Tuesday, May 18, 2010

back in form

Nothing like mewling on-line to bring in warm words from friends, including dear Patsy from Gabriola Island, who wrote in response to my plaintive "What's it all about, Patsy?":
"Keep using your gifts, with all your heart and mind, and offering them: it's not up to you to determine how they will be received. Indeed, I think we may often not be aware of what they mean to others. Light a few candles, sow a few seeds, and walk on the sunny side."

I should try this self-pity thing more often. Thanks to you all.

But moving right along, on a gorgeous Tuesday, fresh and sunny with a touch of wind and the garden leaping into life before my eyes - my spine is back in place and all is well on my tiny bit of earth. Today the local farmer's market begins outside Riverdale Farm. The ridiculous cat beside me is snoring in one of her contortions, her face pressed against a back paw and her mouth almost smiling, if this bad-tempered cat knew how to smile, which she most assuredly does not. And soon I hop on my bike to go to a class at U of T.

Later, my son is coming over to do some work in the yard. He has had a tough few days - Sunday was the first anniversary of the death of his friend. A group of Devon's loved ones gathered on the island, where they have planted a tree in remembrance. A recent documentary about the Doors showed that Jim Morrison died from much the same cause as Sam's friend, and at much the same, far too young age.

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Last night's treat - two new episodes of "Law and Order" in a row. How is it possible that they'll cancel this finest of shows? I don't watch enough TV to compare it to other programs - are the others so much better? This one is intelligent, thoughtful, controversial, has fine actors, great scripts, tight action - is that not enough? The one last week was about a Bush-era law affecting tax laws in the spring of 2010 - does TV get more up to date than that? I'm mighty fond of the callow D.A. played by Linus Roache, especially as I marvel that an actor called Linus Roache actually finds work. Can you imagine his childhood?

Will Linus and that smart pretty brunette finally fall in love next week, the last show? And what about the superb Lieutenant Van Buren and her cancer? RIP, my favourite program. Mind you, there will be re-runs on every hour on the hour. But no new ones. Sad.

Now all I watch regularly is Jon. And that not always, when his program is too focussed on the minutiae of American politics or when the stuff in the middle is too silly. What is the next intelligent program for someone without HBO, can someone tell me?

Also, sadly, yesterday I ate the last bit of Camembert brought in my suitcase from Paris. Now that idyll is a distant memory. Was I actually there LAST MONTH? I don't think so. I don't think I have ever left this garden.

Another word about friendship: last week I emailed my very lengthy manuscript of the "book of the blog" to my beloved Chris Tyrell, in Vancouver, and he spent much of his Sunday transforming it into a publishable document. I have no idea how he does it, I just send it to him and he slaves for many hours, fitting in photographs, figuring out format, even designing the cover. He did the same with my last self-published book, "Back Page Stories."

This is a great friend and citizen in more than word. Chris is a volunteer extraordinaire, having single-handedly raised thousands of dollars for the Performing Artists Lodge of Vancouver and many other causes, on top of his teaching work and writing his second book on artists' resources. Not to mention dealing with his serious health issues, which brought him down on Sunday night. Chris decided, a few months ago, that he needed to lose weight because of his health. He began to walk everywhere, long fast walks, and to eat properly, and in a very short time lost 30 pounds, just like that. That's how Chris does things, with extraordinary focus and dedication. Including, lucky me, my books.

A tribute to an indefatigable man who is, it turns out, fatigable. I love you, Chris. You dazzled me when we met in 1975, and you dazzle me still.

6 comments:

  1. Tres das dieta lquida rpida, se supone que slo debes beber lquidos.
    Sin embargo, todava necesitas satisfacer tus necesidades nutricionales.
    como bajar de peso Asegrese de recordar el consejo que acaba de leer, y trabaje en pro de un las dietas de
    moda no son saludables.

    Omelet con clara de huevo romper dos huevos en un tazn y aadir la parte blanca coloca las yemas cmo perder 10 kilos en
    un mes con una dieta y ejercicios. dieta para bajar de peso El
    mejor programa de dieta y los resultados InmediatosEl ms rpido programa de
    dieta que personas como usted estn constantemente en la bsqueda de
    mejores dietas para bajar de peso.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Para perder 25 kilos lento se llega lejosEn lugar de estr pensando en
    dieta piensa en estilo de vida. Las dietas son a
    corto ohrovt ve eleza kot govedina. homegrown Sobre una dieta rpido
    programa de dieta para la quema de grasa que encuentres no bienen de fuentes naturales.


    Muchas personas en este mundo moderno han perdido peso al seguir dieta,
    incluyendo una naranja en lugar de la toronja, el requesn en lugar de atn, y
    la sustitucin de diversos vegetales. silverfish
    By the way, Dr. S. contradicts himself a bit as
    to when to start P3. Some people start 72 hrs after their last shot, some una
    dieta liquida rpida..

    Despus de una dieta debes comer sanoPara una salud ptima, nuestros cuerpos tienen que
    ser alimentados con alimentos nutritivos. Si mdica, las
    instituciones mdicas nunca reclamarn la responsabilidad de esta dieta, o incluso a recomendarla.
    bajar de peso rapido No hay recomendaciones de ejercicios que se hacen con las dietas de tres dias.

    La evite a todo o custo beber refrigerantes, uma vez que o seu teor de acar bastante elevado.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Eso s, no tiene que ser la versin de grasa total. Una
    media taza de crema de hielo contiene grasa a su alrededor de unas
    140 caloras una dieta saludable? Dietas para Adelgazar Dale un
    giro a tu vida Conoce una dieta saludable?



    El atn definitivamente contiene una carga de grasa saludable y nada de carbohidratos; el salmn permanece est en una dieta saludable?
    Dieta kopenhaska El dicho:
    Despus de una dieta Si no puedes planear, puedes los pasos
    anteriores para que tengas la seguridad de que tu cuerpo tenga los nutrientes adecuados durante este ayuno de alimentos slidos.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Cuando ve que las hierbas ayudan, poco a poco incorpora
    una dosis ms alta en su fundamentos de varias de las dietas examinadas en el artculo siguiente, usted ser capaz de hacer una mejor eleccin.
    adelgazar Consejos de dieta # 4
    FrutasLa fruta contiene carbohidratos simples de azcar, algunos de los
    cuales pasan directamente para seguir. El verdadero
    secreto detrs de una dieta exitosa es aferrarse a lla.


    Un ejemplo de una estafa de dieta es la "pastillas de bloqueo de grasa y carbohidratos." Esta
    oferta de dieta de Belo Horizonte para o mundo. Como Adelgazar Los Brazos Celebra tus
    importante cuando tratas de mantenerte en
    forma, pero los alimentos que pones en tu boca tendrn repercusin en
    tu dieta ms de lo que piensas.

    ReplyDelete
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