Number 16's 2022 Oscars Quiz

The 94th Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, March 27, 2022.  The live show will start at 8 p.m. on ABC and will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California.  It will also be live-streamed on the ABC app.  This year's Oscars will be hosted by three women: Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall.  As you prepare for the big night, why not challenge yourself and try Number 16's 11th annual Oscars quiz. There are 10 questions. Good luck!

NUMBER 16 OSCARS QUIZ

1.  Penelope Cruz and her husband, Javier Bardem, have both been nominated for Academy Awards this year.  Cruz is nominated for Best Actress for her performance in Parallel Mothers, while Bardem is nominated for his role as Desi Arnaz in Being the Ricardos.  Other married couples have been nominated in the same year, but which couple was the first one to have that distinction.

Cruz and Bardem

A.  Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward

B.  Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton

C.  Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne

D.  Vivien Leigh and Lawrence Olivier

E.   Rachel Roberts and Rex Harrison

2.  Who was the first person named "Oscar" to win an Oscar?

A.  Oscar Isaac

B.  Oscar Hammerstein II

C.  Oscar Nunez

D.  Oscar Peterson

E.  Oscar de la Renta 

3.  Who won back-to back Best Actor Oscars for Captain Courageous (1937) and Boys Town (1938)

A.  Spencer Tracy

B.  Bing Crosby

C.  Fred Astaire

D.  Clark Gable

E.   Frederic March

4.  What was the first colour film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture?

A.  The Wizard of Oz

B.  Stagecoach

C.  It Happened One Night

D.  Gone with the Wind

E.  A Star is Born

5.  Who was the first actor to present himself/herself with an Oscar?

A.  Katharine Hepburn

B.  Norma Shearer

C.  Cary Grant

D.  Bette Davis

E.  William Holden

6,  Which foreign language film received the largest total of Oscar nominations and wins?

A.  Roma  

B.  Life is Beautiful 

C.  Fanny and Alexander 

D. Parasite 

E.  Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 

7.  What is the only film to win Best Picture winner and receive only one one nomination?

A.  Argo (2012)

B.  Cavalcade (1932/1933)

C.  Grand Hotel (1931/1932)

D.  Green Book (2018)

E.  The Broadway Melody (1928/1929)

8.  How many times was Mickey Rooney nominated for an Academy Award?

Mickey Rooney

A.  4 tunes

B.  2 times

C.  3 times

D.  Once

E.  Never

9.  Who has received the most Academy Award nominations?

A.  Katharine  Hepburn

B.  Meryl Streep

C.  Tom Hanks

D.  Walt Disney

E.   Martin Scorsese

10.  Who was the tallest actor to ever win an Academy Award?

A.  John Wayne

B.  Tim Robbins  

C.  Ben Affleck

D.  Sacha Baron Cohen

E,  Donald Sutherland

ANSWERS

1.  C   Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne

Lunt and Fontanne

Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne made Academy Award history when they were both nominated for Oscars in 1932.  They appeared together in The Guardsman.

In 1969, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were nominated for Best Actor for their work in the film Rachel, Rachel.  Woodward was nominated for Best Actress, while Newman was nominated as a producer for Best Picture.  Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were nominated in 1967 for their starring roles in Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?.  Taylor won the Oscar for Best Actress but Burton did not win for Best Actor.  In 1940, Vivien Leigh won the Best Actress Oscar for her performance as Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind.  Olivier was nominated for his performance as Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights.  The pair divorced in 1960.  Rachel Roberts and Rex Harrison were both nominated for Academy Awards in 1964,  Roberts was nominated for This Sporting Life and Harrison was nominated for Cleopatra.

2.  B   Oscar Hammerstein II 

Hammerstein

In 1942, Oscar Hammerstein shared a Best Music, Original Song Oscar with Jerome Kern for the song, "The Last Time I Saw Paris." from the 1941 movie Lady Be Good.  In 1946, he won another Best Music, Original Song Oscar, along with Richard Rodgers, for the song "It Might as Well Be Spring from the 1945 film State Fair.

3.  A   Spencer Tracey 

Tracy with Oscar for Boys Town

Spencer Tracy won back-to-back Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Captain Courageous and Boys Town. Consecutive Oscar winners are rare.  Tom Hanks won Best Actor for Philadelphia in 1994 and Forrest Gump in 1995.  Louise Rainer won Best Actress for The Great Ziegfeld in 1937 and The Good Earth in 1938.

4.  D  Gone with the Wind

In 1940, Gone with the Wind became the first colour film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture. 

5.  B  Norma Shearer

            

In 1933, Canadian-born Norma Shearer (1902-1982) was the presenter for the Best Actress category at the Academy Awards.  She was nominated  for two Oscars in the Best Actress category that year.  She won for her performance in The Divorcee and had to announce, somewhat awkwardly, that she had won the award.  Since then, no nominated actor har presented an Oscar for his or her own category.

6.  E  Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a 2000 Hong Kong film.  The Chinese swordplay film, garnered 10 nominations and 4 wins in 2001.  Roma, a 2018 Mexican drama, collected 10 nominations and 3 wins.  Life is Beautiful, a 1997 Italian comedy-drama. directed by Roberto Benigni, received 7 nominations and had 3 wins.  In 2020, Parasite received 6 nominations and celebrated 4 wins, including Best Picture.  The South Korean film became he first foreign language film to win Best Picture.  Fanny and Alexander, a 1982 Swedish film, earned 6 nominations and 3 wins.

