Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday concerts getting a theatrical release

The wheels on the bus burned down, down, down…

Up on the high ground, a year after the big forest fire in Newfoundland’s Conception Bay North, and the bare rock is startling.

It’s ghostly. The little birds flit and chirp from the naked silver bare-wood branches, and a solitary northern flicker makes its call from — somewhere. But mostly, it’s still, and silent. With the underbrush gone, you can see how little animal life is here right now.

But the most astounding thing is underfoot. On the high rock behind Adam’s Cove and away from the sea, not only are the trees and low brush gone, but much of the soil has burned away as well.

It burned very, very hot.

Unhappy Dynacare staff refuse OT shifts; doors could be closed at clinics with Saturday hours

Some Winnipeg Dynacare sites normally open on Saturday were closed last week, and may continue to be because staff are refusing to pick up overtime shifts after they were forced back to work amid a labour dispute with the company.

Bombers let another one slip away and face pivotal issue

Mike O’Shea summed it up best.

“That one doesn’t feel very good.”

Nor should it.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers started out hot Friday night, only to run out of gas down the stretch and allow the visiting Toronto Argonauts to steal a 30-28 victory.

Province invests $3.8M in culinary arts training facility for francophone high school students

A new dedicated culinary arts training facility will give francophone high school students a place to learn the trade in French.

The Manitoba government announced this week that it is providing $3.8 million toward the purchase of a property at 170 Marion St. and beginning design work for its renovation.

The facility will be the first dedicated vocational education site operated by Division scolaire franco-manitobaine, and the first fully French-language culinary arts program for Grade 11 and 12 students, preparing them for work in the restaurant and service sector.

“French-language education is a fundamental part of Manitoba’s identity and strength,” Education Minister Tracy Schmidt said in a news release. “It is an exciting step that will help strengthen both the francophone community and our skilled workforce.”

Gordon Bell students relish — ‘of all things’ — new pickleball courts

Manitoba’s newest public school sports facility is bringing the pickleball craze to an inner-city campus.

Gordon Bell High School unveiled four custom-made courts for the popular paddle sport this fall as part of a multi-faceted makeover.

Grade 12 student Matea Thiessen Unger called the courts “the cherry on top,” of a multi-year construction project that consumed much of her high school career.

“It was happening for so long — it felt like it was never going to end,” the 16-year-old said.