Author Archives: Peter Carter

A SKETCHY CHARACTER INDEED: Me, before cameras were invented. Here’s how old I am: When I dressed up as a hippie for a Hallowe’en, I didn’t even know what a hippie was. I was probably five, maybe six. The costume idea came from my older-by-15-years-or-so brother Tom. Believe it or not, the word “hippie” wasContinue reading “Where we bring back the True Meaning of Hallowe'en!”

DAD AND KISENYA:  (I copied this picture from the RedDeer Advocate website. I’d give the photographer credit butthere was none.) Four years ago, the following paragraph appeared in the Red Deer, Alberta, newspaper, The Advocate:  “He has undergone tongue reconstruction using arm and leg muscles, chemotherapy and radiation treatment. He had a second surgery toContinue reading “One man's recipe for 'Winning at Life'”

THAT SOUND YOU HEAR? It’s Johnny Cash rockin’ and rolling’ over in his grave. “I love you.” Though I had met Nancy for the first time just 10 minutes earlier, I went and told her I loved her. Last night. Twenty four hours ago. I’m fairly certain she didn’t hear me. She was busy rootingContinue reading “We have the tools, and we know the Benadryl”

HUB-A-DUB-DUB: If I ran the shop, I’d use the slogan ‘God is in the detailing.’ Maybe it’s because I’m the youngest of 10 and spoiled rotten, but whenever somebody asks me how I’m doin’, I believe they want to know the answer, so I tell them. (Doesn’t everybody?) And you never know what’s going toContinue reading “Breakfast Epiphanies, or, Why bacon fat is so good for you and delicious too”

FOR THE LOVE OF PETE:  The guy I was named after was a hard act to follow. This might sound weird, but there was a time when I thought that nothing would make my late mom Huena happier than if I died a martyr. I might have been, like, five, when I had those feelings,Continue reading “My mom's guide to making your kids behave”

My daughter Ev and I arrived home tired and happy yesterday after a five-day bike trip during which we visited much of the state of Michigan and saw all five Great Lakes: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior. I’d love to write a long story about why this was the best vacation a father couldContinue reading “5 Great Moments From A 5-Great-Lakes Odyssey”

Early last week, my wife Helena and I went to see a friend, Dave, in the hospital. (Dave’s not his real name, but what I’m about to tell you really happened.) PALLIATIVE-CARE JOKES, REALLY? Yup. Really. I was standing beside Dave’s bed; Helena was sitting at its foot. She commented on how high-tech the bedContinue reading “Howzzis for a baby-boomer pick-up line? "What's your top-10 palliative-care discs?"”

MEET OUR INSTRUCTOR:“Teachin’ Chong” On Tuesday, June 19, 2018, I spent about 10 minutes on stage in the John Candy Theatre, doing a stand-up comedy sketch. It was the culmination of a six-week course at the 2nd City Comedy School, led by our teacher–a woman named Precious Chong, herself a stand-up and also the proudContinue reading “Q&A with a retired stand-up comic”

BY GEORGE WARNER’s protest paintings is exactly where I found myself There is a big art show going on right now in a gallery that Google says is a 15-minute walk from my house. According to a beautifully composed story by the Toronto Star visual-arts critic Murray Whyte in this morning’s paper, tickets to theContinue reading “Going out not with a whimper but with a Banksy”

“Dad!,” my daughter Ev said,  “You gotta do this.” That was two months ago. She’d just finished her seven-minute-and 44-second stand-up comedy routine at Second City, in downtown Toronto.  EV AT SECOND CITY: Her grandparents would be beaming. Ev had taken a six-week course (three hours a week) after which  the students climbed on stageContinue reading “10 reasons I'm a stand-up guy”