kusa no to mo / sumikawaru yo zo / hina no ie (Even a thatched hut / May change with a new owner / Into a doll’s house)
from a haiku poem in Oku no Hosomichi (奥の細道) by Matsuo Bashō (松尾 芭蕉) (1644 – 1694)
I just got home tonight from the organizational meeting of
the Occupy Toronto group in time to see myself on national television which is
a strange feeling. I thought that I would compare my impressions with an online
article from the Toronto Sun, the local tabloid.
A ragtag group of would-be revolutionaries
gathered in a downtown parkette Thursday night to organize committees and
solicit donations for Saturday’s planned Occupy Toronto demonstration.
Around 250 people — the majority of them in
their 20s— assembled in a circle around several organizers of the upcoming
protest against capitalism and big business — a Toronto-based rendering of the
Occupy Wall Street protests that first took root in New York’s financial
district in mid-September.
The group gathered in the Bloor St. W and
St. George St. area, just east of the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute
for Studies in Education.
The article did get the size of the
group about right, the crowds had around 200 people but the rest of the
comments by my estimation were off since the demographics were evenly
distributed over ages from 20 to 65, probably most of them had at least an
undergraduate degree and they tended to skew towards the higher end of the
socioeconomic scale. Ragtag is not a word that I would use because they seemed
to have pretty good organizational skills and the participants knew how to
pursue goals. After an hour of procedural wrangling, things moved along rapidly
with reports from the various subcommittees such as logistics, food, media, legal
and medical given and training sessions for various aspects of the occupation announced.
One of three news vans
There was wall to wall news coverage
and five representatives of the constabulary.
News crews everwhere
At this point, my personal feeling is
that the demonstrations on Saturday will not be as active as in the States
since Canada is not in the same economic and social situation as America. The
wealth inequality is not anywhere near the US (ratio of CEO salaries to workers’
wages here is 22:1 and 475:1 south of the border), the banks did not need to be
bailed out, there was no housing bubble and economy went into a short, shallow
recession. Also the cost of post secondary education is relatively low compared
to America and student debt is subsequently manageable for most people. This does
not mean that things could not be improved but I think the strong impetus for
change is not present.
Ernest
Hemingway’s 1954 Noble Prize acceptance speech.
No
writer who knows the great writers who did not receive the Prize can accept it
other than with humility. There is no need to list these writers. Everyone here
may make his own list according to his knowledge and his conscience.
It would be
impossible for me to ask the Ambassador of my country to read a speech in which
a writer said all of the things which are in his heart. Things may not be
immediately discernible in what a man writes, and in this sometimes he is
fortunate; but eventually they are quite clear and by these and the degree of
alchemy that he possesses he will endure or be forgotten.
Writing, at
its best, is a lonely life. Organizations for writers palliate the writer’s
loneliness but I doubt if they improve his writing. He grows in public stature
as he sheds his loneliness and often his work deteriorates. For he does his
work alone and if he is a good enough writer he must face eternity, or the lack
of it, each day.
For a true
writer each book should be a new beginning where he tries again for something
that is beyond attainment. He should always try for something that has never
been done or that others have tried and failed. Then sometimes, with good luck,
he will succeed.
How simple
the writing of literature would be if it were only necessary to write in
another way what has been well written. It is because we have had such great
writers in the past that a writer is driven far out past where he can go, out
to where no one can help him.
I have
spoken too long for a writer. A writer should write what he has to say and not
speak it. Again I thank you.
Next year is the bicentennial of the War of 1812 which is
not widely celebrated in America or Britain but is a really big deal in Canada
since many Canadians consider it a defining moment on the road to the formation of
Canada.The federal government is
going to mark the bicentennial by spending $28 million on historical education,
supporting 100 events, a permanent memorial in Ottawa and infrastructure
improvements to three 1812 national historical sites including Fort York in
Toronto.
PBS had an accurate two hour War of 1812 program on Monday
probably because 65% of the paying members in the New York branch live in
Ontario and a lot of the funding came from Canadian sources. The trailer for
the program is at the top of the post.
Battle of Queenston Heights
My Ex comes from a
United Empire Loyalist family, the families who supported the Crown during the
American Revolution, and they moved to
Thorold, Ontario in the early 1780s after their property was confiscated by the
Continental Congress which was a common means of paying for the revolution.
