Old homes showing their age

Took in the fair the other day. It was fun. The fair association does all right and it is not because of the fair. That's only about a one week affair. No, the fair association does just fine thanks to being home to the OLG Slots in London. The fair folk call it gaming income, others tag it gambling. When I was a boy it was called illegal. Funny how things change.

The area around the fairgrounds has not done as well over the passing years. These three homes, once examples of the very nice housing available to working class Londoners, are all showing their age today.

East London, where these homes are located was a manufacturing hub decades ago. I imagine many of the workers who originally lived in this area walked to work. Others would have taken the nearby streetcar. Today the streetcar service is gone but little matter. The jobs are gone too.

It is sad to see a row of three such lovely little homes in such questionable condition.

It's fall fair time in southwestern Ontario

It is fall fair time and Western Fair in London, Ontario, is open for business. For ten days every September the fair grounds, so quiet for most of the year, come alive. There are rides for young kids, rides for teenagers. There's gloriously high-calorie fair food: bloomin' onions, fresh made potato chips, back-bacon on a bun, pizza, Belgium waffles, fish and chips and much more.

For instance, there's entertainment. The high-wire family, the famous Flying Wallendas, are one of the acts appearing this year. And of course there are lots of farm animals for city kids to see. Some things haven't changed.

(Note: This was shot with a point and shoot. I blurred the background to lessen the incredible, and very distracting, depth of field.)

One perk of living near The Great Lakes

Swimmers enjoying the surf at Port Stanley on Lake Erie.

One perk of living in London is being centrally located between two of The Great Lakes -- Erie and Huron -- plus Lake St. Claire is but an hour away.

Port Stanley on Lake Erie is about forty minutes from London. Grand Bend, an even more popular beach for families and teens, takes about the same time to reach.

Sunflowers awakening in the early morning sun

Fields of sunflowers are now in bloom around London, Ontario. I noticed a local photographer had posted a picture and this alerted to me to what was happening just outside town. Having worked for years at the local paper I knew immediately where the sunflower fields could be found southwest of my London home. I grabbed a friend and we both grabbed our cameras and we were off.

Safety: Something Londoners take for granted

Londoners are lucky. They have lots of parks and they are all safe.

Recently I've been thinking a lot about Detroit and how unsafe that once marvelous city has become. Many of that city's parks are closed and the remaining open ones may be unsafe.

When I was downloading this image from my camera I thought how wonderful it is to live in London where our parks are safe. Londoners can stroll from the southwest end of London, where I live, all the way to the downtown and beyond and never worry about entering a "bad part of town."

One hears so much about what makes a good city. I think safe parks should rate high on the list.

The little engine that could

I've shown this little train before but yesterday I was doing some tests shooting RAW with my little Canon S90 and I shot the train.

Each ride on the little train outside Storybook Gardens is but one large loop. Little kids love it but I believe more could be done. Ideally, it should go somewhere and then return. It should be transportation and not just a simple ride.

I posted more on this topic when I ran the original post. Here is a link: Simple rides, simple pleasures. This is something ReThink London needs to address.

Is this a Queen Anne bungalow in EOA?

I found this home is in what is know as the EOA neighbourhood in London, Ontario. EOA stands for east of Adelaide.

EOA was, and still is, a working class neighbourhood. It epitomizes all the best of the working class aesthetic in years past. Many of the homes in the EOA area are beautiful, little jewels. Stained glass windows and ornate wood trim adds real pizazz to these homes. Clearly the early owners took pride in their little bungalows.

The present owner takes great pride in this home. It is one of four almost identical homes in short row and it is easily the nicest home in the group. That said, all four homes have their strengths. One has a full, covered porch. The large porch on the front of the one home makes one wonder what the other homes may have lost over the intervening years.

I am not an expert but I will hazard a guess that this is a small, working class bungalow in a variation of the Queen Anne style applied to a small folk cottage.

An Ontario vernacular bungalow, maybe

The home shown today sits across the street from the cottage featured yesterday. This home looks a lot like a classic Ontario cottage but it may be an example of a vernacular bungalow.

The simple shed roof doesn't feel right to me but maybe it's original. My guess is that it was added when the house was updated and upgraded.

On the plus side it is a well maintained, heritage home. It is located in one of the finest neighbourhoods in all of London. It should continue to be well maintained and it should not just hold its value but appreciate nicely over the coming years.

The amazing thing about these little places is how roomy they are inside. Usually the door leads into a long central hall with a living room off to one side. There are usually two bedrooms. The kitchen is at the back of the home and there is a small dining room. Many folk put an addition on the back of these and enlarge the living space.

The Ontario Cottage

This particular Ontario cottage is slightly different than most. Traditionally the door is in the middle, right below the central small gable breaking the roof line. Here the door is off to the side with the window displaced to where the door usually is found.

The question that immediately comes to mind is, "Has the door been moved some time after the home was built?" I don't know. It is possible the door was always at the far right. These little place were built and owned by working class families who followed tradition but were not adverse to bending the rules a little.

For more info on Ontario cottages try these links:
A Field Guide to Building Watching
The Ontario Cottage: The Globalization of a British Form in the Nineteenth Century

Horses south of roadway, homes north

Home building is getting closer and closer to this pasture and the day is coming quickly when the horses found on this land will be gone. Apple orchards, pasture land, crop land, all were to be found south of my home when I moved here just a little more than twenty years ago. All is now threatened. This should come as no surprise as this picture was taken not fifteen minutes by car from the London, Ontario, city centre.

St. Joe's Hospital getting a new face

The St. Joe's hospital complex in London, Ontario, has a rich religious heritage. As the old hospital is being updated, a new skin is being applied to the aging, yellow brick building -- yet, it's connection to Christ is still evident. Note the cross at the bottom right in this picture showing the new look.

Byron: 7th in a series

This modern home has the garage turned 90-degrees so the double, lifting door is on the side and not boldly facing the street. This answer to the hide-the-garage riddle demands a wide lot. I rather like this home and from inside I imagine the large windowed front is quite spectacular.

There are not a lot of homes like this one. I can see the day in the distant future when this home will be quite admired for its design and its rarity.

Byron: 6th in a series

I was posting some images of homes in my neighbourhood. Then I took a short break. Today I return to the topic of homes.

This home, a very common style of home in London suburbs late in the last century, has a lovely covered porch. The critics of suburbia often moan about the loss of the front porch. Clearly these critics have not spent much time in suburbia.

The lots in this Byron neighbourhood are wider than many lots today. This extra width allowed the builder to put the garage on the side of the home rather than jutting out from the front.

But what makes this place for me is the landscaping. The home has a wonderful in-the-park look, don't you agree?