Table Talk with Dee Lysak

For every person who has loved and lost. If you are feeling lonely, know that you are not alone.  This episode is in loving memory of Peter Wiwcharyk, my grandpa and our time together, here on earth - on Lake Abernathy in Northwestern Ontario. 

This episode of TABLE TALK with Dee Lysak takes us back in time with a retrospective, centred around the theme of water. It also comments on current events and the calamity and chaos of climate change.  The larger over arching conversation suggests that "art" can invite action, from all of us. Action that seeks uncommon solutions for the common good. Before I sign off, a special thank yo...

My years are divided into two seasons: Camping and waiting for camping… For many months, here in Ontario’s North the colour white dominates. White is an achromatic colour, literally a colour without hue , that is a mixture of the frequencies of all the colours of the visible spectrum. Imagine if you will – brilliance, faith, possibility, goodness. 

And, 2-3-4… The first known music festival was the Pythian Games, a precursor of the Olympics, which was held from the late sixth century BC at the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. A general celebration of all things beautiful, it included a day of musical competitions. Fast forward to more modern times and music festivals can be found in small and large centres across the globe – from Glastonbury i...

In Episode 2 of TABLE TALK with Dee Lysak, we explore the early days and milestones of the global movement, that we know as LITTLE FREE LIBRARIES. In the small communities of Sioux Narrows and Nestor Falls, we have two "Book Trading Posts". The book trading post in Sioux Narrows was designed and built by Jake Blosser.  In Nestor Falls, a small group of community members came together - t...

This music essay is the first episode in Season Two of Table Talk with Dee Lysak . In this episode we hear I NEED ANGELS by the incredible singer-songwriter, Adrian Sutherland. I was first introduced to the soulful wonder that is Adrian Sutherland when Midnight Shine played at the Moose n' Fiddle Music Festival in Nestor Falls, Ontario, Canada. Music helps us explore our innermost feelings an...

The other night I said out loud, to no one in particular. You are a very cute platypus.  To which Mary Anne replied.  What platypus?  I said, “the one hanging on my laptop”.  She looked at me, perplexed and said: That is a parrot. Look at the beak.  “Oh, well the feet – they look like a platypus”.  Either way – parrot or platypus.  It is still hangin’ on my laptop and there it will stay. So here w...

In the wilds of northwestern Ontario, creative residencies dot the landscape with hundreds of miles in betwixt and between. Rural and remote places are creating new pathways for discovery and exploration as artists travel from near and far away to take deep dives into their artistic practices. Old logging roads are now being used by nemophilists and in these deep, dark woods – artists are finding...

Last week, I found the most incredible piece of art.  It is a painting of a black bear cub on a tree, on a live edge wood plank. It is rustic and whimsical all at the same time.  The colours of yellow, green and blue – simply pop!  Thank you... April Jones for sharing your art with the world. This painting will bring joy to our home, for many years to come! In Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls, we invite...

I so hope you enjoy this mix of fiction and fact, wrapped around the idea of telling stories around the campfire. The very idea of gathering dry wood, lighting a campfire and watching the flames dance in the dark of the night sky is synonymous with summertime in rural and remote northwestern Ontario! In every effort to be a responsible citizen and not light a campfire - as wildfires burn in our re...

The KITCHEN PARTY returns in 2021. Although we cannot gather at Caliper Lake Provincial Park in Nestor Falls, Ontario, Canada – we can still enjoy the sights and sounds of “this cool little festival at the lake”!  A few summers ago… Roots Music Canada joined us at the Moose n’ Fiddle Music Festival on Saturday, August 19, 2019 and they had this to say in Dispatch #2: “4:04 p.m. – The festival is k...

This podcast might be the most personal one that I have written and recorded to date.  You will hear references to my childhood and times spent picking berries with my Baba & Gido.  If there is one memory, forever etched in time, it is the imagery that surrounds any blueberry hill on any summer day.  And for me, this only happened with the loving and caring arms of my Baba & Gido wrapped a...

I Am A Settler is a story that looks at the past, the present and the future.  In this story, we discover Turtle Island and how everything is interconnected! And, to illustrate the power of story we share a personal recollection of a short road trip, a few blue moons ago, and the tale of a turtle heading east.  Here in Ontario, Canada, the very early days of spring have been marked by a crushing w...

This is a story of how one whitetail deer caught the attention of the human race and in so doing, catapulted one deer, just one deer from Anywhere, Ontario, Canada into the hearts and minds of many.  CUPID the deer created an ecosphere; of faith, hope and love. In the telling of this tale, I have taken liberties to imagine how CUPID came to be.  I have also carved out space for the ecology of a wh...

How do you measure a year?  This seemed like a conversation that might happen while sipping on a hot toddy, warming up in a fireside den après ski or in a fishing boat on a sun-filled autumn day in the heart of cottage country. The song from RENT, the musical inspired this episode. I encourage you to have a listen and here is the link to the song on YouTube: Rent, The Musical - 525,600 Minutes Tha...

Welcome to Table Talk with Dee Lysak. I believe in the power of words and that WORDS matter. With this hope podcast, I will paint pictures with words creating a roadmap to rural and remote northwestern Ontario. Table Talk leans to active participation on all levels, from you the listener. Discourse is healthy. Conversations are encouraged. I welcome you to go on this season long journey with me.