Nobody wears a Covid mask in the Netherlands. Here we go again, with that famous adage of the Dutch: Rules are there only to be broken. Except on public transit, where they can’t get away with it. Masks are obligatory but even here they’re not always worn ‘correctly.’ They’re diligent about checking your vaccination credentials … Continue reading Visiting The Netherlands, autumn 2021: #2
I had forgotten how wet it is in the Netherlands. After a two-year hiatus due to Covid-19, I finally visited ‘my old sod’ again this fall. On a bike trip through the polders south of Amsterdam, I passed by the Vinkeveen lakes and was amazed to see the water come within inches of mowing level, … Continue reading Visiting The Netherlands, autumn 2021: #1
(This story was published in the Ormsby Review earlier this year, but by posting it again on this blog it means to celebrate the current Vancouver Jazz Festival which, due to the ongoing crowd restrictions and border closures, will still largely be streamed online, spotlighting our best local musicians instead of international stars. The story … Continue reading Readers of History, and all that Jazz
San Francisco, summer 1974 – a Vignette: I want to cross the street, stand on the corner of the intersection waiting until the only vehicle in sight passes: a public transit bus. Dressed in my hippie best of long jeans skirt, Biba-of-London top and sandaled feet, I feel the need to show off how amazingly … Continue reading Black & White, and all shades in between
