December OSCAR - Old Ottawa South

By Paige Raymond Kovach
Old Ottawa South is a
community between five
bridges – Bronson Avenue
Canal Bridge, George Dunbar
Bridge, Bank Street Canal Bridge,
Billings Bridge, and George McIlraith
The
O•S•C•A•R©
The Community Voice of Old Ottawa South
Year 39, No. 11 The Ottawa South Community Association Review
DEC 2011
By Kathleen Marsman
Throughout the summer and
earlier this fall, residents of
Old Ottawa South may have
seen yard signs bearing the suggestion:
“Just say NO to over development”.
The same signs may now be
conspicuously absent. To those of
you wondering where this signage has
gone, here is the sordid tale.
Over the summer, a group of
neighbors on Rosedale Ave, Colonel
By Drive, and Aylmer Ave grew
tired of seeing inappropriate infill
Bridges of Old Ottawa South
Bridge. These structures connect our
community to the rest of the city and
bring the city to us. All five bridges
that touch our community are owned
and maintained by the City of Ottawa,
and are inspected once every two
years or more frequently if the bridge
condition warrants more inspection.
Bank Canal Bridge Photo by Tom Alfoldi
This month OSCAR focuses on
these engineering marvels with aerial
photographs by Tom Alföldi, and text
by Paige Raymond Kovach.
Bronson Avenue Canal Bridge
looked much different when it was
first built in 1904. Originally built
on a skew, or at an angle to the canal
Where Has All The Signage Gone?
development. While making efforts
to preserve the house and heritage
oak tree (still standing) at 9 Rosedale
Ave, we had the idea to print up plastic
lawn signs expressing our sentiments,
and place them in prominent
view. On Saturday, November 5 at
about 9:30 pm, just around bedtime
for my kids, there came a knock at
my front door. It was our next door
neighbors frantically advising that our
lawn sign had been set on fire and was
slowly simmering amongst the dry
fall leaves. This on its own would not
have been so disconcerting if not for
channel, the swing bridge allowed
farmers from Nepean and Gloucester
townships bring their food to market,
and yet it did not impede navigation
on the canal. “The original steel
Cont’d on page 12
the “Committee of Adjustment” sign
posted 2 doors down on the lawn of
9 Rosedale, which was engulfed in
flames licking 6 feet up into the night
sky. We all focussed our efforts to
extinguish that fire, as it was a much
larger sign made of wood, and posted
on a two-by-four that certainly would
have blazed heartily enough to set
the dry leaves surrounding it (and the
house 3 feet behind it) on fire. The
kitchen fire extinguisher did the trick.
I didn’t sleep too well that night
Cont’d on page 13

Page 2 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011

DEC 2011
OSCAR
The
The OTTAWA SOUTH COMMUNITY
ASSOCIATION REVIEW
260 Sunnyside Ave, Ottawa Ontario, K1S 0R7
www.OldOttawaSouth.ca/oscar
oscar@oldottawasouth.ca
Editor: Mary Anne Thompson
oscar@oldottawasouth.ca
Distribution Manager: Larry Ostler
Business Manager: Susanne Ledbetter
ledbetter@sympatico.ca
Advertising Manager: Gayle Weitzman
oscarads@oldottawasouth.ca
OSCAR is printed by Winchester Print
NEXT DEADLINE: FRIDAY, December 16
The OSCAR is a community association paper paid for entirely by advertising.
It is published for the Ottawa South Community Association
Inc. (OSCA). Distribution is free to all Old Ottawa South homes and
businesses and selected locations in Old Ottawa South, the Glebe and
Billings Bridge. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not
necessarily of The OSCAR or OSCA. The editor retains the right to edit
and include articles submitted for publication.
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
613-327-9080
613-730-1058
(not classy ads)
FOR DISTRIBUTION INQUIRIES,
CALL 613-327-9080
or email: larryostler@gmail.com The OSCAR thanks
the following people who brought us to your door this
month:
ZONE A1: Kathy Krywicki (Coordinator), Mary Jo Lynch, Brian Eames
and Kim Barclay, Wendy Robbins, Jim and Carrol Robb, Terri-Lee Lefebvre,
Becky Sasaki, Kevin and Stephanie Williams.
ZONE B1: Ross Imrie (Coordinator), Family Gref- Innes, Gabriela
Gref-Innes and Fiona Fagan, the Montgomery family, Laurie Morrison,
Susanne Ledbetter.
ZONE B2: Craig Piche (Coordinator), Pat Eakins, Hayley Atkinson, Leslie
Roston, Melissa Johnson, Lydia Oak, and John Callan & Diana Carr
ZONE C1: Laura Johnson (Coordinator), the Williams family, Josh
Rahaman, Jesper Lindeberg, Jeff Pouw, Brendan McCoy, Bruce Grant, and
the Woroniuk-Ryan family.
ZONE C2: Craig Piche (Coordinator), Alan McCullough, Charles and
Phillip Kijek, Kit Jenkin, Michel and Christina Bridgeman, Anne Coyle,
Patrick Hinton.
ZONE D1: Emily Keys, the Lascelles family, Gail Stewart, Gabe Teramura,
Oliver Waddington, Franklin-Flack family, the Sprott family.
ZONE D2: Janet Drysdale (Coordinator), The Adriaanse Family, Gaia
Chernushenko, The Rand family, Aidan and Willem Ray, the Stewart family.
ZONE E1:Brian Tansey(Coordinator), Karen Wolfe/ Curt Labond, Norah
Hutchinson, Steve Adamson, the Sanger/O’Neil family, John Sutherland
ZONE E2: Chris Berry (Coordinator), Mary-Ann Kent, Glen Elder and
Lorraine Stewart, the Hunter family, Brodkin-Haas family, Allan Paul,
Christina Bradley, Caroline Calvert, Larry Ostler.
ZONE F1: Carol and Ferg O’Connor (Coordinator), Jenny O’Brien, the
Stern family, Ellen Bailie, Dante and Bianca Ruiz, Peter Kemp, Kelly
Haggart and Taiyan Roberts, Goutte family (Joshua, Leo and Alina), Walter
and Robbie Engert.
ZONE F2: Bea Bol (Coordinator), Paulette Theriault, Ryan Zurakowski,
Susan McMaster, Paige Raymond, Pierre Guevremont, Judy and Pierre
Chamberland, Cheryl Hyslop.
ZONE G: Bernie Zeisig(Coordinator), Claudia and Estelle Bourlon-
Albarracin, David Lum, Cindy MacLoghlin, Hannah and Emily Blackwell,
Katya and Mikka Zeisig.
Echo Drive: Alex Bissel.
Bank Street-Ottawa South: Rob Cook, Tom Lawson, Paula Archer.
Bank Street-Glebe: Larry Ostler.
Alta Vista Branch Library: Mary Anne Thompson
CONTRIBUTIONS
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Page 3
Contributions should be in electronic format sent either by e-mail to
oscar@oldottawasouth.ca in either plain text or WORD format, or as
a printed copy delivered to the Firehall office, 260 Sunnyside Avenue.
Moving away from Old Ottawa South? Know someone who would like
to receive The OSCAR? We will send The OSCAR for one year for just
$40 to Canadian addresses (including foreign service) and $80 outside
of Canada. Drop us a letter with your name, address, postal code and
country. Please include a check made out to The OSCAR.
SUPPORT OUR ADVERTISERS
The OSCAR is sponsored entirely from advertising. Our advertisers are
often not aware that you are from Old Ottawa South when you patronize
them. Make the effort to let them know that you saw their ad in The
OSCAR. They will be glad to know and The OSCAR will benefit from
their support. If you know of someone providing a service in the community,
tell them about The OSCAR. Our rates are reasonable.
FUTURE OSCAR DEADLINES
December 16 (January issue); January 20 (February issue); February 17
(March issue); March 16 (April issue); April 13 (May issue); May 11 (June
issue); June 15 (July/August issue); August 10 (September issue).
The Old Firehall
OTTawa SOuTh COmmuniTy CenTre
OSCa@OldOTTawaSOuTh.Ca
HOURS PHONE 613 247-4946
MONDAY TO THURSDAY 9 AM TO 9 PM
FRIDAY 9 AM TO 6 PM
SATURDAY 9 AM TO 1 PM*
SUNDAY CLOSED
*Open only when programs are operating, please call first.
WHAT’S THAT NUMBER?
Ottawa South Community Centre - The Old Firehall
Ottawa South Community Association (OSCA)
Ottawa Public Library - Sunnyside Branch
Rob Campbell - Rob.Campbell@OCDSB.ca
Kathy Ablett, Catholic Board Trustee
Centretown Community Health Centre
CARLETON UNIVERSITY
CUSA (Carleton U Students Association)
Graduate Students Association
Community Liaison
Mediation Centre
Athletics
CITY HALL
David Chernushenko, City Councillor
(david.chernushenko@ottawa.ca)
Main Number(24 hrs) for all departments
Community Police - non-emergencies
Emergencies only
Serious Crimes
Ottawa Hydro
Streetlight Problems (burned out, always on, flickering)
Brewer Pool
Brewer Arena
City of Ottawa web site - www.city.ottawa.on.ca
247-4946
247-4872
730-1082
730-8128
526-9512
233-5430
520-6688
520-6616
520-3660
520-5765
520-4480
580-2487
3-1-1
236-1222
9-1-1
230-6211
738-6400
3-1-1
247-4938
247-4917

Page 4 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
FLOODING WINDSOR PARK
OUTDOOR RINK – help
needed
• Did you know that that the rink in
Windsor Park is run by OSCA with a
grant from the City of Ottawa to help
pay for equipment and supervision?
• Did you know that the rink is
flooded by volunteers every night?
• Did you know that volunteers are
becoming increasingly scarce?
Brief Notes
From the Firehall
DECEMBER, 2011 at the Firehall
Please contact OSCA at osca@
oldottawasouth.ca or call 613-
247-4872 to volunteer for your
neighbourhood rink – you will only
be volunteering for ONE NIGHT a
year – two at the most.
GIFT CERTIFICATES
available for the CARDIO
FITNESS CENTRE at the
Firehall. Why not give a gift
certificate this holiday season.
$40 for 1 month, $130 for 4 months,
$195 for 6 months and $360 for the
year 2012, or a gift of time with a
Personal Trainer.
HOLIDAY MOVIES at the
Firehall – Saturday, December 10
in the afternoon – with a visit from
SANTA.
WINTER PROGRAM
REGISTRATION - starts online,
Wednesday, December 7 at 8:00 pm
and in person Thursday, December
8 at 9:00 am at the Firehall, 260
Sunnyside Avenue. Register early
to avoid disappointment. Program
Brochure will be in December
OSCAR and online.
NEW – CONCERT SERIES
on Saturday nights at the Firehall.
February 25, Toronto Baroque
ensemble ARADIA, March 31 –
Ottawa Jazz singer Renee Yoxon and
her trio and April 21 – Sarah Burnell
Band. Watch OSCAR for more
details
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INFORMATION and REGISTRATION for all OSCA programs at: www.oldottawasouth.ca
just follow the RED registration signs or call us at 613-247-4946 or drop by the Firehall at 260 Sunnyside Avenue.
The Old Ottawa South Community
Association (OSCA)
is looking for a dynamic and
community oriented individual to be
its new Executive Director. This is
a full-time managerial position that
will help OSCA transition to an expanded
role in delivering community
programming in Old Ottawa South.
The position would commence in
mid-April 2012. An annual salary of
up to $60,000 is being offered for this
position, depending on qualifications
and experience.
The Position:
Reporting to the President of the
Board of the Association, you will
be responsible for managing OSCA’s
operations, including:
a) developing, delivering, and
managing recreational programming
at the Old Firehall Community Centre
(in partnership with City of Ottawa
staff);
b) developing and organizing
community special events;
c) identifying, engaging, and coordinating
community volunteers; and
assisting the Board and its committees
in managing their work and
their relationships with other community
organizations and NGOs, various
City of Ottawa departments, local
school boards and school administrations,
and the local City Councillor.
New Executive Director Needed
The Candidate:
As a successful candidate for this
position you will be a self-starter with
excellent partnership and relationship
building skills. You can take strategic
direction from the Board and turn it
into concrete deliverables using well
developed managerial skills.
You will have had experience
working in a community based organization,
in project management
and planning, document tracking,
budgeting and the engagement and
supervision of staff. Experience in
managing and delivering community
based recreational programming will
be considered an asset. You will also
have highly developed oral and written
communications skills.
You will be at ease dealing with
a wide range of individuals from volunteers,
professional instructors, City
staff and senior officials, Board members
and individuals in the community,
either as users of OSCA programs
or concerned citizens. You will be
diplomatic and be able to deal with
potential differences of view with tact
and understanding.
The Challenge:
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
OSCA is in the midst of a major
transition. With the opening of a
renovated and expanded community
centre and the growth in its program-
ming base, OSCA needs a skilled
community oriented manager who
can ensure that the Association has
the administrative and management
capacity to take on a progressively larger
role in the delivery of community
programming. Working closely with
City of Ottawa Parks and Recreation
Department staff, contract instructors
and volunteers, you will be expected
to effectively lead a growing suite of
recreational, educational and cultural
programming and events for the benefit
of the residents of the Old Ottawa
South community.
The Organization:
OSCA is one of Ottawa’s oldest
community associations. Incorporated
in the early 1970s, OSCA is governed
by a 16 person Board elected
by its members. Serving over 3,000
households and businesses in Old Ottawa
South, OSCA runs recreational
programming and special events for
adults and children and represents the
interests of its members to the City of
Ottawa and other public bodies on a
range of issues such as urban planning
and development, traffic, transportation
and environmental sustainability.
With an operating budget of approximately
$500,000, primarily devoted
to recreational programming, OSCA
also runs a community monthly newspaper,
The OSCAR, and a new web-
site. For more information on OSCA
and the Old Ottawa South community,
please visit www.oldottawasouth.ca.
How to Apply:
If you wish to be considered for
the position you should submit a short
letter explaining how your background,
skills and experience meet
our expectations and how you could
contribute to making OSCA a more
effective community organization.
You should also attach a short resumé
outlining your work and voluntary experience,
educational background and
any professional or technical qualifications
you have that would be relevant
for the position. Please submit
your application to:
The Chair
OSCA Executive Director Search
Committee
Old Ottawa South Community Association
260 Sunnyside Avenue
OTTAWA ON K1S 0R7
or
osca@oldottawasouth.ca
The closing date for applications
is Tuesday, 31 January 2012
Please be prepared to submit a list
of three references, familiar with your
volunteer or professional work, if you
are shortlisted for an interview.

DEC 2011
OSCA PRESIDENT’S REPORT
By Michael Jenkin
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Search for New Executive Director,
Farmer’s Market in OOS, December Activities
Osca Launches Search For New Executive
Director
As you will see in an advertisement in this
edition of The OSCAR, OSCA is launching
its search for a new Executive Director. As
outlined in the advertisement, the very significant
growth in our programming that has started with
our move back into the renovated Firehall and a
likely expanded role with the City in delivering
programming means that we are moving to a
new full-time position, with an increased role in
planning, budgeting and managing the association’s
growing operations and staff.
This is a great opportunity for someone who
has experience in working with a community based
organization and managing projects and events, as
well as having a strong commitment to helping to
build a better Old Ottawa South Community. If
you are interested please read the advertisement
carefully to see if your background and experience
might qualify you for the position, and to find out
how to submit an application.
The closing date for applications is January
31, 2012 and we hope to conduct interviews of
the promising candidates during February, with a
final decision on the winning candidate by the third
week of March. The winning candidate would be
expected to start work in mid-April, and spend a
couple of months with OSCA staff and Deirdre
McQuillan transitioning into the new position.
The selection committee that has been appointed
by the OSCA Board to run the competition and
select the winning candidate consists of Vice-
President David Law, Treasurer Steve Mennill,
Program Committee Chair Anna Sundin, Board
member Michaela Tokarski and myself.
Farmer’s Market Coming to Old Ottawa South?
At its November 15 meeting the Board received
a presentation from City staff on a possible
relocation of the Ottawa Farmer’s Market to Old
Ottawa South next year. The move, which would be
temporary for a two or three year period, comes as a
result of the proposed construction of new facilities
and commercial space at Lansdowne Park which
will mean no space for the market on the site. The
market would relocate back to Lansdowne once the
construction is completed and it would operate, it is
hoped, a much expanded facility that would be open
most days throughout the year.
It is proposed to temporarily relocate the market
at Brewer Park, Sundays only, along Sloan Avenue
between the intersection with Hopewell Avenue and
Westboro Academy. Sloan Avenue is the street that
runs north to south at the extreme western edge of
Brewer Park next to Bronson Avenue. The farmer’s
stalls would be lined up either side of Sloan Avenue
and in order to ensure safe pedestrian access the
street would be closed from Hopewell Avenue
south to the parking lot next to Westboro Academy.
This would be a temporary closure on Sundays only
from very early in the morning to mid-afternoon.
In order to assist with access to the Brewer Park
area, it is possible that Brewer Way, the street the
runs parallel to Sloan and has the pool and arena
on either side, may be opened at Hopewell during
the Sunday closure of Sloan Avenue. In addition,
it is proposed that overflow parking will be made
available at the parking lot closest to Brewer Park
on the Carleton University campus.
While the Board thought that having the
Farmer`s market at Brewer Park would be a bonus
for the neighbourhood, it was suggested that after
the first season an assessment be done to determine
whether the site can effectively absorb the traffic
that would be generated and that access to Brewer
Park and the pool and arena are working acceptably.
Parking may also be an issue, particularly if people
are reluctant to use the Carleton lots, given their
distance from the site and the need to cross Bronson
Avenue on foot at the signaled intersection at the
Park entrance.
Those who need more information on the
potential move of the Farmer`s Market to Brewer
Park should contact Mr. Philip Powell, Manager of
Licensing, Permits and Markets at the City (613-
580-2424, ext. 25385; or philip.powell@ottawa.
ca).
Public Art Installation Opens at Firehall
As you may know, it is City policy that when
any public facility is built or significantly renovated
a small percentage (about 1%) of the project cost is
invested in art for installation in the facility. Last
year a design competition was held for local artists
to submit proposals for public art at the newly
renovated Firehall and the winning project was a
design submitted by Deborah Margo entitled “For
Everyone a Garden”. It is a hanging sculpture
that will be installed in the windows of the entry
vestibule of the Firehall. There will be a formal
showing of the piece on Thursday, November 24 th
between 5:30 pm and 7:00 with the actual unveiling
taking place at 6:15 pm.; you are all welcome to
attend.
A Busy December
OSCA is involved in or sponsoring a number of
Page 5
events for the Holiday Season; the first is the `Shop
Your Local Talent’ event selling holiday crafts and
gifts from local artists and craftspeople, on Sunday
November 27 from 10 am to 2 pm at the Firehall.
Then on Saturday, December 10, between 1:30 pm
and 4 pm there is our Christmas Celebration at the
Firehall with crafts, cartoons and a visit from Santa;
so bring the kids and see your neighbours – its free!
Also worth noting is an important public meeting
on Thursday, December 1 st at the Glebe Community
Centre on Lansdowne Traffic issues. The meeting
will take place from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. It is being
organized by the City, and will be a working session
to help identify potential problem areas for day-today
traffic issues (including parking and transit)
after Lansdowne is redeveloped. The objective is
to get residents’ input on what they believe the key
problems will be and also what might be the range
of solutions or mitigating measures. By identifying
potential problems early and starting to get an idea
of how they might be managed, the hope is that
City staff will be able to come up with remedial
measures more quickly and effectively.
Program Registration
Just a reminder, registration for our Winter
Programs starts online at 8:00 pm on Wednesday,
December 7. Please consult our program guide that
comes with this issue of The OSCAR, or check out
the website at www.oldottawa.south.ca for program
listings.
Finally, on behalf of the OSCA Board and its
staff, I would like to take this opportunity to wish
you a safe and happy holiday season.

Page 6 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
By: Jim Watson
As we enter our second year at
City Hall and reflect on year
one, it continues to be an
honour and a privilege to work with
this Council.
On October 26, the day after the
first anniversary of our election, we
tabled the budget for 2012. Together
with the City Manager and the
residents who took time to offer their
suggestions, we have proposed an
affordable and accountable budget
with a tax increase of 2.39% which is
below the promised ceiling of 2.5%
per year.
The tabling of the budget was
the first step in a month-long effort
towards planning the city’s finances
for 2012. Since October 26, we have
By Lisa Drouillard
We are pleased to present
OSCA’s first concert series
at the Firehall: Sirens of
the Firehall will present voices from
a range of musical genres: Baroque,
Jazz and Celtic. The ticket price of
$25 and $15 for students and seniors
will support the musicians engaged
for these concerts, and OSCA will
take proceeds from the refreshments
on offer at these events.
For our first concert on Saturday
February 25, 2012 we will host the
MAYOR’S MONTHLY COLUMN
held over 15 budget consultations
across the city to let people have their
say. As we did with the design of the
budget, we want the debate of the
budget to be an open and participatory
process. Budget 2012 was designed
in response to the concerns we heard
from residents of Ottawa and we will
continue to listen.
Below is a list of some of the
highlights of the budget.
• A 2.39% annual increase for
the coming year – the lowest rate in
5 years.
• The elimination of fortyseven
full time equivalent positions
contributing to savings of more than
$3.4 million each and every year.
• Last year we cut that annual
increase in transit fares by two-thirds
holding to 2.5%. This year even with
Toronto Baroque ensemble Aradia,
led by Artistic Director Kevin Mallon
(whom many of you will know as
conductor of Ottawa’s Thirteen Strings
chamber orchestra). Mallon’s Aradia
Ensemble specializes in presenting
an eclectic blend of orchestral,
operatic and chamber music played
on original period instruments. The
concert will feature mezzo soprano
Marion Newman, whose discography
includes five cds with the Aradia
Ensemble for Naxos: Polly by Samuel
Arnold, Sacred Music by Vivaldi, and
Griselda, also by Vivaldi, Handel’s
Tabling Budget 2012
fuel prices up by more than 12% and
ridership up by 6%, we have once
again kept fare increases to 2.5%.
• For the second straight year,
frozen fees for city recreation
programs that, in the past, have
increased significantly.
• The opening of 17 new parks
across the City.
• $3 million in the coming year for
green building retrofits and $500,000
a year to expanding our green fleet
program.
• In 2011, we made $14 million
in new annual funding available for
affordable housing. Budget 2012
continues this vital funding.
• $3.2 million to boost service to
deal with the growth in ridership of
OC Transpo. In addition to growth,
Budget 2012 provides a targeted $2.3
Sirens of the Firehall Concert Series
Kevin Mallon
Sarah Burnell
Cont’d on next page
million in funds to boost capacity on
routes like the 87, 94, 95 and 96. More
trips and more high-capacity buses
will be added to these busy routes
• We will add to the
Environmentally Sensitive Land
Fund we created last year, dedicated
to making sure we have the resources
to buy key parcels of land that make
sense. Already there is $4.4 million
in the fund now and will be adding
approximately $1.4 million in an
additional contribution this year.
The above highlights are only part
of the budget that will be voted on by
Council on November 30th. To view
the budget speech in its entirety please
visit ottawa.ca/mayor.
Tel: 613-580-2496 Email: Jim.
Watson@Ottawa.ca, Web: ottawa.ca/
mayor

DEC 2011
CITY COUNCILLOR’S REPORT
Looking back on the past year
and forward to 2012, I can’t
help but feel optimistic about
the direction we are taking as a city
and as a community here in Old Ottawa
South.
One indication is the uncharacteristically
positive reaction to the City
of Ottawa’s 2012 Budget. At town
hall meetings, in the media and on
the street in Old Ottawa South, most
people have expressed satisfaction
with a budget that treads a careful line
between spending and cutting. Taxpayers
are generally pleased that it
delivers on the promise made by the
mayor — and endorsed by Council —
to hold annual property tax increases
below 2.5%.
But there is more to creating
a good budget than simply keeping
people happy about the level of
spending and minimizing tax bill
hikes. Equally important are the priorities
we choose to set for spending
and cutting, and how we make those
choices.
The City developed the 2012
Budget through a lot of listening and a
lot of input from citizens and interest
groups across Ottawa. I felt the mayor
and his advisors listened carefully to
what I brought to them in terms of a
critique of past and current spending
practices, and a list of specific priorities.
I developed my list by listening
to you, by putting forward some ideas
and priorities that I consider important,
and by gathering input from our
Rinaldo and Charpentier’s Messe de
Minuit pour Noel and Te Deum.
Aradia’s February concert, titled
Capricio Extravagante, will present
lavish instrumental and vocal music of
Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century
Venice, that will transport listeners to
St. Mark’s square and the beautiful
cathedral of the same name. It will
showcase composers of the Golden
age of Venice and its most famous
son, Antonio Vivaldi. Juxtaposed to
these works will be two new music
commissions for baroque instruments
by Canadian composers Rose Bolton
and Chris Meyer.
On Saturday, March 31, 2012
we will be featuring the sultry tones
of Ottawa Jazz singer Renée Yoxon,
and her trio with jazz guitarist Rob
Martin and bassist Marc Fraser.
Renée has become a central figure
in Ottawa’s jazz scene thanks to
her grace, captivating presence and
beautiful voice. In only a few short
years, Renée has firmly established
herself as a musician dedicated to the
art of jazz singing. This year, Renée
received an Astral Emerging Artist
Award from the National Arts Centre
and Astral Radio which helped fund a
summer of jazz study in New York.
In the fall of 2010, Renée released
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
City Hall’s Shift In Attitude Promises
Positive Change For Old Ottawa South
Ward Council, which consists of the
community association presidents in
Capital Ward.
That there were no big surprises
is therefore no surprise. This council
and this mayor are not prone to making
sudden and sweeping announcements
about major cuts, freezes or
new spending.
But that does not mean this budget
and future ones should shy away from
change, because a vibrant city needs
to be open to creativity and new ways
of thinking. In fact, what pleases me
most about this budget — more even
than the positive reception it has received
— is that it signals a subtle but
important shift in direction. Call it a
new attitude.
For the first time in my memory,
the City budget makes a strong
statement about the importance of
maintaining, repairing and rebuilding
what we already have. For a change,
we are allocating very little money
to expanding our large road network,
and focusing instead on renewing our
existing infrastructure, including local
streets, sidewalks, bridges, parks and
skating rinks.
We have designated several million
dollars for cycling infrastructure
— still a miniscule amount compared
to what we spend on car infrastructure,
but an important increase and a
new record for cycling. And there’s
more money for OC Transpo to help
fix some of the problems with “network
optimization”.
Sirens of the Firehall.... Cont’d from previous page
Renée Yoxon
Old Ottawa South can also look
forward to substantial interim repairs
to the Billings Bridge while I redouble
my efforts to find safer solutions for
cyclists and pedestrians who use it
and the Bank Street Bridge. One suggested
solution for the Billings Bridge
is to widen the sidewalk area, which
is cantilevered outside the roadbed, to
accommodate segregated bike lanes.
However, such a significant and expensive
redesign is outside the scope
of the current repairs, and will have to
wait for a major rehabilitation project.
In addition, both bridges have a heritage
designation, which makes it difficult
to obtain authorization for even
modest modifications to their structure
or appearance.
While the bridges on Bank continue
to pose a challenge, many Old
Ottawa South residents will benefit
from repairs and new bike lanes on
the McIlraith (Smyth) Bridge, as well
as a full rehabilitation of Main Street
from the Canal to Riverside Drive.
The City will also begin design
work on the Rideau River Western
Pathway, which will connect the
existing multi-use pathway from Bank
to Belmont St. in Windsor Park to the
new University of Ottawa campus on
Lees Ave. Families, cyclists and strolling
pedestrians will welcome this crucial
link between existing multi-use
pathways in Old Ottawa South.
The budget also begins to address
the redevelopment and planning
headaches that plague older com-
her first album entitled Let’s Call
it a Day, a minimal and intimate,
jazz-inspired guitar/voice duo with
veteran guitarist René Gely (whom
neighbours may remember from our
Spanish Revival event!). Since the
release of her first record, Renée has
been garnering notice at the national
level with several of her tracks
receiving airplay on such radio shows
as CBC Radio 2′s TONIC with Katie
Malloch, Planète Jazz’s Let Lève-
Tards with Annie B, and Dinner Jazz
on Jazz.FM91.
Our Sirens series will be rounded
out beautifully by a performance by
the Sarah Burnell Band on April
21, 2012. Sarah hails from Ottawa,
but her fiddle roots may be found in
the music of the Scottish Highlands,
Cape Breton, Ireland, and Québec.
Her energetic fiddle style possesses a
youthful exuberance, grounded in her
strong classical training. Sarah is also
an accomplished young singer, and
her new CD features several beautiful
Celtic ballads.
The Sarah Burnell Band first
Page 7
munities like Old Ottawa South. The
City promises to reduce red tape and
barriers for sustainable projects that
prioritize energy and water efficiency,
minimize construction waste, and reduce
their overall environmental footprint.
At the same time, it vows to rein
in developers who want to continue
overbuilding in our communities.
These are just a few of the positive
aspects of a fiscal plan that I am
proud to have helped develop and
introduce.
You can call the 2012 Budget
greener, more sustainable, resilient,
smart or fiscally responsible. The label
we choose is of little consequence.
But I approve of this subtle change in
direction, and will continue to nudge
it further at every opportunity.
Thank you for sharing your ideas
and feedback with me over the past
year — I hope the next one is at least
as interesting and productive.
Councillor
David Chernushenko
613-580-2487 |
David.Chernushenko@
Ottawa.ca | www.capitalward.ca
came together in 2006, to record
the award-winning cd Sarah’ndipity.
Since then, their unique arrangements
of traditional Celtic music have
won them accolades across Canada.
Sarah’ndipity won Sarah Burnell the
2006 Canadian Folk Music Award as
“Young Performer of the Year”. In
2008, her second cd, Return Ticket,
also received critical acclaim at the
Canadian Folk Music Awards. Sarah’s
exceptional soprano voice is perfect
for those lilting Celtic songs! Sarah
teaches fiddle and directs the vocal
ensemble at the Siamsa School of Irish
Music. She is a recent graduate of
McGill University, and teaches Music
at Terry Fox Elementary School, in
Montreal.
Tickets will be on sale at the
Firehall and on our website, and at
the door. For further information,
or to volunteer to support the even,
contact Lisa Drouillard at 613-730-
7813 or at leucodendron@gmail.
com.

