 Do you know what a lighter is as it relates to lake boats? I didn’t until a conversation last week with my uncle about running aground in the Detroit River. Now I’m an expert almost influencer. I’m not, and I know more than your average bear. I’ve spent most of my life living on the Great Lakes. I ask real conversation starter questions like, 'How often were you on the Detroit River?' I’m proud to have family who can answer that. Boat talk is like a breakfast of fresh sourdough with tangy cultured butter and a wedge of cantaloupe that tastes like tea roses and honeycomb and sunshine. It’s the lush fat on top of yogourt. Plain and good and often brings on laughter. A lighter is a boat to offload cargo, allowing a stuck boat to rise in the water. I think about my grandfather Harry trying to rock the boat off the riverbed. Throwing the laker into forward and reverse, like you do with a car. Growing a Molson Golden thirst in the swelter of the engine room. Calling a lighter or a tug is likely a costly last measure. It got me thinking about water levels: “Climate models indicate that lake levels could drop as much as a metre and outflows could be reduced by 30% in the next fifty years. Water diversion to areas with drought may further lower lake levels.” Lakes are always in flux. Even with state-of-the-art equipment, hitting bottom is inevitable. Search Google for ‘freighters stuck in the Great Lakes,’ because there is a flotilla or two worth. The proportions are Ridley Scott. Just another day at the office. The work of a lighter is poetic. I’m grateful to the humans who help me get unstuck. *** August is the season of hollyhock thirst. Plant me a yard full of flowers to tower over me. *** A beautiful mother with two young children on the subway randomly told me my eyes were stunning — just like that. I was out on a solo ice cream trip. Twice lately a person I respect has called my writing “breathtaking.” A word in the dictionary. Trying to notice the ways I’m seen. *** A New Kind of Slavery. This reporting on temporary foreign workers from Ghada Alsharif of the Toronto Star is important. (For hospitality and farm workers who can’t afford the newspaper subscription, you can access it through Canadian Newsstream at your local library online.) There are other writers who have been thoughtful on this subject. I am using my letter writing skills for good now. Being of service. Practicing another kind of influence. *** This came to me in radio mode a week ago. I have always loved Chicago. The piano off the top is a tease. Look at this album jacket. The second song lightens my heart. The title is my message to a friend. And that last song... 197120242024Comments are closed.
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