March is Women’s History month. I’m not here to boast but I will tell you that I was a member of women’s lib before some of my female friends, so I have a long record of supporting women. Back in the day when I ran my marketing agency, any female on staff was paid the same as males, or more if they showed superior skills. They were also accorded every opportunity to excel to higher positions in the firm. I never understood why capable females would be paid less, held back or looked down upon in any way. So here in Women’s History month, let’s celebrate the strength, determination and resilience of women everywhere. Acceleration is not happening fast enough in some circles, but where it is, congrats! Let’s keep it moving!!
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One of the benefits of being an author is that you get to create the “rules” for your books. And so it is that as I finished conducting interviews for my latest book “Icons. Growing Up in The Shadow of Greatness, I was unexpectantly introduced to an amazing woman who is an ascending singing star with a rich family background. Her name is Madonna Carew and you can learn about her at madonnacarew.com. In “Icons”, I’m profiling sons and daughters of well-known people and discussing their upbringing. I’ve been chatting with folks like Rod Roddenberry (son of the Star Trek creator); Celine Peterson (daughter of the late piano genius Oscar Peterson); Ken Ross (whose mother Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, wrote the famous book that introduced readers to the "five stages of grief"); Hoagy Bix Carmichael (son of the famed song writer); Karen Davidson (4th generation family member working for the Harley Davidson company); Tom Sandler (whose mom, Ruth Lowe, wrote the song that launched Frank Sinatra’s career into the stratosphere, “I’ll Never Smile Again”.); and many others. Now, here’s why I chose to expand the concept of the book with one chapter that profiles Madonna Carew. A performing star in her own right, Madonna is the youngest child of a family of 15 kids (yup, that’s right: 15!) She grew up in Newfoundland and eventually in Goose Bay Labrador (“It was a place of great trepidation, a place of great immorality”). She fought extreme poverty and lack of parental oversight, eventually breaking the rules to launch her singing career. She sang on air force bases at age 12, in nightclubs at 13. As I got to know her, I realized this was a reversal of the other individuals in my book: she is the star, her parents being the support team. Only, they really were not able to add the support she needed growing up, as they fought poverty and her father’s drinking. Her story is quite amazing, and surely speaks of perseverance (she is currently fast-tracked to hit the U.S. market.), and I felt it warranted exposure in the book. “Icons” will be published later this year. News of the publishing date will be available here: iconsbook.life. Interesting to read a new article in the Globe & Mail newspaper that lives in harmony with my most recent post on this blog. The Globe story is headed “Surround Sound” and opens with, “We have been conditioned to accept a cacophony of sounds – in our cities, in our homes and in our minds. Our world grows louder, decibel by nattering decibel. It doesn’t need to be this way… there is value in the silence that our noise pollution obscures.” Columnist Michael Harris goes on to write: “In Canada, 80 per cent of us live in cities now and that means urban din. Sirens, traffic, excavators. The roar of a subway and the airplane overhead. It all adds up to an unescapable wave of sound. And this ratcheting of volume is not benign. The World Health Organization warns that urban environments now produce sound levels well above safe limits. In Europe, there are 12,000 premature deaths each year caused by the stress and cardiovascular disease brought on by excess noise.” Now, I had no idea that noise was a killer. But I do know that escaping the urban prison of sound is one of the reasons I find the Caribbean resorts I visit so relaxing. Perhaps that idea about Quiet Beaches is more and more appropriate. Just back from a wonderful couple of weeks at a resort in the Caribbean. Here’s something I think every island destination should consider: a “Quiet Zone” on the beach. I’m one of those guys who truly sees value in Paul Simon’s song, “The Sound of Silence”. Just listening to nothing more than the surf landing on the beach is super relaxing. But then, the sereneness is broken by a guy standing in the water, half-drunk, yelling at the top of his voice to some other guy on the beach, “Hey Jerry, grab me a brewski willya!!” Why is it the guy yelling thinks we all want to hear his voice? Having talked with lots of vacationers, they find this kind of noise oppressive too, getting in the way of the relaxation many of us have come away to enjoy. So, how about if the vacation resorts were to select an area of the beach for those of us who appreciate Mr. Simon’s sound of silence. Maybe something like a couple of hundred feet, with a sign at each end: QUIET ZONE This section of the beach between here and the next sign is for the quiet enjoyment of our guests. Please avoid making noise in this area. We offer lots of other places on the beach for lively activity and encourage you to enjoy that