During the Battle of Queenston Heights in October of 1812, they got their
payback by defeating the troops from Kentucky. The Kentuckians were in the
wrong place and the wrong time because they had the loyalists and native allies
in front of them and a 500 foot vertical drop into the Niagara gorge behind them.
To make a long story short, they had a really bad day.
Fort York in Toronto
Fort York is a historic
site of military fortifications and related buildings on the west side of
downtown Toronto. The fort was built by the British Army and Canadian militia
troops in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, to defend the settlement and
the new capital of the Upper Canada region from the threat of a military
attack, principally from the newly independent United States. It was designated
a National Historic Site of Canada in 1923.(Wikipedia)
Fort York, soldier in British uniform c1812
One of the main canon at Fort York
The battle of York which is the former name of Toronto was
fought in April, 1813 and American troops burned and looted the town after
defeating the garrison at Fort York. When the garrison was attacked the
defending troops blew the fort`s magazine which killed or wounded many of the
American troops and this was the probable cause for the plunder of the town.
The British in retaliation burnt Washington, DC in 1814.
War of 1812 Historical Reenactor from Fort Meigs with a replica Howitzer cannon.
under creative commons licence from charissa
I haven’t done a travelogue in awhile and I received an
email inviting me this Friday to a special member only preview of the Chagall
and Russian avant-garde exhibit at the Ontario Art Gallery. The installation
comprises 118 works in painting, sculpture, film, photography and works on
paper including 32 works by Chagall and 8 works by Kandinsky. Other Russian
modernists included in the exhibit are Malevich, Goncharova, Delaunay and
Tatlin. This got me thinking about one of my favourite travel locations, Saint
Paul de Vence in the south of France, since Chagall’s tomb is in the cemetery on
the north end of the village and it fits my travelogue criteria of being relatively
unknown, great place to visit and I’ve been there in person so the information
is first hand.
The village is an old medieval town in the French Riviera about
an hour’s drive North West of Nice in the Alpes-Martimes department of south-eastern
France and is well known among the cognoscenti for its contemporary art galleries,
hotels and restaurants. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the area was threatened
by barbarian invasions so the local inhabitants built “perched villages” on the
high grounds of the region.
Saint Paul from the south
The present ramparts were constructed under the orders of
Francois I in the renaissance period in order to repel the attacks in the area of
the troops under the command of Charles Quint.
The fortifications were abandoned at
the end of the Empire. However, in 1832, a committee of military engineers
decided to restore them. When Saint-Paul was demilitarised in 1870, the
ramparts were sold off at auction. The mayor of the commune, deeming the
fortifications of public importance, negotiated with the French government to
save them from demolition. In 1872, the commune bought the ramparts for 400
Francs!
Imposing ramparts rear out of the
Provençal countryside. Glowing in the Mediterranean light they structure a
prestigious village that gradually, with the increasing popularity of the
French Riviera, proved irresistible to artists and tourists. (website)
Entrance to St. Paul
Many well known artists including
Matisse, Soutine, Chagall, Renoir, Signac, Modigliani and Dufy have lived in
the village during the last century. Today there are many upscale galleries
owned by local artists in the heart of the hamlet but make sure you can afford
the pieces before you’re tempted and if you have a good eye then you might find
some great bargains. Don’t buy anything that you can’t take with you. I learned
about this the hard way when I bought a silk on silk Sultan`s weave rug in Turkey
and had it shipped home but never received it so I was out about $5000.
Lane in St. Paul filled with tourists
Art studio
Side Lane looking east
Marc Chagall, artist, tomb
Marc
Chagall lived in Saint-Paul from 1966 to 1985. During that time, he
relentlessly incorporated the village and its ramparts into his paintings.
Enveloped in the Mediterranean landscapes he found so fascinating, Marc Chagall
painted love: couples in love and multi-coloured bouquets swirling above the
village in an eternally serene sky. (website)
St. Paul cemetary looking north
Lots of one and two star Michelin restaurants in the village. I would recommend
La Table de Pierre.
