A Thin Veneer — A New Companion

| January 24, 2026

The blade is but the tooth and claw That Nature never gave, So Man no longer hides in trees, Nor cowers in a cave. Why scrabble for what lives beneath The rocks and rotting logs? Take blade, go forth with Comrades bold, And Trusty Hunting Dogs! ~ Tooth and Claw ~ (Excerpt) If you’ve ever […]

A Long Winter’s Night for Eating With Your Fingers as a Sword Rests in your Lap

| December 24, 2025

My Esteemed Friend Jim Keating recently made a profound utterance in the matter of prevailing flaccid, and annually recurring, expressions of what’s branded to be in the “Spirit” of the “Season”, saying in part … “… How about songs, words, images which convey strength, power, confidence and faith in this time of Yule? Why not […]

Another Long Winter’s Night

| December 21, 2025

The Wild Hunt rode early this year, as its constituents bear full title to do, shredding the tops of the Hemlocks in my range throughout Friday night into Saturday afternoon, and joyously reintroducing a significant part of the local population to what “rural” living really means. The Solstice occurred at 11:03 Atlantic time today, from […]

A Thin Veneer — Foundational Guidance

| December 6, 2025

“In this age of divided loyalties and unending crisis, some cower. Some assert themselves from the perceived safety of throngs screaming a common slogan understood differently by each throat and hearing ear. Some look to a saviour. Still others understand that if there is a saviour, in the hour of need it’s going to have […]

Do Nothing Which is of No Use

| September 20, 2025

“Musashi quite wisely said, ‘Do nothing which is of no use,’ and with that in mind, I prefer a return to first principles — the safety of an enterprise MUST have no bearing on the worthiness of its pursuit. Only upon the manner of its execution. Even then, this will be governed on a sliding scale […]

De Woodz iz Cloze

| August 10, 2025

On 5 August 2025, the Government of Nova Scotia proclaimed: “… a restricted travel zone in any area of the woods upon which no person shall enter for the purpose of travelling, camping, fishing or picnicking, or any other purpose, without a valid travel permit issued by the Minister, a conservation officer or other person […]

Dark Sentiments Season 15 — Day 14: Be As The Bay Leaf

| October 14, 2024

In this age of divided loyalties and unending crisis, some cower. Some assert themselves from the perceived safety of throngs screaming a common slogan understood differently by each throat and hearing ear. Some look to a saviour. Still others understand that if there is a saviour, in the hour of need it’s going to have […]

Dark Sentiments Season 15 — Day 11: Best Day Ever

| October 11, 2024

“Best day ever!” An all too common utterance from the mouths of the same subset of the Great Unwashed who seasonally prattle on about their “Resolution” for a new year, and the check boxes (most of them fated to remain unchecked) on their “bucket list”. Spoken as though the speaker is dead but refuses to […]

Dark Sentiments Season 15 — Day 10: Violence?

| October 10, 2024

Back on Day 3 we had a word from Maestro Adam Crown that, if you haven’t yet heard, you should go and lend an ear to now. We’ll be hearing from him again tonight as we look at a question that is both Naturally simple, and made more vulnerable thereby to being convoluted by certain […]

Dark Sentiments Season 15 — Day 9: Who Ate Cock Robin?

| October 9, 2024

People really need to be careful of the tattoos they get put on themselves. Marking yourself with a character from an Asian language you don’t speak yourself, only to find out too late that it means something embarrassing, isn’t even close to being the worst thing that could happen. Some languages were never meant to […]