too. Thanks. Maybe? I am saddened to read today that shark deaths due to fishing have increased in recent years despite an international effort to reduce the harvesting of their fins. So says a new study that describes how shark finning – amputating a shark's fins and tail before throwing the carcass back into the water – is an awful practice. In the majority of cases, those are live animals being cast back into the sea after having their fins hacked off. Their future: a slow, dreadful death where the shark is left to bleed to death. Oh, and about one-third of those sharks killed belong to species facing extinction. I learned a lot about sharks when researching and writing my book “Shark Assault: An Amazing Story of Survival” It’s the true story of a courageous young woman, Nicole Moore from Orangeville ON, who was walking waist-deep in the ocean at a Mexican resort when she was brutally, savagely attacked twice by a bull shark. She came very close to dying, lost her arm to amputation and has since endured numerous surgeries to save her leg. Along the way, I met Claudia Li, founder of Shark Truth. She’s proudly Chinese, but she says the shark-finning process is inhumane. "Sharks are picked up and found, and they slice the fin off and they dump the rest of shark back into the ocean, and the shark's left to bleed to death," she explained. I also interviewed marine ecologist Dr. Peter Sale who told me that sharks are the “policemen” of the sea, keeping order. “If we start losing sharks, we’ll start losing the seas!” For the last word, I turn to Dalhousie University biology professor, Dr. Boris Worm. "The number of threatened shark species around the world keeps going up, not down. Very simply, we need to do more.” A friend has pointed out that there are people on Facebook who want to be my friend. And I gather they’re wondering why I don’t accept their request. Well, please don’t take it personally. Fact is, I don’t do Facebook. I’m not on the site. So, if you’re waiting for me to accept your friend request, you’re gonna have a long wait. Now, don’t think this means I’m deliberately avoiding those of you who live by the Facebook rules. Not at all. It’s just, I’m not into social media. I’m not on Facebook. I’m not writing tweets on Twitter. I’m not scouring Instagram seeking the newest photos. You know, it was back in the day when Facebook was taking the world by storm… everyone seemed to be joining up. Yet I didn’t feel that call. So, I got together with my crack IT crew – namely, my sons Charlie and Jamie – and asked them, “Hey guys, should I be on Facebook?” “It depends,” was the answer. “Dad, you take lots of photos, for instance, of your vacation destinations. Don’t you want to publish those for people to see?” “Nope,” was my response. “Oh sure, I may want to share some pix with a few people, like your grandmother, but I’m not looking to share my life with millions of others I don’t even know.” “OK then, how about this: you’re pretty outspoken when it comes to politics. Sharing your views with people on Facebook can expose your thoughts to a much wider audience, creating a wider dialogue.” “No interest,” I said. “If I have ideas, I’m happy to email you guys or a handful of other folks. But sharing my views with people I don’t even know? No thanks.” “All right then. A third question: Facebook can help you find job candidates. You’re running a busy marketing agency. Wouldn’t it be nice to have candidates lined up for your next job posting?” “Well... No. We don’t post job opportunities. In fact, normally we take recommendations from a small group of people in our business. No need to go wider than that.” “Then dad,” they exclaimed, “you don’t need Facebook!” And, from the old habits die hard department, it’s been that way ever since. Oh, I should point out that Charlie, my oldest son, set up a program where I’m supposed to promote this blog by posting a reminder on Instagram when I submit a new entry. I think it automatically goes over to Twitter and Facebook the way he set it up. When I remember to do that, it’s is my social media exposure. So, if anyone is cursing the fact I’m not answering their friend request, please don’t take it personally. Now you know. His name is Peter and he’s a pastor with a past. As the minister of a small rural church, Peter’s a guy who vaulted from technology to theology, exchanging his business credo for a new kind of creed, Now, I’d always assumed that men of the cloth get their calling from a standing start. But Peter burst that bubble. As a career jumper whose migration from business to Bible surprised even him, his metamorphosis occurred at a time when most of us are starting the countdown towards leaving the rat race. Let me tell you his story. I was at a wonderful country wedding beside a pristine lake with the mighty oaks and maples bearing witness to matrimony. The vows amongst the boughs complete, I managed to grab the groom's ear: “Really liked your service,” I mentioned. “Oh, that’s all Peter’s work,” he said, pointing. I glanced at the man in black as he gazed at a purple sky foretelling drizzle. “Something intrigues me about the pastor,” I said. “Gonna check him out.” Peter extended his hand and uttered almost immediately, “You know, I have to confess I’ve only done a few weddings, so your feedback would be helpful... how’d you like the service?”