05 October 2020 - Plague Journal Day 206
Micah 6:8

Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is National Storytelling Day. What a great idea for a celebration. After all, everyone has a story to tell, whether it's one they make up or a true story.
Let me share a couple brief storytelling memories with you.

This was many years ago on a snowy winter Saturday evening. I had never heard "A Prairie Home Companion" before, but we somehow landed on it as we drove through the snow and heard Garrison Keillor telling a story about driving through the snow. (The gist was that it was snowing so hard that he opened his car door so he could see the tire tracks of the car ahead of him. Just as he realized that what he was seeing was his own front tire's track, into the ditch he went.) Well, I was entranced. I had always liked radio and stories, but this was total confirmation that radio really is the theater of the mind.

For many years I was a dedicated listener to the CBC Radio programme, The Vinyl Café, hosted by Stuart McLean. This was originally a music and story show that eventually moved into being live shows that were recorded all around the country (Canada, that is) and edited for broadcast. Frankly, Stuart's stories were even more entrancing to me, and I have many recordings of Vinyl Café broadcasts that are almost hard to listen to since Stuart's passing. I think his storytelling was part of what really encouraged me to go ahead and get some of my stories down on paper (or bits if you prefer the e-book mode of reading). I miss him and the whole Vinyl Café family.

Speaking of family, I think today is probably a day that my daughter-in-law-to-be will want to celebrate. It's National Kiss A Wrestler Day. Enjoy, kids!

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.