Author: Edward Caissie

WordPress Support Technician, Developer, Designer; Chess Enthusiast; Photographer; Guitar player … I am Cais.
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Detour Coffee in Dundas

I decided to check out the Detour Coffee & Bakery in Dundas to see how their coffee was. Beware, when you step up to the door (literally, it’s not very accessible–but few businesses in Dundas are), there is a sign telling you to “secure” a table before placing your order. They’re not kidding, the seating is cramped but decent given how small the coffee shop is, but in the middle of the day, it was full with little sign of anyone leaving.

Be that as it may, I was waiting for a few other patrons to place their order as the barista suggested that some others might be leaving, and to try waiting for a bit. No seating panned out for me, so I chose a London Fog instead of a coffee. I did this mostly because when I asked for a recommendation from the barista, they essentially just told me what was on the menu.

I like to go to an independent shop and ask for a recommendation because it tells me a bit about how they want to connect to their customers. Offering a specific drink tells me they are either sharing something of themselves or they think it is one of their better drinks and want you, the customer, to enjoy the experience of the establishment.

Parking is decent, as there is street parking and a small city parking lot close by, but still a bit of a challenge at times, as Dundas can be tough to get parking really close to where you want to dine or eat. I simply walked up from my shop down the street, so the parking situation was not a concern.

I might go back, but I would definitely be walking in with the intent to get the coffee or tea to go. Fortunately, Dundas is nice to walk along King Street, and there are several benches nearby where one can sit and watch the people and cars go by.

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Paisley Coffeehouse in Westdale

Driving through the Westdale neighborhood, I spotted the Paisley Coffeehouse in the strip plazas of the Westdale oval. This coffee shop came up in one of my searches. I had some time on my hands and thought, why not pop in and see what this place was like, and, obviously, have a coffee.

There was plenty of parking in the small parking lot of the plaza. Keep in mind the Westdale Theatre is in the same plaza som parking might be affected by its showings or events.

I found the Paisley to be a bit small, but a very large selection of coffees and teas, iced and hot. There is also a fairly extensive sandwich and small bits menu if you’re feeling a bit peckish when you visit.

I noticed they served a Dirty Chai Latte. This is one of my favorite drinks, but often has to be explained (or so it seems). In this case, even though I was leaning into the Chai, I asked the barista what she would recommend. Her favorites were of the iced variety and I was thinking more of a hot beverage today so I carried on with the Dirty Chai Latte. They serve two sizes of drinks, fairly priced, but as best as I can tell the volume between the two sizes is nearly identical, so I opted for the smaller of the two. Dirty Chai Lattes are not all created equal, so I was considering that as well.

I was happy to taste what I expected. The atmosphere in the shop was relatively quiet, where a casual conversation could be easily had, provided you can find seating, which, inside, is a bit limited. I’d still recommend the Paisley, and might go back for a sandwich sometime soon.

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Durand Coffee on Charlton

This is the beginning of a possible series on coffee shops and casual meeting spots in the Hamilton, Ontario area. Finding something that meets the needs of the casual meeting can be a bit tough to do with search and random AI machinations, so I thought, what better way than to go visit some of these spots and give my opinion of them.

The plan was to meet an old acquaintance here; it fit best into finding a space in between, and one that served coffee. There is definitely a theme to these posts. It’s all about having a coffee with a friend or scoping out a place to have a coffee, tea, etc., with a new acquaintance.

Durand Coffee is a great little coffee shop. Independent, casual, and easy to find. I parked on the street nearby. Parking is fairly available on the local residential streets. I only walked a block, but passed a few parking spots as I did.

Durand offers a good selection of coffees. At a glance, it appears they focus on Peruvian. I’m not much of a coffee snob. I know what I like, but I am also open to recommendations from the barista or service person taking my order. This being the case, I asked the young woman what she recommended. I didn’t catch the name, but it was some sort of espresso shaker. I accepted, and the drink was prepared quickly.

The seating area is a bit small inside (there is outside seating on picnic tables). However, I found a small high table with a single chair where I enjoyed what tasted like Bailey’s Irish Cream on the rocks. It was quite good.

There is also a small boutique shop attached to Durand Coffee. I didn’t investigate, but I recall there being syrups and other drink-related products on the shelves.

If there is no place you want to sit, the neighborhood is quiet and conducive to a nice walk. Keep that in mind as the Durand prepares drinks for sit-in or to go.

