Community Mail Boxes

 

Once mail was delivered to each and every Canadian's home. Not today. Many Canadians now must pick up their mail from a centrally located Canada Post Community Mail Box. These neighbourhood boxes are nowhere near as handy as a simple mailbox hanging beside one's front door but the service they provide is cheaper.

When the boxes first appeared, the super mail boxes were only installed in new developments. New subdivisions were denied door-to-door mail delivery but instead the mail was left in a community box some distance from the new homes. It is doubtful that Canada Post grasped the irony in calling such boxes super mail boxes.

Since the first community boxes appeared in 1985, Canada Post has been trying to phase out all door-to-door home delivery. I'm pleased to say that in my neighbourhood Canada Post has not been successful. We still have the truly super mail boxes; we have the ones located right on the wall next to each home's front door.

The lookout backdrop

 

The young girl was clearly the centre of attention with not one but two cameras aimed her way. The sunset, viewed from the lookout, provided an excellent backdrop and rimmed the girl's head with glowing, back-lit brilliance.

Not so rapid transit

 

Some years ago, London looked at Light Rail Transit (LRT) and ruled it out. The city then got deep into the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) model. Maps were drawn and costs calculated. That was also some years ago. Today, Londoners still find themselves in what feels like a never ending holding pattern waiting for a solution to the city's oh-so-very slow transit system. 

Our London Family

 

A little more than a year ago a London Muslim family out for an evening stroll was struck by a car and four of the five were killed: both parents, a daughter and her grandmother died, while a young son was the only one to live. Police allege the act was intentional. It is alleged to have been a hate crime. Now, a large monument dedicated to "Our London Family" marks the spot. Although located in the northwest corner of the city, the monument attracts a constant flow of visitors. Many leave flowers.

A monument to our London family

 

The mural shown is part of a larger mural on a monument erected to honour a London Muslim family killed a year ago in a vehicular accident police allege was intentional. A car struck a Muslim family out for a summer evening stroll killing both parents, their daughter and her grandmother. The family's young son was the only one of the group to survive the collision.

Hostas: better than you think

Hostas are nice but if we are honest we must admit hostas are not the first choice of most gardeners for a featured plant. Gardeners are missing a great opportunity.

For many years the local paper organized a Garden Walk Weekend. Readers were encouraged to stop by the paper to pick up a map in order to tour of the city and visit ten spectacular, private gardens. Most of the gardens were in the north end of the city, in the city's finest residential neighbourhood.

One year one home on the tour was located in the east end of the city in an area known for its industrial parks. Hidden among the factories and warehouses there was one short, forgotten residential street and the home at the end of the street was on the tour. To say folk were surprised would be a gross understatement.

When the visitors entered the home's backyard, they got quite the surprise. The home owner was a hostas freak. He loved hostas and over the years he had become a self-taught hosta expert. His narrow but deep backyard was filled with hundreds and hundreds of hostas: big hostas, small hostas, solid green hostas and varigated hostas. The biggest hostas were at the sides of the yard growing on tall mounds of earth. The tall plants, they must have been at least four feet tall, blocked the view of the surrounding neighbourhood. The large leaves even muffled neighbourhood noises. Very practical.

The hostas on the sides of the yard were so large that the plants inside the yard seemed small in comparison. Some were truly small but others were not and added privacy to small spaces enclosed by dozens of hostas. A narrow trail snaked through the yard with benches nestled among the foliage.

To a visitor, quickly lost in the green-lined maze, the backyard seemed far larger than its true size. The hostas had been planted imaginatively and wisely. The backyard was a world onto itself. At the end of the day, where ever folk gathered to discuss the tour, the hosta-home was the clear winner.

Ignorance is not bliss when it come to plants

Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to plants. Plant the wrong plant in the wrong place and one may find themselves with an aggressive, spreading ground cover that takes over an area and smothers competing plants--plants you may have liked.

The voting is still out on the plant shown above with the green leaves rimmed with bright yellow. It has spread very nicely, according to my neighbour, and so far it has played nicely with the other plants in the garden. The question is: will this cooperation continue?

