OTTAWA | Fiddlers in The Glebe

Backyard Music Festival for Randal's 80th.

OTTAWA, July 15, 2018–The impromptu orchestra assembled in the back of Randal and Elaine's house in The Glebe to celebrate Randal's 80th birthday.

Under the shade of a gazebo and an umbrella, a steady stream of liquid refreshment flowed.

Music

The music went on from 2 pm to 7 pm. At its peak five fiddlers were going, three guitars and the keyboard.


A fine flautist was also contributing to the Irish-themed music early on.

Players filtered in and out, but the keyboard player and a couple of other players were there from beginning to end. Near the end, Randal's violin teacher, Master Violinist Denis Lanctot joined in.

Here are two clips of the music, the first one with dancing! The dancers are Pat Steenberg in black and white and Michele Pronovost in the dress. The music is "Barnburners' Jamboree" and "Maple Sugar."

Birthday Cake

L to R: Randal Marlin, Sneezy Waters and 
Vince Halfhide (legendary musicians
 in Ottawa for decades), Irene 

McCloskey on keyboard, Alex Marlin.

With Randal on the fiddle and two of his sons, Alex and Nick, on the guitar and singing, the family was a music festival of its own.

Then the birthday cakes were brought out. Another movie clip of that.

Marlin Family Photo

At the end of the day, the family assembled for a photo first of Randal and Elaine's six children, three boys and three girls (now men and women), and then the whole family of eight.

Catherine, daughter and youngest child of Elaine and Michael Schintgen, also got into the group photo.

Here are the names of the six children and three grandchildren:

• Christine Marlin Schintgen (married to Michael Schintgen), of Barry's Bay, Ontario. Children: Carl, Eric, Catherine.
• Alex Marlin, of Toronto.
• Greg Marlin, of Ottawa.
• Nick Marlin, of Ottawa.
• Laura Marlin, of Calgary, engaged to be married later in July to Emanuel Côté.
• Marguerite (Margie) Marlin (married to Myles Dunn), of Ottawa.

L to R: Elaine Marlin, Randal Marlin, Christine and Catherine (one of
three children) Schintgen, Laura Marlin, Greg Marlin, Margie Marlin,
Alex Marlin and Nick Marlin.

See also: Two Poems for Randal from Clyde Sanger . There Is No Planet B

OTTAWA | Randal's 80th Birthday, 2 Poems

Clyde Sanger (L) reads out his poem honoring
Randal's 80th. The Sangers and Marlins edited
 and wrote for the Glebe Report. L to R: Sanger, 
his assistant Emma, Pierre Pronovost, Anna
Barantseva, Nick Marlin, Randal Marlin, Michèle
Pronovost, Julianna Ovens, Sinclair Robinson.

OTTAWA, July 15, 2018–My brother Randal and his wife Elaine celebrated his 80th birthday yesterday with an afternoon of feasting and music in The Glebe.

In the interest of full disclosure of the Truth, which is always a concern of my brother, I should say at the outset that Randal's 80th birthday was really in January.

But he has found over the years that invitations to come to Ottawa in January when people are in, say, Florida, fall on deaf ears.

So it was a case of nunc pro tunc. A good time to come to Ottawa – When the weather is dry, / And no clouds hide the sky. / When air fills with sun, / And the outside is fun.

Which rhymes are a good segue to the fine poem to Elaine and Randal that Clyde Sanger read out to the assembled relatives and friends of Randal. Here is my snapshot of the poem he read out and left behind for Randal and Elaine at their house, posted here with the poet's permission:

L to R: Julianna Ovens, Sinclair Robinson, Pat Steenberg, Tony Patterson, 
Laura Marlin, Alice Tepper Marlin. Photos by JT Marlin.

Elaine and Randal were regular contributors, and for a few years Elaine was the editor.

The onlookers included family and many Glebe friends.

Five years ago, Clyde Sanger wrote another poem about Randal's search for Truth, which I also append with appreciation and thanks for permission to post.

This is at a time when Truth is in Helsinki, hostage to Greed and Power, https://bit.ly/2urjl39.

See also: Fiddlers in The Glebe, Ottawa, which includes a couple of movie clips . There Is No Planet B