McSweeney’s List (8 July 2026)
Friday morning, I woke up and thought well, it's a beautiful day for a funeral. Mother Nature had turned up the heat, and the sun was out, loud and proud. While it's true that no one wants to go to a funeral, going on a beautiful day sure beats mourning in a snowstorm. Flowers perfumed the air as people enjoyed the weather -- because there are always too few perfect days we can take advantage of in a season, and in fact, a lifetime.
When my aunt died, I wasn't surprised. She was old enough that no one will call it a tragedy, though I don't think that changes how we want ourselves and those close to us to live forever. Her health had been faltering -- threatening, actually -- for some time, but no one can predict the moment they get the news that Death has actually visited the family. I didn't feel numb when I heard, and neither was I thrown into the pits of grief. I felt weird.
The last remaining elder of my matrilineage passed, and my brain began unpacking memories: the way she brought homemade salad when visiting her mother, who wouldn't have anything healthy for lunch (inadvertently teaching me that we're responsible for our own choices and preferences, and that hard-boiled eggs slap in salad). I thought about the magnet she had that said “housework is something no one notices unless you don't do it”, and how impeccably clean her house was. I thought about how I still know the rhyming, outgoing answering machine message she had decades ago, and probably always will. I thought about how she never smiled much…
We had a complicated relationship, my aunt and I. Family plotlines aside (and there were plenty), even when she and I were close, we were perpetually conflicted. We disagreed on many things, including what was funny, what mattered in life, and how “a lady” should dress, sit, and act. She believed that anyone who drank more than five times a year was an alcoholic. She called my young, passionately optimistic (albeit naïve) self a Female Jesus, with a sneer that let me know she meant it as an insult. She was one of those people who told me – snidely and often – that I would grow out of all my beliefs.
We didn't speak for about 20 years, and didn't see each other for longer. She never met my daughter, and I only knew hers before she could speak. When we got back in touch, I put her in contact with my daughter via email, which lasted only a few messages. She wanted to be called “auntie”, and felt it was disrespectful that my daughter rightly wouldn't do so. She didn't understand why my daughter loves to travel, saying at the time that she had no need to do so herself, as the same trees exist everywhere. This has become an inside joke in the family, as obviously there are different trees in different places, and the sheer denial of that fact was so telling about who she was.
One of the last times I saw her, she asked if I drank or smoked, and I told her I did. She asked me why I didn't love myself, and I bit my tongue, laughed it off, and assured her that I did. Arguing with her didn't have the appeal it once did, and she seemed to me an embittered woman, aware of her dwindling days, and still unable to find either joy or peace.
By the last time I saw her, I’d quit drinking, and asked that no one tell her. I was sure she would tarnish my success. She would've either said it was about time, or said she didn't know why I'd been drinking to begin with, or asked me what I had left to quit. She wouldn't have been able to understand, and that's forgivable, but she would've thought she understood, and said something stupid, so I prevented the possibility.
That last time, along with myself, my sister and her boyfriend, I brought my boyfriend too. Risky business, as it felt like introducing him to skeletons in my closet that I couldn't explain on my own, but had also been pivotable to my development.
Over dinner we laughed with each other, and my uncle, while she poked at her food, unsmiling. Out of the blue, she broke into joviality by asking what happens when the jokes stop? “You write more,” my boyfriend quipped. “You die,” said my sister. Both true, we laughed harder.
That same dinner contingent walked into the funeral home not knowing what to expect. We were the only family there, and considering our dwindling numbers, that made sense. I thought about how she hadn't attended the services for either of her parents, or her sister, my mom. Admittedly, my mother's service was a picnic on Mount Royal, but when you miss so many important events in your own bloodline, every ding counts against you.
I hugged my uncle, and asked him how he was. He laughed, and said not so good, which was of course the right answer to a dumb question, but I was glad to hear his laugh regardless. My sister and I met our cousin, and for those who have family members they're unlikely to meet unless someone dies, I highly recommend finding a better way. It really was as awkward as you’d imagine.
