“There is No Poop-Picker-Upper Fairy” by Barbara Wackerle Baker

I grew up in a tiny place east of the Banff Park gates in Alberta. It was not large enough to be given hamlet status – hence they called us “a community.” But it was the best place for a kid to grow up. There were no fences, no streetlights and playing in the woods started at the end of our driveway. Occasionally we’d see a car drive by that no one recognized, and we’d wonder who had company coming to visit.

Back then, our family had a dog. Most families in the community had one.

When I played outside, I knew which dogs to avoid, which ones not to run from, and which ones were sure to follow me home.

Dog poop bags were not a thing in those days. Having said that, I do not recall stepping in dog poop. Ever. But I am positive dogs still pooped.

But these days, dog poop is often a conversation starter with walkers when the snow melts and the evidence (poop bags) hang off fences, branches or decorate the sides of trails.

I live in Calgary now where gorgeous parks, green spaces and pathways twist throughout the city in all directions. It also has many off-leash parks for dogs. And there is lots of signage explaining a dog owner’s responsibilities in regard to their pet’s poop. Plus, there are poop bag dispensers and garbage cans at pathway entrances and scattered along the way for all types of deposits. How convenient.

So why is it that so many of the bags never make it into the garbage cans?

Do the signs which state “pick up after your dog” really need another line added “and put it in the garbage can”? Because if that is all it will take, I can do something about that.

To find these deposits alongside walkways and open spaces is annoying enough but when I find them hanging off spruce boughs or perched on a rock beside a hiking trail, I start fuming. Do dog owners think there is a poop-picker-upper fairy?

Yes, I realize that when the offender initially sets the bag aside, they have good intentions of picking it up on their return trip. But it seems many dog walkers’ good intentions fall short. Did they get distracted? Did they turn their head at the appropriate time, so they didn’t see their pretty bag sitting upright beside the trail?

Maybe they got a phone call telling them they won the lottery, or possibly their brother’s wife’s cousin had a baby, and that was enough of a distraction that they forgot the little bag. I guess all of the scenarios could happen but I’m hopeful dog owners, who make a habit of leaving the poop behind, quit making responsible dog owners look bad.

A search on Google reveals that under perfect conditions a compostable bag will deteriorate in up to 90 days. The ordinary plastic bags can take up to 1,000 years to decompose.

Not that this is an option, but seriously, if the offender has no intention of retrieving their dog’s feces, why go through all the hassle of bagging it? Why not put a rock over it? Or fling it into the bush? In ideal conditions, dog poop decomposes in nine weeks. So, it would be out of sight a lot sooner than the fancy baggy.

I read on the Cochrane Off-Leash Dog Spaces Facebook page about a woman who took it upon herself to clean up the poop in her local park. During the first three months of winter, she walked her dog while carrying a five-gallon pail. She picked up 60 gallons of dog crap - some bagged, some not bagged, some with worms. And it wasn’t her dog’s poop. Kudos for doing the nasty task and keeping tally of her daily progress but shame on the dog owners who won the lottery and didn’t have time to pick up their dog’s mess.

Never in my life did I think I’d write about dog poop. Yet here I am, doing just that. And the issue is not the dog’s fault. The owners are the ones who need to attend obedience class.

I miss the carefree old days when dog poop was not an issue. But for now, I will step off my soap box and go outside to search for the poop-picker-upper fairy.

*** 

Barbara (Wackerle) Baker grew up in Banff in the 60s and 70s when it was a quiet, nowhere place – not the iconic vacation destination it is today. These days, Barbara writes realistic, fast-paced wilderness adventure novels set in Banff National Park. Her books bring readers into the heart of her homeland, the mountains of Banff, where her characters must navigate their way through new surroundings as well as manage the turmoil life has in store for them.

Many of her short stories are published in newspapers, magazines and anthologies. Carousel Pictures made a mini-film of her essay, “Life Support,” which played in the Toronto International Film Festival (fall 2019).

