Patchwork Planet

“I am a man you can trust.” This is how Anne Tyler both begins and ends “A Patchwork Planet,” about a 30 year-old misfit named Barnaby Gaitlin, who helps old people for a living working for a company called Rent-a-Back. His family considers him a black sheep because of youthful misadventures, his failure to attend college, and his apparent satisfaction with a dead-end job. In reality he is a great help to a variety of poignant senior citizens trying to live independent and not in a nursing home, ranging from feisty, crabby Maude May to his girlfriend’s forgetful, half-deaf aunt, who calls her Yorkshire terrier Tatters “my doorbell.” Like with many American soldiers in Vietnam, Barnaby didn’t want to get too attached to those he helped because they could be fine today and gone tomorrow. Tyler is particularly adept at depicting old folks, most memorably the 100 year-old Poppy in “Back When We Were Grownups.” When the aunt falsely accuses Barnaby of stealing money she had squirreled away, it threatens his relationship with older woman Sophia, whom he had met on the train while on his way to visit his daughter in Philadelphia.

On the jacket cover of Tyler’s novel is a patchwork quilt, which reminded me of Jacob A. Riis’s comment that new York City’s housing pattern in 1890 reminded him of a “crazy quilt,” with various immigrant groups crowded into their own distinct quarters.

Spent part of the weekend in Michigan to watch 12 year-old Anthony play basketball. Anthony was shooting hoops without a jacket when we drove up. I joined him while Victoria and a friend were playing on a huge mound of snow, the result of a street plow. There is an even bigger one probably 15 feet tall nearby in a church parking lot that the kids call “snow mountain.” He scored about ten points and had several steals and assists. The league has a rule that if someone is fouled in the act of shooting, his team automatically gets a point and he shoots one free throw. Phil was in Bloomington with old roommates for the IU-Northwestern basketball game (a thrilling OT win for the Hoosiers on Senior Day), but we took the rest of the gang to the Sunrise Diner. Tori and Anthony were skeptical at first of the venue but ended up loving the place. They ordered a Belgian waffle; Anthony then tried Miranda’s burger and pronounced it the best hamburger he’d ever had. Toni took a photo of us, and a couple came to the booth and asked if she wanted to be in the picture, too. They were headed to Cancun, so we chatted about our being there last month.

Played bridge with the Hagelbergs and got home in time for Saturday Night Live. Was able to stay up for impressive musical guests Vampire Weekend. Sunday after board gaming and food shopping, I was looking forward to watching the Red Wings-Blackhawks game (Dick Hagelberg was there, courtesy of a free ticket from a friend or customer), but Detroit scored five goals in the second period. Chicago needs a better goalie if they hope to reach the Stanley Cup finals. Right after we moved to Northwest Indiana Chicago was one game away from winning it all against the Montreal Canadians but ran into hot goalie Ken Dryden. Led by Bobby Hull and Stan Makita, they went up 2-0 in the seventh game but lost 3-2.