Author tackles love, passion, appearance and reality in India

Irwin Block

April 2012

Meeting Montreal writer Merrily Weisbord the other day was a celebration, though you wouldn’t know it from looking at our table.

No alcohol, coffee, tea, cake or even bread—only a tape recorder, notebook and some papers were laid out at Mamie Clafouti, a charming bakery on St. Denis.

Though she had yet to take her daily swim, Weisbord was buoyant and full of joyful energy as I told her how much I loved reading her critically acclaimed The Love Queen of Malabar: Memoir of a Friendship With Kamala Das (McGill Queen’s University Press, 278 pages, $32.95).

This fascinating memoir of her 10-year friendship with South Indian poet-essayist-short-story writer
Kamala Das is a terrific read: informative, intimate, full of surprises and a triumph of friendship, trust and humanity.

Not that she needed more accolades for the book, published in 2010 a year after Das died. It has been recognized as a finely crafted work of literary non-fiction. It has the twists and turns of a fast-paced novel, but reveals much about India today, with the complex personality of one of its most beloved writers, and Weisbord’s reflections as she discovers the many layers of the writer and her life in far-off Kerala.

Montreal writer Merrily Weisbord is buoyant and full of joyful energy. Photo courtesy of Merrily Weisbord

It was chosen as a finalist by the Writer’s Trust Non-Fiction Prize (2010), Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction (2011),
Quebec Writers’ Federation Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction (2011)
and the CBC’s Canada Reads: True Stories Top 40. Having put 10 years into research and writing, and by her reckoning countless rewrites and refinements, Weisbord is delighted with the way it was received.

“I was totally blown away, totally thrilled, happy, relieved,” she said.

The 278-page book reads at times like a thriller, with some incredible revelations about how a high-caste Indian woman from a privileged background is forced by her father into a marriage at age 15 because she flunked an exam.

The story reveals much about appearances and realities in India, love and passion, and one woman’s thirst to live life to the fullest.

In a society where tensions between Hindus and Muslims remain ever present, Das does the unthinkable at a mature age, in pursuit of love, and converts to Islam only to learn later of the deception that lies behind it all.

Yet we wonder about Das and her motives.

Is life a canvas for her boundless imagination?

It all started when Weisbord, looking for a new and different literary experience, decided to write a travel book intertwined with her relationship with India’s most famous literary figure.

In The Strangest Dream, Merrily Weisbord explores her parents’ Communist roots. Photo courtesy of Merrily Weisbord

An enjoyable aspect of the book is Das visiting the family’s Laurentian retreat, Weisbord Acres, in Prévost, and how the Love Queen of Malabar interacts with the extended family and even gets Merrily to secure more protection for herself in her common-law relationship with Arnie Gelbart.

A host of family pictures adds a visual element to the prose. It is laced with excerpts from Das’s writing and numerous tape-recorded comments from Das and Weisbord family members. The reader becomes part of the family.

“The first book I wrote was The Strangest Dream, which was to discover why people, who I thought were good people, like my parents, had joined the Communist Party in the 1930s. I really needed to know that because I lived through the Cold War and the demonization of Communists and I knew that wasn’t true of my parents and wanted to understand.

“My next book was Our Future Selves: Love, Life, Sex, and Aging, and I wanted to understand what it would be like to get older.

“I went to such people as Linus Pauling, Betty Friedan, as well as my dad and my aunts, to understand how to age in a healthy, curious and lively way, to enjoy life.”

Weisbord was 46 at the time.

With her veterinarian-daughter Kim Kachanoff, she wrote a book called Dogs With Jobs, which resulted in a five-year TV series.

When her three daughters became independent, Weisbord suddenly felt the desire “to fly out of myself and into a larger world.” She feared that if she “stayed put, conformity and familiarity would close around me like a shell.”

She conceived the book as a joint effort, but Das declined.

“When she said, ‘It’s your book,’ my heart sank. She said to me, ‘Be sharp as a knife,’ and I decided to publish everything she told me that was relevant to understand her life and work.”

Das did not hold back about being raped by her first husband, who preferred men as sexual partners, and was not above using her to seduce his superiors to advance his career. In so doing, the book exposes the complexity, duplicity, and dog-eat-dog world that co-exists alongside the spirituality of Indian society. But it is equally fascinating to read Weisbord’s thoughts and observations as the relationship develops.

She credits Philip Cercone, executive director of McGill-Queen’s University Press, with having the “guts” to take on a book such as hers in the literary-non-fiction genre, which faces major marketing challenges.

The gamble paid off big time, and its success helped Weisbord obtain another Canada Council grant to enable her to write her next book.

All she’ll say about it is the working title: “Blessed.”

irblock@hotmail.com

Schools offer dental services that won’t chew through your savings

Irwin Block

April 2012

Adele remembers the shock when she received an invoice from her dentist for $150 for a cleaning and exam, plus a toothbrush.

At the time, 20 years ago, she could not afford that kind of money and started looking around for alternatives. Luckily, Adele discovered the McCall Dental Clinic run by McGill University’s Faculty of Dentistry at the Montreal General Hospital.

Fees for services then, and now, are 20 to 50 per cent lower than the rates recommended in the annual guide of the Association des chirurgiens dentistes du Québec.

And Adele—she asked that her real name not be used—has never looked back or gone elsewhere for dental care.

The services are carried out by third- and fourth-year dentistry students, supervised by their teachers, who are accredited dentists. Adele recalled she felt a bit nervous about being treated by students, but after the first few visits, she became reassured.

“They knew what they were doing, they were closely supervised, and the equipment seemed more up-to-date than in your average dental office,” she said. Only once does she recall asking that another student take over her care, since she found the first student was using “too much force” in her mouth.

She appreciates that when a treatment plan is presented, there could be a Plan A and a cheaper Plan B, and you can pay it off in installments.

“I feel secure because they are up to date in their technology, they know what they are doing, and they are supervised,” she said. “It’s easier on my budget and I feel safer.”

The clinic, and a similar one at Université de Montréal, is open to all, and there is no means test.

Here, according to manager Joanne Chouinard at McGill, is how it works: Since the primary purpose is to perfect the training of future dentists, the clinic will only accept patients who fit their pedagogical needs at the time, and where the problems that have to be addressed are not “too difficult or too complicated.”

This will be determined after an initial evaluation, which costs $40, including full-mouth X-rays. A patient who is not accepted gets a CD with the X-rays. A patient who is accepted gets a second appointment and is charged an additional $45 for the completion of the detailed exam, preparation of treatment plan and estimated cost.

For patients with full dentures, the charge for the first appointment is $65.

Orthodontic treatment is available for children and adults, but only basic cases are accepted. The charge for the first appointment is $25.

It takes longer for procedures to be completed because students are having their first experiences and they are checked and supervised at every step. A filling that might take one hour or less at a private clinic could take three to four hours to complete at a university clinic, Chouinard said.

If there is a long treatment plan, lasting more than a semester, more than one student might do the work.

While many of the procedures cost half that recommended by the dentists’ association, the 20-per-cent reduction is limited by fixed commercial laboratory charges for such things as crowns and implants,
Chouinard explained.

It could take two to four months for a first appointment, and there are no appointments in the summer.

An exception is this July, when McGill’s dental clinic is offering free basic care to children 10 to 17 and physically or intellectually disabled persons 10 and up. Teeth can be checked and cleaned and minor dental work, such as fillings and extractions, carried out from July 2-27.