Visit her author page at BWL Publishing https://www.bookswelove.com/baker-barba/

“There is No Poop-Picker-Upper Fairy” was previously published in the Globe and Mail on their First Person page. For information on submitting a First Person essay to the Globe and Mail {and a few other great places to submit}, see here.

See Brian Henry's upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and four-day retreats here.

Read more short stories, essays, and reviews by your fellow writers here (and scroll down).

The Liberals have betrayed Israel and the Canadian Jewish community by Brian Henry

For Canadians who care about Israel, our only hope is a Conservative government. The Conservatives have strongly and consistently stood by Israel, and by the Jewish community here in Canada. The Liberals not so much, and under Mark Carney this won’t change.

A couple of incidents stand out. In a talk in Calgary, a heckler shouted out that there’s a genocide going on in Gaza.

Carney responded: “I know … I’m aware. That is why we have an arms embargo against Israel.”

He later claimed he wasn’t agreeing with the heckler, that he didn’t hear the word “genocide.” You can believe his explanation if you like. But I have not heard him point out that the accusation is a rank lie. Nor have I heard him remind people that the KGB started accusing Israel of genocide 60 years ago and that antisemites have simply been repeating the accusation ever since. (More here).

For his part, Jagmeet Singh has given up on being taken seriously. In both the French and English leaders’ debate, he called on Carney to repeat the slander that Israel’s committing genocide, knowing that Carney wouldn’t take the bait and thereby hoping to make the NDP stand out as the party of choice for people who froth at the mouth when Israel is mentioned.

However, even the NDP is out-fringed by the Green Party. Elizabeth May has declared: “I take my marching orders from the permanent representative of Palestine to Canada” (here).

For his part, the Greens’ co-leader Jonathan Pedneault has Tweeted that we need to “contextualize” Hamas’s mass murder, mass rape, mass torture, and mass kidnappings. To “contextualize” it is the polite way of saying Israelis deserved it.

While Carney retracted his accusation of genocide, he’s all in on continuing Canada’s arms embargo against Israel. Carney has spent a lot of time out of the country, but surely, even he ought to know that Canada always claimed to be Israel’s ally – right up until the minute Israel suffered a massive terror attack. Then the Liberals counted votes and calculated that Canadians who’d like to see Israel wiped off the map greatly outnumber Canadian Jews.

Six months ago, the Liberal Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly put this into words. An interviewer asked about the Liberals’ “incomprehensible” position of claiming to support Israel’s right to self-defence while also banning arms sales to Israel. Joly replied: “Have you seen the demographics of my riding?” (See here.)

Upon becoming PM, Carney promptly reappointed Joly as Foreign Affairs Minister.

NDP MPs in parliament dressed up in keffiyehs and giving power salute

A second incident. Carney Tweeted:

Canada must work with our allies to stand up for international law to promote sustainable peace and security in the Middle East and to support full access to humanitarian aid for Palestinian families. As this work continues, both parties must work towards the return of all hostages.

“Both parties” – what does that even mean?! One party is holding hostages. The other party is trying to free them. This is like calling on Robert Pickton and the RCMP to sit down and work towards stopping the killing of women and feeding them to pigs – as if it’s a problem they need to compromise on, maybe offer Pickton some compensation or allow him to murder only half as many women.

But with these differences: Hamas has committed worse crimes than Pickton ever imagined, and while Pickton is now safely dead, Hamas has declared it will go on committing atrocities, if the world will just give it a chance.

Also, while Carney has criticized Israel – notably for stopping Gaza’s supply of free electricity (while praising Doug Ford for threatening to cut off electricity to the U.S.) – I’ve noticed he has yet to say a word about Egypt.

Like much of the world, Carney seems to be geographically challenged. He’s forgotten Gaza borders two countries – one of which (the one called Egypt) has refused to let a single truckload of aid cross its border into Gaza for the past year.

