Footnotes to a Conversation, June 12, 2023

“A touch of madness is, I think, almost always necessary for constructing a destiny.” – Marguerite Yourcenar

Quenching One’s Thirst

It’s been warm and sunny in Victoria and it’s not only humans who get thirsty. There’s a water bowl for dogs beside a nearby water fountain. I walked past the other day and a crow was having a big drink. The next time I walked past it was a Canada goose hoping for a drink, but he wasn’t so fortunate as I could hear him tapping his beak against the bottom of the almost-empty bowl. I told him I’d refill it for him and he moved back two steps and watched carefully as I filled the bowl. The minute it was back on the ground, he started drinking again. I’m now making a point of refilling the bowl every time I go past. Such a little thing, but it could help so many birds if we have another hot, dry summer.

Fifty-Four Pigs

Summer is the perfect time to read Fifty-Four Pigs by Philipp Schott. Veterinarian Peter Bannerman’s adventures in Manitoba’s wintry landscape will be as effective as air conditioning although you may find yourself longing for a cup of tea (Bannerman is a serious tea aficionado). Bannerman is an eccentric, persistent amateur detective determined to work out who caused the explosion in his friend’s pig barn and went on to steal all the meat in Bannerman’s freezer. I particularly enjoyed immersed myself in Manitoba’s culture and landscape and look forward to the second book in the series, Six Ostriches. [Philipp Schott]

The Scent of Art

The Chagall Museum in France is celebrating its 50^th anniversary and has invited a parfumer and a musician, among others, to interpret Chagall’s work. [Musées Nationaux Alpes Maritimes] The parfumer has developed 5 distinct rose-based perfumes to sniff while viewing 5 of Chagall’s paintings. [Nez] Olfactory art is apparently on the rise as perfume experts are fusing forces with contemporary artists to make scents as a creative medium, as well as fragrance brands creating perfumes inspired by fine artworks”. [Forbes]

Exotic Flora

I may have posted this story before, but it continues to delight. Gardeners in Singapore view dandelions as a rare and exotic plant and long to obtain seeds and grow them – for their dazzlingly bright yellow flowers or for the high vitamin and mineral content of their leaves. “So emblematic are these plants of exotic foreign holidays that there is a huge sculpture of dandelion clocks in Singapore’s lushly planted, award-winning airport.” [The Guardian]

I Can’t Hear You

An acoustics researcher is the first person to build an acoustic scale model of Stonehenge or any other prehistoric site. The model demonstrates that Stonehenge “once acted as a giant echo chamber, amplifying sounds made inside the circle to those standing within, but shielding noise from those standing outside the circle. This finding has led some to ponder whether the monument was actually constructed as a ritual site for a small and elite group.” [BBC]

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.