A hand holding some cherries in their palm

Week 50: July 7-13, 2024

Originally posted on July 14, 2024

A hand holding some cherries in their palm

Highlight of the Week

There is such incredible wonder in young minds. Observing how they navigate new experiences is as entertaining as it is marvellous. One evening this week I took my 6 year-old niece swimming. She went down a big waterslide for the first time. The exhilaration seeping from every pore of her body was promptly interrupted by the Lifeguard’s whistle ordering everyone out of the water.

An older lady had fallen down and injured herself. As we towelled dry I felt conflicted because I am a nurse practitioner with emergency experience looking after geriatric patients. I asked her if I should go help and she agreed that I should, so I sat her down where I could keep an eye on her and went to offer assistance. Everything was fine, I think she had a fractured arm and a concussion. There were a few occasions where I peered over at my incredibly brave, inquisitive and creative niece, and was overcome with pride and wonderment.

In the car on the way home, she explained to me that she actually saw the whole thing happen from her view atop the Big Slide. 100% IMPOSSIBLE. She even told me she could hear the woman say ‘Ow that hurt’, but this is just how she processed what happened. Putting this one in the memory banks folks.

ALBUM OF THE WEEK

No Need to Argue by the Cranberries

The cranberries-no need to argue

My first serious boyfriend introduced me to The Cranberries when I was 19 and in my second year of University. Along with Bjork, The Smiths and Depeche Mode, they became the soundtrack of my young adulthood. I distinctly remember listening to this cassette from my bright yellow Sony Walkman, playing it over and over until the batteries died. Dolores O’Riordan had a voice that was as powerful as it was angelic. Her Irish lilt was evident in every note and I had never heard music like that before.

Last weekend as I drove through Irish Cove in Cape Breton, on a foggy, drizzly morning, the haunting vocals activated long dormant synapses and I felt transported back to a time and place where this music had so much meaning for me. Tragically, like her fellow countrywoman, Sinead O’Connor, O’Riordan suffered from Bipolar and her life was cut far too short.

One of my favorite songs from this album is “The Daffodil Lament”. If you have a few minutes, close your eyes and listen to this live version (just click on the You Tube link). I promise you won’t be disappointed.

MOVIE OF THE WEEK

Taxi Driver (1976)

A poster of taxi driver with a yellow cab in the background.

After my accident in 2021 I couldn’t use my arms for a few months, so I started to watch the American Film Institute (AFI) Top 100 movies of all time: this list was last updated in 2008 https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-movies-10th-anniversary-edition/

Once I recovered and got back to work and Covid Lockdown’s became part of our recent history, my effort in keeping up also began to wan. But now I have a Bucket List, and following through with projects like this, are on that list.

Taxi Driver is number 52 on the AFI’s Top 100. It is a Martin Scorsese film starring Robert DeNiro, Cybil Shephard, Harvey Keitelm Albert Brooks AND a 12 year-old Jody Foster in her first movie role as a runaway sex worker. The film centres around 26 year-old Travis Bickle, played by DeNiro. It takes place in NYC after the Vietnam war and Travis is a Marine Veteran who takes up driving a cab to fill in the void caused by insomnia. He becomes increasingly disillusioned with the ‘urban decay’ going on in the city and develops a plan to assissinate a Senator running for President during an election speech.

Ironically, as I write this, Travis’ botched assassination attempt is drawing some eerie parallel’s with that of Donald Trump’s current media frenzy that occured yesterday on the campaign trail in Pennsylvania. In the movie, the attempt was botched. In reality, I believe the attempt was staged and can be filed under ‘Fake News’. Either way the movie was great! It had some really cool shots and an awesome bluesy soundtrack.