A Blog Overhaul + Some Snow Notes!

Hello Readers!

We've had snow flurries here in Toronto over the past 24 hours. The snow is covering the ground for the first time this year. Always a milestone. The snow seems a little early this fall, but it happens from time to time. 

Retirement is great! Be seeing as I don't have to go outside, I haven't. I'm content to stay indoors and look out the window. Mostly I just listen to my record albums on the stereo in my man cave. I'm still on a reggae binge, since my trip to Jamaica in the summer. Lotsa Bob Marley + the Wailers, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Burning Spear, UB40, and lots of dub; Lee "Scratch Perry" and King Tubby. I'm still working on my Bob Marley album reviews, mostly listening to them on vinyl. Really, I think music can sound a lot better on vinyl. No digital sheen. A more richer sound field. There's beauty in vinyl's simplicity and the nice big graphics on the album covers. I think so.

I will write more about records when I get my new "Pages" feature started. You can see the empty links at the top of my site under the header now. I am planning on adding "My Writing" as a new, separate page. A lot of it is based on my travels and life in the places I've visited. There's "On To Habana", a love story. "Christmas in Cuba", is a "Cold War" thriller of sorts. There are two or three novellas, quite a few short stories, and a lot of poetry [blank beat verse]. I previously posted these elsewhere across the internet. Might as well bring them all home to nest in one place.

You will note, I have also moved my "Blog Acronym Guide" forward, so it's easier to find. I am also going to overhaul it. So if you see any corrections, and changes needed, or I have missed an important one, please let me know. It now follows immediately below this blog. 

Below that is your "November News + Views", which I will update in the next day or two. It's been pretty slow. There seems to be little news on the teacher contract negotiations with the provincial government. Nobody is saying much. We saw what happened when it got like that in 2012-13. Scary! Scary! Thanks to those of you who have been forwarding updates in the "Comments" section below my "Teacher Free Speech Contract Guide" blog. If you have any you can add for our erudition, please do!

I'm doing a site overhaul; maintenance basically. Nick my techie is amazing and does most if not all of the layout changes. I bow to his expertise. He designed the site for me, and I am eternally grateful. He says 500,000 blog visits is excellent. I'm using Google+ now, to look over a careful breakdown of my readership statistics. I will tailor the site accordingly, when suitable and am looking at ways of expanding my readership base through the social media. Anyway, it's an ongoing process.

When I'm not doing that, I've got quite a stack of books on the go, and finally enough time to read them all. There's presently 3 on Bob Marley, one on Christopher Columbus, another about a JFK assassination plot, a classic rock reference book and a Wailer's discogaphy this dude wrote with Bunny Wailer ..... and so on!

I've booked my winter holiday in Cuba, at the Brisas Sierra Mar again. Roughly translates to "breezes, mountains and the sea". The coral reef is great for snorkeling. I also plan to have my Cuban School Project there probably on the weekends, because of course the teachers will otherwise be in school. Teacher readers will know the routine. A visit to the resort will be nice break. 

Janet and I are also planning to go Christmas shopping in New York this year. I should go out later to the bank and get some US cash. Fortunately I bought when the Canadian dollar was on par, so I don't take a hit when it dips lower. 

Since gas prices are plunging, you'd think the airlines would give us a price break. Jet fuel will also cost a lot less. Most if not all of the airlines added a separate baggage charge when the fuel prices were so expensive.They aren't now. Has the price of a flight gone down? No, of course not. What a scam! 

Fortunately there's some good deals for New York if you can book during the off times. Same goes for the resorts! Works for me!

Well, it's Monday, a whole new week. Winter is definitely in the air, even though the solstice is still a month away. I always like the snow at first. Everything is covered under a gentle white blanket in the world outside, below our windows. It's nice for Christmas, fa, la, la, la, la, but afterwards, as far as I'm concerned it sucks. Nope. I don't like it. But so it goes and on and on and on .....

Stay tuned for my new "Pages" feature and thanks for visiting my site. This is really cool. Yup. Y'bet!

Cheers!/
Solidarity!

David C.

Outside our windows: snow, snow and more snow!


PS: My Blog Acronym Guide + your Teacher November News + Views blog is directly below....