7.  C  Grand Hotel

Greta Garbo and John Barrymore

Grand Hotel is the only film to win Best Picture and receive only one one nomination.  The 1932 MGM drama stars Greta Garbo and John Barrymore.

8,  A.  4 times

Rooney in 1983

Mickey Rooney received four competitive Oscar nominations during his lifetime.  He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for Babes in Arms in 1940, Best Actor for The Human Comedy in 1944, Best Supporting Actor in The Bold and the Brave in 1957 and  Best Supporting Actor for The Back Stallion in 1980.  

Rooney received two special Oscars.  He received a Juvenile Academy Award in 1939 and an Honorary Academy Award in 1983.

9,  D  Walt Disney

Disney in 1946

Walt Disney, who died in 1966, holds the record for the most Academy Awards in history, with 26 Oscars.  He won 22 competitive Academy Awards from a total of 59 nominations.

Disney won four honorary Academy Awards.  The first was in 1932 for the creation of Mickey Mouse. His last honorary Oscar was presented posthumously.  It was the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, chosen by the Academy's Board of Governors and given  to "creative producers whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion picture production."

10.  B  Tm Robbins

Tim Robbins was the tallest actor to ever win an Academy Award.  Robbins is 6 ft, 5 inches (1.96 metres) tall.  In 2004, he won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance in Mystic River, a 2003 drama in which he starred with Sean Penn, Laurence Fishburne and Kevin Bacon.

- Joanne

Good news about all-year Daylight Saving Time

 

After two years of COVID and a heartbreaking war in Ukraine, I really needed a bit of good news, and I received it two days ago.  It isn't earthshattering and it seems very trivial compared to the pandemic and the plight of the Ukrainian people.  Still, it is something positive as far as I'm concerned.  In fact, it's literally a ray of sunshine.

For a long while, I have been an advocate of year-round daylight saving time.  Well, on Tuesday, March 14, 2022, the United States Senate unanimously passed a bill, called the Sunshine Protection Act, that would establish permanent daylight saving time across the U.S.  The bill has one more hurdle before it becomes law, though.  It has to be approved by the U.S. House of Representatives before President Joe Biden can put his signature on it.   House Speaker, Nancey Pelosi has not yet said whether such a vote will occur.  Still, Tuesday's vote was a remarkable step forward.  When was the last time Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate unanimously approved legislation?  Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts, a leading proponent of of the daylight saving bill was elated about the results of the vote.

The vote was proof of the strong support that year-long Daylight Saving Time has in the United States.  The momentum is on the side of permanent DST.  That  is welcome news for Canadians who are tired of switching clocks twice a year and who long for an extra out of sunshine.  It has been well documented that the time change is the cause of car accidents and traffic facilities.  More car crashes occur on the days following the change to Daylight Saving Time that at other times.  The loss of an hour's sleep affects people.  Also, the lack of sunlight causes moodiness and depression, known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

In 2019, province of British Columbia passed legislation to switch to Daylight Saving Time permanently.  However, B.C. did not set a date because it wishes to align itself with Washington, Oregon and California.  All three West Coast states have passed their own bills to remain on permanent DST.  In response to the U.S. Senate's passing of the daylight saving legislation, B.C. Premier John Horgan said that his province is now "well positioned to do away with the time changes once and for all and move to permanent DST."

In Ontario, where I live, we have to align ourselves with Quebec and the state of New York.  It's a matter of scheduling travel times, television programming and sporting events.   However, I think the writing is on the wall.  It's the right time for permanent Daylight Saving Time.  By the way, on Tuesday, Carlos Paz, a spokesperson for Nancy Pelosi, said, "The bill just passed this afternoon and we are reviewing it closely."  Over to you, Speaker Pelosi, and your colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives.  Please do the right thing and give us some sunshine during these dark times.  What are you waiting for?

- Joanne

My novel on sale

 To readers of Number 16:

As you know, I have written a novel called Children of Dieppe. It's available as an ebook on a site called Smashwords.com.  Smashwords is having an ebook week sale until Saturday, March 12, 2022.  The sale began today and my book will be available for only $1.99 US until next Saturday (Regular price is $3.99 US).   

CHILDREN OF DIEPPE is the story of Denise Nair, whose father died during the tragic raid on Dieppe in 1942. The repercussions of that raid are life-changing for Denise's family, friends and acquaintances, especially the troubled Rosemary Tillis and the mysterious Gordon Sloane. This sweeping novel spans a time period from World War II until the 21st century.  It is about family, friendship, the aftermath of war and the effects of mental illness.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of my novel in ebook form, click on the link below.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1060816

I thank you for your support.   

- Joanne

Baseball fans: Check out HotDog.com

 

Regular readers of Number 16 are well aware that I am an avid baseball fan and a supporter of the Toronto Blue Jays.  Today it is my pleasure to highlight a valuable tool for fans of the game. It's called HotDog.com 

HotDog.com provides a steaming guide for watching Major League Baseball online.  It shows baseball fans how they can watch MLB online without cable.  The guide includes:

* No contract and live-streaming options

* On-demand and DVR options.

* Price comparisons and device compatibility.

You can learn more about HotDog.com's streaming guide by clicking the link below.  Why not check it out?

https://hotdog.com/tv/sport/baseball/

You will note that DIRECTV STREAM provides RSS access to every MLB team except my Toronto Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies.

