Writings Elsewhere – Heroes in Rehab: the blog

Maple Leafs Annual: It Stacks Up

Maple Leafs Annual on sale - Ancaster — 128 pages of no ads, truculence and my article

Spouse and I stopped in to the Chapters store in Ancaster on Saturday; part of the purpose for our visit was to pick up another copy of the Maple Leafs Annual (click on the link to find out what this is, the details of my contribution, and why you need to buy it in order to avoid the sudden onset of leprosy). I am going to donate a (signed, if the successful bidder so desires) copy of the Annual for the charity auction that Spouse and I will be running this coming Thursday.

I have received two copies of this magazine in the mail – one, I bought for myself as soon as orders were being taken, and one was sent to me by Maple Street Press as an “advance copy”, I guess as a thank you for participating in the creation of the publication. I don’t know why, but I can’t bring myself to part with either of those copies, and in any event they are well thumbed and not exactly pristine any more.

I have to confess that there was something really cool about seeing the publication on the regular display racks in the magazine section at Chapters. Here they are at left, racks and racks and racks of the things.

I loitered around for a little bit, hoping to see somebody stop by and browse through one, but I had no such luck. I can tell that a lot of people have been standing there reading them, because the copies at the front of the top two racks pictured at left had both obviously been handled quite a bit – can’t say whether people are actually buying the things after that, but they’re definitely handling them.

Spouse and I will have a couple of weeks off from work starting at the end of this week, and I have half a mind to just go sit in the Starbucks there and watch until somebody takes one down off the rack. I’d probably run up, grab it out of their hand and buy the damn thing for them.

As an aside, I’m more than a little interested in hearing what people think of this magazine, so if you come across any reviews, criticisms, etc. please feel free me to drop me an email with the link to junior [at] heroesinrehab.ca.

For Maple Leafs Annual Buyers: A Welcome

maple leafs annual cover — Maple Street Press' Maple Leafs Annual 2009-2010

I am told that the Maple Leafs Annual is now available in many Chapters Indigo stores. My Dad picked up his copy in a store in Burlington today. Other reports via Twitter suggest that copies have been found in places like Wal-Mart elsewhere in the province.

If you’re someone who has already bought a copy of the magazine and you’re a new visitor dropping by this site because you followed the link at the end of my article, thanks for your interest. PLEASE do me the favour of taking the time to drop me a message in the comments, even if just to let me know you were here. I’d prefer it, of course, if you wrote a few hundred words about how my article is the best thing since somebody froze up a piece of poo and started whacking it around the frozen pond with a crooked branch, but feel free to berate me instead for whatever flaws you have identified in my article. I really would like to have a discussion with the readers and get your impressions of what I wrote (even if you don’t do impressions :-), thank you very much, don’t forget to tip your waitress, be sure to try the veal and I’m here all week). Like many of the contributors to the magazine, I haven’t done this sort of thing before and I am (some would say pathetically so) desperate for feedback on the results.

If you’re interested, you can read other things I’ve written on this site about the Leafs by clicking on this link (well, at least the ones I remembered to tag properly). I also write about some other things, mostly my life in small-town southern Ontario on a piece of property I call “Juniorvania”. One of my favourite posts, for example, has to do with the time my riding lawnmower tried to kill me.

Maple Leafs Annual 2009-2010: IT’S HERE!!!

RED LETTER DAY FOR ME!!!

My complimentary copy of the 2009-2010 Maple Leafs Annual – the Leafs season preview magazine containing my article on the arc of the Leafs’ rebuild and published by the “lunatic millionaires” who are “allergic to money” has arrived! Can you believe it, my piece was published on page 85, well known in the trade as the single most important page in any book, magazine or Jehovah’s Witness literature.

cropped MLA arrives copy — Well, that's a weird smile...but look at the mag!!

I would love to write all kinds of witty stuff now about that, but I need to spend some quality time with the articles. More on the content later. Incidentally, you can learn more about how to get your own life-affirming, magical and money-generating copy by clicking on the little picture of the magazine cover in the upper left corner of the site.

My initial reaction, having just opened up the box and frantically turned pages to confirm that my bit actually got published (in order to ensure that this is not part of an elaborate joke being played upon me by family and “friends”), is that the magazine looks terrific. Alec Brownscombe should be very pleased; I know I am.