SightLines

C is for chocolate

2012-01-31T15:50:00.002-05:00

an exhibit at the Royal Botanical Gardens

enter the world of chocolate and learn of its ancient rituals and how it's made

Monday Mural

2012-01-30T04:00:00.000-05:00

I have driven down this street many times, but mostly it is in the other direction. So I was shocked and thrilled to see this Guinness mural on the side of a rundown bar as I drove down James St towards the waterfront. The bar did not look very inviting and I wasn't even sure it was still in business, but apart from the bizarre paint job to cover up what must have been a tag, it looks in great condition.

MondayMurals

Chemung with textures

2012-01-29T00:05:00.000-05:00

...playing with post processing using Picnik on one of the bridges from my archives. this beauty is in Corning NY and crosses the Chemung River

Sunday Bridges

cats on front stoop

2012-01-28T04:44:00.005-05:00

camera-critters

at owner's risk

2012-01-25T13:30:00.001-05:00

likely in an effort to safeguard the newly planted trees,

these signs started appearing a few months ago (this one on Bloor Street) in Toronto. many cyclists were up in arms that now there were less places to safely secure your bike (not to mention an ongoing battle with the city over less places to safely ride your bike)

signs,signs

B is for Burlington

2012-01-24T14:38:00.000-05:00

For this round of ABCWednesday, I thought I might try showing the sites and sights of things that are specific to the city where I live. I'm not sure how far into the alphabet I will be able to sustain this idea... but at least the letter B is no problem.

We have the brand spanking new Burlington Performing Arts Centre that officially opened in December 2011.

and just a couple blocks down the street is the

Burlington Art Centre.

Neither has a particularly inspiring name, but at least they immediately indicate where you will find these centres of art, which you do not get with a corporately funded, naming right of a universal company.
...continued on VioletSky

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2012-01-23T05:03:00.002-05:00

I might be stretching this one a little....

three painted murals on the side of an outdoor clothing and adventure store
the artist name is Kate MacLennan from Halifax and is involved in their Community Mural Project.

MondayMurals

cats in windows

2012-01-21T04:20:00.001-05:00

camera-critters

safe

2012-01-18T13:25:00.001-05:00

I don't know what this old safe is used for now, it sits in a spot outside a food market where one might expect to see an freezer for buying bags of ice.

But, being curious, I looked up J&J Taylor Safeworks, not expecting to find anything useful. I was wrong. Apparently John and James Taylor opened a factory in 1855 producing the first safes in Canada. It has been in continuous operation ever since and still retains the Taylor name though is now part of Chubb-Mosler and Taylor Safes Ltd, an association of three safe companies, which is now the largest security manufacturing company in Canada.

signs,signs

A is for art deco

2012-01-17T15:10:00.004-05:00

An attractive art deco house near where I live.

It is not the best picture and I kept meaning to go back to get more of this audacious pink house. But I have been sidetracked over the past year... so today, wanting this for my 'A', I walked over.

It was not the best day, being rather overcast and grey.

But then I was shocked to see
just how grey the day was to be.

It does look more elegant and formal
(and it did need painting)

but I miss the pink...

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2012-01-16T02:15:00.004-05:00

One of Elicser's murals in the Queen and Bathurst Streets area of Graffiti Alley. Other than that it seems to be titled Omen, I know nothing else about it, but he seems to be a prominent and prolific artist in Toronto. It is a shame that it has been disrespectfully tagged.

And we have a host for this Monday Mural meme. Thank you Carolyn at Oakland Daily Photo for taking the responsibility.
MondayMurals

McQuesten Bridge

2012-01-14T19:45:00.004-05:00

The McQuesten High Level Bridge on York Street
from Princess Point

Sunday Bridges

view over the water

2012-01-12T18:13:00.000-05:00

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.

~Confucius

There are some million dollar homes along the shores of Lake Ontario with this view over to the Stelco plant. It is not always pretty, but some days it doesn't matter.

SkyWatchFriday

Z is for Zellers

2012-01-10T13:45:00.004-05:00

This Zellers department store is one that is slated

to become a US based Target store in 2012
when it will cease to be "truly Canadian" for good
another sad loss that may not actually be missed.
which is even sadder

ABC Wednesday
signs, signs

Monday Mural

2012-01-08T19:00:00.002-05:00

a chalkboard mural in the Locke Street Bakery
other interesting murals are here, here, here and here

drink

2012-01-04T15:23:00.001-05:00

I was quite taken with this sign
in a little town in cottage country

then I took a better look and discovered

the other sign

but really, one should take a step back and look at the big picture

your one stop shopping experience!

