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.

Once thriving businesses closed

Once East London was a thriving business district. When it started to die, the stores worked together to make the area more attractive. The main street running through the area was ripped up and replaced with a curved road. 

Why it was thought that a curved road would attract shoppers is a puzzle. It didn't. The businesses behind the curved road closed and the replacement businesses put part of the blame for the area's problems on the curved road. It was straightened. The area continued its downward spiral and most of the remaining stores closed.

Murals soften boarded-up-building look

 Many of the business which once lined Dundas Street in East London are gone and the former stores are boarded up. Murals soften the boarded-up-building look but the economic damage to the East London community is in no way mitigated. 

East London, once a rival to the downtown commercial core of London, is today an example of an urban renewal disaster. After a million plus dollars were expended by the city on the area, it is no closer to being a thriving  commercial area than it was some decades ago. In fact, it could be argued that the area is testing new lows as it continues its downward spiral. Very sad.

A bike bars window

 

A single bar obstructed the lowest windows of this apartment building in East London. Interestingly, a scrapped bike minus its wheels also blocked the windows. If the bike frames have been attached to the windows in place of proper bars, one has to wonder if this is really better or is it just messy. Maybe the building owner should have stuck with simple, traditional bars.

Original City of Toronto coat of arms in London

My nephew from the States is visiting, finally. After two years of restrictive COVID-19 border rules, the rules have relaxed. To celebrate his visit, we went prowling about East London.

A clock above the entrance of  a boarded up building aroused our curiosity. Actually, it was the coat of arms surrounding the clock that caught our attention. We took a picture. On getting home we discovered the elegant building was originally a branch of the Bank of Toronto. Hence, the City of Toronto coat of arms above the entrance. 

 

The London building is not alone in sporting this adornment. Another former Bank of Toronto branch, this one in downtown Brockville, also has a similar decoration.

Over the years the City of Toronto coat of arms had gone through a number of changes. These last remaining bank versions predate most of the changes and for that reason are reportedly very close to the original vision for the coat of arms.

It's odd to think that the best examples of the original City of Toronto coat of arms are found on former bank buildings scattered about the province. And now, unappreciated, they are in danger of being lost.

iPhone bests point and shoot camera

 

While taking a sunset evening stroll with a friend, we noticed a branch with buds about to open. A couple of raindrops added to the image, as did the warm light from the setting sun. My Canon point and shoot failed to take a good quality picture. It was too contrasty.

Then I tried my Fuji Superzoom, a glorified point and shoot. The image was soft. It was certainly not a super picture by an means.

My friend held up his iPhone. Click! He then emailed me the images as attachments. Done.

One more view

 

One last look at the shipping container-inspired office building being built in London, Ontario. An architect told me that this really is quite a feat. Getting a building of such a small size by the zoning inspectors must have been difficult. Office buildings must meet a lot of guidelines, such as ones governing access and emergency exits. Clearly, this structure has managed to meet all appropriate regulations. The architect was amazed.

It was nearly a building made from shipping containers.

The original plans called for a few stacked shipping containers. Unfortunately, shipping containers were unavailable. Still, the look of the new building is still clearly inspired by the size and shape of shipping containers.

New subdivisions have hidden walkways

Today, people like to walk. This is a fact not lost on the developers of the newest subdivisions in London. Often the walkways are finished and in use even before the subdivision itself is finished.

Deer in the suburb

As the City of London spreads out further and further into the farmland surrounding the city, city dwellers are coming in contact with the area wildlife more and more often. Tonight, while exploring a new suburban residential development still under construction, a small herd of deer darted across the road right in front of me.

The promise was fulfilled: snow!

 

Snow in mid April is not uncommon but it is still unexpected. This morning, Twitter was filled with tweets from folk complaining about their snow tires or should I say their unmounted and stored for the warm weather snow tires. Oops!

Oh well, the mercury may climb to 10-degrees centigrade or 50-degrees Fahrenheit tomorrow. The snow will soon be no more than a memory.

Snow and rain promised for evening

 

Although it is not the usual weather for Easter Monday, snow mixed with rain is forecast for Easter Monday, arriving in the late after noon and continuing into Tuesday morning. Some accumulation is expected. Many motorists, caught without their snow tires mounted on their cars, are praying for the return of warm, sunny weather as soon as possible.

Easter: a time for family and memories

Today, Sunday, is Easter. It is a day for families to come together and celebrate the future and the past. Though, last year it was a day for hunkering down in out homes that had become shelters from the pandemic. There were very few large family gathering. 