The service was beautiful. The rabbi spun truths into beauty the way Amelia Bedelia could spin a request for sponge cake into a cake made of literal sponges. He talked about how opinionated she was, saying that she refused to live passively. He conceded the difficulties of being close to her by saying people with convictions are rarely easy, and I had to agree. By the time he was done, I admired the person he had painted, even if it wasn't the whole story. Give that man a raise, he worked those facts until they did his bidding. He even mentioned that her middle name, Mediena, was one he wasn't familiar with, and he didn't have the story of any familial significance. As such, he'd looked into it to gain some understanding. He said that as a name, it means strength and resilience. More properly, it's a Lithuanian noun, the word for tree.
TREE! Did you hear that, Dear Reader? The things that are apparently the same everywhere was her middle name! You'd think that she of all people should've had a better grasp of the vast beauty and variety of trees. And where did her parents -- a Russian/Ukrainian and a Polish/New Yorker -- get a Lithuanian name from anyway? (Later, a quick Google search would inform me that spelled differently – Medeina – it's actually the name of the Lithuanian forest goddess, a primary deity in their mythology.)
I touched the urn, gave a silent, heartfelt peace out, and choked up a little. Time is crazy, and we carry the relationships that we've had as part of who we are. She and my uncle were the ones who took me (first, and most frequently) to shows at Place Des Arts. They took me to restaurants so classy I had to learn what filet mignon was, because they didn't have chicken fingers. They took me to synagogue when I wanted to explore my religious heritage. My aunt consistently modelled standards outside of my experience, and even when I disagreed, or didn't prefer her way, at least I saw it up close. She was a reference point I could aspire to or veer from, but she gave my map context.
Outside, the heat felt more oppressive after the air conditioning, but life was thriving and hopeful. It helped me forget that with the elders gone, I was now undeniably one.
“Did you hear the bit about the tree?” I asked my sister, who also found it funny, but she had more lore on the subject. My mother had told her (as the unofficial keeper of family tidbits, and, funny enough, family trees) that my aunt had chosen the name herself because she didn't have a middle name, and liked the sound of the word. “But no one asked me,” she shrugged.
That small fact, with that small shrug, summed up my family in a way that no description really can: the vague answers they gave us, the way each person had a part of the story, and those parts may or may not have been true. Odds are, we wouldn't compare notes, and when we did, it was done with cagey skepticism.
And I wonder who else knows that my aunt gave herself her middle name. And now I'll never know if she even knew it meant tree, or that it was Lithuanian. And in fact, after all this tree talk, I'll never know if she had a favorite one.
Rest well, Mediena. Peace out.
GROW WITH US: Call for Writers
If you are obsessed with Montreal's music, dance, or visual art scenes, we want to give you the platform, and the tools, to write about it. 🎨✨
Forget The Box(.ca) is Montreal's most devoted online arts magazine, covering and amplifying ground level, underground, and marginalized art. We are the main project of Forget The Box Media, a federally incorporated not-for-profit organization. 🏛️
We are looking for people who are passionate about Montreal's arts community! Whether you're a seasoned journalist, an aspiring critic, or an artist who wants to pivot to writing, we provide the support to help you shape your ideas, alongside a dedicated platform to get your work published and read by the local community. 🫂
As we expand our coverage, we're looking to recruit writers interested in three vital sectors: music 🎸 everything from DIY loft shows and underground releases to local indie labels pushing boundaries; dance 💃 everything from street and contemporary, to experimental movement that defines Montreal's physical spaces; and visual art 🖼️ highlighting the indie galleries, street art, and artist-run centres that make up our city's creative ecosystem.