Une nouvelle collaboration entre le Chef Emmanuel LEHRER et
Michel ROSTANG, Grand Chef Relais & Châteaux, 2 étoiles Michelin à Paris.
Les deux chefs partagent le même goût pour une cuisine passionnée et généreuse
et signent la carte du restaurant.
En soirée, place à une gastronomie colorée toute méditerranéenne.
Terrasse panoramique ombragée ou salle à manger avec sa majestueuse cheminée.
If you have to have a Big Mac then there’s a MacDonald’s
about 4km south of the village. They serve wine and fresh croissants so it can
be different from home.
Fountain near hotel
Quite a choice in hotels and B&B. The old mainstay is
the La Columbe d'Or.
"Connue dans le monde entier, l'Auberge de la Colombe d'Or est un lieu privilégié qui associe la douceur de vivre en Provence à
une étonnante collection particulière d'art moderne. Au fil des décennies, la
famille Roux qui garde le secret de cet art de vivre inégalé, a vu son destin
mêlé à des êtres d'exception tels que Pablo Picasso, Jacques Prévert, Yves
Montand ou James Baldwin. Habitués de ce très bel endroit, Matisse, Braque,
Léger, Calder, César et bien d'autres, y ont laissé des oeuvres magnifiques qui
font désormais partie de ce cadre unique." M. Assouline.
Remember
remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot...
New York Police have been charging demonstrators at Occupy
Wall Street protest area under New York`s Penal Law 240.35 as promulgated
below:
Being masked or in any manner disguised by unusual or
unnatural attire or facial alteration, loiters, remains or congregates in a
public place with other persons so masked or disguised, or knowingly permits or
aids persons so masked or disguised to congregate in a public place; except
that such conduct is not unlawful when it occurs in connection with a
masquerade party or like entertainment if, when such entertainment is held in a
city which has promulgated regulations in connection with such affairs, permission
is first obtained from the police or other appropriate authorities.
So Guy Fawkes masks are out of bounds although if the demonstrations
last until Halloween on October 31, the protesters will get a pass for one
night. This is a class B misdemeanour which allows the judge to impose a prison
sentence of up to three months. The photo below was taken on Wall street, New York on October, 2011 by David Shankbone under a creative commons licence.
On Sunday, I had Canadian Thanksgiving with three of my
children and my youngest daughter’s boyfriend. Thanksgiving Day or Jour de l'Action de grâce (fr.) is an
annual Canadian statutory holiday which occurs at the end of the harvest season
and is before the American one because of the northern climate`s earlier
harvest. I believe that
Columbus Day in the States is on the same day. The Kitchener – Waterloo Oktoberfest
parade in western Ontario is today followed by a three day beer and German food
festival.
Since 1969, Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest has developed its own traditions,
becoming the largest Bavarian festival in North America with the greatest
Thanksgiving Day Parade in Canada. Thousands of visitors celebrate annually in
our Festhallen, and by attending one or more of our 40 family and cultural
events. Through the celebration of this Spirit of Gemuetlichkeit, the local
economy is stimulated and over 70 charities and not-for-profit organizations
raise funds to support the high quality of life enjoyed in Kitchener-Waterloo.
Willkommen to you, your family and friends.
Thanksgiving dinner
I had Turkey with stuffing, beets, apple salad, mashed
potatoes, homemade buns, squash and gravy for the main course. For dessert, I
ate homemade pumpkin pie as well as homemade apple (northern spy) with whipped cream.
The wine was a white German Spätlese (late harvest) to compliment the main
course and an Ontario Niagara region ice-wine to go with desert. Certainly
filling!
Last month, I wanted to escape from the confines of the
Fortress of Solitude, my home base and go to the I.A.S. annual conference for
intellectual stimulation as well as the entertainment value. This was held at a
designated military friendly college in northern ``fly over country`` which for
reasons of anonymity I will call the University of Narnia, a state which like
the fictional world of C.S. Lewis magic or in this case magical thinking is
common and good (Jesus) battles evil (Liberals etc.). Originally I had thought
that ``military friendly`` meant the faculty wore fatigues and the college
cafeteria served MREs but it was more like the college ROTC re-enacting the
Battle of Wounded Knee and a demonstration of an armed predator drone scouting
the border and making incursions into the Great White North looking for targets
of opportunity. I used the names of some of the characters in the Narnia series
of books by C. S. Lewis to represent the various academic archetypes present at
the conference.
