Vagrancy Law
I was just reading a paper on the history of prostitution in the West End which referred to a Canadian Vagrancy Law that was dissolved only in 1972. I became intrigued and tried to hunt the details of the law which was introduced in 1892. It took me a while but finally found this part of the criminal code: the language was quite something to behold…. especially its insistence on gainful employment, with no nod to employment being tied to economic situations, employment being seen moreover as a state of mind and decision.
207. Every one is a loose, idle or disorderly person or vagrant who
(a) Not having any visible means of maintaining himself lives without employment
(b) being able to work and thereby, or by other means to maintain himself and family willfully refuses or neglects to do so; …
(d) without a certificate…wanders about and begs, or goes about from door to door, or places himself in any street, highway, passage or public place to beg or receive alms;
(e) loiters on any street, road, highway or public place and obstructs passengers by standing across the footpath or by using insulting language, or in any other way; …
(Canada, 55-56 Vict, c.29, s.207)
Two sources of most unexpected insight on this day… A S Byatt and Andre Agassi. Agassi was talking on NPR about his final match at the American Open. The description of his physical pain on the morning he awoke to it was just extraordinary listening and thinking. How he then describes the way he had to use his body or how his body defied being useful in the game reminded me of David Foster Wallace and his calculating the wind direction and speed to lob his balls during his own youthful tennis momentitos. (search youtube for David Foster Wallace and literary weather forecast to hear the extract I am talking about)
A S Byatt is on a video interview on The Graun. In it she comments briefly on social realism in the novel and a bunch of things around us “not seeing” ourselves and needing surfaces to reflect onto and going to Sainsbury’s and as she trotted on it all added up to something I cannot quite quantify but was insightful. She appeared to reflect, and then settle into the reflection. She also made the point that it is rare to see someone wandering along just thinking. I wonder if that is actually true. I am constantly watching people who aren’t doing anything in particular. I shall have to take a mental note for the next few days on the quantity of wandering thinkers. I don’t think she’s right.
Links? If you want them, I’ll put them up. If you don’t want them, dandy you won’t have curse to trip over them.
Democratic linkage ole!
72 hours later my shoulders still protest that roar at the end. V shaky, phone filmed record of effort. It was the fifth time I did this in a row and the worst outcome, but exhilarating none the less. I am excellent at finding purposeless pursuits.
A weather event overnight ! It began with some stormy sounds while I was inside a kitchen working hard and singing loudly.
By this morning the worst headache (is that a myth that a close sky causes headaches?) woke me and outside mid November style visuals.
By night these days we are watering the garden in the pitch dark. Still you can make out the red of late ripened tomatoes and they taste great in the dark.
The seasonal shift is upon us and it’s rather thrilling to notice and record it.
I’m warming up for winter. Tropical storm Earl is also rolling in the wider atmosphere, and Hurricane Danielle fox trotting her way too.