The Edge of the World

This place - the edge of the world - is something all artists think about. We think about going to the end and then past it, about going somewhere no one's ever been, about discovering something new, something that changes everything.

For the past few weeks, I've been thinking about the edge of the world.

Actually, I'll admit I've gone further than thinking into a fixation, perhaps even a tiny obsession. Not full-blown, but it's constantly with me these days.

Where did it begin? A friend talking about a trip he wanted to take, a cruise that took him around the Horn - perhaps the most dangerous stretch of water in the world. He wanted to be able to say he'd done it.

I've got many books about explorers on my shelves: The Source of the Nile, The Kon-Tiki Expedition, The Conquest of Mexico. Books about explorers: Shackleton, Cook, Vancouver (of course!), Howard Carter. I'm fascinated by all of them - these men who chose to travel off the edge of the world, literally or figuratively. And then there are the Vikings, of whom I think most often - how they left home in a tiny boat without a single clue as to whether there would be land at the end of their voyage. They set sail into nowhere.

Artists do this same thing, maybe not every single day, but on most days, at least for me, I step into my ship and sail off, knowing I might sail right off the edge of the world.

It's exhilirating and incredibly frightening. But we're explorers, we artists, and we don't have any choice.

Kate

180 minutes...

Vancouver had a long, cold, and very wet winter and spring. But we've finally made it into summer and I documented my first long walk of the summer. This is Vancouver from my house to the beach, along the Seawall, through the rainforest of Stanley Park, across to the Coal Harbor seawall, finally stopping for lunch, warm and happy and exhausted. 

Enjoy!

Third Beach looking north west

Giant Douglas fir (I think) in the Stanley Park rainforest

Lost Lagoon looking north

Boats in Coal Harbor on Burrard Inlet

Lunch?

False Creek ferry dock - where all my walks begin

Half size Viking longboat in English Bay

Third Beach facing north west

Rawlings Trail through the rainforest of Stanley park

The Art of Street Photography

Street photographers - at least here in Vancouver - were a big fixture of Granville Street (the hottest part of downtown) in the 40s and 50s. Almost everyone who walked Granville in those days had their picture taken and those who could afford it, got a copy.

This is my mother - probably a year or two before I was born - strolling down Granville with a friend.

There are thousands and thousands of pictures just like these from cities all over the world and what I like about them is that they're so specifically of their time - the clothes, the shoes, the bags, the neon on the street.

I wasn't around on Granville Street in the 40s and if I was there in the 50s, I don't remember it. But I did spend time on Granville in every decade since then - and I've watched it change and change and change.

But this photograph? This is Granville Street as I want it to be - this is the Granville Street I still (in small pieces) recognize. I recognize it in the Vancouver Block, in the Yale, in the Commodore. It's the Granville Street I want to write about, a place just barely out of my lifetime, just out of my memories.

Kate

Friday Five - Spring flowers

One of the things Vancouver does really well is spring - and because we're just now heading into real winter (cold, probably snow, short, short days), I wanted to remind myself that it's really only a couple of months before THIS!

Kate

Christmas in Vancouver...

isn't exactly what you might imagine.

I took this photograph at lunchtime today when I was out - in a sweater - doing some Christmas shopping. It was warm enough to go without gloves, without a coat, and dry enough to walk around without boots.

This photograph is of Robson Square - the heart of the city. It would definitely look more like a holiday scene if there were a little snow but, in Vancouver, it would probably have to be fake snow.

See those figures in the bright light under the dome? They're ice skating. It's the only outdoor rink in the city and it's free. It's a very small rink and very expensive to run as on most days during the winter, the outdoor temperature is way above freezing.

But it is beautiful - and despite the lack of snow, despite the temperature, despite the rain, just looking at this scene convinces me that we are in the middle of holiday season.

How about you?

Kate

Vancouver in the fall

This is one of my favorite pictures - ever. I took this in the late afternoon when I was sitting at the bar in the Pan Pacific Hotel. The windows are basically floor to ceiling and when you look west, this is what you see.

