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Snips... ;-)The Porch During my nearly 10 years on the porch, I have encountered many great people, in person and otherwise. But even after all those years, I continue to be amazed by the kindness and consideration of our membership. Case in point. Last month I sold a couple items to Bob Beckwith, who lives in Alberta, Canada. During our off-list communication I mentioned my love of CBC Radio Two and a show heard weekly thereon. One of the great things about growing up in Detroit in the 1950's was the fact another country was just across the river. So back in the days when television signals came through a roof-mount antenna and your choice of stations was limited to ABC, NBC and CBS, the good people of Detroit had FOUR(!) stations because CKLW (now CBC) was over in Windsor. That meant things like "Don Messer's Jubilee", "Bill Kennedy at the Movies", "Captain Jolly" and, of course, "Hockey Night in Canada". It also meant CKLW radio ("all the hits all the time"). [fast forward almost 50 years] Once there was a station in Detroit that played classical music. Right around the turn of the century the station was purchased and, although profitable, switched formats to something even more profitable - rock music. Now being a lover of the classics (and other esoteric musical forms), I was devastated. Until, that is, I rediscovered Canadian radio. You see CBC Radio Two (FM) plays mostly classical weekdays from 5AM to 10PM (IIRC). Weekends are a mixture of standards, folk, classics, progressive, "Saturday Afternoon at the Opera" and more. One of the Saturday shows is The Vinyl Café, hosted by Stuart McLean. The show features studio and "in concert" broadcasts featuring many Canadian artists, mostly of the folk/blues persuasion. But the highlight of the show is Stuart himself. Stuart, you see, is one of the finest storytellers ever. He can, as they used to say, "spin a yarn" with the best of them. The most entertaining (but not always weekly) part of the show is when he regales the audience with the misadventures of Dave (owner of a fictional used record store in Toronto) and his family. The stories are heartwarming, touching, and usually hilarious (there's one repeated around their equivalent of Veteran's Day that lacks humor but tugs the heartstrings). So what, you ask, does that have to do with this list? It turns out Bob, and wife Carolyn, are also fans of the show. It also turns out Stuart has published a book or two of those stories (you won't find them in the States). Yesterday I came home and found an oversized envelope from Bob. In it was the payment for the stuff I sold him AND a copy of "Home from the Vinyl Café", one of the aforementioned books. I started right into it last night and can guarantee it will have a place of honor within my meager personal library. BTW if anyone wants to know what the fuss is about, go to www.cbc.ca any Saturday morning at around 10AM Eastern Time, hit the "live broadcast" tab, and then Radio Two. The Vinyl Café starts right after the news. OT content: A huge thanks to Bob and another acknowledgment of just how great the members of this group are. Dennis Heyza |
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