No wait, I’ve got proof.
Yesterday, all was fine in the dandy neighbourhood of Regent Park. The sun was shining. People were trancing out to the drum group perched conspicuously beneath a Smitherman banner.
Connection established. We know who’s funding this thing.
But is it really “a thing“?
…that’s this guy — thoughtful enough to use thumbtacks. :)
And if the city continues along its current course, he said it’s not unimaginable that Toronto could end up in serious trouble, like Detroit.
“Toronto in decline: panel”, Toronto Sun, September 22, 2010
Oh God no! Not like Detroit!
The fish ‘n chips I was masticating weren’t satisfying.
I figured, hey, the menu says “our specialty”, so I ordered it. I’ve had good food at pubs before, it’s not unheard of (the Roast Beef Stuffed Yorkshire at your local Elephant & Castle, for example). Yeah, but not here. It’s on Queen Street. I want to spare them the shame so that’s all I’ll say. Maybe also that the pub has a black bull as a mascot.
Anyhow, really poor fish ‘n chips. And that bitter story, delivered to my table via the magic of the mobile age, along with mediocre tartar sauce.
Toronto is bouncing back from the recession.
The Conference Board of Canada is predicting the city will see a 4.7% increase in real GDP this year as housing starts rebound, the manufacturing sector perks up, people start shopping and major construction projects get underway.
“Toronto’s economy on the rebound”, Toronto Sun, September 22, 2010
This story appeared shortly below.
I flipped my plate to try the pedestrian-looking fries. As I did that, I looked at the times on the stories. I’d read them backwards – Toronto’s on the rebound and then Toronto in decline. And the fries sucked too — straight out of a freezer bag.
Oh no! Is this … Detroit?!
Do you ever wonder if you’d make a good spy?
I had that thought today as I stood on a client’s fire escape today, taking recon photos of the street below.
There I was outside the Second Cup today, praying for the city to show me the light. Something so I wouldn’t have to work hard. Right at that moment, I swear the city fucking winked right at me.
Believe it or not, despite taking inexorably long I actually had a point to make with this entire series. It has to do with the kinds of people that attend the C.N.E. (or even just the grounds), and I’m going to call these people Conservationist Urbanists.
As I’m sure I’ve already mentioned, the terminus of the CNE marks the official end of summer here in Toronto. Yes, the Grand Old Lady once again shutters her carnie abodes, winterizes her hot dog stands, and abandons the Exhibition grounds to make way for more indoor, agriculturally-based pursuits.
And a Grand Old Lady she is, probably because of all the foods that abound within the burgeoning fair. It’s the main reason I went this year! :)
Every once in a while a well-meaning relative or friend asks me, “why don’t you come and live out here?”
Part of the answer is in the question, really, isn’t it?
“Out here”.
“Out” can be nice, sure – for a visit — but “in” is definitely more my style. Yet often that’s a bit too abstract to be accepted as an answer. Not like you can’t get good doughnuts out in Whitby or a decent cup of coffee in Burlington. I’m convinced you can even get a good Greek meal out in the far-flung mining town of Sudbury. And the people? Yeah, sure, I bet they’re not all backwoods rapists and gun-toting hillbillies. Somehow, though, the context lacks poetry.
So in lieu of a concrete explanation, I hope to use this post to paint a picture. Perhaps I can print it off and simply hand it over next time the question is put to me – save me having to put up half-smiles and awkward references to twanging banjos.
Between the vagaries of my web development work and daily life — “minor” updates to glade.ca that turned so easily into a complete three-week site overhaul, that challenging Levi’s “Go Forth” campaign, endless TD Canada Trust banners, assorted Purolator stuff, birthdays, and a visit to Canada’s Wonderland (Behemoth is pretty kick-ass, I must say ), I’ve hardly had room to swing a cat through my schedule.
Just as well – Ollie probably wouldn’t have taken well to it.
I finally managed to convince one of the agencies I work with that the term “independent contractor” isn’t merely a figure of speech (that and the liberal use of the term “employee” – why do I keep running into this?!), so I was looking forward to doing some work from home and mixing in healthy doses of blogging. But fate, being the filthy whore she is, pulled another steamy week out of her ass.
That window fan I’ve had going non-stop for about three months now has simply been circulating oven-like heat throughout my living room, over the exposed chassis of my computer and two surprisingly warm monitors (programming with just one monitor is a sort of punishment), and right back at my puffy, bloated face. Oh yeah, and it’s allergy season again.
Anyhow, I finally ran out of excuses tonight and took it to the streets.
... with pictures
... with sounds
... with videos
... with opinions
... that's shorter
... that's longer