Monday, December 15, 2025

1965 Compartment - Gunpowder, Rockets and Fire ... Oh My!

 

The street view gave a rustic impression 

of a poorly maintained old stucco house on a hill 

in the center of a large yard  

lined with maple trees and bushes, 

surrounded by a rusty old fence 

that was used to keep two large dogs, 

a St. Bernard and a German Shepherd, 

within the confines.

Both dogs were mean,

with a history of abuse from former owners.

Upon arrival at the Steinberg house, 

both strangers and friends 

were escorted through the yard by a family member, 

to avoid a dog attack. 

All was well once the dogs sensed there was 

no threat from a new visitor. 

Though we were regular guests, 

the canine hostility always greeted us 

as if we were strangers. 

We grew accustomed to the hostile receptions.


During the summer holidays of 1965 

we frequented Mac Steinberg's above-ground swimming pool, 

situated in the back corner of the yard.

One had to climb an attached 

aluminum ladder to get into the pool, 

with a depth of four feet along the sides and five feet at the center. 

The water was cold and clear with a strong chlorine odour, 

an artificial turquoise blue, highly unsuitable for fish. 


Mac had a dark complexion, dark hair, 

and a wide, hooked nose between droopy eyes. 

He always appeared tired.

It was a facial characteristic that got him a lot of abuse 

from teachers at school, 

which they interpreted as ineptness, boredom 

or just a general lack of enthusiasm. 

He was our unofficial ring-leader 

though we were never particularly looking for one, 

and for better or worse, 

we eleven-year-old boys often went along with his schemes. 

It was his idea for us to buy flippers and underwater masks,  

which added a new dimension to our enjoyment of the swimming pool. 

The water was so clear that you could see across 

to the other side of the pool. 

An underwater peek-a-boo.


On occasional weekends, the Steinberg relatives 

would visit and take over the swimming pool. 

We would ogle when an aunt or niece in a two-piece bathing suit 

climbed down the ladder and submerged into the cold water. 

We thought we were using our water masks inconspicuously, 

but the women knew what our underwater maneuvers were all about.

Whenever the pool got too crowded, we'd find something else to do. 

Sometimes we would sit on the living room couch 

and watch whatever was on the rabbit-eared television. 


Like every household in the country, 

there were good and bad days at the Steinberg home. 

The Steinberg household had extreme highs and lows. 

Sometimes there was much laughter and merriment. 

Siegfried was a father with many interests outside of raising his family. 

He was a short (and short-tempered) stocky man 

with broad shoulders and powerful arms.

Mac's mother, Emma, was an excellent cook 

and often baked pastries in her messy kitchen. 

Wonderful aromas drifted through the house 

whenever Emma had something baking in the oven. 

She was a dark-haired woman with pale skin, 

hidden from the sun, 

a plump but not obese figure. 

She had a strong accent from her hometown of Vienna. 

She often asked the meaning of certain English words 

during conversations around the dining room table. 

Mac often ridiculed his mother's pronunciation of words. 

She would yell back at him in German, 

then state with annoyance, "Oh, Mac, he makes me sick." 

We thought Mac was often too harsh and disrespectful to his mother, 

and he usually got away with it if Siegfried wasn't around, 

but it was a different matter when his father was nearby. 

Siegfried had a volatile temper, and when triggered, 

all hell would break loose. 

Dinner conversations could go from cordial to nasty in a flash.

 

On several occasions, we witnessed Mac Steinberg

get a beating at the hands of his father.

These beatings were usually a result of Mac mouthing off 

or doing something stupid to run afoul of his parents, 

causing the house to explode like a high-octane combustion chamber.

One spark was all it took. 

Siegfried would strike Mac, 

and Mac would shield his face with his arms. 

When it was bad, Siegfried would use his belt to whip Mac. 

On those occasions, 

Mac would hide under the nearest furniture he could find. 

Mrs. Steinberg would yell, "Hit him again, Siegfried. Hit him again." 

They often yelled in German, 

but we understood the general meaning of what was being said.

The angry parents would invariably announce in our direction, 

in no uncertain terms, "You boys go home now." 

We would bolt out of the house lickety-split.  



The boom and bust, ecstatic highs or extreme lows, 

were the inherent characteristics of the Steinberg house. 

It was also how the Steinbergs' children were raised, 

either spoiled rotten or disciplined with an iron fist.

They were given lavish presents, sometimes randomly, 

but always on big occasions like birthdays and Christmas.

The gifts Mac received were mostly hobby-type items 

designed for young techy kids. 