But today was different. It was a bit more like Easters of days gone by with children and grandchildren and my wife's grandmother's china. But, all was not yet back to Easter as usual. One daughter and one granddaughter were missing. Why? Although both are fully vaccinated, they were home recovering from COVID.

Flying Ukraine flags is just a start

Seeing the Ukraine flag flying in London is almost as common a sight today as seeing the Canadian maple leaf flag. I originally said more but I have had second thoughts. I cannot speak for you, but I need a break from this topic. It is simply too sad, too absolutely heartbreaking.

Vintage London: The war to end all wars.

 

There is a Facebook site called Vintage London. It carries interesting photographs doumenting London, Ontario, from days long past. Today an image taken shortly after the end of the First World War was featured. 

The posted image showed an arch, one of two, erected after the war to honour local soldiers returning from Europe after the end of the First World War. Listed on the arch were the major battles in which Canadian soldiers played a prominent role.

The First World War was know as the "The war to end all wars." War had become simply too horrible to contemplate a replay. Sadly, as we know all too well today, the First World War was just one more war in an apparently never ending, constantly growing, list of wars going back thousands of years.

 

This is the caption from Vintage London:

"Two large 'Welcome Home' Arches were constructed on the streets of London as soldiers returned from World War I. This arch was located on Dundas Street just east of Wellington Street and had to be large enough to allow London Street Railway trolleys travel through it. 

A second arch was built on Richmond south of Dundas. On the illuminated arch in the photograph we see plaques that detail the battles in which Canadians participated, including: Passchendaele, Amiens, Arras, Bourlon Wood, Cambria, Valenciennes, Mons, Ypres, Festubert, St Eloi, Sanctuary Wood, Somme, Vimy Ridge, and Hill 70.

 
As the various battalions returned home the soldiers would march from the train station to the armories as crowds cheered their return."

An American icon

 

The moment I saw this bus shelter beside the highway heading west I knew I had a picture. The blue sky, green grass, white clouds and that oh-so-eye-catching iconic U.S.A./Old Glory art all came together to create visual magic.

Devolution of a Mall

 

The mall in southwest London was a beauty when it was first built. In its early years it was so successful that a second wing was added. But time and the coming of big box stores took a steep toll. As the mall slowly emptied the second wing was demolished but to no avail. The mall was unable to fill even the remaining stores which were now far fewer in number.

It had been a high end mall, a citywide shopping destination. Today inside the shop is almost devoid of retail outlets but an exterior wall has been modified to feature a Dollarama store.

Years ago there were those who thought the city should never have zoned the area south of the mall for big box stores. Those retail businesses could have been located within the mall. Westmount is a fine example of poor city planning and the Dollarama store is a hint at what could have been done but wasn't.

A search engine sampling of my life

Often I google folk I knew as a child, curious to know what they did with their lives. Today I wondered what someone googling me would find.

What I found surprised me. As a photojournalist, the pretentious term applied to photographers who shoot pictures for a newspaper, I have quite the record of work on view and so much of the stuff on view I shot but I don't remember shooting.

Life's long, so very, very long and complex. You think you recall everything and yet you don't. Not even close.

After admitting that, I have to say finding my shot of Canadian singer Bif Naked uncovered long buried memories. Bif, or should I say Ms Naked was a sweet heart, a gentle, young lady. I had to spend a couple of hours with the artist before she went on stage. It was a delightful two hours. And her look, those eyes, that voice, Bif Naked was the complete package.

Rick Mercier, a Canadian comedian/journalist/documentary-maker (Don't ask.), spent a day with Bif Naked some years ago. I liked some of the comments made by viewers of the little clip.

• Bif is one of the sweetest, kindest women I have ever had the pleasure to meet.
• i LOVE her!!!!!! you can't get any cooler than that :) <3 its so awesome to live in vancouverrr :)
• How cute was that? Biffy and Rick should team up!
• Met her twice in person. She is as awesome as she seems from this video.
• I have never felt more Canadian! :D
  

 

Shopping carts no longer must be sanitized

 

When COVID-19 first appeared, no one knew for sure how the virus was spread. There was more fear than fact, or even virus, in the air. Folks believed the contagion might be spread by touching contaminated surfaces. Cleaning wipes appeared everywhere. Grocery store staff ensured every cart was wiped down after use and before being given to another shopper.

Now, it is understood that COVID-19 is primarily an airborne disease. Shopping carts are no longer guarded by concerned grocery store staff. The carts are used and left stacked in rows in front of the store awaiting the next customer. 

We may not have beaten COVID-19 yet but we are getting a handle on our fears.