A similar clinic is offered by the Université de Montréal at the Roger Gaudry Pavilion, 2900 Edouard Montpetit. Second-year students take X-rays and see patients for preventive measures and full dentures. Although applications are being accepted for a variety of patients, the clinic there is looking for those who need root canals, partial bridges, full dentures, and minor orthodontics (for patients aged seven to 12).

McGill Undergraduate Teaching Clinic: 514-934-8545. Université de Montréal: 514-343-6750.

Fees are set by individual dentists

Fees for dental services at private clinics in Quebec are set by each dentist. They use a guide, updated annually by the Association des chirurgiens dentists du Québec, to help determine how to charge fees.

There is no public input in the committee of dentists that establishes the guide, and it reflects only the difficulty of the procedure and the time it takes, comparisons with rates in other provinces, inflation and costs of operations.

The guide is not made public, and is accessible only at the National Library, association president Serge Langlois says. Even if it were available online, it would only be comprehensible to professionals who understand the codes that use technical terms.

He said the association plans a PR campaign to explain its fee-determination process, but he acknowledged that the association representing 3,800 Quebec dentists has a transparency problem.

He suggested that patients discuss the issue with their dentists.

Examples from the guide:

Complete oral exam, without panoramic X-ray: $70-115

Scaling and cleaning: $94 and up

Amalgam-gray filling: $67 (molar)

Composite-white filling: $104

Extraction (per tooth): $101

Surgical extraction: $163-$349

Root canal treatment: $431

Crown: $726 plus lab fees.

Children under 10 get free services (except preventive and cleaning), paid for by the Régie de l’Asssurance maladie du Québec. Welfare recipients and their dependents get most dental services covered by the RAMQ.

When you wish upon a star, the Sûreté du Québec may show up

Hayley Juhl

April 2012

My partner had been pestering me all week to take her to see the meteor shower. This requires getting away from the city lights, and I’d been putting it off because Montreal bridges aren’t my favourite things about this town.

I finally gave in. We rounded up our teenage niece, Kendra, and crossed the falling-apart Mercier Bridge en route to our regular viewing spot.

It’s not far from an old farmhouse my parents used to own in Howick. There is a wicked S-curve on Scotch Concession with an old tractor trail off one of the sharp bends.

When Melani’s little sister was in elementary school, we’d pull in there, cut the lights and wait for our eyes to adjust. Within moments the air was so full of fireflies you could almost read a book by their light.

Thousands of them blinked away as we sat there breathless for minutes, for an hour.

I don’t know whether chatter bothers fireflies, but we’d speak softly and laugh quietly so as not to disturb the sparkles of heaven a hand’s-breadth away.

But the tractor trail is overgrown now. There is no shoulder on the barely-two-lane road and tall, dark trees obscure most of the sky. Driving along that road, it’s tradition for someone to say spookily: “I seen this movie!”

If you ask a farmer nicely, he’ll probably let you park on his land to look at the sky from his fields. But if you don’t ask, if you just show up in the middle of the night, he’s going to get cranky. My goal for the evening became “don’t anger the farmer.”

So we looped around to St. Martine, a beautiful town along the river. I’d like to retire there, in a house with a wraparound deck protected by mosquito netting and a dock I can lie on to watch the stars and think heavy thoughts. Or no thoughts at all—really, that’s more like me.

“Ooooh, there’s a cemetery,” Melani said, pointing. “Can you pull in?”

I parked near the gate to the graveyard. A sign noted it is closed after sundown and the gates were locked. We followed the fence to where it met a cornfield. The gates were locked, but the fence just ended, so of course Kendra walked around it.

“The police’ll be along to check on the car,” I told her and she reluctantly came back to us.

We lay in the dewy grass directly beneath the Milky Way and saw a few weak shooting stars and talked about boys and planets and other Very Important Things.

When I heard the crunch of gravel behind us, I said, “Well, there’s the cops.”

Kendra panicked a little, but as I got up, I said, “They’re not going to shoot us. Just walk over very slowly.”

There was no choice but to go slowly. They had their roof lights on full blast; it was brighter than a noontime sun. I walked close to the gravel road and stopped, waiting for them to come to me.

“I can ask what you’re doing here?” the Sûreté du Québec officer said.

“We came to see the meteor shower,” I told him with a smile.

“You’ll have to tell me what this is, a mett-E-or shower.”

Melani’s French is better than mine. “Les étoiles filantes,” she told him.

“Oh, that’s tonight?”

“It’s all week.”

He looked back at me. “And it’s your car?”

“Yes.”

“You’re from where?”

“Montreal.”

“Oh, so you should speak French.”

“I grew up in Toronto,” I said. It’s no excuse, but when people hear it, they cut me some slack.

“Okay,” he said. “Enjoy the show.”

I’d been ready to drive away. “You mean we can stay?”

He laughed at me. “Sure. Have fun.”

Well, that went well. The police continued their patrol. We wandered back to our corner by the cornfield. Melani and Kendra decided that since the cops had already been there, it was safe to go into the graveyard.

They didn’t go too close to the headstones—it was midnight, after all—but Melani flopped down on the cemetery side of the fence.

“You’re going to lie down here?” Kendra asked, following suit.

“You might as well,” I said. “Everyone else in there is lying down.”

I’ve never seen two people move so fast in my entire life.

The Lyrid meteor shower is April 16-25, peaking on April 21 and 22. There will be a new moon April 21, which means dark skies and a better light show from 10 pm till dawn.

Gary Carter remembered for his friendship, generous smile

Daniel Sailofsky

April 2012

With tears welling in his eyes and a Montreal Expos cap on his head, former Expos star Warren Cromartie could barely begin to talk about his best friend, Gary Carter, without choking up.

When he finished his speech, though, with a passionate call for baseball to return to Montreal, he flashed a smile that would’ve made Carter proud.

Cromartie and other esteemed athletes and guests came together on March 18 for the eighth annual Cummings Centre Celebrity Sports Breakfast, in honour of the Expos Hall of Fame catcher who died February 16. The event raises money for Seniors in Crisis, a foundation that provides financial support to seniors in need.

They also came to pay tribute to Carter, a beloved figure in the Montreal sports community.

“Gary was just the best,” Cromartie told the crowd. “Everything you saw on camera, that big smile, the things he did with the kids, it was all genuine.”

The Habs’ Max Pacioretty, with wife Katia, fields questions from TSN 990 broadcaster Tony Marinaro

Kid—a song by Montreal-born rapper Annakin Slayd and Carter’s nickname as a player—was played, and Slayd said a few words about the ball-player. Slayd has made a name for himself with sports-themed songs for the Canadiens and Expos. Kid is a tribute to Carter.

“He was my hero, in all sports and even higher than some of the artists I looked up to as a kid,” Slayd said. “To think that this man is no longer with us and that I’ll never see that smile again is really hard.”

Kid looks back at Carter’s best moments with the Expos and chronicles Slayd’s special moment with him in his last game for the Expos, in 1992. Slayd had spent the previous night making a sign for Carter, and snuck down to the lower-level seating in hopes that Carter would acknowledge the sign. Carter gave him a thumbs-up and a big smile.

The next day, the front page of The Gazette had a picture of Carter with Slayd’s sign in the background, icing on the cake for his biggest fan.

“He’d been sick for a while, so I thought I had prepared myself, and at first I was okay,” Slayd said. “But when I started editing the video and putting the clips together, I realized what a big part of my childhood I had lost.”

Other guests also had fond memories of the Expos catcher, including Gazette sports reporter Dave Stubbs.

