A Garden Paradise and Books

I'm supposed to be heading back to Hamilton in a few days but I've barely gotten anything done that I have to do. I've been procrastinating from a large and complicated human rights rebuttal by doing other things, like reading books or tending my parents garden while they are on vacation.

There's nothing in the world as a garden, truly paradise and something I miss as I live in an apartment in Hamilton. Windsor has a unique terarium smell to it, like a giant marsh. No wonder it being one of the most humid and marshy areas in Canada. I've heard that the geography is in the person ie one is attached to the land where they are born.

When I come on home I feel relaxed on breathing in that unique greenhouse smell, the natural aroma of the local vegetation held in suspension in the humid air. The sun shines as much as it can down here, which seems different from Hamilton. I live near the water there so often it is very grey and depressing, especially in the winter and spring. I have to come to Windsor to lift my spirits. Its just something about this place, it has a level of vibrancy that resonates off the scrapers of Detroit. Maybe some day I'll be able to articulate it better. I still haven't learned to like Hamilton yet let alone love it. I hope someday I will.

In any case, I was hoping to write a couple of more book reviews but I have to stop blogging for awhile to concentrate on this other project.

I want to sign off for a few days but just a word on the books I'm reading or have read in the last 3 weeks:

Down To This by Shaughnessy Bishop Stahl - I've finished reading it but held off reviewing because I just don't know how to respond. It's the story of Shaun's experience living in Tent City in Toronto - a place where the homeless built shanties on contaminated land owned by Home Depot. I couldn't put it down because this true story makes you wonder if he makes it through the year. It's very funny in places but in contrast depressing, frustrating and confusing.

Education of a Wondering Man by Louis L'Amour - I never thought I'd pick up a book by an author my father read but glad I did. I always thought LL wrote cowboy stories but it turns out he is an amazingly well read 'cowboy' and has a library with 16 foot rotating shelves with books on either side. Sounds like the library of my dreams or a version of heaven.

The Age of Chivalry by National Geographic Society - another one of my father's books. I only brought one book with me because I knew there were enough here. I tried to pick what I found interesting - and it is for reasons of religious thought and philosophy of the time but I'll elaborate later.

The last one is on the American Revolution written by a professor of history at an American College. It may have fell under the bed while I fell asleep with it...

I found a number of other books I'd like to read like The Arctic Grail by Pierre Berton and My First Years in the Fur Trade - The Journals of 1802 - 1804 by George Nelson.

I often pick up a number of books and start reading. Some catch my attention so thoroughly I'll read them in two days, others fall on the floor after they put me to sleep. So we'll see and I give my reviews later.