Chickadees

During a walk in the woods we came upon some Chickadees. If you have bird seed or peanuts you can often get these birds to take food from your hands.

Spring Motorcycle Show

Spring brings motorcycles back to the roads and the Spring Motorcycle Show was held at the International Centre to get everyone back in the mood for some choppers and other assorted two wheeled vehicles.



Shiny chrome and sweet paint jobs, beautiful models, colourful helmets and leather chaps make for happy riders and happy shoppers.




I ran into CBC celebrity and host of The Hour - George Mark Paul Stroumboulopoulos. He is always nice and agrees to pose for pictures - the last time was when he supported Fashion Cares in 2007.

IZOD Indycar Action - Live Streaming

Sunday April 11 brings the Indycar series and it's third race of the season to Alabama (the land of Dixie).

Here is the remaining schedule for Alabama.

Qualifying Session
Sat, April 10th
10:20am - 11:50am ET
Warm Up
Sun, April 11th
9:40am - 10:10am ET

Indy Grand Prix of
Alabama presented by
Legacy Credit Union
Sun, April 11th
3:00pm ET

Don't forget to register (it's free) and sign in to the IZOD Indycar website Race Control and watch free live video streaming of the Indycar racing action during the season. The video is crisp, clean and colourful. I was just watching Dan Wheldon and his National Guard car spin off the track into the sand pit during qualifying.

Glee: singing in the rain

There was a large group of students downtown today holding umbrellas and singing in the rain to promote the upcoming season start of Glee. The group were at the corner of Yonge and Dundas right outside the Eaton Centre. The season premiere of Glee is Tuesday, April 13, 2010 on Global TV.

Now I ain’t saying she is a gold digger, but she was a pretty good singer. Actually they all were. I really like the series, along with three quarters of my family, and I was sad when last years short season of Glee ended. I even watched them when the cast appeared this week on Oprah! 

And since it was wet here is a water reflection shot.

Television: Flashpoint

The television series Flashpoint is currently filming seasion 3 around Toronto and the GTA and the crew was in Yonge-Dundas Square with a bunch of cameras and extras. I was disappointed not to see series star Enrico Colantoni while I was there but it was still interesting to see the work and equipment that go into television and movie production.



Toronto works hard to sell the city for filming with location images and information on their Toronto Film and Television Office (TFTO) website. You can even see the productions being shot around the city (updated every two weeks) at this link where I see that Saw VII is being filmed and will soon scare people in the theatres.

Concerts at the ACC

My daughter joined a lot of young ladies at the Air Canada Centre (ACC) to watch the April 5 Hedley concert and they had a great time - I was surprised they still had their voices after their night of screaming and singing. The opening acts were Boys Like Girls, Fefe Dobson and the Stereos. Here are some pictures of the band Hedley by Erin Hamilton - she loves Jacob Hoggard, the lead singer.





The Centre is located south of Union Station at the corner of Lakeshore and Bay Street and is easily accessible by the GO Train/Bus, subway, TTC, highway and walking. We parked at Lakeshore and Yonge Street and walked two blocks over to the Bay Street and the ACC.



The sound and the sightlines are just fine for concerts and I have been to a few concerts there myself - even in the seats behind the stage. I try to avoid the floor seats because a lot of people tend to leave their seats and stand at the base of the stage, then everyone else stands and you can't see anything. At least if people stand along the sides of the building the slope of the seats still allow for good visibility. Here is a link to a seating map.

We watched the girls go into the building then went walking around the area while they were enjoying the concert. The building is wedged between the downtown core of office towers and the Gardiner Expressway and is just a few minutes walk south down to the Lake where you can find the Toronto Ferry Docks and Captain John's floating restaurant.

Toronto Media Layoffs – Does Life Go On

Traditional Toronto media has taken a lot of hits lately with recent layoffs of some of our favourite local news personalities, cuts at the Sun and Star newspapers and local TV is in a battle with cable TV over money. Money that the local TV stations say they need to survive. Are the layoffs helping, are the media personnel getting hired back in their field and where is Larysa Harapyn?

More and more people get their information from the internet while fewer people pay for a daily newspaper or watch the local news. Advertisers who are the heart of the traditional information delivery systems have noticed this trend and have cut back on advertising and have been further restricted due to the downturn in the economy. Less advertising money means less content and less content means less reporters and editorial staff.

The numerous cuts at the Toronto Sun are even lamented in a blog called Toronto Sun Family (http://torontosunfamily.blogspot.com/). Reported job cuts also occurred at many media outlets from the Toronto Star, Rogers/CityTV, Canwest, CTV Globemedia, CHUM, Sportsnet, and the Globe and Mail.