“Gary Carter was the first professional athlete I ever interviewed, in 1977,” Stubbs said. “Then in 1993, when the Expos retired his number, I told him that and he said he remembered.

“He had done so many interviews, I told him there was no way he remembered that one, but then he told me exactly what we had talked about that day in perfect detail.”

Anakin Slayd speaks about his Gary Carter tribute song, Kid.

Carter was also great for the community in Montreal, Stubbs said.

“He was a tremendous man. I remember seeing Gary at some minor-league softball tournaments, just sitting in the bleachers for hours signing autographs. He didn’t have to be there, but he wanted to make the kids happy.”

Stubbs talked about another athlete who seems to be gaining more and more respect for his work in the community, Montreal Canadiens’ forward Max Pacioretty.

“It’s a Sunday after back-to-back games and I’m sure he’d rather be sleeping in right now, but it doesn’t surprise me at all that he’s here,” Stubbs said. “The way Max has engaged with the community of Montreal is really special.”

Guest of honour Alan Maislin runs the Israeli Ice Hockey Federation, which has been growing considerably in recent years.

“The most amazing thing was hearing ‘Hatikvah’ and chants of ‘Yisrael’ while watching games in Israel,” Maislin told the crowd. “Sports transcends everything.”

Israel’s consul-general for Quebec, Joel Lion, presented Maislin with a leadership award.

Côte St. Luc Mayor Anthony Housefather announced to roaring applause that the baseball field at Trudeau Park will be renamed Gary Carter Field.

The event ended with a short auction led by Montreal-born comedian Joey Elias, as autographed sticks and jerseys from Pacioretty and teammate P.K. Subban were auctioned off. Subban made a surprise visit at the end of the breakfast, and received a rock star’s welcome from the kids and adults on hand.

Subban almost took the spotlight off Carter, but not quite. With Carter’s big smile plastered on the screen and Cromartie’s words still reverberating, no one would forget about “the Kid” and the lasting impression he made on Montreal sports fans everywhere.

The breakfast raised $160,000.

Joyce Carole Oates to accept lifetime achievement award

Irwin Block

April 2012

Montreal’s Blue Metropolis literary festival—the place to be if you want to discover and meet some of the finest local, national and international writers—keeps getting bigger and better.

American writer Joyce Carole Oates—who has published 50 novels since her debut in 1963 and an equal number of works in others genres—will accept the festival’s $10,000 prize for her lifetime achievement.

Oates will get the award and discuss her life and career with the CBC’s Eleanor Wachtel at the Grande Bibliothèque on Berri and de Maisonneuve downtown, April 21, 6:30 pm.

Earlier that day she will join an on-stage discussion about her crime novels with H.J. (Jack) Kirchoff, Globe & Mail deputy books editor. This is at 11:30 am at the OPUS Hotel, Salon St. Laurent, 10 Sherbrooke W.

The festival, now in its 14th year, runs April 18 to 23. Full details have yet to be made public.

The Blue Met Arab prize is to be awarded to Ahdaf Soueif, the Egyptian novelist who has achieved an international audience for her lyrical novels and commentaries in The Guardian.

She wrote The Map of Love and the recent published My City, Our Revolution, a reflection on the convulsive Arab Spring in Tahrir Square.

Italian writer Edouardo Nesi, winner of the 2011 Strega Prize for his novel Storia della mia gente (Story of My People), is another high-profile literary figure to speak at Blue Met.

His novel/essay examines the first generation of Italians who, as a result of globalization, are poorer than their parents.

The oft-neglected writing coming out of Cuba will include visits by crime writer and journalist Leonard Padura, novelist and poet Wendy Guerra, and exiled novelist Eduardo Manet, who lives in Paris.

The crime-writing genre will feature such accomplished locals as Trevor Ferguson and Chrystine Brouillet.

Ettinger’s: Save room for dessert

Kristine Berey

April 2012

Leave your cares at home, bring friends and loved ones and a big appetite, and you’re sure to be rewarded at Ettinger’s Deli and Bar, on Newman in LaSalle.

In a former auto-parts shop amid strip malls, garages and fast-food restaurants, what must have been an industrial space has morphed into a spacious dining area on two levels, with a fully licensed bar. The rich walnut stained tables and chairs are balanced by a wall of picture windows, flooding the front area with natural light. Prints of charming vintage antique-car advertisements adorn the walls.

Two welcome features for ladies are a small hook on the undersides of the tables, to hang your purse, and, equally important, pristine bathrooms.

Ettinger’s menu is vast and imaginative, featuring an old-style delicatessen menu including kosher-style and vegetarian dishes and house specialties. There are hamburgers, French fries, smoked meat, salads, surf’n’turf, sandwiches, and a “Junior” version of these adult classics for the kiddies, who are made to feel welcome.

The food, including a special spice mix found on the tables, is prepared on the premises—the smoked meat is smoked upstairs and hamburgers are made on the spot, which is why it takes about 15 minutes for it to arrive.

“Nothing here is frozen,” our waitress, Krystal, assured us. The affordably priced dishes have a personal touch, as lowly condiments that one never thinks twice about achieve star status with Ettinger’s name on the menu: This includes Ettinger’s mustard, Ettinger’s mayo, (spicy and regular, featuring Ettinger’s special spice blend—both delicious), Ettinger’s traditional coleslaw (a little on the sweet side but with a clean home-made taste), barbecue sauce, poutine sauce and marinara (can’t stop eating it once you start) and meat sauce.

My companions were delighted with their choices of the turkey sandwich (made with real roast turkey and accompanied by a fresh garden salad featuring various greens), Classic Luxenburger, and LaSalle Burger, served with caramelized onions, while I think my Saul’s Original Home-Made Smoked Meat Sandwich was one of the best I have ever tasted.

The French fries were curly, but not greasy.

Though we all chose meat dishes, vegetarians would not be at a loss here, as the menu features breaded calamari, beer-battered mushrooms, home-cured gravlax, fish and chips, red pepper and lentil soup and a vegetarian burger with all the traditional accoutrements.

If there is a downside, it is that the portions are truly man-size—not your average man, but perhaps a truck driver or a weight lifter. This is great if you are a hungry man, but for us ladies, there was simply no room for dessert, which was a shame.

The dessert/drinks menu has all the nostalgic treats you read about in Archie comics: old-fashioned sundaes made with two scoops of French vanilla, triple chocolate or strawberries and cream premium ice cream, hot fudge, caramel or strawberry sauce, topped with whipped cream, nuts and a cherry … need I go on?

Besides apple pie and chocolate cake, there are old-fashioned milkshakes and ice-cream floats.

For more sophisticated palates, other offerings include Ettinger’s Grand Marnier cheesecake, cappuccino, latte and sparkling water, all of which, alas, will have to be revisited.

9100 Newman. 514-408-9100, ettingers.ca

Buenos Aires without reservations

click here to view images of Buenos Aires

Barbara Moser & Irwin Block

April 2012

Our winter vacation was our first adventure in South America. What took us so long? After more than half a lifetime we finally agreed it was time to explore this continent and that our visit would give us the optimal temperatures since it was summer during the holiday period in December and January when we visited Argentina and Chile.

Now we are known for not making reservations but we thought it wise to book the first days in Buenos Aires given that we were novices at travelling in South America. We were wrong. The bed and breakfast we booked on line, in San Telmo, an antique lover’s dream neighbourhood, was more expensive than it was worth ($75) and two flights up, even though we had specified we wanted ground floor.

