How Do I Maintain?
03 April 2011
La Grande Finale
26 March 2011
Space and Time in a Child's Mind
It seems obvious to me that the character of Neil in A Tourist's Guide to Glengarry cannot comprehend life outside of his neighbourhood. Or at least not yet. But that's how it is when you're a kid. Everything is smaller. Have you ever gone back to your elementary school and noticed that the water fountains are more or less at your knees, or that you can easily press your entire palm on the ceilings, or that you can easily dunk on the basketball nets in the gym?
18 March 2011
New Urbanism
Nature, to me back then, was this unobtainable fenced-off oblivion where mysterious and fantastical things happened. I can still perfectly see miniature self looking through the chain link fence and the simultaneous senses of fear and wonder that it brought me. This all seems very prison-esque, now that I'm typing it out, but I assure you it wasn't. The neighbourhood that I lived was no prison, but a safe haven from the mysterious on the other side of the fence.
The farmer's field was only one side of the area that I lived. Luckily, we had a small forest not too far away. It's gone now, and houses have taken it's place, but I can still remember it perfectly as well. It was dank, it was dense, it was (at the time) so very infinite. It was where all of the action happened; the childhood kisses, the pranks, the parties, the prepubescent shenanigans. Then it was clear cut for houses. Heartbreaking.
I guess this might explain my lack of connection with nature. It's always been the 'thing' on the other side of the fence, or the 'thing' that was in the way of more houses. Though I shouldn't say I have no connection. I absolutely 100% do, but since my teens -- since I moved into the city -- I've always felt more of a connection with the urban. I haven't completely rejected nature, though. In fact, the most impressive aspect to me about cities is their impressive mixture of natural and urban aspects.
Thankfully, this is something that Edmonton does well. Or maybe it's just lucky. We are lucky to have an extensive river valley system within a suitable walking/biking/bussing/driving distance from virtually every corner of the city, and I love that. I can spend my entire summer down there, and not think twice about it.
11 March 2011
The Mysteries of Edmonton (?)
It goes, "To really fall in love with something, you have to know it."
I'm not too sure about this....
I'm sitting here, wondering -- still wondering -- what it is that Edmonton lacks. I mean, there are many inconsequential things that it lacks, but surely there is one encompassing thing that I can point a finger to. Looking back to my previous post, I'm still thinking that it's a serious lack of mystery that Edmonton has, but I don't know if that's the city's fault or mine.
I feel like I know Edmonton like the back of my hand. Perhaps that's too much. As I said last post, I feel that it's a city that I can't get lost in. Not only physically, but emotionally. My days seem to glide by, with nothing new or exciting happening. I feel like there's a lack of spontaneity. I feel like I can expect what my day will be like the next day, down to the fine details. Sure I visit new places, go to new restaurants, meet new people, but do these things really affect my thoughts on the city as a whole? Not in the least.
There must be something more, something grander. But the funny thing is, I can't figure out what that thing is. Is it a huge film festival? (omg I wish.) Is it a bigger sense of metropolitanism? (Also, I wish.) Is it a wonderful new urban development on the City Centre Airport lands? (I hope so.)
"Development". Maybe that's the key to everything. I know Edmonton so well, because nothing seems to be developing. Or when it does, it's at a snail's pace.
I would love to live in a city where people are constantly -- constantly! -- thinking about the future, manifesting itself into new, actively pursued, urban projects.
23 February 2011
The Inner Birdseye.
I find it's kind of hard to wander in Edmonton, not only for reasons of weather and distance, but because of it's embedment into my subconscious.