City folk love their gardens. One can be forgiven for thinking that there might be an ongoing, unspoken contest being fought here. Each home each succeeding year sports bigger, more spectacular, more numerous flowers and shrubs. 

But mixing and matching plants is no easier than mixing and matching neighbours and sometimes the wrong plant gets put into the mix with disastrous results. Luckily, bad plants are easier to uproot and remove than bad neighbours.

Today it is a bed and breakfast

Stratford, Ontario, is famous for its theatres, plural. A lot of the original manufacturing has left the little city and now a big percentage of the city's wealth comes from the entertainment industry. And make no mistake about it, it is an industry.

For instance, this little home is a bed and breakfast today. The hospitality business is a spin off reaping the benefits of the flourishing local theatre business. Rumour has it that this B&B was once a simple, little church. Maybe. But the little building also has the look of an old school. Unfortunately, the info on the stone above the door has been obliterated.

If you are ever in southwestern Ontario, google Stratford. You might well find play being performed to your liking.

Schubertii allium, I think . . .

Each year these blooms appear in a friend's front yard flower garden. Over the years, she has noticed that the strange blooms appear to attract butterflies and hummingbirds; a plus in her estimation. Furthermore, they don't appear to be loved by the common garden pests that plague other plants in her garden; another plus. 

But what exactly are these mystery blooms? I have guess thanks to a google search. (Drum roll, please.) These blooms are flowers on schubertii allium plants. Does anyone agree?

Only made in France, available everywhere

In high school history I learned shipwrecks of Roman trading ships had been discovered at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea with cargoes intact. Trade was important to the Romans. Goods unique to one country were bought and shipped back to Italy.

Trade is even more important today and the glassware at the restaurant silently attests to that fact. The glasses are Duralex. Duralex is French made glassware tempered to resist breaking. Invented just two years before I was born, Duralex, with its unique properties, was soon shipped around the world. 

Restaurants loved it. The glasses stood up to the crude automatic dishwashers of the period. The glasses lasted so long they developed a cloudy, surface patina of thousands of scratches from repeated trips through the dishwasher.

Today the Durlex product is still popular with restaurant owners. As a senior raised in the '50s, I immediately recognized the original glass design which is apparently still popular. Amazing. Any design still in use after almost eight decades is truly ageless.

But, the Duralex glass folk are not resting on their laurels. The second glass is also Duralex but a more recent design. Curious, I googled Duralex. I wondered if it was now being made in China, as well. No, it wasn't. The company says, 

"The original tempered (toughened) Picardie glasses are still produced in France and are known as the “original French tumblers”. . . . Duralex is and will always remain a true French manufacturer of glassware and tabletop products, and is the only glass manufacturer that makes 100% of their products in France."

Heritage home in Stratford

 

The yellow painted home is clearly a heritage property. The first clues are the storm windows. Storms like the ones on this home are no longer available. Note how the right front storm is clearly hinged and has been left open at the bottom. This wood sided home is reputed to be one of the oldest homes in Stratford, Ontario.

Once a church; today a restaurant

For a little more than a hundred years it was Mackenzie Memorial Gospel Church on Brunswick St. in Stratford, Ontario. Then, in 1975, the church was transformed into The Church—one of the finest places to dine in the entire province.

 

Today the former church has underdone another transformation. It is now the Revival House restaurant. Despite two major conversions, the beautiful old church remains one of Ontario’s finest examples of a heritage building conversion done with respect for the building's history.

We dined at Revival House today. If you are curious as to what the kitchen sends out, check out the picture. 

It is a vegetarian sandwich. Two thick slices of freshly baked bread stuffed with sauteed spinach, grilled bell peppers, mushrooms and onion, punched up with a little pesto mixed with soft goat cheese and served with a fresh mixed salad on the side.

 

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

 

It has rained the past two days. It hasn't rained a lot but it has been enough to keep potted plants happy. Having noticed some posted pictures of water droplets and the like, I was more alert than usual to the possibility of finding some beauty among the leaves heavy with water droplets. Cheers!

