Barely a whimper

Yet another Canadian soldier, Cpl. Nathan Hornburg, has died in Afghanistan. This time, the fact of his death seems to cause barely a ripple. Buried beneath other stories –- such earth-shaking news as Canadians’ aggressive driving habits or the effect of Omega 3s on diabetes –- death in the line of duty doesn’t warrant much attention.
Is it that so many people have died in Afghanistan (this is the 72nd fatality -- 71 soldiers and one diplomat)? Is the media playing down the deaths, hoping we might not notice? Or, are we all just becoming complacent about the fact that we’re even over there?

Autumn moon

It's hard to see that little moon in the photo, but in real life it just seemed to get bigger and bigger over the course of a lovely evening. It was a perfect night to get together with friends for a farewell weenie roast at Rennie's.
Officially autumn, as of way early this morning, the bonfire was the best way I can think of to salute the new season.

Can you say 'Arrrr'?

Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day! If you feel a bit silly, their website is pretty much fun.

There's even a translator feature on the site. When I asked it to translate 'Good morning, world,' a phrase that I thought might stymie it (just too ordinary and plain), it popped right back with "Aye, good mornin' world Gar."

To be truthful, I thought this was all pretty silly, until later in the day when I decided to punish myself -- not by walking the plank (that might've been more fun) -- by sorting and tossing old newspapers I'd thought needed saving.

The more I sorted, the more I kept encountering pirates. An enviromental piece about the Dominican Republic busily dissed the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise for its less-than-conscientious stewardship of the land there.

There was the obit for Canadian publishing icon, Jack McClelland. None other than Margaret Atwood was quoted as calling him a "genteel pirate".

Even the book review section got into the act with this headline, "Aye, matey, it's sailor's life for me." Really, pirates seemed to be everywhere.

So, ahoy, all -- and may the parrot steer a wide berth round yer shoulder!

Art, protests, and art as protest

I was one of the many who made it to the final weekend of the Monet to Dali show at the VAG. The paintings and sculpture were wonderful, but in some ways, the more important show was happening outside. The steps of the gallery have been the site of so many peace-focused activities, and today was no different. Of course, there were the usual hand-painted signs that said it all.

But one of the strongest pieces I saw all day happened to be 'in-process' -- someone adding an all-too-apt addition to the ridiculous Olympic countdown clock that's been plunked next to the fountain at the gallery.

BC Author Recognition Day

Even though the workers are still out on strike (whew, but the laneways are stinky!), Vancouver City Council managed to declare today as BC Author Recognition Day. This year's honoree, bill bissett, helped celebrate the event by reading a memory-filled piece he'd created for the occasion.

The reading was part of Alan Twigg's creation, Reckoning 07 -- a celebration of and commemoration of BC's publishing industry.

As recipient of this year's George Woodcock Award for Lifetime Achievement (formerly known as the Terasen Award -- do you suppose when Kinder-Morgan got involved, the commitment to BC arts evaporated like so much gas?), bissett will have a bronze plaque installed in Library Square.

Now if only bill could be our National Poet Laureate...

Welcome to Assbook!

I've been asked by host, Juan Dosa, to say something about the latest thing in social contact networks. After Facebook, what else could there be, but Assbook.

Here are a few random shots of some of the lovely asses of Assbook.

Shy Ass

Shiny Ass

Bride Ass

Literacy Day (or is that Listeracy Day?)

It seems appropriate that today, International Literacy Day, the Vancouver Sun’s arts
pages should feature a literature-related installation in the gallery at SFU.
It’s a new piece by Douglas Coupland and presents 50 books that he’s read more than once.

This made me think about some of the books I’ve read multiple times. Top of the list (I’m sure I’ve read it at least 33 1/3 times) would have to be J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. The ‘third’ would be for the last time I skimmed it, when it played a role in a Freedom-to-Read event.

I’ve started a list of other books that I’ve read more than three times. These include, in no particular order:

Earth Abides by George R Stewart

all of the Tintin books (Hergé)

David and the Phoenix by Edward Ormondroyd

The Narnia Series (all seven books) by C.S. Lewis

The Bone People by Keri Hulme

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein

Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank

The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (first book only fits this ‘many times’ category) by Douglas Adams

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell

The Green Knowe books by Lucy M. Boston

Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy

Looking through these, it becomes obvious that my taste for repeats finds its focus in fantasy, children’s lit, and science/speculative fiction. In other words (so what else is new?) – I can’t seem to grow up.

Belateds

What is it with summer? For me at least, it gets in the way of some things that are important to me, especially blogging.

But once again, September's here. As so many others have mentioned, this month seems more like a new year than January does. Still, I feel as though some of the summer's events need attention.

The photo at the top is from one of our annual summer highlights -- visiting friends at Cusheon Lake on Saltsping Island. I took this when we were out for a paddle; the canoe is a great way to see all the life on the lake: fish, beavers, and even insect-infested lily pads. So many of the plants were curled up, obviously losing the battle against whatever it was that fed on them this summer.

An oddity in my own poor excuse for a garden was my favourite pink gerbera -- a gift from someone who knows about gardening, Elsie Neufeld. For some reason, it decided to go mutant this year. I never saw those petals coming out of the centre before.

And what summer would be complete without a dose of poetry? One of our area's few remaining independent bookstores, Whitby's, hosted an event to launch Andrea MacPherson's book, Natural Disasters. Unfortunately, the evening wasn't all it could have been, with the capuccino machine presenting the greatest intrusion. The event didn't seem to follow much of a plan, but luckily (pro that she is) Carolyn Swayze stepped up and did a lovely introduction. I wonder if I was the only attendee who was somewhat disappointed by the fact that Andrea read only three poems -- and this after waiting nearly an hour beyond the advertised start time. Oh well, the three were enough for me to buy the book and read it at home, so I guess the launch served its purpose after all.