Page 8 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The OSCAR welcomes letters on subjects of interest to the community or in response to previous articles. All letters must disclose the name of the writer,
as well as the address and phone number. Lettters may be edited for length, clarity, and libelous statements. The opinions of the writers are not necessarily
those of the newspaper or its editor. Email your letters to oscar@oldottawasouth.ca or leave in print at the Firehall.
To the residents of Fairbairn: Ottawa between the bridges
In the last issue of OSCAR, our flaming car was
featured on the front page, but what was missing
was an article on how friendly, helpful and
sympathetic the folks on Fairbairn were while we
watched our car burn.
We just wanted to say thank you to you all for inviting
us into your homes, calling the fire department,
giving our son cookies, and offering us a ride home.
It was a scary/stressful day for us, and having
neighbours like you certainly made it easier.
Thank you!
Mike, Christina and Matthew
By Brenda Lee
After a week’s delay due to a
forecast of rain ( so of course
the day was beautiful…) the
OSCA annual Fall Fest was held on
October 23 rd at Windsor Park.
The park was once again filled
with neighbours enjoying the free
hotdogs and drinks, soup, pie and
jam contests, pumpkin sales, raffles
, games, inflatable slide ( a new
addition), treats by local vendors, jelly
bean guessing contests, scavenger
hunts, live music and of course
GOAT BINGO!
This year we held the Bingo twice
and the lucky winners for the first
Bingo were Tasha, Teagan and Penny
Stewart and for the second Bingo,
Jay and Will Sohn. The second Bingo
was almost declared a do over as the
goat “chose” square 24 and no one
had bought that square, but just when
things seemed desperate three little “
balls” rolled over into square number
23! Both games were 50/50 prizes and
the winners each won 45 dollars.
Thanks to Alpenbick Farm
(alpenbickfarm@sympatico.ca) for
providing not only the goat, but the
The recent article about what some people would like to
do to “Ottawa between the bridges”- should be a warning
call to residents who don’t want the area to be overcrowded
with condos, etc. It appears that today zoning laws can
be changed at the whim of the developers and councillors.
The unfairly high tax rates in this part of Ottawa may have
something to do with forcing people to move, leaving the way
for developers to move in.
Planning to take away part of Lansdowne Park for private
dwellings is just one example of what is going wrong.
Yours truly.
Jeanne White
petting zoo as well. I especially loved
petting Whisper, the jersey cow. She
and I became quite good friends by
the end of the day, once again proving
that I am an Ottawa Valley girl at
heart. They encourage visitors and
have a great variety of activities for
OSCA Fall Fest
all…if you go, tell Whisper I said
“Hello”.
Thanks to Alpenbick Farm for
bringing both cheese and meat and
offering them up for sale. As I write
this , Chris is simmering a goat curry
on the stove that smells absolutely
wonderful and I am about to make
some roti for the first time.
This year Dinos found an amazing
Send your
comments to
oscar@
oldottawasouth.
ca
or drop them off
at the Firehall,
260 Sunnyside
Ave
musical performer in Spencer
Scharf. So young and so talented,
and so quick to step in and help out
after our postponement lost us our
original musician for the day. Check
out Spencer at www.myspace.com/
spencerscharf or at www.youtube.
com/user/spencerscharf . His mix
Cont’d on next page

DEC 2011
By Brendan McCoy,
OSWatch Co-Chair
OSCA, and many other
community associations,
have been working to change
the rules governing residential infill.
The development committee of
OSCA, OSWatch, has been working
on this concern over the last few
years. The ongoing City Infill Study
holds the possibility of by-law
changes which may improve the
design of residential infill and stop
some of the worst projects from going
ahead. The controversial development
at 71 Hopewell, where garages fill the
entire frontage of the development,
is an example what is wrong with
infill. Last year the City’s Planning
and Growth Management Department
undertook a study of small scale
residential infill housing.
The study has focussed on the
inner urban city wards (Rideau-Vanier
By Graham Deline
On December 1 there will be an
open house about the traffic
problems associated with the
redevelopment of Lansdowne Park
and what we can do about them. The
meeting is on Thursday, December 1st
form 6:30 until 9 at the at the Glebe
Community Centre.
For residents of Ottawa South
the main problem with proposed
redevelopment of Lansdowne Park
(ward 12), Rideau-Rockcliffe (13),
Somerset (14), Kitchissippi (15),
Capital (17)). You can read more about
the findings and proposals at ottawa.
ca/infill. Last winter there were
four public consultation meetings;
including one in the Glebe. There have
since been several meetings between
a group of community associations,
including OSCA, and a group made
up of members of the development
industry. The City held a public
meeting in September at City Hall to
present the findings of the infill study
and put forward proposed solutions.
OSWatch was disappointed that the
study did not look at the vital issues
of height, setbacks and massing. That
said, we were pleased at some of the
staff recommendations.
The new by-law proposals from
City staff deal with grade, parking
and projections. Developers will be
prevented from changing the grade
of a property and so increasing the
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Proposed Residential Infill By Law Changes
will be traffic and parking.
• Will we be able find any onstreet
parking on game days?
• How much worse will the traffic
be on Bank Street in the Glebe?
• How many more buses will be
using Sunnyside?
• What can we do to mitigate
these problems?
Specifically the open house will
deal with:
• The estimated increase in
traffic once the Lansdowne has been
OSCA Fall Fest ... cont’d from previous page
of folk, roots and pop was terrific.
Thanks Spencer!
This year there were three food
contests. Best Soup, Pie and Jam.
The winner of Best Soup was
Neena Kushwaha for her Apple
Squash recipe. (See page 13 for the
recipe) She received a lunch for two
from Domus .
The winner of the Best Pie contest
was Kia Goutte for her apple pear
pie. She received a lunch for two at
Taylor’s.
The winner of the Best Jam contest
was Sarah Fraser for her chokecherry/
crab apple jelly. (See page 42 for the
recipe) She received a 20 dollar gift
certificate to Quinn’s Ale House.
Thanks to John Taylor and
Quinn’s Ale House for the prizes.
Thanks to Starbucks for the large
thermos of coffee and treats.
Thanks to Kerry Duffy (from Life
of Pie), Colleen Forer (from Yummy
Cookies) and Melanie Farr for judging
the many entries.
This year we had hoped for a pie
eating contest, but only Joshua Goutte
was brave enough to sign up. He won
two passes to the Mayfair Theatre
for his bravery. Thanks to Lee at the
Mayfair for the prize.
The jellybean guessing game
possible height of a building. Garages
will not be allowed on the more
narrow lots. Houses without parking
will for the first time be allowed,
though developers say they will not
build any as no one would want to
buy one. The proposals allow front
yard parking. (Arguably, parking on
the driveway in front of a garage,
until now allowed and very common,
is not considered front yard parking.)
Parking has, and will continue to be
allowed behind houses, accessed from
a back alley, lane or through a coach
way under a part of a row of houses.
Projections in front of the front
yard set back are not allowed, in an
attempt to preserve some green space.
Projections are elements such as
stairs which are built in front of the
maximum front setback of a house.
They include porches, a signature
of Old Ottawa South, but might also
include long sets of stairs and reduce
the amount of green space in front of a
Lansdowne Traffic Open House
this year was Hallowee’en inspired,
so it was really a chocolate pumpkin
guessing game. The winner was
Katherine Carbred with her guess of
212, the answer was 217.
There were also some terrific
raffle prizes this year.
Craig Barton won the book basket
from Kaleidoscope Kids books,
Ottawa’s Only Kids Book Store!
Craig Barton, Susan Kim and
Neena Sidhu won gift certificates
for a pie from Life of Pie. May I
recommend the raspberry.
Kerry Duffy won two music
packages and tee shirts from John
Allaire. John has a new cd out called
Heart of Steel, check it out at www.
johnallaire.com/ He had his CD
opening on Nov. 19 th at Irene’s Pub
with his band the Campistas. Aa must
see is The Allaire show at Quinn’s
Ale House every Sat. between 3-5.
John plays a set and features a new
artist each week. It is a great chance
to see some live music and not have to
stay up past 11:00 p.m. to do so!
Linda Burr won the 25 dollar gift
certificate from the Clothes Secret. So
many choices and treasures to find!
Moira won the basket of cookies
Cont’d on next page
redeveloped.
• The City’s Plans to monitor
problems with traffic and parking.
• What the city has done to
mitigate parking problems around
hospitals and the baseball stadium.
• What community groups can do
to change the on-street parking rules
Page 9
house. Porches and stairs etc. are still
allowed but would force a builder to
set his house a bit further back.
The development community
has indicated they strongly oppose
the proposed changes and will fight
them, possibly including an appeal to
the Ontario Municipal Board. There
can be no better indication that the
proposed changes, modest as they are,
are a step in the right direction. OSCA
and other Community Associations
are still in discussions with City
staff over these proposals which we
expect will eventually be presented to
Planning Committee.
For background information
on what OSWatch and OSCA have
been up to with regard to urban
infill in Old Ottawa South and other
development issues, please visit www.
oldottawasouth.ca.
on their streets.
A Panel of representatives of the
City, the Consultants who developed
the traffic plan, OSCA and the GCA
will try and answer your questions.

Page 10 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
By William Burr
New Bike Shop Could Help or Hinder Its Neighbours
All of a sudden, cyclists in Old
Ottawa South have twice as
many places to get a tune-up.
The area’s 15-year-old bike shop,
the Cyclery, recently moved barely a
block to a new location four times as
large. But as soon as it cleared out of
its old digs, a rival bike shop moved
in.
The two shops now stand a
minute’s walk apart with their owners’
eyes on a similar clientele.
“An opportunity came up. It was
just like the perfect storm,” says Ken
Power, the owner of Cycle Power, the
new store on the block, whose main
location is on Carling Avenue.
The landlord of the building on
Bank Street just north of Sunnyside
offered Power a discount to fill the
space. “We got a good deal on the location
at the start, until I think February,
[when] we have to start paying
full rent. But until then we thought we
could just come in here and establish
a foothold in the community.”
He’s looking forward to walk-in
traffic and to a “community-oriented”
neighbourhood.
The bright white letters of Cycle
Power are pasted on top of the faded
remnants of a stylized stick man
hunched over a wheel and handle
bars: the old Cyclery logo.
Is Cycle Power encroaching on
the Cyclery’s territory?
“Yeah, we are,” Power says. “And
you know, if they’re doing a good job,
they’ll do well. If they’re not, they’re
not going to do well.”
Marc Ouellette, the manager of
Cycle Power’s new Bank Street location,
has softer words: “It can be very
touchy… This has created quite a lot
of talk around town as far as us opening
up in their old location. They are
a strong shop and they know what
they’re doing over there, and I hope
that we can be a fellow shop with
them as far as it goes.”
Cycle Power’s space at Bank and
Sunnyside is cozy.
A few metres down at Bank and
Hopewell, where Phase 2 used to
stand, The Cyclery’s gear has more
room to breathe. Bikes stand at varied
angles. There’s also a whole clothing
section, and an extensive repair area.
The Cyclery has invested in some
new storefront signage of its own: the
company name in red capital letters,
three times larger than its traditional
logo.
At the Cyclery cash, manager
Jenny Simpson steers the conversation
away from the new competition.
“We’re so excited about the new
space and being able to expand our
services to all our customers… that’s
what we’re focused on. We’re not tremendously
focused on this other shop
at this point.”
There isn’t some massive rivalry
between the two stores, Simpson says
in a follow-up phone interview. “The
drama really isn’t there.”
A long-time Cyclery customer
from the neighbourhood says he’s
happy to see any new retailer at all in
Old Ottawa South. It’s an area that has
watched many come and go. “Probably
almost anybody would be pretty
pleased that there’s simply another
business around,” says Mike Taylor.
The Cyclery, at least, has figured
out how to stay afloat. Sales have
grown over the years to the point
where expansion was necessary,
Simpson says.
Rather than drive each other out
of business, it’s possible bike shops
almost side by side in Old Ottawa
South could add to the cluster nearby,
making the Glebe and surrounding
area a kind of hub.
There are seven shops within a
short drive or ride on Bank Street.
“It makes it the spot to shop for
a bike in Ottawa,” says Jose Bray,
the owner of the Joe Mamma cycle
store at Bank and Second. Each business
has its own specialty, Bray says.
Joe Mamma, for instance, focuses on
BMX and commuter bikes.
The Cyclery carries all kinds of
bicycles, but it’s known for its highend
selection. Several on display cost
more than $10,000; some of these
have electronic gear shifters.
Cycle Power, on the other hand,
reflects “the needs and desires of families
seeking family-priced bikes,”
according to its website. Manager
Ouellette says the store will also be
expanding its trendy fixed-wheel
product line.
If all these bike stores survive, it
could be a good time to be a cyclist in
the neighbourhood.
First published on OpenFile Ottawa
as “Bank Street: a bike shop
bonanza” – For pictures, audio, and
a map of the area’s bike shops, search
for the story at Ottawa.OpenFile.ca -
OSCA Fall Fest ... cont’d from previous page
from Yummy Cookies. To get
your own cookies check out.www.
yummycookies.ca.
Anne Marie Corbett won the
painting by Christopher Heilmann
(Holmwood Willow). For those
of you who heard a loud scream
across the city at about 1:45…it
was her celebrating! See more of
Christopher’s work at the OSCA
Shop Your Local Talent Christmas
Sale, at the Firehall on November
27 th, including his work representing
the Brighton Oak.
Thanks to all who donated these
great raffle prizes!
Thanks to all the many, many
volunteers who put in such a great
amount of effort into this event.
Special thanks to the student
volunteers who were there all
day and always were ready to do
whatever needed to be done. A credit
to teenagers everywhere.
Michel Poirier, Melanie
Farr, Kia Goutte, Joshua Goutte,
Marcus Saikaley, Jennifer Kitts,
Rebecca Kitts,Mira Williamson,
Kelly Harrison, Katie Marsland,
Minou Liu, Sarah Peters, Abby
Butler, Kayla Wennekes and Lana
Wennekes I hope I am not forgetting
anyone…..
Thanks also to the Firehall staff,
Dave Ho, Sarah English, Owen Watt,
for organizing the games.
Thanks to Tom Alfoldi for being
our great photographer! Check out
his photos in the paper and at www.
oldottawasouth.ca
Thanks also to the organizing
team of Cass Houde, Julia Danis,
Chelsea Pepin, Deirdre McQuillan,
Dinos Dafniotis, Cathy Buchanan
and Anne Marie Corbett.
And a special thank you to
Harvey who picked up the goat
droppings….you Rock Harvey!
Thanks to the neighbourhood
for coming out and enjoying our
celebration of Fall, for donating all
those soups, pies and jams , and for
helping to make Old Ottawa South
the great place it is to live.

DEC 2011
By Brian Tansey
What a surprise. When many
thought that a Claridge
deal was almost done for
the site at the corner of Sunnyside
and Bank, and the Cyclery seemed
to have moved in anticipation of that
deal, lo and behold, another cycle
shop quickly moves into the vacated
premises. What happened?In an interview
with Ken Power, who already
owns and operates Cycle Power at
another location on Carling, said that
the son of the property owner at Sunnyside
and Bank, who is a bike techie
himself, alerted Ken to the move by
The Cyclery. It took him a few days
to see the opportunity that was created
by that move and then made a good
deal with Ed Saikaley for an, at minimum,
one year lease.
Ken, who has been in the bicycle
business in Ottawa for 30 years, and
who started out in the manufacturing
of high end bikes, says he had heard
many times from his own customers,
that Old Ottawa South would be
a perfect location for a second store.
He says that he has always known that
the business is location specific; so if
you’re there, the business will come,
if you provide the level of servicequality
that customers want.
When asked how much overlap
there might be with The Cyclery in
terms of the bikes they will be sell-
Ingredients:
Area Church Service Times
Sunnyside Wesleyan Church
58 Grosvenor Avenue (at Sunnyside)
Sunday Worship Services at 9am
& 11am (one service at 10am May
22 - Sept 4)
Children’s program offered during
worship services.
Trinity Anglican Church Services
8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist; 10:00
a.m. Holy Eucharist with Choir
and Church School
Thursday, 10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist
in the Chapel, followed by
Bible Study.
ing and servicing he said “... something
around 30%...” and that he is
“ ... counting on my reputation for
consistency of service-quality over
many years in Ottawa, as well as what
actually happens when a new to Cycle
Power buyer comes in to look at or
purchase a bike, and the after service
that goes with it. “
Ken has seen many bike shops in
Ottawa and across the country come
and go ... even start-up, change location
and then go bankrupt. When
asked what seems to be the pattern of
success or failure in his experience, he
suggested it was the personal enthusi-
German Fruit Bread
From Swabia (Hutzelbrot)
4 eggs
175 g sugar
175 g flour
2 tsp baking powder
175 g almonds (chopped)
150 g hazelnuts (cut in half)
175 g dried figs (cut finely)
175 g candied lemon peel (finely
chopped)
250 g sultanas /raisins
100 g currants
1 tsp cinnamon
St Margaret Mary’s Parish
7 Fairbairn (corner of Sunnyside)
Tuesday Evening at 7PM
Friday Daytime at 12:15PM
Saturday Evening at 5PM
Sunday Mornings at 9:30AM and
11:30PM
Southminster United Church
15 Aylmer Avenue (at Bank & the
Canal)
Sunday Worship
10:30 a.m. (9:30 a.m. July &
August)
Sunday School
During worship, September - May
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
New Cycle Shop on Bank in OOS
Preparation:
Beat eggs and sugar together
Add flour, baking powder and
cinnamon
Mix fruits and nuts into the dough
Bake slowly in oven at 325F for
about 1.25 hours
Store in a cool place for about a
month for best results
Can be frozen and kept for up to a
year.
asm for the industry that makes the
difference. For example he attends the
“Interbike Show” in the U.S. every
year and sometimes the one big bike
trade show in Europe; he notices how
many retailers will walk around and
just look at bikes and make their buying
decisions without trying the bikes
themselves, whereas he does. Most
bicycle dealers don’t even attend the
international shows at all, and certainly
not the outdoor demo component of
the shows.
Another example is the Bloor
Street Cycle Shop in Toronto which
was a very successful business for
Page 11
many years, until Mr. Kent who was
the owner, simply retired and sold the
business to a man who had no experience
in the bicycle business.
Bloor Cycle filed for Bankruptcy
within a year after the sale. The new
owner didn’t seem to have that enthusiasm
Ken says is needed to do
well and stick with it.
Ken seems to know the industry
very well at all levels including
design, manufacturing, components,
wholesale /distribution, and retail.
He knows that to be aware of the
latest in developments it helps to have
so many years lived IN the industry.
But he says you need to keep your
ear to the ground so that for example
when a manufacturer is bought-out,
you have to watch who the next owner
is and whether they are going to cut
costs .... and corners ! Perhaps this
will affect the reliability stability
and quality of the end product, even
though the name on the bike itself
hasn’t changed. He said that Cervelo
is a recent example of this.
It will be interesting to see how
the business unfolds over the next few
years as Old Ottawa South revitalizes
it’s section of Bank Street. His OOS
Shop Manager is Marc Ouellette, who
also comes at the business from the
techie angle.

Page 12 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
Bridges of OOS.... Cont’d from page 1
swing bridge remained in service
until 1938 when it was replaced by a
new electrically-powered steel plate
girder swing bridge with a wider
deck to meet increasingly heavy
traffic demands. The new bridge
was erected on the same alignment,
and on widened piers,” wrote Robert
Passfield. The Dominion Bridge
Company of Montreal built both
the 1903 and 1938 Bronson Avenue
Bridges.
“The new reinforced-concrete
bridge was erected in 1959 on a
straight alignment, beside the existing
plate girder swing bridge which
served as a pedestrian bridge until
February 1961 when it was removed,
“ added Mr. Passfield.
In 2008 and 2009 the City of
Ottawa rehabilitated the bridge
to upgrade the structure for code
compliance and extend its service life.
The Bronson Avenue Canal
Bridge and the George Dunbar bridges
are connected by a 1.2km stretch of
roadway that moves vehicular traffic
from 80 km/h to 50 km/h.
The City’s collision database
reveals that, “for the years 2002 to
2004 inclusive, there were a total of
177 collisions along Bronson Avenue
from the south end of the George
Dunbar Bridge to the north end of the
Canal Bridge. Of the total number of
collisions, 56 resulted in injuries and
one fatal incident.”
“Further evaluation of the City’s
collision database also revealed that,
between 1990 and 2005, there were
four fatalities on this corridor. Two
of these were on the George Dunbar
Bridge itself (car occupants), one was
at the Brewer Park Road (pedestrian)
and one was between Sunnyside
Avenue and Brewer Way (pedestrian).
Over that same period from 1990 to
2005, there were seven collisions
resulting in serious injuries, including
three on the George Dunbar Bridge
(vehicle occupants), two at Brewer
Park and Bronson intersection (one
bicyclist and one car occupant) and
two in the vicinity of the Canal Bridge
(one bicyclist and one pedestrian).”
“As a result of these serious
collisions, the consulting firm of
Synectics Transportation Consultants
Inc. was retained in March 2005 to
conduct an In-Service Road Safety
Review (ISSR) of Bronson Avenue
between the Rideau River and the
Rideau Canal. An ISSR is an indepth,
independent engineering study
of an existing road using road safety
principles to identify cost-effective
measures to improve road safety.”
George Dunbar Bridge (runs
along Bronson Avenue and over the
Rideau River) is the youngest bridge
that touches our neighbourhood. Built
in 1996, it is made of concrete prestressed
beams. McCormick Rankin
Corporation designed the bridge, and
the general contractor was Dilorio
Construction of Montreal.
The bridge is named in honour
of George Harrison Dunbar who was
born on April 11, 1878 in Richmond,
Ontario. In 1892, he married Lucy
May Coxford, was a teacher, and
served as a captain during World War
I. He represented Ottawa South in the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario as
a Conservative and then Progressive
Conservative member from 1937
to 1959. Dunbar was controller for
the city of Ottawa, and he served in
the provincial cabinet as Minister of
Municipal Affairs from 1943 to 1955
and Minister of Reform Institutions
from 1946 to 1948. Mr. Dunbar died
on February 28, 1966 and is buried in
the Beechwood Cemetery.
The Dunbar Bridge carries the
most traffic of the five bridges in our
community.
According to a traffic study
undertaken for the Lansdowne project,
the Bronson Avenue corridor has, on
average, significantly higher traffic
volumes than the other two primary
north-south corridors -- 1,920 vehicles
per hour (vph) southbound during the
p.m. peak and 1,720 vph northbound,
compared with about 1,000 vph in the
peak direction in each of the other two
corridors.
Under the bridge are legal
graffiti walls. The colourful backdrop
provides space for the House of Paint
Hip Hop festival each August.
Bank Street Canal Bridge also
started its life as a timber swing bridge
in 1866.
“It was only the second bridge
crossing of the Rideau Canal within
the city limits, the other being
Sappers’ stone arch bridge on the
Wellington-Rideau streets alignment.
The Bank Street Bridge was replaced
by a second timber swing bridge in
1882, and by a steel through truss
swing bridge in 1898,” writes Robert
Passfield.
“In 1910 the City of Ottawa
approached the Department of
Railways and Canals for permission
to construct a new bridge on Bank
Street to carry electric trolley lines,
as well as motor vehicle traffic, over
the Rideau Canal to serve the growing
area of Ottawa South. Thereafter,
the City Engineer, Newton J. Ker,
designed a high level reinforced
concrete arch bridge having six arch
spans, with the central two arches
spanning the canal, and the northern
arches spanning two lanes of the
recently completed Driveway of the
Ottawa Improvement Commission.
The new Bank Street Bridge was built
in 1912-1913 by the City of Ottawa,
with a federal government financial
contribution.”
“As originally constructed,
the Bank Street Bridge carried two
electric trolley lines, and two lanes
of road traffic, as well as sidewalks,
and was adorned with concrete
balustrades and iron lamp standards.
Subsequently, the bridge was altered
with the removal of the trolley lines
to accommodate four lanes of road
traffic, and the installation of modern
steel railings and lighting standards.
In 1993, the Bank Street Bridge
underwent a restoration in which
the concrete facing was refurbished,
and the concrete balustrades restored
with replicas of the original lamp
standards.”
Historic picture of bridge:
h t t p : / / c o l l e c t i o n s c a n a d a .
g c . c a / p a m _ a r c h i v e s / i n d e x .
p h p ? f u s e a c t i o n = g e n i t e m .
displayEcopies&lang=eng&rec_
nbr=3358916&rec_nbr_list=3300918
,3358916,3318593,3318592,4134159
&title=New+bridge+over+Rideau+C
anal%2C+Bank+Street.+&ecopy=a0
11237&back_url=()
In mid-November 2011, a mini
bike turning shoulder was added to the
north right side as you leave the bridge.
Designed by David Chernushenko, it
allows cyclists to avoid turning left at
Wilton and cross three lanes of traffic.
Instead, the shoulder allows cyclists
to make a U-turn, circling back under
the bridge and around to access
the dedicated bike lane at Monk.
Also new is “the bike ‘pocket’ at
Holmwood and Bank where cyclists
wait for the green signal to proceed to
an easier way to a quieter route from
Old Ottawa South to the Glebe,” adds
Mr. Chernushenko.
Traffic data from May-June 2007
and 2009 shows the peak-direction
hourly volume on the Bank Street
Canal Bridge has more than 1,200
vehicles per hour (vph) northbound
during the AM peak hour, and almost
1,100 vph southbound during the PM
peak hour on the approach to Aylmer
Avenue. These figures were published
in the Lansdowne traffic study.
Billings Bridge (Bank Street
over Rideau River) was built in 1915
and named after Braddish Billings,
a pioneer who settled and farmed
nearby in 1812. It replaced a previous
bridge, called Farmers Bridge, built
over the river in the same place in
1830.
Billings Bridge has a five
steel beam through plate girder
construction, and is listed as a
heritage structure. According to city
documents, the bridge is supported
on only two lines of girders, parts of
which protrude above the traveled
deck surface. The bridge was last
rehabilitated in 1986.
The Bank Street South
Community Design Plan suggests
adding cycling lanes in both directions
on the bridge. Brendan McCoy, cochair
of OSWatch, wrote to Jillian
Savage, City Project Manager on
October 26, 2011 and said the group
is pleased with the idea. “It supports
the need for improved pedestrian and
cycling safety and access. We feel
strongly that a vital component of
that is the proper rehabilitation of the
Billings Bridge at the northern end of
this CDP. The rehabilitation of this
bridge presents a unique opportunity
to improve both the safety and quality
of pedestrian and cycling activity
over this historic bridge, which forms
the southern gate to our community.”
Unfortunately the upcoming
interim repairs slated for this bridge
will not be an opportunity to add
additional bike lanes at this time said
David Chernushenko, Capital Ward
Councillor. “The interim measures
will be for concrete, welding and
resurfacing,” said Mr. Chernushenko.
He is looking at making the bridge
safer for cycling by having lane
markings and signage asking
motorists not to overtake cyclists in
the lane.
George McIlraith Bridge
(connects Smyth Road and Main
Street, over the Rideau River) is made
from steel girders and was built in
1964.
The bridge is named in honour of
George James McIlraith, Born on July
2, 1908, he studied at Osgoode Law
School, and practiced law in Ottawa.
He married Margaret Summers in
1935. He was first elected as a Liberal
Member of Parliament in 1940, and
was re-elected nine successive times.
Mr. McIlraith joined Lester Pearson’s
cabinet when the Liberals formed
government following the 1963
federal election. He was Minister
of Transport, and from 1964 until
1967, and he was Government House
Leader in charge of the Pearson
minority government’s parliamentary
strategy for much of its tenure,
including during the Great Flag
Debate and parliamentary debates on
the introduction of Medicare. He also
Cont’d on next page

