NOTE TO ALL READERS: BEGINNING FRIDAY APRIL 18,2014 YOU CAN NOW ACCESS MY BLOGS DIRECTLY ON MY NEW WEB PAGE AT: www.tonyat10.com

THE MESSAGE:

What does it mean to call someone 'Friend'? It seems to me that there exists an obvious distinction between the words friend and acquaintance.

As a young lad, growing up within a large city, there were few opportunities for developing friendships. Parents and older siblings were ever busy with work which left little time for family interaction.

My mom, at sixteen, and dad, in his early twenties, came to Canada as young, uneducated, Italian immigrants. They worked at various menial jobs before they met and married. Eventually my parents were fortunate to find an opportunity to acquire and manage a retail grocery business. They toiled from six AM to ten PM six days each week in order to make the enterprise a successful one.

Living above the store on Yonge Street, there were no houses with neighbourhood kids to play with. I found myself happy at school but somewhat lonely at home.

Eventually they sold the store and we moved into a residential area with other children. It was here that I remember developing my first real friendship. That bliss proved to be short-lived however, as the 'urge to be productive and in charge' returned once again to my parents.

Dad expanded his talents into the areas of real estate and construction. He bought land on Avenue road north of Lawrence and proceeded to build six store fronts with apartments above them.

He opened another grocery business in one of the stores and we moved into the apartment above. The old lifestyle returned in a rush. Once again I was restricted from leaving the property which consisted of a gravelled back driveway and a concrete block garage wall against which I played catch.

Having made great and honest strides in their business efforts, it was decided that they should finally retire to a large house and property in Willowdale, a residential development north of the city. Young Tony was eleven years old when the family moved again.

At this point I had attended four Catholic elementary schools and lived in four different residences. Thinking back, I am fortunate enough to remember my two best friends up to this point in my brief history. Both of them were female, lots of fun, unselfish and loyal. Their names were Joyce and Patricia. I honestly cannot remember much about their physical appearance but they were trusted souls and I loved them dearly. I cried when I had to say goodbye to Joyce and was never lucky enough to ever see her again. I did run into Patricia once at a high school dance but by then I was a self-perceived cool dude looking for bigger things.

I spent one more year at my fifth elementary school and once again discovered a life filled with many close friends. After school hours and weekends were spent at a local baseball/football facility playing pick up games that often made all of us late for supper.

High school was a time for sports and good friends. Ted, Glenn, David, Mike and Jim will always survive in my memories of 'good times' at De La Salle. As I write this, two of them, David and Jim have passed away and a third has suffered a somewhat debilitating stroke. The good times we enjoyed as friends will always be treasured but were all too brief.

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My years as an undergraduate at St Michael's College of the University of Toronto opened up a brand new, if not brave new, world for me. Friends became more important than studies. Glenn the Ugliest G-man, Dennis the Creemore Quacker, Peter the Great Bird of Prey, Johnny McSnag, Michael the Casman, Coach Atkins and brother Darcy, Peter Marble Mouth, Bear Bellmore, Gerrard the dragon, Georgie Bob Smith, Don the exterminator Schmidt and brother Ted, Pork Chop Sharpe, the Dude Bain, Hot Head McLean, Regan the Philosopher, Lady Lisko, Bobby Larkin and the Speyer and Snowden brothers all provided me with many laughs, stories, lessons and solid memories.

MY DEAREST FRIEND
Thus began a new chapter in my life, graduation, marriage and a job. In retrospect this era had in many ways become my second childhood. I had spent the first one preoccupied with being accepted by others and seeking their approval. I believe that same preoccupation dogged me for much of my adult life as husband, father, teacher and coach. It was through the love and support of my truest and dearest friend, Ann Marie, that I eventually matured enough to understand that one only needs to be honest and take responsibility for oneself in order to be a good person worthy of being called friend.

THE LADS:
Each year, some of the SMC boys from U of T still gather for their golf, bocce, wine, and scotch-filled weekend. The tales told are never ending, the BS is spread liberally and the fun and carping is constant. Cheers to Ed, His Majesty and the Herolded one, Good friends are never forgotten true spirits never fade. God blessed good people!

A GIFTED FRIEND

One of the lads, pictured above and below, with his prominent wattle and grey beard, has taken to writing novels. he recently had one of his novels published. following is my endorsement of this excellent read.

THE BOOK IS NOW AVAILABE AT AMAZON.COM.

The Bard of Bowell Paperback – March 28, 2014

by W. P. Peart (Author)

THE BARD OF BOWELL..........."ALL O BARD!"

Following the exploits of Henry Millar, the protagonist, I was constantly reminded of his resemblance to the author himself. The Bard of Bowell is a well-written and enjoyable experience that teaches much about Shakespeare and his admiration for strong women. The irony here is that the feminist leaders of a small University, in the Women's Studies Program, are incapable of understanding or demonstrating which characteristics of woman truly define strength. Henry manages to prevail in his efforts to introduce to his students progressive thinking and an appreciation of reality in the face of misperception. A cadre of small-minded, left wing plaintiffs challenges Henry. He draws on the unconditional love and strength of his wife Nora and a minority of people associated with the University led by Zeke. Henry finds comfort and support in the person of a long-time friend and legal genius Seamus. This novel is an excellent read and is medicine for the soul of independent thinkers everywhere.

THE QUESTION: