#city issues and ideas

[thiscitylife]

Urban Renewal: How Simple Acts and Third Spaces can Reconnect Our Communities

Hi everyone! It's been a while, but I'm back with a new post to launch the Urban Renewal series. As we navigate this post-pandemic world, I've been pondering the idea of connection, particularly in our urban spaces. For the first installment of the series, I had the pleasure of chatting with fellow Vancouverite, Peg Fong, a journalist, author, and educator who launched a podcast and book during the pandemic titled, Alone Together, to explore the topic of loneliness in cities.

In our conversation, Peg shared her insights on how we can rebuild a sense of community.

The Simple Act of Walking

During the pandemic when we were mostly confined to our homes, the ability to stroll through the neighborhood and see other people was often our main source of face-to-face interaction.

"I live in Yaletown, a very walkable area of Vancouver, which was something I took for granted," Peg shared. “But during the pandemic it became so important to have these public spaces where we could walk and see other people around, even if we couldn't be together.”

Public spaces like parks and sidewalks became lifelines for connecting with others, reminding us that we weren't truly alone. However when the pandemic was over, many continued to stay home, preferring teleworking and shopping online to being out and about in their communities.

“I grew up in the Prairies and we always had community areas where people gathered, like after church or on the weekends, whether it was a local community center or hockey rink. I think we've lost some of that.”

With more people working from home and having food and goods delivered, we don’t have spontaneous interactions typically experienced when going to the office or the store. To make up for those lost connections, walking and spending time in public spaces becomes even more important to building community.

Activating Public Spaces

It’s not just about having more public spaces – it's about activating them. Imagine a public square with giant chess boards, live music, or pop-up markets. These kinds of events draw people in and create opportunities for spontaneous connection that might not happen otherwise.

You can build a great public space, but if there is no programming, people won’t come. North Vancouver’s Shipyards is a world-class example of how to design and activate a public space - with a massive waterpark (which transforms into a skating rink in the winter), a gorgeous view of the waterfront, shielded from the sun or rain by a vaulted ceiling; surrounded by Adirondak chairs; giant toys and games; an ice cream shop; restaurants; breweries; a stage playing live music; regularly programmed events including movies, night markets, and yoga classes; art galleries; a public market; hotels; shops; public transit; and a seawall - all within 100 metres.

In comparison, when I visited Vancouver’s central public space - Robson Square - during the pandemic, there was nothing going on except one tent trying to illegally sell marijuana baked goods. You can guess where most people would rather spend their time.

Third Spaces: More Than Just Coffee Shops

While discussing the benefits of walking and enjoying public spaces, Peg and I got on the topic of "third spaces." These are places that aren't homes or workplaces, but rather community hubs where we can gather, relax, and connect with others. Think of your local coffee shop, library, or even a dog park. These spaces are essential for fostering those spontaneous interactions with our neighbours that we may have lost during the pandemic.

Urban planning best practices suggest that every home should be within a 5-10 minute walk to a park, but we don’t talk about the importance of being able to easily walk to a coffee shop or corner store.

“I grew up in an apartment above a grocery store in Calgary. We had people buying groceries there, but also people sitting on the deck or stairs eating popsicles and enjoying drinks. It became a gathering spot in my neighborhood, but I never thought about how important it was to have those places until the pandemic shut so many things down.”

Many cities are recognizing how zoning bylaws limit the ability to build these third spaces in residential areas. This includes Vancouver, which has streamlined the permitting process, offering micro-business licenses and creating flexible zoning regulations to allow for more mixed-use developments that include housing and ground-level shops or cafés.

Safe Streets and Small Interventions

When people can safely use streets for active transportation like walking and biking around their neighborhood, they are more likely to get out of their homes and cars to interact with their neighbors, support local businesses, and socialize outdoors. Sometimes, the simplest interventions to make our streets safe, like crosswalks, four-way stops, bollards, and lighting, can have the biggest impact.

Peg shared a story about her relatives visiting from Bogota, Colombia, who were amazed to be able to walk safely under Vancouver’s overpasses. It's a reminder that even small details like well-lit walkways and wide sidewalks give people a sense of security while walking.