DEC 2011
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Bridges of OOS.... Cont’d from previous page
served as Pearson’s and Trudeau’s
Minister of Public Works. He served
as Solicitor-General of Canada from
1968 until 1970 under Trudeau, who
appointed him to the Canadian Senate
in 1972 where he sat until 1983. Mr.
McIlraith died on August 19, 1992.
Soon the bridge will be fully
reconstructed under the Ottawa on
the Move strategy announced in
October by Mayor Jim Watson either
in this budget year or the following
one. The bridge will be widened to
accommodate sidewalks and bike
lanes on both sides.
“Both [Billings and McIlraith]
bridges will not be under
construction at the same time,” said
Mr. Chernushenko. The McIlraith
Bridge work will be undertaken
during the anticipated Main Street
reconstruction.
By Neena Kushwaha
4 cups vegetable stock
1 medium butternut squash, peeled,
seeded, and cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm)
cubes
2 medium tart apples, peeled, cored,
and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
Bridge of the future?
Though just beyond the borders
of Old Ottawa South, there is a
proposed footbridge to cross the
Rideau Canal. The Community
Design Plan in Old Ottawa East was
approved this summer and it echoes
the recommendation of the city’s
Cycling and Pedestrian Plans to add
a footbridge over the Rideau Canal.
Members of the city’s environment
committee supported the choice
of the Fifth Avenue-Clegg Street
location for the proposed bridge. The
second public open house for the
footbridge was scheduled for 7 p.m.,
Thursday, November 17 at the Glebe
Community Centre. More information
on the Rideau Canal Crossing public
consultation is available at http://
www.ottawa.ca/residents/public_
consult/rideau_canal_bridge/index_
Signage? ... Cont’d from page 1
knowing that some hooligan saw it appropriate to step up onto our lawn, over
a cheerful string of battery-operated jack-o-lantern lights clearly advertising
“children live here”, and set fire to our property. Not to mention the close-call
at 9 Rosedale. Renters had just moved out, and so no one would have been
home to hear a smoke detector, had the house and tree caught fire. We discovered
later that at least one other sign was burned on Aylmer Ave.
What was the arsonist trying to say? Burning the “just say NO” signs
would seem to be a pro-development statement, while burning the Committee
of Adjustment sign posted on the property proposed for demolition would
seem to be an anti-development statement. The police suspected there was
something more to this than just a couple of random acts of vandalism, and
have been watching the area for further suspicious activity. In the meantime,
some signs have found new indoor postings, while others (like ours) have been
retired.
We are pleased to advise, however, that the group of 7 neighbors who appeared
before the Committee of Adjustment at the September 21 hearing (regarding
minor variances requested by the developer of 9 Rosedale) have had
a partial victory, in that the front yard variance requested for the proposed development
was rejected. The variance requested would have placed the proposed
structure 1.7 m from the property line (only about 3 m from the road),
and was rejected by the Committee of Adjustment for “safety” reasons, assumedly
because the 2 garages proposed to be facing Rosedale Ave would have
been too close to the street for a driver to safely back out. The bylaw requires a
minimum front yard set back of 3 m, which would place the garages more than
4 m from the road.
The severance of the lot at 9 Rosedale and the two other variances requested
(including a reduction of the back yard to 1.2 m instead of the 4.0 m minimum
depth required in the bylaw) were approved by the Committee of Adjustment.
Our group has appealed these decisions to the Ontario Municipal Board, and
we expect the hearing will be scheduled in the spring of 2012. Whether or not
we choose to express our views with front lawn signage, we will certainly have
our opportunity before the OMB to make our case again in favor of the century
old English-style cottage and its attendant oak tree that continue to inspire
us. The Rosedale oak will live to see another spring.
en.html.
Sources
To read more of the historical
perspective of Bronson Avenue Canal
Bridge, read the article by Robert
Passfield in the July 2009 issue of
OSCAR
http://www.oldottawasouth.ca/
index.php/oshp-articles/oshp-articleslist/1466-bronson-street-canal-bridge
“Bronson Avenue in-road
safety review” http://www.ottawa.
ca/calendar/ottawa/citycouncil/
occ/2009/05-13/trc/3-ACS2009-
C O S - P W S - 0 0 0 7 % 2 0 - % 2 0
Bronson%20Ave%20in-service%20
safety%20review.htm
More details about George
Harrison Dunbar are available http://
Recipe for Apple Squash Soup
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 cup coconut milk
In a large stock pot, saute the onions
until they are soft and translucent.
Add the spices, squash and apples
and fry for a few more minutes.
Add the stock. Bring to a boil, then
reduce heat and simmer for 15-20
minutes or so, until the ingredients
are soft and tender. Add coconut
milk. Puree the ingredients with an
immersion blender.
Page 13
www.canadiangreatwarproject.com/
History of the Bank Street Canal
Bridge was from Robert W. Passfield,
Historic Bridges on the Rideau
Waterways System, A Preliminary
Report (CD Book: Friends of the
Rideau, 2009), pp. 16-17.
A political profile of George
James McIlraith is available http://
parl.gc.ca/parlinfo/
Traffic patterns are discussed
in detail at http://www.ottawa.ca/
residents/public_consult/lansdowne_
partnership/transportation_summary.
pdf
Editor’s Note: More photos of Old
Ottawa SOuth’s Bridges can be found
on pages 26, 47, 51, and 52.
Editor’s Note: Neena won in the
Best Soup category for her recipe at
the OSCA Fall Fest. See article by
Brenda Lee on page 8.

Page 14
Squirrel Talk
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Helping Baby Wildlife is Outlawed by Ontario
By: Tania & Michaël
This time we turn our eyes to
Ontario level government as it
affects our region, in particular
we look at wildlife management
(a theme we also see at the municipal
level http://goo.gl/2J7jI after a lot of
activism from local folks).
The Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources (MNR) is intervening with
a very heavy hand at compassionate
& knowledgeable people who are caring
for orphaned baby animals. This
doesn’t make sense to us or to our
friends, so we thought we would investigate
a little.
You may have heard about Lynne
Rowe, the Ottawa area woman from
the Constance Creek Wildlife Refuge
who had been caring for two
young raccoons for months and was
just about ready to release these animals
back into the wild, when at least
four MNR officers showed up to take
them. She was charged and will have
to appear in court and face a fine for
caring for wildlife without a licence.
Now, this is someone who has been
working with the ministry for the past
two years in order to meet its requirements
for an authorization to care for
wildlife. She had submitted an application
more than three months ago for
a licence she was told would take two
weeks to process.
She took these animals in because
of the desperate people who had contacted
her when they couldn’t find
any other help. The babies had been
found on the side of the road, next to
their mother that had been killed by a
car. The MNR tell people to “leave
the animal there and let nature take its
course” but what caring individual is
going to do that and how is a car run-
ning over a mother natural ?
At the time of the MNR’s raid, she
was giving a tour to a group of five
and six year old Girl Guide Sparks,
so you can only imagine the trauma
for these children to see the animals
carted away.
The two young raccoons were
since euthanized in what many have
described as a mean and unwarranted
action to send a message to the public
that they should not attempt to show
compassion for wildlife in distress.
The Public is Not Being Served
by the MNR !
Most people across the province
want to see humane help for wildlife.
Many people go to extraordinary
lengths to find help for young animals
in distress. Michaël remembers taking
an injured bird to a bird hospital many
years ago and seeing all the wonderful
help that was provided to them, there
were even tiny little orthopedic casts.
Extensive development and habitat
loss is increasing the demand for
these wildlife care services.
Ontario was once the envy of
other North American cities in having
leading wildlife rehabilitation programs,
but more than half these volunteer
programs have been forced to
discontinue their service to their community
because the MNR imposed
harassing, inhumane and unworkable
regulations.
One rehabilitator indicated that a
MNR officer once told her that ‘their
clientele didn’t approve of wildlife rehabilitation’.
It turns out that the ministry’s
‘clientele’ is not the taxpayers
of Ontario but those who buy licences
for sport hunting purposes.
Move Wildlife Rehabilitation out
of the MNR.
The MNR appears incapable of
overseeing wildlife rehabilitation because
it is funded by hunting, fishing
and trapping licenses and its focus is
on “managing” populations of “game”
animals for consumptive use. This
ministry does not want to encourage
people to see individual animals
as worth caring for and saving. The
conservation ethics and humane values
wildlife rehabilitators represent
simply do not fit with this Ministry’s
outdated mindset.
The majority of the Ontario public
want help for wildlife. It is simply
not right that 94% of the Ontario public
that do not hunt should be frustrated
by the policies and attitudes of
a government agency that represents
only 6% of the population.
We’ve been frustrated many times
to read of culls by the MNR, truly tens
of thousands of dead animals paid for
by our taxes. Why ? well with Cormorants
around Pelee the shooting
and maiming of tens of thousands of
birds is because fishermen don’t want
to compete with the birds and the
MNR is happy to comply. Personally
we know more bird lovers than fishermen,
and for that matter we’d be surprised
if most recreational fishermen
would support killing tens of thousands
of birds so they can catch a bit
DEC 2011
more fish.
We find it encouraging that the
McGuinty Liberal government has
promised to finally fix the wildlife
rehabilitation crisis, stating that “we
will enhance programs that encourage
wildlife rehabilitators to seek authorization
in Ontario, and promote
wildlife rehabilitation as a valuable
voluntary resource in the province”.
Fulfilling this promise will require
that wildlife rehabilitation be transferred
to a department that responds
to the concerns of the vast majority of
Ontarians. We hope that our MPP Yasir
Naqvi (whose work has impressed
many OOS citizens) will work on
behalf of this goal, and have written
about this to him.
We believe the government should
take wildlife rehabilitation out of the
MNR, and should bring the MNR up
to modern wildlife management standards.
Stats show an overhleming majority
of people care more about wildlife
than about killing wildlife, and we
believe the government should reflect
this in the way they operate.
Just before ending this month’s
column, we briefly switch gears to a
separate topic: We met David Chernushenko
in a store with his biking
helmet on and so didn’t recognize him
– what a great example he is setting
even in the cold ! We hope David will
start to get involved in protecting the
“9 Rosedale” house as local citizens
have asked him to – we need David
to be outspoken and to help bring balance
to the developer / community.
Currently there is a large imbalance
favouring developers and it is damaging
our community and our city –
David, let’s start by rectifying the case
of 9 Rosedale and then let’s protect
the community as a whole.
The Squirrels are gathering food
for the winter in their low energy
freezers under the snow. Have you
noticed they are getting plump ? they
probably had fun on halloween !
We were glad several people from
OOS have been writing us, we love to
hear your ideas and comments – these
inspire us to write on specific topics
and we always learn from you. Écrivez-nous
: taniamich@gmail.com

DEC 2011
A HARD DAY’S PLAY
By Mary P.
When my oldest was very
little, I noticed something.
It happened in the weeks
coming up to Christmas. It happened
All.The.Time. It seemed delightful
the first time, innocuous the tenth
time, even the twentieth time, but by
the hundredth time, I was beginning
to have serious concerns.
I am out in a mall, first week of
December. A neighbour, a friend, a little
old lady approaches, smiles at my
adorable tot with her nimbus of blond
curls and the grey eyes big enough to
swim in, and said…
“And what’s Santa bringing you
this year?”
You know what? Even at less than
two, I wanted my child to know that
Christmas is about giving, not getting.
And she was understanding this! We
were making presents for family. We
were baking treats to give to neighbours
and unexpected friends dropping
by. The whole while we did this,
we chatted about how happy gramma
would be, or Mrs. Goodman across
the street would be, to receive our gift.
by Jason Cobill
With furrowed brows and
lightning-fast reflexes,
local video-gaming
masters put it all on the line for charity
this week in the exciting season finale
of the Ottawa After-Hours Gaming
League. The final match of the
StarCraft II video-game tournament
decided the series victor. An audience
of cheering fans attended to watch
the action unfold on a movie theatre
screen.
But the real winner of the
tournament are the children at CHEO,
who will benefit from the $1,100
raised for Child’s Play, a unique
charity that provides kid-friendly
entertainment to hospitals so children
can take their mind off their struggles.
“Child’s Play provides games and
books to hospitalized children around
the world and CHEO is one of the
organizations who benefits. I know
If I was in a hospital as a kid I’d
definitely be overjoyed to play Super
Mario Bros. We love games, kids love
games, so we thought it only fitting to
do some good.” said gaming league
organizer Jason Nuyens.
StarCraft II is a strategy game
featuring warring alien races, well
suited to tournaments because of it’s
frenetic pace and complex strategic
play. Almost unbelievably, in South
Korea the game is so popular there are
two television channels dedicated to
broadcasting professional StarCraft
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
When “It’s Tradition” is Not Enough
How much fun it was going to be to
see her smile and be excited.
This was what Christmas was
about, for my child. And then every
single time we went out in public, ten
times an outing, people would loom
into her space and ask, “What are you
GETTING? What do you WANT?”
This was NOT on my agenda for
my child. This was counter to my values,
counter to what I wanted for her.
My solution?
We would not “do” Santa.
Not in the North American sense,
anyway. Instead, we talked about St.
Nicholas, an Eastern bishop who used
his inheritance to help the needy. We
looked at different ways Santa (St.
Nick, Father Christmas, Sinterklaas)
was portrayed in other cultures.
When we saw him in the malls,
my children could, if they wished, go
sit on his lap, even though they knew
The Truth. They knew these men
were just nice people being kind to
little children. (Not such a bad thing
to know, hmm?) I even paid for the
odd picture.
Not believing gave us freedom to
play with the norms. When she was
Local Video Game Tournament
Raises Money for CHEO Kids
seven or so, my eldest decided that it
made much more sense in our snowbound
country were Santa’s sleigh to
be pulled by fire-breathing dragons.
They could melt the snow! Santa
wouldn’t slide off icy roofs! Her
Christmas artwork that year included
a few renditions of this idea. Lyrical,
creative, imaginative – and shockingly
untraditional!
The kids were carefully coached
in not spilling the beans to friends –
nor even to those well-meaning adults.
It would be unkind. We don’t want to
make people sad at Christmas!
So, when those well-meaning
people approached with their “And what
is Santa bringing YOU?” questions,
the conversation would go as follows.
Child: I don’t know what
I’m getting. It’s a surprise!
Me: Why don’t you tell Mrs. Sweet about
the present you’re making for gramma?
Child, face lighting up in a most gratifying
way, launches into enthusiastic
description.
Time and again, people would
respond with a wave of warmth and
admiration for these kids who really
did enjoy the giving. (Ironic, when
BigPie and Crispy provide their two cents as
local gaming league raises money for Child’s Play charity
matches.
Gamers from bitHeads beat out
teams from local companies Adobe,
Fenix Soluions, Shopify, QNX,
McMillan, and Artech Studios to face
rival Magmic in the final match. The
winner’s tactic? “bitHeads decided to
use some incredibly risky strategies
that almost completely backfired,
leading to nail-biting matches.”
explains Nuyens, “The crowd was
hollering in complete suspense.”
The games were broadcast online
complete with colour commentary
from local video-game celebrities
‘BigPie’ and ‘Crispy’.
Raising money for Child’s Play
made everyone feel like winners.
Nuyens adds, “Playing makes lives
richer and can even bring people
closer. For us, these are positive
feelings no child should be deprived
of. Who knows, it might even be
strong enough to heal.”
Season 2 kicks off in January
and Nuyens is looking to expand the
charity league with more challengers.
“It’s open to teams of all skill
levels and we do it for fun, charity,
and friendly rivalry.” For more
information contact jason.nuyens@
gmail.com.
Page 15
you consider it was these same people
who had highlighted the problem of
teaching greed so clearly to me, but of
course, that was not their intention.)
Now, when I greet a child before
Christmas, I ask if they’re excited
about it. I ask what they’re looking
forward to most. (You’d be surprised
how often it isn’t the gifts they anticipate!)
I ask if they are doing anything
special with mommy and daddy, if
they will see gramma and grampa, if
they have their tree up. I ask about their
school Holiday Concert and/or their
church Christmas concert. In short, I
ask about anything and everything but
presents – because Christmas is about
much more than presents!
Although I’m not intending to
suggest that anyone else follow my
example re: Santa, I do think it’s good
practice to step outside cultural norms
once in a while. Think them through.
Determine whether they apply to you
and your family, and act accordingly.
Sometimes “It’s traditional!!” isn’t
justification enough.

Page 16 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
DEC 2011
OTTAWA SOUTH HISTORY PROJECT
720 Echo Drive – The Enduring Stones of Time
By Jean-Claude Dubé
The recent Home for the Holiday
house tour highlighted,
amongst others, a beautiful
nearly century-old house with river
stone walls at 720 Echo Drive. The
lot upon which this house is built was
originally part of an estate owned
by George Hay, a successful 19th
century hardware store owner who
later became president of the Bank
of Ottawa. His house, a designated
heritage building from the 19th
century, still stands at 700 Echo Drive.
The entire area within the
confines of Bank Street, Echo Drive,
Riverdale and Sunnyside Avenues
was owned by George Hay and
Thomas McKay, a miller and nephew
of Thomas McKay, the founder of
New Edinburgh. Thomas McKay’s
estate fronted Bank Street and
extended eastward between Echo
Drive and Sunnyside to the present
and extended easterly boundary of the
Royal Canadian College of Physicians
and Surgeons’ property. This is also
known as the former monastery of the
contemplative religious order of the
Sisters of the Precious Blood. The rest
of the land, an odd-shaped quadrangle,
was George Hay’s property.
After George Hay’s death in
1910, followed by the death of his
first son, also named George Hay, in
1911, the estate was subdivided in a
great number of lots on Echo Drive,
Riverdale and Sunnyside Avenues.
The executor was the Toronto General
Land Corporation and the Ontario
Land Surveyor was S.E. Farley. These
lots were put on sale late in 1911,
marketed as Lansdowne Heights.
Mary A. Munsie, a spinster
and seamstress living at 43 Aylmer
Ave (then Dufferin Ave) purchased
720 Echo Drive Photo by Jean-Claude Dubé
the 720 Echo Drive lot on January
22, 1913. Miss Munsie was the
daughter of Sergeant James Munsie
who owned the city block between
Barton and Grosvenor streets, north
of Aylmer Avenue. Currently, the
Ottawa Citizen ad May 11, 1911
Cont’d on next page
Colonel By Residence for Seniors is
located there. In the late 19th century,
Sergeant Munsie had been the keeper
of a wooden railroad swing bridge
over the Rideau Canal at the location
where the present day O-train travels

DEC 2011
BOOK REVIEW
Publisher: Thomas Allen (Aug
27 2011) 222 pp.
ISBN: 978-0887628078
Reviewed by:
Friederike Knabe
Reading David Gilmour’s new
novel, The Perfect Order of
Things, I was reminded of
Mark Twain’s take on the well-known
Socrates quote about a life that is
not “examined”. “The unexamined
life may not be worth living, but the
life too closely examined may not be
lived at all…” Gilmour, probably best
known for his TV program “Gilmour
on the Arts” or his most popular book,
The Perfect Order of Things by David Gilmour
The Film Club, and his GG awardwinning
novel A Perfect Night to
go to China, may have found the
middle ground between Socrates and
Twain with this recent light-hearted
and tongue-in-cheek “fictional
autobiography”. The author or his
alter-ego, reincarnating the sum-total
of narrators in his previous novels,
revisits and relives pertinent personal
moments of his past and ponders
their meaning with the hindsight of
decades. What has changed in his
perspective, his feelings? Why was
he hurt, angry or resentful and what,
if anything, has he learned from
these intimate experiences? How
important were all or some of them
in molding his character and views
on life today? While categorized as
a novel - it says so under on the title
page- and easily recognized as having
autobiographical aspects, The Perfect
Order of Things, is the kind of book
that glides comfortably between fact
and fiction and comes even closer
to the author’s personal life than his
previous novels have done.
Approaching his subject matter in
a collection of ten semi-autonomous
stories his first person narrator touches
on everything from first love and loss,
friends, wives and lovers, personal
and professional highs and lows as
journalist, writer, traveler, reader and
music lover... Seen together, we come
away with a portrait of a peripatetic
and somewhat self-indulgent, yet
vulnerable and sensitive human being
who has the ability to mock and
laugh at his emotional hang-ups, his
insecurities and irrationalities and,
at the same time, has the ability to
get absorbed with the places where
his life has taken him. The line
between fiction and personal reality
appears to be fluid and, usually
very thin. According to Gilmour’s
own admission at the recent Ottawa
International Writersfestival event,
all his novels create a fictional reality
that is close to his own real life.
Several stories stand out for me,
in part because they move beyond
the intimate personal, in part because
they strike a special cord with me. His
sensitive reflection on his last visit with
his father and on the events shortly
thereafter are vivid and their impact
profound - on him and the reader.
Gilmour intriguingly introduces
linkages between his reading and
events in his life. For example, when
he revisits his childhood home and,
suddenly, feels intimately connected
with the past, that “you’re neither
here (in the present of my old country
home) nor there (myself as a child
lifting a window) but instead in some
delicious limbo in between.” Finally,
History Project ... 720 Echo Drive ... Cont’d from previous page
underground between Carleton University and the
Experimental Farm. At the time, this swing bridge
was popularly known as the Munsie Bridge.
Mary Munsie was the only child of James and
Amy Munsie. She lived alone in her father’s stone
house at 43 Aylmer after he passed away in 1900.
That house was also the first location of the Ottawa
South branch of the then Carnegie Library. Miss
Munsie was appointed seamstress to the Governor
General’s wife and had a shop on Sparks Street, the
major commercial area of Ottawa of the time. She
retired and sold her house to Robert G. Graham in
1922. Living with a cousin in Lanark County, she
passed away in 1936 and was buried alongside her
parents in the Merivale Cemeteries on Merivale
Road in Ottawa.
Robert Graham, a native of Oxford Station,
Grenville County in Ontario, had been the principal
of Gananoque High School for 25 years. When
he purchased 720 Echo Drive, he was the Chief
Inspector of the Income Tax Division of the
Department of Revenue, then known as the Business
Profits War Tax Commission of the Department
of Finance. A Gold Medallist of Victoria College
of the University of Toronto, Robert Graham was
a Mason and a member of the Ancient Order of
Work Workmen as well as the Independent Order
of Oddfellows. When he passed away in 1927, he
left two daughters, one being Mrs F.G. Salichs of
Havana, Cuba. His wife passed away in 1925.
George Cameron, a merchant who had a store
selling fixtures and fittings at 191 Sparks St. in
Ottawa, purchased the house from the Graham
children in 1930. When he passed away in 1942, he
left substantial wealth to his wife Jessie and his two
children, Robert and Georgina.
Mrs Jessie Cameron was still living in 1974
when the house’s ownership was transferred to her
daughter Georgina and her husband Robert Shirreff
whom Georgina had married in 1951.
Robert Shirreff was a descendant of Charles
Shirreff, the founder of Fitzroy Harbour on the
Ottawa River, west of Ottawa. Born in Fitzroy
Harbour, he was living with his widowed mother
at 692 Echo Drive. A civilian RCMP management
specialist, Robert and Georgina Shirreff retired to
Fitzroy Harbour in the 1980’s where Robert had
restored the Charles Shirreff log house homestead
built in 1858. George Shirreff (aka John Shirreff)
Page 17
he continues, after many years, he
understood Proust and his concept
of being “beyond time”. The chapter
on his reading and “living” with
Tolstoy’s War and Peace is a strong
encouragement to pick up the novel
(again) and delve into it with open
eyes. His depiction of his long-term
love affair with the Beatles made me
dig up my CDs and play them along
while reading. Gilmour’s emotional
reaction and long lasting resentment
to a particularly unfavorable book
review should give any book reviewer
food for thought. Book reviewers
don’t necessarily realize how much
we can hurt an author with a review
that, unintentionally or not, takes
unsubstantiated swipes at the author
in general.
Those of us who are familiar with
David Gilmour’s work will read and
enjoy The Perfect Order of Things
first of all on a personal - Gilmour
“unplugged” - level. Beyond that level
of appreciation, however, whether we
are familiar with the author or not,
most chapters invite, or can trigger, our
own personal musings on memories -
and can motivate us to “revisit” our
own past life and “examine it”, to relive
certain moments in certain places
and/or draw lessons from those for
our lives today.
passed away in 2006.
Georgina and Robert Shirreff sold the house at
720 Echo Drive to Eva Devine, a real estate agent,
in 1989 and Mrs. Devine sold the house for a profit
to Robert Montague, a lawyer, in 1990.
It should be noted that the street address of 720
Echo Drive was formerly 744 Echo Drive about
1929 when house numbers on Echo Drive between
Riverdale and Bank were re-assigned. When Robert
Graham had passed away in 1927, his obituary in
the Ottawa Citizen described his residence as 744
Echo Drive.
Contact the Ottawa South History Project at
HistoryProject@OldOttawaSouth.ca or visit us
online at www.OldOttawaSouth.ca/HistoryProject.

