3.18.2025

In this one there's a lively karaoke show happening and performers are in full costume. I take a seat near the bookshelf. Someone dressed like a full-sized giraffe sings Katy Perry and I browse through a collection of pamphlets and zines. I'm reading something I agree with and check the cover and the author is Vladimir Lenin.

I found Leonard Cohen's mural. It's hard to miss - I was definitely in the wrong part of town last time. Looms up over Rue Crescent on what has to be a six story building. It's dignified and he looks content. Peaceful in contrast to what's happening down here on the street - St Patrick's Day mayhem, not localized to the States, apparently. I text my sister who runs a bar in Chicago. Worst weekend of the year, she says.

Dad asks if they follow March Madness here. Not that I know of but the arena where the Habs play was kicking when I walked by. They're on the brink of getting into the playoffs and everyone here cares, even the leftist co-op kids.

In the late '90s in the Detroit area the energy around the Red Wings was like this: when I went to see Dylan play at Pine Knob they were in a playoff game with the Blues and after the show in the parking lot all you could hear was the game in overtime on the car radios and when Yzerman scored the winning goal the whole highway erupted and there were flags out of windows and it was a kind of camaraderie and sense of community I almost never saw or felt down there and maybe I should have moved there instead or maybe even now but then I check the Associated Press feed again and yeah let's hold off on that a bit.

*this week's posts are accompanied by the paintings of Mike Donohoe - more on him and the series in Friday's Weekly Digest. Here's his Bluesky for now: @kane4748.bsky.social