Okay, I swiped that title from Steve Kilbey. It’s the name of a really cool box set containing a CD of spoken word tracks that accompany a series of postcards printed from his paintings. I highly recommend checking it out — my favourite prose poetry pieces on there are The Visitor and The Lonely City. Anyway, I stole the title because this very topic has been on my mind for the past couple weeks...
Yesterday was Remembrance Day — November 11th, the day we pause to think about all those who lost their lives in the two World Wars, and in Korea and all the conflicts that have happened since. It’s also the day we assemble to thank the remaining veterans for their sacrifice, and shake the hand of those who are serving today. When I was a child, we went to the cenotaph in my hometown to join the...
I still remember the moment I knew — really knew — that my dad was dying. I was in a cheap hotel in Bangkok, lying there awake trying to sleep. I’d received an email that day which said my dad had been ill, and they were sending him for some tests. One of the last lines read, “You should probably come home.” There was nothing in the message to cause any more alarm than that. But when night came...
It’s Banned Books Week. I’m sure the majority of people aren’t aware of this. And even avid readers may have missed the news. But this is the special time each year when we pause to think about censorship, and to remember all the great literature that has been banned, suppressed or otherwise made purposefully unavailable in an effort to control what we read and think. I’m talking about monumental...
I got a sneak peak inside a crucial part of the publishing industry last week when I was given the opportunity to tour Lowe-Martin’s Ottawa St. Laurent facility — where Outpost and other fine magazines are printed. These guys work some serious magic when it comes to transforming the stories I write from ether into substance, putting them directly into the hands of my readers. Thanks very much to...
A lot of people replied by email to my last cryptic “Where’s Waldo” blog… Well, the correct answer is “Ottawa”. I’ve locked myself away in semi-seclusion for a month to get a solid start on a new book. And I’m pleased to report that it’s going well. A few of you also saw my Facebook post, and wanted to know what the new book will be about...
It’s time for a little game of “Where’s Waldo”… Except… well… I’m Waldo. And I’m not wearing a striped sweater or a funny hat. I’m on the road again. And I’m currently locked in semi-seclusion making a start on a new book. Here’s a late-day view from my balcony: Can YOU guess where I am? Reply in the comments below if you...
It’s been a bit quiet around here lately, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been scheming… You were desperate for your travel fix. In need of stories that combine adventure, philosophy, bookish overtones and deep desert thoughts. Well it’s time to get your fix… You asked and I have delivered. But I didn’t just put together one catch-all piece for your reading pleasure. I’ve got 3 totally new...
Thanks very much to Vagabond Dreams reader “Voyageur” who took the time to drop me a line this week: I received the gift-book on Sunday from my visiting brother-in-law and regretfully put it down last night after having read and savoured each page. More than a mere travelogue, this semi-autobiography revealed not just your visual interpretations of the landscapes and bodies of water which you...
A few weeks ago I sent you an email about the end of the Palazzo Years. And I shared some photos of the amazing 400 year old house I was renting in a village called Zejtun in the south of Malta. As it was prophesied, so it has come to pass. The Palazzo Years have ended, and I’m now looking out over the rugged valley of Wied ta’ Isperanza from the terrace of my new place. But we were able to toast...
Author of Vagabond Dreams: Road Wisdom from Central America. Host of Personal Landscapes podcast. Editor-at-Large (Europe) for Canada's Outpost magazine. Columnist at The Shift. Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.