Grand Boulevard Residents Association

Hi, Neighbour,

“You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Oh, yeh? Well, I’m trying to fight that old adage. In Spain, they say: “El loro viejo no aprende a hablar.” An old parrot can’t learn to speak. And in France, they say: “Ce n’est pas a un vieux singe qu’on apprend à faire la grimace.” You can’t teach an old monkey how to make a funny face.

Well, this old dog, parrot, monkey is trying to embrace the modern language of Twitter — more to the point, Twitter acronyms (a.k.a., ‘aliases’, for people, or ‘letters’ instead of the words they represent). Twitter only allows 280 characters per ‘tweet’, so users have to find the shortest and most direct way to say something, e.g., Continue reading →

Hi Neighbour,

Can you believe it? TGIF on the Boulevard is 3 months old! Time for a bit of introspection, I think. I’m happy with the blog, after a few missteps, and I think it’s a worthwhile (ad)venture for GBRA in 2021. I’m happy with the variety of topics and the contributions from other writers. But I’d like to hear from more readers, with comments and suggestions, or articles of less than 500 words, on any topic that isn’t political or commercial — like an ‘op-ed’. Email it to admin@gbrra.org or phone me (604 980 8436) and we can talk about it. If I’m out in my garden, please leave a message.

Socrates wrote that a meaningful, psychologically healthy life is an examined one. But that wasn’t possible, when I was a young adult and starting a family. I was flying by the seat of my pants. No time for introspection, or self-reflection. I hadn’t time to bless myself (an Irish expression). All my focus was on Continue reading →

Hi Neighbour,

What does it take to build and maintain a Sharing Library in your neighbourhood? The Executive Committee of the Grand Boulevard Residents Association have been thinking about erecting one this Spring. There are a few around North Vancouver, but they’re a little hard to find. We’d love to hear from you, if you know of one and can share the contact information to those who set it up. I saw one, when I was taking a walk on Spruce Street, near 15th Avenue in Vancouver. I spent about 15 minutes looking at the books and finally decided on one which turned out to be so refreshing. But more appealing was the notion that people were coming together over a book or sometimes a puzzle. It’s a wonderful way to connect with our neighbours, especially during times of social distancing.

My friend, Evonne, told me about her Sharing Library, and how she and a neighbour made it happen in Continue reading →

Where do you find heritage? Grand Boulevard

(reprinted from BLOG — North Shore Heritage Preservation Society)

Happy Heritage Week 2021 with the theme “Where do you find Heritage?” Our second stop is Grand Boulevard, which is a neighbourhood and a park that is bounded by East Keith Road to the south and East 19th St. to the north. It is an example of an area that has evolved over time and has landmarks from many different eras. The park is on the CNV Heritage Register. The park was part of a large plot of forested land originally owned by the North Vancouver Land and Improvement Company.

In 1906, the Land and Improvement Company started planning a new sub-division called Grand Boulevard, which would consist of a large, centralized park (45½ acres, gifted to the City) that would be cleared to act as a fire break, would be sloped to ensure prime views down to the water and would be planted in a style reminiscent of a Continue reading →

THE GREEN NECKLACE

How about a walk along the Green Necklace? You don’t have to walk the full Green Necklace, however, as it is 7.5 km long! You could walk through Greenwood Park, which was once a quarry, at the north end of Queensbury Avenue. If you follow the path through the park, it turns west and comes out at East 23rd Street. You could stop at Mahon Park on Jones Avenue and walk or jog around the track, try out some of the exercise equipment, which the City Parks Dept has added on the east side of the track, or let your kids play in the playground. You could walk along Keith Road between Jones Avenue and Grand Boulevard, enjoying Victoria Park, on either side of Lonsdale, or stopping for a coffee or an ice cream at Continue reading →

Book Review: WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING, by Delia Owens

I first heard of this book, from a video in which someone called it her favourite book of 2020.  Published in 2018, Delia Owens’ first novel has spent 2 years on the New York Times’ Bestseller List. Other than this, she has written bestselling nonfiction books about her life as a wildlife scientist in Africa.

Kya is the youngest of 5 children, growing up in a marsh on the North Carolina coast. We follow her closely, at intervals, from 1952, at age 6, to 1969, mostly living alone, surviving on her wits, befriending the seagulls and a young boy, Tate, with whom she shares her love of the Continue reading →

Hi Neighbours,

I have a question for you. Is it easier to make a change in your lifestyle, when you and your family are out of public view or when everyone’s watching? IMHO, it’s easier when no one’s watching, in case your plans for a change fail, and when you don’t have to justify the change, until you’re sure that it’s working. Here, I learned from James Clear (Atomic Habits) — little changes that probably won’t be noticed by others, but which, over time (‘compounded’), can make a big change in your lifestyle.

Now’s your opportunity to try some changes, right? I have a few examples of some personal hygiene changes I made many years ago. First of all, as a young mother, and remembering my childhood, I took on the responsibility of Continue reading →