Holy Roller returns

 Holy Roller was made in 1942 in Michigan and immediately the Sherman tank was shipped to England to fight in the Second World War. It was officially issued to Canada’s 6th Armoured Regiment (1st Hussars) shortly before D-Day. Its crew named it "Holy Roller."

On D-Day, the tank was part of the second wave on Juno Beach. The tank and crew were able to advance 11 kilometres before a fuel leak stopped it in its tracks. As the commanding officer’s tank had been destroyed by a landmine on the beach, Holy Roller became B Squadron’s command tank.

The 1st Hussars lost 346 tanks with Holy Roller the only survivor. It fought in 14 major battles and covered some 4,000 kilometres. It sustained some serious damage along the way with some crew members wounded, but no one died in Holy Roller.

At the end of the war, Holy Roller was stored in the London, Ontario, Armouries for a few years before being put on display in a nearby park. In 1956, it was moved to Victoria Park, where it sat until its removal for restoration. Time and weather take a toll on everything, even a tank. Yesterday, Holy Roller was returned to its concrete pad in London's Victoria Park downtown.

A local journalist and Mennonite pacifist has admitted seeing the presence of the tank in a city park as glorifying war. Today, he seems to have shifted his take on the tank. He wrote in the newspaper, "It forces us to contemplate and confront our failures of diplomacy, the use of destruction of life and property as the bluntest of our tools, and the utter depravity of war."

There was a time I would have read those words and gave them consideration. Not today. Today I am seeing images from the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. 

I do not see the present war in Ukraine as a failure of diplomacy. Words were never going to stop the Russians. The West should have sent troops to the Ukraine the moment Russian troops began amassing on the Russian side of the border.

We might have stopped the invasion before it started.

Holy Roller and the brave men who crewed it deserve our gratitude, our praise and the very least we can do is honour them and their actions by putting their Sherman tank on display and thinking long and hard about not what it symbolizes but about what it actually accomplished. 

The Holy Roller fought against "the utter depravity of war."

The invasion of Ukraine has made all of us aware of the true horrors of war:

 

Surviving the Siege of Kharkiv (The New York Times)

The photos that have defined the war in Ukraine (CNN)

May the "Life Force" be with you

The world can be a depressing place for those life forms able to think, to judge, to dream—to be horrified by the past and frightened by the future. I take delight in knowing that the miracle of life will continue with or without us. In the scheme of things, we are only indispensable in our own minds.

the silver mound plant (Artemisia schmidtiana

Read more at Gardening Know How: How To Grow Artemisia: Caring For Silver Mound Plants https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/foliage/artemisia/silver-mound-care.htm

For proof, one need look no farther than the artemisia schmidtiana or silver mound plant. It has the cannot-be-killed strength of the cockroach but in a far more attractive package. My oldest granddaughter picked a small silver mound as her addition to our gardens. She left the little plant in a small, blue plastic pot with me to plant. I didn't.

On a future visit, she said she would plant it if I just showed her where. I couldn't. She didn't. And, while I puzzled over where to put the little plant with the silver green foliage, the summer turned into fall, which in short order turned into winter. The little plant with the silver-green, almost sensually soft foliage turned black, harden and became brittle with death.

My granddaughter shook her head. "You killed it." I agreed and hung my head in shame. But then spring arrived and the warm sun and frequent spring rains performed their magic. New shoots appeared. The little, oh-so-delicate looking, little silver-green plant had survived the winter and did so while sitting outside, snow covered, forgotten, left to freeze in a little blue pot.

the silver mound plant (Artemisia schmidtiana

Read more at Gardening Know How: How To Grow Artemisia: Caring For Silver Mound Plants https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/foliage/artemisia/silver-mound-care.htm

the silver mound plant (Artemisia schmidtiana

Read more at Gardening Know How: How To Grow Artemisia: Caring For Silver Mound Plants https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/foliage/artemisia/silver-mound-care.htm

the silver mound plant (Artemisia schmidtiana ‘Silver Mound’)

Read more at Gardening Know How: How To Grow Artemisia: Caring For Silver Mound Plants https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/foliage/artemisia/silver-mound-care.htm

The Forest City

 

There are a number of explanations given for how London, Ontario, came to be known as the Forest City. One thing that all seem to agree on is that the city has lost the vast majority of the tree cover that gave the city its well known moniker. 

