So much going on in the quiet of the shut down. People are sewing cloth masks, makers with 3D printers are putting out face shields, distilleries are producing sanitizer, all here in the Creek and all for our front line workers and, I may add, all at a loss if not flat out free! We can all do our part by staying in, and being extra careful when we need to go out. You know the drill.
Looks like the Howl is here to stay, nightly at 7 p.m., as a way for us to let off steam. There are online concerts and videos from our local talents springing up every day. So far I have taken in Keely Halward’s Earth Hour on Instagram, Jamie Swann (aka Billy Gruff) on YouTube (parents advisory!), Joel Fafard, Chris Hergesheimer and Steve Weave, too! Keep your eyes, ears and Internet connections peeled for more!
The terminology is changing, and for the better. Social distancing is pushing people to isolate themselves in more ways than one so we will call it Physical Distancing! Just because you can’t get within a hockey stick length close to me doesn’t mean I don’t want to interact with you, even if I don’t agree with the theories you have subscribed to about all this.
When Julius Caesar decreed that the year would begin on January 1 and not the traditional April 1, those who didn’t change were labeled “fools” and the tradition began. I hope many of you called in on the 1st and know that I am “Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down!” If you didn’t know, that harmless April Fools prank is known as being Rick Rolled.
With little in the way of events going on, I will share another story from my family archive … In the 1930s Grandmama LaPointe was preparing for the Christmas season with a day of baking planned. Many of the recipes called for butter, so a trip to the general store was in order. In this rural Northern New Brunswick community, all the butter was produced, by hand, by the wives of the local dairy farmers. People knew whose butter was best, and that sold out quickly. There was one butter maker, Madame Doucette, who had long hair she never tied back and so her butter was usually a bit more hirsute than you like your butter to be. My Grandmama was delayed in getting to the store (having 11 kids can do that!) so upon her arrival, the shop keeper informed her that the only butter in stock was that by Madame Doucette. After mulling it over for a moment she decided that this butter was better than no butter so asked for four pounds. “Would you like me to wrap it up for you?” the shop keep asked, to which she replied, “No, I’ll just drag it home by the hair!”
Take care, kellybacks@rocketmail.com