Name: Aslan
Profile: Master of his realm. Talks in Old English. Has the
rock star quality of Bernard-Henri Lévy in his prime, Camus’s instinct
for justice and the courage of Malraux. Refers to the female members of the
society in Pope John Paul’s litany of “little sisters``. Sees anchorites in terms
of spirituality and hagiography. Makes keynote speech. Divorced. Only dates women under 25 like Hugh Hefner.
Writing sample:
Ther-efter anan-riht ure Leafdi uht-song - ant seggeth o
this wise: yef hit is werc-dei, falleth to ther eorthe; yef hit is hali-dei, buhinde sum-deal dune-ward
seggeth Paternoster ant Credo ba stille. Rihteth ow up th'refter ant seggeth, Domine,
labia mea
aperies. Makieth on ower muth a creoiz with the thume. Ed Deus in adiutorium, a
large creoiz with the thume ant with the twa fingres, from buve the forheaved
dun to the breoste, ant falleth to the eorthe - yef hit is werc-dei with Gloria Patri,
other buheth dune-ward, yef hit [is] hali-dei athet Sicut erat. Thus ed euch Gloria
Patri anted te biginnunge of the Venite, ant i the Venite, ed Venite, adoremus, ant ed
te Ave, Maria, ant hwer-se ye eaver hereth Maries nome i-nempnet, ant ed euch Pater
noster thet falle to ower ures ant to the Credo ant to the collecte ed eaver-euch
tide, ant ed te leate-meste vers of eaver-euch ymne, ant ed te leaste vers withuten an of the
salm, Benedicite, omnia opera Domini, Domino. Ed alle thes ilke, yef hit is hali-dei,
buheth
sum-del dune-wart. Yef hit is werc-dei, falleth to ther eorthe. Ed te
biginnunge of eaver- euch tide, with Deus in adiutorium, makieth rode-taken as ich ear tahte. Ed Veni,
Creator buheth other cneolith efter thet te dei is. With Memento, salutis
auctor, falleth eaver adun, ant ed tis word, Nascendo formam sumpseris, cusseth the
eorthe, ant alswa i the Te Deum laudamus, ed tis word: Non horruisti virginis uterum,
ant ed te messe i the muchele Credo, ed ex Maria Virgine ant Homo factus est.(A.
W.)
Habitat:Fancy pants
Ivy League school
Favourite activity: Giving ten point forced choice likert
scale tests to reclusives.
Response to Why God never got tenure at any university:
“Sure he created the universe but what has he done lately?”
Name: White witch
Profile: Feminist. Founding member of the French feminist
group, Chiennes de garde whose motto is “Contre les insultes sexists
publiques”. Sees anchoress as proto feminists. Has homicidal fantasies about Aslan. Makes introductory speech and almost chokes on compliments about the keynote speaker. Never Married.
Writing sample:
Nous, Chiennes de garde, nous montrons les crocs, pour
impressionnerthe macho, to make us respect, to protect women iles
machos, pour nous faire respecter, pour défendre des femmes insultées.
WARNING!
ATTENTION ! Grrrrrrrrrrr ...!
Grrrrrrrrrrr… ! We could hurt if we
were very Nous pourrions faire mal si nous étions trèsangry
if we do conten colère, si nous ne nous contrôlions plus. Imagine that there are Imaginez qu'il
existe desRabid
dogs, very dangerouChiennes enragées, très dangereuses. Imagine they are directed Imaginez
qu'elles soient dirigéesby terrrrible head of the pack, who decides
to tackle the macho criminals, those who fight, who rape, killing of women, lopar
une terrrrible cheffe de meute, qui décide de s'attaquer aux machos criminels,
ceux qui battent, qui violent, qui tuent des femmes, des faibles. Imagine it launches horrrrible battle cry:
"Down with macho! Imaginez qu'elle lance son horrrrible cri de
guerre : « Sus aux machos ! Unleash the do Lâchez les Chiennes ! Ksssss kssss! Ksssss kssss ! Bite them! Mordez-les ! No quarter! Pas de quartier ! " »STOPSTOP
! It was a nightmare. C'était un
cauchemar. Returning to the guard dogs,
Revenons aux Chiennes de garde,so peacefusi pacifiques ! Whew! Ouf ! We are not vicious dogs, Nous ne sommes pas des Chiennes
méchantes, but we are not brave many nice dogsmais
nous ne sommes pas non plus de braves chiennes bien gentilles, we do go with the niche susucrequ'on
fait rentrer à la niche avec un susucre. We say: Nous disons :"I bark, therefore I am ... feminist
solidarity« J'aboie, donc je suis… féministe et solidaire. " »And
attention, machoEt attention, les machos ! (website)
Response to Why God never got tenure at any university:
“He had only one major publication which was written in Hebrew,
had no references and wasn’t published in a referred journal.”
