Begin Again
by Roger Klein
Spring is officially here, marked by the moment the sun rebounds from the Tropic of Capricorn and arrives overhead at the Equator.
Warming, melting, changing the state of water and releasing the juices of life across the landscape. The seasonal shift is just one of the flukes of this cosmic “Goldilocks Zone” we call home. Watching the incremental unraveling of winter re-energizes the soul.
Chickadees are the first winter residents to read the cues, replacing their tune from chickadee-dee-dee with fee-bee, fee-bee, the two-toned whistle descending in pitch. In musical terms, a minor third.
Then the great migrations begin. Navigating by the stars and geomagnetic fields, billions of birds travel thousands of kilometres, returning to their nesting grounds here and farther north. If you listen, you can hear the tundra swan’s wings pushing against the air as they pass overhead, bonded pairs calling to each other saying, “I’m here, I’m here.” At the same time, silent and practically invisible, numerous species of fish move from Georgian Bay into local rivers and streams that are bulging with the spring freshet, their own migration fuelled by nature’s call to reproduce. Somehow they find their way back to the same gravelly riverbed where they first came to life.
It’s not just birds and fish that are migrating. A growing number of people are rethinking their priorities and heading north. “Priced Out” is our feature on how the human migration is impacting the affordability of housing.
With each day as the sun continues on its path northward, tubers, corms, bulbs, and rhizomes regrow through the flattened litter on the forest floor to fill the woods with ephemeral blossoms. Take a deep breath with your olfactory cortex fully engaged and rejoice as the tree leaves re-emerge and the smell of balsam poplar fills the air—a scene depicted in a painting by our featured artist Debra Lynn Carroll.
In this period of renewal, there’s an opportunity to reinvent ourselves again. Perhaps spring has a greater impact on our state of mind than we realize? What better time to reflect on where we’ve been and where we’re going. In one of our features, we explore six models of behaviour and personality that play a role in influencing what people do as they retire and rediscover their inner ninja. Which one are you?
Meet supermodel Monika Schnarre as she reimagines a new life here in Collingwood. In our Q&A, get to know the “Mountain Maker” Rob Sheridan, the man behind the machinery at Blue Mountain Resort.
Within these pages you will also find a warm-hearted guru who offers tips for planting your own secret garden, a mama warrior who stirs up elixirs, and some food for thought on tongue weight while towing your boat this summer. It’s all here, along with a look back in time at the two men who decided to make something out of the “Mountain Mud.”
As the days grow longer, our crew of contributors will endeavour to meet more of the people who make this such an amazing place to live, work, and play. We are also working on new ways to share their stories. A new digital presence called Bay Watch is joining forces with On the Bay magazine, BlogTO, and The New Classical 102.9 FM. Download the Bay Watch app from Google Play or the App Store.
Surf’s up. I’ll see you out there, On The Bay.
Roger Klein
Chief of Content,
On The Bay
by David Loopstra
As Roger aptly points out, we’ve been busy here. On the magazine side, we’re focused on growth—this is On The Bay’s largest issue to date. We have also increased our print run to 22,000 copies and are distributing these extra copies to our neighbouring municipalities, and to select Toronto readers whose behaviour illustrates that they are poised to invest in our region.
On the radio side, our listenership continues to increase, and we’ve recently launched a campaign encouraging workplaces to play the soothing sounds of ClassicalFM, hosted on weekdays by Southern Georgian Bay’s very own world-renowned piano virtuoso Daniel Vnukowski.
With the good news of growth however comes corporate responsibility. For us, we print magazines. It is indeed an ecological footprint—a bit of a paradox especially as we promote local environmental issues—so it’s important to be honest about it.
First, let’s talk about community. We print at RBW Graphics Transcontinental in Owen Sound, a plant that provides livable wages (salaries) to over 400 local employees. Second, our paper is sourced from sustainable practices—not from clear-cutting or old-growth forests—which mainly utilize the fast-growing poplar tree.
The pulp used to make paper comes from cut-offs from the lumber industry. There’s the question of chemicals and ink. This is true, but the suppliers we’ve sourced comply with the strictest containment policies. I’m not rose-colouring this. Magazines have an impact; so does technology—which requires mining, and also produces waste.
How often do you replace your phone or tablet? In short, everything has an impact (our staff here at On The Bay has pledged to offset our footprint by committing to eradicate litter from two of our region’s natural areas this summer). I like the idea of presenting content on a tactile object that’s not a screen—our mental health depends on breaks from our screens. Tactile magazines bring the community together; conversely, I’ve seen many issues-based Facebook groups divide the community as of late. Magazines provide a more curated, positive and meaningful format.
You can’t leave a comment in a thread below, but you can indeed email a good old fashioned letter to the Editor. At the very least, please recycle this copy when you are done with it.
Cheers,
David Loopstra
Publisher,
On The Bay