He was seldom, if ever, given anything related to sports activities. 

His gifts seemed to reflect  Siegfried's interests as much as Mac's. 

Mac got a CB radio and a set of walkie-talkies one Christmas,

but he also got a beating that same Christmas Day, for mouthing off.

Each time Mac got a beating, it was always the same routine,  

"Hit him again, Siegfried. Hit him again." 

Every time we heard those words, we knew it was time for us to leave. 

Some of the beatings that Mac received made for stories worth repeating. 


One afternoon, we were at the Steinberg house 

while the parents were away. 

We were armed with plastic straws and a good supply of dried peas. 

Naturally, a pea-shooter fight broke out, 

and it soon became each kid for himself. 

The battles raged on all over the house. 

I had Dudley Wagner, the plump kid in our group, 

under siege in the back main floor bathroom 

from my position in the nearby linen closet.

Mac and Mitch Aitken were doing guerrilla warfare 

in the upstairs master bedroom. 

Mac was dug in behind the king-size bed, 

while Mitch was holed up in the ensuite, 

in danger of running out of ammo. 

Eventually, Dudley Wagner, Mac, and I ganged up on Mitch Aitken 

and overwhelmed him in the living room, 

where he was cornered behind a couch, 

dodging a bombardment of projectiles. 

He was being pelted from different directions 

and putting up a brave resistance 

when the front door suddenly opened. 

Uh-oh!

In walked Mrs. Steinberg with Siegfried trailing behind her. 

We instinctively hid our weapons, sat down in the living room, 

and assumed guilty facial expressions. 

It didn't take long for Mrs. Steinberg to start yelling,

"Look at this mess! 

Siegfried, look at this mess!" 

We heard Mac's parents roaming through the house in shock and anger. 

We knew we were in big trouble. 

Soon, Siegfried came storming into the living room and asked Mac, 

"Who made this mess?"

Mac replied, "Mitch had an accident." 

Siegfried paused momentarily, his temper building, 

then asked incredulously, 

"Do you mean to tell me that Mitch made an accident all over the house?" 

Mac had no time to reply as Siegfried's right hand darted out 

and struck him across the face. 

"Hit him again, Siegfried. Hit him again," 

Mrs. Steinberg yelled from the kitchen. 

Soon, the belt was whipping through the air, 

and Mac was under a table, shielding himself. 

Mrs. Steinberg stormed out into the living room 

and declared, "You boys go home now."

She didn't have to say it twice. 

We were gone in a flash while Mac was getting beaten. 

That was our pea-shooter adventure.


Another memorable beating took place  

when Mac found a few 8mm reels of adult films 

that Siegfried had stashed in a closet at their house. 

Mac invited a bunch of us grade five kids over to his house, 

one day after school, to view the films. 

It was a film festival occasion with us lads 

huddled into the basement of the Steinberg house. 

Initial delays were setting up the roll-down silver screen, 

on a flimsy aluminum tripod stand, 

and getting the projector gears fed with film. 

Some of the boys grew impatient 

until the lights went out and the first movie began to roll 

with the scratchy title of "Lusciously Beautiful." 

A blurry woman appeared in black & white 

while Mac figured out how to get the picture into focus. 

Soon we were all gazing at a slow-moving, seductive woman, 

who appeared old enough to be any one of our mothers. 

The room was silent except for the grinding sound 

of the gears in the projector. 

The film had no audible soundtrack, 

but it was a definite eye-opener for us boys 

from Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic school. 

Our undivided attention was consumed 

watching the woman on the screen disrobing to her undergarments 

and slowly swinging her bare breasts from side to side 

as she stared at us with a mischievous smile. 

The film came to an abrupt end, 

but it was a crowd pleaser.

The room was silent. 

We were eager for more. 

It took a while, but Mac eventually got the second film rolling 

with the introduction title of "Sexy Sadie." 

It was similar to the first film, 

except this woman named Sadie had blonde hair 

and she aimed her rear end at us as she removed her clothing. 

She sat on a couch in her underwear, removed her bra, 

and slowly moved her breasts from side to side, 

smiling like she knew something we didn't. 

The film ended just as Siegfried burst into the room, 

switched on the lights and ordered us all to leave. 

We didn't see it, but we knew Mac got another beating. 

That was our stag film adventure.


Perhaps the reader should be reminded that back in the days of 1965, 

it was fairly common for parents to beat their kids. 

It was an accepted form of discipline.

Of course, some parents went overboard. 

Even elementary schools in those days had a culturally 

approved appetite for beating misbehaved students. 