Page 18
Christmas Hamper Project 2011
The Christmas Hamper Project
is in full-swing again this year,
with a goal of reaching 175
families and individuals in the Ottawa
community.
For more than 30 years, the
Christmas Hamper Project has
supplied thousands of Ottawa families
and individuals with boxes of food,
toiletries and small gifts to help make
their Christmas season a little brighter.
Hosted by Centretown United
Church, hampers will be delivered to
families and individuals who have been
referred by a number of Centretown
emergency food providers.
During the holidays, our thoughts
often turn to those less fortunate than
ourselves. This worthy project relies
on the generosity and the goodwill of
the community, and offers a number of
By Michelle Lahey
Imagine you or your loved one has
just been diagnosed with a life
changing illness such as cancer.
Would you know what questions
to ask your family practitioner or
specialist? Would you be aware of the
resources available to you? Would you
know where to go to find the answers
you need? On the other hand imagine
you have an experienced health
professional to personally guide
you and help you find the resources
and information you need to make
well informed decisions. Help with
Healthcare: Advocacy Services for
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
ways you can help:
To adopt a hamper, contact Sue
by November 30 th at sue.allan@
sympatico.ca.
To pack hampers and help wrap
gifts between December 15 th and 21 st ,
contact Ann at 613-234-6084.
To deliver hampers or drive on
December 22 nd , contact Linda at linda.
pollock@sympatico.ca, or by phone if
you don’t have email, at 613-232-0370.
Or, have a crazy schedule? We gladly
accept donations! Please send a
cheque made out to “The Christmas
Hamper Project”, to Centretown
United Church, 507 Bank Street, K2P
1Z5. Thank you for your support!
Please see our website as details
become available:
www.centretownunited.org
Canadians Inc. is an Ottawa based
business which can do just that. It
is owned and operated by Michelle
Lahey, a Nurse Practitioner with more
than 25 years experience working in
the healthcare system.
At Help with Healthcare you are
our main priority. You will receive
a personalized and confidential
consultation with an independent and
experienced healthcare provider. The
consultant will ensure that you have
the information you need to make
well informed decisions regarding
your healthcare needs or those of your
loved ones.
Mrs. Smith* had surgery for a total
This squirrel looks quite prepared for a long winter. Photo by L. Thompson
Do You Need Help With Healthcare?
knee replacement. One known postoperative
risks with this surgery, which
could lead to death, is a blood clot that
may travel to the lung. Following this
type of surgery a patient is usually
prescribed an anticoagulant (blood
thinner medication) and is advised to
start walking the day after surgery to
further decrease the risk of developing
a blood clot. Neither of these measures
was taken after Mrs. Smith’s surgery.
During a consultation with Help with
Healthcare these potential risks were
reinforced and the family was advised
what questions they should ask the
health professionals involved in the
care of Mrs. Smith. Initial and follow
up consultations resulted in the family
obtaining the information they needed
to ensure that Mrs. Smith received
appropriate treatment. As a result of
the family being well informed and
asking appropriate questions Mrs.
Smith recovered from surgery without
unnecessary complications.
Help with Healthcare offers
a wide range of services. You may
want somebody to accompany you
to a medical appointment or help you
determine which questions to ask at
an appointment. We will speak with
you before an appointment and ask
you questions about your medical
condition. We will do any necessary
research before the appointment to
prepare pertinent questions you can
ask your healthcare provider. If we
attend the appointment with you
we will provide you with a written
summary of what was discussed at
the appointment to facilitate your
maximum understanding.
You may have a parent or loved
one who needs placement in long term
care and you are not sure how to start
the process. Help with Healthcare
will help you initiate the process as
well as do the research to help you
find a long term care facility that
meets the criteria you are looking for.
If you or your loved one is in need
of medical equipment or personnel we
can help you find these resources.
With your permission, Help with
Healthcare can review all of your
medical records. After we review all
files we will provide you with a written
summary that includes your past
medical history, medications, consultations
and test results. This summary
can be brought to all medical appointments
to help you have more consistency
in your care.
Perhaps you live out of town and
are not able to advocate for or assist
your loved one with the help they
require. Help with Healthcare can
work with you and your loved one to
provide support when you cannot be
there for them.
As Canadians, we are very
lucky to have a great healthcare
system. However no healthcare
system is perfect. Not enough family
practitioners and specialists, less
time to spend with patients, an aging
population, longer wait times, and
earlier discharge from hospitals are
just a few of the factors that make
our system more complex today than
it was in the past. Individuals and
families need to take a more active
role to ensure their healthcare needs
are met. The more information you
have the better equipped you are to
determine which options are best for
you.
No individual service can meet
all the needs of all people. Help
with Healthcare is an option now
available to advocate for you and help
you understand your possible choices.
You can optimize your healthcare
outcomes.
For a complimentary, 15 minute
telephone consultation or for more
information please contact Michelle
Lahey.
Phone: 613 222 9996
Email:
info@helpwithhealthcare.ca
Website:
www.helpwithhealthcare.ca
*Name has been changed to protect
privacy.

DEC 2011
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 19
Abbotsford @ The Glebe Centre
Abbotsford is all about Celebration…Wine & Good Food on Offer!
By: Julie Ireton
As far as Phillip Nicholson is
concerned, we’re all experts
when it comes to choosing a
good wine.
“Only you know what you like,”
says Nicholson, founder of the National
Capital Sommelier Guild.
“There’s no room for snobbery, it’s all
about fun.”
And fun is what he has in mind
for Abbotsford House’s wine tasting
evening that’s set for Thursday, Dec.
15 between 7 and 9 p.m. The cost is
$15 per person.
Nicholson will share some secrets
about wine and take them through the
art of tasting.
“We’re going to have seasonal
tasting, it’s close to Christmas, Chanukah.
We’ll sample eight or nine
wines and fun foods. And it’s a good
cause. I’ll be donating the wine myself.
Any money made goes back to
the community,” Nicholson says.
For Nicholson, wine tasting and
hosting these kinds of evenings is a
full-time hobby. During the day, he
works as a policy consultant for the
federal government. About 20 years
ago, this Glebe resident took a sommelier
course at Algonquin and received
a professional certificate.
“The course was a hoot. Myself
and the others – people involved from
the hospitality trade -- decided we
needed a guild, a group to organize
wine tasting events,” Nicholas recalls.
That led to the creation of the
National Capital Sommelier Guild.
Nicholson says it’s a very active
group. He also leads tastings at the
Taste of the Glebe events.
“This will be my first event at
Abbotsford. The seniors will be an appreciative
audience. I’ll make jokes,
answer questions, ” says Nicholas
who’s in the “over-55” category himself.
“It’s always nice when you see
people taste something they’ve never
dared to try. And I’ll give tips on how
to find good value wines.”
Pat Goyeche, program facilitator
of Abbotsford at the Glebe Centre,
agrees. “Most of our functions are
during the day, a lot of older people
who don’t drive at night prefer that.
But we’re doing the wine tasting
for those who enjoy an evening out
and…. thanks to GNAG’ community
outreach we have Phil Nicholson on
hand for an affordable and fun evening.”
Goyeche says.
The event is open to anyone 55
plus. Goyeche says the senior’s centre
is now attracting a number of community
minded, recently retired men,
women and couples.
“It’s important to socialize, network
with your community,” Goyeche
notes. “You really need your friends,
not just your family. But when you
retire, you sometimes lose that peer
group. Some see joining a community
group like this as a way to start friendships.”
Diana Athill
British Femme de lettres
By Helene Merritt
Diana Athill, a British
Femme de lettres has written
memoirs, novels and
short stories.
She worked for Andre Deutsch
publishing for years and with her
fine editor’s flair, writes unerringly
elegant prose.
In Somewhere towards the end
Athill describes the vagaries of
growing older including such details
as painful feet.
Stet is a memoir of her years
in publishing working with such
notaries as V.S. Naipaul and Jean
Rhys.
Recently published is a reissue
of short stories Athill wrote in the
50’s and 70’s called Midsummer
night in the workroom.
The stories are in turn poignant,
humourous and sad: a mix of
stories of longing for and finding
and losing love.
Diana Athill is a wonderful
writer. I discovered her I think
through the Guardian or was it the
CBC?
At all events, if you get the
chance, do read her. She is a shining
example of what we are capable
of when we are older.
Carol Shipley, Ken Watkins, and Joseph Cull ..
such good sports anticipating the wine-tasting!
There are still tickets available
for the wine tasting. For people who’d
prefer to socialize and celebrate the
season earlier in the day, Abbotsford
is also hosting a luncheon on Thursday,
Dec. 22. The tickets for the lunch
are $15.
“It will be a three course meal
and entertainment from pianist Keith
Murfin,” Goyeche says. “It’s close to
Christmas so we can really celebrate
the season as a community. We’ll be
singing carols and eating heartily.”
Submit articles about
interesting people
you know
in Old Ottawa South
to oscar@oldottawasouth.ca

Page 20
By Anna Redman
For the 12th year in a row The
Guardian has named Edinburgh
the UK’s best city. The results
for these awards are based on votes
cast by readers of The Guardian. In
achieving first place, Edinburgh beat
out other prime cities like the runners
up York, Durham, Bath and Cambridge.
When speculating on the secret
of Edinburgh’s success The Guardian
wrote “with its internationally
renowned festivals, fine dining, history,
culture and precipitous location,
it’s hard to see it being toppled.”
Each of these, are indeed, keys to the
treasure-trove that is Edinburgh, and
Scotland’s capital city is constantly
adding to its vast array of options and
opportunities.
When it comes to festivals, the
Edinburgh Fringe Festival is undoubtedly
the most notable. The annual
celebration of theatre, comedy, music
and so much more has been drawing
crowds for 64 years. But the Fringe
is by no means the only Festival in
town. Edinburgh’s festival offerings
are vast and include books, art, science,
film, and the second most nota-
ble, Hogmanay. This spectacular New
Years celebration features concerts
and breathtaking fireworks over Edinburgh
castle, amongst other things.
Fine dining is another Edinburgh
area of expertise. Being a capital city.
Edinburgh’s array of dining choices is
almost endless. Any cuisine you could
imagine is available. ‘The Witchery’
gets a particularly good name although
the prices are very high. For
fine dining at a lower cost, visitors
may want to look into the website
5pm.com. s A reasonably diverse list
of places post deals and special menus
each day, giving people the opportunity
to try new places, at an affordable
price, provided they book their dinner
reservation before 5pm.
When it comes to Edinburgh’s
history, it is impossible to miss. Historical
buildings and sights are all
around, all the time. From the cobble-
stone streets, to the Scott Monument,
to the castle built at the heart of the
city, absorbing some of Edinburgh’s
past is inevitable for all who visit the
city.
That same city’s culture is almost
as inevitably observed. Edinburgh is
filled with many free museums that
expose visitors to segments of both
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Edinburgh Best Of The Best For The 12th Year Running
A University of Edinburgh Campus
the city’s past and its culture. Edinburgh
is also filled with many pubs
with bands playing Scottish music
and some citizens sporting the more
traditional Scottish dress.
Finally, there’s the location. Any
realtor will tell you, location is everything.
Edinburgh is located perfectly,
with many surrounding areas just
outside the city centre. Additionally,
Edinburgh is not too far from the
North Sea and it doesn’t rain as much
as other parts of Scotland. The streets
are steeped in history and the cultural
View from Edinburgh Castle
The Royal Mile in Edinburgh
The Scott Monument
DEC 2011
landmarks, like Edinburgh castle, set
it apart from so many other capital cities.
These summaries come nowhere
close to capturing all that Edinburgh
has to offer. They are merely a smattering
of samples. They do, however,
demonstrate The Guardian’s accuracy
in describing Scotland’s capital city
and why so many readers voted for
Edinburgh as the UK’s best city. For
the 12th year running no less.

DEC 2011
My name is Sarah Whiteside,
I am a third year student at
the University of Ottawa
studying Ethics and Society with a
minor in Film Studies. I was immediately
drawn to Old Ottawa South by its
quaint beauty and decided that it would
be a fantastic and inspiring region to
photograph. I contacted The OSCAR
as it is the perfect forum for displaying
my photographs to those who know the
beauty of Old Ottawa South the best,
its residents.
The Canal: (Below) This photo
is a nice representation of the fall,
and the fast approaching winter.
The leaves have all fallen from the
tree and much of the water has been
pumped out of the canal. This is very
representative of November, and is
also a reminder of the coming winter
and certain joys such as skating on
the canal.
Echo-Bank House: (Below)The Echo-Bank House is a beautiful heritage
property with period features such as the old stone bricks and the
charming trim. The house is striking on its own, but is also framed by various
large trees. The focal point of the photo is shared between the house
and the large cedar in the centre adding visual interest.
Tell OSCAR Readers
about your travel
or your interests.
Send text and photos to
oscar@oldottawasouth.ca
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Photos of OOS by Sarah Whiteside
Page 21
Tree- Windsor Park. (Above) I took this picture because I find that in all trees,
even those that are no longer living or towering upright, there is a beauty about the
way in which the branches sprawl, and in this picture I love how the branches extend
through the entire picture. The branches of the fallen tree create a frame around
the woman in the picture, Jasmine Morrison Keeler, and the Rideau River offers a
lovely backdrop to the fallen tree.

Page 22 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
DEC 2011
Sips from the Poetry Café
“You Better Watch Out The Little Witches Are Coming To Town”
By Susan J. Atkinson
You better watch out.
You better not cry.
You better not pout I’m telling you why.
The Little Witches from Little Witch Press
are coming to town.
What’s that you say? The Witches are
coming to town? That’s right you heard
right. The Witches are back with their
latest tale of adventure and excitement. Witches
Don’t Do Winter is the new title of the local trio’s
fourth book and they are very excited to share its
release with the neighbourhood. The Little Witches
will be holding a launch party filled with afternoon
fun and frivolity on Saturday December 3 at the
Firehall Community Center (Sunnyside Avenue)
between 3:00 pm and 5:00 pm. Don’t pack away
your costumes just yet: you’ll want to dress up
to experience the full fun of what will be a great
afternoon of surprises.
Witches Don’t Do Winter is a charming story
set against the backdrop of Canadian winters and
the joys they can bring. The story begins when
Pansy Witch, the little witch who usually hibernates
through out the winter is woken unexpectedly
during the height of the snowy months. Unable
to fall back to sleep and with some pushing and
prodding from her friends to embrace the wonders
of winter, Pansy finds herself trying all kinds of new
and adventurous pastimes.
Despite her friends’ best efforts Pansy remains
unconvinced of the merits of this ‘somewhat
controversial’ season. The story however, does not
end with Pansy’s passionate outburst that “winter
is not for me” and ultimately the story is one of
friendship and an unexpected change of heart.
This new book comes by its inspiration honestly.
As those of you who read my small offerings each
month know, I am not a huge fan of winter so the
idea of hibernating through what I feel are cold
undesirable months is very appealing. As it turns
out through the sharing of this book from concept
to publication it appears quite a few people feel this
way.
The ‘real’ Little Witches, author Susan J.
Atkinson, illustrator, Elizabeth Todd Doyle and
designer Kim Dalrymple are very excited about
this new release which takes their little witches
beyond Halloween night and somewhat answers the
questions posed by their first two books, Where Do
Witches Go? and What Do Witches Do?
Fresh from an incredibly busy and successful
‘haunting’ season the trio are thrilled to be able to
extend their book readings and appearances. They
are particularly excited about sharing the reading of
this new title with their audience and promise some
new surprises. Mark it on the calendar to join the
trio as they entertain in what is guaranteed to be a
spell-binding performance! The Little Witches are
cooking up something special for this event and
promise there will be lots to amuse both young
and old. You can also follow the witches at www.
littlewitchpress.com and on the witches’ blogspot
to find out where else they will be flying to during
December and the Holiday season. See you on
December 3!
Just to whet the appetite of our young readers,
here’s a little excerpt from the forthcoming story,
Witches Don’t Do Winter
“Wasn’t that awesome!” shouted Bella.
“That was not awesome.” Pansy scowled. “That
was awful. My dress is wet. My hair is a mess. I was
scared out of my mind and I’m cold. If this is winter
it’s definitely not for me.”
And with that Pansy stomped towards home.
OSCAR Needs Volunteers For Monthly Distribution in OOS
Tell OSCAR
Readers
about
interesting
people,
your travel
or your
interests.
Send text and
photos to
oscar@
oldottawasouth.ca

DEC 2011 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
Memories of Christmas in Rome
Page 23
Tammy Giuliani
Owner
Stella Luna Gelato Café
1103 Bank Street
slgelato.com
Christmas is just around the corner and with
it comes a flood of memories from my years
in Italy. It’s the one time of year … other
than an acute longing for that hot and magical sea
breeze during the summer months, when I feel such
nostalgia for Rome. Christmas in the Eternal City
is a magical time of year. My dear friend Pat and
I were reminiscing last week about our favourite
Christmas-time memories … like strolling through
Piazza Navona, which is jammed from end to end
with stalls, all brightly lit, vendors selling all sorts
of sweets: sparkling candied fruits, pyramids of
chocolates, piles of hard candies, building blocks of
torrone (nougat), glazed chestnuts, dried fruits. The
centre of the Piazza hosts a carrousel for the children,
its jolly music luring young ones who have
been dressed in their Sunday best. Vendors sit by
their braziers, holding hot paper cones filled with
roasted chestnuts to warm their hands from the December
chill. That sweet aroma of chestnuts roasting
over an open street fire lingers in the air while
the “Befana”, dressed in her black tattered shawl
and broken shoes, roams the Piazza to the delight of
children, sweeping the streets with her long, ancient
broom. She chats with the little ones who will wait
for her arrival on the Feast of the Epiphany (January
6th). In Central Italy, the Befana visits children on
the eve of the Epiphany (she even manages to make
a quick pit-stop at our home in Ottawa). She fills
their socks with candy and presents if they’ve been
good, or a lump of coal if they’ve been naughty. In
fact, she usually leaves a small lump of “candied
coal” in the sock just to make sure children remember
that there’s always room for improvement.
According to Christian legend, the Befana
Ottawa Folklore Centre Jazz Band perform at Stella Luna
Mercato di Navona
St. Peter’s Square Christmas
spends all her days cleaning and sweeping, and is
considered the best housekeeper in the village. One
day, the Three Wise Men, who were following a
bright star in the sky, came knocking and invited
her along on their journey to search for the Christ
Child. The Befana brushed them off since she was
so busy with housework. However later, realizing
what a glorious opportunity she had thrown away,
she had a change of heart. So, she filled a sack with
sweets and small gifts, and set out on her own to
find Baby Jesus. Sadly, she never found him, but
to this day, after all these centuries, on the eve of
the Epiphany, the Befana flies away on her broom
to visit every child’s home, leaving behind a small
gift, knowing that the Christ Child can be found in
the hearts of all children.
It’s traditional in Rome to go for a stroll in the
evening before dinner under the umbrella of the
coloured lights and giant brilliant stars strung up
across the streets of Rome in an attempt to brighten
the darkest days of the year. Shop windows are
crammed full of colourful boxes of panettoni and
pandoro. The Zampognari, who “once upon a time”
were shepherds from the Castelli Romani, dress
in their traditional garb and play cheerful music
on their Zampogne – who knew bagpipes were in
Italy, too! Memories come flooding back to me like
the aroma of the typical Roman Christmas lunch –
“tortellini in brodo”; breaking a hard piece of tor-
Cont’d on page 25

The th Page 24 OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
DEC 2011
Christmas Church
Services
in Old Ottawa South

The th DEC 2011 OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
Page 25
Memories of Christmas in Rome ...
Cont’d from page 23
rone with a hammer; playing tombola after Christmas
dinner; strolling through Saint Peter’s Square
to see the massive and beautifully lit Christmas
tree, which is on average over 25 metres tall; midnight
mass in a candle-lit church surrounded by the
Christmas Lights on the Streets of Rome
ancient aroma of incense; and the fragrance of a
fresh panettone when first opened … which for my
friend Pat is a rush back into childhood every time!
Christmas dinner in Rome isn’t just about a meal on
Christmas day. It’s a week-long celebration of food
and family and friendship.
We’ll be bringing some of those treasured traditions
to Stella Luna to celebrate the Christmas season.
We’re working on recipes for Torrone Gelato
(Nougat), Candy Cane Mint, Gingerbread and I
couldn’t wait … I’ve already put out the Rum Raison
Gelato … I’m not very good at keeping secrets.
Our Alpine Hot Chocolate, made using a recipe
passed along to me by one of my Master teachers
whose family hails from the Italian/Austrian border,
has been a huge success. Chef Ivano has been
preparing more winter-suited flavours to dress his
gourmet panini, which continue to sell out every
day … the “a-ROMA” of freshly sautéed mushrooms,
Italian sausage, roasted eggplant and frittata
mingled with those of my simmering soup linger
in the air of the shop, teasing the senses. We’ll be
hosting some Sunday night live music events … the
OFC Jazz Band played on November 13, and there’s
more to come as the season progresses! Most importantly,
we look forward to sharing the joy of the
season with you and yours, hoping that you’ll pause
for some holiday cheer and home-cooked Roman
cuisine. Alessandro, Zachary, Erica, Matthew and
I wish you all a Buon Natale e un felice e sereno
Anno Nuovo.
La befana
Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter.
Who would think that those branches would turn
green again and blossom, but we hope it,
we know it.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (German Playwright, Poet,
Novelist and Dramatist. 1749-1832)

Page 26 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
DEC 2011
By Sarah Ives
I
was recently asked in my class
about complete protein and if a
diet high in raw, vegan foods provided
enough of it. Nods went around
the classroom, suggesting many others
were concerned too – and rightly so. It
is a curious fact that we, in the West,
are often so confused about protein
and which foods have sufficient levels
of it. It doesn’t help that in grocery
stores it’s often visibly harder
too; while many meat products and
packaged or boxed foods have labels,
you don’t really get a label with most
vegetables! So this month I wanted to
Bridges of Old Ottawa South
Bronson Canal Bridge Photo by Tom Alfoldi
The Complete Protein Myth
address protein: do vegetables really
have protein; can protein really be
complete or not complete and is it
necessary for people working out or
building muscle?
Let’s look at the facts: Protein is
comprised of amino acids that link
together in long chains (we’ve all
heard the term “building blocks” of
proteins, right?). There are 22 amino
acids; however 9 of these cannot be
made in the human body, so these
are called the essential amino acids,
since we must get them from an outside
source. If this source has all 9 of
these essential acids, than it is called
a complete protein source (often as-
sociated with meat). There are many
sources of complete protein in plant
foods, such as chia seeds, hemp seeds,
quinoa, goji berries and more. On a
plant based diet, particularly one that
is heavy in dark, leafy greens, it is
more than possible to get all the essential
amino acids (a.k.a. protein)
you need in a form that is easier for
your body to digest. You can be sure
that you are getting enough protein
by taking care to rotate your greens,
vegetables, nuts and seeds, so you absorb
the maximum amount of different
amino acids. Not only do greens
have protein in a very absorbable
form, but they also have plenty of
vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients
and enzymes, something that is very,
very low in more traditional sources
of complete protein, like meat (you
also forgo the saturated fat present in
meat sources too).
In terms of athletes who feel like
they need a complete protein source,
rest assured that there are increasing
numbers of vegan, plant-based athletes
who, not only thrive on the lifestyle
but attribute their success to the adoption
of a plant-based diet for overall
energy levels, for recovery time, and
many more reasons. Some names of
vegan athletes are triathelete Brandon
Brazier, weightlifter champion Jane
Black, body builders Robert Hazeley
and Robert Cheeke, mixed martial artist
Mac Danzig and Robert Hazeley,
boxer Keith Holmes, Olympic athlete
Carl Lewis, hockey player Georges
Laraque, and many, many more. So a
diet high in raw, varied plant foods, is
not only an excellent source of amino
acids but higher in overall nutrients
that will support your health, and your
sport, in the long term.
Post-Workout Super food Shake
2 bananas
2 cups water
2 Tbsp nut butter (almond, tahini
or cashew)
1 Tbsp maca root powder (a
superfood)
1 Tbsp Goji berries
1 Tbsp raw rice protein powder
(or hemp)
1 Tbsp ground flax seeds
1 tsp coconut oil (optional)
2 Medjool dates
Tiniest pinch of sea salt
Blend all ingredients until
smooth. Enjoy! Will keep for 2-3 days
in the fridge.
Sarah Ives is a raw food educator
who teaches healthy and delicious
ways to eat more raw foods. Join
her on Mon, Jan 2nd for a free green
smoothie class, with the option to opt
into the Green Smoothie Cleanse Jan
2012 to kick start your way back into
health! Visit www.ohmyraw.com for
more info.

The th DEC 2011 OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
Page 27
Red Apron Cooks
Every holiday season presents
the same challenges. How to
get through a typically very
busy time of year with school, work,
extracarricular activities, while at the
same time preparing for the holidays
which undoubtedly will involve entertaining
friends, family & loved
ones. Depending on your approach
to the season, your schedule may also
include a healthy dose of gift shopping
and wrapping.
If you are looking for some creative
entertaining ideas, consider the
following;
1. The Red Apron’s holiday solutions:
• Our pre-order holiday menu is
posted on our website and contains a
number of special seasonal items .
• Our ever popular Bison &
Cranberry pie, along with Jo-Ann’s
tradtional Tourtiere with house made
ketchup will be available in store
through most of the month.
• Remember too that our ‘Fresh
Meal Service’ menu items can be
ordered for 2, 3, 4 or more and are a
great way to feed your guests for dinner
parties of 6 to 60 people.
• Our careful selection of Ontario
& Quebec artisanal cheeses will help
you build the perfect cheese plate, and
our new retail store offers all the accompaniments
(jellies, crackers, slate
cheese boards, hand made pottery,
etc.)
2. Order a smoked fish platter
from one of our three wonderful
fishmongers in the region. Pelican
Fishery, the Whalesbone, and Chelsea
Smokehouse will all assemble
a smoked fish platter that will impress
your guests. Paired with a bag
of fresh bagels from Kettlemans, or
some assorted artisanal breads from
True Loaf Bakery, and you are ready
to face any holiday brunch or cocktail.
3. Host a cookie baking party. We
hold one every year at the Red Apron.
The concept is to gather friends who
like to bake. Each person brings a
recipe and the ingredients to make
large batches of their favourite cookie.
Each friend leaves the party with a
dozen (or more) of each type of cookie.
This is a fun and entertaining way
to get your holiday baking done.
4. Get out your slow cooker! You
can load it up in the morning and
come home to a meal that is ready to
serve. We have included an easy slow
cooker recipe that will feed a small
crowd or would be great to bring to
a pot luck.
5. Mix up a batch of scones and
freeze them unbaked for later use.
(See recipe below). They are excel-
To book an OSCAR ad
call Gayle 730-1058
oscarads
@oldottawasouth.ca
Season’s Greetings from the Red Apron
lent for Christmas morning when you
are opening presents and don’t want
to cook breakfast. Smear on some
lovely spreadable goat cheese and
your favourite jam. Our Monforte
Dairy Chèvre is perfect for this purpose.
6. Boushey’s on Elgin has always
made the most stunning fruit baskets,
which make a lovely holiday gift, but
they also do fruit platters. Give them
24 hours notice and they will make
whatever size you want. Call (613)
236-4482 to order.
Remember to take some time
out of your busy December schedule
to take a walk or a ride through
downtown Ottawa (from December
1, 2011 to January 7, 2012) to enjoy
the lights. Each year, Canada’s Capital
Region glows with thousands
of holiday lights during Christmas
Lights Across Canada. The magic begins
with an illumination ceremony
on Parliament Hill on December 1 for
an evening that is sure to enchant the
entire family.
White Bean Cassoulet
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 chicken thighs, bone in
2 pork sausages, cut in half or thirds
4 oz double smoked bacon, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, peeled & diced
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoons tomato paste
3 cups chicken stock or water
1 1/2 cups white (great northern)
beans, soaked overnight and drained
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
To Prepare:
Heat olive oil in large skillet
over medium heat. Add onion to hot
oil; cook and stir until onion is tender,
about 4 minutes. Add garlic and
thyme, salt & pepper. Remove from
pan. Brown the chicken on both
sides. Remove. Brown Sausage on all
sides. Remove. Sautee diced bacon.
Transfer all ingredients to the slow
cooker and add tomato paste, chicken
stock or water and beans. Make
sure the beans are completely covered
with the liquid. Stir until combined.
Cover and cook on LOW 7 to 8 hours.
Test beans for doneness. Before serving,
garnish with chopped parsley and
home made croutons.
Dried Fruit Scones
Ingredients
3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy
cream
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut
into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 lb dried figs, chopped, stems
(about 1 1/2 cups) – you can substitute
dried cranberries, currants or any
dried fruit combination.
2 large egg yolks
Directions
Put oven racks in upper and lower
thirds of oven and preheat oven to 400°F.
Whisk together buttermilk, syrup,
and 1/2 cup cream in a small bowl.
Mix together flour, sugar, salt, baking
powder, and baking soda in bowl of a
stand mixer with paddle attachment at
low speed, (or whisk in a large bowl)
until combined. Add butter and mix
(or blend with your fingertips or a pas-
Fresh scone
try blender) until mixture resembles
coarse meal with some small (roughly
pea-size) butter lumps. Mix in figs,
then add buttermilk mxture and mix
until just combined. (Do not over-mix.)
Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment
paper and drop 10 (1/4-cup)
mounds of batter onto each sheet,
leaving 1 inch between mounds.
Scones can be made larger or smaller
and I like to use my ice-cream scoop
to measure and drop the dough.
Whisk together yolks and remaining
2 tablespoons cream, then brush over
tops of scones. Bake, switching position
of baking sheets halfway through
baking, until scones are puffed and
golden, 20 to 25 minutes total. Transfer
to a baking rack and cool enough
to handle. Scone batter can be mixed
a few hours ahead of time or frozen
before baking on a baking sheet and
then bagged in an airtight bag. They
can be baked from frozen but will
take a bit more time. Use a toothpick
to test for doneness.
Red Apron’s famous Bison Cranberry & Sweet Potato Pie