For newspapers the combined impacts of free newspapers, reduced advertising and internet and mobile computing have produced major declines at traditional paid circulation newspapers. Newspaper circulation data from the CCAB Daily Newspaper TRAC (http://216.41.211.36/bpaww_com/HTML/dailies/CCAB%20Newspaper%20TRAC%202009.pdf) show the following.

Star weekday average 2009 circulation 390,163 (unpaid/free 105,988), average weekday circulation in 2008: 419,070 a -6.9% decline.
Sun weekday average 2009 circulation 178,461 (unpaid/free 41,630), average weekday circulation in 2008: 184,473 a -3.2% decline.
Toronto’s free newspapers had 2009 average weekday circulations of 247,236 for 24 Hours and 258,858 for Metro.

Shockingly just these four newspapers put out 653,712 copies of free newspapers, which exceed the paid weekday circulation of 568,624 for the Sun/Star combo. With free newspapers and free newspaper websites why would you pay for newspapers anymore?

Local television has also been impacted by declining ad revenues, available internet alternatives and low or no revenues derived from being carried in cable TV packages. With nothing but cuts to media around the world can anyone get a job in their field after a layoff? Media can look for jobs at such sites as media Job Search Canada (http://www.mediajobsearchcanada.com/jobs.asp?c=56) but it would be a tough search. Owners of media are cutting costs, taking unpaid interns and less expensive talent.

I keep searching but I don’t see Larysa’s face on the television or on the web. Where are you Larysa?

IainBaxter& - No. 9 and ECOARTVAN

What I love about spring in the city? Warm spring days, excitement and events everywhere, buskers working their magic (like Copper Cowboy back out at Yonge and Dundas) and things to contemplate.

I was out contemplating when I almost ran into a green luggage bag parked in Nathan Phillips Square on Wednesday, March 31. I new it was luggage because it had a handle at the top. The bag had windows on two sides and contained within were a bunch of trapped and pickled stuffed animals.



I nearly cried at the horror of it all when I realized that this was art! Actually I didn't realize it was art until I read the large poster on the back of the bag.

The poster said that this was a work by IainBaxter& (no, that is not a & mistake) called ECOARTVAN commissioned by No. 9 Contemporary Art and the Environment.

No. 9's website says "The IAIN BAXTER& ECOARTVAN will park in each school’s yard for one or two days, and will be accompanied by No. 9 educators. No.9’s educators will lead hands-on workshops with Grade Four students using a special education package designed in collaboration with BAXTER& and focused around the artist’s concern for animals and their habitats.

WWF-Canada has generously contributed 2500 Adoption Kits, so that each Grade Four student who attends the workshops will receive a kit focused on an animal whose habitat is endangered. These kits enable tactile learning and ensure that the students have an opportunity to continue their engagement in environmental issues once the project concludes."

I liked the idea of the WWF adoption kits more that I liked the idea of the pickled animals.

Earth Hour 2010 - Lights Out

Update: Ontario saved 560MW, or about 4%, during the 2010 Earth Hour between 8:30 and 9:30pm.

We gathered at the Yonge-Dundas Square to see the lights go out for the 2010 Toronto Earth Hour celebration. They had moved the event from Nathan Phillips Square to the Yonge-Dundas Square for some reason, not sure why. I thought that room would be an issue but they also closed down Yonge Street from Queen to Dundas.



Mayor David Miller (center) joins CityTV hosts Dina Pugliese and Kevin Frankish on stage.



It was a chance to think about the environment, to enjoy the music and join in the countdown to Earth Hour. Here is my Youtube video with a bit of Jarvis Church of the Philosopher Kings and the countdown in the Square.



There were a few cheesy acts including a guy that put balloons in one nostril and out the other and no flame acts that I could see. They should have had more buskers on Yonge Street, instead most of the street was eerily empty except for the penguin and the Climate Action Now guys.



The adjacent buildings and advertisements kept shutting down gradually instead of a massive lights out at 8:30pm. Earth Hour seemed anticlimactic when it was finally counted down. Here is a Yonge Street looking north towards the billboards at Dundas Street as the lights started to go out.

Toronto Roller Derby: Real Women, Real Hits

Quad City Chaos is in Toronto this weekend (March 27 & 28, 2010) at the Downsview Park Hanger. The seleted pros of four cities will battle it out over two days on the flat track at the Downsview Park Hanger (75 Carl Hall Road). Here is a panorama of the hanger with the track.



I have been dying to go to a derby rumble for quite awhile now so hopefully I can get tickets and get some great shots of the action - I did and here they are.







The top ladies of the Toronto Roller Derby (ToRD) joined together to create the all star team of CN Power and will battle against Vancouver's Terminal City All-Stars, Montreal's New Skids on the Block and Hamilton's Hammer City Roller Girls. They also had a pillow fight during the first intermission and a live band after the first match. The music during the whole event is fast paced and gets the crowd cheering.