We loved the area though, especially our favourite restaurant just down the street. El Desnivel is a parilla or steakhouse, a dream for meat and pasta lovers at 855 Defensa. Tourists and locals pack the place, drawn by the open-air grill just inside the doorway. Irwin gorged on a steak about two inches high and four inches in circumference and Barbara ran out of superlatives as she slowly emptied a huge plate of homemade spinach pasta topped with some of the best pesto sauce ever. We had been warned about being vegetarian in Argentina, but the threats were unfounded. Barbara sampled fresh veggies and fruits, quinoa, pizzas, pasta, soups, paninis, cheeses, and salad bars. In other words, don’t let those carnivores scare you. There are even all-you-can-eat by weight vegetarian cafeterias that outdo Canadian counterparts for quality and price.

After three nights in San Telmo, we happened upon the Tango hotel in downtown Buenos Aires where we found an awful lot more for $82—an elevator, flat-screen TV, air conditioning—all a hop, skip, and a jump from several subway stations.

We spent the entire six days in BA boldly boarding one subway train after another, holding on tightly to our knapsacks as we had been instructed and touring many of the famed areas including upscale Recolletta, where the best museums are located, the lovely and more modern areas of Palermo, the traditional Jewish area of Once (pronounced Ohn-say).

That is where the community’s AMIA headquarters, located in a high-rise, was the victim of a terrorist bombing in 1994 that killed 87 people and wounded 100 others. The community’s archives were destroyed and many of Argentina’s 250,000 Jews felt under assault.

It was nearly impossible to visit inside the building, even with an invitation. We visited one of the oldest synagogues there, among about 50 in the city. At night, we booked a tango show at the famed Tarantino Restaurant, and it was truly a treat. We also saw a free tango show at a park in San Telmo.

One afternoon we toured the spectacular Colon Theatre with a group. Unfortunately the theatre was closed for concerts because of the vacation, which equals our summer vacation for school children and universities. It boasts a La Scala style, horseshoe-shaped auditorium with 2,487 seats, standing room for 1,000 and a stage 20-metres wide, 15 metres high and 20 metres deep, with apparently superb acoustics. The Petit Colon coffee shop nearby is a classic, right out of 1930s Paris.

At night, Buenos Aires can become a bit intimidating and we stuck to short outings with only a minimum of walking and taxis.

During our first week, we visited Plaza de Mayo to witness the continuing protest of the Mothers of the Disappeared, which takes place every Thursday at 3:30 pm, rain or shine. They walk around the square carrying pictures of their children, brothers, sisters who were taken from them in the 1970s and early 1980s.

They were swept up in the dirty war, and their “crime” was to be active politically in unions, student groups or political parties. We interviewed one or two of the mothers in the smaller group, which walks in silence. They are asking that the bodies be identified in the mass graves through their own DNA. Another group of mothers is more political, louder, better organized but run by a “grandmother-dictator,” one of the women told us. They denounced the government and some identified themselves as being radical Peronists. They run a booth selling T shirts and other memorabilia. The pain and injustice live on.

Next month: The glories of Iguazu Falls.

Editorial: NDP leader Thomas Mulcair is positioned to make history

April 2012

With the keys to Stornoway—official residence of the leader of the opposition—in his pocket, NDP leader Tom Mulcair has his work cut out for him. Can he adapt his attack style so he can be seen as a prime minister in waiting, a reasonable alternative to Stephen Harper?

Can he broaden NDP support and offer distinct policies while remaining faithful to the party’s social-democratic base?

Mulcair has shown in the way he ran his campaign and in the understated and thoughtful way he started his new role that he understands he needs to adjust his public persona. Though Brian Topp had the support of the party establishment, Mulcair succeeded in getting the leadership contest extended so he could build up membership in Quebec, his natural base of support. He did it quietly and respectfully and his request was granted.

Though the campaign lacked lustre and made few headlines, it became clear to NDP stalwarts that Mulcair had the experience, judgment and debating skills necessary in these media-focused times to “sell” the NDP product. Let us not forget that he made a name for himself as head of the Office des professions du Québec, where he made disciplinary hearings more transparent, with zero tolerance for sexual abuse of patients by medical professionals.

He then catapulted into the Quebec Liberal Party and got good marks from environmental critics for his handling of that portfolio. He quit against a background of disagreement over the proposed privatization of Mont Orford Park. His winning a by-election and subsequent re-election for the federal NDP in Outremont—once considered an unassailable Liberal bastion—says a lot about his ability to take on tough political challenges.

His main point, that the NDP has to appeal to progressive voters who support the Liberals, was well received. How he goes about it will be the key to his plan to make the traditional third party in Canadian politics into the first. The devil will be in the details, but NDP rank and filers obviously agree.

Critics from the left feared he would deal harshly with Libby Davies, the Vancouver East MP who supports boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel. Mulcair confounded those critics by naming Davies his deputy leader. Whether he will insist she modify her Israel opinions remains to be seen. Mulcair risks defeat in Outremont and the NDP would suffer if the party is perceived to be too one-sided in its Middle East policies.

The other unknown factor in the NDP’s fortunes under Mulcair is how the Liberals fill their leadership vacuum. Interim leader Bob Rae is formidable as a debater and is proving capable and attractive heading the Grits. (How ironic that a former Ontario NDP premier speaks for the Liberals and a former Quebec Liberal cabinet minister heads the NDP.)

The new face is the bearded Mulcair. He has a clear field to establish a prime ministerial persona, build a shadow cabinet, tailor and develop policies to make the case for an NDP government.

Charity often starts with friendships

Natalie Bercovici

April 2012

After her husband’s passing, a friend of 30 years left Montreal to join her sister and sister’s family. Her son stayed in Montreal, having established friends and a promising career.

My friend calls when she comes to town and although our friendship is no longer predominant in our lives, we arrange to have dinner together each time she comes to Montreal and call each other from time to time. We are reminded of the good times we had with our families.

Another good friendship developed during high school, but we were distant for a long time when we found our Prince Charmings and moved in separate circles. Our friendship is periodically renewed and is equally important although we both do not have a lot of free time. Each summer my husband and I attend a reunion to catch up with school chums.

Family and friends are important assets. We must do all we can to cherish them. We have made many friends through Generations Foundation, with whom we connect as often as possible.

Natalie Bercovici (second from left) with her school chums at a recent reunion. Photo courtesy of Natalie Bercovici

I have named Trails End Camp and Amy Molson Camp “diamonds in the rough.” At summer camp in the country, children can forget their troubles and can be children while at the same time they learn, face new challenges and make new friends. The friends they already have can share fun times together at the same camp.

Summer camp can cement relationships; it becomes a home away from home. Friends are made naturally and with ease while building kinship.

Memories are born at camp, which children carry throughout their lives.

If you would like to help feed a hungry child in the next few months or send a child to summer camp in July and August, call to join us at the Scotiabank Charity Challenge April 29 for the five-kilometre walk or 21-km run. Reserve early for Same Time Next Year, Generations Foundation’s theatre evening, May 2. 514-933-8585

Nicolas Carpentier

Friends are very important to Sun Youth. The organization wouldn’t exist if not for a group of friends who, in 1954, decided to create their own community group to keep themselves busy and out of trouble. Since then, Sun Youth has grown to what it is today thanks to the precious help of its many friends, donors and volunteers.

Sun Youth rewards friends for their loyalty. Such a friend is Lyle McGuigan, an 80-year-old man who has been volunteering at Sun Youth for more than 30 years. His wish was to see the Montreal Canadiens play. Thanks to a donor who graciously gave tickets and the help of a volunteer to accompany him, Lyle saw the Habs in action against the Toronto Maple Leafs March 3.