I am not a hundred percent sure of the origins of the Forest City nickname and I am even less sure that the name no longer fits. Viewing the city from Lookout Court in the southwest end of town, the city seems to disappear under the thick foliage of city trees.

An annual treat

 

In this southwestern London neighbourhood the early bird gets the asparagus, at least in late spring. The small, totally open at the front, shed-like structure sits empty most of the year. But annually, in late May and and stretching into early June, a large "open" sign announces to the world that locally grown asparagus is again available.

The fields are small and located immediately behind the little wooden structure. The asparagus is good but there isn't a lot. It goes on sale daily at nine and it is gone by noon. The asparagus grown at Greenland is special. 95% of the asparagus sold in Ontario is one hybrid, a variety developed at the University of Guelph called Guelph Millennium.

Greenland asparagus is a heritage variety. Many believe it is sweeter than the asparagus sold at the local grocery stores. What no one can dispute is that it is fresher. Greenland asparagus is picked every morning  and with luck it is sitting in a little water in one's fridge just an hour or two later. One never peels Greenland asparagus. It is tender. Guaranteed.

I have wondered how long until the asparagus fields are a feature from the past and suburban housing fills the former fields. According to the family that owns the little farm, it isn't going to happen any time soon. Wonderful!

Mural Monday

 

It is Mural Monday for members of City Daily Photo and I am not one to buck the rules, at least not if I remember. No promises here. Today's image was taken back in April in East London. East London has more murals in a very small area than any other area I know in London but I will keep and eye.

Lilac bushes are trees

For years the lilac in our backyard was known as a bush. But, it grew and grew and now that it towers more than 14 metres in the air it is a tree, a lilac tree.

There's a reason gardeners trim back plants regularly. Stop and many plants will grow until they no longer fit in their allotted spot in the garden or yard.

Dwarf Blue Spruce trees may be kept trimmed and small for years but halt the trimming and the little tree will no longer be little. 

One learns very quickly that many a dwarf tree is not a dwarf at all. Stop the trimming and you learn very quickly that it was merely stunted.

Succulents can prosper in Ontario: surprise!

It's spring and time to fill those open patches of ground in the gardens around the home with new plants. One set of choices that might surprise you, they surprised me, are the succulents. This is Canada. The far North. The land of ice and snow. Why would one plant succulents? These plants belong in Texas, not in Ontario.

And yet, some succulents like the echeveria plants, also known as hen and chicks, actually do well when planted outdoors in southern Ontario. I planted one a few years ago and was very surprised when come spring both the original plant and the small, surrounding offshoots not only survived the winter but were strong and healthy and ready to grow and flourish through the warm days of spring.

Some plants are amazing.

Not such fun photos at the Rec Room

The restaurant was called the Rec Room. Along with food it offered games, lots and lots of electronic games. It also had photo booths supposedly designed with children in mind. The photos were taken in front of a blue screen and a cool background was added later. The place is a preferred spot for birthday parties.

Unfortunately, the photo booths are not designed for small kids. My youngest granddaughter had her birthday party at the Rec Room and all her little guests had photos showing mostly the tops of heads. The little girls were too short. 

Disappointment reigned. Thanks to Photoshop, the memory of the day was saved. Photos of the little girls were merged with photos of African animals and the little girls were delighted -- even if the delight didn't occur until some hours after the party.

Police patrolling Springbank

 

I have lived in London for almost half a century. The other day was the first time I have spotted police patrolling the park. As the pair walked by visitors to the park, they drew very little attention. Clearly, uniformed police are not feared in London, at least not when patrolling a quiet park.

Trees down, hundreds of thousands without power

The storm was powerful and fast moving. Rain shouldn't fall horizontally but this past Saturday it did. 

Doors and windows protected by large, overhangs were pounded by the rain falling in wind driven waves. Trees were toppled and large tree limbs downed across the province from Windsor on the southeast to Ottawa in the far west.