Page 28
OPP Says Now Is The Time To
Get Ready For Winter Driving
Every year, the first snow fall comes before many Ontarians are ready for
it and according to the OPP, it is wise to keep one step ahead of it by getting
ready for winter driving conditions on Ontario roads and highways.
Preparing yourself and your vehicle for the harsh winter weather ahead can
go a long way in reducing collisions - something the OPP sees far too many of
every winter.
Getting Your Vehicle Ready:
• Install four winter-rated tires before the first snowfall.
• Have an ice scraper or snow brush in your vehicle to keep your windows,
signals and lights clear.
• Top up your windshield washer reservoir and keep an extra one handy.
• Keep your fuel tank at least ½ full so you don’t run out of gas should you
become stranded and to prevent condensation from forming in your gas tank.
• Keep a fully stocked emergency kit in your vehicle.
• Have your vehicle serviced to avoid preventable breakdowns.
Adjusting your driving habits:
• Drivers must SLOW DOWN! - Speed too fast for road conditions is the
#1 cause of winter collisions.
• Drive according to the road and weather conditions.
• Leave extra spaces between vehicles - Stopping distances are at least
doubled on snowy roads and even longer in icy conditions.
• Know where you are - If you require help in an emergency it will delay the
arrival of emergency responders if you don’t know your location when asked.
• Monitor road and weather conditions - Plan your trip and check local
weather conditions before heading out.
Check the Ministry of Transportation website prior to heading out on any
trip during the winter - Please do not call 9-1-1 or the OPP for road reports);
instead log onto: www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/traveller/conditions.
CARLETON CORNER
Carleton University organizes
an annual campus United
Way campaign. This year, the
campaign ran from Oct. 18 to Nov. 4.
The goal for this year was $150,000
and at the end of the campaign,
the total was at $133,827 – with
donations still coming in. Organizers
were thrilled with the campaign and
are confident the goal will be met.
The Carleton University Art
Gallery launched three new exhibits
on Nov. 14, which will run until
January 2012. The exhibits include
the following: Anthony Burnham:
Even Space Does Not Repeat which
presents a focused selection of recent
paintings by Montreal artist Anthony
Burnham, whose stylistically
heterogeneous work investigates the
possibilities of painting as a conceptual
practice. Burnham’s works take as
their themes the formal and symbolic
components that have played a central
role in the history of painting, such
as perspective, illusionism and the
grid. The second exhibit is “Truly
Canadian”: Inuit Art and National
Identity which takes as its starting
point a 1987 quotation by Virginia
Watt in Inuit Art Quarterly: “If we
discount hockey arenas and football
and baseball stadia, Canadians are not
ordinarily perceived as a passionate
people, except, it appears, on the
subject of Inuit art. Inuit art is ours;
it is truly Canadian.” The exhibition
explores how Inuit art has come to
be perceived as “ours,” and how the
Canadian government has utilized it
as a means of articulating Canadian
identity at home and abroad. And the
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Kitchen Fire Prevention
Tell OSCAR Readers
about interesting people,
your travel
or your interests.
Send text and photos to
oscar@oldottawasouth.ca
third exhibit is People Like Us: The
Gossip of Colin Campbell. A pioneer
of Canadian video art, Campbell used
video as a flexible and accessible
way to tell stories. His homespun
tapes are a perverse collage of tall
tales, rumours, conversations and
daydreams gleaned from his everyday
life. Ironic, irreverent and ambiguous,
Campbell’s tapes chart how identity is
performed and circulated in the social
world. More information is available
at: http://cuag.carleton.ca/.
Over the last couple of months,
Carleton’s Initiative for Parliamentary
and Diplomatic Engagement hosted
two specialized orientations for
newly-elected Members of Parliament
and newly-appointed diplomats.
The MP orientation was attended by
representatives of all three federal
parties and combined briefings
and tours, including Rideau Hall
and the Supreme Court of Canada,
with panels comprised of former
parliamentarians, heads of national
organizations, individuals who have
worked at the most senior levels
DEC 2011
The Ottawa Fire Services would like to remind residents of these
simple and important kitchen safety tips.
· Stay in the kitchen when cooking – especially if using oil or high
temperatures.
· Keep a proper-fitting pot lid near the stove when cooking. If a pot
catches fire, slide the lid over the pot and turn off the stove. Do not move
the pan.
· Wear tight-fitting or rolled up sleeves when using the stove. Loose,
dangling clothing can easily catch fire. If your clothing catches fire, stop,
drop to the ground and roll over and over to put out the fire.
· Keep combustible items such as cooking utensils, dishcloths, paper
towels and pot holders a safe distance from the stove.
· Keep children away from the stove. Make sure electrical cords are
not dangling from countertops, where they could be pulled over by small
children.
· Cool a burn by running cool water over the wound for 3 to 5 minutes.
If the burn is severe, seek medical attention.
of government and distinguished
Carleton professors. Meanwhile, more
than 90 newly arrived diplomats and
their spouses attended the first ever
“Welcome to Ottawa” orientation. The
diplomats heard from a wide range of
experts on topics such as best practices
for effective diplomacy in Ottawa,
social and family integration and
how Canada works. There was also
a Resource Fair with representatives
from the City of Ottawa and other
government and private organizations
that provide services to diplomats
in areas such as education, tourism,
culture, recreation, social clubs,
publications, volunteering, health and
children’s issues.
Carleton Corner is written by
Carleton University’s Department of
University Communications. As your
community university, Carleton hosts
many exciting events of interest to
Ottawa South. For more information
about upcoming events, please go to
carleton.ca/events.
OSCAR Needs
Volunteers
For Monthly Distribution
in OOS

DEC 2011
Surround Circle Yoga
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
We Are Never Too Old Or Too Stiff To Practice Yoga
By Maureen Fallis
Surround Circle Yoga
We will all get old – it’s just the nature of
life. But being mentally, emotionally
and physically stiff and rigid as we age
is a paradigm that can shift if the desire is strong
enough to make a change. Although we cannot
predict or control what happens to us in life, we can
choose a path now that brings movement, joy and
peace into our lives.
It’s been proven over and over again that
practicing yoga postures can slow down the aging
process. How is this possible? When we take
the joints through their full range of motion by
stretching, strengthening, and balancing each part,
we massage and lubricate the cartilage and joints.
Joint cartilage is like a sponge: it receives fresh
nutrients only when its fluid is squeezed out and
is ready to soak up a new supply. Without proper
sustenance, neglected areas of cartilage eventually
wear out, exposing the underlying bond like wornout
brake pads.
The spine is where the real relationship between
yoga and aging begins. Posture dramatically affects
the health of every system of the body – not only
the neuromuscular system but also the endocrine,
cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Good
posture supports and lengthens the spine by creating
space between the vertebrae. This is vital to our
health because nerves connected to the structures of
the body, including the internal organs, branch out
from the spinal cord between the vertebrae.
Nourishment to the spine comes from
movement. Bending forward, bending backward,
twisting and turning, curling and rolling the spine
are all necessary and natural movements for the
spine. Maintaining the health and integrity of the
spine is the central theme of yoga. Yoga develops
spinal strength and agility, slowing and even
reversing the common degenerative changes found
most specifically in people in midlife and beyond.
Some people avoid yoga because they think it’s
only for people who can bend like a pretzel. They
think it is for those who are young, strong, and
athletic, and if you take a look at the yoga journals
you might very well believe it. But the funny thing
is, the people who are most likely to tell me they
couldn’t possibly do yoga because of their lack of
flexibility or their current health condition, be it
recovering from cancer, dealing with chronic pain,
heart disease or an auto-immune disorder, and then
begin to practice on a regular basis, are the ones
who seem most pleased with their physical changes.
Hear these words written by Tamara Levine
about her experience with yoga, “I came to
YogaThrive 18 months after being diagnosed with
an aggressive breast cancer. I had straddled both
mainstream oncology and complementary medicine,
and had been through the gamut of treatment:
chemo, surgery, radiation and complications from
radiation. The good news was that at the end of it,
there was no more evidence of my
cancer.
“Several months after my
treatment ended, I was doing OK,
but still low on energy and stamina.
I was working out at the gym and
swimming, but I still needed to nap
every day and I was exhausted by
evening. I discovered I was in a phase
that is sometimes called “recovery”,
when I wasn’t sick or in treatment but
I wasn’t entirely well either.
“That’s when I started YogaThrive.
I felt immediately at home, knowing
that each of us there had been on
or were still going through similar
journeys. Also, I was pleased to know
that Maureen had been specially
trained to teach the course, and
was sensitive to what it’s like to go
through a catastrophic illness and to
not know how you’re going to feel on
any particular day.
“The style of yoga offered at
Surround Circle Yoga is gentle,
restorative, and therapeutic, the
poses adapted to the situation of each
student, a balm for the mind and spirit
as well as for the body. Six months
after starting YogaThrive, my energy
is back maybe even stronger than
before I got sick. I know that yoga has
been an important part of my healing.”
The thing about yoga is that it is
strong medicine but it is slow medicine.
You can’t expect an overnight cure
with yoga, although for many people
it does start to yield benefits right
away. One major difference between
yoga and other approaches to healing
is that yoga builds on itself, becoming
incrementally more effective over
time. In a sense, yoga is something
like learning to play a musical
instrument: the longer you stick with
it and the more you practice, the better
you will play and the more you will
get out of it.
Contributors
Distributors
Advertisers
Thank you!
Page 29
Whether you are coming to yoga for your
physical health, for relief from stress, or to nourish
a spiritual connection, we invite you to come and
join our yoga community at Surround Circle Yoga.
To find out about classes or private instruction
please call 613-730-6649 or see the website www.
surroundcircleyoga.com.

Page 30 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
DEC 2011
M.P.P. OTTAWA CENTRE
By Yasir Naqvi, MPP
Our government recently took
two important steps to make
sure that our roads are safer
for cyclists, pedestrians and drivers.
On October 24, Dr. Andrew
McCallum, Chief Coroner for Ontario
announced that the Office of the Chief
Coroner will be conducting a review
of cycling deaths across the province.
This review is being undertaken as a
result of public concern surrounding
the issue of cycling safety.
The review will be led by Dr.
Dan Cass, Regional Supervising
Coroner - Toronto West Region,
and will include deaths from 2006
to 2010. The purpose of the review
is to identify common factors
that may have played a role in the
deaths, and where possible, to make
recommendations to prevent similar
deaths. The review is expected to be
completed in spring 2012. A report
will be issued at its conclusion. A
coalition of groups including cyclists
The Ottawa Humane Society
(OHS) reminds pet owners
that the holidays present many
hazards for pets. Here are the OHS’s
Twelve Pet Tips for Christmas to
keep your companion animals safe,
healthy and happy over the festive
season.
1. Holidays are a busy time for
visiting — if you’re away, have
someone check in on your animal
or board your pet.
2. If you’re entertaining,
consider keeping your pets in a
quiet room away from the noise
and activity. If they’re mingling
among the guests, make sure they
don’t share the rich holiday finger
foods!
Safer Roads in Our Community
and seniors represented by lawyers
Patrick Brown and Albert Kohl
commended the Coroner’s Office.
Members of the public are
invited to offer comments or
recommendations to the review panel
before November 30, 2011, by writing
to:
Dr. Dan Cass - Regional
Supervising Coroner - Toronto West
Region
Office of the Chief Coroner
26 Grenville Street
Toronto ON M7A 2G7
Occo.inquiries@ontario.ca
Cycling has become an important
part of our community, and cyclists
need to feel confident that they are
safe when they are on the streets.
Recent accidents involving cyclists in
our community have resulted in tragic,
needless deaths. This review will
be an important tool to help ensure
cyclists are protected and encouraged
when they are cycling.
On November 7, Dr. Andrew
McCallum announced that the Office
3. Christmas ornaments should
be “pet-friendly.” Avoid using
tinsel on trees! Curious animals are
attracted by the shiny strings and
may swallow them, which can lead
to serious injury — and expensive
surgery!
4. Barricade the water trough
around the tree to prevent your
pet from drinking the water,
which may be dirty and contain pine
needles, which are indigestible.
5. Secure the cords on your
Christmas lights to prevent your
pet from chewing on them, and
keep animals away from open
candle flames.
of the Chief Coroner will also be
conducting a review into pedestrian
deaths across the province.
The review will be led by Dr.
Bert Lauwers, Deputy Chief Coroner
- Investigations. The purpose of the
review is to identify common factors
that have played a role in pedestrian
deaths and where appropriate, make
recommendations to prevent similar
deaths in the future.
Pedestrian fatalities that have
occurred in 2010 will be the focus
of the review which is anticipated to
be complete in the spring of 2012. A
report will be issued at its conclusion.
Members of the public are
invited to offer comments or
recommendations to the review panel
before December 15, 2011, by writing
to:
Dr. Bert Lauwers, Deputy Chief
Coroner-Investigations
Office of the Chief Coroner
26 Grenville Street
Toronto ON M7A 2G7
Occo.inquiries@ontario.ca
6. Keep your pets away from
mistletoe, holly, poinsettias and
amaryllis. If ingested, they may
cause vomiting, diarrhea and/or other
problems. If your pet has ingested
something you’re unsure about, call
your veterinarian.
7. After gifts have been
unwrapped, discard or store
wrapping paper and ribbons,
which could be dangerous toys for
pets.
8. If you don’t know what’s
in a package, don’t leave it under
the tree! That wrapped parcel could
contain chocolate, which is toxic for
cats and dogs.
9. Table scraps and left-overs
The tragic
accident that occurred recently at the
corner of Bronson Avenue and Slater
Street is an example of how we need to
take road safety seriously. I hope that
you will take the time to participate in
this review and provide your feedback
on how we can improve safety on our
streets.
Ontario currently has the safest
roads in North America, but as our
modes of transportation are evolving,
we must ensure that our laws are
keeping up. People need to feel safe
when they are cycling or walking, and
that is why we need your thoughts
and suggestions on how to make this
happen.
Please do not hesitate to contact
me if I can ever be of assistance to
you. I look forward to hearing from
you.
Together, we are building a safer
community.
The Ottawa Humane Society’s Twelve Pet Tips for Christmas
aren’t just too rich for your pets —
bones in the meat could lead to
serious complications or death.
10. Ensure that edibles in
Christmas stockings or on the tree
are unreachable by your pet and
away from dangerous places, such as
the fireplace.
11. Always ensure that your pet
is wearing adequate identification.
With more frequent comings-andgoings,
it’s easy for your pet to slip
out of the house unnoticed.
12. On colder days, limit your pet’s
exposure to the out-of-doors to
short time periods.
The distribution routes for
which OSCAR requires
volunteers:
1. South side of Cameron between Marco and Osborne, west side
of Osborne (25 papers)
2. East side of Roslyn between Col. By and Aylmer, north side
of Aylmer between Roslyn and Leonard, west side of Leonard
between Aylmer and Col. By, Col. By between Leonard and
Roslyn (21 papers)

DEC 2011
Local Veterinarian - Dr. Emily Black
Argghhh! I don’t want to do it
but I’m going to have to!!! I
decided that I was going to
venture into the world of common
questions and misconceptions of
the pet owner… brought to you by
Google! I typed dog and cat into
Google to see what questions people
most often searched and by far the
winner was Dangerous Foods for dogs
and cats! Now I feel a bit like we have
been harping on about foods, but what
the hey! T’is the season for feeding
your dog weird stuff… so let’s figure
out what is and isn’t okay and I will
try and elucidate where I can with real
life occurrences!
And we are going to start right
where you would anticipate…. The
Salem witch trials! For those of you
who didn’t see the movie, Salem is a
small town in Massachusetts divided
by a river. There in the 1690’s a
number of young girls who all lived
on the east bank of the river went
crazy and started to have tremors and
convulsions. The people on the west
bank decided they were possessed
by the devil and needed to be burnt
as witches on the steak! Much chaos
ensued. As it turns out the true cause
of the convulsions and seizures was
due to Moldy grain stores on the east
bank of the river while those on the
west bank stayed clean. Food mold
can contain mycotoxins such as
penitrem-A and roquefortene ( yes
made famous by Roquefort cheese!).
These toxins are neurotoxins and
effect your brain to cause seizures
and convulsions. Like most toxins
they are dose dependent, meaning
the more you eat in proportion to
your body weight, the greater will
be the effect. This is the reason that
only the small young girls of Salem,
who likely weighed less than 100 lbs,
were affected by the toxin and not the
rest of the town! Dogs and cats who
forage in garbage or like to raid the
compost heap are most likely affected
and Should be brought to their vet
for decontamination and treatment
ASAP!
Chocolate! Yep! Lets talk about
“Perkis”. “Perkis” was my step
father’s beagle. And really, he could
be my example of pretty much any
toxicity you care to talk about as
he taught himself to not only open
the garbage drawer in the kitchen,
but also the fridge. One day, before
Christmas, Perkis got into the Santa
treat bag for the 4 kids. We each get
one of those giant bars of chocolate.
Perkis got 4. In total almost 1000mg
of chocolate. Chocolate is a
combination of milk, cocoa beans and
cocoa butter. It contains theobromine
and caffeine. These are both members
of a toxin class call methylxanthines.
The darker the chocolate, the more
toxins are present! Depending on how
much you eat we can see vomiting,
diarrhea, and lethargy right through to
seizures and death. Being the trouper
“Perkis” was he had upset stomach
for days, but he didn’t die, which in
all reality he should have. We think
the reason was that the milk chocolate
had been on sale. So it’s important
not to wrap your chocolate gifts and
put them under the tree, that doesn’t
fool anyone, especially not your dog.
In “Perkis”s situation however, my
stepfather had hid the chocolate in the
top drawer of the tall boy dresser…
yep.
Garlic and onions either real or
dried or powdered are bad! They have
a chemical in them called n-propyl
disulfide which causes red blood
cells to breakdown! This can happen
with as little as 15 grams per pound!
So best to just avoid them! I had a
Chihuahua in once who was fed a
small portion of her owners dinner
every night. They were Italian and it
took us a long while to figure out that
the reason she was anemic was due to
her passion for tomato sauce!
Rising Bread Dough! This one
is my favourite! So the thing is as
you would expect, bread dough can
double or triple in size as it’s rising,
that’s alright if it’s outside of your
dog but in the closed confines of a dog
stomach… it can cause problems. But
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 31
From The Salem Witch Trials Through Roquefort Cheese
To Spaghetti Sauce: What is truly dangerous to your pets
Climbers
looking for
dry rock.
Photo
by Lara
Thompson
that’s not the worst of it! The thing
is it’s the yeast that cause the bread
to rise and those same yeast make
alcohol as they are causing the gas.
These dogs will often present with
alcohol toxicity! You might think this
would be fun, like a night out on the
town, but the livers of Dogs and Cats
can’t digest Alcohol and it can lead to
liver failure.
Dogs and cats shouldn’t smoke or
eat cigarettes. There are no warnings
on cigarette packages, but it’s not a
good idea. The nicotine in cigarettes
can cause irritative signs but it also
causes excitement and then they die
of respiratory collapse! No pleasant.
Also a really good reason to make
sure you but out and dispose of the
but safetly.
Here’s an old wives tale finally
confirmed. Grapes and Raisins.
Maybe yes, maybe no. When eaten in
quantity, some dogs have developed
kidney failure, so probably best to
avoid. Baby carrots or even small
bits of cut up hotdogs can be used as
treats!
And to close, my favourite is
Xylitol. This is a naturally occurring
sugar substitute found in gum,
candies and other foods. The weird
thing is that in dogs, their body can’t
actually tell that this isn’t a real sugar.
They try and use it and develop a full
blown sugar shortage in their body.
Confusing.
So overall, these are all pretty
common things. As with so many
toxicities it is important to rush off to
the vet as soon as you possibly can.
Often, the safest, easiest and cheapest
thing to do is make your pet vomit,
but that can only happen in the first
couple of hours. After that it is not
best to take a wait and see approach.
If the body can be stopped from
absorbing the toxin then expensive
complications can be avoided. Don’t
wait and see if your pet will get better,
it will often just be worse for them
and more expensive in the long run.
Dr Emily Black owns and works
at Centretown Veterinary Hospital.
She herself is owned by 3 cats and a
dog.

Page 32
Kathy Ablett, R.N.
Trustee Zone 9
Capital/River Wards
Telephone: 526-9512
Corpus Christi School
Help Lesotho Update: Help
Lesotho is an organization
that was created to help the
people of Lesotho, Africa. Through
this organization Corpus Christi was
twinned with Katlehong Primary
School, and for several years our
students have worked hard to raise
funds to support the 900 students
attending Katlehong. Last year was
a very special year with regards to
our fundraising efforts, as our entire
school community worked together to
raise $30,000. This accomplishment
means that Corpus Christi has
collected more funds than any other
school in the history of Help Lesotho.
The students and staff of Katlehong
are grateful and excited about the
plans. Way to go Corpus Christi!
We are blessed to be a part of such a
caring and generous community.
Mark your calendars for Friday,
November 25! Corpus Christi Staff
and School Council will be hosting a
Chili Supper and Family Dance. Come
on out for a family evening of good
food and lots of fun for everyone! The
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
OCCSB TRUSTEE REPORT
“PUTTING STUDENTS FIRST”
evening’s entertainment will include
a cake auction and DJ. We will also
have an update from Help Lesotho on
how Corpus Christi’s donations to our
twin school in Lesotho are making
a huge impact. Funds raised from
the evening will go to support our
twinned school, Katlehong Primary,
and School Council activities.
Immaculata High School
Immaculata is gearing up for a
very busy November and December.
We will be welcoming the Unity
Cross at the end of November as well
as working to prepare for the District
Review on December 6. Earlier
in November some of our students
participated in the Torch for Life relay
for organ donation.
Immaculata has hosted its very
first ‘Immaculata Film Festival’ (IFF)
event. Students were encouraged to
submit a film earlier in November
and the IFF evening was held on
November 17th. Films were viewed
and awards presented. In all, a very
successful event.
Thank you to all students who
bring energy, motivation and optimism
to all of our school’s initiatives.
Honours and Awards
Committee Update
The Board approved a new
Director of Education Award for
Academic Perseverance in the
amount of $1,000 for each of the 15
high schools and one for St. Nicholas
Adult High School.
The Board increased the value of
the Distinguished Catholic Alumni
Award from $1000 to $5000, effective
for the 2012 recipient.
Shauna Mullally is our 2011
Distinguished Catholic Alumni Award
recipient. For information on Shauna’s
remarkable achievements, please visit
http://www.ottawacatholicschools.ca/
content.php?doc=7319
Improving Student Learning by
Refining Teaching Practice
The Student Success –
Intermediate/Secondary team led
by Superintendent Manon Séguin
presented the Board’s strategy for
Collaborative Inquiry Learning
– Mathematics (CIL-M). CIL-M
works to develop a job-embedded
professional learning framework to
improve student achievement and
teacher’s instruction in mathematics.
The process encourages teachers
to co-plan, co-teach, and follow up
their lesson plans in small groups.
This method develops and supports
an important network among
teachers, principals, vice-principals,
consultants and learning partners
across the system. This strategy
Southside
No Hibernating
at Southside Preschool!
By Sheryl Hamilton
While it may be more difficult
for us adults, making
the transition from fall to
winter has been lots of fun for the
children at Southside Preschool. The
spooky haunted house that the children
in the After School and Senior
Kinders programs created out of
boxes for Hallowe’en was turned inside
out and has become a life-sized
bear den for winter. Children in the
Senior and Junior Kinders programs
have been proudly labeling and putting
up photographs of their family
members on the new Family Wall.
Cooking their own treats like apple
sauce and apple crisp has produced
a wonderful sense of achievement in
our young chefs. And in the Nursery
School, the children have been
(rightly) asking: why should dress
up only be for Hallowe’en?
The children’s interests always
shape the learning activities at
DEC 2011
focuses on the mathematical thinking
of students providing substantial
learning for both new and experienced
teachers.
Board Improvement Plan for
Student Achievement 2011-2012
The Board’s Improvement Plan
is developed with input from all
departments. The plan addresses
goals in the following four Ministry
pillars:
• Community, Culture and Caring
• Literacy
• Numeracy
• Pathways
The four pillars align perfectly
with the goals already established
under the Board Priorities – Success
for Students. The needs assessment
used to develop the goals incorporated
data from many sources, including:
School Improvement Plans, report
card data, school climate surveys,
EQAO results, District Review
results, and anecdotal evidence.
In closing, I would like to take this
opportunity to wish you a peaceful
and joyous Christmas and continued
success in the New Year.
If, at any time, I can be of
assistance to you please do not
hesitate to call me at 526-9512.
Sincerely,
Kathy Ablett
“Your Trustee”
Southside and it turns out we have a
group of very avid new readers. We
now feature a Kinders reading nook
and book wall where every child
who attempts to read a book places a
piece of coloured paper on the wall
with the book title and their name.
The blizzard of colours we now
have on our book wall is inspiring
for the children (not to mention for
the parents and teachers)!
The teachers and parents at Southside
are currently collecting new
mittens, scarves and hats for donation
to the York Street Public
School. The children at York Street
are always appreciative of the generosity
of the Southside community
and while sharing is a value celebrated
every day at Southside, this
project gives the children a chance
to extend its reach.
The teachers, parents and children
at Southside Preschool wish all of
you a very happy and safe holiday
season!

