Back in the early Seventies, after my father passed away, my mother spent about a year with my older sister Mary and her husband Phil in Kingston, Ontario. When she returned to Seattle, Phil presented her with a bottle of Canadian maple syrup. Some really good stuff that didn't come from a store. He got from a friend, and where the friend got it, I'm not sure. It was outrageously marvelous! Best maple syrup I've ever tasted!

I think Phil had a hogshead full of the stuff, and for my mother, he poured off a quantity of it into an empty McNaughton's bottle. When the guy at customs looked at the bottle, my mother told him what it was:   maple syrup. He believed her and passed it through. My mother could be a very convincing person.

I mean, it really was maple syrup!

One really must keep a sense of proportion. To hell with propriety! Lick the plate!!

Don Firth