Although the Canadiens didn’t win, Lyle very much enjoyed the game and tour of the Bell Centre.

“They took very good care of me and we had very nice seats,” Lyle said. “After the game, they took me home and I slept like a baby!”

If you have tickets for an event and can’t use them, why not give them to Sun Youth? 514-842-6822.

The rights of unilingual anglophones are protected under law

Joyce Blond Frank B.A., B.C.L., LL.M.

April 2012

The provincial government has agreed to fund research into the needs and problems faced by anglophone seniors living in Quebec.

Today, all schoolchildren are immersed in the French language at an early age and most become bilingual adults. This was not always so and there are many anglo Quebecers who are not proficient in French.

There was a time when the Québécois language and identity required support to ensure its continued existence. However, it is now English that is in need of recognition and protection. We hear stories about a lack of communication in English by government bodies, about a shortage of health and social services in English, about individual acts of nastiness toward those unable to express themselves in French. What we don’t hear about is the other side of the story. But there are those who do understand that not everyone is bilingual and that their rights must also be respected.

My first example took place in the 2010 and involved the Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity. A non-French-speaking person was refused financial assistance because he had failed to produce all the documents and information required. The person had been employed in the inspection and repair of large motor vehicles. He was forced to stop working because of a heart problem. At first he benefited from his employer’s disability insurance program. When this ran out, he asked for financial assistance from the local ministry office.

The office sent him a list, in French, of 14 different documents it wanted within 10 days. When he failed to send those documents, he was advised that his claim was refused as it could not be evaluated. He requested a revision of that decision but the decision was maintained.

He appealed to the administrative tribunal and explained that he had asked for an English version of the list but had never received it and that the agent in charge of his file did not speak English.

The judge based himself on the law that states: “The Minister must assist any person who requests it to facilitate the person’s understanding of and access to a measure, a program or a service. Among other things, the Minister must assist the person in making an application for financial assistance.”

The judge held that the employees of the local employment centre should have provided a list of their requirements in English. He noted that the claimant lived in an area that was predominantly anglophone. The government employees should have taken whatever measures were necessary to provide all information to the claimant in his language.

Consequently, the tribunal found that the claimant had not been able to provide the necessary documents because he had not had the necessary assistance to do so. The judge ordered that the payments be made to the claimant retroactive to the date on which he had first applied for them.

The judge said in his judgment: “Enfin, le tribunal se doit d’interpréter l’esprit des lois sociales de manière large et libérale en tenant compte du contexte globale d’une situation.”

The next story concerns a job opening for a lawyer with a youth centre near Val-d’Or. This was an area that serviced several English-speaking aboriginal communities and one of the job requirements was bilingualism. The complainant’s union contested the bilingualism requirement and the fact that the job had gone to someone with less seniority and demanded that the job go to him.

The youth centre argued that bilingualism was a reasonable requirement, justified by the fact that there was a large anglophone population in the area. The union argued that bilingualism was unnecessary, that it contravened the collective agreement, and that it violated the French Language Charter and the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In rendering judgment against the union, the tribunal looked at the Health and Social Services Act, Youth Protection Act, French Language Charter and Quebec Charter of Rights.

In rendering judgment, the tribunal pointed out that the Charter of Rights prevails over the language charter. Under the terms of the Charter of Rights, a distinction, exclusion or preference based on the aptitudes or qualifications required for an employment, or justified by the nature of an institution devoted exclusively to the well-being of an ethnic group, is deemed non-discriminatory.

The Health and Social Services Act says that English speakers are entitled to receive health and social services in English and that the relevant institutions must develop a program of access to health and social services in English for the English speaking population in their area. The Youth Protection Act imposes an obligation on those working with children and parents to ensure that all parties understand each other.

The employer, the Youth Centre, had to be sure that the attorney it would hire would be able to ensure that the obligation to inform the child and his parents was carried out; that the meeting and preparation of witnesses that was an important part of the judicial process could take place and that communication with parents prior to a hearing was assured.

A unilingual attorney would not be able to do these things and knowledge of English was necessary to “accomplish the job.”

Because the attorney’s work concerned children, parents and others who were English-speaking, the requirement of bilingualism did not contravene the collective agreement.

These cases show that laws do exist to protect the rights of the anglophone community and that the courts will protect the use of English when called upon to do so.

Consider whether to sanction the non-sanctioned use of sanction

Howard Richler

April 2012

“This movement … is a way to ask you … to sanction Guy
Turcotte by keeping him at Pinel.”

—Attorney Guy Poupart, The Gazette, March 17

Notwithstanding Poupart’s purported usage, sanction when used as a verb usually means “permit” or “authorize,” but when used as a noun it invariably means a “penalty.”

Complicating matters even further, dictionaries are at odds on this issue. For example, Merriam Webster, Cambridge and Encarta only recognize an approving sense for the verb, whereas the OED, Canadian Oxford and American Heritage allow that it can denote a punitive sense. Since using the word in this manner might be misunderstood, it might be wise to say “issue sanctions against” to eliminate the possibility of non-comprehension.

The OED explains how the dichotomy in meanings occurred. “Sanction” surfaces in English as a noun in the 1570s and the OED relates that the word derives from the Latin sanctio, “decree” where it referred to the “action of ordaining as inviolable under a penalty.” Thus sanctions most often refer to measures taken by authorities to discourage courses of action that are not approved by muckety-mucks. Perhaps because it is more efficacious to dissuade with a stick than to persuade with a carrot, the punitive sense of the noun took hold. Interestingly, when used in the singular, as in “UN sanction” or “church sanction,” often the word is used to mean approbation.

We first see the verb sense of sanction in the 1770s and consistently it has been used in the original sense of endorsement or recognition by an authoritative decree. This is the intended meaning in Edmund Burke’s 1791 An Appeal From the New to the Old Whigs: “Tests against old principles, sanctioned by the law.”

The “penalize” sense of the verb sanction seems to have arisen in the middle of the 20th century, and although this usage is not inherently illogical, I would advise against employing it unless the context makes your intention perfectly clear. Hence in 2010, when Sarah Palin told right-wing political commentator Glenn Beck, “We’re not having a lot of faith that the White House is going to come out with a strong enough policy to sanction what it is that North Korea is going to do,” we assume because of her politics that she didn’t have the approval sense of the verb sanction in mind. (However, I stand to be “refudiated,” to use another Palin expression, on this point.)

Notwithstanding the above, in the last five years I’ve noticed an increasing use of the verb sanction to mean “penalize,” in the manner employed by Poupart in the opening quotation. This is no doubt because the punitive sense of sanction to refer to actions taken by a nation or an alliance of nations against another as a coercive measure to enforce a violated law or treaty is the most common usage. In the process of back-formation, this sense gets extended to the verbal sphere.

Though this use of the noun only developed in the 20th century, I predict this usage will eventually represent the dominant verbal sense and one day sanction the noun and sanction the verb will live in harmony.

Howard Richler’s From Gay (Happy) to Gay (Homosexual) and other mysterious semantic shifts will be published by Ronsdale Press in 2013.

Central Park a masterpiece to be marveled at, meandered through

Harry Rolnick

April 2012

In 1877, Montreal fired Mount Royal Park designer Frederick Law Olmsted. Thus, his masterwork created 20 years before, Central Park, stands alone. True, we don’t have many mountains, but we have 200 more acres, more monuments and far more eccentricity.

When I visited Mount Royal Park last year, it was pouring rain, whereas Central Park is invariably sunny.