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Terri Left Friday

It wasn’t planned, but in some small part, it was becoming something that was to be expected.

Terri was very ill for a very long time. However, she managed to keep up her spirits throughout that time and fought hard and long to stay with us as long as she could. Friday, February 13, 2026, she lost that fight. It was quick and hopefully merciful. I did manage to spend an hour with her before the ICU nurse asked me to step out so they could freshen her up for the afternoon. Basically, they needed to change the bedsheets because that was how they handled patients in the ICU, where one-to-one nursing and monitoring were the norm.

Terri was mostly immobile by this point. The doctors felt she needed high-flow oxygen, which means a powered cannula-style oxygen feed delivering a higher flow rate than a typical cannula.

I gave her a kiss, like I did when I arrived earlier, and told her I loved her. Then walked out to the ICU private waiting room, where the nurse said she would come and get me in about 10 minutes.

It was only a few minutes later that the overhead public announcement system blared a Code Omega on ICU level 0, which was exactly the waiting room I was sitting in.

Code Omega sounded familiar, but I looked it up all the same. It’s bad, as in a very serious sort of all-hands-on-deck for the ICU. I tried to dismiss this because Terri was not in the really sick part of the ICU, or at least not in the section where the doctors were spending most of their time during rounds.

I saw several doctors, nurses, or social workers rushing through the locked ICU visitor’s entrance, and I’m not 100% on their duties. I noticed the last “doctor” turned left after entering the ICU. Terri was to the right, and I relaxed a bit. I felt bad for whoever was hopefully enduring the Code Omega response.

Then, the social worker walked out of the ICU and sat down with me. I didn’t recognize her from the days before when she had introduced herself. She re-introduced herself, and I asked, “What that Omega call for Terri?” She said yes and offered to sit with me in the “Quiet Room” of the waiting area.

I declined at first, but as the social worker started to explain what was happening, we moved to the quiet room, and one of the ICU doctors came in and sat with us. I knew it wasn’t going well, but I didn’t know how bad until the doctor started telling me what they were or had been doing for Terri.

Terri’s heart had stopped. They had tried CPR, they had tried shocking her heart, they tried rapid-infusion blood, but ultimately her liver was simply too acutely sick for her to recover from. As the doctor noted, there have been very few cases of patients recovering when they were in severe liver failure, as Terri was experiencing.

I was taken to Terri immediately, but even though another person (the left-turning doctor) said she was passing, I think she had already left.

The Gastro-Intestinal ICU doctor (one of eight in the world!) sat with Terri and me, and we chatted for a little while as the doctor and the social worker tried to comfort me. We talked about how Terri and I met and the differences with Cincinnati chili. It was so very hard to cope, and even as I write this, I am still finding tears coming to my eyes.

I continued to sit with Terri for another hour or so before I felt strong enough to push her wheelchair and belongings out to the car and make my way home. I’m not entirely sure the dogs and cats understand that “mommy” won’t be coming home again. There is a definite sadness in the house, even as I try to distract and occupy their time.

Terri will be cremated on February 16, 2026, at the Circle of Life Crematorium in Dundas, Ontario. A private family viewing will be attended by those close enough to visit. A celebration of life will be planned for a later date, most likely in the spring.

Please feel free to reach out to me via email or telephone for more information. Socials and other platforms will likely see updates as well.

Until we meet again, my love.

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Life has a really funny way of making a wake-up call and these unexpected events as the world makes another run around Sol are none too fun to be involved in.

Today, last night, or a little over a week ago, I have been written into an awful country music song. The haves and the have-nots are not things I would wish anyone to start a new year with their run around the sun. I lost my job (which I truly loved), I lost my dog (a heart-breaking event), and my wife just found out she has cancer (which I am not too optimistic about).

Some say 2024 was a bad year, but I didn’t. I know it was not a good year for many, but I felt very fortunate to have worked for a good company and managed a good team that accomplished many good things and managed to push forward with limited resources.

So, 2025, what’s next?

I will be able to grow and expand my network and documentarian skills. I enjoy writing and moving technical details into lay terminology, which has been surprisingly satisfying. I look forward to more of this in the future. I’d even enjoy freelancing this some.

Sammy, our dog, was suffering from congestive heart failure. We tried, or better yet, we took him to the best veterinarians to hopefully give him a chance at a more comfortable quality of life. We were gifted with a few days, but Sammy was too ill. We made the very difficult decision to let him go to the Rainbow Bridge and asked him to wait there with all our other past family members of the four-footed variety.