Forget The Box(.ca) offers writers:
💰 Honorariums
🧠 Writing Workshops
👥 One-on-one mentorship
🎟️ Access to local art events
📣 A Platform
🤝 Community
🚀 Open doors to larger publications
You don't need a big portfolio to start. If you have thoughts on local music, dance, or visual art, and want to spotlight some of the great work of local artists, reach out to us! 👋
📷 First photo: Provided by @growvemtl at @turbo_haus
📷 Second photo: Provided by @wafdcreations, taken by @susanmossphotography, featuring performers Rémy Saminadin, Nindy Banks, and Marie-Reine Kabasha
📷 Third photo: Provided by @wip.works, featuring work by @alexis1million
How to Apply: 📬
To get started, send an email to our Editor-in-Chief, Candice Ann, at candice@forgetthebox.ca. Tell us a bit about yourself, why you want to cover the scene, and any relevant experience you might have (experience is not required). 📩
TONIGHT WILL BE MAGICAL!
If you love magic, or just want to be entertained, join us for a night of wonders! The Montreal Magic Jam is putting on a show with a stellar line-up of the finest conjurors from Montreal and beyond!
Here's who we've got on the lineup:
Chung - A Fringe Festival fan favorite both as a solo act, and as the enigmatic half of the madcap duo McSorley & Chung. He's been giving workshops around North America and Europe, and advising some of the greatest magicians in the world; he'll be back on stage in a rare local public appearance.
Marc Desaulniers - once a professional magician in the ’90s, he has since built a successful career as a portfolio manager. Now, back on stage, he delivers an unpredictable act – sometimes funny, sometimes serious, but always entertaining.
Alex Moreaux - All the way from France, Alex's creative mind and boyish charm has taken him all over the world. He's performed his show on four continents, and even earned half of a Fool Us Trophy from Penn & Teller. Alex will charm you so much that you won’t even mind that he'll fry your brain.
Marc Trudel - 2-time Canadian Champion of Magic, he's been on Canada's Got Talent, and has performed on some of the biggest stages in the world. You'll quickly see why he's one the most in-demand magicians in the country.
David Acer - A comic and magic legend, his credits are far too long to go through. I mean he's even got his own Wikipedia entry. Seriously. Though he proverbially hung up his magic wand a while ago, he's picking it back up to this one evening and we couldn't be more honoured and excited! His razor sharp wit combined with his incredible sleight of hand make him one of magic's finest performers.
Join us for this incredible night of incredible magic. We know you'll walk away bewildered, amazed, and entertained.
18+
WHAT: Magic Unleashed
WHERE: The Comedy Nest, 2313 St. Catherine St. W., 3rd Floor, Montreal, H3H 1N2
WHEN: Wednesday, July 8 @ 8 PM
METRO: Atwater (Green)
TICKETS: TheMontrealMagicJam
LIMITED TIME LAUGHS
Experience one of Montreal’s most carefully curated comedy nights at Benedetta, a stunning restaurant in the heart of the Old Port. Hosts Christopher Venditto and Troy Stark bring together top‑tier comedians for an intimate, high‑quality stand‑up show.
What to Expect:
- A limited summer series running June through September
- Hand‑picked lineups featuring some of the strongest comedians in the city
- Performers seen on Just For Laughs, CBC, Winnipeg Comedy Festival, Hubcap Comedy Festival, and more
- A premium venue with excellent food, drinks, and atmosphere
- A curated experience designed for true comedy fans
Why You Should Come:
Cobblestone Comedy is all about spotlighting rising stars and giving audiences a polished, memorable night out. If you love stand‑up, great vibes, and discovering the next wave of talent, this is the show you don’t want to miss.
Reserve your seat, and be part of Montreal’s newest summer comedy tradition!
WHAT: Cobblestone Comedy
WHERE: Bendetta, 200 St. Laurent Blvd., Montreal, H2R 1W9
WHEN: Thursday, July 9, Doors @ 7 PM, Show @ 8 PM
METRO: St. Laurent (Green)
TICKETS: Eventbrite
POP-UP PUNCHLINES
Get ready to chuckle, giggle, and maybe snort a little at the World's Smallest Comedy Pop-up Night hosted at the cozy and lively Hurley's Irish Pub. This show features a delightful lineup of comedians who specialize in quick wit, sharp one-liners, and a sprinkle of observational humor that will tickle your funny bone just right. Whether you're a comedy connoisseur or just in need of a good laugh, this whole lot of fun is guaranteed to brighten your evening. So come for the pints, stay for the punchlines, and leave with a smile!
