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 Yesterday I finished a reread of Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend, which I hadn't read for a few years. It's the last novel he completed, before the unfinished The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Our Mutual Friend is quite good, although it certainly doesn't rank up there with the classics like Bleak House or David Copperfield. The end comes together awfully clumsily, even by Dickensian standards. There's a lot of social commentary, which we'd expected in a Dickens novel, but it's very pointed here; plus, it gave us the word Podsnappery (which probably alone justifies its writing). One of the things that always jumps out at me in reading Our Mutual Friend is the character of Mr. Riah, a remarkably kind and sympathetic Jewish character (it's believed that he was a makeup for Dickens's earlier characterization of Fagin in Oliver Twist). Highly recommended, naturally.

Elks Game and a Failed Selfie

 Here's a picture that I snapped during the Edmonton Elks game last week. I was trying to recapture the amazing selfie that Andy took last year at the Hamilton game, but, tragically, it didn't work out. At the exact moment I was trying to take the picture one of the Elks staff jettisoned a t-shirt up and just about conked me on the head. That, of course, I didn't mind, but it did mess up my artistic plans (this was actually the best of the series of chaotic shots, made even more chaotic by people rushing over to grab our missed swag; which is fine, because doubtless it would never had fit me). We saw a rouge, so it was a success.

The game itself was fun, although the Elks are pretty bad. Sadly, there were only about 14,000 people at the game (in a stadium that seats 55,000 - the largest in the CFL) for the opening game of the season. Hopefully the Elks turn it around.

Still, that's a pretty sweet Elks jersey. As we were walking out a fan stopped me and told me how much we loved the jersey.

 

G as Pessoa

 I snapped this picture on my recent Portugal trip (was that only three weeks ago?). It's a picture that I snapped at the Café Brasileiria in Lisbon. As I've noted way too many times, it was one of Fernando Pessoa's favorite places, and whenever I visit I happily sit there, eating his favorite meal. It's also next to the famous statue of Pessoa, where people (although clearly not literate people) stop to pose for pictures. This always leads me to say to Janet, "I bet never of them have even read The Book of Disquiet. Wankers!" This picture was on one of those table clothes that cartoonishly celebrate the neighborhood. To the right of the Pessoa statue is Pessoa himself, glancing back, clearly in disgust, at people mugging next to his statue (or maybe he's just amazed that he even has a statue).

Pessoa's look is not quite a disdainful as mine typically is.

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 Besides throwing my raincoat back into my suitcase, I also decided at the last minute to bring Yangsze Choo's novel The Fox Wife. That also turned out to be a wise addition. I ended up blowing through the almost four-hundred page book during the trip (and that included me spending time every day writing). So, it was obviously an entertaining novel. As I told Janet, I don't think the novel changed my life, but it's definitely one I enjoyed reading. It worked better as a story about fox spirits than it does as a detective novel (too many people show up on cue to give detailed information; at times it felt like an episode of Law & Order, where characters, almost comically (actually, completely comical) walk into scene to provide the information that is needed at that moment). Still, I'd definitely place it in the recommended category.

Stampeder

 As I said, I'll get caught up on these trips soon. I need to devote hours everyday to finishing the Epics book, so some of this is simply going to have to wait. However, I'll toss in a photo now and then so that I don't completely lose the thread. Here's a picture of me at McMahon Stadium in Calgary. I'll talk more about it later, but at this point I'll just throw in that we sat through a cold, torrential downpour. I found myself regretting my decision to not throw in a sweatshirt (which I was considering), which was not an packing decision that I figured I would be making for a mid-June game. Fortunately, I put my raincoat back in the suitcase, after it had foolishly been temporarily removed.

Sadly, my new, cool Stampeders jersey was buried under three layers of clothes.

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 As we've discussed, I'm being a little flexible in counting readings in this Year of Readings Dangerously (just as I'm also forcing myself to read books that I wouldn't normally tackle). Recently I finished a Great Course series on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby that was written and delivered by my good friend Sheila Liming. She discussed a series of the background issues (economic, class, gender, sex, fashion) that would enrich the experience for someone new to The Great Gatsby. I've read the novel a couple times but have never completely warmed to it (as all right-thinking individuals know, Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio is the greatest American novel). Sheila has definitely convinced me to take another look at The Great Gatsby. Her course is highly recommended (as are her books).

Surviving the Heat

 Was I was gone I missed some terribly dreadful weather here in Vermont. It was in the mid-90s, while it was in the 40s in Alberta for some of the time. All I experienced of it was coming back to a stifling 84 inside the cabin (slowly our weak air conditioner is making things livable, to the relief of the cats). My daughter-in-law Ali sent me this picture of my son. They had tracked down a little stream to help survive the heat.

I absolutely love this picture. It really captures so much about him.