Back in the 90’s I worked with a talented creative writer in Belleville named Kathy. One of the things she did that was very creative was send little unique props with her resumes to stand out. My favourite was a pair of small toy wooden blocks with “writers” written on them. The cover letter would say something like “If you are suffering from writer’s block, call me and I would love to help”. Well over the last couple of weeks, I have been looking at the two blocks that she gave me for my desk and thinking allot about my own writer’s block. It is certainly not a lack of content because I have a bunch to say, just trying to get back into a routine since the end of the last semester and the start of the next.

I am no horticulturist and suppose you don’t need to be to simply enjoy the beauty in the living tree, but it is this week, every year that reminds me that. When we lived in our last house, we moved in around this time of year, and it fell in love with the street when the boulevard was a wash with shades of pink in the form of blooming crab apple trees. I thought when we moved, if I wanted to enjoy the seasonal scenery, I would have to make a trip to our old street. Little did I know that our street shares the same landscaping? This week the street was beautiful.

I remember talking with my nephew a couple of years ago, and he asked “Uncle Jimmy, have you ever heard of this band called Van Halen before?” What can you do? I mean, you can laugh and shake your head, but the fact is that we probably where the same when we were kids. All we likely knew was what was going on in our own little worlds, on our same time plane. The stuff that happened long ago was somehow foreign and difficult to fathom and when someone used a line or said something in a certain way, it was new to use, and therefore fare game. Yes Pop culture, is an interesting subject.