Footnotes to a Conversation, August 12, 2024

“Summertime and the livin’ is easy.” – George Gershwin

Bus Stop Aesthetics

I’ve shivered in British bus terminals, improvised an uncomfortable seat on a piece of corrugated metal barricade, and longed for shelter from wind and rain as a I waited for a bus. Is it any wonder that people prefer to drive rather than take public transit? Research has demonstrated that people will travel further and pay more if bus facilities are more attractive. So let’s have more artwork in metro stations, little free libraries in bus shelters, and attractive architecture. [Bloomberg] Let’s add a swing and a rooftop garden, and charging facilities. [Bloomberg]

Libraries

“Libraries are for the people. We protect libraries because they are among the only spaces that exist solely to nurture human flourishing.” – Guy Gunaratne

“So much of our lives is spent getting and spending. Libraries offer something so much deeper and more enriching. They are the doorway to a fuller life for everyone who uses them, from the pensioner reading one of the free papers, to the refugee getting to grips with a new language, to the toddler enchanted by bright shiny pictures and an engaging story.” – Anne Fine [extracted from the Bookmarks newsletter editorial, The Guardian]

Island History

So much history is overlooked by the dominant culture, so I was interested to read this article about the island I now call home.

In 1858, the first wave of black emigrants arrived in Victoria from California. They had been invited by Governor Douglas who “desperately needed settlers who shared his wariness of the United States and Blacks from California had every reason to resist an expansion of American territory northward.” The immigrants called the island home and made a significant contribution as farmers and preachers, midwives and school trustees. [Seaside Magazine]

Crocosmia

Crocosmia is widespread in Victoria, BC, gardens but is native the grasslands of southern and eastern Africa. Its name is derived from the Greek krokos meaning “saffron” and osme meaning “odour” because the dry leaves, if immersed in hot water, smell strongly of saffron. [Wikipedia]

Photographs taken at Abkhazi Garden, Victoria, BC

Footnotes to a Conversation is a weekly Monday feature covering an assortment of topics that I’ve come across in the preceding week – books, art, travel, food, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I also post occasional articles on other dates, including frequent book reviews and travel tales.

If you share my love of nature, check out EcoFriendly West, an online publication encouraging environmental initiatives in Western Canada, and Nature Companion, a free nature app for Canada’s four western provinces.