In the Ottawa region tall, steel hydro towers buckled under the force of the gusting winds. Hundreds of thousands were left without power. Many were still without power Sunday.

This image showing downed power lines in the Ottawa area was posted by Ontario Hydro.

Springbank Park popular with walkers

 

Springbank Park in London, Ontario, attracts a great mix of folk to enjoy the walks, the playgrounds, the snowboard park and the many large expanses of green grass. Wherever one looks, one sees another group enjoying London's largest park.

Tulips make it a garden

 My wife calls it a garden but until the tulips start blooming I find the designation very generous. But the tulips are blooming and the small plot hemmed in by interlocking blocks is clearly a garden. My wife and her flower-loving friends always knew it was a garden but today I am onside as well.

Muslim girl with scooter

When the young girl grabbed the scooter, I grabbed my camera. I had noticed the Muslim girl sitting at the picnic table with a scooter nearby but I did not think the two went together. Seeking her permission before taking her picture, I gestured to catch her attention. She understood immediately and instantly took a pose. I'd have preferred an unposed moment but I think the peace sign adds to the image.

Is Made in China really cheaper?

Are consumers really saving money by buying so many items labelled "Made in China." I am not convinced.

I've been seeing these stamped out metal items in garden centres all around the London area. They are simply large sheets of very thin steel with a stamped out pattern. The piece has been painted to resist the elements.

How much would this cost to make in Canada? The ones made in China are selling for about $170 at some centres.

Have you questioned the savings you enjoy by buying stuff made in China? I'm old enough to recall when shirts, toys, appliances and more were all made in Canada and the States. When the plants started closing I did not notice a big drop in the prices of these goods. Did you? Think about it.

A little bit of China in our backyard

 

When we bought our magnolia tree, it was small, possibly two feet tall, and covered with green leaves and completely devoid of flowers. The first spring was a surprise. The blossoms were more purple than pink and the petals were long and thin. This was not the usual magnolia tree so common on London lawns.

A little digging and we discovered that we had planted a Magnolia liliiflora or lily magnolia as it is commonly known. Originally it was native to eastern China but today is rarely, if ever, found growing wild. The tree has been domesticated and is now found growing around the globe.

The pink tulip magnolia that we thought we had bought is also originally from China but the flowers are larger with a rounder appearance. The colour is usually more towards the pink end of the spectrum.

Nearby apartment towers have not brought shoppers

 

East London has been in trouble for decades. At one point, Dundas Street running through business section was ripped up and replaced with a curved section of road surfaced with paving stones. This unique roadway was supposed to ignite renewed interest in the area. It didn't.

Family businesses that had operated successfully for years were closing regularly and the empty stores remained empty. Blaming the curved street for the collapse, the failure to attract new businesses became the go-to-reason for the derelict district.

The curved road was straightened. The paving stones were lifted and removed. The straight road was made cyclist friendly and to encourage parking cutouts were created. No shoppers appeared. The neighbourhood residential density was said to be too low to support a business district. High-rise apartment building were encouraged and today the old East London shopping area is in the shadow of a number of high-rises.

The street is quieter today than it has ever been. More stores are empty and boarded up than at anytime in the past. The parking cutouts sit empty most of the day and the only thing one can say with assurance about the residents in the high-rise apartments is that they do not frequent the old East London core.

COVID took down the St. Regis

 

The exact date when the building housing the St. Regis Hotel and Tavern was built is unknown. What is known is the building has been a combination hotel and tavern since 1883. The present name, St. Regis, goes back 91 years to 1931.

Sadly, a business that survived the Great Depression could not beat COVID. The St. Regis closed two years ago in mid March 2020. From the looks of it today, it seems rather doubtful that it will ever reopen.

Whimsical planters for the home

 

When I was a boy, planters for the home were often quite plain, simple fired red clay, or outrageously fancy—decorated with scenes of Jason seeking the golden fleece. Today, many planters are a source of whimsey. The planters at our local garden centre encourage smiles and not discussions of the Greek classics.

