2024 is my year to bring my writing up a notch and I decided in January that more reading would be part of my strategy to do so. In April, I shared with you my first quarter success - if you missed it, check it out here. I’ve continued to do my best to read the pile of must-reads I’ve collected although full disclosure, most of these were acquired during the second quarter, continuing to fulfil my seemingly endless need to support Canadian publishing. 

I was the child of a British mother who was thrilled when Marks & Spencer came to Canada in the 1970s. I didn’t love going there - it all seemed pretty old-ladyish to my wanna-be hip self - but I couldn’t deny the quality and comfort of the undergarments and so up until the closure of all 40+ Canadian stores in 2010, I would shop there. In the dark period since, I have cobbled together a collection of serviceable underpants from The Bay and  (gulp) Joe Fresh. But when I knew I would be in Dublin for two goofing-off days, I knew M&S (as it’s now known) would be on the agenda. 

The Irish Writers Retreat was at an Inn in County Donegal, an area of Ireland so far north no-one I met in Dublin has been. Because the 2 km route to the nearest shop - a patrol station - was accompanied only sporadically by sidewalks, you left your umbrella in your bag to get a better view of the grills of oncoming buses, cars, and lorries barrelling around tight corners at breakneck speed, seemingly without a thought to foreigners who might like a rainy ramble. Despite the danger, people in our group would head down to grab water, toothpaste, or just to get a break. On the two outings I made, I was grateful when I rounded the last corner to see the Teac Jack, our hotel. Safe again.  

You’ve already read about the first six things in my list of 15 things I learned from my trip to Ireland. One of the lessons I learned from my late husband, Jack, is the rich potential of talking to strangers. Ireland provided this at the next level! The 7th thing on my list of 15 confirms the Irish reputation for friendliness. Here are three examples from the many I could have chosen.  

What I’m about to share is a significant step forward for me. I flew Aer Lingus to Dublin on June 15 with a Heathrow-Dublin-Toronto route scheduled home on July 1. On June 17, Aer Lingus pilots announced plans to work to rule starting June 26, with a complete shutdown of all operations on June 29. The airline immediately set about cancelling flights.

A previous version of me would have responded as one of my fellow nine workshoppers did - immediate sleeplessness prompting a costly booking of a new route back to her US home, despite not knowing for certain if her flight would be cancelled. (I don’t believe it was, by the way)

So I did it! Some may remember that during COVID I disclosed I had likely seen all of the world I would see, thinking it would be many years before I felt comfortable to board a plane again. But I was wrong. After nearly five years of staycationing, I plunged back into the world, with a two week trip to Ireland ending with a short stop in England. Built around a week-long stay with nine strangers at Donegal’s Irish Writing Retreat, many of the trip’s lessons relate to honing this craft. But many, as you’ll see from below, do not. 

“With a growing family, we need a bigger house.” Can’t tell you how many times I hear this from mid-career professionals, occupying renovated three + bedroom houses in my suburban community of Weston. Among their chronological peers, these are the ones who’ve hit the jackpot. They managed to sneak into a housing market that is out of reach for many, and they’ve done it in a community that provides sizeable yards, walkable streets, playgrounds galore, and the Humber River trail a 10 minute walk away. They’re living large and yet even they want to live larger, like their parents had been able to.

Learn to do by doing!

There I’d be, every Saturday morning, gathered around a leader's kitchen table, chanting this, and whipping out my notebook with 8 or 10 other teen girls, ready to learn something about bread-making, or sewing, or some other domestic art. And laugh. Oh yes, we laughed a lot! This was community-building at its best. This was 4-H, circa 1982, East Wawanosh township.

I’ve been public about adding a unit to Weston’s housing stock by converting my garage into Chandlerville, my 550 sq ft custom home, and renting out my main house. I’ve reported, as did the Toronto Star in their March story, the $500K I spent on the project. Some Star readers were aggrieved at the price tag, accusing me of being a rich lawyer and pointing out the pointlessness of a by-law that doesn’t allow most people to participate. I agree. They’re not inexpensive and so, as with any other construction, building a laneway suite, garden suite, or any other kind of accessory dwelling unit (or ADU as they’re known) won’t be for everyone. But maybe they should be open to more people if we are going to make a dent in this housing crisis.