Quick reaction to "Cannery Row"

I decided to mix it up a bit for my latest book and read John Steinbeck’s Cannery Row. One cannot live on non-fiction alone right?

It is set in Depression-era Monterey California and tells the story of a group of down-and-outers led by a guy named Mack who want to do something nice for a friendly local marine biologist who never asks for anything in return. Told through short vignettes, the group throws a party for Doc but they end up trashing his place. To make up for it, the gang comes together an organizes a second party that goes off successfully.

I took a couple things away from Cannery Row. The first is that even though the group of guys are all out of work and live in an old warehouse, they are content and happy. They get what they need mostly through bargaining or stealing. The owner of the local general store also owns the warehouse. He is happy to not collect rent but make it up through his store sales. The characters seem to be happy with who they are and what they have. That is a nice sentiment to try to bring to work every day.

The second aspect of the story that stood out to me was the fact that even though it was the Great Depression and they were not working, the group was able to do something nice for their friend. It does not take much to show appreciation for someone. A little bit of gratefulness can go a long way. For most of the book Doc was lonely and sheltered. During the second part he was able to open up and have a good time. I expect the appreciation coming from Mack’s group was the cause.

Finally, it struck me how much the characters were able to improvise and make do with what they had. One family lives in an old metal tube that was used at a sardine cannery. Mack’s group bounces around from task to task to try to get the money they need to throw the party. They borrow a busted-up car and fix it. It doesn’t work properly so they drive it backwards up a hill. They trade car parts for helping a stranger’s dog. It reminds me of work in that we make do with the tools we have. We make strategies with what we are given. We find workarounds to processes that are not efficient. Seeing value where others don’t can provide a way to get things done. Even in fictional characters we can find some lessons to apply to the world of work.