(and yes, I really did take 3 pictures!)

signs, signs

Y is for yellow yarn

2012-01-03T22:15:00.000-05:00

yarn bombing

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2012-01-02T06:14:00.001-05:00

A mural of the Credit River at Alton Mills depicting the scene before the trees grew up
more murals can be found here, here, here, and here

flying around the skyway

2011-12-31T18:10:00.000-05:00

SundayBridges

Christmas Eve 8am

2011-12-29T15:10:00.000-05:00

SkyWatchFriday
and
Weekend Reflections

X is for x-rated

2011-12-27T14:35:00.001-05:00

One of the more infamous strip clubs, the heritage Filmores Hotel has had a 'gentlemen's club' on the first floor since 1982

hockey night with the boys, or...

ABC Wednesday and signs, signs

snowman with cocoa

2011-12-26T21:30:00.000-05:00

possibly my favourite of the snowmen

for Torontoland see also previous post, here

Our World Tuesday

Monday Mural

2011-12-25T23:50:00.002-05:00

The town of Preston
(now incorporated into the city of Cambridge)
Andy and Oakland also have murals up
as has La Principessa in San Francisco who always has great murals,
not just on Mondays

GO overpass

2011-12-24T23:00:00.000-05:00

the Drury Lane pedestrian way over the train tacks at the GO station was closed last month due to some instability. It may take a year before the necessary repairs are made.

Sunday Bridges

black and white snowman

2011-12-23T16:23:00.000-05:00

one of the giant snowmen for kids

take your photo beside one of the 17 decorated snowmen, upload the photo to Facebook and Tourism Toronto will donate $2 to the Starlight Foundation

Weekend in Black & White

ER on QE

2011-12-22T13:41:00.000-05:00

The Elizabeth Regina lamp posts on the Queen Elizabeth Way

taken on a particularly nice day during a particularly slow drive

SkyWatchFriday

windows

2011-12-21T11:55:00.000-05:00

decorated windows on Lakeshore Road

signs, signs

W for water

2011-12-20T12:00:00.001-05:00

cool, clear water

no snow, nor ice, just fresh flowing water

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2011-12-18T23:30:00.008-05:00

fun in a midtown grocery store (I think on 59th St)

the usual suspects have also posted murals here, here and here.

Lady of the Lake

2011-12-15T15:00:00.003-05:00

Like monument of Grecian art,

In listening mood, she seemed to stand,
The guardian Naiad of the strand.

~Sir Walter Scott

SkyWatchFriday

V is for Varsity

2011-12-13T11:45:00.000-05:00

it is hard to tell from this angle, but the letters really are equidistance apart, it was just a challenge to get them all in with a sky background

below is a view of the field from Spadina Avenue looking towards Bloor St (which is the main east-west street in Toronto)

there has been a stadium at this location since 1898, though this incarnation has only been since 2009

it is the home of the University of Toronto

and has a 400 metre 8-lane track, plus an artificial turf and a dome that is erected in winter. The recent renovations has made the venue even more open to the street (which is what made getting these photo so much easier!)

ABC Wednesday
signs, signs

Monday Mural

2011-12-12T04:30:00.003-05:00

Flint

Vehicle City

pssst...buy someone a new car for Christmas

other great murals can be found here, here and here

needing a good scratch

2011-12-10T04:04:00.000-05:00

camera-critters

passing by

2011-12-08T14:48:00.001-05:00

I sit at my window this morning where the world

like a passer-by stops for a moment

nods to me and goes

~Rabindranath Tagore

SkyWatchFriday

pick up your shopping cart here

2011-12-07T12:20:00.003-05:00

and buy your food here

at the prepared food kitchen of

Loblaws at Maple Leaf Gardens

signs,signs

things in a row

U is for unfinished

2011-12-06T12:25:00.002-05:00

Brant Street Pier

2009

2010

2011

beset with problems from the very beginning of construction 2007

the opening was delayed to 2009

a new contractor has finally been approved, but the pier remains unfinished

accessible only to the gulls

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2011-12-05T02:30:00.000-05:00

Usually murals are painted on blank walls

I like that this is a fish on a fence.

found in the arts rich St James Street North area of Hamilton where 'art is the new steel'

more murals here, here and where it all started, here

Mellow Yellow Monday

Our World Tuesday

skyway

2011-12-03T20:15:00.000-05:00

The Burlington Skyway

all lit up

SundayBridges

shadow art

2011-12-03T09:30:00.000-05:00

Shadow Shot Sunday

Groceries at the Gardens

2011-12-01T17:24:00.000-05:00

The new Loblaws store at Maple Leaf Gardens is now open. Never has so much fanfare and excitement been seen for a supermarket!

