Do you remember how to dial a rotary telephone?

This is a serious question - recently I purchased an old rotary (dial and not to be confused with dial-up connection) phone at a yard sale. The under-30 crowd at home beheld it as if the Abominable Snowman had arrived at the house. "How does it work? How does it register the number? How do you check voice mail?" I had to admit that I didn't know the answer to the last question, or the 2nd one, but I DO know that a friend of mine cancelled all extra charges on her home phone account and uses only a rotary phone and an answering machine that cost $15 - LUDDITES UNITE!

Simplifying the Season

Winter Solstice is approaching - a beautiful day to celebrate the fine balance between darkness and light - and no need to SPEND MORE MONEY!@ This year I plan to celebrate stillness, enjoy the snow in the forecast, not attend a noisy party, and stare at the fire for as long as it continues to change colours...

ANGELS IN OUR MIDST

SOMEONE OUT THERE WAS TRYING TO MAKE MY DAY BY EXPLAINING THE OC TRANSPO STRIKE - AND BY ASSUMING I WAS SOMEONE I WASN'T - SOMEONE HE KNOWS....I WAS WAITING TO PAY A SMALL FORTUNE TO FILL UP THE CAR I WOULD PREFER NOT TO BE DRIVING WHEN A PEDESTRIAN STOPPED BY AND TOLD ME HOW NICE IT WAS TO SEE ME AGAIN - WE CHATTED FOR AS LONG AS IT TOOK TO FILL THE TANK (I ADMIT I PAY MORE - ONE OF THE FEW NON-SIMPLICITY BAD HABITS I HAVE - BECAUSE THE ESSO STATION AT THE CORNER OF RICHMOND ROAD AND ISLAND PARK DRIVE IN OTTAWA'S WEST END HAS THE MOST FRIENDLY STAFF IMAGINABLE - THERE IS NOTHING LIKE COMMON COURTESY TO MAKE YOUR DAY...BUT I DIGRESS - TURNS OUT THIS FELLOW IS A FOLLOWER OF 'TARGETED BY THE OLD BOYS NETWORK' - I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THAT IS, BUT HE MADE MY DAY...

Simplifying your life

Voluntary simplicity: well in the 'recession', maybe it's not so voluntary....but there are a lot of books and articles - great resources on the notion of voluntary simplicity, linking cutting back, letting go of things you don't need to spiritual and even physical health! I've been trying to practice some of this - and take great pleasure in saving a bit of money here and there - here's a tip for today: purchase your essential drug supplies (women especially will know what I mean...) at a pharmacy that has cash back points - yesterday I NEEDED chocolate - and I mean NEEDED it....and I used the $5 on my card to buy 2 large organic chocolate bars - 'so what'? you might be thinking....again, it's the little things....we have a transit strike going on here in Ottawa, Ontario, and I suspect for the young couple on the news who couldn't afford cab fare to take their new baby to the doctor...that 5 bucks would mean a heck of a lot...

Strawberry picking

Canada Day has become associated with BIG CROWDS, expensive souvenirs and cheap booze - here's what I like to do on July 1: costs little and results in a freezer full of strawberries to enjoy NOW - in December - that's if you don't mind being barefoot in your kitchen on a hot summer day - I think I should have been born in the last century....