- Joanne

2022 Quebec City Snow Sculptures by Denis Gravel

For the past few years, I've been posting photos of snow sculptures by talented Quebec City artist Denis Gravel.  Here are a couple of 2022 photos.  I hope you enjoy them.

- Joanne

The truth about the convoy protesters

 “Freedom of expression, assembly, and association are cornerstones of democracy; but Nazi symbolism, racist imagery, and desecration of war memorials are not. It is an insult to memory and truth.”

- Irwin Cotler, Human rights lawyer, McGill University emeritus professor and former Canadian cabinet minister

Language matters, so I urge the media to stop referring to the trucker convoys as a "freedom convoys."  There protests have nothing to do with freedom.  That's why I  was disappointed and disgusted that here in Canada, the National Post and Global News have been using that term in headlines.  This is an affront to real freedom.,  It is an affront to those who actually championed the cause of freedom and made sacrifices for the sake of democracy.  To describe these protests as "freedom convoys" is to use Orwellian language.  It is truly reprehensible.

Let's be clear.  The purpose of the convoy protests is to cause economic woes, anxiety and chaos in order to accomplish an extreme right wing, anti-government political agenda.  Many of the protesters are white supremacists and Neo-Nazis and they have displayed swastikas.  Kyle Matthews, executive director of the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies at Concordia University said, "It is shocking in 2022 to see people openly carrying these symbols and thinking it's okay.  Clearly there are a number of people who don't understand what the Holocaust is about.  They don't understand that their situation is nowhere near comparable."  

Frankly, the behaviour of many of the demonstrators has been abominable.  In Ottawa, they have placed anti-vaxxer signs on the Terry Fox statue and urinated on the National War Memorial.  That is definitely not my idea of championing freedom.  I hope it's not yours.  Therefore. I feel it is incumbent upon me to condemn this behaviour in the strongest possible terms.  It is not acceptable in Canada or anywhere else. 

The convoy protesters were likely inspired by the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021.  That shameful episode in American history was encouraged by a former American president who refused to accept the legitimate results of the 2020 U.S. election.  On January 6th, his supporters tried to subvert democracy.  The protesters were not, as the Republican National Committee stated, engaged in "legitimate political discourse" (more Orwellian language).  One of them carried a huge Confederate flag.  Another wore a shirt with an anti-Semitic message about the Holocaust.  They threatened the lives of Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.  Sadly, these are the same people who are supporting the trucker convoys.  

It is distressing and disheartening to hear that convoy protests are rising up in various cities around the world.  It signals the insidious spread of Trumpism.  Decent people must speak up now.  Decent people must remember our history or, as the saying goes, we are doomed to repeat it..  The rise of fascism in the 1920s and 1930s should be taught over and over again to each generation.  Education is the best response to ignorance.

- Joanne

This is a Pandemic of the Unvaccinated

 Here are some words of wisdom from virus expert Dr. Michael T. Osterholm, someone who is very well-versed on the subject of vaccinations.  

- Joanne

Dr. Michaerl Osterholm

"There is one very, very central point, and yet it seems to be one that for some reason, we have not been able to overcome as an obstacle, and that is getting people vaccinated. You know, I hear people talking all the time now that this is not a pandemic of the unvaccinated and from an infection standpoint, that's absolutely true. But if you look at it from the standpoint of who had become seriously ill, hospitalized and dies, this is a pandemic of the unvaccinated. And it clearly is. And we have to understand that here we are in this country almost two years into the pandemic, a year into the availability of vaccines, yet only 63.8% of the US population that are eligible to receive two doses of vaccine have, only 41.7% have received that third dose that we've noted over and over again is so important."

- Michael Osterholm, American epidemiologist, Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Help end this pandemic nightmare

Right wing anti-vaxxers have made made vaccination a political matter.  It is not a political matter.  It is a health matter.  The right wing anti-vaxxers like to scream and shout that their "freedom" is being taken away from them.  The have tunnel vision.  The only kind of freedom they see is individual freedom.  What they fail to acknowledge or understand is communal freedom, the freedom of the community to be protected.  Freedom is not absolute.  It must be curtailed when your "freedom' harms others and places their health and well-being at risk.

We've lived with this COVID nightmare for two years now.  If we don't protect the poorest and most vulnerable people in countries around the world, this pandemic will linger.  There will be variant after variant.  I urge everyone, unless you have a valid medical exemption, to get two doses and a booster.

How much longer must we endure this pandemic nightmare?  I encourage my fellow Canadians to do the following.  Please take action.  

Email the Federal Minister of International Development Harjit Sajjan and inspire him to take leadership on vaccinating the world.  The email address is 

harjit.sajjan@international.gc.ca. 

Please add your own words to the following text!

Dear Hon. Harjit Sajjan

I am writing to you to encourage you to take immediate action to end the pandemic everywhere, because we know that no one is safe until everyone is safe.

We cannot stop variants of concern until there is global vaccine equity. 

The next variant is preventable.

The next lockdown is preventable.

As Minister of International Development and a member of the cabinet committee for Canada and the World, you are in a unique and crucial leadership position to ensure the Federal government shares resources, knowledge, and doses with developing countries. You have a vital task before you. The world needs Canada to step up now.

I want Canada to commit to doing its fair share on the global stage to end the pandemic. The next variants are preventable if we act now.

Please do everything you can to get Canada to commit an additional $ 1.1 billion to support developing countries with their vaccination programmes and to help them face further waves. Canada should also immediately support a TRIPS waiver on COVID vaccine and treatment technology.