Thus, these past weeks I dug up a few rare factoids (and a few earthworms). I offer them alphabetically here and in our May issue.

ANDERSEN, HANS CHRISTIAN: Not on the Literary Walk (q.v.), but overlooking the sailboat-filled Conservatory Water is a statue of Hans Christian Andersen created in 1956. The book he is “reading” is The Ugly Duckling, and many a beautiful duck—as well as beatific child—climbs upon his lap. But he is more than a bronze statue. On summer weekends, storytellers from around the world read their tales to entranced children (and frequently curious ducks!).

Photo: Central Park Tours

BOW BRIDGE: Bow Bridge (the arch resembles an archer’s bow) is the most beautiful of the 30-odd bridges in the park, but under the bridge lies war. Look carefully and you’ll see the ball bearings are cannon balls, from factories preparing for the Civil War.

CANINES: Every shape, size, colour and breed promenade in Central Park. The bust of Balto the Eskimo Husky is especially loved. He had led his team 965 kilometres with an antitoxin to Nome, curbing an outbreak of diphtheria. Balto came to his own unveiling a few years before his peaceful death.

DIMENSIONS: 150 acres in seven water bodies, 250 acres of lawns, 136 acres of woodlands. More than 9 1/2 kilometres around, from the north (125th St. to 59th St., making up six per cent of Manhattan. Thirty-five million people come each year, (that’s 100,000 a day, or 2,500 for each acre). The greatest crowd was 850,000 on July 5, 1986, to celebrate the Statue of Liberty Centenary.

Imagine a walk in Strawberry Field. Photos: Central Park Conservancy

EQUESTRIA: From the start, horses were the means of transport on the Bridle Path. More common are horse and carriage. For about $50 (be sure to bargain), you can ride for 125 kilometres, from Lennon’s Strawberry Fields to Lennon’s apartment house, the Dakota. Some say it’s the most romantic way to see the park. I prefer the endless stroll.

FLYING FAUNA, ETC.: Nearly 300 different kinds of birds, plus coyotes, squirrels, worms, raccoons, rabbits and ground hogs. The most vicious animals are the snapping turtles. I saw one take down a Mallard-roit baby duck!!

GREENSWARD: Created in 1858, today, not only is the sward greener than ever but every single tree and bush is entered into a database for monitoring at the Central Park Conservancy. So essential to the quality of air, Central Park is called “the lungs of New York City.”

HELIOPOLIS: The oldest statuary in Central Park goes back to 1600 BC, a 68-foot-high obelisk dedicated to Pharaoh Thutmosis III in the capital of Heliopolis. Called inanely Cleopatra’s Needle (she wasn’t around for another millennium and a half), it is equally inane that the government of Egypt frequently complains that they want it returned.

stroll over a bridge that resembles an archer’s bow.

INFORMATION: Thousands of sites, but http://www.centralpark.com/ has more information that you can shake an American elm stick at. Very unusual is Central Park Tours (718-419-3222, info@centralparktours.net), which not only has group and private tours, but has movie-background tours, “wild” backpacker tours in the northern park and anything else you can conceive.

JOHN LENNON: More music. Strawberry Fields, between 71st and 74th Sts., was dedicated to John Lennon in 1985 (he died in ’80) and serves as a tribute to his life and music.

KATYDIDS AND CRICKETS: And other tiny creatures. Insect people come from around the world to examine bugs here. But the best place to see them all is the Rainforest in the zoo.

LITERARY WALK AND MALL: The so-called Literary Walk does have a few literary statues, like Robert Burns and St. Walter Scott. But most artists are scattered throughout the park. The less obscure include Shakespeare, Thomas More, composers Beethoven and Victor Herbert, Hans Christian Andersen (and Alice in Wonderland). On the northern end is The Mall, the only orthodox straight area in the Park, the quadruple rows of Olmsted’s beloved elm trees forms a canopy. The original purpose was for “proper people” to parade their parasols and pantaloons, for pedestrians to gape at other pedestrians. New York-born composer Gian-Carlo Menotti was so enchanted with its citizens who came here at sundown after work that he named his famous opera A Mall and the Night Visitors.

MOVIES: Try to find the backgrounds for Taxi Driver, Wall Street, Crocodile Dundee, The Producers, Godspell, Prisoner of Second Avenue, Independence Day, King of New York, Barefoot in the Park, etc. My favourites are the Lake, where Manchurian Candidate Laurence Harvey plunked himself when a bartender told him to “Go jump in the lake.” And Marathon Man, opening with Dustin Hoffman running around the Reservoir, finishing with Lawrence Olivier losing life and diamonds inside the Reservoir. Remember “Is it safe? Is it safe??” Brrrr.

Next month, The Senior Times reveals the nastiest poem, the mystery ceiling and homicidal Bird of the Bard.

Grants, bonds can beef up RDSPs

Deborah Leahy

April 2012

The registered disability savings plan (RDSP) was introduced in 2008 to help individuals with severe and prolonged disabilities save for their long-term financial security. However, many Canadians have not taken advantage of its benefits, which can help individuals provide a better future for themselves and their families.

A participant may hold only one RDSP account, which is limited to a lifetime total of $200,000 in non-government contributions. Contributions are not tax deductible, and the plan is not designed as a short-term savings vehicle or for regularly withdrawing money in the short term.

RDSP benefits include:

• Contributions accumulate tax-free until the money is withdrawn.

• Contributions do not effect federal benefits and have little, if any, effect on provincial benefits.

Grants and bonds available

If eligible, you can help build your RDSP with government grant and bond contributions.

Savings bonds: The government may pay into an RDSP a Canada disability savings bond of up to $1,000 annually, up to a maximum lifetime limit of $20,000, dependent only on family net income with no personal contributions required.

Savings grants: An RDSP beneficiary may receive a Canada disability savings grant of up to $3,500 per year, up to a maximum lifetime limit of $70,000. The amount is based on contributions and family net income.

Both bonds and grants are available until the year the participant reaches age 49.

Generally, bonds and grants must remain in the account for at least 10 years before a withdrawal may be made, and withdrawals must begin by the end of the year in which the participant reaches age 60. Additionally, for any account established on or after January 2011, the RDSP may carry forward unused grant and bond entitlements up to 10 years preceding its opening.

Rollover option

As of July 2011, a deceased individual’s registered retirement savings plan, registered retirement income fund or registered pension plan can be rolled on a tax-deferred basis into an RDSP for a financially dependent infirm child or grandchild. This option is often overlooked.

It’s important to be informed about the steps you can take today for your financial future, including knowing whether you or a family member qualify for the RDSP.

Deborah Leahy is a financial adviser with Edward Jones, specializing in assisting seniors.

Empty-nesters might drive up condo sales

Daniel Smyth

April 2012

Property prices are affected mostly by income and population growth, not to mention interest rates. Family household incomes in Montreal appear to be on-par with the increase in real-estate prices, and interest rates haven’t been this low in 60 years.

Areas surrounding Montreal are expected to have the largest sales increases, for example, Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Saguenay and Gatineau, may benefit from first-time buyers looking for properties on the outskirts of the city. Abitibi and Côte-Nord will benefit more from investment plans and resource mining.

While two-thirds of transactions in Montreal are still single-family homes, condos are expected to outperform all other categories, mostly because of first-time buyers and empty-nesters.

Median price increases for 2012 are expected to be slightly below 2011 because of a greater balance between buyers and sellers. Purchasing power of single households has continued to increase along with a decrease in interest rates. As long as interest rates do not increase substantially in a short period of time, the short-term forecast for prices is positive.