It was common for teachers to cuff you on the back of the head 

for trivial misdeeds. 

The nuns were especially mean. 

Sister Stella was built like a bulldog, 

with wrists thicker than an average Grade 5 student's thigh. 

We called her "The Swinging Nun."

We called Sister Mary Grace, "The Claw," 

due to the way she gripped whatever she was swinging at you.

They were big on discipline at school.

"The strap" was a regular form of punishment. 

We called it "getting the slugs." 

They often used yardsticks and long wooden pointers 

to administer punishment.

The strap was usually administered to your hands in the hallway, 

but on serious occasions, 

the condemned student would be bent over a desk 

at the front of the classroom and strapped on the buttocks 

mercilessly by the teacher. 

Those were the good old school days we attended back then.

Sometimes, if you were on a bad streak of luck, 

word about your beating at school got back to your parents, 

which would trigger another beating when you got home. 

The circle of life!



Often when kids get into trouble, 

the source of the trouble could be directly attributed 

to the adults who raised them. 

Even with good intentions at heart, 

parents can inadvertently lead their children 

on a downward path. 


For my eleventh birthday, I was given a hobby chemistry set. 

Although I didn't realize it at the time, 

it was a gift my parents gave me to encourage scientific knowledge 

and possibly enhance my options for a career down the road. 

I thanked them with sincere gratitude for the  unconventional gift, 

as I marvelled at the handsome folding case 

that contained shelves of dry chemicals sealed in vials, 

along with a microscope, beakers and test tubes, several coils of wire, 

safety goggles, and the all-important instruction manual. 

I was thrilled! 

For several nights, I stayed in my bedroom   

absorbed with experiments involving chlorides, sulphates, acids, nitrates 

and other chemicals I knew absolutely nothing about. 

I was intrigued by the splendid colours of the chemicals.

I felt like a mad scientist.


I eventually decided to take my chemistry set 

over to Mac Steinberg's house. 

When I arrived, Mac summoned me into the basement 

where I was surprised to see his own lavish chemistry set 

laid out on a tabletop, under a bright incandescent light. 

There were multitudes of dry chemicals, with every colour of the rainbow, 

and enough beakers and test tubes to fill a laboratory 

from an old classic horror movie set. 

It put my chemistry set to shame.


"Where did you get all this stuff?" I inquired as I gazed in disbelief. 

"From my father," Mac replied, 

as though I should have known better than to ask.

"Being a chemist has a lot of benefits. 

He had it shipped directly from Scotland through one of his associates." 

Associates was a word that made me frown a bit. 

It sounded sinister.

"Wow! You have way more chemicals than I do, 

and your microscope is like the ones they have at school." 

Mac stood proudly behind his chemistry set, 

and with the divine enlightenment of a TV televangelist, he asked,   

"Do you realize what we can do with this stuff?" 

He grinned with dark eyes glowing like cinders.

He answered his own question with a devil-may-care tone.  

"We can make gunpowder!" 


Horns should have sprouted out of his forehead when he said that.


Mac awaited my response. 

I paused, not quite sure what to say. 

I knew instinctively that no good would come from his idea. 

Common sense dictated that boys and gunpowder were not compatible.

"We can make firecrackers any size we want!" Mac boasted.

All we need is charcoal, sulphur and potassium nitrate." 


I was intrigued, but with mixed feelings. 

My gut felt troubled.

No matter how we approached making gunpowder, 

it was not going to end well. 

We already had the three main ingredients, 

but Mac insisted we needed more. 

It soon became my task to get more potassium nitrate and sulphur 

from the local Rexall Drug Store, 

where I was a familiar face from countless visits 

buying soda pop, junk food snacks and comic books. 

No questions were asked when I brought the containers 

of chemicals up to the cash register,   

although the cashier eyeballed me hard, 

trying to figure out what I was up to. 

It was easier for a kid like me 

to buy the ingredients for making gunpowder 

than it was to buy a package of cigarettes. 

Go figure.


The next day, we got together after school in Mac's basement  

to create our first so-called firecracker 

out of the cardboard centre-tube from a roll of aluminum foil.

It was a messy procedure, 

filling the tube with our home-made gunpowder, 

plugging the ends, and melting candle wax for a seal. 

A long piece of string was used as a wick.  

We tested several wicks 

after soaking them in a potassium nitrate solution 

and drying them with an electric fan. 

Mac went through a box of matches, 

igniting wicks of different lengths, with mixed results.

Some failed to ignite, some fizzled out too soon, 

and some burned with a steady white sparkle 

running smoothly along the entire length. 