Summer wouldn't be complete

...without a visit to the PNE.

Naturally, one of the main events is eating. While there are waaay too many choices to show, as a main course, the barbecued chicken is always reliably yummy.

A new feature I made a point of visiting was Bryan Berg's re-creation of Vancouver -- built out of playing cards! Berg holds the Guinness Book of Records for what he does. It was a good thing his display was behind plenty of plexiglass. And I guess he was lucky too that we didn't get one of our once-in-a-while earth tremors!

Even if some of them don't eat grass, you have to see the critters; after all, the PNE started out as an agricultural fair. This is one of the City of Burnaby's eco-sculpures. Like I said, it doesn't eat grass -- it is grass (and parsley and a mix of other green delights).

Of course, no visit would be complete without braving a couple of rides. There go Jeremy and Brenna on the Tilt-A-Whirl!

In Harmony Festival

After a couple of greyish days, even the weather was in harmony for the annual In Harmony Festival. This is Mud Bay Blues Band, rockin' at Softball City. Not really a venue conducive to blues, but hey -- I guess for once, I'm not allowed to complain -- admission was free.

And here's a pic of Harriet's T-shirt, listing the performers from a previous year's festival, back when it was at the beautifully bluesy Camp Kwomais.

Remembering Jim

The ceremony to place Jim Gordon's headstone took place today, the one-year anniversary of his death.
I couldn't get to Hornby Island, where Jim had lived for so many years. Still, I observed it in my own way, setting a lighted candle near his photo.
I put on some Erik Satie (I knew Jim would love it) and performed one of my strangest dances, swirling around the room. All morning long, there'd been thick clouds in the sky, but as I passed beneath the skylight, the sun broke through. I can't help but think that ray of light was Jim, finding a way to say hello.

Quilts extraordinaire

So, how can something that keeps you warm at night be a work of art? It can if it's made by Val Smith. How's this for a one-of-a-kind way self-portrait!

It's no surprise that among honours she's won are accolades from the Canadian Quilters' Association.

One of my favourites, this wheel (called 'An Eye for Colour') demonstrates her skill in manipulating colour. With its amazing attention to detail, this piece is exemplary of all of Val's work. You can see this from this close-up of one segment of the circle.

Beyond treating both abstractions and the whimsical, she's not afraid of taking on the political, as in this final piece, the 'pine beetle stamp'. While it's great to have the chance to see a private show of her work, I look forward to seeing a batch of her work in a gallery.

YVR, what a place!

Because a pal was passing through town and had a some stopover time, I drove out and met her for some lunch and a visit.

Maybe I was just feeling happy from our visit, but I was sure glad to see all those free carts. When I think of all the airports where you have to come up with a couple of bucks (often tricky if you haven't yet purchased local currency), I can't help but think these are a great PR move. I just hope the Olympic hype doesn't cause them to change the policy. Yay, YVR! In this instance, you rock.

Now, if only they'd initiate the first-half-hour free parking policy -- like the one they have at Buffalo's airport. It'd sure make those pick-up trips easier!

Not a bird, not a plane

And no, not Superman.

But it was pretty exciting to see the space shuttle fly overhead about an hour ago. It was super-bright and moving much faster than I'd expected -- I guess because it must be flying lower than most satellites. I'm used to tracking them on clear nights and though they move pretty quickly, this was downright speedy.

Maybe later tonight, if I'm lucky, I'll catch some of the annual Perseids.

A good day for art

Today is my son, the artist's birthday.

So not only did I have this to celebrate, there was an art opening at my local gallery. The work, a mixture of paintings (both figurative and abstract) and sculpture, was a retrospective by local artist John C. Butt. Here's a picture of John, with what he selected as his favourite piece -- at least for the night.

I especially loved the way he's used found objects in his sculptures: everything from reworked hunks of hundred-year-old cherry tree and recycled bolts to driftwood from White Rock beach. A nice mix.

First of the season

They may be a little late this year, but I'm glad they've arrived. This was about a four-minute pick.

A bit of a rinse, a splash of maple syrup, a dollop of vanilla yogourt. Yum!

Saturday night fireworks show

Last night was the grand finale of Vancouver’s Symphony of Fire for 2007. I suppose China must have won, though really, how could they not – apparently they were previewing special effects for next year’s Olympics. With Vancouver as the next player in that particular money-eating exercise, well, really, China pretty much had to win.

I wasn’t dedicated enough to make the trek into the city, but settled instead for our hokey little Sea Festival fireworks show in White Rock. There were surprisingly few people down at the beach. I guess everyone else must have braved the traffic and buses and gone in for the biggies.

All in all, a lovely night seaside.

Garage sale season

I can't believe how many garage sales there were today. Might be partly because it's a long weekend. Just about anything you might want.


Barbies looking pretty senior-ish.

Even the proverbial kitchen sink.

Happy 40th, DJB

You were born at 10:23 am on July 28th, 1967. With luck, I'm hoping this will be the year I get to meet you again. Heck, I'll even explain the significance of the name I gave you.

hg xxoo

On Hornby time

Again. We're lucky enough to make this visit almost every year. As you can see from the shot of the pasture, we get to pitch our tent in a pretty idyllic spot. Not a bad view, eh.

This year, I spent waaay too much of my Hornby time reading -- what else, the last installment of Harry Potter.

Hornby Island's a place where even I like to shop. This is saying a lot because I'm a person who usually hates shopping. My favourite store there? The one at the Recycling Depot, where they have a whole lot of everything. And the price is definitely right -- all of it's free.

Of course, there's more to a stay on Hornby than just reading and shopping. No day would be complete without a stroll down to Ford Cove for one of those patented West Coast sunsets.