Thank you,

Name:

Email:

City:

Province:

To those in countries outside of Canada, please urge your politicians and decision makers to do the same.  There is only one world and we are all members of the human race.  

- Joanne

Why is Joe Biden's approval rating so low right now?

John Q. Public was recently asked why President Joe Biden's popularity has been sagging lately.

JQP: I think I know why President Joe Biden's approval rating is so low right now..  Let me see now.  Oh yes, didn't he give a tax breaks to billionaires?  

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Didn't he brag about groping women in a notorious interview with Access Hollywood?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Didn't he lock up migrant children in detention camps, separating them from their parents?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Didn't he waste billions of taxpayer's money on a border wall?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Didn't he refuse to show his tax returns?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Wait a minute.  Wasn't Joe Biden's Twitter account permanently suspended due to risk of further incitement of violence?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Wasn't he involved in a scandal in which his lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, paid adult film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 in hush money to stop her from disclosing an affair she alleged she had with him in 2006, when his wife was pregnant with their son, Barron.

Nope.  That was the other guy.

JQP: In November of 2016, didn't he make a $25 million settlement concerning three fraud lawsuits linked to the university named after himself?

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: Following the 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, didn't he say that there were "very fine people involved on both sides," when speaking about those who attended the rally in support and those who protested against it.

No, that was the other guy.

JQP: During the first presidential debate in 2020, didn't he tell the Proud Boys, a far-right hate group, to "stand back and stand by."

No, you've got the wrong guy again.

JQP: Doesn't he falsely claim that the 2020 election was rigged (evidence proved otherwise), causing many Americans to lose faith in democracy.

No, you've got it wrong again.  It was that other guy.

JQP: Wasn't he impeached twice by the House of Representatives?  The first impeachment was for abuse of power and obstruction of justice.  There was evidence that he tried to persuade the Ukrainian president to dig up dirt on his political opponent.  

The other guy did that.  He tried to dig up dirt on Joe Biden.  Don't forget that the other guy was impeached a second time for incitement of insurrection.  

JQP: Didn't Biden refuse to participate in the peaceful transfer of power, a hallmark of democracy, after his defeat in the 2020 election?

No, he didn't do that.  It was that other guy.

JQP: Didn't he encourage a violent mob to overrun the Capitol in Washington, D.C. in an effort to overturn the results of an lawful election?  Didn't some of the rioters say they were there at the request of Joe Biden.  Didn't Biden just watch the riot unfold on television in a private dining room at the White House?  Didn't his former press secretary say he "gleefully" watched the mob on TV and praised how his supporters were "fighting for him."

Nope, that was still the other guy.

JQP: Didn't the New York attorney general say that her investigators have uncovered evidence that Biden's  company used :fraudulent or misleading" variations of golf clubs, skyscrapers and other property to get loans and tax benefits.

Once again, he didn't do that.  It was that other guy.

JQP: Gee, I can't believe I've gotten that all wrong.  I can't believe I've forgotten all of that.

Well, if it makes you feel any better, you're not the only one.

JQP: Then surely that other guy doesn't have the unmitigated gall to run again after all that.

I'm afraid you're wrong about that, too.  The Republican party is pretty solidly behind the other guy. 

JQP: So, if the other guy did all that, why are they are they so solidly behind him?

Good question.  The facts don't seem to matter to them.

JQP: Everything is so expensive these days.  Inflation is so high.  Americans have to pay much more at the grocery store and at the gas pump.  That's Joe's fault, isn't it?

Unexpected consumer demand, combined with congested supply chains and labour shortages are driving up prices.

JDQ: Isn't the U.S. economy tanking?  What has improved?

When Joe Biden took the presidential oath of office in January of 2021, the U.S. jobless rate was 6.9 per cent.  One year later, the unemployment rate is 3.9 per cent.

JQP:  Jos Biden is too old to be president.  He's 79 years old.  He must be senile.

Hold on now.  Isn't that ageism?  Biden held a gruelling two-hour press conference to mark his first year in office.  He answered questions from journalists who were trying to trip him up or make him look bad.  He was grilled and yet he maintained his cool.  He treated the press with respect and replied to all the questions he was asked.  That doesn't sound like senility.

JQP:  Why hasn't Biden stopped COVID around the world?  Why hasn't he solved all the problems in the Middle East?  Why hasn't he achieved world peace . . .

-  Joanne

The Cat Came Back: A True Story for Cat Lovers

Loli (date of phot unknown)

Most of us are weary of all the bad news about the COVID-19 and the Omicron variant.  We are being bombarded 24 hours a day on television and social media.  It's one story after another about how Omicron is so contagious and how it's spreading so rapidly.  We hear how one event after another is being cancelled or postponed.  Yes, of course I know we need to be informed.  I know we need to protect ourselves as much as possible.  Still, this is  just too much, even for an inveterate news junkie like me.  So, dear readers, I am going to give you some much-needed relief.  I'm going to tell you a true story that will warm your hearts.  It's the perfect tonic to make you feel better during these challenging times.

Come along with me and distract yourself from all the COVID news.  You deserve a break from the constant doom and gloom.  I am pleased to provide you with a harmless, temporary escape from the reality of a pandemic nightmare.  The best part is that this is not a fairytale.  It really happened.

Our story takes place in Ontario, Canada, where I live.  It's about a tabby cat named Loli, who went missing for 11.5 years, according to a Global News report by Hannah Jackson.  The cat's owner, Christine De Castro, told Global News that Loli went missing from the family's home in Vaughan, Ontario back in the summer of 2010.  At the time of her disappearance, Loli was a mere two years old.  (That makes her about 13 or 14 now, which is an old age for a cat.  Cats have an average lifespan of 12 to 18 years, although domestic casts can live into their 20s).

