IMAGE COURTESY IMDB.COM This Halloween, we’re living through a pandemic that we’ve only ever seen before on screen. While it may mean a deficit of tricks and/or treats, there is one silver lining – it’s a perfect excuse to cozy up on the couch and watch some of the finest, spookiest films. Get your popcorn ready, because this week we look at the best in the horror-comedy genre. Horror and comedy. Frights and laughs. While at first glance they may seem complete opposites, upon closer look they share a similar bond. Both are designed to get us out of our comfort zone and subvert our expectations. At times, the set-up to both scenarios may feel similar, with horror simply missing the comedic pu
PHOTO COURTESY SHUTTERSTOCK A small owl, the Northern Saw-Whet owl that hunts at night for mice, is fairly common but seldom seen. This season I’ve often walked the Taylor-Bradbury (also known as Dwyer) trail in Hudson. On a recent visit, there were not many birds to see. Among those I saw, few were cooperative: they would not agree to sit somewhere visible. They went darting through the foliage, demonstrating all too well their ability to disappear in a twinkling. Small birds are difficult. They process visual and aural information twice as fast as humans, their hearts beat ten times faster, they live life in a faster lane. Between thinking “gotta go” and being gone, there’s no gap. During
Op-Ed Marie-Claude Nichols MNA for Vaudreuil PHOTO COURTESY THE OFFICE OF MARIE-CLAUDE NICHOLS Liberal MNA Marie-Claude Nichols is questioning how the proposed new Vaudreuil-Soulanges Hospital will reportedly be built more quickly under the claims of the CAQ government. The CAQ must explain how it will accelerate the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Hospital project On September 26, the CAQ member for the riding of Soulanges, Marilyne Picard, announced in a press release that several projects in the Vaudreuil-Soulanges region would be completed faster than expected thanks to Bill 66 introduced by her government. Among the projects cited was the Vaudreuil-Soulanges hospital, an infrastructure announced by
‘An enjoyable paper, as usual’ Dear Editor, It was a beautiful front page photo on last week’s copy of The Journal and an enjoyable newspaper, as usual. Cheers, Ian Grant Hudson
Proud of work done by APPELE-Quebec and its allies Dear Editor, In the October 8 edition of The Journal, letter writer Chris Eustace accused me of hypocrisy. His claim is completely unfounded and I feel compelled to reply to his letter. Mr. Eustace is not a fan of school boards. He is entitled to his opinion. But I am entitled to mine as well. When the Liberal government of Premier Philippe Couillard introduced Bill 86, designed to abolish school boards, I was a member of Cabinet and of the Liberal caucus. I took an oath not to reveal the nature of those discussions. However, I would like to inform your readers that the principles I am now defending as part of APPELE-Quebec, a broad coalitio
Objections from the ‘locals’ Dear Editor, Along with the huge population growth in Vaudreuil-Dorion, one of the highest in Canada, comes an increase in members of diverse communities such as the Islamic one. Seeking a larger place to worship they are looking at the long defunct Sunny's Resto Bar on Chemin Saint-Antoine. Again, as was the case when there was the plan to add a Muslim section to the nearby Catholic cemetery, there are strong objections from the ‘locals.’ I know that semi-rural area well. It was along my commute-to-work route for decades. There are, in fact, few residences nearby; none within a stone's throw for certain. Heck, perhaps only a half dozen houses are within a rifle
Negative message Dear Editor, Most of us, the inhabitants of Pincourt, want to keep our quality of life and our green spaces. We do not agree with how the city administration presents the situation with the Rousseau Forest. It is certainly necessary to increase the taxes to be able to pay for the land to the developers who had already bought it, but the city predicts things in very negative ways in its message. It is just pushing the tax increase to make people back down and reject it. The City of Pincourt should say, “We are going to recover this forest, enhance it, make wooden trails to protect wetlands and we are going to offer Pincourt a beautiful municipal natural park. It will cost m
PHOTO COURTESY ANIMATCH This cute little male Lhasa-Apso, about 1 ½ years of age, was an unclaimed stray who was picked up by Animal Control and then transferred to Animatch. He was unsocialized and unpredictable. Tibet has now spent some time at École de Formation Intervenants canins du Québec, where he found people he could trust and who would spend the time he needed with him. He's looking for an adult family who will commit to him for life, seeing that he gets daily exercise and good food. He is indifferent to other dogs and would probably do better as your one and only. If you have the patience, time and commitment to devote to him, fill out the form and ask for Tibet. For more informat
PHOTO COURTESY CASCA Our gorgeous Kirk is a quiet cat who can be nervous so ideally he is adopted in calm family without young children. He really enjoys his toys such as the fishing rod with a stuffed fish attached. He also likes the ball attached by a string to a stick. He enjoys being on top of his cat tree or on a window ledge while chatting with the birds and squirrels outside. He enjoys his food and loves ‘Temptation’ treats. He comes to cuddle and purrs and licks us when we are petting him but sometimes he becomes overexcited and can gently bite. He never hurts us and is not aggressive at all. He is a long haired cat and needs to be brushed. He is not overly fond of being brushed but
PHOTO COURTESY TAMMY KEATLEY Long-time Hudson resident Dorothy (Doris) Blaise celebrated her 102nd birthday October 8. This lovely lady maintains her independence living at Manoir Cavagnal and, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, played accordion once a month at the Hudson Legion Branch 115 suppers. All the best to you Doris!