We needed to test our firecracker as soon as possible.

Three out of four of us agreed to meet after supper, 

in the schoolyard when the streetlights went out. 

As expected, Mitch passed on joining our rendezvous. 

The influence of his maternal family upbringing guided him wisely. 


At twilight, Mac, Dudley & I met 

in front of Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic church, 

then wandered across the quiet residential street 

into the east side of the schoolyard. 

The school yard had the appearance of a prison yard, 

bound on three sides with a high chain-link fence. 

All the main floor windows of the school 

were covered with protective steel mesh guards. 

The old Gothic house on the east side of the schoolyard 

was the nuns' convent, a scary, unwelcoming place 

surrounded by sinister looking old hanging trees.

There was a farmer's field to the north, an old apple orchard, 

that had been rezoned and sold for the development 

of high-rise apartment buildings. 

On the west side of the schoolyard 

there were two dark green portable classrooms,  

and beyond the west fence were the backyards of detached houses. 

The north-east and north-west corners of the school yard 

were used as baseball diamonds. 


As the three of us came around the back corner of the school, 

we saw the silhouettes of a familiar young couple, arm-in-arm, 

making their way around the far corner of the school. 

They were Grade 8 students named Jeff Pappin and Louise Hayden. 

Jeff was a jock and a good fist fighter, 

and Louise was a babe who caught the eye of all the boys in school. 

They were a popular pair at school, 

and the subject of some gossip. 

"Let's see what they are up to," Mac whispered, 

grinning like a Cheshire Cat.


We crept towards them along the back of the school

until we got to the north-west corner, 

where we stopped and peered silently around the corner. 

The two young lovers were huddled in the dark alcove 

at the west school exit door. 

They were sitting on the concrete, 

embraced passionately, oblivious to the world around them. 

Teenage love.


We huddled at the back of the school, 

where we often played "conkers" with chestnuts.

Conkers was a popular schoolyard game.

You drilled a hole in the centre of a ripe brown chestnut, 

then ran a strong shoestring through it, 

tying a knot at one end for the chestnut to dangle on. 

The object of the game was to destroy your opponent's chestnut. 

You took turns whacking at each other's chestnuts 

until one shattered. 

For each victory, your chestnut got a year older. 

The older your chestnut was, the more bragging rights you had. 

Boys tried all kinds of tricks to make their chestnuts as hard as rock. 

Chestnuts were heated, some were frozen, some were waxed, 

some were shellacked, some were coated with nail polish, 

and some were coated with Lepage cement glue. 

The chestnut trees in the neighbourhood around our school 

were stripped bare from the midsection down. 

They looked like trees with no pants on.

 

Our plan was for Mac to place the firecracker on the ground 

around the west corner of the school, 

so it would scare the bejesus out of the young lovers. 

Mac would light the wick from the north side, out of their view, 

then join us between the portables to watch the action.


Dudley and I snuck into position, squatting low for a clear view. 

It was a familiar location for me, due to a previous misfortune, 

when I somehow managed to get my head stuck under the portable. 

It was one of those strange misdeeds in life 

that we all seem to go through.

There was no rational explanation I could give myself, 

or anyone else, as to why I stuck my head under the portable 

through an opening between the wooden panel siding 

and the gravel ground. 

I got on my stomach and thrust my head through the opening 

only to be rewarded with total darkness. 

Panic set in when I was unable to pull my head back out. 

I felt like my head was in a guillotine. 

I clawed at the dirt beneath my chin 

until I eventually got my head free. 

It was another of my self-inflicted embarrassments. 

I tried to bullshit people for several days, 

explaining what happened to my face, 

until the scrapes on my cheeks and chin finally healed. 

The reminder of that episode did not evade me, 

as we spied on the young lovers 

from the same spot that my head had once been trapped.  


Mac lit the wick, then crept off towards us. 

We watched a steady, bright white light moving along the wick, 

while Jeff and Louise were embraced by the doorway. 

Suddenly, the gunpowder ignited into a loud, prolonged hiss, 

and the west side of the school lit up in a flare of light, 

illuminating the whole side of the school. 

The young lovers dashed away towards the front of the school, 

without looking back,

as our homemade fireworks zig-zagged wildly 

and somehow lodged under the school portable we were hiding behind. 

We momentarily froze, 

then we ran like hell out of the back of the schoolyard,

by the same route we had entered from. 

We ran along the side of the church, 

then streaked across Markham Road, 

and hide in Meagan's forest. 


As panic set in, a siren could be heard, 

slowly growing louder until

a fire truck arrived at the schoolyard.

