From the garish (but hey, I like it) lightshow of the Honest Ed’s discount store at Bloor and Bathurst to the shot in the arm he gave to theatre in this city to his funding of the arts to teaching staid old Toronto and its locals (myself included) about salesmanship and showmanship, he was one of those people that made this city a better place.
So long, and thanks for all the flash, Honest Ed.
The Ginger Ninja and I were doing a little dog-sitting for a friend last Saturday. While taking the dog for a walk in his Swansea neighbourhood, we saw this very elaborate hopscotch setup in a driveway:
While wandering around High Park on Monday — which was a holiday, thanks to the Canada Day long weekend — the Ginger Ninja and I stumbled across the “Hemp on Wheels” truck, pictured below.
Most stores that specialize in hemp products try to downplay the toking aspects of hemp and focus on the fact that it’s a pretty versatile plant that has a lot of non-drug-related uses, such as being a basis of a very durable kind of cloth. These guys just skip the pretense entirely. I didn’t see any hemp-based clothing or bags, but I did see an excellent collection of pipes and bongs, as well as a lot of pretty decent rock paraphernalia. The proprietor was a very friendly greybeard, but that’s too be expected — grouchy head shop owners don’t stay in the business very long.
I asked him if I could take a photo of his licence plate for the blog, and he said “Sure, maaaaan, take as many pictures as you like!”, so here it is…
For the curious, Hemp on Wheels has a website at HempOnWheels.com.
Although I generally prefer taking Air Canada on my Toronto-Boston flights (my reasons being that the jets are more roomy and Air Canada flies out of sparkly Terminal 1), I sometimes take American Eagle when they’re offering a better rate. Hence my concern at the big news here in Boston today about the American Eagle flight from Toronto that developed landing gear trouble.
According to local news reports, the plane tocuhed down normally until the pilot noticed sparks coming from the bottom. He then performed an emergency ascent and the plane proceeded to circle Logan airport for pver an hour to burn off excess fuel and to give ground inspectors a chance to look at the landing gear. Once the fuel had been burned off and the runway cleared, the plane made a successful and smooth emergency landing with no injuries.
Ex-pat Texan A.G. Pasquella, whom I’ve known since 1992 (we went to Crazy Go Nuts University together) is searching Accordion City for the perfect burger — “the burger of his youth”. He’s visiting burger places and writing reviews at his new blog, Burger Quest.
In his introductory post, he writes:
I’ve got a craving for a hamburger, and not just any hamburger: the Texas-style hamburger of my rapidly receeding youth. There’s a line in the movie Barcelona about “this delicious hamburger of memory,” and that’s exactly what I want. It might be intangible– it might be impossible– but over the course of one summer I will scour the streets of Toronto on a Quest for that elusive Perfect Burger. I will leave no burger unturned: chain restaurant burgers, gourmet burgers, burgers from the greasiest of the greasy spoons… I will try them all, hoping to catch a taste– just a taste– of my Texas Childhood.
If blogging by Texans living away from home seeking the food of their youth appeals to you, check out the Homesick Texan, whose blog I pointed to in my earlier entry about chicken fried steak.
Here’s a combination gum disposal and ashtray I saw just outside the CHIN building in Accordion City’s Little Italy neighbourhood
[Photo taken by Joey deVilla]
This Thursday, May 10th at 7:00 p.m., my friends from Crazy Go Nuts University David W. Scott and Andrea Medovarski will have a screening of their new film, The Behaviour of Houses at the Brunswick Theatre (296 Brunswick Avenue).
Here’s a synopsis:
Melinda, an aspiring artist with a dead-end job, lives in the city with Colum, who is pursuing his PhD. Escaping her privileged upbringing, Melinda is deeply critical of her family’s business “building suburban bungalows for the moral majority.” When Melinda’s brother, Jeremy, comes to the city for the Home Builders’ convention, he brings shocking news that will change all three of their lives.
As they all try to cope with unfinished family business, Melinda must make the most dramatic choices of all. Caught between her artistic dreams and her family’s demands to take over the business, she must now find her own place in the world.
The Behaviour of Houses is a story about finding your voice. It deals with that period in your mid twenties when you have to face up to where you come from – and decide where you’re really heading. It explores the awkward space between what someone says and what they really do.
Melinda is the daughter of a real estate developer who is running from her past. Colum is a PhD student trying to make his own place in the world and create the family life he never had. Jeremy is Melinda’s younger brother. His wild side hides how much he wants to protect those he cares about.
After the movie (it runs 98 minutes), there’ll be an after-party at Boom Shiva (1180 Queen Street West, halfway between the Gladstone and the Drake). One of the lead actors is also a singer so she will be singing there that night. It’s pretty casual, and anyone with musical ability is invited to attend and participate; I’ve been invited to kick out some accordion jams.
Come and support indie film and rockin’ accordion!