Maybe this goes against everything this class is giving me, but I just can't seem to feel lost in Edmonton. It's incredibly large, yes, but it's still my home, and I know it well, even if it's a subconscious knowledge. I may not know the ins and outs of every street and alley, but it's familiar enough that I still have a solid sense of space and direction, and if I happened to get lost, I could simply walk in one direction towards a place that I am familiar with. (This doesn't include Mill Woods, where the cardinal directions don't exist.) It's almost as if, from wherever I may be standing, I can enter this mode where I picture the immediate area from above -- whether it's a block, neighbourhood, campus, or the entire downtown core -- like I'm a bird, or some omniscient being looking down at a maze. I can mentally locate myself within the area, and calculate where I need to go and how to get there. It's something that's done every single time I'm "wandering" and I'm sure it's something that all of you do as well.
Downtown Sydney is pictured above. It's fairly linear, and the blocks more or less intersect as they do here. It's fairly easy to navigate. When I spent some time abroad, I spent a few weeks in Sydney, and despite the fact I carried a map of the CBD in my back pocket, and I was able to find places, the city was still so foreign to my inner compass that I never had a clear understanding of size and direction, and I never knew where I was standing within the downtown core, or which direction I was facing. That's not something I feel in Edmonton.
In Edmonton, I always know which way I'm facing and (roughly) where I'm standing in the grand scheme of things, and I find this is a bit of hindrance to my ability to wander. I've never done so much amazing, fulfilling wandering as I've done in Sydney, where I truly couldn't pinpoint (even roughly) where I was.
18 February 2011
Movements
10 February 2011
Blocked.
04 February 2011
The Rainbow v. The Right
Amongst the money-loving, tax-hating, unambiguously hetero populous that saturates our prairie province, there exists a (not so) hidden group of gay, lesbian, cross dressing, genderfucking body of citizens who -- despite the fact that they coexist with the young, forward thinkers -- are still somewhat susceptible to the conservative ideology that still lingers in the hearts and minds of the masses.
Edmonton has no Davie’s Village, or no Church and Wellesley. With no established district such as these, Edmonton’s gay population is still fairly translucent to the public. As far as City Council is concerned, it would make our city “terribly dirty” to allow us to hang rainbow flags from light posts, or paint giant hearts on the concrete.
Back in my days of cruising Whyte Ave, I saw many new nightclubs emerge from nowhere, become outrageously popular, and then fizzle out of existence in the span of a single summer partying season. Why was it that bars always failed? Lack of variety, of course. Don't open a bar that offers no more than the bar down the street. To give a little variety, I've said for awhile that if one wants to succeed in opening a bar on Whyte, they should make it a gay bar.
Seems like a good idea, n'est-ce pas?
Maybe not. I got to thinking. The nightlife downtown -- much more tame, much less dense -- gives the perfect opportunity for the gay crowd to flourish devoid of much hostility from the more unsavory of the straight crowd. Whyte Ave, for all of it's positives, transforms with the
appearance of the moon from a gathering place of friendlies to a villainous haunt crawling with drugs and alcohol mixed with wolfish bros just waiting to pounce on the first prey that they see. So maybe, with the thriving population of (Grade A Alberta)meatheads still prowling the Avenue, maybe a gaybar is not a great idea.
But enough with the negative. Like any other fundamental rights issue that has been brought to the forefront in the past 60 years, gays are slowly making their way into the positive light. However, change happens on a generational basis, so even if there are a few knots to untangle, we can sit comfortably knowing that our generation's offspring will be even more forward thinking than us.
28 January 2011
I Cheated A Little Bit
This map is made up. I'm sure you've noticed. Made up probably isn't the best way to put it. Let's say it's currently just a dream. It's a map of Future Edmonton, stolen (with thanks) from a powerpoint presentation by the City of Edmonton.
20 January 2011
L'introduction: My Edmonton
Miniscule in size, but close-knit at heart, the local arts scene - whether it's local musicians, Varscona improv, or Citadel theatre - is what separates Edmonton from the rest. The various artistic endeavours of my fellow Edmontonians are essentially the only thing that brings me out of my house on the cold nights.
I've noticed that not a whole lot of artists make it out of Edmonton. What is created here, stays here. It's our lack of international (or even national) attention that creates a cohesive group of like-minded artists who do their best to bring art to the land of the dead.