DEC 2011
OCDSB TRUSTEE REPORT
By Rob Campbell
The community based
accommodations working
group (WG) is close to wrapping
up its work. Readers will recall that
this staff-supported group of reps
from 7 local schools and 6 community
associations were mandated by the
board to review Capital and Somerset
Ward accommodations concerns and
provide their advice as to a solution.
The group had its last meeting
Nov 8th and, at column writing time,
was engaged in writing up a report
to convey its recommendations to
the board. In a nut-shell, it seemed
to this writer, that the main Capital
area pivot questions were how to best
deal with strong JK-6 programming
and programming option demands
and emerging space pressures East /
West within the Glebe and also how
to balance Intermediate programs
North / South between Glashan and
Hopewell.
And, in a nut-shell, East / West it
seems as if they are recommending
flipping Mutchmor and First Avenue
in the Glebe (all English and Gifted
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 33
Update on the Local School Accommodations Process
to First, all EFI to Mutchmor), and
adding in MFI to the new First Ave
and expanding the Mutchmor facility
to accommodate EFI. It is a creative
solution. What the pros and cons
may or may not be and whether this
is optimal or not will be determined
by the board of trustees in December
and we still are not in receipt of either
the actual WG report or the OCDSB
staff report, which may or may not
recommend the same solution. Some
in the community remain concerned
about the disruption this might cause
or yard space usage, some less so,
some Trustees may be concerned
about build costs and projections
unless reassured, however there is no
denying the out-of-the-box creativity
of the basic idea.
North / South it seems as if they
are recommending redirecting Glebe
area Int students to Glashan to allow
Hopewell to reduce student numbers
without looking at losses in other
areas it did not want to look at. This
option has Hopewell as a thoroughgoing
neighbourhood school, still JK-
8, with extended catchments across
the downtown now going elsewhere.
Again, what the best option is over all
will be determined later by the board.
Some are concerned about resulting
Hopewell Int programming strength
and continuing English programming
numbers weakness, some less so,
however it is one effective way of
addressing use of space issues at
both Hopewell (overcrowding) and
Glashan (undercrowding).
The working group may or may not
make sundry other recommendations
in terms of directing northern Old
Ottawa East students to Elgin / Glashan
versus Hopewell, grandfathering
provisions if any, option areas if
any, implementation ideas for 2012
versus 2013, further study ideas north
of Queensway or not, reflections
on the consultation had if any, and
maybe other ideas not strictly related
to basic accommodation scenario
mechanics. So may staff separately.
It will be important to the board to
carefully go over the contents of the
working group and staff reports and
recommendations and to hear from
members of the public during the
dedicated delegations evening which
has been arranged as to what they
Tom Alfoldi’s Hallowee’en Pumpkin Carvings
Dr Frank N Furter
Einstein
Mona Lisa
think about the reports themselves.
The timeline and process going
forward is essentially: Nov 17th the
WG report public presentation to
Trustees, week of Nov 21st the staff
report is made public electronically,
Nov 30th is a public delegations
evening to Trustees re both reports,
Dec 12th is the formal staff report
presentation to Trustees and also
Trustee debate and decision at the
Committee level, and finally Dec
20th is Board level decision-making
and a final settlement. There are
various opportunities for asking
public questions or coming forward as
individuals or groups as delegations
during this process and if anyone is
interested in doing so then they should
contact our Board Services staff unit
to enquire.
If you have a suggestion or a
concern, or would like to be added
to my e-newsletter list, then please
contact me via rob@ocdsbzone9.ca or
at 323-7803. Meeting and document
info available at www.ocdsb.ca

Page 34
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
Tasty Tidbits from Trillium Bakery
The Gift Of Time…For An Extraordinary Life.
By: Jocelyn LeRoy
Many of us are gearing up
for Christmas. “Time”
becomes a precious and
elusive commodity. We watched the
glorious sunny days of October fly by.
Darker November is upon us.
The bakery is humming; we’re
filling up every corner with ingredients
for the up coming holiday baking. We
are dusting off our unique recipes.
The elves have their baking hats on,
ready to play, and work. We are somewhat
a kin to the nutcracker suite
(no peanuts)! We see many harried,
stressed-out customers juggling jobs,
kids, home life, cooking, planning for
Christmas and shopping.
What to buy? Where’s the
money? What novelty will impress
the kids? The elderly folks all seem
to be downsizing and getting rid of
possessions. The kids already have
too much.
What meaningful things can I buy
or do this year?
Let’s take a wee pause.
Maybe we’re looking at the
perfect opportunity, amidst all the
busyness, to give the gift of time.
“What time? Are you kidding? I
hardly have enough time to get things
done each day. None left to “give
away” you say?
Ahh…let’s rethink our
motivations. They’re all good, right?
Of course!
Many people in my life have
created extraordinary happenings~
both small scale and large-through
their gifts of time, and as a result feel
blessed with an extraordinary life.
A teenager, Matt, who worked in
the bakery, gave his Saturdays to the
local “in from the cold” supper by
making desserts and baking bread for
hundreds of guests. All that practice
led him to fulfill one of his dreams~
earning a degree in fine baking and
pastry making. Think of what he
will have to offer when he becomes
a fireman-(another goal) to his
comrades at the fire station.
There’s Joyce, who is blind and
doesn’t get out often, living alone.
She has a wonderful listening ear, a
grateful heart and prays for all whom
she knows in difficulty. She is so
concerned for our staff, and enquires
often to see who might be working too
hard. When I take her special muffins
to her she makes sure I put my feet up.
I always feel inspired in her presence.
Jim, our “recycle angel” picks
up all our recyclable material, just
to help out. He is one of the legions
of volunteers at a regional drop-in
program. People find time in their
busy lives to wash dishes, cook, talk
to the guests, pick up supplies, clean
up, and spend quality time with the
appreciative folks who look forward
to their special Saturday at the church
hall where they don’t feel lonely and
can enjoy a great meal.
Same huge impact that is created
by the hundreds of helpers at the
Food bank, making a gift of their
time. And, there are all the dedicated
Moms and Dads who give their time
to Scouts and Guides and their kid’s
sports, dance and school events.
My friend Maureen has a
measured amount of time to live. Her
life is rich with her gifts of sharing
her time. She has set up a medical
program for women in Guatemalasaving
lives and educating women,
resulting in a burgeoning movement
Put down your Blackberry, i-phone, i-pad, whatecer, for a moment.
Just be thankful Santa Claus comes every year, and so does Trillium’s
great Christmas line up of unique holiday baking.
The bakery elves are very busy .
Have a cup of tea (or somthineg) and take a moment to savour the
important things in your life.
with far reaching effects for now and
the future.
A very busy young Mother has
made time to travel to Senegal to
help set up a school for “Talebe
boys” to improve their options for a
future without begging. A future with
acquired skills of fishing, sewing,
reading and math, to move forward
towards a better life. And at home, in
Ottawa she pencils in hours, and even
stolen moments to share her time and
love with her children during even
the most packed schedules. And for
others who need a helping hand- she
always finds the gift. The gift of time.
I know when I feel my best, those
magic moments when time seems
to stand still: out on the water at
either end of my canoe, either end
of the day. When listening to my
Grandchildren telling me their stories.
They all do that. Telling fortunes at
my daughter’s annual Halloween
party, sharing time with a customer
or friend discovering how different or
how similar our outlook is, listening,
or offering to help. Gratefulness for
the smallest of life’s gifts seems to
bring big dividends.
A simple way to give a gift of time
is to write your choice of gift on a card,
put an expiry date on it (more likely to
get redeemed) and present it. You can
even surprise someone with an early
Christmas present ~ babysitting so
parents can get out alone, or clean the
house, or take a break.
An hour or two spent with an
elderly person you know, to visit or
read to, or share lunch: they may be
dying to have some good conversation
and a hug.
Take a teenager in your life for a
coffee or to a concert. Let them pick
Scotch Shortbread
Pre-heat oven to 325º F.
Cream 1 cup butter.
Sift together: 2 cups all-purpose
flour, ½ cup confectioner’s sugar, ¼
tsp. salt. (My grandmother used fine
brown sugar, insisting that was real
Scottish.)
Blend.
Pat the stiff dough into a 9 x 13 ungreased
pan.
Poke with fork every ½ inch.
Bake 25 -30 minutes.
Cut into squares while warm.
Gluten-free Shortbread
Pre-heat oven to 350º F.
2 cups rice flour
1 cup icing sugar
250 grams butter
1 egg or 1 tsp. xanthium gum
Blend together.
TRILLIUM RECIPES
DEC 2011
a restaurant or event, and let yourself
into their world for awhile.
Younger kids love to spend time
with an Aunt or Uncle, Grandparent
or neighbour. Show them your
collection of whatever you’ve got. Do
lego with them, take them Christmas
shopping. Buy some small useful or
delightful gifts for street people, wrap
them up, and give them out. Spread a
little joy! It’s a win-win!
How about a new popcorn popper
and those movie style containers;
munch away with kids of all ageseven
if the movie is lame?
Magic moments show up when
you give the gift of time. And who
doesn’t welcome/ need/ relish a little
magic- often? Your life may begin to
feel extraordinary.
Courtesy of my best birthday card
from Dr. Michael Gibson, prescription
for an extraordinary life,
“Identify your values
Say thank you.
Sleep.
Be grateful.
Give your time, money, and
talents.
Smile.
Drink water.
Say I love you.
Send hand-written notes.
Forgive someone who wronged
you.
Have relationships that matter.
Play.”
That’s what Christmas is: the
season of giving. Merry Christmas
and happy holidays from all of us at
Trillium.
Jocelyn, Mike, Jean, Gail, Valerie,
Anne, Loretto and Grant.
Roll out.
Cut into shapes.
Bake at 350º F until very pale golden,
approximately 10 minutes
Maple Syrup Shortbread
Pre-heat oven to 325º F.
½ cup butter, at room temperature
¼ cup sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla extract
¼ cup maple syrup
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 tbsp. turbinado sugar (optional)
Mix the first six ingredients to a soft
dough.
Pat evenly into a 9-inch tart pan.
Prick dough with a fork.
Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
Bake 25 – 30 minutes or until golden.
Let cool in pan.
Cut into wedges.

DEC 2011
THE WINDSOR CHRONICLE PART 28
OLD DOG, OLD TRICKS
THE WINDSOR
CHRONICLES – PART 28
For nearly eight years, from
February 2000 to August 2008,
OSCAR carried a monthly column,
The Windsor Chronicles, written by
Zoscha the Wonder Dog. Zoscha
became something of a celebrity in our
neighbourhood, and her observations
on the passing scene, from a canine
perspective, attracted her share of
loyal readers as well as critics.
OSCAR is reprinting some of
Zoscha’s musings from eight years
ago. The editors have annotated where
we feel that today’s readers may need
to be informed of references that may
no longer be remembered by readers
today, or where recent scholarship
has shed further light on the world
described in the Windsor Chronicles..
November, 2002
Dear Boomer,
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 35
Old Dog, Old Tricks
This is a wonderful time of year.
The dried fallen leaves are the
same colour as my fur, so it’s
easier to creep up close to the squirrels
before they notice me. The squirrels
are fat and don’t run as fast as they do
in the summer, which gives us more of
a sporting chance.
And in the evenings, Alpha builds
a fire in the fireplace, giving me
something to watch while Alpha and
the Pup cuddle on the sofa and watch
the noisy box.
Humanoids have erected the
hockey boards at Windsor Park.
This gives me something to jump
over as a way to impress pups of our
own species. But the humanoids
accompanying these young dogs don’t
seem to like this display of prowess.
Seems that they regard the hockey
boards as some kind of corral to
prevent their dogs from running off
and having fun. Well, before the
humanoids begin building ice rinks
in the interior and spoiling it for the
dogs, I’ll do my best to teach the next
generation how to leap over boards.
But, Boomer, I have to tell you,
it’s getting harder to do this. I’ve put
on a little weight over the summer, and
it takes so much more effort to heave
What To Put in the Green Bin
The City of Ottawa’s Green Bin
program will accept the following
organic materials:
Food waste or scraps:
Baking ingredients, herbs and spices
Bread, cereals, crackers and grains
Candy and gum
Chips, popcorn and nuts
Coffee grounds and filters
Cookies, cakes, muffins and pastries
Dairy products (cheese, sour cream)
Dough
Eggs and egg shells
Fruits and vegetables
Jams, Jellies, Marmelades/chutney
Leftover cooking oils, lard, shortening,
fat, butter and margarine
Meat, fish, shellfish, poultry, pork
bones and scraps
Nuts and shells
Pasta, beans, rice and couscous
Peanut butter
Pet food
Pits (all types)
Salad dressing, mayonnaise, vinegar,
sauces, marinades, dips and gravy
Seeds
Tea and tea bags
Yard waste:
Branches, twigs and hedge trimmings
Leaves
Plants and weeds
Grass clippings
Other acceptable items
Animal bedding (e.g. bird and hamster
cages)
Barbeque Ashes
Butcher’s meat wrap
Cold fireplace ash
Cotton balls
Dryer lint
Floor sweepings, vacuum bags and
vacuum contents
Food-soiled paper towels, napkins
and tissues
Food-soiled pizza boxes (pizza boxes
should not go in black bin)
Household plants, including soil
Kitty litter
Microwave popcorn bags
Paper coffee cups, plates and muffin
wrappers
Pet fur, hair and feathers
Soiled paper, boxboard and cardboard
Sugar, flour and potato paper bags
Waxed paper, cardboard and cold
drink cups
Wooden popsicle sticks and toothpicks
Wood chips, sawdust and untreated
wood scraps (less than four inches in
any dimension)
Not allowed in the green bin:
Plastic bags of any kind (even the
compostable varieties aren’t allowed)
Diapers and sanitary products (as
they contain plastics)
Dog feces
myself up and over. The first few times
this year, I made an ungainly spectacle
of myself, stuck with my belly on the
top, while my feet motored the air and
gray wooden boards. Alpha has cut
back my food ration, and is getting me
out for more exercise. I should be all
right by the time the snow falls.
But that’s not all. I’ve had to
develop a new technique for landing
that doesn’t put so much weight on
my front paws. And when I’ve been
lying around for a few hours, my
elbow joints get very stiff. Alpha has
taken to adding oils to my kibble, and
every week he takes me to the vet,
who gives me a needle while Alpha
feeds me dog treats.
I feel much better afterwards –
more like my old self. And I feel it
necessary to go around to sniff at the
other dogs as a way of telling them
I’m sorry I’ve been so crotchety and
cranky lately.
And it occurs to me, Boomer old
buddy, that neither of us is a young
pup any more. In fact, measured in
humanoid years, Alpha and I are about
the same age. (1)
So I take my inspiration from him
– from the way that playing with the
Pup always makes him seem more
pup-like. I’ve started playing with the
Pup more myself. You know, he’s not
such a bad pup for a humanoid. Very
rambunctious. Too much energy.
Always wants to rough-house – not
just in the morning when I’m in the
mood, but in the evenings too, when
all I want to do is lie down by the fire
and watch the flickering of the flames.
But there are moments of sheer
delight as I try to teach him new tricks
– like how to feed me treats when I sit
or lie down. I still haven’t managed
the best trick of all: getting him to feed
me scraps from the dinner table. But
he’s still young, and I’m confident that
I can teach a young Pup new tricks.
Enjoying the peace and quiet now
that the Pup has gone to bed,
Zoscha
(1) In November, 2002, Zoscha
would have been seven years
old. “The Pup” would have been
approaching six. Alpha’s age is the
subject of Windsor Chronicles Part
29, “Golden Years,” December 2002.

Page 36
MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT OTTAWA CENTRE
During this time of year, we
come together to celebrate
the joys of the season, but
also to celebrate the relationships
we have with our family, friends and
community. What comes to mind especially
for me, are the words Jack
left us regarding the importance of
caring for one another and continuing
to improve our quality of life in
Canada:
“Canada is a great country, one of the
hopes of the world. We can be a better
one-a country of greater equality,
justice, and opportunity. We can build
a prosperous economy and a society
With snow comes shovelling.
Shovelling is harder
work than most people
think, especially when it’s wet and
heavy. More and more Canadians are
injuring their backs by not preparing
properly for the task of shovelling. If
you follow these simple tips, you’ll be
one step ahead in keeping your spine
healthy and avoid injury.
Warm Up Before Starting
Warming up is essential before
you begin to shovel. You don’t want
to over stress a “cold” muscle. Go
for a short walk around the block, roll
your shoulders and do a few quick
stretched to get your joints loosened
up and your muscles warmed up.
Dress in Layers
Dressing in layers is best during
the winter months. The inner layer
By Brenda Lee
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
Caring for Our Community
that shares its benefits more fairly.
We can look after our seniors. We can
offer better futures for our children.
”-Jack Layton
We must never lose sight of these
goals, regardless of what our critics
may say. As Jack said, “don’t let them
tell you it can’t be done.”
During this parliamentary session, my
colleagues and I have continued to
work hard to improve the lives of Canadians.
I wanted to share just some of
the issues we have been working on:
• Introducing the Pension Protection
Act to ensure that pensioners are at
the front of the line of creditors when
should be a wicking layer. Avoid
cotton next to the skin as it soaks up
perspiration which will make you
cold. Keep your head, feet and hands
well covered. Choose gloves with
grip to make shovelling easier. Be
mindful of the temperature.
Don’t Over Load the Shovel
The snow shovel itself should be
lightweight. Choose a smaller blade
so that you do not lift too much snow
at once. The handle should be long
enough so that you don’t have to bend
really low while shovelling. The
shovel should reach to approximately
your elbow while standing upright as
a general rule.
Take Your Time
There’s no race to the finish line. Show
shoveling can be quite strenuous. It’s
important to remember that just like
a company goes bankrupt
• A motion urging the Conservative
government to take job creation seriously
• Introducing a national public transit
strategy with our industry and municipal
partners to ensure that public
transit in Canada is accessible and affordable
• Demanding the government
strengthen public pensions and renew
crumbling municipal infrastructure
• Challenging the government’s attempts
to dismantle the Canadian
Wheat Board despite the overwhelming
desire of farmers to keep it
any physical activity, it takes time and
practice to build up your endurance
for the activity. If you find yourself
tired or winded, take a break.
Avoid Lifting
Pushing snow is easier on your
body than lifting it. If you must lift,
remember not to overfill the shovel.
Using a larger snow scoop to push
snow will help make the job a little
easier.
Maintain Proper Posture
Keep your back straight and lift
with your legs. Push snow using the
strength of your leg muscles. When
lifting, hold the snow as close to your
body as possible. When you need to
throw a shovel of snow, you should be
facing the direction you are throwing.
Do not twist at the waist and do not
throw over your shoulder. These
As Canadians, we must continue to
strive towards improving life in our
great nation. We have so much we can
be proud of, but there is always much
more to do.
My colleagues and I will continue to
focus on the future and what we can
accomplish by working together collaboratively.
During this Holiday season, I would
like to wish everyone the very best
and to say that a better world is indeed
possible when we choose to be loving,
hopeful and optimistic.
Keep Your Back Healthy This Winter and Shovel Correctly!
This recipe was a classic
for our house at Xmas.
It came from the Betty
Crocker Cooky Book...which as a kid
actions will cause increased stress
on your spine and surrounding soft
tissue. If you do, you will be setting
yourself up for injury.
Keep Hydrated
Brenda Lee’s Nostalgia Thumbprint Cookies
I loved to look at ...if anyone remembers
it , it has a bright cover that is
completely covered with cookies ....a
child’s dream...
Mom tinkered with the recipe...so
I give you the complete recipe and
Mom’s tinkering included.
Thumbprint cookies
1/2 cup shortening ( part butter or
margarine)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg separated
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts
jelly or jam
heat oven to 350..mix shortening,
egg yolk, and vanilla. Mix flour and
salt in separate bowl and then mix
into first bowl. roll dough into balls
( 1 tsp in size) . Beat egg white with
fork and dip balls in egg and roll in
nuts . (The egg and nut part I had no
idea about as a kid...Mom simply
skipped this part, as nuts were probably
too expensive).
Remember, you are working hard.
Your body needs water to stay
hydrated. Take breaks to give your
body a chance to relax. Hot beverages
will help to keep you warm as well.
Keep in mind shoveling is a physical
activity which is taxing on the body’s
system. If you notice chest pains or
ongoing pain, consult your health care
provider immediately.
Dr. Melissa Baird is a Chiropractor
practicing at Glebe Chiropractic
Clinic. She can be reached at (613)
237 9000, www.glebechiropractic.
com or via Facebook at Glebe
Chiropractic.
Place balls about 1” apart on ungreased
baking sheet and press gently
with thumb ( or have your kids do
it...Mom always liked us to do this
part...it kept us busy and our thumbs
were small)
Bake 10-12 minutes and cool Fill
with jelly or jam.
Mom would fill them first and then
bake....I like them both ways, but I
have a sentimental fondness for the
ones prefilled...the jam heats up and
makes a bit of a candy like consistency
that I like. It also makes the
baking quicker...and if you are like
Mom, and I you will quadruple this
recipe and freeze a bunch of them.
Quicker is better in this case. I
make them with the daycare kids and
we never actually get to the freezing
part...they go quickly.

DEC 2011 The th OSCAR - OUR 38 YEAR
Page 37
COMPUTER TRICKS AND TIPS
External Backup Device – You Can’t Set It and Forget It
by Malcolm and John
Harding, of Compu-Home
One of the many satisfactions
of being in business for a
few years, and seeing lots of
clients over those same years, is the fact
that occasionally (just occasionally)
you get the feeling that your message
is catching on. For a very long time
we thought we were wailing in the
dark about the dangers of neglecting
to back up your data. More than one
column has graced these pages about
what happens if your computer is
stolen, lost, or just plain dies of old
age. How horrible would it be to lose
forever your email messages, address
book, tax records, documents, photos
and music? Look at it another way:
If you had a warehouse full of vital
information on paper about your
life, business and family, wouldn’t
you take steps to ensure that it was
stored safely? The fact is that a hard
disk that will fit in your shirt pocket
In circling the Sun once each
year, we on Earth experience two
extraordinary global moments,
the Solstices. At these moments our
relationship to the sun suddenly alters,
reversing the changing length of our
days and nights and bringing us new
seasons.
The Solstices provide an
opportunity to develop a new and
friendly global social tradition in
today’s interconnected world --
jumping at Solstice “to help the world
along.”
Jumping at Solstice can remind us
we live together on a small planet and
interest us in how Earth’s processes
work.
could be holding more data than that
warehouse.
The good news is that more and
more people have come to understand
the necessity of backing up their
data (simply making a copy) and
storing that copy in a safe place. We
see backup devices now in many
of the homes and virtually all of the
businesses that we visit. That’s nice,
but we have to point out that there are
a few more simple steps necessary, to
ensure that the sense of security isn’t
false.
You must become familiar with
your backup software. This is the
program that commands the backup
to take place and it usually comes free
with the backup device. Typically,
you can set the automatic schedule
to meet your needs – hourly, daily or
weekly are the most common choices.
An incremental backup is usually the
most efficient; the program scans your
computer for changes to your data
We in Old Ottawa South could
help foster this simple tradition,
meeting and greeting each other
on the Solstices, and could also
encourage it elsewhere.
The precise time, in Ottawa,
of the next Solstice is Wednesday
December 21 or Thursday 22. The
exact time is just after Wednesday
midnight, in the early hours of the
22nd. (12.30 am)
How about some Solstice
jumping along Bank Street between
the bridges (Old Ottawa South’s
“main street”) or at our own
nearest neighbourhood corner?
(Photographs might be fun: we
could share them online.)
since the last backup, and then saves
the updates. We suggest frequent
monitoring that this process is taking
place successfully, and also doing
occasional dry runs of restoring your
data to be sure that you know what to
do if a disaster does happen.
Make your backup as complete
as possible. Most everyone knows
that documents, photos and music can
and should be backed up regularly, but
many people forget to include their
browser bookmarks and the details of
their email client. Your messages and
address book are probably among the
most valuable data that you own.
Understand what your backup
will not do. It is not possible to
restore programs from a backup –
only data. That is why an organized,
safe and convenient system for storing
your CDs and DVDs is a vital part of
your backup plan.
Let’s Jump for Solstice to help the world along!
Store the backup device
separately from your computer
between backups. A thief is certainly
going to scoop up the external hard
disk when he’s stealing your computer,
if it’s sitting right there handy.
In our next column we will
describe how “cloud computing” over
the Internet can provide an alternate
backup strategy, as well as a wealth of
additional conveniences.
Malcolm, Frances and John
Harding are the owners of Compu-
Home, assisting home and business
computer users.
Be sure to visit our web site for
an archive of our columns. www.
compu-home.com
Write to info@compu-home.
com or phone 613-731-5954 to
discuss computer issues, or to
suggest future columns.
Jump For Solstice And Help the World Along Its Way!

Page 38 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
By Rick Sutherland, CLU,
CFP, FDS, R.F.P
Volatility is defined as sudden
and sharp movements in both
directions. We are specifically
speaking about the volatility of global
investment markets. As 2011 draws to
a close it may prove to be one of the
more volatile years in history.
Market trends these days don’t
seem to last more than a day or two.
Heck on May 6, 2010 we saw a “flash
crash” that lasted just minutes. At
roughly 2:30 pm the Dow Jones Index
lost 9% of its value, only to recover
those losses in a matter of minutes.
Clearly investors are seeking
answers and direction on how to deal
with all this volatility. The reality is
that there just isn’t an easy answer. It
comes down to you, your investment
personality, your time horizon and
your ability to not be cajoled into
making a mistake.
Yet investors, both the experienced
as well as the inexperienced are
showing signs of fatigue. Whether
it’s the Greek debt crisis or the fear
of an imminent recession, the markets
cannot seem to settle down. The
period from May to October 2011 was
not pleasant. The trend was one day
up and two days down. This was then
followed by three days up and two
days down. The result for some was
gut wrenching and emotional.
Some have turned to market
timing. Based on whatever current
event is published in the daily press
is how investment decisions are
being made. This boils down to pure
speculation. The unwavering truth is
that the market cannot be consistently
timed correctly. It does not matter
who you are or how much education
or investment experience you have;
market timing only works some of the
time.
Others have adopted a “go to cash
and wait for better days” strategy.
This is also a form of market timing
and speculation. Sell today, maybe at
a loss, park money in cash at almost
To book an OSCAR ad
call Gayle 730-1058
oscarads@oldottawasouth.ca
Is Volatility Making You Weary?
zero percent return and then wait for
the market to go up (to some this is
settling down) then reinvest back into
the market. The trouble is picking the
best point in time to return to the party.
If you are truly a long-term
investor you may want to study
what others, who have decades of
experience and knowledge, are doing
about the current market volatility.
They know and understand the
companies that make up the market.
Warren Buffett, the greatest investor
of all time announced in September
that his company, Berkshire
Hathaway Inc., would begin buying
back stock. The price was too cheap.
Buffett was not alone. Other major
companies that announced buyback
plans included Wal-Mart, Exxon
Mobile and JPMorgan Chase to name
just a few. Look beyond the headlines,
ignore the volatility (no correction –
take advantage of the volatility) and
think and invest like the pros.
Do not succumb to the negative
press. Review your goals and as long
By Anna Sundin
as your objectives have not changed
then stay the course. Ask yourself
how you would invest if today was
the first day of your deposit. If your
allocation would look the same then
don’t do anything.
Season’s Greetings and we look
forward to talking to you in 2012.
The foregoing is for general
information purposes and is the
opinion of the writer. This information
is not intended to provide personal
advice including, without limitation,
investment, financial, legal,
accounting or tax advice. Please call
or write to Rick Sutherland CLU,
CFP, FDS, R.F.P., to discuss your
particular circumstances or suggest
a topic for future articles at 613-
798-2421 or E-mail rick@investedinterest.ca.
Mutual Funds provided
through FundEX Investments Inc.
What I Offer: A Cup Of Coffee
And A Second Opinion
Anyone with mutual funds or other investments in the stock market
who is relying on them to provide a source of income during their
retirement years is probably worried right now whether their
investment plan will achieve their goal of living with maximum dignity
and independence for the rest of their life or whether it is now more likely
that he or she will outlive their source of retirement income.
When the markets turn as volatile and confusing as they have over the
past couple of years, even the most patient investors may come to question
the wisdom of the investment plan they’ve been following.
At Sunlife Financial, we’ve seen a lot of difficult markets come and go.
And I certainly empathize with people who find the current environment
troublesome and disturbing. I would like to help, if I can, and to that end,
here’s what I offer:
A cup of coffee, and a second opinion
You are welcome to come in and sit with the experts at SunLife for
a while. I’ll ask you to briefly outline your financial goals – what your
investment portfolio is intended to do for you. Then I’ll review the portfolio
for and with you.
If I think your investments continue to be well suited to your long-term
goals – despite all the market turmoil- I’ll gladly tell you so, and send you
on your way.
If, on the other hand, I think some of your investments no longer fit
with your goals, I’ll explain why, in plain English. And, if you like, I’ll
recommend some alternatives.
Either way, the coffee is on me.
When you call to make your appointment, mention that you are taking
me up on the offer I made in the OSCAR. I look forward to meeting with
you.