People crept out of their houses, 

while the crowd of onlookers grew along the street in front of the school.  

The dry wooden joists under the portable were ideal fuel for combustion. 

From the forest, we could see the clouds of smoke

rising behind the school, 

enhanced by the beacon lights of the fire truck. 

The portable was engulfed in flames.

We stared through the bushes for a while in disbelief at our misfortune.

The odds of what happened must have been one in a million, 

but our bad luck struck us like a curse.

We made a solemn pact not to admit anything to anyone,

as the three of us departed for our homes, 

knowing we were in big trouble. 



The next morning hit like a sledgehammer

with local news reports of a portable heavily damaged by fire 

at Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic school, 

and for anyone with information to come forward. 

I was stunned when the police arrived at my house in the early afternoon,

inquiring why I had made a recent purchase 

of sulphur and potassium nitrate at the Rexall Drug Store. 

The cat was out of the bag, 

like the Guy Faux Gunpowder Plot, 

the dominoes began to fall. 

Our names were kept out of the media, 

but everyone knew we were the culprits. 

We were ostracized and disciplined. 

Mitch was free from the mayhem 

by wisely heeding his instincts. 

Our families punished us accordingly, 

Dudley & I got grounded doing work chores, 

while Mac endured a vicious beating by Siegfried. 

We gave statements to the police and school authorities. 

The front of the portable was charcoal black from the fire damage.

For the remainder of the school year, 

the displaced grade 4 class was relocated to the gymnasium. 

To our surprise, we did not get expelled from school. 

The staff kept an eagle eye on us, especially the nuns, 

while our fellow students gave us the cold shoulder.

Most of the kids considered us zeros, 

while a few rebels considered us heroes. 

It was ultimately a case of a prank that went wrong.

We got reprimanded, but there were no criminal charges laid. 

School resumed as usual, and over the summer holidays, 

a new portable replaced the old portable 

that had become an eyesore. 


Our homemade firecracker endeavours were over. 

Weeks passed by as life gradually returned to normal. 

The wrath of our families had run its course, 

and before long, our shenanigans resumed.

That was when Mac introduced us to the wonders of model rocketeering. 

Our excitement was rekindled. 

Even reluctant Mitch showed enthusiasm.

Mac received a model rocket supply catalogue 

in the mail from a company in Colorado. 

We studied the descriptions and specifications 

as we marvelled over photographs of model rockets with cool names like: 

The Astron X-Ray, Arcas Sprite & The Gamma Streak, 

with payload compartments and rear ejection parachutes. 

Mitch thought it would be cool to somehow install a camera 

in a model rocket and get some aerial photographs. 

I wondered if we could put a mouse in a payload compartment. 

Dudley was excited to find a hobby 

that none of the other kids in school had. 

Mac was interested in the maximum altitude a model rocket could reach. 

As a group, we were filled with high hopes, 

agreeing to pool our money together, fill out an order form, 

and get a model rocket shipped our way as soon as possible.  

Everything was fine until Mac muttered, 

"Uh oh. We have a bit of a problem." 

He held a paper towards us that stated, 

"They don't ship the rocket engines into Canada. 

They will ship all the rocket supplies except engines." 

"How come?" we wondered out loud.

"It's got something to do with the model rocketry laws in Canada," 

Mac continued. 

"Apparently, they can ship the engine 

to an authorized Canadian distributor 

in the west end of Toronto, but it would be a hassle for us." 

"How come?" we repeated in unison. 

"It's way out in the west end of Toronto,

and I doubt if they would sell model rocket engines to kids our age." 

There was gloom in the room until Mac got another 

"light-bulb-came-on" expression on his face. 

"You know what we can do? 

We can still send away for the model rocket, 

and when it arrives, we can make our own rocket engines. 

It will be the same as making gunpowder." 

After the trouble we had recently endured, none of us liked that idea.

There was much discussion that followed. 

Mac earnestly tried to convince us, 

with his unconventional theories of physics, 

that our gunpowder formula would work well 

with the material and design of a model rocket. 

We were skeptical and departed for the day 

with no resolution to our dilemma. 


Siegfried was an intriguing mystery to us, 

a steady source of our perplexity, 

consistently inconsistent with his ongoing projects 

and meandering mood swings. 

He was educated with a science background, majoring in chemistry, 

and many of his recent ideas 

came from the Popular Mechanics magazine. 

One time, he got hold of a rare convertible amphibious car 

and drove us to Bay Ridges in Pickering, 

brought the roof down, drove out onto the beach, 

and proceeded out into the water 

where we drove in wide circles around the bay. 

