BINNERS

The first one arrives before 7:00am each morning. Wearing a multi-colored crocheted touque and pushing a walker she heads straight to the recycling bins. A careful perusal of the bins usually yields several plastic pop and water bottles. With surprising strength she stomps on each one and crushes them to a compact size. It is obvious that the walker provides a vehicle to carry the large plastic bag of recoverables...but is not necessary to support her! From my vantage point it is impossible to guess her age.

The next "BINNER" arrives shortly after her and is disappointed in his search. He is riding a mobility scooter and has a large garbage bag that is almost full of plastics and cans. The bag sits on his lap as he moves on to the next site.

During the initial months of Covid most grocery stores refused to accept recyclables so many people tossed them into the bins. As a result the number of visits to our recycling bins has increased.

Other regulars arrive on foot, on bicycle and with grocery carts. One even has an improvised bicycle with a wagon attached. Some restrict their search to the recycling bins while others do a little dumpster diving as well. The residents of our two buildings are grateful that there is never any mess left behind.

Libraries

 

Our library has reopened but it is not alive. 

In pre-covid days the library served as a resting place for several homeless people who occupied the same seats every day. They read the daily newspapers and monthly magazines while quietly munching on a granola bar or dozing. Special needs people from the area would carefully find pieces for a jigsaw puzzle. Other locals were busy researching job opportunities on the library computers. Students sat at tables with homework assignments. Photocopied crossword puzzles from the newspapers were available for members (mainly seniors) to work on. Children enjoyed story time. There were even opportunities for Bird watchers to borrow binoculars and a birding guide.

The library wasn't a noisy environment but it was alive. It was vividly described by author Susan Orlean in "The Library Book". Libraries of today provide more than shelves of books. They offer a safe refuge for many, learning opportunities for others and social connections in a diverse community.

When the library initially reopened through the back door I had to request a book online, wait for online confirmation that it was ready for pickup and finally approach the back door with my library card number. A librarian would find the book and place it on an outside table in a paper bag for me to retrieve. Now I can enter the library wearing a mask, cleanse my hands, answer covid questions and retrieve my requested book...or even browse through the shelves in a silent, empty library.

I am hopeful that our library will come alive again after the threat of Covid has faded.

No end in sight

 

Almost six months of Covid and no end in sight. The other day John commented that our lives had not changed much as a result of this virus. His comment made me pause and reflect on the past six months.

The first impact was cancellation of our planned trip to Greece. It seemed likely that we would not see our extended family in Greece again. After that our daily lives changed dramatically. 

Since relocating to Langley we had slowly been integrating into the community by attending fitness classes and regular visits to the weight room at our local community centre. Around mid-March both the community centre and the library closed. We lost social contact with our new acquaintances and the pleasure of regular browsing through library shelves.

John had become an active Hospice volunteer again and was looking forward to providing assistance to community members who were nearing the end of life. The Hospice Association was forced to cancel its contacts with patients.

I was volunteering at the Hospital Auxiliary thrift store for two afternoons each week but the store was among businesses that were deemed non-essential and was closed. 

Coffee shops and restaurants were forced to offer takeout service only so there were no more leisurely visits while enjoying the aroma and flavors of our favorite menu items.

We came to admire Dr. Bonnie Henry and expected that the measures she put in place would protect us. Hand washing and physical distancing became our new way of life as our social sphere shrunk to just the two of us. 

There were positive impacts from these past six months. As a result of no shopping, no eating out and no driving we spent less money on non-essentials and we enjoyed long walks every day. We explored our neighborhood, engaged ourselves in conversations that might not have taken place otherwise and returned home feeling energized. In lieu of purchased goodies there were home baked loaves of banana bread and cookies as well as delicious roasted vegetables and huge pots of healthy soup. Several paintings were also successfully completed

A scarey reminder of the virus happened about one month ago when John experienced extreme pain in his back and was unable to move. I called an ambulance and they whisked him away to the hospital. Due to Covid restrictions I was not able to be with him. We only have one phone so he could not call me. It was an excruciating eight hours later when I received a call from the hospital to pick him up. He had suffered a rare reaction to an antibiotic for a bladder infection. I couldn't stop thinking about the possibility that he could be hospitalized and I would never see him again.

So...on careful reflection...John's comment about our lives not changing with Covid could not be further from the truth!

καλό ύπνο...or...good dreams!

 

καλό ύπνο

The painting for our bedroom is finally finished.

 

Enlarging the language

 

"It's like enlarging the language of observation." Gathie Falk

A trip to Vancouver Island

We finally decided to put Covid out of our minds and make a trip to Vancouver Island to visit my sister in Campbell River and our daughter's family in Comox. The ferry trips were easy and safe... passengers are allowed to stay in their vehicles for the two hour trip and are requested to wear masks if they leave the vehicle.

It is unlikely that we will be able to make the trip again this year if Covid returns in a second wave so we were very happy to spend time with family, share stories and great meals. I forgot to use the camera while we were at my sister's but did manage to capture a few images in Comox.

Trampoline sports

At Filberg

Filberg flowers

Loulou...the newest family member!