Walkin' the dog

 

It looked like a quick way to walk the dog. It wasn't. The fellow with leash had to stop numerous times. 

Pooch, it seems, was not into quick walks. He liked to take his time. Relax. Enjoy the day. 

From watching these two, it is clear why dogs are good for their owners. Pooch kept Mister Efficiency with his rollerblades slowed down, encouraging him to take notice and enjoy the day.

Now, we know; owls don't frighten.

I've always had my doubts about plastic owl scarecrows. I thought they might work for awhile but surely the ruse would wear thin. Well, I was half right. At least, when it came to frightening nesting robins away from our outside lights.

A robin has been attempting to build a nest on the light beside our front door. It brings the nesting material to the lamp. We find it and brush it off. This little game is repeated many times day and night. Frustrated, my wife hung an owl scarecrow from the lamp. The bird was not deterred.

Then, I had a brain wave. I emptied a tissue box and ripped open one end. The box fit neatly on top of the lamp. The loop of string from which the owl was suspended could be jiggled about to hold the tissue box as well.

The result? The robin, with no place to build its nest, departed.

The lesson? Think twice before buying a scarecrow owl. The voting is still out on scarecrow hawks. My wife had one of those guarding her garden.

Is this fibre optic cable?

 

The story around the neighbourhood is that all the little flags along the sidewalk and the painted coloured lines on lawns and driveways are for the installation of fibre optic cable. The utility crews were around the neighbourhood in early January but they discovered that painting the lines on snow was very inefficient. Unbelievable.

Kids rule!

 

Why was the small crowd gathered on the court, I wondered. It was such a mix. A retired lady, two school kids and a mother with her young toddler daughter. What could be of interest to all of them? The answer was right there, at their feet: the toddler. 

Mom took her young daughter for a walk and the nearby world came to a halt. Gosh, I wish I had that power. What a boost to the ego. Sadly, it ain't going to happen. 😄

April Showers

April showers bring May flowers--at least, that is what I tell myself as the chill-you-to-the-bone rain continued to fall all day.

Symmetry is the theme; Hearst Castle Roman Pool is the subject

 

Symmetry is the this month's theme. Symmetry is found everywhere. For instance, think of indoor pools. Often, these have a strong symmetrical design. For an example of this I reached back into my files and found this image of the Roman pool at the Hearst Castle in California. The shot also shows the small pool found in an alcove connected to the main pool. Ah, once there was money, oodles of money, to be made in the newspaper business.

No excitement accompanies the sight of a cardinal

 

 

Why is there no excitement surrounding the sighting of a northern cardinal on the seed bell? Because northern cardinals are year around residents of southern Ontario. There is a reason these birds have northern in their name.

To stay warm over the winter northern cardinals have evolved some very sophisticated techniques but some, like shivering, are very energy intensive. For this reason, putting out seed bells all winter is appreciated.

 

Buying Canadian made pasta saves money

 

Some things are cheaper when made in Canada rather than imported. Pasta is one of those items. The Italpasta in tonight's dinner cost less than a dollar on sale for a 900 gm bag. Pasta made in Italy can cost six times as much and it may even contain Canadian wheat. More than ten percent of the wheat in the global market originates in Canada.

With inflation in the wings, threatening to take centre stage and push the price of goods through the roof, finding ways to cut costs is increasingly important.

Seniors on fixed incomes are facing growing problems as inflation diminishes the buying power of their pensions. One great way of keeping costs down is to design meals around the food stuffs one finds on sale.

It the items has a long shelf life, like pasta, buying lots is a fine idea. Some would argue that putting $20 into sale priced pasta beats the return earned depositing $20 in the bank.

Are charity fun runs returning?

 

It was cold today. It barely got above freezing. Yet these four teens were spotted warming up prior to going for a group jog. Outdoor events were not cancelled as often as indoor events but still there did seemed to be fewer charity fun runs held over the past two years. Seeing these teens jogging in London's biggest park seemed to be one more indication that the hold COVID-19 has had on our lives is weakening.

Red hot housing market

 

I saw this posted by the local newspaper on Twitter today. One unit of a high-end duplex that sold for $1,778,500 back in late January is now, not three months later, back on the market. The asking price? $1.3 million!

Those of us who bought our houses some years ago are flabbergasted at the steady increase in the price of housing. When I was young, we had a term "house poor" for folk whose home devoured every extra cent in the budget. Today, I think we may start talking about folk who are house rich. They bought their home for a mere fraction of what it is worth today. Many retirees have almost all of their wealth in the family home.