Schedule(from the ToRD website) and single day tickets are $18 and are available at the door.

SATURDAY MARCH 27
1:00pm…........ Doors Open
2:00 – 3:30pm…. Toronto vs. Vancouver
3:30 – 4:30pm…. INTERMISSION
4:30 – 6:00pm…. Hamilton vs. Toronto
6:00 – 6:30pm…. INTERMISSION
6:30 – 8:00pm…. Montreal vs. Vancouver

SUNDAY MARCH 28
12:30pm…....... Doors Open
1:00 – 2:30pm…. Toronto vs. Montreal
2:30 – 3:00pm…. INTERMISSION
3:30 – 5:00pm…. Vancouver vs. Hamilton

The players pick their funky names and numbers such as Bambi, Judge Jodie and Mis Carriage and #4077, 2x4 and 1/2 pnt.



The floor is flat and concrete and these ladies don't take these matches lightly. They hip check and end up slamming into the ground.



The ladies only use elbow and knee pads and helmets for protection. The team shirts match while the rest of the uniform is up to the player to complete. The roller blades are the old style, 2x2 wheels, the type you would see in Laverne and Shirley.



I read one twitter post that said that Roller Derby is about underwear on the outside and there were a few ladies doing just that. Here is Toronto CN Power's Land Shark #13 and her chomp undies!



Watch my slideshow of the action on Youtube and here is my Youtube video of a bit of the warmup and a bit of the action of the Toronto VS Vancouver match.



So go out and support these hard working athletes and check out an upcoming match with the Toronto Roller Derby League. You can see my pictures of the 2010 Season Opener between Gore_Gore Rollergirls and the Smoke City Betties.

Noodle Peddler and other stuff

I noticed an eco-friendly delivery service - noodle peddler from SweetLulu and their box on a bike. I didn't see the rider so I can only assume they were in a fast food joint filling up on big, bad burgers.



The people of Toronto have poked their head out of the PATH system, saw the sun and decided to come out onto the streets. No longer are we CHUDs; Canadian Humanoid Underground Dwelling monsters! Here are the happy people on Yonge Street north of Dundas Street.

Earth Hour Toronto 2010

For pictures of the 2010 event at Yonge-Dundas Square see my blog post here.

The Earth Hour action will be in Yonge-Dundas Square this year as CityTV hosts Kevin Frankish and Dina Pugliese will usher in darkness with a free concert by Chantal Kreviazuk, Jarvis Church and Justin Nozuka. Lots of buildings have posters displaying their support of Earth Hour - including the Eaton Centre.

While the event begins at 5:30pm the singing will start at approximately 7:30. Here is the schedule from the WWF website.

5:30 pm Street performers and Earth Hour wish collection begins
7:00 pm onwards Official welcome and open remarks from Gerald Butts, President and CEO, WWF-Canada
Justin Nozuka performs
Jarvis Church performs
8:10 pm Earth Hour countdown ceremony begins
8:30 pm Earth Hour starts and Chantal Kreviazuk performs
9:30 pm Closing remarks

For more excitement there will be flame throwers, aerial artists and hip-hop dance crews.

Barenaked Ladies at FCP

Celebrating the launch of their new CD and the start of FCP events at Toronto's First Canadian Place the Barenaked Ladies put on a free lunch time concert.



The crowds once again surrounded the small waterfall stage on all levels and watched the group perform some old songs and some new songs from their new CD "All in Good Time", which was on sale for a special price of $10. They autographed their CDs after their show.

Flowers in the spring

The warm sun of March Break ran away when the weekend got here, which is ironic because this weekend marks the start of Spring (vernal equinox or spring equinox) which arrived on Saturday, March 20, 2010. Warmer and longer days are here again, well hopefully the warmer days will come back soon!

Purple crocus flowers popped out of the ground while bees came looking for pollen and this was the first sign that I have seen of new growth in 2010. I can't wait for the trees to bud and the forests to turn green.

Maple Syrup Season

The frosty nights and warm temperatures have started the running of the syrup, much like the running of the bulls, if bulls were watery liquid coming out of maple trees. During March Break many families bring their children to forests, sugar bushes and conservation areas to see the magic of maple syrup.



Near Toronto you can go to the Sugarbush Maple Syrup Festival at Bruce's Mill Conservation Area or Kortright Centre for Conservation or Mountsberg Conservation Area in Halton Region just by Highway 401 and Guelph Line.



Maple trees larger than 30cm in diameter are drilled and tapped with a spout which drain into buckets. The liquid is gathered together and boiled to make maple syrup. Boiling the syrup produces maple candy. You can watch the process, get samples of maple candies, buy pancakes and rides on horse drawn wagons. With the warm weather it is a fine way to spend the day outside in the fresh air.