I like this ...

Sometimes it s fun to poke around with Photoshop and see what comes up. I took a photo of Elgin Street in Sudbury and applied an "artisitic filter" of 'coloring pencils' and this is what happened to the photo. I like it.
(click the pic to see larger size)

Working on Elgin

There was a time that Elgin Street in Sudbury had a rough reputation. Maybe it still does for some people, but it is certainly not like it used to be. One of the nice things about working in downtown Sudbury is that Elgin Street is the neighbourhood for our newspaper building. I park at the CP train station parking lot and so I have to walk along Elgin every day. I enjoy it. There are several boutiques and restaurants here now.

One of the nicer things is that local artists are creating some nice murals along the underground walkway that runs beneath the train yards. I have been watching them work for a few weeks now and am I pleased with the work.

Nice visit to Timmins ...

So last weekend was so enjoyable. I joined Jennifer and Scott for a quick trip up to Timmins where some of the Maltais clan gathered to celebrate Lorraine’s birthday. A gentleman should not reveal a lady’s age, especially when she hits 70.

Moe and Marie and sister-in-law Linda were amazing hosts and organizers. One of the best events was the family gathering at Casey’s Restaurant.

That’s where I snapped a few photographs. One of my favourites was the shot of Jennifer and Candice.  They had not seen each other in some time, so it was a nice photo.  Candice and her family drove in from New Brunswick and her visit was something of a surprise for most folks.  Jennifer and Candice grew up together. They’re cousins and I am sure they’re closer than sisters.
We also grabbed a photo of Jenn with little Jennifer. This is Candice's daughter with her namesake. A couple of real cuties there!

It was also nice for Jennifer, Candice and Melanie to pose for a nice photo. I really liked this one because I have so many memories of them when they were children. 

Click on each pic to see full size.

Newest issue ...

So this is what I do. I produce this magazine. This is the second issue for me this year where I did the writing and all the background work. So that's good. But there are two things going on here. About a month ago, I was stopped at a social event by a woman who works for the city's economic development office. She said the journal doesn't focus at all on women. I said I didn't notice but did mention that mining is still very much a male dominated industry.
So I was glad to put a photo of mine general manager Stella Holloway on the cover. But I had decided on that long before I was confronted. People make better photos than mining machines.

The second thing is that the company featured in the story is MacLean Engineering. Interestingly, the owner of the company, Donald MacLean travelled to Sudbury to get work back in the 1950s and then eventually opened his own mining equipment business. He is from Cape Breton. I have to wonder if there is any family connection. After all, my mom was a MacLean from Sydney

What a story this could be...

I was pleased to see a story in the New York Times this morning about Dr. Robert Ballard planning to take a fresh look at the disappearance of Amelia Earhart.

I think her story is one of the great mysteries of the past century, but I am hoping the full story can somehow be revealed in my lifetime. Anyone who knows me, knows I am an aviation nut!

The Times story outlined that Dr. Ballard (the same guy who found the Titanic) is now planning to do a search based on new evidence that recently revealed that a piece of landing gear from a twin-engine Lockheed Electra, the same plane Earhart was flying as she attempted a round the world flight in 1937, was inadvertently photographed on a remote island.

Earhart and her co-pilot Fred Noonan vanished over the Pacific Ocean in the first week of July of that year. Despite the massive search, the U.S. Navy concluded their plane simply crashed into the ocean and was lost forever.

But now with this new evidence pinpointing a tiny island in the South Pacific things could change. What a story this could be!

(PHOTO CREDIT: New York Times)