Christine De Castro searched extensively for her pet, but to no avail.  She finally resigned herself to the belief that the little feline was never going to return.  However, on New Year's Day of this year, Christine received some unexpected news from Vaughan Animal Services.  She was informed that Loli had been found and that someone had apparently trapped the cat in their garage.  Christine surmises that Loli ended up in the garage in order to keep warm.

Vaughan Animal Services was able to identify Loli with the help of  her microchip and Christine was told that she could come to the animal shelter and pick up her long lost pet.  Although Christine had moved more than once, her phone number remained the same and she was able to be contacted with regard to Loli.  As a result, she urges all pet owners to microchip their animal friends.  She also encourages them to donate to their neighbourhood no-kill animal shelter.

Not surprisingly, Christine was astounded by the news that her cat had been found..  She describes her reunion with Loli after all this time as "surreal."  What exactly happened to the cat remains a mystery and Christine reports that her pet is older and grumpier now.  In every other respect, however, she says that Loli is much the same cat as before.  Christine is still not certain whether the feline recognizes her after so long, but she believes that Loli is warming up to her.  

What a way to begin a new year on the right note for Christine De Castro!  As Christine puts it, "I think it's kind of fated that 2022 started with a cat that I really thought was a goner, reintroduced into my life."

- Joanne

Children of Dieppe: A novel by Joanne Madden

Readers, if you are looking for a good read during this awful pandemic, I would like to remind you that my novel Children of Dieppe is available as an ebook.  It is the story of Denise Nair, whose father, a Canadian soldier, lost his life during the tragic raid on Dieppe, France in 1942.  The repercussions of that raid are life changing for Denise's family, friends and acquaintances, including the mysterious Gordon Sloane and the troubled Rosemary Tillis.  This sweeping novel spans a time period from World War II to the 21st.century.  It is about family, friendship, the aftermath of war and the effects of mental illness.

I would really like some feedback from anyone who reads Children of Dieppe.   I would be very happy to hear from you.

Here is the link to my ebook.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1060816

By the way, I am working on my second novel. a mystery/suspense story.  It is not a sequel to Children of Dieppe but it is related.  Some characters from Children of Dieppe appear in my new novel.

Readers, I would like to thank you for any support you have given me over the years just by reading Number 16.  I am truly grateful and I appreciate you.

- Joanne

My 2022 Wish List

Last year I posted my personal wish list for 2021.  I promised to let you know which of my wishes came true and to write another wish list for 2022.  Here's how my 2021 wish list turned out:

My biggest wish for 2021 was that COVID-19 would be brought under control around the world.  I also hoped that once that goal was achieved, more attention would be turned to the environment and combatting global warming. Well, we almost had COVID under control until the Omicron variant hit just before Christmas.  It is more transmissible, but not as severe.  More attention must be given to climate change in 2022.

I wished that Benjamin Netanyahu would be ousted from power in Israel..  That wish came true.  He is no longer the prime minister.  The current prime minister, Naftali Bennett, appears to be very right wing. However, at least there's a change, a fresh face.  We'll see what happens in the volatile Middle East.

I wrote that I didn't want a federal election in Canada during a pandemic.  We had one anyway.  The results were almost the same as the 2019 election.  The Liberals, under Justin Trudeau, retained their minority government status.  

I hoped that the Toronto Blue Jays would keep improving and that they would make some good moves over the winter.  I also hoped that at some point in 2021 that I would be able to able to attend a game at Rogers Centre.  The Blue Jays did indeed improve.  They finished the season with 91 wins, but it wasn't enough to earn a berth in the highly competitive American League East.  They had so much talent that it was heartbreaking that they just missed out on post-season play.  Nothing is guaranteed but they should

do really well next season.  Due to COVID-19, I did not attend a game at the Rogers Centre.

I hoped that the Toronto Maple Leafs would make the changes needed to compete, but I had no lofty expectations for them.  They didn't disappoint.  Due to the pandemic, all the Canadian teams played in the same division.  The Leafs finished atop their division and were clearly a superior team than the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs.  Everything went wrong.  Their captain, John Tavares was injured in the first game and the Leafs ultimately lost the series to the Habs.  Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner underperformed in the playoffs, as usual.

I wished the best for the Canadian Football League, which was forced to cancel its 2020 season due to COVID.  I truly hoped there would be a 2021 season.  Thankfully, there was a 2021 season, although it began late.  The Argos had a good season, but they were defeated In the Eastern Conference final  by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.  The Ti-Cats went on to lose the 108th Grey Cup game at their home stadium, Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton.  The Cats lost a heartbreaker to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in overtime.

I hoped that Joe Biden would meet his destiny with honour and become a good president.  I hoped that he would restore the soul of America, as he has promised.  I wanted Donald Trump to be accountable for his crimes and for the damage he has done to American democracy.  If that meant going to prison, so be it.  No one is above the law.  

Unfortunately, Donald Trump has still not been held accountable, especially for his role in the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol in Washington, D.C.

As I do every year, I wished for more peace and harmony in the world.  There was no major war, but Russian President Vladimir Putin made rumblings about attacking Ukraine.