We also spoke about how small, low-cost interventions like adding more benches in our public spaces can build community. “One of my favorite episodes of the Alone Together podcast was about benches. They are special because they’re not just a place to sit, they’re spots available to anyone - that availability turns benches into opportunities for connections.”

“Benches are bridges between those eager to chat, and those wanting to just listen," said Peg. "When we sit on a bench, we’re indicating we’re part of a world that maybe we feel too lonely or afraid to fully participate in. Benches give us an opportunity to be engaged in our surroundings, whether it's observing from the side or opening up a chance for conversation.”

What Can We Do?

So, what can we do to rebuild our connections in a post-pandemic city? Here are a few ideas:

Support local businesses: Visit that new coffee shop, browse the farmers market, or check out a local art show. These activities help keep our communities vibrant and provide spaces for us to gather.

Get involved: Go to those local events in your community, or even volunteer to help organize one. Lobby your local government for safer streets and better public spaces. You might be surprised at how quickly you can connect with others who share your interests.

Start small: Organize a neighborhood gathering, strike up a conversation with someone on the bus, or simply offer a friendly smile to a passerby. "Even if that means, you know, checking in on our neighbors, asking if someone is doing ok." These small acts of kindness can go a long way in building a sense of community.

We all have a role to play in creating the kind of city we want to live in. According to Peg, "we have a responsibility to reach out to other people to make our communities a place where everyone feels connected."

[withthewindinherfootsteps]

Wei Wuxian and Narrative Agency – Part Three

For Xiantober Day Five: Past and Present, in which the author gets very unhinged about what parts of the past are shown and how that’s affected by the present!

(Part One | Part Two | Full version on AO3)

The Power of Agency: Shaping the Narrative

When I've discussed Wei Wuxian's agency previously, I’ve talked about how what’s shown and omitted tells us about a character, and we’ve talked about the character himself. Though this is a niche topic, it’s not necessarily something out of the ordinary to analyse, and we can assume everything up to here has been in some way intentional.

This? Linking structure to a character’s in-universe preferences?

This is where we get unhinged.

Before I start, let’s quickly establish something which will be important later: although Wei Wuxian is the central character, MDZS isn’t strictly from his POV. While omitting events a character doesn’t like to dwell on and concealing things the character wishes to hide is common in books with only one narrator, MDZS has multiple narrators which it switches between relatively quickly. This includes Wei Wuxian, but it also includes nearly every major character that appears in the story, and omniscient narrator as well. As a default, this format doesn’t lead to this deliberate shaping and omission because of one character’s preferences, since we have many other sources of information and events – which is what makes Wei Wuxian’s influence over the narrative and structure so interesting. We could have access to a lot more information, and access to it at different times, than we do (and that’s not an insult, quite the opposite!).

To begin: we’ve established that times such as Wei Wuxian’s time on the streets, his three months in the Burial Mounds and his loss in the Siege aren’t shown because Wei Wuxian has little agency there. But that’s not the only special thing about them. They’re also the three most traumatic times in his life, and so moments Wei Wuxian himself either can’t remember, or doesn’t like to dwell on.

This is why discussing Wei Wuxian’s treatment of tragedy in his life was important. Firstly, it shows he doesn’t focus on the tragedy in his life, so the idea that the narrative not focusing on this tragedy relates to his character has merit; secondly, it affirms that this is not a passive trait, but a choice. Therefore, when the narrative omits events due to this aspect of Wei Wuxian, it’s respecting not only a character detail – which would be cool by itself – but also an active decision. One that shapes the story it’s made in.

In other words, its very structure is respecting Wei Wuxian’s agency!

Now, of course there are flashbacks to other moments of his past he probably wouldn’t like to dwell on, too. But within the structure, they’re only shown when Wei Wuxian is thinking about them (or when he has reason to)!