DEC 2011
AFTER THOUGHTS
from Richard Ostrofsky
of Second Thoughts
Bookstore (now closed)
www.secthoughts.com
quill@travel-net.com
Roughly six million years ago,
in the forests and plains of
Africa, a hominid line leading
to modern humans diverged from the
line that led to modern chimpanzees.
The latter remained wild animals. The
former, (hominists, as we might call
australopithecus and all those species
evolving in the human direction)
domesticated each other, came to
depend upon collective mindset and
decision-making (culture, in other
words), and became specialists in
mutual dependency. Among more
familiar adaptations (bipedalism,
loss of body hair, prolonged infancy
and childhood, all-year-round sexual
interest), these hominists evolved a
subtler form of mimicry, learning to
read the attention and intentions of
their fellow creatures by following
their eye movements. They evolved
more conspicuous eyes, with pupils
highlighted by coloured irises and
then by whites to help each other
do that. Where other great apes
camouflage the direction of their gaze,
we telegraph ours. Check out the
phrase “Cooperative eye hypothesis”
on Google, and see what you find.
This novel style of copying –
not just of overt behavior but of
intention itself – made it possible to
experiment with and teach the use and
crafting of implements to extend the
body’s natural powers. It may have
underpinned our developing faculties
of symbolic representation – first as
ritual and dance, and then through
vocal modulation. By 2.6 million
years ago (mya), a standardized
technique was in general use to craft
stone tools of a certain type in the
region that is today Ethiopia. By 1.8
mya, the technique had been greatly
refined and the resulting tools were
much more versatile and precise. By
250 thousand years ago (kya), fire had
been domesticated and was being used
to cook food. All this time, hominist
bodies were changing in the ways
we associate with full humanity. The
anatomy of the head shifted to balance
comfortably on a biped’s shoulders
with less work by the neck muscles,
brains grew larger, and physiques
grew weaker and more vulnerable, as
tools and weapons and clothing made
brute force and fur less advantageous.
By about 45 kya, to judge from the
remains we find, the extant hominists
(now just a single species) seem as
fully human as we are – ornamenting
their bodies (probably to mark tribal
membership and status), burying their
dead with rituals and grave-goods to
appease their spirits and supply their
needs in the after-life, painting vivid
pictures of animals on the walls of
certain caves – deep underground, by
torch light, with a purpose, probably
religious, that we can only guess. And
these are only the artifacts that have
been preserved and found. We must
presume that they exploited perishable
materials with the same ingenuity.
What we know for sure is that
biological evolution was no longer
their only means of adaptation. As
cultural specialists, they could shape a
tribe’s collective mindset and behavior
to flourish just about anywhere.
Hominists migrated out of Africa and
across the Eurasian steppe, about one
million years ago, and colonization of
Europe, Australia and the Americas
followed: They were in Europe 500
kya; in Australia 42 kya; in Siberia 22
kya; in Alaska 14 kya; and at the tip
of Tierra del Fuego, the horn of South
America, only two thousand years
after that.
Hunting-and-gathering bands
move around a lot. They have to
follow the game, or the grains and
nuts and berries; and they can’t carry
very much with them. Permanent
settlement could become preferable to
this nomadic lifestyle, but only when
sufficient year-round foodstuffs and
natural resources (especially reliable
drinking water) were available near
a given site. In a few places this was
the case, and a depletion of natural
foodstuffs made the more sedentary,
labor intensive, protein-challenged
lifestyle of agriculture worthwhile.
There were alternatives – pastoralism
and fishing; and the peoples who took
these directions often traded with
farmers, to the benefit of both parties.
But, by land and sea, they also raided
the sedentary farmers when they could,
teaching their victims accordingly to
arm and organize for warfare, cluster
together, build defensive walls and
store their grain in central, defensible
locations. At first, these settlements
were just villages; but in a few places
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 39
World History in Three Pages
they grew into substantial towns
and then into true cities: centres of
collective defense, administration,
craft, trade and religious worship. One
after another, the arts of civilization
developed, but always with military
security and power as their basis – as
remains the case today.
By 4000 BCE, this pattern was
well established in ‘Mesopotamia’
– “the land between the rivers,”
known today as Iraq and Syria.
Partly by diffusion but sometimes
independently, there were similar
developments along the Nile, in Persia
(modern Iran), in India, and in China.
A little later, there would be similar
developments in the Americas. These
city-states traded with one another,
and the routes of trade had to be
defended against bandits and pirates.
They also competed and went to
war with each other, with the most
successful conquering their rivals
and growing, if only temporarily,
into empires. By the first millenium
BCE, across Eurasia, the whole
system had reached a sort of climax.
In this period, known as ‘the Axial
Age,’ religious leaders and (more
secular-minded) philosophers came
to worry and argue about the meaning
of life and how it should be lived and
governed. Confucius, Buddha, the
authors of the Upanishads, Lao Tzu,
Homer, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle,
Parmenides, Heraclitus, Thucydides,
Archimedes, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah,
and Deutero-Isaiah all lived in this
period. Jesus, Paul, Augustine and
Mohammed lived just a little later. It
was no longer enough just to placate
the powers of Nature and get by
from day to day. A search was on for
meaning, transcendence, salvation
(whatever exactly that meant) – and
at least some men had the leisure, the
brains and the language to think about
such things and talk about them to
others.
The next 1500 years was a period
of divergence, when the civilizations
across Eurasia mostly went their
separate ways – except for some
long-distance trading, constant
fighting, and a considerable diffusion
of techniques and ideas. Most
‘barbarians’ were civilized one way or
another. Civilizations in the Americas
followed their own trajectory. But,
in the late 15th century, European
explorers, conquerors, colonists and
missionaries began to reverse this
parting of life-ways. Around the
globe, cultures and civilizations were
no longer at liberty to follow their own
course, but had to assimilate, resist or
adapt to European incursions as best
they could. Europe itself commenced
a ‘Renaissance’ – a period of explosive
artistic, intellectual and technological
change. Perhaps for the first time in
history, people began to look forward
to future Progress (with a capital ‘P’),
instead of backward to a supposed
golden age of universal obedience to
some divine plan. We might call it a
second axial age, which is not to say
that everything was rosy.
In the early 20th century, what
was essentially one terrible war with
a twenty-year intermission put an
end to Europe’s imperial power, and
transferred the hegemony of its (now
global) civilization to the United
States – determinedly a Pacific power
as well as an Atlantic one. What has
followed since then, is a series of
challenges to that dominance, a series
that may be expected to continue as
American power relative to the rest of
the world continues to decline from
its apex in 1945. Meanwhile, science
and technology continue to advance
and population continues to grow
– to the extent that Earth’s carrying
capacity for our species is threatened.
Where we go from here is anyone’s
guess, because from the biological
perspective, we are now not just our
worst, but our only serious enemies.
It remains doubtful that we will find
the political wisdom and good will to
use our tremendous powers to a future
human benefit.
History is not a boring subject.
Nightmare that it has often been,
along with Nature itself it is the
context that has shaped our world and
our individual lives. This synopsis
is proposed as an orientation for
whatever further reading your
curiosity may suggest.

Page 40 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
BACKYARD BEAT
By Cst. Khoa N. Hoang
There are many challenges in policing
and the issue surrounding use of
force is one of them. No matter what
topic I’m presenting everyone wants
to know about use of force; that’s the
official terminology when an officer
uses any kind of force on someone
else.
It can be a bit frustrating for
someone like me who is trying to
market the Ottawa Police Service as
an intelligent business, focussed on
strategic forward thinking with effective
technique based training... Don’t
care? Neither do many others.
I’m constantly being asked in no
particular order, “Have you shot anyone?
Have you been shot at? When
will you shoot someone?” And despite
my best efforts to avoid the topic because
there are simply more important
issues, I must concede to the fact that
people are genuinely interested in police
use of force.
Who can blame them for such
curiosity? Television doesn’t help
my cause much. But our police officers
are the only ones walking around
with weapons and expected by society
By Bob Jamieson
If things are going well in your life,
you probably have many things
for which to be thankful. And you
are particularly fortunate if you have
elderly parents who are still in good
physical and mental condition. While
your parents are healthy, you should
to use it at the appropriate time. And
that’s when the challenging part begins,
using it at the appropriate time,
duration, intensity, and legally.
There are many variables that will
determine the effectiveness of a use of
force incident. All of which I can tell
you are very scary no matter how long
you’ve been a police officer. I’ve lost
count at how many people have tried
to fight me, and I’m just happy I have
been able to come home for Christmas
dinner every year.
Once a police officer realizes that
someone is about to attack them, their
body creates a physiological reaction
similar to everyone else. Adrenaline
instantly occurs, fine motor skills become
difficult, and everyone will experience
a loss in hearing and vision
of some sort.
What differs from the general
public is that your police officers go
through extensive training to combat
and control the very physiological
responses that hinder their ability to
react appropriately. Officers are educated
on the human body’s response
to stress and trained to overcome it to
perform their duties. It goes against
human instinct to run towards gun
take the opportunity to discuss matters
of significance - such as their financial
situation.
There are probably many things
you’d rather do than talk about finances
with your parents -but it’s a
conversation you need to have, because
there is a lot that you need to
discover. So, find a comfortable time
shots, but I promise your officers will,
when the time comes.
But physically surviving a use of
force encounter is completely different
from legally surviving. Our officers
have to be able to justify their
use of force, days, months, and maybe
even years after the incident is over.
Failure to survive the incident legally
could not only cost you your job but
the media coverage is sometimes
worse then any punishment you can
have, justified or not.
This is usually when I see disconnect
between the police and the public,
and I admit the police can do more
public education on the Use of Force
Model. But we really don’t have the
time to be teaching it to everyone
either.
The latest Ontario Use of Force
Model was revised in 2004, a circle
shaped diagram that breaks down how
our police officers are to respond during
a perceived incident. Now the key
word is “perceived” because there are
many factors that will play into how
each of us responds to a similar situation.
Depending on your size, skill,
experience, background, and what
in which to talk to your parents, approach
the subject in as unemotional
a manner as possible, and try to elicit
the following pieces of information:
Location of investments - It isn’t
necessarily essential that you know
precisely which investments and life
insurance policies your parents own.
But it is important that you know
some things. Do they work with a
financial advisor? If so, whom? Are
their investments and life insurance
policies spread out among a variety of
financial institutions? You’ll need to
be familiar with these things in case
your parents become incapacitated
or die unexpectedly. You can avoid
“unclaimed” property, including investments,
from slipping through the
cracks if you are aware of these details.
Insurance Coverage for Health
and Medical Needs - Long-term care
and health care expenses can be a major
concern of the elderly. That’s why
you need to know who’s insuring your
parents and where your parents keep
information related to their insurance
policies. You should also have a basic
understanding of any health insurance
program they may have through
a current or former employer for the
payment of doctors’ bills, some prescription
drugs and related services.
And even so, your parents may need
supplemental insurance policies. Of
course, the chances are pretty good
that your parents already know all
these things; nevertheless, it doesn’t
hurt to make sure they’re well informed
and that their health-care bills
are under control.
Existence of a Will - If you don’t
is observed, each of us will respond
slightly differently to the same scenario.
The option to use force can vary
greatly from physical grabbing, to a
gun being fired, and of course everything
in between.
The model’s shape is circular because
situations are dynamic and can
change, requiring officers to constantly
adapt. The core of the model shows
three arrows one after another labelled
assess, plan, and act. Perception and
tactical considerations are a constant
throughout the entire situation.
Taking up the largest space in the
model is a suspect’s behaviour; this is
recognized as the most important factor
on how an officer will respond. A
suspect’s behaviour can range from
cooperative all the way to threats of
serious bodily harm or death. It is
gradually shaded from white to black,
demonstrating that there are many
emotional states within the spectrum.
Police officers responses are expected
to be within the outside rim
of the model, using anything from
communication, which is constant
Cont’d on next page
Talk to Elderly Parents about Their Financial Situation
know if your parents have a Will
now is the time to find out. And if
they don’t have a Will, urge them
to have one prepared. Your parents
have worked hard all their lives and
they undoubtedly want their assets
distributed according to their wishes,
and not according to a court’s decree,
which is what would happen if they
die “intestate” (without a Will). Even
if your parents have a simple Will,
they may still need to take further action.
If you believe they have a sizable
estate or want to give significant gifts
to charitable groups, encourage them
to consult with a lawyer who specializes
in estate planning.
Willingness to create power of attorney
- By creating a durable power
of attorney, your parents will name
someone to make financial and/or
health care decisions on their behalf
should they become unable to do so.
As you might suspect, this is a sensitive
topic, so you’ll want to approach
it with great care. By bringing up
these issues with your parents, you
can gain some valuable knowledge of
their financial situation today - and a
clearer understanding of what you can
do to help them in the future.
If you have questions regarding
this article or other aspects of financial
planning or investments, please
give me call at 613-526-3030. You’re
also welcome to drop in to our December
Open House.
Bob Jamieson, CFP
Edward Jones, Member
Canadian Investor Protection
Fund

DEC 2011
AMICALEMENT VOTRE
Par Jean-Claude Dubé
Encore une autre fois cette
année, le Cercle de lecture
de l’Amicale francophone
d’Ottawa a eu le grand privilège de
recevoir à sa réunion l’auteur de sa
lecture choisie. Michèle Matteau,
femme de lettres, nous a régalés de
charmantes anecdotes sur ses études,
sa famille, sa discipline, sa philosophie
et ses aspirations. La soirée a été à la
fois agréable et enrichissante.
Son dernier roman, « Du chaos
pour une étoile » est l’histoire de
Florence Santerre, une célibataire de
53 ans, qui traverse une période de
doutes et de remises en question sur
sa vie, ses amours et sa profession; en
bref, sur son existence. Recherchiste
à la télévision de Radio-Canada,
l’amitié de ses camarades de travail
devient éphémère et s’étiole tandis
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 41
que les quelques amants d’autrefois
ont tous été infidèles. Une année
sabbatique s’impose.
Florence dépose sa valise à Villery
Station, petit village ferroviaire perdu
dans les concessions de l’est ontarien
où le train ne passe plus. Il y a un
dépanneur, une station service et un
café récemment fermé. L’école ne
sert plus et l’église ouvre ses portes
un dimanche sur trois. En reprenant,
un peu malgré elle, la direction du
dit café, Florence, rencontre ainsi
les habitants du village, tous des
personnages simples et remarquables
à la fois. Le récit devient donc une
exploration très subtile de relations
humaines dont l’auteure, a une
maîtrise évidente.
Née à Saint-Hyacinthe, Michel
Matteau fit ses études à Montréal
où elle obtint un baccalauréat ès
arts et un baccalauréat en pédagogie.
Elle étudia ensuite la psychologie à
l’université de Strasbourg. Puis, elle
travailla en Colombie-britannique
comme correspondante pour Radio-
Canada en plus d’enseigner le français
aux enfants. Elle enseigna ensuite le
français à Halifax tout en obtenant un
diplôme en psychologie éducative. À
Ottawa depuis 1985, Michèle Matteau
devient recherchiste et scénariste de
films documentaires et d’émissions
télévisuelles. Elle rédige aussi des
textes pédagogiques et elle collabore
à diverses revues.
Michèle Matteau a toujours
donné à l’écriture une place
essentielle dans sa vie. En plus de
rédiger des documentaires et d’écrire
A Child’s Best Friend
or a Dog’s Best Friend?
Michèle Matteau femme de lettres
MacKenzie Grant with her best friend, Zed, who was born many years
before MacKenzie , who is now seven months old. MacKenzie is the first
grandchild for Mary Anne Thompson, editor of OSCAR.
des scénarios de film, elle écrit des
pièces de théâtre, elle se révèle poète
et romancière; elle est une femme de
lettres. À l’âge de neuf ans, elle écrivit
un cantique dédié à Sainte Cécile sur
l’air bien connu de Ma Normandie.
Cette initiation à l’art d’écrire
revient à son père, maître d’école et
journaliste et à sa mère, diplômée
d’un cours commercial et rédactrice
d’un bulletin paroissial. Ses parents
s’étant rencontrés dans une chorale, le
chant a grandement fait partie de sa
jeunesse et lui a fait apprécié l’usage
de la tonalité dans ses écrits.
Sa fine plume se sert de mots
justes et clairs et évite le verbiage
inutile. « Du chaos pour une étoile »
est fortement imagé et bien dialogué.
Les péripéties du récit s’échelonnent
à trois voix : celle de Florence avec
ses introspections, celle de Léandre
avec son journal intime et celle
d’un « observateur » qui décrit
les événements qui enchaînent les
deux premières. L’auteure se sert
généreusement de citations très
variées comme dédicaces de plusieurs
chapitres. Le titre de son livre
provient d’une citation du philosophie
Nietzsche : « Il faut avoir encore du
chaos en soi pour pouvoir enfanter
une étoile qui danse. »
Florence Santerre s’interroge sur
sa vie professionnelle, ses amies et
ses amants, il est vrai, mais ce sont
vraiment ses interrogations sur son
être plus intime qui piquent notre
curiosité et maintiennent notre intérêt.
Florence, malgré ses faiblesses qu’elle
surestime sûrement, est somme toute
une femme étonnante et persévérante.
Elle appartient à cette collectivité de
femmes dociles mais prévoyantes qui
ont ouvert les sentiers du féminisme
du siècle dernier. Elle est célibataire,
elle est seule, elle est repliée sur ellemême,
mais, en fin de compte, elle
est libre et autonome. Sans époux et
complexée, elle fait néanmoins son
chemin.
A Villery Station, elle acquiert
l’amitié de Léandre Arcand, le
maître d’école retraité du village. Il
est veuf et très fidèle à la mémoire
de sa défunte épouse. Vers la fin du
récit, nous apprenons que son épouse
s’est suicidée, qu’il a eu une voisine
comme maîtresse et qu’il n’ouvre pas
sa maison et son jardin aux villageois
qui le connaissent pourtant très
bien. Le roman se termine dans une
certaine intrigue et Léandre sera le
sujet principal du prochain roman de
Michèle Matteau qui paraîtra dans les
prochains mois sous le titre de « Avant
que ne tombe la nuit ».
La prochaine rencontre du
Cercle de lecture aura lieu le mardi
13 décembre et nous aurons le grand
plaisir d’y rencontrer François Xavier
Simard, auteur de notre lecture
choisie : « Papa, parle-moi anglais
comme maman ». Cette rencontre
aura lieu à 19 heures au sous-sol de
la bibliothèque Sunnyside d’Ottawa.
Veuillez consulter le site de l’Amicale
sur la Toile : www.amicaleottawa.
com
Bonne lecture.
Backyard ... Cont’d from previous page
throughout the entire situation, to lethal force if no other reasonable option
exists. The model shows that as a suspect escalates within the large interior
circle, officers are authorized to increase their use of force along the outside
circle.
It’s not easy for police officers to memorize the entire Use of Force model
and act accordingly within its guidelines while making split second decisions
under tremendous stress. But this is what we as a society expects of our police
officers, nothing less.
Last year the Ottawa Police Service had 740 reported cases of use of force,
overwhelmingly reported by front line officers who are exposed to the most
dangerous parts of this job, the unknown. I am grateful for their work because
after seven years of working the streets I know their challenges all too well.

Page 42 The OSCAR - OUR 38 DEC 2011
th YEAR
By Joe Scanlon
In US professional baseball the
team from the league that wins the
annual all-star game gets home
field advantage in the seven-game
championship final known as the
“World Series”. That means that team
gets to play four of the seven games in
the tournament on its home field.
Many sports specialists were
arguing that this year home field was
a distinct advantage for the St. Louis
Cardinals who came from down 3-2 to
win at home.
In some sports home field clearly
is an advantage.
In hockey for example, there is an
advantage to a team that knows things
like the way the puck bounces off the
boards. There is also very specific
advantage in that the home team is
allowed to substitute last making it
easier for the home coach to match
lines. In all sports, it is seen to be an
advantage to have the support of the
home crowd.
None of this seems to work however
for the Carleton men’s soccer
Ravens.
In 1984, Carleton hosted the Canadian
university championship final
on its home field and lost to University
of British Columbia in a shootout.
In 2002 Carleton hosted the national
championship tournament and
reached the final – and lost to Brock
University.
That loss had an ironic twist.
Carleton was automatically in the
tournament as host but the Ravens also
qualified; so the host slot was awarded
to another Ontario team – Brock – and
Brock went on to defeat Carleton.
This season the male soccer
Ravens finished first in their division
– Ontario East – giving them a bye in
the first round of the playoffs and the
Carleton Varsity
Sports Schedule
Men’s Hockey
Friday, December 2nd -- Concordia at Carleton
Saturday, December 3rd -- Trois Rivière
at Carleton
Women’s Hockey
No games scheduled in December
Men’s and Women’s Basketball
Friday, December 2nd – Waterloo at Carleton
Saturday, December 3rd -- Wilfrid Laurier
at Carleton
Carleton Sports
Men’s, Women’s Soccer Lose in Playoffs
right to host the Ontario tournament.
In their first playoff game – played
at home – the Ravens fell behind 1-0
but came back to score four consecutive
goals and eliminate Laurentian
University.
In the Ontario semi-final, the
Ravens again fell behind 1-0 but
again came from behind and led 2-1
with seconds left in the 90th and final
minute of regulation time. But Mark
Reilly of McMaster scored in that
90th minute making it 2-2. Neither
team could score in two 15-minute
overtime periods.
That sent the game into another
shoot-out. Sam McHugh the first
Carleton player to shoot hit the crossbar.
McMaster made all five shots.
Carleton made the next four. Carleton
was eliminated 5-4.
It was the sixth consecutive time
the male soccer Ravens have reached
the final four and failed to go any further.
Four times the team was eliminated
in overtime or on penalty kicks.
Only in 2005-6 did Carleton qualify
for the national championship tournament
which was played at and won by
UBC.
Carleton wasn’t the only Ontario
team to have a sad ending to the season.
York Lions came to the Ontario
final four as the # 1 team in Canada,
a team that had conceded only eight
goals during the regular season, the
best defensive record in the country.
The Lions were not only beaten, they
were walloped 4-1 by University of
Toronto.
Although McMaster – by beating
Carleton – and Toronto – with its win
over York – qualified to represent Ontario
at the Canadian Interuniversity
Sport (CIS) championships in Victoria,
McMaster lost to Cape Breton
2-1 and Toronto lost to Alberta 2-1 in
By Sarah Jane Fraser
the first round of the championship
tournament.
Carleton women’s soccer team
was also eliminated in the Ontario
playoffs – but not at home.
The women downed Laurentian
4-1 at Carleton in the first round of
the playoffs but were eliminated 3-0
by fourth ranked Queen’s at Queen’s.
Queen’s went on to qualify for the CIS
women’s championships and ending
up playing Ottawa U – a team Carleton
had never been able to beat – in
the National semi-finals and defeated
Ottawa 1-0 (on penalty kicks) to make
it to the championship final. Ottawa
went on defeat McGill 2-0 and win
the bronze medal. Queen’s went on to
defeat Montreal Carabins to win the
CIS championship. Carleton had been
eliminated by a team that then went all
the way.
Basketball
Although the university soccer
season is over basketball’s regular
season is just getting started and the
Carleton men and women Ravens
both started the regular season as two
of the top-ranked teams in Canada.
The men – who won their seventh
CIS championship in nine years in
Halifax in March – went through the
exhibition pre-season without a loss.
They were ranked # 1 when the first
rankings came out earlier this month.
The women – who made it to the
CIS championships for the first time
ever last March – had one pre-season
loss, 61-56 to top-ranked Regina.
(Regina also defeated the defending
CIS champions Windsor, walloping
the Lancers 84-61. Windsor however
is ranked second.) Carleton started
the season ranked third, their highest
ranking ever.
The men and women opened
the regular season at McMaster and
Step 1. Pick as many chokecherries as you can
reach. Rinse them, picking out any twigs and
leaves, and dump the cherries in a big pot.
Step 2. If your pot is not full (full being up to
2 inches from the top of the pot) go find some
crab apples, wash them, cut them in half and put
enough of them in the pot so that it is full.
Crab apples are great to stretch the chokecherries
and also because there is a lot of pectin in the
skin. I don’t use commercial pectin in my jelly
recipes so it’s handy to have some apple skin in
the pot. The more crab apples you use, the harder
the jelly will set. Because I don’t add extra pectin,
some batches of my jelly just won’t set. If I
am feeling stubborn, I re-boil until it does, other
times I accept a more syrupy result.
Step 3. Add water to the fruit, enough to just
To book an OSCAR ad
call Gayle 730-1058
oscarads@oldottawasouth.ca
Brock.
The men struggled a bit before defeating
McMaster but walloped Brock
taking a 14-2 lead in the first quarter
and cruising to victory.
The women struggled in both
cases defeating McMaster but losing
by three to Brock. Carleton had beaten
Brock in two per-season games but
Brock in the first weekend of the regular
season first defeated # 10 Ottawa
and then defeated Carleton. Brock
had beaten # 1 Regina in its last preseason
games. Brock was not ranked
when the first rankings came out. That
should change.
Hockey
Carleton’s men’s hockey team –
after a good pre-season – started the
regular season with two out-of-town
losses, to Brock and Laurentian. But
they came back to win eight of their
next nine games, wins that include a
shoot-out win over Ottawa U, an overtime
win over Royal Military College
and a 7-5 win over second place Nipissing.
Carleton is tied for fourth in its
10 team league.
Carleton women have been much
less successful. They lost four of their
first six regular season games, including
an overtime loss to Université of
Montreal and a shoot-out loss to Ottawa.
In those games they were outscored
only 20-18 with their only
one-sided loss a 6-3 loss to Ottawa.
They then had back to back losses to
the # 1 team in Canada, the defending
Canadian champions, McGill Martlets.
McGill went last season without
a single loss.
Although Carleton is in Ontario,
the women play in the five team Quebec
league with McGill, Ottawa, Concordia
and Montreal.
Chokecherry-Crab Apple Jelly
cover, and a few tablespoons of lemon juice if you
like, and set to gently boil. Boil for a half hour or
so, then strain overnight. If you have cheesecloth
for straining, great. I use an old pillowcase.
Step 4. Pour the juice back into the pot with an
equal amount of sugar. Boil for an hour, checking
to see if the jelly will “sheet” off a spoon or spatula,
and skimming off the scum (so that the jelly
will be clear, but also so you can eat it).
Step 5. Once the jelly sheets off a spoon, it is
ready to be poured into sterilized jars. At this
point, you can follow traditional wax seal or
water bath techniques to store your jelly at room
temperature. I bypass this step and keep the jelly
in the fridge. Any extra jars go to friends and
family in trade for a jar of their own home goods.
Editor’s Note: This is Sarah Jane’s recipe for her
prizewining OSCA Fall Fest jam . See article by
Brenda Lee on page 8.

