VanDusen Gardens ~ The Council of Elders

The Council of Elders is present at VanDusen Gardens this summer. 

There are eleven in the group and as one approaches,
a meeting of some sort is obviously taking place.

The Council of Elders is the work of Denman Island artist Michael Dennis, and is part of a collection of art works set to open at VanDusen on June 20th. The collection, featuring twenty-four wood sculptures and installations, celebrates the culture of wood, is called Touch Wood.

Michael Dennis arrived on Denman in the 1980s, the same time he left the academy of science for the practice of art. Dennis has a PhD in Neurophysiology from Standford University. He creates large figures from salvaged cedar and the Elders are all in excess of 3.5 m in height. They are abstract yet intentional, with power and personality, and they certainly seem to be purposeful standing in the Garden.

VanDusen Gardens

VanDusen Gardens has become our backyard of sorts. It is always inviting and relaxing.

Compared to many municipal gardens around the world VanDusen Botanical Gardens is relatively new.






In 1910 it was scrub land owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway, when it was leased to the Shaughnessy Golf Club until 1960 when the CPR proposed a subdivision. This was opposed by citizens and ultimately the land was purchased for a park with monies coming from the City of Vancouver, the provincial government and the Vancouver Foundation led by a donation by W.J. VanDusen, noted industrialist and philanthropist, after whom the Garden was named.

VanDusen Botanical Gardens officially opened in 1975 and features 22 hectares of thousands of plants and many wonderful views.

Vancouver Coffee Shops ~ part 3

The Blue Parrot has been around a long time. Established in 1979 at Granville Island, it has changed ownership only once in thirty-three years and continues to be a family-owned business. It takes its name from the rival bar to Rick`s American Cafe in the movie Casablanca.





There are now two Blue Parrots, the busy Granville Island flagship and the newer Hillcrest Community Centre location, between the swimming pool and ice rink and not far from the library and the fitness room. The coffee is fine; nothing exceptional but adequate and served in a mug.




Not all that far from Hillcrest Centre, and still well within my walking zone, near the corner of Main and 33rd Avenue is an amazing little indie coffee shop called Little Mountain Coffee Company. Friendly and clean, with amazingly strong espresso drinks. An added bonus is the nice selection of gelati and sorbetti. I have a feeling the people here would remember names and favourite drinks. And the coffee is long on strength and flavour; did I mention strong?

What good is saving the planet? asks ExxonMobil CEO

To be fair, the issue is complicated.

However, yesterday, at a shareholders meeting, Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil Corporation, the world's largest oil company, said

"What good is it to save the planet

if humanity suffers?"

Mr Tillerson was responding to issues raised by activists wanting the company to establish some simple greenhouse gas emissions targets.

Shareholders voted down that motion by a margin of 3 to 1. They also nixed a proposal to ban discrimination where sexual orientation might be a factor. Apparently ExxonMobil already has that covered.



Makes a person wonder if buying anything from a company like this is a good idea. In Canada, and throughout much of the world, the company is known by its Esso brand name.

And about that suffering thing... Mr Tillerson might not have to suffer as much as others. He recently received a 15 per cent pay raise bringing his salary for the past year to 40.3 million dollars.

Sarah McHugh's moose hide slippers

The loyal follower of The Murray Chronicles will remember the Dawson City Journal, my photo journal of three months spent in Dawson City, Yukon, and the popular post: Annie Smith's beaded moose hide slippers. Those beautiful slippers continue to be worn by the writer on an almost daily basis.

Just before leaving Dawson in late December, I found some slippers at a local market. They were crafted for me by the artist Sarah McHugh. The slippers arrived after we returned from Argentina and were well worth the wait.



Sarah learned her craft from two elders: her mother and mother-in-law. She has sold hand-stitched slippers and mitts to local Yukon residents, to visiting tourists, and has sold and shipped her products to people on four continents.




Sarah uses only traditionally tanned moose hide because it provides a softer and much more aromatic hide with a strong wood-smoke smell. Her hides come from local tanners and include moose, elk and caribou. She uses furs, such as beaver, fox, wolf and wolverine, all sourced from Yukon trappers.

My slippers are moose hide with beaver fur and beaver tail leather, and the smell really is fantastic: wood, smoke and moose, a constant reminder of my time north of sixty.

Sarah operates under the name Mad Mitters Luxury Furs and you can see more of her work by visiting her Mad Mitters facebook page.

photo of Sarah McHugh by the river: by the artist