The other country bordering Gaza – Israel, the country Gaza invaded – has allowed tens of thousands of truckloads of aid to cross its border, even though much of that aid is stolen by Hamas, with Hamas then selling what it doesn’t want to the civilians.

But while Carney intends to continue the Liberal policy of demanding behaviour from Israel not expected of any other country in the world, many Liberal candidates are much worse.

Adam van Koeverden, the Liberal member for Burlington North–Milton West slandered Israel with the genocide charge just days after Carney back-peddled on his gaffe (here).

Moreover, van Koeverden is one of 20 Liberal candidates who has signed on to the “Vote Palestine” platform, which was put together by numerous groups that celebrate Hamas’s October 7 terrorist invasion of Israel. (Full list of Liberals who have signed on to this platform below.)

As of March 31, 124 NDP candidates had also endorsed the Vote Palestine platform, including party leader Jagmeet Singh, and also 44 candidates for the Green Party, including its two leaders.

No Conservative candidate has endorsed it.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre at pro-Israel rally in Ottawa

The Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) is one of groups that put together the platform. The PYM is very closely associated with the PFLP and Samidoun terrorist groups. (Some details of these links here.)

The PFLP took part in the terrorist atrocities against Israelis on October 7, and has a history of murdering innocents, going back to the 1960s and ‘70s when it favoured spectacular terror attacks such as the 1972 murder of two dozen passengers at Israel’s Ben-Gurion International Airport. (More on the PFLP here.)

Samidoun is a sub-group of the PFLP, with branches in at least 14 countries but headquartered here in Canada. Samidoun spreads pro-terrorism propaganda, fund-raises, and recruits people to the terrorist movement. Canada and other democracies list both the PFLP and Samidoun as terrorist groups.

Despite its many links to the PFLP and Samidoun, the Palestinian Youth Movement continues to operate freely in Canada, primarily in universities and high schools. Along with Samidoun, it’s been responsible for many of the anti-Israel demonstrations across Canada and of course for anti-Israel propaganda, including this Vote Palestine platform.

The Vote Palestine platform promotes several central propaganda aims of the Palestinian terrorist groups:

Recognizing a Palestinian state.

Recognizing a Palestinian state, particularly now, is to give up on peace. It says to the Palestinians: no need to negotiate. Commit mass murder, mass rapes, and mass kidnappings; commit the most horrifying atrocities against Jews since the Holocaust, film it and upload it all to social media for the world to see – do that, and we will reward you with a state.

What are the borders of this Palestinian state? One of the criteria for recognizing a state is that it should have recognized borders. There's never been a Palestinian state, so its borders have never been determined. There have been attempts – Israel has made several territorial offers, but the Palestinian Authority has rejected them all and has never made a counter-offer. As for the PFLP and Hamas, the only borders they'll ever recognize include all of Israel.

The NDP has long campaigned to skip peace and go straight to recognizing a Palestinian state (more here). Indeed, the NDP supports every part of the Vote Palestine platform.

Palestinian Youth Movement poster celebrating Oct 7 massacres

Endorsing the notion of anti-Palestinian racism. 

Palestinians already enjoy legal protection against discrimination, as does every national group in Canada. But anti-Palestinian racism, as defined by groups backing this campaign, includes any disagreement with the Palestinian “narrative.” If you disagree with the anti-Israel mob, they want you branded as a racist.

Banning cultural or academic exchanges with Israeli students, artists, or any other Jew living in the West Bank.

The groups behind the Vote Palestine platform want to cut “Zionists” off from the rest of humanity – no contact of any kind with any Jewish Israeli or anyone supporting Israel’s continuing existence. Banning contact with Jews living in the West Back is a baby step they’ve guessed they can get a lot of people to go along with.

(More about both anti-Palestinian racism and the movement to shun “Zionists” here.)

Endorsing the slander that Israel tests out new weapons on Palestinians.