Wei WuXian hadn’t woken up yet. His eyes were still tightly shut, yet his hand didn’t let go either. He seemed to be dreaming, muttering, “… Don’t… Don’t be angry…” Lan WangJi seemed somewhat surprised. His voice was gentle, “I am not angry.” Wei WuXian, “… Oh.” Hearing this, as though he finally felt assured, his fingers loosened. Lan WangJi sat beside Wei WuXian for a while. Seeing that he was motionless again, he was about to stand up when Wei WuXian grabbed him with his other hand, hugging his arm and refusing to let go. He shouted, “I’ll go with you, quick, take me back to your sect!” Chapter 63, EXR translation

Which, of course, is him dwelling on…

Lan WangJi spoke one word at a time, “Go back to Gusu with me.” Hearing this, both Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng were surprised. Quickly afterward, Wei WuXian laughed, “Go back to Gusu with you? To the Cloud Recesses? Why go there?” He immediately seemed to realize, “Oh. I forgot. Your uncle Lan QiRen hates crooked people like me. You’re his proudest disciple, so of course you’re the same as him, haha. I refuse.” Chapter 62, EXR translation

…the painful flashback immediately preceding this. The third set of flashbacks (which are also painful) are a similar case. Look at the contex:

He lifted the bottom of his robe, revealing a prosthetic leg made of wood, “This leg of mine was destroyed by you, that night in the Nightless City (…)” (…) “Wei WuXian, I won’t ask you if you remember or not. Both of my parents died by your hands. You owe too many people. You definitely won’t remember them either. But, I, Fang MengChen, will never forget! And never forgive you!” (…) “In the fight at Qiongqi Path, my son was strangled to death by your dog Wen Ning!” “My shixiong died by poison, his entire body festering due to your cruel curse!” Chapter 68 (immediately preceding the flashbacks), EXR translation

And Wei Wuxian’s own thoughts and words:

Wei WuXian looked at the cultivators before the Demon-Slaughtering Cave. Their expressions were the absolute same as those of the cultivators from the night of the pledge conference, pouring their wine on the ground as they took the pledge to scatter the ashes of the Wen Sect’s remnants and him.  (…) Wei WuXian, “Now it’s time to ask just whom it is that treasures it so much. It’s like Wen Ning. Back then, some certain sects or so were scared to death of the Ghost General. They said they’d kill him on the surface, but behind their backs they hid him for over ten years. How strange. Who was the one that said his ashes had been scattered back then?” Chapter 79 (immediately succeeding the flashbacks), EXR translation 

Once again, Wei Wuxian’s own thoughts relate to the flashbacks we’ve just been shown. And, as I previously mentioned, though all the events which are shown are tragic, they’re also events which Wei Wuxian’s own choices and actions shaped – which he has this to say about:

“The things I did, not only do you remember them, I remember them too. You won’t forget them, and they’ll stay even longer in my mind!” Chapter 82, EXR

Admittedly, this applies more to the third set of flashbacks than the second (which is still fitting as the third set was the most recent), as in the second, although he still had agency within and influence over his circumstances, the majority of the pain was caused by others’ actions (excluding, of course, the Golden Core transfer… which is something we know stays for a long time in his mind, albeit with a caveat we’ll soon discuss). But it’s still important to note – especially considering that otherwise, focusing on this very painful time in his life wouldn’t seem like something very in-character for Wei Wuxian to do.

Of course, this can all just be explained by good writing. It is best to insert flashbacks when they’re relevant to the characters and events in the present day! But it is interesting to compare these to the start of the (not painful) Gusu flashbacks, which open this way:

At a later time, Wei WuXian pondered upon the reason why his relationship with Lan WangJi wasn’t good. Getting to the root of the matter, everything started when he was fifteen, coming to the GusuLan Sect with Jiang Cheng to study for three months. Chapter 13, EXR

Again, considering the circumstances around which these flashbacks take place – returning to the Cloud Recesses for the first time since the lectures, and meeting Lan Wangji once more – it makes complete sense for Wei Wuxian to be thinking about these events*. So it does fit the pattern of Wei Wuxian dwelling on something, thus leading to the narrative dwelling on it, too (and being shaped by his thoughts)… but there’s another layer to this. Importantly, it is the only flashback where Wei Wuxian’s present thoughts don’t lead to this happening, with his thoughts at an unspecified future time leading to it, instead. I like to interpret this as the text saying that, since these events aren’t something Wei Wuxian wouldn’t focus on in normal circumstances, he can dwell on them at any time. Therefore, they’re free to come up in the narrative at any time as well, even if he’s not dwelling on them in the present moment!