It was a car with Siegfried at the wheel, 

and four kids as passengers, 

doing boating maneuvers out on the water of Lake Ontario.

We must have been a strange sight that afternoon, 

for the people out on their yachts, 

and for the people along the shoreline. 


Siegfried got wind of our model rocketry interest 

when he discovered the catalogue on the desk in Mac's bedroom.  

He encouraged us to carry on with our plans 

and was willing to get us the proper rocket engine 

for a successful launch. 


On a bright sunny Saturday morning, with very little breeze, 

we gathered in the field behind the Steinberg house for our first launch. 

An Astron Streak was our single-stage rocket of choice, 

with a parachute recovery feature. 

We launched it off a metal plate 

attached to an aluminum antenna guide rod. 

A cement block was used as a weight 

to prevent the plate from tipping over.

Siegfried ran a long length of extension cord along the ground 

from the rocket base to a car battery. 

The wires were attached to the rocket engine with small alligator clips. 


We cleared the area and stood behind Siegfried in anticipation.

In a mere nanosecond 

after Siegfried touched the wire leads to the battery terminals, 

there was a "swishing" sound,  

as the rocket darted off into the sky, several hundred feet above us. 

We momentarily lost sight of it until the parachute activated, 

gently descending back to earth in a north-eastly direction. 

It was a very enlightening experience for us. 

  

All would have been well 

if we had let our Saturday rocketry adventure be,  

however, Mac was determined to do our own launch, 

free of adult supervision.  

We pooled our resources and gathered long pieces of old lamp wires 

that we spliced together with electrical tape. 

Instead of a car battery, we planned to use a 12-volt dry cell battery. 

Siegfried discarded the launch pad we had originally used, 

so we built our own out of an old walkie-talkie antenna 

and two cement blocks that would be used 

to wedge the antenna in place. 

We filled the old engine cartridge casing with our homemade gunpowder 

and sealed the ends with candle wax, 

leaving two small wire leads exposed for connection. 

Then we waited patiently for a weekend 

when Mac's parents would be away. 



When the day finally came, 

Mitch, Dudley and I arrived at Mac's house ready for adventure. 

It was a dry breezy morning with steadily moving clouds. 

I brought binoculars to track the rocket 

in case the wind carried it away. 

Our Astron Streak rested on the guide antenna 

that was stuck in the ground between two cement blocks.

Dudley made the connections of the lamp wire to the rocket engine, 

as I held the binoculars in anticipation,  

and Mac squatted down by the battery, ready for ignition. 

In all the excitement, no one realized the lamp wire 

had become entangled around one of Dudley's shoes 

as he hurried back towards us. 

As Mac applied the leads to the battery, 

Dudley kicked at his entangled shoe, 

which tightened the lamp wire to the rocket 

and caused the antenna to lean at a forty-five-degree angle. 

Instead of a vertical launch,  

the rocket hissed with a bright light 

and shot horizontally across the field, 

leaving a streak of flames along the grass in its wake. 

Soon, a grass fire raged out of control. 

Sirens started blaring, 

and people came out on the balconies 

of the distant apartment buildings

along the south perimeter of the field. 


The fire department arrived with a crew 

that dragged long hoses out into the field. 

They sprayed water from two directions 

and eventually doused the flames into wisps of smoke. 


They scolded us and said we were lucky no one got hurt. 

We went through another lengthy process of trouble afterwards, 

especially after being the culprits responsible

for the recent fire that destroyed a portable

at the Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic School.   

Life was not kind to us for a long time afterwards. 

We were all grounded with work chores 

and threatened with boarding school for delinquent boys. 

We were forbidden from seeing each other. 


Our parents were contacted to retrieve us. 

It was a solemn gathering, 

and as we slowly departed the Steinberg property, 

we didn't see it, 

but we knew Mac got another beating. 

That was our last model rocketeering adventure, 

and the last time we hung out together for a long time. 





Saturday, January 11, 2025

2024 Wood Ticks in My Head




.

Every flower bends 

every roof top springs a leak 

all the colors fade 

I wander in the sun seeking shade 

What do you call home? 

What do you call success? 

The fortress where you hide 

protected from the tide 

I die alone regardless 

of what gets left behind 

so ends the poem 

the celebration is on me 

I die alone 



Attending another class 

for one of life's ugly lessons 

I was watching Natasha 

when the phone went dead 

rolling blackouts 

jackhammer fables

squeeze out your diet 

hope chest in the basement 

chuck wagon dinner bell 

left the heard feeling complacent 

the real McCoy alter boy 

sipping left-over wine 

angels disguised 

over hallowed ground 

Gazette out of print 



How many can relate with 

the times of youth?