Here is my 2022 wish list:

Of course, I would really like COVID-19 to fade away like a bad dream.  The anti-vaxxers and the far right have been holding up progress,  We need to get as many people possible vaccinated around the world, especially in developing countries.

It is my hope that Doug Ford's Progressive? Conservatives lose the Ontario provincial election, on (or before) June 2, 2022.

I hope that Pope Francis will have a successful visit to Canada and that he will offer an apology to the Indigenous peoples for the Church's part in the tragedy of the residential schools.

Joe Biden did not deserve to have his approval rating plummet in 2021.  Remember that he came into office during a terrible pandemic.  He also had to clean up Donald Trump's mess. Of course, no president is above criticism, but here is list of some of Biden's most important accomplishments during his first year as president of the United States (Keep in mind that the Democrats only had a razor-thin majority in the Senate and that Biden was continually thwarted by the Republican and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema  He was dependent on Manchin's and Sinema's votes).

* Biden made sure that the United States rejoined the Paris Climate Accord, a voluntary agreement to reduce carbon emissions.  It is vital that the U.S. set an example to the rest of the world.

* Biden ended Trump's discriminatory Muslim ban.

* Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, to help speed up American's recovery from the ravages of COVID-19.

* Biden signed the Infrastructure and Jobs Acts, providing over $1.2 trillion in infrastructure to every American state.

My hope is that Biden's Build Back Better Act is passed in 2022, as well as the voter's rights act.   

For the sake of democracy, it is imperative that former president Donald Trump be held accountable for his alleged criminal actions and for his involvement in the January 6, 2001 attempt to overthrow the duly and legitimately elected government of the United State.   I will not say "lock him up."  That's Trump jargon.  I will only say that once he is found guilty in a criminal court of law, he should serve a prison sentence, just like any American citizen.  The rule of law matters.

I hope that the Democrats do well in the 2022 U.S. midterm elections in November.  I hope that Stacey Abrams becomes governor of Georgia and that Beto O'Rourke becomes governor of Texas.

I hope that the Toronto Blue Jays make the post-season  in 2022 and that the Toronto Maple Leafs finally get  past the first round of the playoffs.

I hope that whatever happens with regard to COVID-19, the world will take strong measures to protect our environment.

I wish for more peace and harmony in the world in 2022.

In January of, 2023, I will write another wish list and I will let you know if any of my 2022 wishes came true.

- Joanne

Reflections on a New Year - Farewell 2021, Welcome 2022

Today is the last day of 2021.  2021 was not a banner year for most people on this planet.  So, I await 2022 with both hope and trepidation.  There is so much uncertainty and the world has changed drastically in the almost two years of this infernal COVID-19 pandemic.  There is no turning back.  We can only go forward carefully and with courage.  History moves in cycles and phases.  In the last century, we faced World War 1, the Spanish Flu, the Great Depression and World War II.  I did not live through any of those difficult times and I have never experienced the horrors of war.  I have never experienced poverty and I have always had a roof over my head.  I also like to say that I won the birth lottery because I was born in Canada.

The pendulum swings back and forth.  There will be good times again and there will be dark times again.  There will always be suffering and there will always be joy.  To be honest, I am disappointed that my Christmas plans and my New Year's plans had to be altered due to the pandemic.  I know that seems petty compared to the sufferings of many people over the past two years.   I realize that I am fortunate and that I have many blessings, but I still missed getting together with all my family members and friends.  I guess that makes me human. 

So far, I have not tested positive for COVID. and I am thankful for that.  I have received two vaccines and a booster shot.  Yes, the Omicron variant has spread like wildfire.  Although it is very contagious, it has been less severe than the other variants.  My hope is that once it reaches its peak, it will just flame out quickly.  We are fortunate that we live at a time when medical science is so advanced and vaccines can be developed swiftly.  

Thank you for reading Number 16 and allowing me to share my thoughts with you.  That means a great deal to me.  I wish you and your family a very Happy New Year and all the best in 2022.

All the best,

Joanne

Reflections on a Second COVID Christmas

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate the great feast of the Nativity.  These are trying times, and in these difficult days, our world needs the spirit of Christmas more than ever before.  The Coronavirus, of  course, has no conception of date or time.  COVID-19 attacks when it attacks, whether it be Christmas Day or any other holiday.  It does not discriminate among human beings, although the poorest among us are always hit the hardest. To stop the spread of COVID sooner, we have to give more vaccines to developing countries.  

Let's be perfectly frank.  Drug companies are making enormous profits due to this pandemic.  In contrast, there was no patent for the vaccine for polio (Infantile Paralysis).  Dr. Jonas Salk, an American medical researcher and virologists, developed one of the first successful polio vaccines.  Salk's vaccine came into effect in 1955, but it was never patented.  Although lawyers from the National Foundation for Infantile Research investigated the possibility a patent, they decided not to pursue it, partly because it would not have been a patentable invention by the standards of the day, and partly because of Dr. Salk's reluctance.  When CBS television interviewer Edward R. Murrow asked Salk who owned patent, he famously replied, "Well, the people, I would say.  There is no patent.  Could you patent the sun?"

Dr. Jonas Salk

COVID wields a great deal of power.  It can cause untold suffering and death.  It can prevent social gatherings. It can ruin livelihoods.  However, it does not have the power to destroy the spirit of Christmas.  The Christmas spirit is eternal.  It will last forever.  COVID-19 is merely temporal.  It cannot last forever.  It cannot endure.