So, to summarise: Wei Wuxian’s decision not to focus on the painful times in his life directly influences the narrative to not focus on these times. When painful times are brought up and shown to us, it’s in the context of him thinking about them in the present day, and even then, his most painful moments still aren’t shown to us. His agency in this regard is still respected by the narrative structure.

This is the main way his agency influences the structure of the narrative, but I’d like to talk about the revealing and concealing of information, too. For example, I said I’d talk about the Golden Core transfer – though Wei Wuxian does think about this many times, as evidenced by his internal narration in Chapter 103. But unlike everything we’re shown through the flashbacks, this is something Wei Wuxian is actively trying to hide from others. And the narrative respects this choice (Wei Wuxian’s agency, again), never reveals it even when it would be relevant in the flashbacks, and we find out not through narration, but through a character’s dialogue!

And to clarify – I know these aspects may not be in the book for this exact reason. Showing flashbacks in relevant moments is good writing, concealing an important plot point you want to do a reveal for is necessary writing, and MXTX has said she didn’t want to write about Wei Wuxian’s time in the Burial Mounds, due to not liking to write transformation sequences (and also because it would not be pleasant at all, which likely also applies to Wei Wuxian’s death). That doesn’t prevent it from also being intentional – MXTX’s intelligence is shown in many aspects of this book, and there’s nothing disproving it – but there’s no proof for either option, so I won’t pretend there is. I bring this up because I know this feels like I’m overanalysing, as I feel that way as well.

But, whether it’s intentional or not, it exists in the text, and I adore it – so, regardless, it’s something I’ll explore. Because taking this into account… We aren't just told about Wei Wuxian having agency, we aren’t just shown it in the text, we aren’t even just shown it through which parts of his past are shown and hidden in the structure of the text (as I talked about in Part One). The parts of the past that are shown and hidden also have an in-universe reason for being shown and hidden, this reason being the choices he makes! Agency is the ability of a character to influence the story they’re in, but Wei Wuxian’s agency, as a property of a character who only exists in-universe, shapes the out-of-universe structure as well! That’s how we’re shown its importance! How cool is that?

At The End Of The Road: Summary and Final Thoughts

In this essay, we’ve covered how important Wei Wuxian’s agency is not only to the events of the plot, but to the structure of the narrative as well. The narrative omits periods in which Wei Wuxian has little or no agency, in favour of showing us periods in which he does, even when important events happened in the former. This indicates that who Wei Wuxian is without agency isn’t important enough to be shown to the audience, and therefore that his agency is an integral aspect of his character in MDZS. We’ve discussed how both in-universe and out-of-universe, tragedy does not define him – out-of-universe, the tragic events in Wei Wuxian’s life are used not to build sympathy but rather to show his strength of character and who he still is despite going through them; and in-universe, he chooses not to focus on the negativity and resentment caused by his circumstances or others’ actions, instead staying true to his moral compass and enjoying his life in the present day. Finally, we’ve also explored how this choice is another reason for the omission of certain events from the narrative, resulting in his agency shaping the story in a very literal way – it affects the out-of-universe structure, as well.

It’s quite fitting, for a story whose essence is about defying a conventional narrative – that of righteous clans rising up and defeating a great evil – and about a character who defies many conventional narratives on his own – that of status defining how skilled you could be, that for a golden core being necessary for cultivation and other paths being unavailable, that of a tragic but complete story of someone killed for staying true to their moral code (instead, that character returns to life and has a happy ending) – to have its own narrative play a role in such an important and interesting way.

(Or, if an image would be preferable:)

Thank you for reading!

(Part One | Part Two | Full version on AO3)

--

*This strong relation to the present day circumstances is another reason I love the flashback placement so much (and why I think it’s such a loss both screen adaptions altered it so strongly)! 