Unicorn topiary

 

Garden centres need more than just a good selection of plants to attract customers. Featuring something to delight the children is always a good way to get the kids in the family on side. The unicorn tapiary at the entrance to the garden centre in the northwest part of London does an admirable job of pleasing the children and most everyone else for that matter.

It's not art.

It's called metal garden art but it isn't art. It is craft. And this is the time these durable garden ornaments begin appearing on neighbourhood lawns and gardens. Some are new but many are simply reappearing after winter storage.

These metal pieces are often made offshore in place like China, India or Bangladesh but sometimes they are locally made. Wherever these are made they are cranked out in vast numbers. It is not unusual to come across the same piece in three, four or more garden centres.

Still, people love 'em. I'm embarrassed to admit it but the cat pictured above almost found a home on my lawn.

Grand Theatre proscenium arch

The proscenium arch in front of the stage at the Grand Theatre is one of the highlights of the heritage theatre.

Good bones

 

East London is in a word—sad. Yet, as an architect recently remarked on viewing the once vibrant core street, some of the buildings clearly have good bones. With work, and a bit of money, these buildings could be revived. These could be handsome structures once again.

A giant daisy "growing" in East London

It probably goes unnoticed for the most part. But wandering about East London documenting the area with my camera, I stumbled upon this giant daisy hidden in the shadows between two building. I'm sure there is a story here. This large piece of art was no easily fastened to the brick wall. It took some doing.

O-Pee-Chee factory now an apartment building

This apartment building in East London was built almost a century ago in 1928 to house the O-Pee-Chee factory. O-Pee-Chee was a candy maker famous for its bubble gum packaged with sports trading cards. Those cards, traded by children right across Canada, made O-Pee-Chee one of the most successful confectioners in the country.

The plant was in use until 1989. At that time it was closed and the new owner of the company, Nestle, moved the operation to a new plant deeper in East London.

The structure was considered well designed with hints of Art Deco, rare to find in London. It was ideal for conversion into apartments which, depending upon the size, rent for approximately $1250 a month.

Popular comic book storeb in East London

 

There are a lot of things one cannot find in old East London but old comic books are not among them. If you are looking for a vintage Superman comic, East London is your destination.

Street art lends life to boarded up windows

 

So many storefronts feature boarded up windows and doors in East London that if it were not for the street art the street would be very dull.

476 Richmond is a heritage building

 

Immediately across from the Grand Theatre there is a wonderful, heritage building. Like many of the structures in downtown London, both new and old, it is owned by Farhi Holdings Corporation. The last report I read, said that Farhi Holdings at that time owned hundreds and hundreds of buildings throughout Ontario extending from Windsor on the west to almost the Quebec border on the east.

Street sweeper leaves dust cloud in wake

 

"We should have left on our masks," said the fellow walking beside me. We had both just left the Grand Theatre where wearing masks was demanded. Now, outside, maskless, we found ourselves choking from the dust stirred up by a nearby sidewalk sweeper. As it passed by, everyone in the area was left coughing and wiping eyes gritty with nasty sidewalk dust.

Grand Theatre

According to the published history, The Grand Theatre opened in 1901 as the Grand Opera House. The original owner and manager was theatre impresario Ambrose J. Small, who ran the theatre as a touring house for everything from road shows to vaudeville.

Ambrose Small disappeared on December 2, 1919 - never to be seen again. After his disappearance, Small's holdings, including the Grand, were bought by Trans-Canada Theatre Ltd which went bankrupt in 1924. The Grand Theatre was then purchased by Famous Players, the movie house company.

Today, it's days as a movie house are well past.

London Clay Art Centre

Much of the original streetscape in East London is gone but an architect told me that some of the remaining buildings have "good bones." The London Clay Art Centre is an example of the restoration possible with imagination and lots of craftsmanship. (Sorry about the use of a non-gender neutral word but what is the correct replacement. It has me stumped.)

My nephew and I read about the centre on the Web but we failed to notice that it is open only Wed. to Sat. from 11am to 3pm. We tried to visit on a Tuesday and found it closed. We discovered that many places associated with the arts have similar hours. Museum London and Eldon House historic home and museum are two others.

The place looked so interesting that I will definitely be paying it another visit, a midweek visit.