Gravenhurst and me – I just want to write
There was a time when I couldn’t remain uninvolved despite the most dire warnings from my wife, my kids and my friends…… that I was about to get sucked up into some vortex, a condition of non-dimensional rural mind-melt if I joined the latest community initiative I entered most of the region’s contentious debates and never let a bygone be a bygone without my initials sharply imprinted somewhere within. Even now when I sit back and let yet another nasty issue go by without getting involved, I think of myself as a craven coward. Yet there is a time in every muckraker’s life that it becomes necessary to look at the bigger picture of life fulfilled. I just can’t function as part of a committee or protest group these days without getting furious with the array of personal agendas that pop up at the worst possible times. I’ve found committees to have more inherent problems with conflicts of interest and associated personal ambitions, than with the target mission which becomes a smaller issue of concern, once all the gratifications of committee members are pocketed…… prior to even a modest effort forward to deal with the contentious issue at hand.
I get asked to join at least two action committees a year now which is down from the dozen or so I was recruited to serve on, back in my kick-arse columnist days for the local press. I’ve got pretty good at turning down such positions today because I’m not hesitant whatsoever asking about some inconsistencies I’ve found with their subject group, members and mission statement. They usually drop me as a political “hot potato” shortly after I begin asking sensitive questions. The committee seeking transparency of government is often just as evasive and shadowy about their conduct as the group they are trying to reform. So I find it’s better to be a consciencious-objector these days and stick to the power of the pen….or in this case keyboard, to make present my point of view.
As a long-serving historian in this region I have never subscribed to the “good time was had by all” crap offered up by some contemporaries, who would rather leave real history alone in favor of a nicely shined-up version, that seems to have experienced no real strife from then, our founding to the present. I’ve been asked to attend a number of events that were being promoted by these revisionists, some who claim to be full ranking historians. Undoubtedly they wish me to be there boast yet another speaking gig to a guy on the “outs” with nary a speaking engagement in sight. First of all I don’t have much in common with most of the self-proclaimed historical types these days and as far as sitting listening to them spout off about “history as they see it,” I’d rather sit here at Birch Hollow and pen actuality than fiction.
I’m disgusted by many of the fly-by-nighters who pen the volumes of tripe these days about “the way we were,” without any reverence to the critical approach of historical research. There is relatively little counter point used, and they routinely side with the source most verbose on the subject, in total disregard for “what is accurate,” and not just “a good story.” I have never witnessed so much baloney in print about the Muskoka I know from decades of research. I don’t read much published locally any more because I get too mad about the liberties with what I take so seriously…..the record of the past. Apparently it’s in vogue to be called an “historian,” these days…., however, I never once felt that my task at research had any “vogue” value whatsoever…..it was about as generic an operation as you could inspire from the historically inclined.
Every year I get the opportunity to work with university students and some family historians who are genuinely interested in pure, un-tampered-with heritage, who don’t care a lick about color commentary, or popular presentation but instead want to know the truth as it effected the region and its humanity.
As a long time writer working in this region, I will only offer my writing services for publications out of the region because frankly I don’t have much use for the editorship or leadership generally of the local press. Unless of course, one day some enlightened newspaper type agrees the local press should have a columnist who brushes his teeth every morning with “critical approach,” and sees great danger in complacent thought.
And then there is “The blog!” I adore this opportunity to write without the intrusive hot air of the publisher blowing down my neck……telling me in no uncertain terms…..”you can’t write that…..you’ll offend an advertiser…..you’ll offend a club member, church goer, candlestick maker!”
Yup, I like it pretty much here with this endless horizon I see from Birch Hollow. It just makes you want to write. Thanks for joining me for this most recent blog entry.
There was a time when I couldn’t remain uninvolved despite the most dire warnings from my wife, my kids and my friends…… that I was about to get sucked up into some vortex, a condition of non-dimensional rural mind-melt if I joined the latest community initiative I entered most of the region’s contentious debates and never let a bygone be a bygone without my initials sharply imprinted somewhere within. Even now when I sit back and let yet another nasty issue go by without getting involved, I think of myself as a craven coward. Yet there is a time in every muckraker’s life that it becomes necessary to look at the bigger picture of life fulfilled. I just can’t function as part of a committee or protest group these days without getting furious with the array of personal agendas that pop up at the worst possible times. I’ve found committees to have more inherent problems with conflicts of interest and associated personal ambitions, than with the target mission which becomes a smaller issue of concern, once all the gratifications of committee members are pocketed…… prior to even a modest effort forward to deal with the contentious issue at hand.
I get asked to join at least two action committees a year now which is down from the dozen or so I was recruited to serve on, back in my kick-arse columnist days for the local press. I’ve got pretty good at turning down such positions today because I’m not hesitant whatsoever asking about some inconsistencies I’ve found with their subject group, members and mission statement. They usually drop me as a political “hot potato” shortly after I begin asking sensitive questions. The committee seeking transparency of government is often just as evasive and shadowy about their conduct as the group they are trying to reform. So I find it’s better to be a consciencious-objector these days and stick to the power of the pen….or in this case keyboard, to make present my point of view.
As a long-serving historian in this region I have never subscribed to the “good time was had by all” crap offered up by some contemporaries, who would rather leave real history alone in favor of a nicely shined-up version, that seems to have experienced no real strife from then, our founding to the present. I’ve been asked to attend a number of events that were being promoted by these revisionists, some who claim to be full ranking historians. Undoubtedly they wish me to be there boast yet another speaking gig to a guy on the “outs” with nary a speaking engagement in sight. First of all I don’t have much in common with most of the self-proclaimed historical types these days and as far as sitting listening to them spout off about “history as they see it,” I’d rather sit here at Birch Hollow and pen actuality than fiction.
I’m disgusted by many of the fly-by-nighters who pen the volumes of tripe these days about “the way we were,” without any reverence to the critical approach of historical research. There is relatively little counter point used, and they routinely side with the source most verbose on the subject, in total disregard for “what is accurate,” and not just “a good story.” I have never witnessed so much baloney in print about the Muskoka I know from decades of research. I don’t read much published locally any more because I get too mad about the liberties with what I take so seriously…..the record of the past. Apparently it’s in vogue to be called an “historian,” these days…., however, I never once felt that my task at research had any “vogue” value whatsoever…..it was about as generic an operation as you could inspire from the historically inclined.
Every year I get the opportunity to work with university students and some family historians who are genuinely interested in pure, un-tampered-with heritage, who don’t care a lick about color commentary, or popular presentation but instead want to know the truth as it effected the region and its humanity.
As a long time writer working in this region, I will only offer my writing services for publications out of the region because frankly I don’t have much use for the editorship or leadership generally of the local press. Unless of course, one day some enlightened newspaper type agrees the local press should have a columnist who brushes his teeth every morning with “critical approach,” and sees great danger in complacent thought.
And then there is “The blog!” I adore this opportunity to write without the intrusive hot air of the publisher blowing down my neck……telling me in no uncertain terms…..”you can’t write that…..you’ll offend an advertiser…..you’ll offend a club member, church goer, candlestick maker!”
Yup, I like it pretty much here with this endless horizon I see from Birch Hollow. It just makes you want to write. Thanks for joining me for this most recent blog entry.
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