The groups behind Vote Palestine see Israel as a demonic entity – a state that kills Palestinians to try out new weapons or simply for sport. Because the Vote Palestine platform is meant for the general public, they’ve tried to hide their extremism (and outright craziness), but here it peeks out.

They want Canada to extend the ban on selling weapons to Israel to an additional ban on Canada buying weapons from Israel. To justify this, they pull out this absurd accusation about Israel testing out weapons on Palestinians.

And again, this is a policy the NDP endorses.

Funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). 

UNRWA is a UN agency, but in Gaza, it’s run by Hamas – which is not a surprise. Hamas has governed Gaza for 18 years. Every agency in Gaza answers to Hamas.

But UNRWA is more important than most, partly because it channeled a billion dollars to Hamas (here), but also because Gazan children all went to UNRWA schools, which taught them to hate Jews and to aspire to become martyrs in the holy war to wipe Israel off the map (here).

Altogether, Israel has identified 14 UNRWA employees who took part in the October 7 attack, and another 1,200 who are members of terrorist groups, plus numerous incidences of UNRWA facilities doubling as Hamas facilities. (More here).

The Liberals and the NDP already support funding UNRWA. The Conservative do not.

Protesters from Samidoun terrorist group burn Canadian flag

The Vote Palestine platform never mentions Hamas, although Hamas started this war and Hamas continues this war which has led to such disaster for Gaza. Thousands of Gazans hate Hamas and risk torture and death to protest its rule (here).

So why don’t the groups behind Vote Palestine platform mention Hamas? Simple: they care much more about wiping out Israel than they care about protecting Palestinians.

Of course, for all of us, there are other issues in this election, notably President Trump’s tariffs and his bid to make Canada the 51^st state. In regard to this issue, though, the question isn’t: who will stand up to Trump? All the parties would.

The question is: who will strengthen Canada’s economy so that we can stand up to this threat? For this, the smart money is on the Conservatives, not the Liberals, who have spent the past nine years hobbling our economy.

Still, despite the Liberals’ betrayal of Israel, if I lived in Anthony Housefather’s riding in Montreal or Ben Carr’s riding in Winnipeg, I’d vote Liberal myself, because it’s important to have strong pro-Israel voices in the Liberal caucus.

On the other hand, there are these Liberals who support the Vote Palestine platform. They’re only a half-step away from supporting terrorism:

Ontario:

Sima Acan, Oakville West

Shafqat Ali (incumbent), Brampton—Chinguacousy Park

Fares Abu Al Soud, Mississauga Centre

Chris Bittle (incumbent), St. Catharines

Sean Carscadden, Wellington–Halton Hills North

Shaun Chen (incumbent), Scarborough North

Nate Erskine-Smith (incumbent), Beaches-East York

Kurt Keenan, Middlesex—London

Iqra Khalid (incumbent), Mississauga—Erin Mills

Tim Louis (incumbent), Kitchener—Conestoga

Aslam Rana, Hamilton Centre

Jenna Sudds (incumbent), Kanata

Kristina Tesser Derksen, Milton East–Halton Hills South

Adam van Koeverden (incumbent), Burlington North—Milton West

Salma Zahid (incumbent), Scarborough Centre—Don Valley East

PEI:

Sean Casey (incumbent), Charlottetown

Quebec:

Alexandra Mendès (incumbent), Brossard—Saint-Lambert

Sameer Zuberi (incumbent), Pierrefonds—Dollard

Alberta:

Shahnaz Munir, Calgary Crowfoot

B.C.:

Patrick Weiler (incumbent), West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country

In Nunavut, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador, no Liberal candidates have signed on to the Vote Palestine platform. In these provinces and territories, you need to vote NDP or Green to support terrorism.

***

Note: I’ve previously written on the Liberals’ betrayal and in particular on the betrayal of the Jewish community by my own Member of Parliament, in York Centre here.

