Arts & Culture

By Andrew Macdonald

Update: Dentist Roger Porter Called Eight Antigonish friends To Buy Syrian Refugee Tailor Maker A $1,000 Sewing Machine

I recently carried a news article that folk in Antigonish conducted a day-long fundraiser to by a Syrian Refugee a commercial sewing machine so this new immigrant to Nova Scotia could open a tailor shop.

I am updating that story with the successful round of fundraising, which was conducted by Antigonish dentist, Roger Porter, himself an immigrant to the town in 1970 – he hails from Newfoundland’s outports.

By Andrew Macdonald

Why Halifax-raised Andrew Machum, 23 Marches Into The Same Big Leagues As Anne Murray and Denny Doherty

With multi-million YouTube views, 23-year old Haligonian raised musician Andrew Machum is on the cusp of international stardom.

Now living in Toronto, and having spent a year at a record production studio in Hollywood, Machum has just released two new songs: Aptly named  Winter & Far Away Places – he self-produced and engineered the two singles from his music studio in his Toronto apartment.

It is a new music genre for Machum as he branches out into alternative acapella.

Further to the mention of crooner Anne Murray in the Andrew Machum piece, to give you an idea of the news scoops & exclusive news articles we like to tell, here is a story not reported in other media – which ran in The Notebook last June.

By Andrew Macdonald

Anne Murray, who turned 74 on June 20, is going to be around Halifax more often, The Macdonald Notebook understands.

No, the former singer isn’t giving a concert at Scotiabank Centre/Metro Centre, having retired a decade ago from performing. Instead, the Springhill native has set her sights on buying a home in the fair City of Halifax.

By Alison Strachan

With the tick season soon upon us (some say it is now tick season year round), a neat little video was released last week on YouTube: Tick Bite Prevention.

Featuring a cast of Lunenburg characters with expertise on the issue, the video — less than 15 minutes long — is a toolbox of simple ideas on avoiding ticks and what to do if you do get bitten.

By Andrew Macdonald

A Youtube Moment: A Word Or Two Of Australian Wildfires & Aussie Folk Band, The Seekers

The Notebook is introducing a new column, a Youtube Moment

When I am not researching and writing stories for the daily seven day a week work schedule of The Notebook, one of many of my hobbies is to search all genres of music, both contemporary, or perhaps, dating to the 1950s, by surfing Youtube.

The Australian Wildfires have caught the attention of a concerned planet.

In fact, last week a second team of Nova Scotia Firefighters departed the province to assist with the fires on another continent.

By Andrew Macdonald

A Blurb About Passcode Sharing Cheats

To be crystal clear 99.999% of The Notebook readership do not partake in passcode sharing – for that, I am most grateful.

But, once again comes word of passcode sharing, and it is within the NS Tory party.

To the person passcode sharing, consider The Notebook only exists because of readership patronage.

Because readers pay an affordable subscription fee to read The Notebook, I am able to tell my old fashioned storytelling.