This month Helmut Erxleben reports on The Dream of the Celt by Mario Vargas Llosa.  “If someone had asked me who Roger Casement was before I read this book, I would have answered with a shrug.  Roger Casement made news in the early part of the 20th century when he exposed the corrupt and inhuman practices by the colonial powers during the extraction of rubber from the jungles of theBelgian Congo and the Amazon.  His reports shocked the world with the details of the unimaginable suffering of the indigenous population to harvest the ‘Black Gold’.  In 1911 he was knighted by the British Crown for his efforts.  This did not deter Casement, who was born in Dublin, to involve himself more and more in the struggle to freeIreland from British rule. His contacts with the enemy during the war were seen as treason and he was subsequently hanged in 1916 by the British. The book was published in Spanish in 2010, the same year that Llosa was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.  The OPL has the 2012 English translation.”

Harold Erlendson, our movie critic, reports on To Rome with Love “If you enjoyed Midnight in Paris, you will enjoy this movie. Both were written and directed by Woody Allen. It is a collection of stories with no commonality except that they all take place inRome. The stories are about love and relationships. As in all farces, the characters are exaggerated who become involved in highly unlikely situations. My favorite character is a mortician who is a gifted tenor (played by Fabio Armiliato) who can only sing well while showering. He actually does sing “Pagliacci” on the opera stage while he is showering and gets a standing ovation. The movie is unabashedly sweet and I was caught up in the music and the golden city ofRome. It ends with a scene on the Spanish Steps and a huge band playing “That’s Amore”. While it is well acted and filmed it is unlikely to win an Oscar for best film, but both Theresa and I loved it.

Gordon Cunningham recently received a Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal to add to his impressive collection of medals. Congrats Gord . . .  Al Histed called us from his residence in Post Inn Village. Al is as bright as ever and would welcome visitors. Mike Purcell visits residents at Trafalgar Lodge, a volunteer job he has had for the past year. Mike says he and wife Verna have had no problem drawing out residents in interesting conversations. A perfect couple for the job . . . Frank Petrie and his wife Peggy have added to the pleasure of lakefront residents in Bronte. Several years ago they began spreading hollyhock seeds along the waterfront. Each year the beautiful flower display increases. A simple job, a great result . . .  Gunther Lutz stopped off in Hamburg on his way back from a Baltic cruise to see the largest model railroad display in the world. He was very impressed.

The Membership Committee is happy to report that almost 70% of the members paid their annual dues well ahead of the August due date which made our treasurer very happy.  If you still owe the annual amount of $40, please bring a cheque to the August 16th meeting or mail it directly to

Jim Tonner,2294 Woodfield Road,Oakville,L6H 6Y7. Make the cheque payable to the Probus Club of Oakville.

During these last few months we have had about a 55 – 60 members at meetings.  We currently have 100 members in the club so this means that there are a lot of members who have missed some great speakers to say nothing of the coffee, Timbits and the company of 55 friends.  In August another great speaker, Doug Porter, Deputy Chief Economist from BMO, will talk about the economic outlook.  Bring your friends and neighbours to hear what Doug has to say.

PLEASANT EXPERIENCES

Members are invited to offer brief write-ups on good movies, shows, restaurants or trips that they have enjoyed.

Jim Smith recently visited Jac’s an Italian restaurant on Kerr St. He reports the food was good and the price was reasonable.

Grant and Carol Gooding have just returned from a river cruise on the Rhine and Danube. It was run by Viking cruise Lines, the largest river cruise operator. Grant reports “They have cruises all over the world. They know what they are doing and satisfy their clientele. The food was excellent, as was the service. The cruise visited 6 countries, and 17 cities. Tours were included with local guides, who really knew their cities. The boat ties up at a wharf that is usually near the centre of town. You see spectacular scenery from the boat, especially the castles on the Rhine. The boat carries about 120 customers, and over 100 were Americans”.

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