My Family

"True friendship and love are synomonous." - Me Family is the best sort of friend, they seldom turn you out.

My family consists of my Dad, Mom and younger sister. This seems to be something which is becoming more uncommon in my society. The fact that I don't list a step-mother, three half brothers and a couple of other relations for which no name has yet been determined, may seem out of place to many people today. Sorry to disappoint but my family follows the whole Leave It To Beaver image of a nuclear family of four.

My father was raised in Stratford, Ontario. On visits to that city, he often talks about smashing chestnuts in the park with friends or selling hot coffee to the patron of the Stratford Festival as a kid. I used to visit there often as a child to visit my grandmother. Sadly, she passed away the same year I began university in Waterloo.

My mother fell significantly closer to the tree, so to speak. From my parent's front window I can look down the road to see the farm house my mother was raised in. She still helps out my grandfather on the farm, though there is less there to do in recent years.

My sister is the wild child of the family. Now attending collage at Mohawk Collage in Hamilton, she loves the city life. When she graduates from her program, don't be surprised if the voice you hear on the radio is her.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention my cat who, regardless of what he may think, is merely an adopted part of the family. Zeus remains the same now as the day I picked him out of the litter of barn cats on my grandfathers farm. Only bigger. About fourteen pounds bigger to be precise. Long black and white fur and paws so big that, even at five years old, he still trips over them walking sometimes. Zeus is the latest in a long line of household cats which includes, in order: Ding Bat, Misty, Ding Bat the Second, Growltiger, Rumpleteaser, Zowie and finally Zeus. Regrettably, with Zeus' death in the fall of 1999, that line is, for now, at an end.