Name: Shasta a.k.a Golden Boy
Profile: Like Shasta in C. S. Lewis’ Narnia kidnapped as a
boy and raised as a fisherman’s son in a remote village but in reality royal heir to Aslan.Uses Derrida’s “Sous rature”
especially in articles refuting White Witch’s papers on Anchorites. Married to second wife who was a former student.
Writing sample:
White witch’s contention that anchorites were “promiscuous
in female – female eroticism due to the privacy of the anchor hold which acted
as a liminal space permitted by medieval theological constructs of the
spiritual fallen nature of women in general” is another example of her
extrapolations of the vague suppositions of medieval male writings acting as a
mirror to the sexual insecurities and speculations of the
clerical class and also White witch’s Eurocentric perceptions which are at odds
with modern day inter disciplinary interpretations as well as the conclusions
of any serious scholar of the anchorite field known to me. Positing a “lesbian
void” based on the architecture of the anchor hold and the inferred permission
granted by the Ancrene Wisse and other texts is laughable and unworthy of a
noted scholar engaged in a form of historical revisionism and reconstruction of
implied events. I defer to Aslan’s commonly accepted analysis of the phenomena
which is at odds with White witch’s conjectures and creative reinterpretation
of the facts. I grant that being private was an unusual circumstance in the
communal housing arrangements of the medieval age but one cannot project social
and sexual modifications of behaviour from mere opportunity.
Habitat: R-1 University
Favourite activity: Bragging about his tenured position,
lack of service obligations and teaching requirements
Response to Why God never got tenure at any university:
“He rarely showed up in class and told his students to read
the Book. ``
Name: Green witch a.k.a Iron Butterfly
Profile: Feminist. White witch’s adjunct during the
conference and far Eastern member of society. Ghost writer of Soshokukei
Danshi Ojo-man Ga Nippon wo Kaeru (The Herbivorous Ladylike Men Are Changing
Japan). Goal to do yubi-tsume [（指詰め・ゆびつめ）: The act of slicing off a part of the pinky
finger to atone for an error.] on Golden Boy.
Writing sample:
In Japanese but also a screen writer for the Japanese TV
series Otomen. The title, "Otomen" is a pun made of the Japanese word
otome (乙女), meaning "young lady" or
"mistress", and the English word "men". (正宗
飛鳥, Masamune Asuka) is the main character. See the video below:
Habitat: University of Tokyo
Favourite activity:Carrying out giri（義理・ぎり）: debt or
obligation. A complex concept of duty unique to Japanese culture which
demonstrates both the gratitude one has for an act of kindness and the
obligation to carry out revenge. Always carries a can of mace [催涙スプレー (さいるいスプレー, sairui spray which
translates directly as “tear spray”]
Response to Why God never got tenure at any university:
"Almost every one of His students failed His tests although
there were only ten requirements."
Name: Nikabrik a.k.a Platinum kid
Profile: Up and comer. Entertains White witch in her homicidal
fantasies about Aslan when the Master isn’t around. Always carries a worn copy
of the MLA Style Guide. Goal to be the modern version of Gaius Maecenas. Knows
how to suck up in eight languages. Single but hoping to hook up at the conference.
Writing sample:
This is another example of Aslan’s profound understanding of
the nature of the theological and social implications of the anchorite calling….etc.
Habitat: Mid western remedial and custodial educational institute
Favourite activity: networking
Response to Why God never got tenure at any university:
"He expelled His initial two students for learning."
