Whenever I open a can of chickpeas and rinse them, I am overcome with a desire to take each chickpea and slip off its transparent skin. I find it so satisfying – so that of course I am not satisfied at all until I have slipped the skin off of every last one. The safest thing for me, therefore, is never to start in the first place.
Blog
2020
I have a great love of editing. Semicolon—
or m-dash? Too many syllables? Too languid?
too clipped? One sentence twisting, another
straight-ahead. Warp; point; zig; zag. I once
dropped my house-keys such that they fell
between the boards of the front porch:
I rescued them
with a bent coat-hanger. Yes,
I am nothing if not resourceful.
On oomancy
Yesterday evening we had friends over to our apartment for our weekly oomancy session. As I was sweeping the floor in anticipation of their arrival, I thought back to the first time I tried my hand at oomancy.
The Rideau Canal
As of , the Rideau Canal in Ottawa is the nearest body of water to where I live. Previously it was the Atlantic Ocean; before that, the Assiniboine River—both natural bodies of water:——but the Rideau Canal is an artificial one.
Jocelyn
I first met my fiancée on . I found my record of this incident as I was reading through my Catalogue of Days, looking for potential blog-post material.
2019
Pen and paper
I have started using a paper notebook for an agenda/planner/to-do-list thing. It's been an interesting experiment.
I have a secret, which I’ve never revealed:
This city is a strange place—so much of it is paved.
The trees here—it must be lonely for them, not being in a forest; stretching their roots out and finding soil compacted by cement, soil sparse of arboreal conversation.
2018
Holy Communion on Harry Lake
(In which it is cold, early morning, misty over the lake; I set my service leaflet on fire.)
My to-do list
I have a secret to-do list. The problem with my secret to-do list, though, is that it’s easy for me to forget what is on it.
Purple sparks
I used to be able to make purple sparks shoot from my fingertips. I just had to snap my fingers at just the right angle, with just the right force, when the humidity was just right, when my hair was tied up in a bun in just the right way …
This morning, flatmates and I had a brief dance party in the living room. It was a lot of fun–it felt long overdue. It made me think of a note I had written to myself about a year ago.
What do I have in my pockets?
(In which I have to blow my nose.)
2017
At Mersey River, at a winter retreat, after Compline
(Eternal praise! eternal praise!)
At the Lucky Penny, shortly before noon
Spotted Jack Mitchell searching the Perseus English-Latin lexicon for the word ‘virtuous’.
At Duncan St and Chebucto Lane
As I was walking down Duncan street last Sunday evening, I came across a tree that that had a face—eyes, a nose and a mouth affixed to its bark.
I was bored this afternoon, so I ate a raw clove of garlic.
That’s all.
Having danced
Whatever is necessary that such dance parties as that of last night should happen again—that’s what matters to me. That everybody should be able to dance with their friends in a safe and comfortable space and know this and dance freely and enjoy it and have lots of fun, knowing that they are among friends—that is what is most worthwhile to me.
2016
On skating
(Sometimes I space out for a moment.)
I made a remark shortly after I came in the door—paraphrased from David Lebovitz—about the state of the Parisian baguette: Emma is this moment recording it in her quote-book. I am flattered.
In the Winnipeg International Airport
(Setting off for Halifax; musing; killing time.)