and Eerie Arts will also be available for sale in the Orange Lodge.
As there are only three tours — at 5:30, 7:00 or 8:30 PM — registration is limited. So I’d strongly advise you to sign up sooner rather than later. Admission is $20 per person and you must pre-register. You can pay via PayPal through the museum’s website: GlengarryPioneerMuseum.ca… or by calling the museum at 613-527-5230.
Historical apology
If you’re a Dunvegan history buff, you’ve no doubt noticed a dearth of yesteryear material of late. I hope to rectify this in near future… or “going forward” as people like to say these days. In the meantime, here’s a short story that Steve “Spider” Merritt sent me in response my Union Jack appeal a few weeks ago.
Steve’s Union Jack encounter happened the first week he became a Landed Immigrant. He and his wife had just crossed from the US and were heading to Montreal on the Eastern Township Autoroute in their 1929 Dodge pickup truck… at 45 mph. It wasn’t too long before the QPP kicked him off for going too slow. So the couple took a back route that followed the south shore of the St. Lawrence River. Near the Mercier Bridge, they spotted an abandoned house they were able to rent. To their delight, the couple found a Union Jack in the house. They thought it was the Canadian flag and proudly hung it from their clothesline. When he went to get some gas down the road (at 39¢ an imperial gallon, Steve recalls) he heard a voice say: “Welcome to the reserve, Englishman.” It turns out, Steve and his wife had inadvertently rented a house in Kahnawà:ke, Mohawk territory, and Steve had bumped into Chief White Eagle. “I had a good laugh,” Steve wrote, “when he told me that it was not the Canadian flag and I was not on Canadian land.”
-30-