Featuring Wassim El-Mounzer, James Mancini, Nazeer Khan, Walter J. Lyng, and Elspeth Wright.
WHAT: World's Smallest Comedy Pop-up Night
WHERE: Hurley's Irish Pub, 1225 Crescent St., Montreal, H3G 2B1
WHEN: Thursday, July 9 @ 8 PM
METRO: Lucien l'Allier (Orange) & Guy-Concordia (Green)
DETAILS: Facebook
FUN ON WHEELS
We’re thrilled to announce a brand new free and inclusive weekly skating event! Join the party as Saturday Night Disco rocks Verdun’s Bleu Blanc Bouge outside arena!
Expect finger-licking good music, fresh vibes, perfect surface, and reckless skating.
Quads and inline welcome - kids welcome, under the supervision of parent/guardian!
Feel free to contact us in advance for free skate lending!
Canceled in case of bad weather.
WHAT: Saturday Night Disco - Verdun
WHERE: Bleu Blanc Bouge, 800 Willbrord, Verdun, H4G 2T8
WHEN: Saturday, July 11, 7 PM - 10 PM
METRO: Verdun (Green)
DETAILS: Facebook
CINEMA UNDER THE STARS
Opening Night! 🎉
Film noir au canal kicks off their 10th edition with The Big Lebowski by the Coen brothers, in partnership with the Festival du nouveau cinéma!
For the occasion, the film will be introduced by none other than Helen Faradji!
Amidst shadows and light, follow Holly Martins through post-war Vienna as he searches for his vanished friend, Harry Lime, played by the magnetic Orson Welles.
In case of rain, the screening will be postponed to Monday, July 13.
Come join us for a memorable night!
WHAT: Film Noir au Canal Opening Night - The Big Lebowski
WHERE: Saint Patrick Square, 1335 St. Patrick St., Montreal, H3K 1A4
WHEN: Sunday, July 12, Festivities @ 730, Movie @ 9 PM
METRO: Villa-Maria (Orange)
DETAILS: Facebook
World’s Smallest Comedy Night has so many cool things happening, so here are their events this week in order!
What Do You Know? Like, Seriously…
Tonight! Come to Hurley's for Trivia Night, and get bonus laughter! Enjoy delicious pub fare, and get ready to show off your trivia skills. Grab your team, and enjoy this night of comedy, friendly competition, and great company!
This edition is hosted by Vance Michel.
WHAT: Trivia Night at Hurley's
WHERE: Hurley's Irish Pub, 1225 Crescent St., Montreal, H3G 2B1
WHEN: Every Wednesday @ 8 PM
METRO: Lucien l'Allier (Orange) & Guy-Concordia (Green)
RSVP: Eventbrite
Classic Coke
Beat the Monday Blues with WSC’s OG offering, The World's Smallest Comedy Night!
Enjoy a showcase of the best comedians in the city, hot up-and-comers, national and international touring comics, and surprises!
This edition is hosted by Vance Michel.
WHAT: World's Smallest Comedy Night
WHERE: Hurley's Irish Pub, 1225 Crescent St., Montreal, H3G 2B1
WHEN: Every Monday, Doors @ 7 PM, Show @ 8 PM
METRO: Lucien l'Allier (Orange) & Guy-Concordia (Green)
TICKETS: Eventbrite
Dirty Monday
The Monday Night Dirty Mic is the place to be! Hosted by Vance Michel, every show is an unpredictable and unique experience as a hilarious collection of comedians from newbs to pros take the stage. See the best before anyone else, and catch seasoned locals doing their freshest funnies!
Comics: show-up, sign-up
WHAT: Monday Night Dirty Mic
WHERE: Hurley's Irish Pub, 1225 Crescent St., Montreal, H3G 2B1
WHEN: Every Monday, Sign-up @ 10 PM, Show @ 1030 PM
METRO: Lucien l'Allier (Orange) & Guy-Concordia (Green)
DETAILS: Facebook