According to Desjardins’ latest issue of Economic Viewpoint, Montréal, Quebec and Gatineau are relatively healthy, because of slower and consistent increases. Some concerns have been raised for Toronto and Vancouver because of the speed in which these markets have grown. An overabundance of condominiums on the market in Toronto raises a concern for prices; while in Vancouver, prices in may be overinflated by foreign investors.

Desjardins’ analysis does not suggest the existence of a housing bubble in Canada and the likelihood of a collapse remains relatively low.

“The national housing market is stabilizing and remains well balanced,” said Gary Morse, CREA’s president. The Desjardins analysis does not suggest a market slowdown, as interest rates are eventually expected to increase.

Overall, buyers have more to chose from in various cities on Montreal Island, save Verdun and Dorval.

Always speak with a local real-estate agent to get the information most pertinent to you.

Daniel Smyth is a real-estate broker with Groupe Sutton-Clodem Inc.

Play gets intimate with seamstress

Byron Toben

April 2012

Centaur, artistic director Roy Surette has solidified his rep as a heir to Maurice Podbrey and Gordon McCall by piling on one hit after another.

The current offering, Intimate Apparel, ends April 29.

The play: It won many off-Broadway awards, where it starred Academy Award-winner Viola Davis.

The actors: I would go to anything starring Tamara Brown, Lucinda Davis, jazz icon Ranee Lee or Patricia Summersett—and here they all are together.

The storyline: It tells of an African American lady who dreams of becoming a seamstress and maybe more in 1905 ragtime New York.

That plotline had a special resonance with me. In 1965 New York, as a grad student, I became a passing friend of Ellen Stewart, who died last year at 91. Like the protagonist in Intimate Apparel, this black lady wended her way to New York to become a fashion designer.

While broke and cleaning offices, she was spotted by a kindly Jewish textile seller who gave her some silky fabrics to create beachwear. The designs landed her a job at fancy department stores and she recycled the earnings to start one of the first off-off-Broadway café theatres, La Mama E.T.C.

After several years of dodging zoning violations, La Mama became an incubator for scores of famous playwrights, actors and musicians. A Ford Foundation grant followed, a permanent theatre was set up on East 4th St., and disciples copied the formula in most other countries in the world. An estimated 19,000 productions traversed the world before her funeral at St. Patrick’s on Fifth Ave.

Alas, things do not work out so well for the budding seamstress in Intimate Apparel. They do for the audience and for Lynn Nottage, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who at 48 (the new 28?) is on her way to cementing Ellen Stewart’s creative vision.

Reichs has a novel idea for St. Patrick’s Society

Byron Toben

April 2012

“Local Irish Community Leaders Suspected of Murder.”

Don’t panic. They really aren’t. But they may be, in the next novel by popular author Kathy Reichs, who was the guest speaker at the Montreal St. Patrick’s Society Luncheon on March 16.

Kathy Reichs signs books in Toronto last year. Photo: Atia, Wikimedia Commons

About 500 supporters of the non-sectarian charitable society (est. 1834) packed the hall at Hotel Bonaventure, where Reichs said that she might base her next novel on murder most foul at the 2013 St. Patrick’s dinner dance ball.

Among the suspects in her presentation were such notables as society president Patrick M. Shea, parade grand marshal Paul Loftus and pub-owner Bill Hurley (Irishman of the Year).

Mayor Gérald Tremblay and Concordia head Frederick Lowy were other possible perps.

Reichs, a Chicago-born forensic anthropologist, is no stranger to Montreal. She has worked at Concordia and McGill and is a forensic consultant with the Sûreté du Québec.

The luncheon began with beautiful renditions of the Irish national anthem (in Gaelic) and that of Canada (in French and English) by Kathleen McAuliffe.

After a toast to Ireland by Ambassador Ray Bennett, an invocation by Bishop Thomas Dowd and the introduction of the 36-person head table, Irish Deputy Prime Minister Eamon Gilmore stressed that Ireland has turned the corner after several years of recession and is open for business.

Stranger on the phone isn’t a friend

Bonnie Sandler, BS.W.

April 2012

I am unable to keep track of the number of phone calls I receive each week from people who either try to sell me something, ask me to participate in a survey that will only take three minutes (yeah right), or are soliciting money for a charity.

I have also supposedly won some trips and prizes but never stay on the phone long enough to find out exactly what my big win was. I have my name on a “do not call list,” which might protect me from receiving even more calls.

I hope they understand that my lack of patience is not personal. These people are doing their jobs, but they are not my friends.

However, when someone who spent a day alone at home with little or no social contact receives such a call, their reaction might be very different than mine. They hear a friendly, engaging voice and may welcome any kind of conversation. A friend is defined as a person whom one knows, likes, and trusts. The stranger on the phone is an employee with a mandate to perform a task.

Of great concern are scam artists who target our elderly population to turn over large amounts of money. These fraudsters are skilled at using such strategies as befriending their target or pretending to be someone of authority. They may have a vulnerable person believe they won something of great value but must turn over a sum of money to receive this prize. Some of these con artists are based out of the country and hard for officials to locate. Often the most vulnerable are the least educated on this subject.

If you receive a phone call from a stranger, be on guard. Do not offer any information. End the conversation quickly. You can always ask for a telephone number to return the call at your convenience.

If you feel that there is something suspicious, contact the local authorities or call government-run PhoneBusters, 888-495-8501.

bonniesandler@gmail.com

Kitchen is a no-friends zone

Barry Lazar

April 2012

As Porter wrote and Garland sang:

It’s friendship, friendship,

Just a perfect blendship,

When other friendships have been forgot

Ours will still be hot!

Now, as I understand it, the Garland was a 36” gas range and the friendship was hot because this is really a song about the kitchen. Blendship must refer to a blender. Later in the song, Porter writes about cooking (If they ever cook your goose, turn me loose) and dining (If you ever lose your teeth, when you’re out to dine, borrow mine). There is even a comment on stew (If they ever make a cannibal stew of you, Invite me too!). Obviously, this is a friendship based on food.

Many a friendship improves over a good meal. However, few friendships are made in the kitchen. This is because 1) the kitchen is a dangerous place and 2) there is no room for democracy.

Let’s look at what friendship requires: equanimity, patience, good humour.

Commercials like to show that food and friendship come together in the kitchen. They show all of us trendy folk as bon vivants, eagerly sipping amusing little wines, hauling a roast from the oven, making pasta and engaging in lively conversation all at the same time. They never show that danger is just a misstep away: The wine making me tipsy and less amusing, the rack falling from the oven, the briefly untended oil smoking in the pan, the water for the pasta boiling over, the utensils hanging overhead, the dog underfoot … Where are the cameras for this reality show? Arghh!

No, in my kitchen, those whom I want to keep as friends stay just beyond the periphery of knife, sink and stove.

Then there is the question of democracy. The love of my life, the mother of my child, the woman with whom I have made so many of life’s key decisions (yes, these are all the same person) knows that we can do many things together: choose a car, raise a daughter, go on vacation, plan for the future. But we can’t make a meal. When one is cooking, the other acts as sous-chef—“what can I do for you dear” (said supplicatingly to whomever holds the knife) —or, more wisely, leaves.

Democracy implies that one party knows what the other is doing and that there is room for compromise. Those of us who cook regularly understand that we may not know what we are doing (“let’s see what we have in the fridge today”) and, if we do know what we are doing, there is no room for compromise (“of course, I put an egg in it, I always put an egg in it”).

