Given a second chance at the NHL after an absence of nearly two decades, hockey fans in Atlanta immediately embraced the expansion Thrashers, named after the state bird.Ownership problems had plagued the Flames, Atlanta's original NHL franchise, and had played a major role in the team's eventual departure for Calgary in 1980. But there would be no such worries this time around. With the backing of local media mogul Ted Turner, the Thrashers were poised to establish themselves as a ...

In the spring and summer of 1995, Winnipeggers rallied like never before to save their hometown team. But in the end, despite heroic efforts, it all fell apart, leaving the Jets to embark upon one final lame-duck season before flying the coop. Relive the ups and downs of the 1995-96 season through the eyes and ears of Jets historian Curtis Walker, who shares his insight into the fateful "Season to Remember" and the agony of being a fan of a poorly run small-market team.

It is often said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. But after butting our heads against a brick wall a few times, most people will figure out soon enough that something isn't right.David Coleman, however, is not "most people."In this stranger-than-fiction true story, Coleman plucks an email address out of thin air and begins using it to sign up with hundreds of online dating sites, create bank account...

In this heavily sarcastic tale, idealistic social worker Gavin York sets foot in Winnipeg, Manitoba, a city of over 700,000 on the eastern edge of the Canadian prairies, to begin his career, convinced of his opportunity to change the world. After enduring many trials and tribulations in Canada's toilet bowl, Gavin eventually sours on his insufferable adopted home city and opens his eyes to the harsh reality of socialism and its disastrous long-term consequences once the unsustainable welfa...

In Tales from the Dog Pound, hockey historian Curtis Walker chronicles the Canadian junior hockey fan experience as he follows the Ontario Hockey League's Niagara IceDogs from his vantage point up in the corner of the brand-new Meridian Center in downtown St. Catharines.As he shares many of his off-color observations in the stands and of the topsy-turvy fortunes of the team and its players, he contrasts them with those from his decades of experience following teams in the pro ranks...

View from Section 26 is a collection of off-the-wall stories along with an irreverent look at the characters behind them that make minor-league hockey unique.Featured is the IHL's Manitoba Moose, a team as unwanted as any in the history of the game and badly neglected by its ownership. Hockey historian Curtis Walker recalls his experiences following a team that slogged through a dreary, yet oddly entertaining existence playing in front of pitifully small, comatose crowds at the Win...

Ride along on a weekend bus trip through southern Manitoba, eastern North Dakota and into Minnesota as the author shares his many experiences from traveling between Winnipeg and the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.The 450-mile trek to the southeast is an all-too-familiar rite of passage for many Winnipeggers, who regularly flock to the Twin Cities to shop, watch sporting events and enjoy the many attractions the region has to offer.

During my 20-plus-year career in IT in Winnipeg, I held many roles. Programmer. Database administrator. Network administrator. System administrator. Web developer. I wore many hats and learned new skills through experience. I was a permanent employee, a term employee and a contractor.But despite the many technical issues that came my way, nothing challenged me as much as dealing with the wide variety of colleagues and employers who I crossed paths with.Many of those colleag...

Following a terminal cancer diagnosis, Mitch Schubert knows he's not long for this world. But wherever he's headed, he won't be going alone. He's got a long list of scores to settle. As he begins knocking off his adversaries one by one, naive young detective Sierra Kowalski picks up his trail. She must find him. Before he finds her.

Having recently found God, broken-down and drug-addicted hooker Destinee Davis sets out on a crusade to rid the world of sinners and evildoers. One by one, she delivers the ultimate punishment to the high-profile figures who were once her clients, avenging the horrific abuse she endured at their hands and the crimes they committed against other innocent people.In a quiet, peaceful area that sees virtually no violent crime, Niagara Regional Police detective Kris Claasen is shocked a...

In this story, the author shares his personal experiences during his many visits with Carli Ward, a 25-year-old woman with Asperger's Syndrome, who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The author covers his emotional first meeting with Carli through to her eventual death eight months later, adding details of her background and life story. Read about Carli's last few months of life that she spent in palliative care that included her last baseball games and her last Terry Fox Run.

Many employees face challenges in their day-to-day jobs. But too often the biggest challenges involve dealing with weird co-workers, bad bosses and companies that seemingly go miles out of their way to stifle productivity and construct barriers as formidable as the Berlin Wall to keep the best and brightest out of their organizations.Read some of the zaniest on-the-job stories and go along on the interview circuit in Wild and Wacky Workplaces, where the truth is often stranger than...