Josephine Holmes Josephine is a freelance copy editor who enjoys writing prose and encouraging writers, as you will see in her column, Writing Clinic.
You can contact her at YukonCopyEditor@gmail.com.
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Josephine Holmes
Issue: 2020-01-15, PHOTO: Pixabay
If Bob’s your uncle …
Our friend Bob is one of those congenial sorts, with a gentle demeanour. He would open a door for you, if that’s what was needed, or offer a handshake or a smile. He’s no pushover, mind you, and he has solid convictions. Read more
Issue: 2019-12-23, PHOTO: Pixabay
Should auld acquaintance be forgot?
Truth be told, I had always thought that “Auld Lang Syne” was some saintly old soul and it was just this year that I realized and appreciated, for the first time, the depth of meaning beneath these lyrics. Read more
Issue: 2019-12-04, PHOTO: Pixabay
The writing’s on the wall …
They’re ookey and they’re spooky … and perhaps one of the ookiest and spookiest of the household was Thing T. Thing, the disembodied hand affectionately known as “Thing” on The Addams Family. Read more
Issue: 2019-11-20, PHOTO: Pixabay
Not my circus …
Send in the … elephants. I can’t help it; as a little girl I disliked clowns. And I didn’t trust them. What child doesn’t love a clown? I think it had something to do with their makeup and that I really couldn’t “read” them. Read more
Issue: 2019-11-06, PHOTO: Pixabay
Three letters that could save your life …
SOS. Many of us know (or think we know) what these familiar letters stand for. We may have even sent out an SOS, a time or two, when life or limb warranted it. Some (myself included) think that the trio means “save our souls.” Others say it means “s Read more
Issue: 2019-10-16, PHOTO: Pixabay
Here’s mud in your eye …
I had cataract surgery; you know, where they pop out your lens and pop in a new and improved one. Out with the old, in with the new and all in a matter of minutes. Read more
Issue: 2018-11-21, PHOTO: Gregory McLaughlin
Not new, but still brave
What’s it like to share the heart and soul of something you’ve written? Peter Jickling, the new host of Brave New Words, said, “It’s right in the title of the event. It’s brave.” Jickling’s goal is to take what can be intimidating—the “pouring out... Read more
Issue: 2018-10-17, PHOTO: courtesy of Michael Gates
For those who answered the call …
Lest we forget … This is why Michael Gates (Yukon historian and Yukon News columnist) and D. Blair Neatby (military historian, Yellowknife) have co-authored the memorial book, Yukon Fallen of World War I, a collection of more than 100 biographies... Read more
Christmas treat sales help seniors
Finnish sweet buns with finely ground cardamom, shortbread, chocolate-chip cookies and Finnish sugar-cinnamon cookies — Ann Dibbs' husband Al delivers a plateful to the table and pours cups of sweet and spicy tea. Read more
Mining for missions
For six months of the year the Dyes search for gold at their Amigo Mining operation located near Dublin Gulch, north of Mayo. For the wintery six months of the year, they do mission work in Lagunitas, Mexico from their perch in Arizona. Read more
Three deadly letters
"Three letters that will change your life forever: ALS. "And that's what it does," says Donald C Watt, world-class snow carver and walk co-ordinator for the Whitehorse Walk for ALS. ALS: Three letters that carry with them a death sentence. Read more
All I ever need ...
And the muse, this time a one-liner, is this: "All I ever need to get by in this life is ... Rescue Remedy – and Jesus. Read more
Ode to 'Of'
Without "of," writers would most certainly be rendered impotent in prose, poetry and all other genres. Read more
Protecting our fine feathered friends
Who among us hasn't, at one time or another, gazed upon a bird in flight and marvelled at it ... or even wondered what it would be like to fly? Ducks Unlimited calls us to do more than just wonder ... Read more
The 'Brave New Words' of filmmaking
Creative magic – the kind that turns charcoal-pencilled drawings into animation – that's the magic of KINO (the German word for "film"). Edward Westerhuis says he's the "official unofficial organizer" of KINO ... the momentum behind KINO Returns. Read more
What comes after 'Squeak & Squawk'?
Face plants in spaghetti, snow wars and, in "more peaceable times", snow angels ... It's all part of the fun at the band retreat for F.H. Collins and Porter Creek secondary schools Grade 8 students. Read more
Travelling hearts
What is it that keeps a heart going? Well, aside from the obvious flesh-and-blood answers, it's spirit ... spirit that lives on when loved ones have passed on. And that is why a former Yukon Quest musher, Michelle Phillips ... Read more
Begin, then begin again!
Let's look at some creative, perhaps unconventional ways to begin sentences: ... Start with intrigue: Stone cold, he passed from this life. White. Stiff. But smiling. Read more
The legacy of legends
There are legends – those men and women who left their mark on the Klondike ... Read more
Dance to sounds of the Big Band
The hallowed halls of learning are hushed, today ... Bell has been teaching band for 11 years – 10 of them at PCSS. She is also the originator the Dessert & Dance event to raise funds for student, parent and community band members. Read more
Sunshine sketches of a northern town
Ask David Thompson what he's read, and you'll get a varied list: George Orwell, J.D. Salinger and the adventures of Antarctic explorers. Read more
Thailand on the Yukon River
Not such a bad view for my lunch in the middle of a busy day. All the more incredible is that this place is just two minutes from downtown and two minutes from Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, et al. It is the Yam-Woon-Sen Bistro at Fireweed Market Society. Read more
A 'rase' by any other name ...
Q: What do Brian Fidler, Barbara Chamberlin and Harreson Tanner have in common? A: Those of us in the media often spell their names wrong. Read more
Hello again
The decision was made to go weekly in our usual What's Up Yukon manner: we were chatting. Then Tammy Beese, the publisher, spent half the night running the numbers while Mark Beese and I wondered if this was a case of "Be careful of what you wish for Read more