PHOTO COURTESY ROD HODGSON Eleven new small plaques were installed on the posts around Place Vimy this week and the area is looking absolutely beautiful with the poppies growing up around the red mums. First of all a very special Happy Birthday goes out to our dear member Dorothy Blaise who celebrated her 102nd birthday October 8. Dorothy (also known as Doris) makes up part of the Legion Junior Orchestra that also includes Uncle Phil Gale and Mack Grundy. She plays the accordion. All the best Dorothy. The birdfeeders at the Palliative Care residence continue to give much enjoyment to the patients. A request is going out again to all those who have in the past been dropping off birdseed to f
PHOTO BY JOHN JANTAK (Left to right): Ash Lowenthal, Denise Goudreau, Carole Reed and Shelagh McNally maintain that preservation of the wooded area will benefit all Pincourt residents and the burden of its purchase shouldn’t be disproportionately delegated to a small segment of the population. Members of the environmental group Pincourt Vert have expressed their concerns about the city’s plans to hold a mail-in and online public consultation process regarding the fate of Rousseau Forest saying that the preservation of the wetlands will benefit the entire city – not just those who live adjacent to or near the forest. Residents who live on the streets that border the forest received special no
PHOTO BY JUSTIN MASSAM Très-Saint-Rédempteur resident Katherine Massam is part of a group of 170 citizens from across the two regional MRCs of Vaudreuil-Soulanges and Beauharnois-Salaberry who have put the pandemic isolation period to good use by drafting a series of proposals to various levels of government to improve our quality of life. The proposals were delivered October 13 to area mayors, MRC Prefects, MNAs, and Members of Parliament including the office of MP Peter Schiefke (above). The global pandemic has given us daily bad news – from deaths, to increased case counts, to seemingly never-ending shifts in what activities are and aren’t allowed as we struggle to balance minimizing risk
THE JOURNAL FILE PHOTO/JOHN JANTAK Saint-Lazare council was questioned as to whether Director General Serge Tremblay (pictured), who has been off work on sick leave since last spring, has launched legal action to which the response was a firm ‘no.’ Saint-Lazare resident Richard Meades asked pointed questions about whether there are any legal claims against the city and whether Director General Serge Tremblay – who has been on sick leave since the spring – has taken legal action against the city. He also asked whether council is under investigation by the Ministry of Provincial Affairs. The questions were posed during the first question period of the monthly council meeting which was closed t
THE JOURNAL FILE PHOTO/JOHN JANTAK Following a register in which residents voted against allowing a new mosque to be built at the former Sunny’s Resto Bar & Grill location in Vaudreuil-Dorion, the matter will now be decided by referendum. Vaudreuil-Dorion residents who live in an area where a new mosque is planned will be able to officially vote for or against the project in a referendum that will be held by the city to determine whether the project will proceed or be scrapped. The register to hold a referendum was held last Thursday and garnered 157 signatures. Democratic process “I’m not surprised but like I told a lot of people it’s part of the democratic process,” Mayor Guy Pilon told Th
PHOTO COURTESY THE OFFICE OF PETER SCHIEFKE With the recent end of the CERB program, Vaudreuil-Soulanges MP Peter Schiefke is informing residents of new assistance programs released by the federal government. Dear members of our community of Vaudreuil-Soulanges, I hope you and your family are in good health. Earlier this week, we officially entered the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Government of Quebec designated much of our community as red, the highest alert level. As a result, we will face more restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19. I am aware that this situation may cause you anxiety or worry and that is why I wanted to take a moment to update you on the many Federa
More signs of frustration Dear Editor, Concerning Nick Zacharias’ article in the September 24 copy of The Journal titled ‘Signs of frustration,’ I don't think frustration is the correct word… more worried, or concerned. The Hudson people have been around here for years and are seeing changes they don't like. The posters are the reaction of some people to the changes happening here in Hudson. I am sorry we moved here two years ago. Recently I read about the local corruption, the pocketing of money by the city hall treasurer, a million dollars and her jail term. A few years ago our house was built by a sole builder with a permit from the city. When we asked the city for more information about
Why QESBA must go Dear Editor, Twice acclaimed school commissioner Danny Olivenstein doesn't like to read too much. This became apparent in his letter ‘QESBA is not a 'menace',’ (The Journal, October 1). Actually, it helped boost the thrust made in my letter of September 24, ‘QESBA is a menace to educational reform and should be ditched.’ I was reminded of an article in the Globe & Mail, April 23, 2017, ‘The jig is up for Canada's school boards.’ Of all the school boards in Canada, “the English-language Lester B. Pearson School Board in suburban Montreal,” was singled out. “...they, too, have been plagued by the same apparent inability of grown adults to act their age.” The story was about
IMAGE COURTESY IMDB.COM Title: RBG (2018) Directed: Julie Cohen & Betsy West Genre: Documentary Available on Hoopla, Crave Scores: 71% Metacritic, 7.6 IMDb Review: Somehow, simply saying that we lost an icon last week is an understatement. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 2nd female Supreme Court Justice in American history, had died at the age of 87. The unfortunate timing of her passing (which is the closest to an election that a court vacancy has opened in history) has muffled the deserved plaudits and eulogies she had more than earned. For a proper in memoriam it is only fitting to return to the recent 2018 documentary, simply titled RBG. The documentary itself is nothing ground-breaking. It follows
PHOTO COURTESY SHUTTERSTOCK Do you or someone you know suffer from fibromyalgia? Join us for a free webinar conference offered by the Montérégie West Community Network (MWCN) on Tuesday, October 13, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. held via Zoom. Contact Lorie Marcotte at (514) 425-0399 or lmarcottemwcn@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link. Speakers from the Association de fibromyalgie et du syndrome de fatigue chronique de Vaudreuil-Soulanges (AFSFC-VS) will be Chantal Bergeron, coordinator, and Anna Maria Westcott, RN and board member. They will discuss the symptoms, diagnostic, causes, reactions, treatments, daily impact and will finish with a question period.