There’s a good chance that if you grew up in the rural prairies, you have fond memories of skating under the sky and stars with your friends and neighbours. Times like that leave a lasting impression, and not just because of the frostbite. When this pandemic-mangled winter finally takes its place in the history books, […] Read more
Farm Living
Rediscovering rural life
Oliver Douglas thought Green Acres was the place to be, moving from a New York penthouse to a farm in the 1960s TV comedy. Hilarity ensued as the couple settled into a life in Hooterville. The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic is no laughing matter, but it appears to have created the desire in at least some […] Read more
Snowbirds get their wings clipped
When Canadian pop legend Anne Murray released her chart-topping single Snowbird in 1970, she could not have imagined the trouble that sun-seeking travellers would endure some 50 years later. Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, Canadian snowbirds had their wings clipped in 2020. And with 2021 just around the corner, it looks like thousands of wary […] Read more
Finding ways to head south
Many retired Canadians are staying at home this year, but some have figured out how to make the trip work for them
CAMROSE, Alta. — Despite COVID-19 and a closed border, Gord Johnsen still flew to Arizona for the winter without the rest of the Canadian snowbirds. The warm weather beckoned, but close friends in the community of Gilbert, Arizona, are the real draw. “I have great friends,” said Johnsen, who has travelled to the Phoenix area […] Read more
Now is the time for long-term care reform
Canadians have lobbied for long-term care reform for 50 years, but the urgent need for it has become painfully obvious to everyone during the past eight months. Pandemic pressure has resulted in isolation protocols, capacity restrictions and clear examples of unethical patient treatment. There is growing evidence that long-term care needs to move toward a […] Read more
Learning to do and do without: heart, head, hands and health
The 4-H motto is “learn to do by doing,” and this year members have been learning how to do without certain aspects of their usual club activities. The global pandemic has led to cancelled shows, tours and other 4-H events across the Prairies. In March, COVID-19 hit the 4-H world like a late winter blizzard, […] Read more
Homeroom on the range
Georgia Pawlitza doesn’t need to catch the school bus each morning anymore and she doesn’t miss it. Having an extra hour to sleep in is awesome, said the Grade 11 Hazlet, Sask., student. “Riding the bus I’d either have to be up at 6:30 or 7, depending on what day the kindergartens would go into […] Read more
Local food in a post-pandemic world
Newfoundlanders don’t want to depend on other Canadians for food. A few years ago, the government of Newfoundland and Labrador set a goal of producing 20 percent of its own food by 2022. The would be a substantial improvement from the current 10 percent. “We are well positioned … because Newfoundland and Labrador is the […] Read more
First-time growers dig a new trend
More Canadians got their hands dirty this year and took up gardening. Pandemic gardening became the thing to do in 2020. Regular and long-time gardeners who couldn’t find their favourite seeds or bulbs last spring may have been mystified by the run on stock but it seems many rookies wanted to produce their own food. […] Read more
Christmas light display brings cheer
A Saskatchewan man uses his annual winter wonderland to raise money for the mental health unit of a Regina hospital
MCLEAN, Sask. — The goal is simple. “I just want the lives of patients who stay in 1D (mental health unit) to be a little bit better,” says Ian Moats as he sits by a crackling outdoor fire on his expansive rural acreage surrounded by 55,000 Christmas lights. The 59-year-old contractor first decorated a single […] Read more