This piece was originally published on the Canadian Zionist Forum.

To read more of my commentary, click here (and scroll down).

You're invited to “Writing Personal Stories”

“Writing Personal Stories” 

 ~ A weekly class dedicated to the pleasures of writing your stories & insights

Online: Tuesday afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
July 8 – Aug 19, 2025
Offered on Zoom and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

If you've ever considered writing your personal stories, this course is for you. We’ll look at memoirs, travel writing, personal essays, family history – personal stories of all kinds. Plus, of course, we’ll work on creativity and writing technique and have fun doing it. 

Whether you want to write a book or just get your thoughts down on paper, this weekly course will get you going. We'll reveal the tricks and conventions of telling true stories, and we’ll show you how to use the techniques of the novel to recount actual events. Weekly writing exercises and friendly feedback from the instructor will help you move forward on this writing adventure. Whether you want to write for your family and friends or for a wider public, don't miss this course.

We’ll also have a published author as a guest speaker for this course.

Instructor Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada's most popular blog for writers, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John.  But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.  

Read reviews and other pieces about or inspired by Brian's writing courses, workshops, and retreats here (and scroll down).

Fee: $220.35 plus 13% hst = $259

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here. 

Kudos to Denisha and Evana, Jayne, Barbara, and Susan!

Hi, Brian.

I hope you’re well. I do miss your classes and am looking forward to the June retreat. I am coming!

Also, Evena and I will be reading our pieces from  Prairie Fire Magazine 50 over 50 issue May 1st. I’m attaching the poster and I hope you can put it on your blog and maybe even attend :)

Thanks for your help in all things writing,

Denisha Naidoo

The launch of Prairie Fire Magazine 50 over 50 issue will be Thursday, May 1; 6–8 p.m. at High Park Library, 288 Roncesvalles Avenue, Toronto (Map here). Come and hear Denisha, Evena, and other great writers featured in this issue read their stories aloud.

For information about upcoming writing retreats, including the June retreat at Arowhon Pines Resort in Algonquin Park, see here (and scroll down)

 

Hi, Brian.

I'm thrilled to let you know that my first person essay about homesickness, workshopped in our Wednesday Intensive Writing Class, is to be published in the Globe and Mail online on April 8th and in print on the 9th! Thanks to you and everyone in my small group for their support and feedback!

 Best wishes and see you in class

Jayne Evans 

Read Jayne’s piece in the Globe and Mail here.

Note: I’ve started to post summer courses. Tuesday afternoons will be Personal Stories, Wednesday evenings will be Writing for Children and Young Adults, and Tuesday evenings and Wednesday afternoons will be Intensive Creative Writing classes. If you’re interested, send me an email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca  

 

Hi, Brian.

I'm getting a lot of mileage out of this piece, “Why does spring also have to be dog poop-bag season?” Between the comments on the online print at The Globe, social media and random strangers looking me up to find my email address to tell me their horror dog poop stories – it's been a fun few days. 

Barbara Wackerle Baker

You can read Barbara’s piece in the Globe and Mail here.

For information on submitting a First Person essay to the Globe and Mail {and a few other great places to submit}, see here.

 

Hi, Brian.

I am excited to announce that my fourth novel, Stranded, has just come out, published by Evernight Teen.

It is available in e-copy at evernightteen.com or in paperback from Amazon here.

Thanks for all the support!

Susan Thomas

Note: See all my upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and four-day retreats here. ~Brian

See where your fellow writers are getting short pieces published here (and scroll down). And see more books from your fellow authors here (and scroll down).