Hoomak 

something in the post 

about covid stress

always working hard 

stories men tell wives 



Some have ethics with your best interests at heart

some are petty-politics cry babies 

paid to whine all day 

crosses and ghosts we live with 

no way to say "I'm sorry" 

to all the women hurt 

no way to reconcile 

short windows for getting the job done 

know the rules early or miss the boat 





With war on the soil 

your fantasy world comes crashing down 

groundhog lurches in the shadows 

events like ducks in a row 

late night text from an old friend 

suffering serious ailments 

an invitation to kindly not send 

photos from a death-bed 

one prefers memories of life 

every now and then we need to reset 

slip out of sight 

a phantom in the night 

mystic clouds circle 

razor sharp sediments 

dulled by time and medication 

comfort in the moment 

non shall keep 

smile fond memories 

an old grey man 

sunset on the horizon 

regrets to eject 

second uncle from the son 



They tell me

rich folks are eating alone 

reacquainting themselves with new found freedom 



A simple mistake on the fly of impulse 

you pay for the rest of your life



Our family got along as long as we were apart 


Are we all going insane for a reason?



You run a risk no one knows 

stormy weather 

we're chained together 

the world turns 

the planet burns 


Find freedom on whose terms 

constant threat in the air 

better beware 

be prepared 

something is looming 



I miss the sound of a train in the distance 


No memory of drug fueled high school years 

yet childhood days come in waves crystal clear 



There was a time

my lover processed insurance claims 

down the Younge Street terrain of good and evil 

teenage rebellion in full swing 

when the phone would often ring 

peers acted like they would live forever 



Never saw it coming 

washed away so much loving 

we struggled to make ends meet 

feels like a witch's curse

something meant to be 



Ask the referee 

sometimes you just can't see

no explanation 

for what you put yourself through 



A death wish coming in 

those ghosts start to grin 

haunting you with baggage 

talking in a foreign language 

a horror movie script 

in there somewhere 



I could ramble on and on 

sing a lazy boring song 

make no waves 

in the ocean of insanity 


In summary I would like to say 

to all a good morning 

to all a good night 



At the refreshment bar

beside the car 

stay clear of the herd 

preaching the good word 

drive-in feature 

about a zombie teacher 

the world is just a ball 

we keep kicking down the hall 



That train rolled past long ago 

from Scarborough to McCowan Road 

fire broke out in the parkade below 

evacuate the building 

hang out in limbo

walked to school in the driving rain 

high on drugs

block the pain 

like the last person on earth 

wandering around for what it's worth 

count your blessings 

you don't live like them 



Hang in there 

as long as you can 

stay on the fence 

until they force your hand 

everyone looking after number one 

seems like turbulence will never end 

they pause for awhile 

then start up again

the older you get 

the more you regret 



Prattle 

politics of termination 

blind marauder strikes again 

lives in a fridge 

avoiding trends 

a lecture on how to express emotions 

half the attendees camped at salsa lagoon 

rumors spread about the depot heist 

they got away with the loot in a wheel barrel 

head of the household 

determined what news went to the tenants 

news got filtered 

in the event of emergency 

head of the household beat a cowbell 

sitting in the airport parkade 

watching shopping carts roll by 

when you hit the point of no return 

when words are useless

your only option is leave 

she goes west of the lawyers 

stays east of the badgers 

brother John and sister Flo 

used a compass to find home 



Prattle be thy name 

thirteen years in council consensus 

the Courtenay kid misplaced the lid 

prune juice trail along the aisles 

bitter sweet the love we shared 

ringing ears and broken glass 

acid reflux haunts the church 

bells toll over maple glen 

brass bands march 

pipe bands jam 

a special offer 

flocks of geese 

rubber gloves stripping wire 

copper music hall 

comedy freefall 

zodiac zoo 

major repair in the attic 

run away senior 

free at last 

word-game media 

amphibian close up 

morning project

rejected script 

propane leak 



Window dressing 

I don't mind 

be here now for human kind 

Connor takes a castle tour 

real estate wrapped in manure 

sell you a home you can't afford 

arm you with a rusty sword 

wine glass rolling down the hall 

spaghetti plate smashed the wall 

carpet ride through the old hotel 

patrons laugh and wish you well 

the present day fading fast 

reconciling past 

she climbs back into my head 

some things best left unsaid 



They became unacquainted 

with their own 

irrational behavior