All is sunny and bright again at Church and Carlton in Toronto.

signs, signs

Skywatch Friday

T is for tiffin

2011-11-29T07:30:00.009-05:00

the window of Tiffins 'Curry in a Hurry' restaurant

In India, tiffin means a hot, light meal or snack.

It also refers to these metal containers used to carry prepared food

These great little environmentally friendly stackable stainless steel tins are designed for lunch or picnic boxes but are also ideal for storing coffee, tea, sugar, spices or whatever you like. Each tier fits snuggly on top of each other and secured with a clasp on either side with a separate lid for the top.

The handle clips it all together.

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2011-11-28T03:45:00.002-05:00

a decorated hydro box in Hamilton

our world tuesday

crumbling

2011-11-27T02:05:00.000-05:00

crossing the Grand River, this is one bridge desperately in need of repair.

as seen last July, I wonder what shape it will be in by winter's end?

Sunday Bridges

sentry squirrel

2011-11-24T16:47:00.003-05:00

SkyWatchFriday

camera-critters

The Long Shot

2011-11-23T06:58:00.005-05:00

at Glen Abbey

'In the 1994 Bell Canadian Open Pro-Am,

John Daly drove his ball into 16-mile creek from this tee.

Total distance 390 yards'

'Good Luck and please enjoy one of the most famous tee shots in Canadian Golf'

signs, signs

S is for stones and silos

2011-11-22T15:40:00.001-05:00

an abandoned farm

ABC Wednesday

Monday Mural

2011-11-21T07:10:00.002-05:00

Dupont Station

One of the murals by James Sutherland, entitled Spadina Summer Under All Seasons. Two large mosaics of a giant flower in cross-section, made with thousands of pieces of glass directly into the station’s tiling, face each other across the tracks.

I'm taking a cue from Andy at Occupied with Photography who posts a mural each Monday. Since he is an ex TTC driver, I thought I'd start with a subway mural.

Our World Tuesday Mellow Yellow Monday

Port Huron Bridge

2011-11-20T00:01:00.000-05:00

The bridge at the Port Huron Yacht Club

Sunday Bridges

look this way

2011-11-19T06:59:00.001-05:00

camera-critters

ROM

2011-11-18T11:00:00.001-05:00

Royal Ontario Museum

and just for fun, a different angle of the same view with the fall colours

on the right is with Orton post processing to make it softer and more vibrant

Weekend Reflections

cover me softly

2011-11-17T17:58:00.000-05:00

the astute and regular visitors may recognize this

as yet another sunset view from my balcony

SkyWatchFriday

St Andrew

2011-11-16T17:46:00.002-05:00

Continuing with the TTC theme from yesterday's post....
I decided to travel the subway and take some photos of the station signs.

The station walls are undergoing some renovations. Above is one version of the newer signage and tiles and below are an older version of the signs with the vertical tiles and showing the original version and the giant square subway tiles that was underneath, on the left.

(this just looks like it was taken in black and white, but it really is that colour)

St Andrew station opened in 1963 (there is also a St George and St Patrick, but no St David station. none however were named after the saint or the cross or even England, Scotland or Ireland)

signs, signs

R is for Red Rocket

2011-11-15T07:50:00.000-05:00

I took this photo of the old TTC streetcar sitting in a farmer's field on Highway 6 while stuck in traffic back in August. When I last went up that way about 2 months ago, the inner garden had been cleared, but sadly I did not stop to photograph it.

The Red Rocket is the nickname given to the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) vehicles. It was started with the bright red trains that were used from 1954 to late 1960s and the name stuck. Now, the streetcars and buses are mostly red and white and the subways cars are silver.

This summer a new design was unveiled for the subway car and this weekend we got a preview of the new streetcar.