If you’ve had a story (or a book!) published, if you’ve won or placed in a writing contest, if you’ve gotten yourself an agent, or if you have any other news, send me an email so I can share your success. As writers, we’re all in this together, and your good news gives us all a boost. Email me at: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

You're invited to Writing Kid Lit, a weekly class for grown-ups

“Writing Kid Lit” 

~ Picture Books to Young Adult Novels

Online: Wednesday evenings, 7 – 9 p.m.,
July 2 – August 13 {or to Aug 20 if it fills up}
Offered online and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

This course is for adults {or teens} interested in writing picture books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade books, or Young Adult novels. This course is accessible for beginners and meaty enough for advanced writers. Through lectures, in-class assignments, homework, and feedback on your writing, we’ll give you ins and outs of writing for younger readers. If you want to write for kids, this is the course you need to make sure you’re on the right track.

We’ll also have a published children’s author as a guest speaker (TBA).

Instructor Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada's most popular blog for writers, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. Brian is the author of a children's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing). But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.  

Read pieces about ~ or inspired by ~ Brian's retreats, courses and workshops here (and scroll down).

Fee: $220.35 plus 13% hst = $259

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.

Kudos to Carleigh, Debra & Sandra, Johanna, and Suzanne ~ they all have new books!

Note: If you’ve had a story (or a book!) published, if you’ve won or placed in a writing contest, if you’ve gotten yourself an agent, or if you have any other news, send me an email so I can share your success. As writers, we’re all in this together, and your good news gives us all a boost. 

Also, be sure to let know if you're looking for a writers' group or beta readers; a notice in Quick Brown Fox, will help you find them. 

Email me at: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Hi, Brian!

I'm very excited to share that my middle grade nonfiction, Adventures in Math, is coming out October 7! I'll send you a copy :-) 

Thank you so much for your support! I workshopped the first drafts in your Writing for Children class, and through your workshops, I met Patricia Ocampo, from Kids Can Press. Patricia was amazing to work with, I learned so much, and I'm thrilled with how the book turned out!! 

I also submitted a humorous short story for Red Deer Press's YA anthology, I'm Here – and it too will be published this fall! 

I hope you are doing well! Thanks again!!

Warmest regards,

Carleigh Wu

Adventures in Math is available for pre-order from Indigo/Chapters here.

For information on submitting to Kids Can Press, see here, and for information on submitting to Red Deer Press, see here.

And if you’re interested in writing Kid Lit, I have a “How to Get Published” workshop coming up May 31 with literary agent Bridgette Kam of Westwood Creative Artists. Kid Lit is one of Bridgette’s specialties. Details here.

Also, I’ll have a new weekly Kid Lit course this summer. Details to come. ~Brian

 

Hi, Brian.

Sandra Baker and I just self-published our book called, Spirit Leads The Way, Stories of What Spirit and Our Intuition Have Taught Us.

 A heartfelt thank you for doing what you do!

Only the best,

Debra Falco

Spirit Leads The Way is available on Amazon here.

 

Hello, Brian;

I just wanted to let you know that my novel The Hunger Winter is now available through the publisher Wipfandstock.com (here) and Chapters/Indigo (here).

This is the story of two teenage sisters in the Netherlands who are forced to learn to collaborate during the famine and the final year of WWII. Suitable for adult readers and mature YA, the book offers book club and further research resources.

Thanks for past courses and workshops. Will keep an eye on future offerings. 

Johanna M. Selles

 

Hi, Brian.

Just thought I’d share my news. I have a picture book coming out with Owl’s Nest Publishers in 2026. It’s a middle grade novel in verse titled Swimming with Dolphins.

Suzanne Purvis

Note: Owl’s Nest Publishers is a new independent publisher specializing in Middle Grade and YA. It’s also reprinting classics that in the public domain – which hopefully works out as a good revenue stream for them. See more about Owl’s Nest here.

 

See all my upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and four-day  retreats here. ~Brian

See other new books by your fellow writers here (and scroll down).

See where your fellow writers are getting short pieces published here (and scroll down).

Note: You can get new postings on Quick Brown Fox delivered straight to your Inbox as I publish them. Subscribe to Quick Brown Fox on Substack here: https://brian999.substack.com/