earmarked for the love of a fallen angel

pressing matter 

things we say and shouldn't 

things we don't say and should 




The talkie-walkie 

cursed the vampire 

from Hope to Mary's motel 

she found religion 

red ants and gunfire 

under the carpet 

calendar filled 

with aqua appointments 

Leon looney acted so meek 

angry street corner 

where deals went down 

rope recover mode 

whistle so sweet 

a changing beat 

with dead calm glances 

fire consumes you 

away we wander 

fade to black and white 



I believe 

I believe we're stranger 

I believe no one's safe 

baby walk away 

your political views 

mean nothing to me 

your religious beliefs 

mean nothing to me 



T'was known in shackles

a maiden so poor 

on the morning meadow she toiled 

I often rambled in her view 



I remember her still 

she was good in an air raid drill 


Now that I'm old 

with tales left untold 

still feel out of touch 



I met her in the meat section 

on a Sunday afternoon 

she was stocking up on ground beef 

bratwurst and Sheppard's pie 

we use to date in trade school 

we went our separate ways 

she married a technician from the refinery

I slugged it out in a factory 

no one knows which way the road goes 

every now and then 

the road takes you back 

those days of benevolence 



You've got too much stuff 

from the past 

nipping at your ass 



The teacher asked the class,

"What's your definition of success?" 

The consensus was money and a big house.

No one mentioned contentment. 




Defiant until the end 

the wolves escaped the den 


Joy of the evening 

I strolled the hills in solitude 

over the glen

down by the shore 

where the sun sank 

low in glory 



Enjoy the road 

when it's good 


Treasure of the highlands 

wash away the fog 

let the mist settle in the valley 

I lost sense of time 

standing in the breeze 

overlooking pine covered hills 

where spirits convene 

windows of ruins 

features carved in copper leaves 

rusty ferns swaying 

silent harmony 



Fangs of the buckwheat ghoul 

riding on the wind of a storm 

crushing cartilage in the yeast 

mask of red and gold 

performing unholy rituals 

on a hardwood floor 

feeling of grandeur 

swept across the scaffold 

lifting and rewrapping old bones 

in a compound dreary 

something eerie 

figures float in shadows down the hall 

attempt to escape this tombstone fate 

council resorts 

to hunting for sport 

the people who live on the street 

clever with the letter 

long hair of the law 

strange as it seems 

they divided the team 



T'was forty off years ago 

I could not believe 

the broken heart 

I wore on my sleeve 

lost her somewhere 

a gradual thing 



Banished from the temple of Moloch 

waiting for the word at Boar's Head Inn 

she lived up to her reputation 

as the town tattler 

those words 

we wish we could take back 

haunt us forever 



I was traveling home 

in the pale moonlight 

needing rest from a late work shift 

got out of a bad situation 

without too much collateral damage 

my loss was somebody's gain 

your loss was somebody's gain 

our loss was somebody's gain 



Have you got one more 

I'm not sure 

flame you doubt 

is ringing out 

it's not the same 

you're not to blame 

seasons pass

move so fast 

Gina faced the world 

debauchery and vice 

arcade corner 

rolling dice 

baser side of life 

pity the victims

systematic corruption

we had good times 

that ship sailed 

too many kings 

who don't feel loved 

too many common people 

seeking companionship 

in small doses

con people out there

believe who they are 

they lift up their latches 

and load up their cars 

while homeless encampments 

surround the shopping mall 



To alleviate the persistent housing shortage 

send all seniors sixty and over 

on a one-way flight to Mars 

like ragweed loneliness looms across the land 

waiting for a nightmare like you 

when the billionaires have you in their pocket 

when the rich ditch accountability 

you live out your life 

on a corporate agreement 

with terms catered in their favor 

too long and drawn out 

with legal jargon 

nobody reads 

just agree 


Naomi disowned me when the will was read 

she decided she preferred her ex boyfriend instead 

so I hopped on a westbound train to a life of squalor 

when no explanation will suffice 

it's only seems nice to just disappear 

our luck and hereditary determine our fate 



Time is the controller 

sex the obsession 

I'm going slower 

next comes recession 

follow the hearse of Capistrano 

at the Isle of Wak 

she had an astrological awakening 

point the finger at me 

in the caves of Jinn 

where questions begin 

the crowd thins out 

you're left holding a paper 

you thought yesterday 

was dead and buried 

hounded by hard luck cases 

on every corner 

you'll be in a kangaroo courtyard 

until further notice 

Limpy McGee had a bad case of gout 

pictured in a moment 

a freeze frame in your life