They are heavily promoting the Red Rocket and 'Ride the Rocket' slogan (over the other slogan 'The Better Way' for reasons best left alone)

ABC Wednesday

cormorants

2011-11-12T09:33:00.000-05:00

surveying their domain

of a recreated landscape

camera-critters

11.11.11

2011-11-11T07:00:00.000-05:00

Remembrance Day

Weekend Reflections

meet the meat

2011-11-09T14:20:00.000-05:00

I rather liked the play on words for this butcher's shop

but then, I really liked the juxtaposition of the butcher's sign with the hunter cutout

which belonged to the shop next door,

which happened to be

(*neither of these shops are common in the city!)

signs, signs

Q is for Queen's

2011-11-08T15:37:00.000-05:00

One Queen's Hotel that is still open and operating as a bar and another that has sadly closed down

ABC Wednesday

stairs

2011-11-07T16:30:00.001-05:00

the stairway

in the new

Burlington Performing Arts Centre

that opened earlier this month

Our World Tuesday

tracks

2011-11-06T08:00:00.000-05:00

transformation of an old railway bridge into a pedestrian walkway.

you can see a train engine in the centre distance looking on, wistfully.

Sunday Bridges

looking forward

2011-11-04T14:48:00.002-04:00

never drive faster

than your guardian angel can fly

~author unknown

Weekend Reflections

steps to the lake

2011-11-03T13:45:00.001-04:00

listen to the salutation to the dawn

look to this day for its life

for yesterday is but a dream

and tomorrow is only a vision

~sanskrit proverb

SkyWatch Friday

P is for piggy

2011-11-01T15:18:00.003-04:00

at a restaurant in Kingston called Chez Piggy (once owned by Zal Yanovsky of the band the Lovin Spoonful) the hallway outside the washrooms have been decorated with cartoons of pigs by some well-known editorial cartoonists.

also near Kingston, there is a new coffehouse the Socialist Pig with an attached restaurant called Pig Iron BBQ serving the best pulled pork I have ever had!

and a real live (for now) piggy

ABC Wednesday signs, signs

waterfront trail

2011-10-31T15:35:00.001-04:00

Beyond this entrance lies Bayfront Park and the Waterfront Trail. Formerly a vacant lot, it has been transformed over the last 18 years into a 40 acre park with trails and beaches. There is fishing and sailing on water, cycling and walking on trails, or playing and picnicking on the grass.

Our World Tuesday

403 + 407

2011-10-29T14:49:00.000-04:00

I may have posted a shot of these bridges before, though they may have been at a slightly different angle and not processed in faded b&w and infrared and cinemascope. This was taken in the spring, when everything was far too

vibrantly green and shows where hwy 407 ends at hwy 403.

I like that there is still this bit of natural wasteland in the city.

SundayBridges

reaching the sky

2011-10-27T14:36:00.001-04:00

the tree grew, and it was strong

and its height reached to the sky

and its sight to the end of the earth

~ Daniel 4:11

SkywatchFriday

O is for one

2011-10-25T06:40:00.001-04:00

in Owen Sound

This photomosaic of the (old) one dollar bill was created in 2007 for Owen Sound's 150th anniversary. Made up of 363 photos it is meant to celebrate the industrial accomplishments and the many people who call Owen Sound home.

ABC Wednesday

playing with light

2011-10-23T21:03:00.002-04:00

a kaleidoscope effect

an old light shade with an incandescent bulb

and what it might look like with a compact fluorescent bulb

which glow do you prefer?

Mellow Yellow Monday

reverie

2011-10-22T17:00:00.002-04:00

In his dim chapel day by day
The organist was wont to play,
And please himself with fluted reveries;
And all the spirit's joy and strife,
The longing of a tender life,
Took sound and form upon the ivory keys;
And though he seldom spoke a word,
The simple hearts that loved him heard
His glowing soul in these.

~Archibald Lampman

ShadowShotSunday

influences

2011-10-20T15:34:00.000-04:00

Live each season as it passes; breathe the air,

drink the drink, taste the fruit

and resign yourself to the influence of each

~ David Thoreau

SkyWatchFriday

to all buses

2011-10-19T20:45:00.003-04:00

These pigeons seem happy to welcome you to this GO Station in downtown Hamilton. The TH&B Ry Co stands for Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway Company (which merged with Canadian Pacific in the late 1980s). It is the only art deco railway station known in Canada. Today it doubles as a GO train and bus station which also includes other regional buses (Greyhound and Canada Coach) as well as the local HSR buses.

signs, signs

N is for numbers

2011-10-18T12:10:00.001-04:00

ABC Wednesday

Hamilton is Football

2011-10-17T15:40:00.001-04:00

The Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton

A Hamilton Ti-Cats fan

Our World Tuesday
signs, signs

early fall

2011-10-16T01:25:00.005-04:00

up the Niagara Escarpment in Dundas

taken before the leaves were blown off in the wind.

