Doris Day at 100

Doris Day would have been 100 today. In tribute, here is the column I wrote about her after her death. The initial draft was more about how the Boomers made her sort of a strawman/scapegoat for everything they hate (as they did with John Wayne), but this was too complicated/shocking an idea, apparently, so after some back-and-forth with the very nice and professional editor, I changed it. I so wanted to write about her. Ah well. (The comments are a hoot, btw. People have too much free time.)

Belfast

It’s St. Patrick’s Day, so I want to take a moment to recommend to my dear readers the exceptional Kenneth Branagh film Belfast. I am of Irish (Protestant) background on my father’s side and so much of this movie resonated with me: a boy’s memories of what most of us would see as something terrible – so much violence – but for a nine-year-old it was a place and time he did not want to leave. And the music! What a joy. Van Morrison’s stirring rendition of Carrickfergus is part of the soundtrack – yes, I know Van is a bit off, but there is no denying this talent.

Swashbucklers and Anniversaries

I was talking to a friend about my mother and how she had a big crush on Moshe Dayan – she kept his picture on our fridge for the longest time. I think that Zelenskyy is in Dayan’s league there – a leader who becomes an object of admiration and who is madly crush-worthy. It’s a good thing, though, of course, the reason both men were/are famous is that their countries were/are under attack, which is not a good thing. The news from Ukraine continues to depress.

On another note – about another kind of war – it was two years ago today that Toronto went into a lockdown which we thought would last two weeks. I’ve written this before, I’m sure, but I’m extremely introverted and had it not been for all the death (including in my family) and economic destruction, I would have thoroughly enjoyed the pandemic. But restrictions are currently loosening in the Toronto area and I am not sure I am ready for all the humans out there. One podcast I enjoy is Andrew Sullivan’s Dishcast, and a few months ago he was predicting that when the Covid pandemic was over we would all go wild. From what I’ve been witnessing, his prediction is coming to pass. Case in point: I attended an event at a pub last Thursday and I arrived fairly early on in the evening. People had been there maybe forty minutes and yet the majority of them were hammered and dancing like idiots. It got worse (or better, depending on your attitude) from there. And this was a business event where most attendees were over 40. This won’t be pretty, people.

Another anniversary – my birthday last week: it is Pisces season and a fellow Pisces friend of mine has written a terrific piece to mark his own special day. In it, he makes mention of George Harrison – yet another Pisces – who happens to be my favourite Beatle. I think his All Things Must Pass album is better than all of the music created by the other three Beatles (post-breakup) put together. Don’t @ me, John/Paul/Ringo fans.

Happy almost spring, dear readers.