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            On Tuesday I memorized the first four lines of “Première symptômes" by Serge Gainsbourg.

            Around midday I started organizing the bottom bookshelf in my bedroom. But since I’ve made space in the upper bookshelves most of the books from the bottom will fit above now and so I might use the lower shelf for something else.

            I had tuna with Thai chili sauce and kettle chips for lunch.

            Beatrice the panhandler was pleading for help below my window. She often tells her potential customers, “I’m gonna kill myself!”

            I didn’t do my exercises in the afternoon but I felt that I needed a bike ride. I took my usual route up to Bloor, then to Yonge, and home by way of Queen.

            The homeless guy who lives in a tent on the sidewalk at the corner of Queen and Bay now has a garden. There are two potted plants lined up a meter west of his tent, perhaps to let people know the boundary of his territory. He also has a little lawn to the south between his tent and the curb. The lawn consists of a little strip of artificial grass about a meter by half a meter.

            I stopped at Freshco on my way home just to buy paper towels. They only had the backs of six mega rolls of sponge towels but I was okay with that because they should last me quite a while.

            I made a pot of chicken gravy and had some with a potato, a carrot and some pork ribs while watching two episodes of The Adventures of Robin Hood.

            In the first story Robin learns that Duke DeMoreville, also known as the hangman of Leicester has seized Ruckford Castle and killed almost everyone there while the Earl of Ruckford is in the holy Land. Robin stops someone leaving Ruckford Castle and intercepts a message from Duke DeMoreville to Prince John. The parchment reads, “In three days by ten wings the black five. My reward, the Sheriff of Nottingham’s head.” DeMoreville’s plan is to take over Nottingham and while Robin and the sheriff are enemies it would be a blood bath if DeMoreville were to succeed him. Robin copies the message and allows the messenger to take the original. Robin sends the copy by way of several arrows to Nottingham where it reaches the sheriff. A meeting is arranged in Sherwood with the sheriff and they form an alliance to stop DeMoreville. The sheriff is blocking all roads to Nottingham while Robin scales the walls of Ruckford Castle and eavesdrops on a conversation. DeMoreville says, “Tomorrow there will be hay on the London Road.” The sheriff has been blocking the roads out of Nottingham but not for those coming in. The next day Robin intercepts a hay cart and finds buried a cage containing five carrier pigeons. Robin switches the pigeons for five belonging to Lady Marian and, posing as the hayman, delivers the cage to DeMoreville. The black five are five black pearls and DeMoreville attaches one to each pigeon. But when he releases them he sees them flying not south toward London but east towards Fitzwalter Hall. Robin, pretending to be someone named Sir Robert comes with the sheriff to Marian’s home. They are in the garden as her pigeons return to roost and Robin reveals they are carrying the pearls. DeMoreville and his men attack and the sheriff grabs the pearls from Robin. DeMoreville has his sword to the sheriff’s throat and so he gives him the pearls but DeMoreville plans to kill the sheriff anyway. Robin kills DeMoreville and takes the pearls but throws the bag to the sheriff before he leaves. But inside the bag are five cherry stones because Robin switched the bags. He intends to send them to King Richard.

            In the second story Robin learns that the Count Olivier has imposed a tax on the village of Upper Minton that will bring the serfs to starvation. He took everything that they had stored for winter and left them with scraps. Robin ambushes Olivier’s men and retrieves all of the food but he tells the villagers that they cannot keep the food in their homes because the counts men will only take it again. He proposes that the food be stored in a cave and that the villagers share it. Tom does not like the plan because his share is larger and he does not want to end up with less by sharing. All of the other villagers agree and so Tom finally does as well. But later he decides to retrieve his goods from the cave. However the soldiers have followed him and found the cave to take everything away again. Since the food is all at Olivier’s castle Robin needs another plan. He learns that Olivier has invited the greatest chef in France to cook for him and he has planned a great dinner party for the aristocracy for which he requires all the food of the villagers. Robin stops the chef on his way and poses as the French chef. In the kitchen Robin cooks with only tiny parts of animals like the tips of the sheep’s tails and then throws the rest of the animals in the garbage. Really all the food is loaded onto a cart and sent back to the people. When dinner is served there are only on the plates the tips of sheep’s tails but the chef is gone. The real chef seems quite happy to cook for the outlaws.