Giving blood ~ better late than never

All my life I've seen and heard the ads. Give the gift of life. 

My sister has been giving blood for years. A colleague at work has been giving four times a year for over forty years. It's in you to give. 

Oh, I've had good intentions. I've encouraged others to give blood. I've thanked and praised those who have. Yet, for some reason I have never have. I've never had a reason not to give, though somehow I've managed to miss the actual doing.









Until last Sunday.





A simple visit to the Canadian Blood Services centre on Oak Street. A warm welcome and a bunch of forms to fill out. A complicated set of questions related to my world travels and personal sex habits made me pause somewhat briefly. As did the request to see my arms for evidence of needle marks. Pausing even briefly at this sort of thing is not a good idea. Friendly yes, funny no. Apparently. Giving blood is a serious matter.



Anyway, my feeble attempts at humour aside, or political outrage depending on the question, I managed to pass the screening tests and was again welcomed warmly as a first-time blood donor, and ushered into a room next to an area full of juice and cookies. And salty snacks too it turned out.

It all went rather quickly, and I didn't feel a thing. In fact, it was all so easy, I'm going to make this a regular habit. Every few months I will give blood. It won't make up for all the years I've missed, but it's a start.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

First day of spring ~ between the rain storms

It's been a wild first weekend of spring on the Left Coast. Mainly rain, sometimes heavy. Wind. Thunder. Lightning too apparently.

Yet, there were brief moments of calm and peaceful surrender. And beauty in the blossoms.

Photos by Jeeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

Vancouver Story Slam

It is one of the most basic of human things we do: to tell stories. We've been doing it since the very beginning.

Sherry MacDonald 

And yet it is something that is missing from many of our lives. We don't often tell stories anymore. We let television and movies and Facebook tell us stories, but that isn't the same as coming together with friends and strangers alike, and sharing stories. Our stories, personal and collective, are important; we don't need ad agencies or movie studios to frame the narratives for us; these are our stories. Or at least they should be in a civil society.







Vancouver Story Slam is the second-oldest storytelling group of its kind in North America. It provides a safe and inviting space for storytellers, and lovers of stories, on the second Tuesday of every month at the Cottage Bistro on Main in Vancouver.

It's a competition of sorts to be sure; prizes are awarded as determined by the audience, but it's also a place to connect with other people in that simplest of ways: the telling of stories. Some are funny, some reverential, and sometimes, some aren't even stories. It's the gamble we take when we enter the door; stories, and their tellers, are not pre-screened. There's a sense of wonder with every new month, and it's always fun.

Susan Cormier

Susan Cormier is the organiser of Vancouver Story Slam and Bryant Ross is its genial host, and together they've created a new and impressive buzz around the event, with increasing audience numbers and more and more new storytellers vying for one of ten spots each month.

Bryant Ross

Sherry and I have told stories at the Story Slam, and we've become regular audience members. My sister Susan Dickson has also been attending for many months and took to the stage in March, telling a highly personal story of loss and healing.

Susan Dickson

At times the Vancouver Story Slam can be quite amazing. The Cottage Bistro is worthy of a story in itself. Come. Laugh, cry and celebrate storytelling. Mood swings are acceptable.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

Phở Tan Vietnamese Restaurant ~ in Kerrisdale

Raw bits of shaved beef, cooked in broth before your eyes. I first tasted Vietnamese phở in the 1980s. when my family and I came to the left coast from the Canadian prairies, though I learned about Vietnam's popular street food while reading about the country's culture and politics years before during the American War.










At its simplest, phở is a noodle soup made of broth, rice noodles, a few herbs, and either chicken or beef. Historically, people in the south of Vietnam ate it for breakfast and sometimes lunch, whereas those from the north tended to eat it anytime of the day. In Canada, phở is usually consumed for lunch, and often dinner too.


























Along West 41st, in Kerrisdale, is a local favourite spot for phở, called Phở Tan. It's a small place and the decor, like many Vietnamese restaurants, is somewhat kitschy. Service is prompt and friendly. The usual Vietnamese dishes are available but it's the Phở Tai I come for, as do hundreds of others, and it's excellent.

Phở Tan is a small restaurant and during the prime lunch hours it fills up. Dishes come out quickly so wait times, inside by the door, or outside, are relatively brief.

 

Phở Tan is a wonderful neighbourhood gem. Located at 2076 West 41st, it's open most days 10:30 to 20:30. Debit and cash only. No credit cards.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

Springtime in Kerrisdale ~ in between the rainstorms the trees are blooming

Rains and winds have battered Canada's left coast for several weeks, with no end in sight. It is depressing.


Yet, between storms, the sun comes out, however briefly, and temperatures rise. Spring is here.

A brief walk through almost any neighbourhood on the south coast, and this particular walk to Kerrisdale in Vancouver, gives evidence of the beauty of the season.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.