Yes, at times, it seems that this pandemic will never end.  We are human and we feel discouraged and fatigued by this infernal virus and its variants.  It will come to an end, though, because all things must pass.  Someday, all of this will be behind us.  It will be relegated to the dust heap of history.  Then we will face the challenge of dealing with the damage it leaves in its wake.  We will have the daunting task of building back better.  

In these dark times, I am trying to find the light.  I do not pretend that it is easy.  However, I will look toward the Star of Bethlehem to guide me, for it is a flame that can never be extinguished.

Peace and joy to people of all faiths and all races.

- Joanne

Christmas Quiz 2021

It's that time of year again and Number 16 presents a 2021 Christmas quiz.  If you think you know your facts about Christmas, put your knowledge to the test. in this 10 question challenge.  Get ready and go!  Good luck!

NUMBER 16 CHRISTMAS QUIZ 2021

1,  According to the Bible, how many Wise Men or Magi from the East visited Jesus in Bethlehem?

A, There were two Wise Men from the East.

B.  There were three Wise Men from the East.

C.  There were four Wise Men from the East/

D  The Bible doesn't specify how many Wise Men there were.

E.  There were five Wise Men from the East.

2.  In the 1946 Christmas film It's A Wonderful Life, what happens every time a bell rings?

A.  George Bailey (James Stewart) awakes from his dreaming.

B.  It's a signal that George Bailey (James Stewart) has done the right thing.

C.  An angel gets his wings.

D.  It's a reminder to George Bailey (James Stewart) that he owes money to the bank.

E    None of the above.

3.  In A Christmas Carol, how many ghosts visit Ebenezer Scrooge?

A,  One

B.  Three

C.  Four

D.  Two   

E.  None

4.  Which country has a tradition of a witch dropping children's gifts through the chimney at Christmas?

A.  France

B.  Italy

C.  The Netherlands

D.  Germany

E.  Hungary

5.  In the 1964 animated Christmas TV special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, featuring the voice of Burl Ives, who was Rudolph's father?

A. Donner

B. Blitzen

C.  Comet

D.  Cupid

E.  Dasher

6,  According to the Book of Luke in the New Testament, why did Joseph and Mary travel to the town of Bethlehem in Judea?

A.  They fled Nazareth to get away from King Herod. 

B.   They went to visit Mary's cousin, Elizabeth.

C.  Joseph was promised work in Bethlehem.

D.  An angel told Joseph to go Bethlehem in a dream.

E.  There was a census and Joseph was from the house and  lineage of David.  Since Bethlehem is "the city of David," he was required to go there.

7.  Where does Queen Elizabeth II traditionally spend the Christmas season?

A.  Buckingham Palace in London

B,  Sandringham House in Norfolk

C.  Balmoral Castle in Scotland

D.  Windsor Castle at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire

E.  Kensington Palace in London

8.  Name the Christmas song that has the following lyric:.

"Everyone dancing merrily in the good old-fashioned way."

A.  Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

B.  Jingle Bell Rock

C.  A Holly Jolly Christmas

D.  Happy Holidays

E.  Silver Bells

9.  Feliz Navidad means Merry Christmas in which language?

A.  Portuguese

B.  Romanian

C.  German

D.  Spanish

E.  Dutch

10.  Which singer had a hit song called "Feliz Navidad?

A.  Ritchie Valens

B. Engelbert Humperdinck

C. Julio Iglesias

D. Jorge Palma

E.  Jose Feliciano

ANSWERS

1.  D

Although Three Wise Men are always pictured, he Bible does not actually specify how many Wise Men came from the East.  (The story of the Wise Men only appears in the Book of Matthew).  According to tradition, there were three Wise Men, even though the  Biblical narrative does not mention a number. Matthew only mentions "the Magi" or "Wise Men."  They were astrologers who saw a star that signified the prophecy of a Jewish king.  Matthew says that they brought three gifts to Bethlehem - gold, frankincense and myrrh, but never that there was a trio of men.

2.  C

In the Frank Capra film It's A Wonderful Life, an angel gets his wings every time a bell rings.

3.  C

In A Christmas Carol, four ghosts visit Scrooge: The ghost of his business partner, Jacob Marley, the ghost of Christmas present, the ghost of Christmas past and the ghost of Christmas yet to come.

4. B

Italy has a tradition of a witch on a broomstick dropping gifts for children through the chimney on Epiphany Eve (the night of January 5th).  The witch is called "Befana" and is portrayed as a crooked old hag.  If a child is naughty, he or she receivers a stick instead of coal in some poorer parts of the country.

5.  A

Donner was Rudolph's father in the 1964 Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer special.  Trivia Note;  In the 1823 poem, A Visit from Saint Nicholas (Commonly known as The Night Before Christmas), Donner was originally called "Dunder."

6.  E

According the Book of Luke, there was a census. Luke 2 begins with the words "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered."  Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem to register.

7.  B

Sandringham House  

                                                                   PHOTO: David Dixon

The Royal Family traditionally spends Christmas and New Year at Sandringham House, the Queen's country estate in Norfolk, England.

8.  A

"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" contains the lyric ""Everyone dancing merrily in the good old-fashioned way."  The song was written by Johnny Marx, who also wrote "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "A Holly Jolly Christmasr."  It was recorded by Brenda Lee in 1958 and became a huge hit.

9.  D

Feliz Navidad means Merry Christmas in Spanish.

10.  E

Jose Feliciano, a Puerto Rican musician, had a Christmas hit with the song with "Feliz Navidad."

