It is a tremendous gift for one to create moving, beautiful short stories. It takes a great amount of talent to bring someone from laughter, to tears, all within a tapestry of finely woven words.
Canadian writer, and story teller, Stuart McLean had this gift. Canada lost Mr. McLean in 2017, but his short stories live on.
In 1994, Stuart McLean launched "The Vinyl Cafe", a radio/live audience series of short stories featuring a variety of characters, but mainly focusing on; Dave, his wife Morley, and their two kids, Sam, and Stephanie. These characters are fictitious, but we truly get a sense that they are real. Real in a sense that we can relate, laugh, and through McLean's writing, clearly see the quirks that they encounter as they navigate through life.
Stuart McLean captured human decency so confidently in his short stories, they weren't all sunshine and rainbows, but Stuart always seemed to find a way to get to a poignant conclusion. My mother and I would often sit in our car, long after arriving at our destination, just to listen to the end of one of his epically simple, yet sincere endings to "The Vinyl Cafe."
This mystery cache pays tribute to a man who shot Canada with such a warm literary lens. Who saw the generosity, kindness, and uniqueness of this nation.
Your task is rather simple. Listen to his story called "Emil". I have supplied a related webpage link. Answer the questions below to find out the coordinates to the final cache. Enjoy!
A. Who was pulling up Betty Shellenburger's Gold Flame Spirea?
A) Sam (1)
B) Stephanie (3)
C) Emil (2)
D) Mary Turlington (0)
B. When did the "Flick Lady" usually arrive in the day?
A) Between 2 and 3 pm (0)
B) 4pm (2)
C) 1pm (1)
D) 5pm (3)
C. Where did Emil live for the past two years?
A) Dave's record store (9)
B) The Turlington's basement (5)
C) Sitting in the stairwell next to the "Heart of Christ Religious Supplies, and Fax Services" (4)
D) In a small house down the street from Dave and Morley's (2)
D. How much change did Emil give back to Morley?
A) 50 cents (7)
B) $2.00 (8)
C) $5.00 (0)
D) $1.50 (9)
E. How much money did Emil win?
A) $10,000 (4)
B) $7,000 (9)
C) $1,000,000 (7)
D) $78,000 (2)
F. What did Emil request when giving out books?
A) That users of his books have a library membership (1)
B) Pay $5.00 (2)
C) Buy him a sandwich (0)
D) Give him a hug (3)
G. How high did the book fine go?
A) $7.00 (2)
B) $5.00 (4)
C) $10.00 (3)
D) $15.00 (1)
H. Which tree does the city occasionally water?
A) A yellow cedar (9)
B) A Ginkgo tree (1)
C) A Douglas Fir (7)
D) An Oak tree (6)
I. What was Emil only able to see on his T.V?
A) American News (2)
B) Nature shows (7)
C) Movie Networks (5)
D) Canadian channels (6)
J. What did Morley buy for Emil's garden?
A) Daffodils (2)
B) Grape Hyacinth (3)
C) Roses (6)
D) Tulips (5)
N 49 AB.CDE W 123 FG.HIJ
Enjoy the story! Please ensure the cache is hidden well.
Happy caching!
While this is not part of the puzzle, why not listen to a beautiful tribute song written by Buddy MacDonald. Rachel Davis is on the fiddle, and Buddy on the guitar. It's from an interview at Cape Breton University. Watch the whole interview, or jump ahead to the tribute song at 10:30. Click here.