There is a lovely, bookish lady I follow on Instagram who shares book-themed posts and reviews several times a week. I love the backdrop of her beautifully organized bookshelves and that she takes the time to dress stylishly yet comfortably for the camera, completing the look with no-nonsense hair and make-up. She has very white teeth that dazzle. My favourite posts by her are on Sundays; she refers to them as “five things.”
Thought I would give five things a try considering it’s Sunday and I’m feeling a wee bit sorry for myself.
- We had zero trick or treaters this Halloween, despite our brightly lit porch and inviting yellow door. This has happened several years in a row now, possibly because we live at the end of an eight-house, poorly lit street, with neighbours who punctuated the darkness by turning out all their house lights. Today I filled up baggies of leftover candy and my husband and I delivered them to the neighbours with kids that we know.
- Every year, for as long as I have worked as a physiotherapist, I have reassured my clients, with old-school confidence, that the transition from summer to fall is the worst time of year for joint pain and that once winter arrives, they will feel better. Unfortunately, I am experiencing that pain in real time these days and find myself wondering if I have just been bull s**ting everyone all this time.
- My husband and I visited a friend’s photography exposition at Studio M in the McGill ghetto this past Saturday. It was a lovely outing and afterwards we stopped a nearby cafe for a bite to eat (code for seniors needing to use the toilet). Afterwards, we dropped by The Word, a secondhand bookshop down the street from the gallery. Donna, the owner’s wife, was manning the cash that afternoon and asked us if we were visiting from out of town. She said she didn’t recognize us (that’s what living in the suburbs will do, make you unrecognizable). It’s always a good sign when a local bookstore invites you to become a regular. It made me feel very nostalgic for my university days, McGill being my alma mater. Even better, I scored two Anne Carson books, a vintage Miriam Toews, and an English copy of The Tin Flute by Gabrielle Roy (our next community bookclub feature). My husband found a copy of Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis, a book that he has been searching for a while now.
- Speaking of photography exhibits, I participated in one of my own last week at Galerie de Viaduc in Montreal, along with some fellow masterclass students of local fine art photographer Linda Rutenberg. One of my goals this year was to finally set up my website and I was able to do so with the help of my very talented young friend, Annie Wilde. I highly recommend her. Of note, the purpose of my website is completely non-lucrative. I simply wanted a place to organize some favourite shots and projects. If you missed my exhibit, you can check it out here.
- Lately, whenever I say goodbye to my mother at the residence where she lives, I feel like my heart is breaking. As much as I love her, it is sometimes painful to be her caregiver. She always asks after her mother when I visit and is puzzled as to why she hasn’t seen her in so long. I used to gently correct her but now I just go along with it and let her reminisce. Perhaps I will be the same at the end of my life, longing for the comfort of my mother’s arms and wondering why she hasn’t visited in a while.
