I am reading and considering Jane Rule’s The Young in One Another’s Arms: the references to housing, housing shortage, the tearing down of houses to make way for a bridge (and highrises) have a contemporary pertinence or are at least a lasting present day theme. My partner grew up in Kits, where the book is set, so I have been quizzing him about the where and how of these references at that time.

Another thing I appreciate about this novel is the multiple voices who are created through their dialogue with fairly minimal descriptions and how Rule juggles this effectively rotating their voices and blending them in and out in reply to each other and to us, the reader. There’s an interesting dissipating effect of this wider angle lens because we get just enough of each of them to create the rest. The incident where the American male character (draft dodger) is removed to the border reminded me so much of a similar removal of an Iranian friend some years back by Immigration Canada — it struck me in this remembering that each day in the city surreptitious removal acts take place unbeknownst to the citizens. I have seen the deportation van speeding up Cambie early mornings. They come early it seems to hurl people in and out.

I digress but that point on “removing and removal” leads me to reflect on an anonymity that is carefully crafted in this novel. The people all co-habit, thus far in what I have read, in a rooming house run by one woman Ruth. I was struck by how many people can live in Vancouver, yet they are somehow removed from the city, or anonymous to it. It’s a distinct quality (this distance) I’ve observed here. Whether it is the transitory nature of the place or what, people can live a longtime here yet the place doesn’t attach anything onto them. 25 years later they are still spectating it. It hasn’t necessarily gotten into their bones. Could it be they are replaceable? There’s always going to be somebody who desires to live in this particular arrangement of weather and scenery. In any case the fact is this novel captures something of the anonymous living experience.  If you don’t read the book carefully you may not pick up on it. But even in the way Hal (the brother) arrives and shunts Clara off to assisted living, rips her from her home and so on.

There’s more to be said, just some early sparks.

We are so tired today that I cannot imagine what we did to achieve this fatigue. Ferry fatigue? Gardening repair exhaustion?

Off the ferry from our lovely family time on Cortes, I headed straight to my gymnastics class powered by a flask of Bewleys tea (Go raibh mile Ita). One of the fellas told me he thinks I’ll be able to do the pull up on the rings within two weeks. I think that is an extremely generous assessment, but another guy taught me some of the basic circles and swings to build shoulder strength. Unfortunately he decided to demonstrate this while I was stood on a box right beside him swinging and turning and he crashed into me several times and my toe still has muscle memory from the impact.

Rings are, 72 hours after the fact, very hard on the armpits. You feel the simple act of walking in the armpit region!

Radio neuro

HM Neuro Celeb radio documentary…

When a 27 year old man known in the text books simply as HM underwent brain surgery for intractable epilepsy in 1953, no one could have known that the outcome would provide the key to unravelling one of the greatest mysteries of the human mind – how we form new memories.

Listen to radio doc here HM – The Man Who Couldn’t Remember

So beans are self pollinating according to google. Here’s me doing the merry-go-round a la pollination ….

I saw a mighty front porch/steps on Cortes where all the tomotoes were strung up by strings dangling from the roof. My ma uses this method in her poly tunnel. I wonder if one can string beans in the same manner.

The Greenhouse may be getting an expansion. Another bendy pole au centre & two more bricks.

Oh dear.

I don’t think transplanting seeds agrees with me.

I am ready to give it up.

I prefer shelf building.

I may need to clout the slugs with a shelf.

Or build a shelf on which I can sit and spy them and then clout them.

Smelt Bay, Cortes Island.

The Scottish trade unionist Jimmy Reid, who has died at the age of 78, will for ever be associated in labour history with the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders (UCS) occupation and work-in of 1971-72. It was an event that galvanised working-class consciousness, challenged political moralities and haunted the premiership of Edward Heath.

“…The idea of a work-in was very different from the traditional response of strikes or occupations. It was based on the brilliant concept of the right to work, rather than simply the right not to be made redundant….”

I would not say the arugula plant looks cheerful, I would say we can shelve the Wake for now. It is still in the ground, it is still taking a bit of a dim view, but it may be considering joining the debate.

I am reconsidering the bright idea to give my zuccini plant an extreme haircut before I read the chapter in my gardening book on pruning. Guy, a gardening neighbour, took a low intervention approach. Yeah, says he, you might want to leave some leaf on it as I’d chopped all the major leaf settlements off.  There was something in the crunchy sound of my purple scissors and it’s been so plentiful this plant. Yet it seemed laden by all those massive leaves.

On va voir.