Posts By: Karl Low

Oliver Moorcraft-Sykes

Oliver Moorcraft-Sykes is an acclaimed spiritualist, scrivener, and amateur orthodontist living and writing in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His accomplishments are too many and varied to list, but suffice it to say that he’s done everything that George Santos has done, and then some. Should you have any questions or concerns about his writing, please do not hesitate to try and contact him.

[blue rare]—Small Acts of Grace

I watched a documentary two or three years ago in which the film crew spent a month recording the day-to-day life of a couple who were both working full time at minimum wage jobs and doing their best to raise several children while living in poverty.  One of the points of dramatic tension in the… Read more »

[blue rare]—A Meditation on Armageddon

This is purely anecdotal, but I feel as if some mysterious, unseen force has destabilized what once was our relatively predictable relationship with the natural world.  For example, I have been encountering a drastic increase in aggressive dogs in my neighbourhood.  Just this morning, I witnessed two great Danes, tethered  in their front yard, gnashing… Read more »

[blue rare]—Just Tripping

I suppose, if I’m being honest, I have had more bad travel experiences than good.  COVID or no COVID, travel of any form can be a fraught endeavour.  On the first night I ever spent in Paris, a man was beaten to a pulp across the street from my cheap hotel room. Another time, I… Read more »

[blue rare]—A Suitable Education

In adolescence, I had watched the classic film The Kid, in which Steve McQueen plays a slick and cocky professional poker player.  Completely oblivious to any of the film’s deeper messages, and lured by visions of easy money and attractive working hours, I had briefly toyed with the idea of pursuing a career as a… Read more »

[blue rare]—Of Fabled Roses

Red: The colour of anemones, poppies, chrysanthemums, and lover’s roses.  The colour of fresh blood, of hot coals, of rage, of desire, of innocent hearts and concubines’ lips.  The colour of roman candles, roadside flares, and fake rubies scattered across slick black tarmac.  The colour that appears in the morning to warn sailors of approaching… Read more »

[blue rare]—The Perfect Saturday (a Promise)

Have you ever felt that there is no venture in life more important than the quest to assemble the perfect Saturday?  (I say “assemble, because that is the only way, isn’t it?  Putting it together, piece-by-carefully-chosen-piece, like a miniature, silver-plated model of the Eiffel Tower, or a beautifully crafted, hand-painted German jigsaw puzzle.) Have you… Read more »

[blue rare]—The Carnivals of Summer

Of all the senseless cockwomble statements you tend to hear, the one that irritates me like capsicum on the gonads is “whatever doesn’t destroy you makes you stronger”.  No, it doesn’t.  Trauma, most of the time, is survivable, but it certainly doesn’t enhance your resilience.  What really does make us stronger are those things that… Read more »

[blue rare]—A Risky Pursuit

I was listening to the news over the past few days, hearing about the tragic implosion of Titan, the submersible vessel that had been attempting a descent to the ocean floor to see the wreckage of the Titanic.  A tragedy in which the billionaire adventurer who owned and operated the vessel, along with his four… Read more »

[blue rare]—Not the Computers, Though

There are no really interesting shops in Winnipeg.  I refuse to order online, though.  So, where could I go if I wanted to purchase a taxidermied coelacanth, for instance, or even an Icelandic grimoire?  I would have to travel down some pretty dusty roads to find them, that’s for sure. I have lately come to… Read more »

[blue rare]—Hellhounds on my Trail

And the days keeps on worryin’ me There’s a hellhound on my trail –Robert Johnson Even the most stoic, blithe, and unflappable of ladies and gentlemen will sometimes find themselves lost in the shadows, with the black dogs at their heels.  I can vouch for this from personal experience.  Many times they have come to… Read more »