July 30, 2022

Heat simmered off the asphalt and enveloped his body like a warm demonic hug. People walked by in various stages of undress, the extreme temperatures showered them like a sauna where only the tiniest bits of fabric were required.  Young women of various shapes and sizes flaunted their bosoms and their buns, little was left to the imagination.

Barrman parked his motorcycle and dismounted, careful not to be too distracted by the carnival-like atmosphere. He was at the waterfront parking lot next to the lake after all. There was energy akin to some Brazilian mardi-gras as everyone was out enjoying the 35-plus degree temperatures in the Okanagan Valley. 

Not everyone was enjoying the temperatures though. Hovering in the foreground almost invisible to the undressed masses sat the man and his shopping cart. The cart was filled with cans, and bags – perhaps it was all his worldly possessions. A forlorn look was etched on his ragged face, his hair was straggled in patches like a wooly doll. He wore a black coat over his shoulder, and his jeans were tattered and worn. He seemed to be staring at a spot on the pavement, occasionally he would glance around watching the people stroll by. He held out a hat and hoped for a dribble of charity from some compassionate stranger.

He wasn’t the only one suffering in the heat and ignored in the open by the opulence around them. 

Barrman sighed and removed his jacket to escape the oppressive temps that soaked into the core of his being.  He stripped off his jeans to reveal his swim shorts underneath. He turned his key carefully making sure it didn’t break and put everything into the saddlebags of his motorcycle -he was ready for his day. The heat was intense and it was only 9:00 am, the thermometer was sure to reach 40 on the black top of the valley.

Another day on the water, another day in paradise.

He knew he was one of the lucky ones.

How did that guy end up scrounging the pavement in downtown Kelowna? And since covid began there were so many more lost souls wandering the streets of paradise. Right under the noses of the celebrating masses sat too many of these homeless people. The heat must be unbearable when there is nowhere to hide from it. 

He wandered to the boat and removed the cover. His day was going to be a short one and his guests were there to celebrate their father’s 80th birthday – they said he’d never been on  boat in his entire life. 

Barrman was surprised there were any people that had never been on a boat in all those years on earth.

Barrman’s day went by in a blur and his thoughts never turned again to the homeless man crouched on the sidewalk in front of the Delta Grand Okanagan Resort. He picked up his wife in West Kelowna at the yacht club and they cruised the choppy water back to his starting point. 

Barrman parked his boat onto its summer home in the lagoon on the promenade in front of the Delta Grand, “Do you think we should cover the bow up?” He asked his wife Kaydee.

“Why leave it open, don’t you usually close it up?” Kaydee shrugged and looked around at the hustle of people walking by.

“So they can see how comfy the boat is.”

“Yes, but shouldn’t you cover it anyway? Wouldn’t it be an invitation for someone to come on the boat?” Kaydee was always the safe one.

Barrman considered for a moment and thought about the homeless guy from the morning. Maybe he might look at the boat and think of it as a comfy place to sleep…

Barrman grabbed the cover and started putting it on. It was a little to much of an invitation to come on the boat, despite all the security in the area. Better safe than sorry…

The couple finished covering the boat and walked down the promenade in front of the Delta Grand Hotel towards Barrman’s motorcycle. The waterfront walkway was filled with people enjoying the late afternoon warmth, the heat brought a lot of people to the walkway. After two years of lock-downs the City of Kelowna was bustling in the summer sun.

Barrman and Kaydee decided to go to the Kelowna Yacht Club, located just the other side of the boat launch, where his bike was parked. They were going to join some of her friends for a bite to eat. On their way, Barrman noticed the homeless man from the morning digging in one of the garbage cans. Was he searching for some aluminium treasure or was it something else? A feeling of sympathetic disgust rolled through him as he walked by. 

That, by the grace of God could be me, thought Barrman for a fleeting second. Not God maybe, just hard work and good fortune.

The middle-aged couple joined their friends at one of Kelowna’s hang outs for the wealthy and privileged. They sat on the patio of the Yacht Club overlooking the array boats moored in one of Canada’s largest fresh water marinas. The opulence and wealth in those few square kilometres probably exceeded what some people could earn in a lifetime. 

Meanwhile the homeless invisibly wandered along the boardwalk looking for a place to be.

After a visit and a meal it was time to go get Barrman’s daughter from work. As usual they were in a rush to go, throwing their bags together hurried to the waiting motorcycle. They stood next to the bike put on a layer of clothes, jeans and leather . The crowd swarmed by in the evening warmth. Kaydee had her helmet on and Barrman was doing one last turn of the key to get his helmet off the bike.

“Oh no! Honey we’re fucked!” Barrman held up the broken end of his bike key. 

“What happened?” Kaydee’s muffled voice came through her helmet.

“In my rush, I broke the key off.” Barrman felt frustration and anxiety mount. Now what? He didn’t know where his spare key was and they were going to be late picking up his kid.

“There’s a cab, let’s go.” Barrman grabbed his stuff and the one saddlebag which was loose from the bike. He turned and waved down  a taxi pulling through the parking lot.

The two jumped into the cab and told him to head for the Westside to pick up the kid. All Barrman knew was his bike was stranded and there was nothing to do but get home. The rest he would figure it out later.

Fifty dollars and thirty minutes later they were home. Barrman began a futile search for his spare bike key, a key he hadn’t seen in a long time.

Why am I so bad with keys, he thought to himself. 

He gave up and called his buddy from down the road and the two of them hooked up a trailer and went to retrieve his motorcycle before it would get towed in the morning.

Barrman was thankful he had such a good friend who was willing to drop everything on a moments notice. They pulled into the parking lot at around 10:30 and the area was teeming with people ready to party. They loaded the bike on the trailer and secured it down. 

That’s when Barrman saw the guy from the morning again. The man’s hair stood a little more straight up and he was sitting on the sidewalk in the same place he’d been all those hours ago. His cart was a bit fuller and the look on his face was emptier.

Barrman shook his head and sighed. He looked over at his friend and said, “another first world problem to have to come here and get my bike. That guys problems make mine seem like nothing. At least I have a bike and a friend to help me get it.”

Barrman drove away from the carnival chaos of downtown Kelowna grateful for his life and a little wiser. He felt an empathetic frustration for the homeless people walking the streets of Kelowna. It is another world under the shiny new towers of the ever growing Okanagan.