. I was a little taken aback, but his smiling curiosity was genuine and the man meant business. I set to work politely praising the uniqueness of the ceremony and he seemed particularly pleased, reminding me that even those appearing to be above feedback always benefit from a compliment. Intrigued, I decided to delve deeper and our conversation became more revealing. The son of a contractor who’d faced bankruptcy, Peter learned early about the trials of commerce. He introduced himself to the world of business by selling solar energy panels (early connection to the heavens?). But he was ahead of his time and when prospects shut down quicker than the sun darts behind a cloud, he decided it was time to come in from the cold and seek security at Bell Canada. Problem was, Peter couldn’t ignore the nagging feeling that something was missing in his life. He also found it punishing to work for a distracted boss who was rarely available for guidance. Now, our man is nothing if not extraordinary so it didn’t take much to realize another adventure was more suited to his destiny, even with a wife and two small kids to support. In a move that defines courage, he left Bell and applied himself full time to theology. To me, that’s a leap of faith... working without a net. To him, a natural step to deep beliefs and firm convictions. Next came the long hours, unrelenting focus and years of studying. And while there were times when even Peter questioned his choice or where the next meal loomed, this career switch-hitter had the satisfaction of passing into the ministry with flying colours. Flash forward to today where Peter’s reward is securely in place, overseeing a friendly church with a thankful community, not a communications monopoly with an ungrateful mandate. He’s a happy man, at peace with himself and proud to have engineered a release from that one-way street to the status quo. Oh, one other development: Peter tells me he’s very pleased with his new boss and can call upon Him at will. I’ve just returned from a glorious pre-winter vacation in Saint Lucia, our favorite Caribbean destination. Staying at a beautiful beach at Rodney Bay, we noticed that there are areas that have reefs with beautiful fish living there, some of which are very few in number and are potentially suffering extinction. One thing that surprised us was seeing people fishing on the beach. We understand that fishing is “legal” but surely they could find somewhere else to fish rather than where people are swimming (creating dangerous situations with live hooks). Or perhaps they could understand that many fish species are being depleted and are suffering extinction: does Saint Lucia really want to be an island without marine life? It's our hope that the government might favor visitors who love to swim in the sea, while protecting the reef fish. We hope they will post notices advising people who feel they must fish to consider fishing where people are not swimming. I’ve been receiving enquiries about the Jazz Cruise I posted about recently, so here are some more details. 25 years ago, trumpeter Guido Basso took up the baton by hiring several musicians to join him on a cruise ship where they would present special jazz concerts to a group of fans. Having been on a few of these voyages, let me tell you how cool it is to be “special”, partaking in unique jazz events that most people aboard the ship are not authorized to attend. Sadly, Guido passed away earlier this year. But Mike Murley, wonderful tenor sax player, and Heather Bambrick, extraordinary vocalist, are sustaining Guido’s memory by keeping the Jazz Cruise going. This year’s trip – the first without Guido – featured Kevin Turcotte on trumpet and flugelhorn and he did a great job of picking up where Mr. Basso left off. Kevin, Mike and Heather were joined by Ted Quinlan on guitar, Pat Collins on bass and Barry Elmes playing drums. As aways, Ted O’Reilly hosted. This band could not have been better! They played outstanding tunes in five concerts and left the attendees wanting more. If you enjoy really good jazz (featuring lots of “standards”), let me suggest you join us next year. It will be in the autumn and our Travel Advisor, Rose Coleman with Direct Travel, is the lady who pulls it all together. You can reach Rose for details at (905) 510-8460 or rose.coleman@visiontravel.ca. Tell her PJ sent you. I do hope you can join us: it’s a musical and travel adventure you will not soon forget. A couple of weeks ago marked the 25 year anniversary of the annual Canadian Jazz Cruise. I’ll leave it to Heather Bambrick – singer extraordinaire – to offer some thoughts… “It was beyond wonderful. This was our first cruise since we lost our dear Guido Basso, who basically helped create and build this annual event and his presence was definitely missed. However, I think we did him proud with a wonderful group of outstanding musicians as well as a simply terrific group of cruisers. We saw some of the familiar lovely faces, as well as more than a few new ones who've decided to join our little jazz cruise family. All in all, it was an outstanding 10 days of sailing to incredibly gorgeous Caribbean ports, as well as sharing some brilliant music and fun with a wonderful group of people. We're already starting to plan next year's cruise.” |
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