DEC 2011
Sunnyside Branch Library
Sunnyside Branch Library
1049 Bank Street, Ottawa
613-730-1082,
Adult Services,
extension 22
Children’s Services,
extension 29
Every Child Read to Read (ECRR)
Programs
Babytime
Tuesdays, November 8-December
13, 2:15 p.m. (30 min.)
Storytime
Stories, rhymes and songs for preschoolers
and a parent or caregiver.
Ages 3-6.
Wednesdays, November 9-December
14, 10:15 a.m. (30 min.)
Toddlertime
For toddlers and a parent or caregiver
with stories, rhymes, songs and
games. Ages 18-35 months.
Tuesdays, November 8-December
13, 10:15 a.m. (30 min.) Registration
OR
Thursdays, November 10-December
15, 10:15 a.m. (30min) Registration
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE LIBRARY
Children’s Special Programs
Celebrate the Solstice
Come and celebrate the solstice
with stories and a craft. Ages 5 to 9.
Registration.
Saturday, December 17, 2:00 p.m.
(60 min.)
Children’s Book Clubs
guysread
Share the love of books. For boys
and a significant adult. Ages 8-12.
Registration
Wednesdays 7 p.m. (60 min.) December
21
Mother-Daughter Book Club for ages
7-9
A place for girls and the special
women in their lives to share books.
Registration.
Mondays, 7 p.m. (60 min.) December
5
Mother-Daughter Book Club for ages
10-12
A place for girls and the special
women in their lives to share books.
Registration.
Mondays, 7 p.m. (60 min.) Monday,
December 12 – Rex Zero
Seen at the Bytowne Review by Friederike
Knabe
Tundra Moving Pictures
(your local DVD and Blu-
Ray rental store located
at 435 Sunnyside) is pleased to announce
(to thunderous applause, no
doubt) that it will be adding its (often
sarcastic, occasionally witty, rarely
brilliant) voice to our community
newspaper The OSCAR. Tundra will
be offering up brief reviews of some
of the more interesting films and TV
series (be warned, some films will
receive the thrashing they deserve:
Hanna) that caught its attention the
previous month, as well as a short list
of the titles they are looking forward
to seeing in the current month. We
look forward to adding our offbeat
view of film to The OSCAR and hope
Teen Programs
TAG Teen Advisory Group (Ongoing
Event)
Sunnyside Teens--join our new Teen
Advisory Group and have a say in
which programs, activities and services
will be offered to youth and also
help plan and implement them. Ages
14-18. To join, stop by the branch.
Saturday, Dec 3 at Noon (60 mins.)
Family Programs
Family Game On!
Get gaming at the library with your
friends and family. Scrabble, Monopoly,
Twister or Clue--you can play
our games or you can bring one, too!
Thursdays, November 10-December
15, 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (90 min.)
Adult Programs
Adult Regular Programs
Conversation en français
Improve your spoken French and
meet new friends in a relaxed setting.
Wednesdays, 7:00 pm (60 min.) September
21-December 21
The Writing Workshop
An opportunity for writers of fiction,
The Whistleblower [2010, Canada]
The Whistleblower is one of
those important movies that
are almost too disturbing to
watch, because it depicts a violent
reality none of us really want to
know much about. And, it happens
“over there”, in another country
and continent... In this case, the
story is set in post-war Bosnia, with
UN Peacekeepers tasked to keep
the hostile fighters apart and, most
importantly, protect and give new
hope to the innocent local population.
Most of the actors and perpetrators
here are working for one of the
private companies, contracted to do
that it will be well received and, as all
things should be, taken with a grain
of salt. For now (given deadlines,
general unpreparedness and the like)
we offer only the following sample:
“Attack the Block” is another uniquely
odd import from the UK. Billed as
being “from the producers of Shaun
of the Dead” the film turned out to
be a fun, and occasionally incomprehensible
(literally, even with subtitles
we found ourselves googling slang:
wagwan [jamaican slang, loosely
translates as “what’s going on?”]),
film about a group of young thugs
defending their territory against invading...giant
alien bear-cats? The
action is good, the humour is ever
the work for the insufficiently staffed
UN contingent. One US police
officer, Kathryn, bit by bit discovers
a net of betrayal, corruption and
criminality linked to a brutal
trafficking ring of girls, brought
illegally over the border under the
eyes of UN personnel, so that they
can “serve” the police and military
in whatever way the men enjoy. Can
Kate enlist support and convince
the UN office to launch legal action
or will she remain a lonely fighter?
And if so, will she have the strength
and persistence to expose the
perpetrators? Based on the real-life
experiences of Kathryn Bolkovac,
who has written a book about it as
well and cooperated with the film,
Tundra Moving Pictures Adds Its Voice to OSCAR
Page 43
non-fiction, poetry, and experimental
forms to gather. Our emphasis will
be on developing works-in-progress
for publication. The workshop will
provide writers with encouragement
and constructive criticism from their
peers. Registration.
Mondays, once a month, 6:00 p.m.
(120 min.) December 19
Adult Special Programs
Improving Health Through Dynamic
Posture
Come and join Dr. Chandan Brar
of the Glebe Chiropractic Clinic,
for an interactive class on improving
your posture naturally! You will
learn how posture is connected to
your digestion, breathing and even
a healthy prolonged life. Dr. Brar
will share some very effective exercises
and stretches recommended by
spinal health experts to better align
your spine. You will also learn if
expensive pillows, ‘memory’ foam
mattresses and shoe inserts actually
work. Registration.
December 8, 7:00 p.m. (60 min.)
this is in many ways a must-see
movie. Yes, it is harrowing, and yes,
it is difficult to watch (I saw it on the
big screen last night) and the ending
is not necessarily what we would
hope to see happen in the future with
similar scenarios in other places, but,
unless we understand what is being
discussed here, we cannot argue for
change.
The Canadian-German coproduction
features a strong cast,
with Rachel Weisz in the leading
role giving a totally convincing
performance. In supporting roles
Vanessa Redgrave and Monica
Bellucci.
present, and there’s even a surprisingly
conscious social commentary
present. If you’re looking for something
mainstream but haven’t really
been satisfied with the usual Hollywood
fair, then this is the film for you.
Reviews courtesy of Chris @ Tundra.
Tell OSCAR
Readers
about your favourite
movies
Send text to
oscar@
oldottawsouth.ca

Page 44 The OSCAR - OUR 38 DEC 2011
th YEAR
Alta Vista Branch Library
Programs Offered At The Alta
Vista Library
Programmes Offerts A La
Bibliotheque Alta Vista
Alta Vista Branch
2516 Alta Vista Drive
Register: www.
biblioottawalibrary.ca
Or call 613-737-2837 x28
STORYTIME / CONTES
Babytime
Stories, rhymes and songs for babies
and a parent or caregiver. 1-18
months.
Wednesdays, September 21-October
26, November 9-December 14, 10:30
a.m. (30 min.)
Toddlertime
Stories, rhymes and songs for babies
and a parent or caregiver. 18-36
months.
(Bilingual) Tuesdays, September
20-October 25, November
8-December 13, 10:30 a.m. (30 min.)
Tout petis à la biblio
Contes, rimes et chansons pour les
tout-petits et un parent ou gardien.
18 à 36 mois.
(Bilingue) Les mardis, 20
septembre-25 octobre, 8
novembre-13 décembre, 10 h 30.
(30 min.)
Evening Storytime
Stories, rhymes and songs in the
evening for children of all ages and a
parent or caregiver.
Wednesdays, November 9-December
14, 7 p.m. (30 min.)
SPECIAL PROGRAMS FOR
CHILDREN / PROGRAMMES
SPECIAUX POUR ENFANTS
Homework Club
Get tutoring and help with homework
after school. Help is available in
math, reading and science, in French
and/or English. Ages 7-18. Offered
in partnership with E.A.G.L.E.
Center.
(Bilingual) Wednesdays, 5 p.m. (90
min.)
September 21, 28
October 5, 12, 19, 26
November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
December 7, 14
Club de devoirs
Reçoit du tutorat et de l’aide avec
les travaux scolaires. De l’aide
disponible avec les mathématiques,
la lecture et les sciences, en français
et/ou anglais. Pour les 7 à 18 ans.
Offert en partenariat avec E.A.G.L.E.
Centre.
(Bilingue) Les mercredis, 17 h (90
min.)
21, 28 septembre
5, 12, 19, 26 octobre
2, 9, 16, 23, 30 novembre
7, 14 décembre
TEEN PROGRAMS /
PROGRAMMES POUR
ADOLESCENTS
Homework Club
Get tutoring and help with homework
after school. Help is available in
math, reading and science, in French
and/or English. Ages 7-18. Offered in
partnership with E.A.G.L.E. Center.
After a snowfall in the woods. Photo by L. Thompson
(Bilingual)Wednesdays, 5 p.m. (90
min.)
September 21, 28
October 5, 12, 19, 26
November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
December 7, 14
Club de devoirs
Reçoit du tutorat et de l’aide avec
les travaux scolaires. De l’aide
disponible avec les mathématiques,
la lecture et les sciences, en français
et/ou anglais. Pour les 7 à 18 ans.
Offert en partenariat avec E.A.G.L.E.
Centre.
(Bilingue) Les mercredis, 17 h (90
min.)
21, 28 septembre
5, 12, 19, 26 octobre
2, 9, 16, 23, 30 novembre
7, 14 décembre
Get Crafty @ your library
Looking for a cheap gift to give?
Get green, get crafty, and make
something for yourself or a friend.
Ages 13-18. Registration.
Saturday, December 3 rd , 2 p.m. (90
min.)*
N.B. Registration for programs
starts on September 14. Programs
followed by an * require
registration./ L’inscription des
programmes commence le 14
septembre. L’inscription est requise
pour les programmes suivis d’un
*. Children’s library cards are
required for online registration of
children’s programs./ Les cartes
de bibliothèque des enfants sont
requises pour l’inscription en ligne
des programmes pour enfants.
Teens will need their library cards
when registering online for teen
programs./ Les adolescents auront
besoin de leur carte de bibliothèque
lorsqu’ils s’inscriront en ligne à des
programmes pour adolescents.
Book Banter
Drop in to share the enjoyment of
good books in a relaxed atmosphere.
Thursdays, 2:00 p.m. (1 hr.)
Dec 1: Canoe Lake by Roy
MacGregor.
Jan 5: The Phantom of the Opera
by Gaston Leroux
Tuesday Book Group
Share the enjoyment of good books
in
a relaxed atmosphere. Join us for a
discussion of The Great Books
(First Series, Part 2)
Dec 13, 7 p.m. (1.5 hrs.)
Alta Vista Sleuth Hounds
Share the enjoyment of good
mysteries in a relaxed atmosphere.
Thursdays, 6:30 p.m. (1.5 hrs.)
Dec 15: The Dragon Man by
Garry Disher
Infusions littéraires
Partager une tasse de thé ou de
tisane en discutant de livres.
Les mardis, 14 h (1 hr.)
20 déc : Jeanne sur les routes de
Jocelyne Saucier.
Knit 2 Together
Love to knit? Bring your needles,
yarn and good cheer. No need for
expertise, we knit for the pleasure of
it.
Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. (1.5 hr.)
Dec 3
French Conversation Group
Improve your spoken French in a
relaxed setting. For those with an
intermediate level of French.
Tuesdays, 6:30 p.m. (1.5 hrs.)
Oct 4 – Dec 13
English Conversation Group
Improve your English and meet new
friends. In partnership with
Somali Family Services.
Mondays, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Tuesdays, 12:00-2:00 p.m.
Computer Tutorials
Learn basic computer skills and get
answers to your questions. This
one-on-one session will help you
learn how to use the library
catalogue,
access the Internet, send e-mail and
use databases. Please call
613-737-2837 x28 to make an
appointment.
Poets’ Corner
Meet with others who share your
enjoyment of poetry. Participants
will read and listen to each other’s
work, and exchange constructive
feedback. Please bring copies of
your poems to share with others.
Registration (but drop-ins also
welcome!)
Wednesdays, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.
December 7
Used Book Sale
Pick up great books at great prices!
Check out the Friends of the OPL
bookstore half-price book sale.
Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
December 10
Café Alta Vista for Adults 55+
Drop in for coffee and conversation
with others in the community.
Last Thursday of the month.
Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
December 29
To book an OSCAR ad
call Gayle 730-1058
oscarads@oldottawasouth.ca

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 45
CLASSY ADS
CLASSY ADS
are free for Old Ottawa South residents (except for businesses or for business activity) and must be submitted in writing to: The OSCAR, at the Old Firehall,
260 Sunnyside, or sent by email to oscar@oldottawasouth.ca by the deadline. Your name and contact information (phone number or email address) must be
included. Only your contact info will appear unless you specify otherwise. The editor retains the right to edit or exclude submissions. The OSCAR takes no
responsibility for items, services or accurary. For business advertising inquiries, call 730-1058.
For Sale
For Sale: Fitness Stepping Machine
[Canadian Tire] - perfect condition
$30 613-730-0983
---------------------------------------------
For sale: 2 china cabinets, one mahogany,
one quarter-sawn oak, both with
bevelled glass. fdoy@sympatico.ca
for photos, 730-4804
---------------------------------------------
20” iMac computer. Mac OS X Leopard
(Snow Leopard disks sold with the
computer). 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 duo
processor. 160 GB hard drive and 1
GB RAM. Model #A1224. Purchased
in April 2009 and in perfect condition.
$750 (in original box). Contact annelou11@sympatico.ca.
---------------------------------------------
FOR SALE: Just in time for Christmas
- board games for family game
night. All in brand new condition:
Yahtzee $9 - the Simpson’s version of
Clue $9 - Sorry $9 - Ottawa On Board
(like Monopoly but using Ottawa
landmarks, businesses and events) $7.
I also have a gently used plastic chess
set and board that would be perfect
for a beginner - $5. Email oldottawasouthsale@gmail.com
for more
information or call 613-304-7856
after 7 pm.
Accommodation
LOOKING FOR: A secluded 3-bedroom,
waterfront cottage within one
hour’s drive of Ottawa. Would like to
rent it for July 14-28 or July 28-Aug
11/12. Please call Mike at 613-299-
3313 or email mdecheverry@gmail.
com with details and photos.
---------------------------------------------
Couple wishing to purchase a home
in the Glebe or Old Ottawa South. If
you are thinking of selling this fall/
winter please call Rhonda & Leo at
613-252-0580, or email us at roni_
sims2000@yahoo.ca
---------------------------------------------
For rent OOS house. 3 bedrooms plus
1. Finished basement. Living room/
dining room. Fridge, stove, washer
and dryer. Five minutes from Carleton
U and all other amenities. $1700.00
per month plus utilities. Available
January 1, 2012. Call 613-730-0206.
---------------------------------------------
Breaking up and need a lovely little
loft apartment in OOS until you settle?
0 Minutes ago. Temporary Winter
/ Spring loft for rent -great for
someone who’s having a relationship
break up or divorcing and needs
a temporary apartment until the dust
settles or the family home is sold.
Conveniently located across the street
from the Hopewell PS school yard
-beautiful 1 bedroom plus day bed in
loft apartment with claw foot tub that
comes fully furnished -just like a hotel
-with everything you need (towels,
Around Town
December 3 By the Book, a
used bookstore and cafe operated
by the Friends of the Ottawa Public
Library Association (FOPLA),
is holding its monthly half-price
book sale on Saturday, December
3, from 10 to 4, at 363 Lorry
Greenberg Drive. Following sale
on January 7. Drop by for great
buys on hundreds of books (most
under $2).
Used Book Sale - Pick up
great books at great prices! Check
out the Friends of the OPL
bookstore half-price book sale.
Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
December 10
Write for Rights on Sunday,
December 11, from 2:00 to 4:30
pm at Southminster United Church:
Be part of Amnesty International’s
worldwide writeathon in support of
human rights -- write for rights at
Southminster United Church on
Sunday, December 12, from 2:00
to 4:30 pm. Southminster is located
at the corner of Bank St. and
Aylmer Ave., across the street from
the Sunnyside branch of the Ot-
tawa Public Library. Come out and
write letters on behalf of refugees,
human rights defenders, prisoners,
and others in countries from
A (Azerbaijan) to Z (Zimbabwe).
Refreshments will be served.
As always, we will have a
special table for children, with
sample letters for younger children
to copy, letters in other languages
and alphabets for those who’d like
to try writing in Spanish, Azerbaijani
and other languages, and
materials to use to draw pictures
to enclose in their and others’ letters,
so even less experienced writers
can participate. A donation of a
toonie per letter to cover the cost
of stamps to overseas destinations
will be welcomed.
BYTOWN VOICES - Christmas
Concert – Director Robert
Jones. Sunday, Dec.11, 2011 at 3
p.m. St Basil’s Church, Maitland
Ave., just north of the Queensway.
The program features a work
of Spanish and Southamerican carols
and lullabies accompanied by
guitar, marimba and harp as well
as seasonal pieces from around
dishwasher, insurance, sheets, digital
cable, internet, parking, insurance,
even temp. storage in the basement)
$1,600.00 all included -everything
except your food and phone.contact
karen.keski nen@yahoo.ca soon and
get an interim solution. Pictures of my
lovely and clean little European style
loft available upon request.
Child Care
Childcare Needed: Brand new soonto-become
residents to OOS seeking
caring, nurturing and fun childcare for
our two children, starting January 1st
(or Dec 15th in a pinch). Ideally both
in the same location, but not necessary.
Ideally within walking distance
to Hopewell, as our daughter (4) will
start JK. Our son is 1 year old. If you
have spaces, or just ideas, we would
welcome either. Looking forward
to joining the OOS neighbourhood
shortly. Jodi and Henk contact: 819-
827-5451 or jodi.browne@sympatico.ca
Tutoring
Tutoring - Astolot Academy - Book
now for after school tutoring in English
or French. Tutoring is available
for grades 1 through 12. Call 613-
260-5996, or e-mail Astolot.tutor-
the world. Tickets are available at
the door or from choir members:
$10. Twelve years & under are
free. Info: (613) 521-4997 or at
www.bytownvoices.com
The Ottawa Regional Youth
Choir directed by Kevin Reeves
will “SING NOËL”
accompanied by pianist, Sally
Robinson and harpist, Lucile
Hildesheim, at
Knox Presbyterian Church,
Elgin at Lisgar, on Friday, December
16th at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets at door: Adults-$20;
Students-$10. Donations to the
Food Bank appreciated.
Sunday December 18, 3:00 pm
and 8:00 pm: Chorus Ecclesiae,
conducted by Lawrence Harris,
present a concert of carols and
Gregorian chants from the Christmas
masses. Location: Cloister of
the Dominican Convent, 96 Empress
Avenue, off Somerset, two
traffic lights west of Bronson. Free
admission. Free parking in the adjacent
lot. Information 613-567-
7729.
ing@gmail.com for more information,
or to reserve a time.
---------------------------------------------
Tutoring - Ottawa teacher certified
from J/K to grade 6 available for tutoring
individuals or groups. Makes
learning fun and customizes help
to meet individual needs. Will help
your child at your house, library or
school. Available days and hours
very flexible. Please contact Alexa at
alexaironside@gmail.com or at 613-
219-3107 for further information.
Found
Found Infinity Premier 18 speed Bicycle
on Aylmer Ave. Contact Mark
at 613-730-3950
To Give Away
Lovely cat needs a home. A handsome
1 year old male cat, very friendly toward
humans, very playful and entertaining.
He is neutered and has all
of his shots up to date. He is quite
territorial with other cats, so would
not suit a household with other cats
already in it. Call 613 730-7051 if
you are interested, or if you have any
questions.
The distribution
routes for which
OSCAR requires
volunteers:
1. South side of Cameron between Marco
and Osborne, west side of Osborne (25
papers)
2. East side of Roslyn between Col. By
and Aylmer, north side of Aylmer between
Roslyn and Leonard, west side of
Leonard between Aylmer and Col. By,
Col. By between Leonard and Roslyn
(21 papers)
Tell OSCAR Readers
about your travel
or your interests.
Send text and photos to
oscar@
oldottawsouth.ca

Page 46 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
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Marketplace
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To book a Market
place ad
call Gayle
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email: oscarads@
oldottawasouth.ca
Extra Mile Renovations
Quality bathrooms, kitchens,
porches & more
Trim work, installations, plumbing,
electric, doors, fixtures
Local Renovator Creative Solutions
Reasonable Prices
References Available
Please call (613) 297-8079

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 47
NOTES FROM THE GARDEN CLUB
By Colin Ashford
As gardeners begin to put their gardens to
bed for the winter, many start to think about
planning changes for the coming spring.
And so it was appropriate to have Richard Bown of
The Urban Terrace (www.urbanterrace.ca) to help
members with ideas on focal points in the garden.
A graduate in criminology from Ottawa University,
Richard has been involved professionally in landscaping
since he was eighteen and now runs two
successful gardening-related companies.
To begin his presentation, Richard pointed out
that a focal point, like beauty, is in the eye of the
beholder. Focal points could be rocks, statues,
stonework, water features like fountains or ponds,
lighting, and, of course, plant material. However
personal focal points are, Richard had a couple of
rules of thumb: not too many focal points in a garden
and they should be of a size that is appropriate
for the space. He noted that given how much time
it is dark outside, illuminating focal points such a
statues, obelisks, and plant material makes a good
deal of sense. But he warned that lighting, whether
up lighting, spot lighting, or pathway lighting,
should be subtle and, as far as possible, hide the
source of the light.
Richard noted that clustering plant material
such as grasses, or native plants like spiraea and
potentillia, also works well to create focal points.
Using plant material in containers as focal points
also makes excellent sense: he noted that a single
container can, in the spring, be planted with tulips,
later on in the spring, planted with annuals, and
finally filled with evergreen cuttings for the winter.
Richard also mentioned that accessories such
Bridges of Old Ottawa South
Focus on Focal Points
Bank Billings Bridge Photo by Tom Alfoldi
as glass balls, coloured ribbons, bamboo sticks, or
even green apples work well to augment container
displays.
To illustrate his talk, Richard brought along a
large number of plants in pots including ornamental
shrubs, grasses, bonsai specimens, and orchids,
and also plant containers, river stone, and polished
zebra stone.
The next meeting of the Garden Club will be
in the New Year on Tuesday 10 December 2012
at 7.00 p.m. at the Old Ottawa South Community
Centre (The Firehall), 260 Sunnyside Avenue, when
Colin Ashford will take members on a virtual tour
of the Reford Gardens.
Tell OSCAR Readers
about your travel
or your interests.
Send text and photos to
oscar@oldottawasouth.
ca

Page 48
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 Page 49
th YEAR
BACKYARD NATURALIST
By Linda Burr
There’s an often repeated tradition
at this time of year – a
story about some wise men
who followed a star. These days,
it’s getting hard to find a place anywhere
that’s dark enough to really
see the stars. We’re approaching
our darkest time of year – winter
solstice – and even though the daylight
is dwindling, it’s not as dark as
it could be.
I remember experiencing a truly
dark sky for the first time the summer
I went to camp. There was no
moon that night, as I ventured out of
the cabin (probably to go to the outhouse).
I was stunned and amazed
by the glory of the Milky Way, with
so many stars. I’ve never forgotten
the impression that night made on
me. For a girl from suburban Toronto,
it was a revelation.
The reason we can’t see the
stars the way our parents or grandparents
might have done is that
there’s so much more artificial light.
Just a generation ago, it would have
been possible to see the Milky Way
from downtown Ottawa. But the
city has expanded, bringing more
roads and properties that need to be
lit at night. Unfortunately, there are
few rules that govern the types of
lights that may be used, resulting in
“light pollution” – that is, excessive
or poorly aimed lights that make
it increasingly difficult to see the
night sky.
Most of the time, we’re not
really aware of just how much light
pollution there is. Many will recall
the great blackout of 2003, which
occurred the afternoon of August
14. That evening, I sat outdoors in
my backyard enjoying the night sky.
Since there were no streetlamps or
other nearby lighting to interfere,
it was a rare occasion to experience
darkness from the city. Only
at times like this do we realize just
how much light pollution there is.
Darkness is not only important
to astronomers and stargazers
(and wise men), but is also vital for
many types of wildlife. Nocturnal
behaviour is common among many
species, including reptiles and amphibians,
bats, insects, and mammals.
Many birds migrate at night
and can collide with tall structures
that are lit up, such as office towers.
Light pollution can have adverse effects
on many animals by influencing
the behaviour of the animals
themselves, their success in find-
The
O•S•C•A•R©
The Community Voice of Old Ottawa South
Embracing the Starry Night
ing food or mates, or increasing the
likelihood of being killed by something
else.
Excessive artificial light has
also been linked with some human
health issues, including disruption
of normal sleep patterns.
It’s possible to use outdoor
lighting in streetlamps, parking lot
and commercial lights, and lights on
buildings and structures, which are
designed to do an effective job of illuminating
what they are supposed
to, and not shed wasteful light up
into the sky. These types of fixtures
can also save energy.
For many of us, the approaching
holiday season is a time to rally
against the darkness and put up our
lights and decorations. While I enjoy
these lights as much as anyone, I
also want to embrace the darkness
of night at this time of year. Put on a
candle or two and turn off the lights
once in a while. Go outside and, like
the wise men, find and follow a star.
Linda Burr lives in Old Ottawa
South and is a biologist and avid
backyard naturalist.
SEction 2
Three Wise Men from the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy, photo by Nina Aldin Thune
St. Francis at Greccio by Giotto
St. Francis of Assisi is credited with creating the first nativity scene in 1223
at Greccio, Italy, in an attempt to place the emphasis of Christmas upon the
worship of Christ rather than upon secular materialism and gift giving.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nativity_scene)

Page 50
Kaleidoscope Kids’ Books
With evenings turning darker
and colder, this time of
year compels us to light
the fire, snuggle up on the couch
and settle in for some family reading
time. Here are a few read-aloud suggestions
you might want to consider
adding to your collection:
A Pocket Full of Posies by Sally
Mavor is a stunning collection of
nursery rhymes – each rhyme has
been lovingly stitched with rich fabric
and colourful threads; ornamented
with everyday objects such as acorns,
buttons, beads, driftwood, stones and
shells. Page after page of classic
nursery rhymes are true works of art.
This will be a book your family can
pore over and over and pass down to
the next generation.
From the lovely folks at Priddy
books comes a new title, Read-along
Fairy Tales, which showcases nine
magical fairy tales in a large board
book format for the enjoyment of
small hands. From The Gingerbread
Man to Jack and the Beanstalk, each
story can also be enjoyed on the accompanying
read-along CD. Sturdy,
with tactile highlights.
A small, but mighty, winter board
book has just arrived on our shelves
– one of staff member Gemini’s favourites
to recommend during the
holidays. Can You See Little Bear?
By James Mayhew and Jackie Morris
features sweet rhyming text, luminous
illustrations and a look and find
journey through a series of colourful
settings in different countries. This
looks like a new classic to us!
Some of our favourite story treas-
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
Baby It’s Cold Outside - Warm Read for Cold Nights
uries come from Barefoot Books publishing
– Fireside Stories: Tales for
a Winter’s Eve by Caitlin Matthews
and Helen Cann is no exception.
Each of the eight world tales in this
book celebrates a different aspect of
the winter months. As the first snow
falls, read about a group of courageous
Russian animals guarding their
winter cabin against hungry wolves.
The winter stories end with a Canadian
tale of shivering animals setting
out to steal a bag of warmth from the
world above to keep winter away forever.
Richly illustrated throughout!
Alison McGhee, author of the
NY Times bestseller, Someday, has
written a new winter title this year.
Making a Friend is an instructional
tale on how to make a snowman.
Clean, cold, white snow! Snow for
sledding. Snow for catching on your
tongue. Snow for making a SNOW-
MAN! Is there anything as wonderful
as SNOW? Is there any better friend
than a SNOWMAN? Snow isn’t forever,
though. The wind shifts, the
weather warms and snow melts into
spring. The Snowman has become
something else—the fog, the rain.
But, how can this boy forget his good
friend? He doesn’t…and he doesn’t
have to.
The National Geographic Treasury
of Greek Mythology retold by
Donna Jo Napoli and magically illustrated
by Christina Balit will help
your family to discover the fantastic
stories of gods and goddesses, heroes
and monsters. Lyrical tales take you
from the birth of the Olympian gods
to the action-packed Trojan War, and
each outlining the magical and mystical
lives of charismatic characters
that have captivated audiences since
the ancient times. Includes a lush
family tree of the gods and goddesses,
sidebars that put the stories into
historical and cultural context as well
as a map of Greece and the Mediterranean
that lays out the geography of
each story.
For families who just can’t get
enough history (you know who you
are – we count our family in this noble
group…), The Story of Britain from
the Norman Conquest to the European
Union may be just the fireside
reading you’ve been searching for.
This engaging history of Britain by
Patrick Dillon with illustrations by P.
J. Lynch recounts the dramatic story
of a nation – from the Magna Carta to
the discovery of DNA, from Shakespeare
to suffragettes. The thrilling
story of kings and queens, battles and
truces, discoveries and inventions,
expansion and diplomacy. The history
of the mother country is brought
to life!
With the weather turning snowy
and the festive season approaching,
what better way to fulfill winter wishes
than with a story? New titles and
holiday reads are arriving daily – stop
by for a guided tour of what’s new
and notable.

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 51
Bridges of Old Ottawa South
George Dunbar Bridge Photo by Tom Alfoldi

Page 52
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
Bridges of Old Ottawa South
George McIlraith Bridge Photo by Tom Alfoldi
Legal graffiti under the Dunbar bridge
Photo by Paige Raymond Kovach

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 53

Page 54
While many have heard of the need for a competitive
process at Lansdowne Park, lost among all
Aerial of Park Competitive Process
Farmers Market Competitive Process
Competitive bidding
• Supports local small business
• All money kept in the park
• $200M taxpayer Surplus
Sole Source
• Supports chain stores
• 90% of profit kept by developers
• 300M taxpayer Loss
• Developer design and costing delays
Quick Facts:
The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011
Seeing The Need For .....
the talk is a visual reference.
The following may assist you in seeing what
have pushed start dates to mid to late
summer of 2012.
• Conservancy legal challenge will be
heard in Spring of 2012 if necessary.
Competitive bidding:
• takes 90 days,
• accelerates the process,
• legitimizes any winner,
• assures best value and
• ends litigation.
Market approach Sole Source
the park can look like under a competitive process
and what the park will look like with only one bid.
Aerial of Park Sole Source
Farmers Market Sole Source
Market approach Competitive Process

DEC 2011 The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR Page 55
A Competitive Process At Lansdowne Park
Market Retail Competitive Process (Above & below)
Holmwood Avenue Competitive Process
Holmwood Avenue Sole Source
You may assist the competitive process by going to www.lpc-cpl.ca and
signing the online petition.
If you believe in this viable and attractive alternative please donate to
the Lansdowne Park Conservancy bid and legal challenge online or at any
Scotia Bank, account #00216-00262-12.
Sincerely, The Lansdowne Park Conservancy
Market Retail Sole Source (Above & below)

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The OSCAR - OUR 38 th YEAR DEC 2011