[sisaloofafump]

Clark telling B that Black Mercy used to show his deepest desires as a wife and kids but now it just shows Bruce. What was up with that. I think we as a collective seem to have not dwelt on that long enough.

[toxooz]

Are there water nymphs in the monster world? Would they be both genders or primarily female? Since I know Ollie who is an orc and Abby, who is like a cyclops with one eye, is from mythology and other monsters as well, so I was just wondering since I’ve been getting into mythology for art class more :) I’ve been interested in nymphs now, like how their are different nymphs such as water. I just feel like water nymphs would be more common among other elements nymphs since the sewers, fountains or where Oscar came from :)

i mean sure why not lmfao i could def see water nymphs possibly becoming 'pests' to the cities by living mostly in sewers like the alley fairies but that could be bc the city was probably built over their habitat and the sewers are they only places they have left in some areas 🤔 but maybe there's more different types of nymphs that thrive better in huge rainforests untouched by civilization ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

as for the gender i feel like maybe they're more acquainted with fish genes like the whole deal with seahorses or how some fish change gender throughout their life ect. ALL those possibilities so maybe they are primarily female presenting but have some intricate system of reproduction and that of the like IDK the possibilities are endless

[skeletoninthemelonland]

Seeing mouse man for first time i thought for a sec that you un-rabbitfied William tbh xD

Everyone un-rabbit that man

yeah!!!!!! un-rabbit that man!!!!

oh but that is so cool actually. i've seen artists drawing their favs differently every time until they're completely apart from the original character. they are so sexy for that tho

[icewindandboringhorror]

It's always interesting to hear about people's weird/unexpected "alternate life paths". Like, something that you could have done with your life, a job you almost took, a school you almost went to, etc - that was still actually realistic enough that it could have happened, but NOW it seems to not suit your current personality.

Like for example, I currently hate advertising (how manipulative it is, brands trying to be 'relatable', social media amplifying it to an obnoxious extreme, etc.) so much that even seeing a little ad before a youtube video is grating to even witness, but there was a point in time where I was genuinely seriously considering going into marketing/making commercials as a career lol. Or like, I have a relative who was very inclined to be a pastor when they were younger, even though today they're a super strong atheist, etc. etc.

[brainworms-all-night-long]

Ok so, ig I could just make a list and see if anyone has better ideas, cuz I just CANNOT figure out who tf to put in Jayce's and Ambessa's places

Powder –> Tails

Jinx -> Nine

Vi -> Sonic

Isha -> either baby Silver or Charmy

Ekko -> Renegade/knuckles

Mylo -> Ray

Clagor -> Mighty

Benzo -> Rottor (the walrus, I think, I need to do more research on him or not, since he dies right away)

Vander -> Uncle Chuck (the hedgehog)

Warwik -> Uncle Chuck (the werehog)

Sevika -> Rusty/Amy

Silco -> Ivo Robotnik (I will explain this if someone asks, maybe)

Singed -> Memphis Tennessee (exept I gotta OCfy him)

Viktor -> Silver or someone else idk Metal sonic but somehow a separate completely different character?? And Jesus Vik could be NEO metal???? Exept Mephiles would only makes sense if it was Silver though oughhh

Jayce -> ???

Caitlyn -> Shadow

Cassandra -> Maria Robotnik (she lives and is an actual adult until she gets nuked lmao)

Cait's granddad -> Gerald (is alive only thanks to machines and severe medical experimentation dw abt it)

Marcus -> Abraham Towers

Grayson -> ??? Maybeeeee Rouge but not really....idk, Rouge would not be cop or a peacekeeper but her relationship to Shadow....

Mel -> Blaze

Ambessa -> ???

