A year ago today on these pages, I waxed on about the Blackboard Blues Band and how we looked forward to their annual Stouffville Canada Day concert (a tradition that spans two-plus decades). But we never got a chance to see them yesterday. While The Bride and I munched down a meal at Mulligans half an hour before first note, a pop-up storm roared through town. Very little rain but incredible wind. Ten minutes later, it was over. We walked over to Memorial Park but the damage had been done. Tents blown away, drums were lifted off stage and damaged and an ambulance had come and gone, treating an injured crew member. Over the past year, I've become friendly with the male lead singer, Craig Manning. We share a love of auto racing, music and broadcasting and he lives in London, Ontario, my home town. He assured us the band members were all OK. But we hated the holiday to come and go without a chance to see them perform. (A note about Mulligans. Our Saturday restaurant home for close to 30 years -- the Fickle Pickle -- closed its doors forever in May. Mulligans, right next door, picked up the slack and started weekend breakfast service. Great food, and Michelle, one of our F-P servers, moved to Mulligans as well, so we have a familiar colleague to commiserate with when we visit.)

So, what else is new? I'll be calling Stouffville Spirit hockey games this season (quite likely my last, as we'll surely be moving east at one point next year). No idea what the team will look like, as the core of last season's excellent outfit has moved on. But it will still be great fun, nonetheless. And I'm greatly enjoying Canada's efforts at the World Cup. Even if they go no further, a first-ever spot in the Final-16 is something to celebrate!