- Joanne

COVID testing doesn't belong in pharmacies

 Our local drug store is an important part of our daily lives. It's a place where your parents or grandparents get their medications, where you shop for a card or cosmetics—a place that’s supposed to make us feel safe.

It is NOT the place where anyone should be exposed to active cases of COVID-19. Symptomatic COVID testing is best accomplished in Health Unit organized, stand-alone locations.  COVID testing should certainly be accessible and widely available, but not at your neighbourhood Shoppers Drug Mart.

Pharmacy employees and pharmacy chains alike have spoken out against the Ford government's pharmacy testing scheme — citing concerns for their own health and the health of their customers.

If you agree with me, please let the Ontario government know that its pharmacy testing plan is not consistent with the advice of the province's health experts.  There's an provincial election in June of 2022, so let your voices be heard.  Click on the link below and sign a petition.

Stop Symptomatic COVID Testing at Ontario Pharmacies! | Leadnow.ca

- Joanne

Highway 413 should never be built. Here's why.

Doug Ford

If you care about the environment, then you should let the Ontario government know that you are opposed to their plan to build Highway 413.

Here are the facts.  Highway 413 will cost billions in taxpayer's money to build.  It will be both a financial and an environmental disaster for the province.  It will pave over the Greenbelt, contaminate waterways and destroy valuable farmland.  It will also ruin the treasured archeological sites of the Huron-Wendat people.  

This is not the kind of Ontario that puts people and the environment first, ahead of cars and wealthy developers.  It should also be noted that the proposed highway will save drivers about 30 seconds a trip.  Is that worth the destruction of the Greenbelt?

As Joni Mitchell sang, "Don't it always seem to go, you don't know what you've got 'til its gone.  They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.,"

Look how Toronto's view of Lake Ontario has been blocked by condominium after condominium surrounding the lake.  Don't let the Progressive? Conservative government of Ontario do the same to the Green Belt.

 Premier Doug Ford is trying to win the next Ontario election by appealing to the greed of some developers.  He is trying to woo drivers with the promise of new highways.  Don't let it happen.  Flood your MPPS with the message to stop Highway 413.  Ford may change his mind if  he thinks  Highway 413 will cost him the election next year.  It's the only way to reach him.

You can also donate money to launch a high-impact ad campaign to stop Highway 413 and protect our Green Belt.  Just click on the link below.

Chip in for a hard-hitting ad campaign to Stop Highway 413 | Leadnow.ca

Democracy is precious, so let your voice be heard.

- Joanne

What's really behind Tucker Carlson's comments about VP Kamala Harris?

Tucker Carlson

Tucker Carlson of Fox News has a large captive audience.  Unfortunately, his audience is influenced by his bigoted views.  Recently, Carlson made an outrageous comment about Vice President Kamala Harris.  He said that the vice president is "is not from this country" because she went to school in Canada.  Here are his exact words: "There's a lot we don't know about Kamala Harris.  Most people probably don't know she really grew up in Canada.  It's where she went to high school.  She's not from this country in that sense, or she's certainly also from Canada."

That's a real head scratcher.  Carlson's words sound nonsensical because many people are educated in other countries, including Carlson himself.  He told a Swiss magazine that he briefly attended attended a boarding school in school in Switzerland before he "got kicked out."

So, what 's the big deal about Kamala attending school in Canada?  If you scratch beneath the surface, there's a method to Tucker's madness.  Carlson's remarks were simply a dog whistle to his far right audience.  He knows very well that it doesn't matter one iota that Kamala spent some of her high school years in Montreal.  His only intention is to paint Harris as some kind of foreigner or "illegal alien."  Why?.  He can't come right out and say that she isn't a real American because she is of Black and Indian descent.  That would be showing his true racist colours.

Here are some background facts.  Kamala Harris is an American by birth.  She was born in Oakland California on October 20, 1964.     When she was 12, Kamala and her sister moved to Montreal, Quebec.  Kamala spent her middle school and high school years in Montreal because her mother, a biologist and cancer researcher, obtained a job at a hospital in that city.  In 1982, after high school, Kamala returned to the United States to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C..  After graduating from Howard, she returned to her roots in California to attend law school.  In 1990, she was admitted to the California Bar.  From 2004 to 2011, she served as District Attorney of San Francisco.  From 2011 to 2017, she served as Attorney General of California.  She was a U.S. Senator from California from 2017 until 2021.

Vice President Kamala Harris has spent a great deal more than the constitutionally required 14 years of her life in the United States.  The truth is that it's the colour of Kamala's skin, not her palace of birth or where she went to school, that matters more to Carlson and others on the far right of the political spectrum.  Donald Trump tried to use the same tactic to discredit former President Barack Obama.  His claims that Obama was not really born in Hawaii were proven to be completely false.  Trump initiated his "birther" theory because he couldn't say that Obama was a foreigner because he was Black.  He had to make his followers believe that Obama was really from Africa or Indonesia.  

A president or prime minister's place of birth should not be an issue anyway, as long as he or she is a citizen and resident of the country he or she wishes to serve.  Vice President Harris, like any politician, is fair game for reasonable criticism.  She should not have to take flack for where she attended high school.  That is sheer bigotry.

Tucker Carlson has unfairly attacked Kamala Harris in the past.  He has criticized her for her dating history and has repeatedly mispronounced her first name.  Would he have done any of those things if she were a white male?  Somehow, I don't think so.  Senator Ted Cruz, a white Republican, was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.  Has Tucker questioned his Americanism?

- Joanne