Salo -> Dr.Deep, he just has the vibes

Heim -> maybe Dr Done it exept he's a funny old man that achieved immortality but told no one

Uhhh and the ones that got nuked don't matter anyway and the other that survived literaly doesn't say anything so meh, they're the rest of the egg council

[loveydovey-leviathan]

i really don't have any hated kotlc characters- i recognise they have flaws and issues and i like a majority of them. even the ones i don't like, I'm just neutral about it.

alden though? alden vacker? that guy can go fuck himself. i have my reasons but i also just hate the guy lol

[synonymroll648]

consider the following: sokeefitz fic where they’re all single and keefe’s like. ‘heyyyyy can i flirt with you guys in front of my dad or make vaguely flirty comments about you guys in front of my dad purely to piss him off? not necessarily pretending to date each other or anything, just being ambiguous enough to make him mad. for the bit’. and then sophie and fitz agree to it after a bit of discussion about boundaries. 

cue a decent period of time where keefe’s just a flirty menace. followed by a period of time where fitz and sophie start flirting back respectively and quickly figure out that keefe absolutely cannot handle a taste of his own medicine, so fitz and sophie start flirting with him back respectively out of spite and amusement. 

and then all of them coming to their own realizations of ‘oh. oh shit. this isn’t a joke anymore-’ but being waaaaaay too stubborn to admit it to each other. so they’re all finding excuses to be throuple-y, but refuse to confess. even as the excuses become less and less logical. like, going from ‘hey, keefe, what if i call you ‘love’ in front of cassius to floor him?’ to ‘do you guys wanna come over and build a pillow fort and bake and figure out how to watch a movie on an ipod? i swear it’s just to make the flirting more natural in front of cassius-’

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[arolesbianism]

Some doodles I did a couple days ago

[thiscitylife]

Urban Renewal: a new series on restoring community in a post-pandemic world

Over the past four years, I've felt increasingly disconnected. This is despite being more digitally connected than ever- to global events, my friend's lives on social media, and my workplace. I don't think it's just me feeling this way.

Since the pandemic forced people indoors and in front of screens, we've left behind the real world and our communities for a virtual reality. The local media landscape is shrinking, so we know little of what is happening around us and the virtual workplace means we spend more time at home and less time connecting with people face to face.

This has an impact on our cities, our communities, and our wellbeing. According to a recent a Meta-Gallup survey taken across 142 countries, nearly 1 in 4 adults across the world report feeling very or fairly lonely. The survey also found that the rates of loneliness were highest in young adults.

How do we restore a sense of community and authentic connection in a increasingly digital world - one where we are instead connected to misinformation, global politics, and algorithms 24/7 infiltrating our social media feeds with influencers, who persuade us to desire lifestyles that won't make us happy and buy things we don't need?

I believe the urbanist community has a role to play in helping solve these societal issues, so I'm launching a series to explore this topic from the perspective of local planning - how we design our cities and parks, activate our public spaces, restore nature in cities, fund community and arts programs, develop policies on safer streets and affordable housing, and more.

I'm calling the series Urban Renewal, a negative term in urban studies that refers to a 1970s North American policy of demolishing low-income communities to build massive freeway projects surrounded by desolate highrise buildings.

Renewal represents the process of revitalizing or rejuvenating something to its original state or improving it. I want to talk about what urban renewal should be, not removing vibrant communities in favour of cars and concrete, but actually restoring a sense of community that we seem to be losing to the virtual world.

I'm hoping to talk to a diverse range of perspectives for ideas on how to address this issue. Reach out to me if you work in urban issues and have thoughts about how to rebuild community in a post-pandemic world!

Photo credit: Street Lab (Uni Project)

[roraimae]

i'm so normal about all the things swimming around in my head right now, i'm chewing on the walls

[mzminola]

Fuck there's like...an entire potential AU track where Stephanie makes different choices in that mall with Helena right after the earthquake, and decides to learn from her.

Helena deciding to become The Bat and Stephanie taking up the Huntress mantle. Fuuuuuuuck.

[nomairuins]

also its so dumb that one of the arguments ppl have against a sims 5 is that theyve already invested too much money into 4. like yes its fucking scummy that ea charges so much for dlc and its Ludicrous the amt sims 4 costs if you have all the dlc and its going to keep getting more and more expensive but . to be honest . why are you paying for sims packs. im sry

[bitual]

hey guys just graduated