The floating gas station in the foreground, then Stanley Park where the leaves are changing color, then, if you look carefully right above the gas station, you can see the span of the Lions Gate Bridge.

Above that? The mountains rising out of Burrard Inlet, with the houses of West Vancouver adorning their feet. Most days in the winter, this is what you can see (if even this much). Once the clouds arrive for their permanent residence - usually October to April - the tops of the mountains are clothed in cloud.

It's impossible to tell if they're covered with rain or with snow until the clouds roll away and, suddenly, what you see is this -

The end of the housing and the beginning of the mountains. Right now, this early in November, there is no snow. But it's cold and it won't be more than a few days before the first sprinkles of white highlight the tops of the peaks.

I can hardly wait.

Kate

It's hockey day in Vancouver

and no one - including me - can talk of anything else. There are battles on the street about Luongo v. Thomas, about the refereeing, about clutch players and injuries. We argue about coaches, about players, about general managers. We are, after all, Canadians and hockey is our sport.

I haven't seen any fisticuffs yet - but I'm willing to bet there'll be a whole lot of physical battles before the night is over.

It's interesting because this doesn't have the same atmosphere as the city did during the Olympics. I felt safe walking anywhere at any time during the Olympics, perhaps because the city was filled with families and people from all over the world. Yes, there were more Canadians than anyone else, but everyone seemed happy to cheer for a different country if their team wasn't playing. It felt more... I'm not sure exactly what to call it, but as close as I can get is sportsmanlike. It was about the sport. Yes, we wanted to win but we were also happy to cheer for someone who just put on a good show. I wouldn't want to be on the streets downtown after the game - whether we win or lose. It's not the number of people, it's the type.

These fans, today especially as it's Game 7, seem more aggressive. That might be because there are only (with a very few exceptions) Canuck fans in the city. It might also be because the overwhelming majority of the fans that are here are young men. The level of testosterone on the streets is so high you can almost smell it.

It's been a long season - after all, it's almost the first day of summer. I'll be glad when it's over.

Kate

First time ever

That my sister, who lives in Edmonton, gets bragging rights for spring weather. Here's the forecast for Edmonton:

Weather for Edmonton, AB

Sunny and warm
Weds 20°C / Thur 23°C / Fri 24°C / Sat 25°C







Weather for Vancouver, BC
Mostly cloudy
Weds 14°C / Thur 20°C / Fri 20°C / Sat 16°C


So I look out at the trees that are just blooming and usually bloom at the beginning of April while Edmonton still has snow and realize that this year she's the one who gets to send the photograph of spring weather while it's still pouring rain here in Vancouver.

I usually put on my sandals in late March and wear them pretty much every day until October. This year I can count on one hand the number of times I've worn them.

Topsy-turvy world. Topsy-turvy weather.

Kate

Topsy turvy land

This is yesterday, a lovely and very cold (for Vancouver)  day in Vancouver in January. At one point, there was a huge nimbus around the sun as the haze drifted in. It was bitterly cold but we walked anyway, from the Burrard Street bridge down to the Second Beach pool, around the lagoon, stopping at Blenz for the best peppermint tea in the city, and home.

This is the thing about Vancouver in the winter - the few sunny days we do get tend to be cold. The only reason we have any sunny days at all is because of the cold Arctic air pushing the clouds and the rain away.

So when it's sunny? It's cold. Oh, we don't have weather like Calgary does - when the temperature (I'm giving you celsius temps) can change from minus 30 to plus 20 in a single day, though we do have fluctuations. The problem is that our fluctuations tend to shift from cold - say minus 4 -  and sunny to warmer - say plus 6 - and very wet.

In Vancouver in the winter you get two choices - cold and sunny, warmer and wet. The good news? You almost never get bored with the weather  because it changes as fast as the days do.

I'm on the fence about the weather - I hate being cold, I truly do. And I can dress for the rain - except I hate spending the day with wet feet and damp hair and I truly hate putting back on my wet coat.

So I settle for Vancouver in the winter. I live with the cold and enjoy the sunshine and I live with the rain and enjoy the warmth.

The good news is that I never have to live with either for long.

Kate