The camera has altered my perspective on this furry fellow.
A while back, someone wrote to me, surprisingly disconcerted about the entire concept of psychogeography. He had read my Edmonton Journal article about it. I think he thought there was a club of pretentious fools in Edmonton, wandering the streets and giving fancy names to the things they do. I informed him that there is no such club. Toronto has a psychogeography club, but having talked to one of their most active members, I wouldn't say that their club suits the picture painted by this correspondent. In fact, the T.O. folks walked for a long while before even stumbling across the word psychogeography, and applied it as a bit of a joke.
My correspondent was also disconcerted by the thought of treating a mere walk as an "epic adventure."
But again, it's simply a matter of perspective. Personally, I think it enlivens a walk considerably to treat it as an epic adventure. And to tongue-in-cheek label it "psychogeography" after the fact. Why not? And if psychogeography encourages people to walk more and observe more, then, well, hurrah! It's all in good fun. Much like me pretending that this cat is silently conjuring a curse on all passersby.
Now to see if psychogeography will work from the road. Tomorrow, I start my drive to Montreal.
Crime File
Meanwhile, here is some news from today's Edmonton Sun:
Five people, including two women and two girls, face charges after a 39-year-old man was swarmed, beaten with his own golf club and slashed with a razor blade in an alley behind his north Edmonton home yesterday, police say. And if not for the quick actions of a neighbour, the victim may not have made it.
"It could have ended up in a homicide situation," said Edmonton police staff Sgt. Gail Denys, crediting a neighbour who came to the man's aid in the alley behind 118 Avenue and 87 Street shortly after the vicious 12:30 a.m. attack.
The victim had been inside his home when he heard the sounds of people hooting and hollering outside. Denys said he armed himself with a three wood and went outside to investigate. He ended up confronting five people.
"They basically swarmed him," said Denys. "They punched and kicked him" and clobbered him over the head with the club.
Once his attackers got him down, they sliced him with a razor blade from his right ear to his chin and slashed his head, Denys said.
A neighbour rushed out and pulled the man to safety. Police nabbed the group a couple of blocks away after they wandered nonchalantly from the bloody scene, Denys said. The neighbour who rushed out to the victim didn't want to speak with Sun Media, saying he feared retribution.
Others said they were surprised by the number of females, including two teen girls, involved in the attack.
"They're tough," said Kerry Surgeoner, 48.
"Women are tough."
His roommate, Bob Carlson, went even further.
"They're probably more violent than guys," he said. "The girls around here, they got that look in their eye. You say something to them, and they'll punch you out."
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