If I have any sage advice for young swains, it is to invite your friend over for dinner but don’t let her near the kitchen. Oh yes, and forget the sage. My mate hates it.

Pasta amici

Here is a dish to make when a friend comes over and perhaps even better as comfort food, if the friend cancels. (Ahh you fool, see what you missed …)

I like penne for this and have found that the de Cecco brand holds up nicely. There are three stages of cooking: baking, boiling and frying. You can do all this at the same time, but don’t answer the phone!

Plan for 100 grams of dried pasta per person for a main course. Cooked in several quarts of boiling water, it should take about 12 minutes. Drain, toss lightly with oil and set aside covered with a towel.

Have ready: a cup per person of shrimp (shelled, uncooked) or boned chicken (no skin, cut into strips) or both, plus a dozen spears of asparagus, washed and trimmed, a sweet red pepper, an onion and garlic.

Drizzle a little olive oil over a dozen spears of asparagus and bake them in a toaster oven until cooked but still firm. Chop them into the same size as the penne. Slice the pepper and onion to the same size.

Finely chop at least one clove of garlic. I use three, but I have known my friends for a long time.

Heat a little olive oil in a pan until the oil is very hot and shimmers. Add the garlic and stir. As it turns golden, add the onion and pepper. Cook until these are soft. Add the chicken and shrimp and cook these through. They should be firm and opaque, but not browned. If you like, stir in fresh or dried oregano and a tablespoon of tomato paste diluted in a little of the pasta water. Add the asparagus and the pasta and reheat. Sprinkle coarse or kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Grate a hard Italian cheese (such as Asiago, Parmesan, or Romano) at the table.

TheFlavourguy@gmail.com

Globetrotters take paws: bring your pooch in your carry-on

Mark Medicoff

April 2012

What better friend to have than my sturdy, miniature, hairless Dachshund, Ollie? I’ve fantasized about sauntering with him along New York’s 5th Avenue. I observe his nose flouting those gorgeous long-haired little namesakes as they urinate, with attitude, over the most expensive pathway in North America.

A “petation” can be a rewarding and sharing experience, so Ollie and I have decided: New York will be our first destination together. I’ll plan an outing through Central Park, spending quality time celebrating, and possibly even participating, in one of the park’s memorable dog events.

And it seems we’re not the only ones planning a petation. A 2011 TripAdvisor survey of 1,100 U.S. animal-owners revealed: “Pets today are vacation veterans.” The report found that: “Among those whose pets have traveled, 74 per cent say their animals travel well … 36 per cent maintain that traveling with their four-legged friend is always enjoyable, and a further 41 per cent say it often is.”

Zoe Medicoff has flown the Toronto-Montreal corridor with her 6-year-old Marzipan countless times. She says Marz has never had ill effects; in fact, “she’s excited because she knows she’s going to Montreal.” One time Zoe arrived in Toronto to discover that the dog had continued on her way to Vancouver. “She was fine, I was the mess,” she said.

Most airlines allow dogs and cats onboard and if you’ve already flown with your pet, you know the protocols. If it’s your first time, survey the airline’s website and surf its multifarious details, many relating to the size and weight of your pet.

Basically, airlines limit the size of pet to one that fits into a “carry-on bag.” If your pet is small, but overweight at more than 22 lbs with carrier, your pet will be relegated to the cargo hold, a less desirable location.

Set up an appointment with your vet to discuss your pooch’s specific needs. And while you’re there, run through the required paperwork.

Getting to New York will not be as hard as I thought. But when I arrive there, I’d better have a place to stay … even if cute little Ollie could perform as a panhandler’s gimmick.

The Affinia Manhatten looks good—in the $220-to $320 range per night with a $25 charge per stay for a small animal along with a $250 pet deposit. For a more comprehensive price range, BringFido.com boasts 107 dog-friendly motels and hotels you can choose from in New York.

Most large American cities accommodate the pet trotter. But be warned, most establishments reserve the right to expel your pet for disturbances of the barking kind.

Where would I eat with Ollie? After all, I’m planning a petation, so why would I leave him alone in a lonely hotel room?

Hmm, I’m thinking, as I do an e-search: The Barking Dog Luncheonette on the Upper East Side. Perfect! But Ayza Wine and Chocolate Bar in Chelsea also looks good, a place where we could imbibe and watch the world go by. The number of eateries in New York catering to pet trotters would take weeks to assess.

Today, to make traveling with Fido easy, there are even destination pet guidebooks, such as Maggie Espinosa’s The Privileged Pooch: Luxury Travel With Your Pet in Southern California. A neat Apple app called Paw Trotter provides comprehensive U.S. listings for you and your pet.

If you enjoy more strenuous vacation activities, but happen to own a wimp like I do, check out petgear.com for dog packsacks.

And what about that three-month vacation to inaugurate your retirement in South America, but you’re reluctant to leave your pet in someone else’s expensive care? A good place to start is an excellent website established by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Search “dog export.”

Call your destination’s consulate to get regulations about importing a small animal. The English information provided online is often fuzzy.

Costa Rica says it takes 72 hours to issue a quarantine permit for which you apply on arrival, yet during that period, your dog can remain with you. Some quarantine!

Retirement havens don’t make it easy to import your pet, but neither do they make it impossible … and I intend to book a direct flight for Ollie.

mmedicoff@videotron.ca

Find luxurious leather at warehouse prices

Sandra Phillips

April 2012

It’s time to put away winter coats and buy a versatile leather jacket.

Leather clothing has moved from the edges of society, out of the north lands, past the bikers and right into mainstream dressing. Leather has become so versatile and malleable that European designers use it regularly in their collections. The newest incarnated version is full of stretch and worked so thin that it looks and feels like skin.

There are different kinds of leather:

Lambskin: softest; most expensive; requires more upkeep and care.

Suede: in Canada, usually comes from tanning pigs and is difficult to wear in our climate (can also be made of lamb, but is more expensive).

Cowhide: stronger more textured leather; less expensive.

Nubeck: tanning method of cowhide that makes it appear suede-like; quite durable

Sheepskin: heaviest, thickest, warmest because it leaves the wool attached. Merino is the Rolls Royce of sheepskin because it is lighter and more comfortable to wear and, of course, much more expensive.

We are lucky in Montreal to be able to go straight to the manufacturer.

Coronet Leather is a friendly family business, around for 33 years. This manufacturer has a showroom of jackets and coats in lambskin, cowhide and sheepskin for men, women or children, and will do made-to-measure (even embroidery on them) as well. They can make suits, pants, skirts and long coats, and can do repairs. If you have a sports team, jackets can be personalized with logos or emblems. Anyone looking for retro wool jackets with leather sleeves, this is the place for you. 7475 St. Laurent. leathercoronet.com

Open since 1983, Mercury Leather sells quality leather jackets, pants and skirts, and sheepskin. Since it is located in a factory building, prices are lower and you have the pleasure of having your items made to order. 9320 St-Laurent, Suite 514. 514-382-3504, mercuryleather.com

Cuir Olympic is in a Chabanel building; this showroom is full of samples of coats, pants, jackets, etc., in lambskin and cowhide. Get a made-to-measure lambskin with a zip-out lining for all-season wear. 9494 St. Laurent, Suite 513. 514-382-9913.

Alaska Leather, a mainstay in my book, is closing up shop. They sold to high-priced boutiques that required the most scrumptious leathers—baby lamb and kid, for example. They are selling off their men’s and ladies’ jackets and coats in the newest styles at clearance prices. 65 St. Viateur E. at Casgrain. 514-277-6259 (call first).