Yes, Keb, Stratford is a hub of hog husbandry.

Tourists drawn to our little gem of a town generally think that Stratford is about Art in general, and Theatre in particular. Live here for any length of time, and one quickly learns that Stratford is actually about Farming in general (and Pork in particular), with a sideline of light industry and rather a lot of hockey and church on the side. The theatre festival is merely the top dressing on this fertile mix, bringing substantial numbers of cash-heavy customers to the downtown businesses that, in other towns, died of starvation when the malls arrived. Stratford has a Wal-Mart and a big-box Canadian Tire, but Downie Street -- the main commercial drag -- still boasts a genuine old-fashioned independent department store.

Every now and then, when the wind is in the wrong quarter, the reek of hog manure seeps inescapably through town, vigorously reminding us of the true foundation of local prosperity.