We added another little fur-foot, Hennessy, a mini Dachshund, a few days before Christmas. Sammy and Hennessy were bonding well, but only as an elder would pass their blessing to a new arrival in the pack. It took a few days, some during Sammy’s last days, but Sammy was gathering a definite peace while he could.

My calendar is now clear. I am hopeful we will be presented with some options to address my wife’s cancer and provide her with a quality of life to move forward with. I have the time right now, so as bad as this news is, and as selfish a thought as it might be, I have the time to be with her, and after more than 30 years together, I will not leave her to endure this alone.

Every year, many people take the time to reflect on the past year and make resolutions for the new year. Since I start my revolution around the Sun, which is so close to the New Year, I usually take the two weeks before my birthday to reflect on the past year and consider the next. I’m still in shock, or disbelief or however you would like to describe my current state of mind. Somethings are blatantly obvious and somethings are simply too nebulous to grasp clearly, but we will carry on.

I will carry on.

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You Found Me

Last I wrote I was making a public statement about moving away from WordPress… well, that’s still mostly true. I’m not actively working within or around the community although I am still working with the platform all the same.

Now, that being said, if you really want to find me have a look at Auctria.com a wonderful Canadian company providing “an easy to use, powerful tool to run your fundraising auction.”

If the above sounds like an endorsement, don’t fool yourself… it really is!

I’ve been here a while and just thought it would a good time to say, I’ve been so happy to go to work every day that I just simply let other things slide a little bit (like posting here… and elsewhere). Being happy at work has been spilling over to other aspects of my life and letting me see and take different approaches allowing me to enjoy some odd hobbies, and start some new ones, too (more to follow on this at a later date).

So, if you are looking for me, why not find a worthy cause to help raise some funds and take a look at Auctria.com as one of your resources to do so… and if you run into any questions or concerns, I’ll be there to help you get them sorted out and addressed with the rest of the Auctria team.

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Bye-Bye WordPress

I’m not really leaving or running away… well, maybe a little bit… I just think it’s time to come to the realization that WordPress, as much as it has provided for some definite improvements in my life is not something I am actively involved in anymore.

The community has, for the most part, been supportive although it has changed… and not necessarily for the greater good although the project itself has not greatly suffered all the same.

I’ve also noticed some good people are no longer really involved in the current ecosystem and it seems many that are will just be finishing up their current projects and or fulfilling their current role duties before moving on completely as well.

I do wish those involved with WordPress all the success although I only see my future involvement along the lines of “developing as a creative”.

I still see and believe “Code is Poetry” and without any pressure to produce, the sheer pleasure of coding is returning again.

Bye-Bye WordPress… until we meet again.

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Am I Happy?

Sometimes you just have to take a step back and have a look at what you’re doing to get a real sense of where you are and where you want to be.

Am I happy? This truly fundamental question should be asked and more importantly honestly answered. Ultimately the answer is simply yes or no.

If you can honestly tell yourself, in an unfaltering voice, yes then you should count yourself blessed.

If you cannot answer with a resounding yes then it begs the question: why not? Which leads to more questions often times revolving around what needs to change to make your life happier. What needs to happen to answer that question, am I happy, with a steadfast yes?

The reality of the question really comes down to what makes you happy and how many of those things have to be met for you to say you are happy?

Do I have the answers to this? No… well, not really.

I have some thoughts on this but really when it comes down to it there are only a few significant items on my list:

  • Healthy family
  • Quality work-life balance
  • A challenging healthy work environment
  • Comfortably meeting all financial obligations
  • … and living in interesting times
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Coffee?! … Coffee!

Let me set the scene …

I just finished shoveling the backyard patio, the side access way, our driveway, and the sidewalk in front of the house.

It was a brisk 11 degrees Fahrenheit (yep, I’m a Canadian but still think in Imperial for temperatures) and I worked up a sweat.

I came back inside, took a quick shower and made myself a cup of coffee. I sat down at my makeshift desk in the dining room (different story for another post), opened my laptop and took a drink of coffee.

Coffee?! … Coffee! Oh my, what a delicious taste, probably one of the best I’ve had recently and it was from none other than Folgers (an unsolicited review). Well done! I just hope it’s not going to be just this batch…