To Nanaimo

Tuesday morning was overcast, and it was really chilly inside the house. However, it was nice and warm outside, so I got back to work on the boulevard. 

What a mess! I found beer cans, and all kinds of things, in what might have once been a ditch. So, it was really grotty work. And sad, because I’m working where I found a dead fawn last year. There were broken pieces of tree, a foot-and-a-half in circumference, scores of large branches and wheelbarrows full of needles and cones—all of which, I removed.

I quit at three-thirty, to take nice clean short-haired Sheba for a walk. When I got back, I started hauling all I’d removed to the forest. I know it’s work that no one will notice except, perhaps, future buyers and those who notice details. 

I worked until late, watched some television and went to bed early.

I watched a broadcast on PBS of pop singer Sam Smith. I watched because of things I’ve read about his struggles fame and homophobia. He’s a gay man. I’d heard some of his music and thought he was talented, so I thought I’d try the program.

Well, he was fabulous. No capped teeth, no bling, no glitter, no fancy set, no choreography, no costume changes—just him, a small band and two backup singers on an outdoor stage in Wales. And he looked like a little boy who’d just been given a puppy for Christmas. His smiles looked absolutely genuine; he looked as happy and excited to see his audience as they were to see him. 

It was refreshing to see such simplicity and honesty in the entertainment business. I suspect that the more talented the performer, the less need for all the falderal.

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Merrill wrote to me. She’s my neighbour who’s been renting to a small family of four who are relocating to Powell River in December, and she, her man and her new baby are moving in. She’s lovely and she’s very proactive about being neighbourly, which pleases me very much.

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This morning, I went to Nanaimo for a walkabout with Sheba. It’s so easy to go as a foot passenger, and it’s free for Seniors Monday-to-Thursday. I really enjoyed the adventure of getting off Gabriola for a bit and seeing people and new surroundings—all in really glorious weather. Plus, I got a Halibut taco for lunch.

Now I’m home and back to work in the garden.