SundayBridges

heron

2011-10-15T12:25:00.001-04:00

patience...

camera-critters

Fairy Lake

2011-10-14T12:25:00.000-04:00

Southampton in August.

It is hard to tell, but there is a white swan to the left

and a white heron to the right of the fountain.

the view from the other side of this tiny lake with

the Southampton water tower and the blue bandshell where

Friday night concerts are held all summer long.

Weekend Reflections

sunset

2011-10-13T18:40:00.013-04:00

Lord, I have loved your sky,

be it said against or for me,

have loved it clear and high,

or low and stormy

~ Robert Frost

SkyWatchFriday

M is for muskie

2011-10-12T02:20:00.001-04:00

This Leaping Muskie statue celebrates the area on the St Lawrence River as a top muskellunge (muskie) area.

Muskies will eat anything that fits into their mouth - mostly other fish, but also frogs, ducklings, snakes, muskrats, mice and other small mammals and small birds.

They are known for their strength and their tendency to leap from the water in stunning acrobatic displays.

this awards log goes up to 2000, but the last entry is for 1997. not sure what happened. maybe there is another one inside the building.

ABC Wednesday signs, signs

ten of sixty sails

2011-10-11T04:30:00.003-04:00

Sixty Sails is an outdoor art exhibit in Orillia with sculptures of eight-foot sail panels, made of lexan and supported on a hull of scrolled iron and a concrete pedestal. I managed to see most of them on their last weekend at Thanksgiving.

Our World Tuesday

more pictures on my other blog at VioletSky

autumn

2011-10-10T05:00:00.000-04:00

Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes.

Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality.

Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like. Lao Tzu

Mellow Yellow Monday

looking both ways

2011-10-08T05:30:00.002-04:00

waiting for...? or watching for...?

while quietly treading water.

Photo Hunt-waiting

camera-critters

fresh showers

2011-10-06T15:26:00.001-04:00

I bring fresh showers for the thirsting flowers,

from the seas and streams;

I bear light shade for the leaves when laid

in their noonday dreams.

PB Shelley
- from The Cloud

SkyWatch Friday

Jerseyville

2011-10-05T17:30:00.001-04:00

Some signs from the TH&B

at Jerseyville Railway Station.

Built in 1896 it was the first building to be moved to Westfield Historical Village

and was used in both the movie Anne of Green Gables and the tv series Road to Avonlea

where it stood in for Bright River

signs, signs

L is for lightbulb

2011-10-04T14:18:00.000-04:00

original (top left)

and with a bit of playing around with HSL (hue, saturation and light) filters and HDR (high dynamic range imaging)

ABC Wednesday

fruits gone wild

2011-10-03T14:00:00.001-04:00

some knit bombing fruit after a wild night partying

Our World Tuesday

egret #31

2011-09-30T17:30:00.000-04:00

Weekend Reflections

and Camera-Critters

fancy clouds

2011-09-29T17:49:00.000-04:00

Those playful fancies of the mighty sky

~Albert Smith

SkyWatchFriday

K is for keg

2011-09-27T12:50:00.000-04:00

ABC Wednesday

destruction

2011-09-25T23:00:00.003-04:00

demolition of neglected federal building

a tree grows

defiant

Odd Shots

Our World Tuesday

here's smiling at you

2011-09-24T09:16:00.000-04:00

Your smile will give you a positive countenance

that will make people feel comfortable around you.

Les Brown

camera-critters

blue boat on beach

2011-09-22T20:39:00.000-04:00

SkyWatchFriday

Riverdale Farm

2011-09-21T15:35:00.002-04:00

This working farm In the heart of urban Toronto near the Don River is open year round and is free to all. There are animals and gardens, a shop and kitchen and classes and from May to October, a market.

But it has been under threat of closure in a sad and convoluted tale of a new mayor seeking to save money no matter what is destroyed in the process.

For more information about this farm you can check out Friends of Riverdale Farm and to see archival photos visit this site

signs, signs