Over-the-air television signals facing phase out

When I was a boy all television signals were free, picked up by a rabbit-ear antenna sitting on top of a massive television set filled with tubes. We were only able to view about four channels but three were the American network signals, ABC, CBS and NBC and the fourth was the local CBC outlet.

There are still two tall television towers in London but it is a question as to how much longer these will  remain standing. The one shown was slated to be shut down a couple of years ago. At the last minute, it was given a reprieve.

Cable has replaced rabbit-ears almost everywhere. Television is no longer free. It can cost the better part of a thousand dollars annually. On the plus side there are so many extra cable channels. On the downside who cares as sometimes there's less to watch today with 50 or 60 channels than there was in the past with only four.

Some nights the same program is playing on as many as three channels at the same time. It doesn't take long before one has seen every episode of Frasier, Seinfeld, The Big Bang Theory or Modern Family. Other times a Living Dead festival will commandeer one or more channels to present days and days of solid gore. Ugh! The Living Dead is one series that is dead to me.

We get three network news channels: CBC, CNN and FOX. CBC is essentially a loop a lot of the time and some days it can be an awfully small loop. CNN get hung up on a story, for the past few months this has been Trump, and like a dog with bone CNN just won't let it go. Both CBC and CNN can be downright boring on account of the repetition. And watching Fox News is simply bad for my blood pressure. Interestingly enough, repetition with Fox News would not be boring but I might pop a blood vessel as my blood pressure climbed.

So what did we watch on our in-house entertainment centre last night? My wife found Roman Holiday in black and white and starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck showing on TCM, Turner Classic Movies. I can recall watching that film on an old Coronet television set when I was a boy. Of course, Roman Holiday wasn't a classic back then.

Space Scooter sold briefly in Canada

Reportedly, the Space Scooter was developed in the Netherlands, is now sold across Europe and in the States. For the moment, it seems to have been pulled from the Canadian market.

I'm posting this older photo as a follow up to yesterday's submission looking at an Ontario toy store that's expanding across Canada. Mastermind Toys was the only store stocking the Space Scooter a couple of years ago. It's an imaginative toy sold by an imaginative retailer.

Mastermind had a unit available for testing right on the floor. Online retailers can offer a lot but they cannot offer an immediate, hands-on testing experience.

My granddaughter discovered the Space Scooter had no learning curve at all. Rocking the platform came very naturally. She simply got on and took off.

I've often wondered how common these are in the Netherlands. I understand the latest model, the X590, has two speeds and dual brakes. I could see using one of these for neighbourhood shopping runs.

London has two of these toy stores

I used to think selling toys was easy. Then Toys R Us in the States filed for bankruptcy. That was an eye opener. Then the Scholastics chain sold its toy store in London to the Mastermind Toys group. Soon after that the small, locally-owned toy store in North London was sold to Mastermind Toys as well.

A good argument can be made that Toys R Us folded in the U.S. because it was bled dry by its hedgefund owner. Backing up that belief is the fact that Toys R Us is still operating in Canada. The Canadian division was bought by a large, Canadian investor and the stores remained open. Are the stores profitable? I believe so, but stay tuned.

The first Mastermind Toys store opened 35 years ago in Toronto. Within a decade there were about ten more stores scattered across the Toronto area. Today there are stores in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba as well.

Mastermind Toys is doing more than simply opening new stores to guarantee its survival. It has entered into a partnership with the WE Social Entrepreneurs Initiative. The Mastermind Toys folk have carefully nurtured a reputation for caring for their customers and for the communities in which they operate. And the company likes to brag that it is Canadian—a real plus in today's market place.

Supposedly, American and Canadian builders understand cladding

Look carefully at the above apartment. Note the beige-painted, metal skinned, insulated cladding on the top two floors of most exteriors walls. This exterior, retrofit over-cladding is very common on older mid-rise buildings, usually apartments, in London. The new cladding may be used on the the top floor only or it may extend down six or seven floors or more.

I had never given retrofitted cladding any thought until an architect I know asked why it was there. I shrugged my shoulders. I assumed it was for insulating reasons but, if so, why didn't it extend down the building all the way to the bottom?

Questions about retrofitted exterior cladding on midrise apartment building took on added importance after the Grenfell Tower fire in London, England. The 24-storey building was gutted by a fire that moved rapidly up the building under relatively new retrofitted exterior cladding. At least 72 people, maybe more, died in the resulting inferno.

I am now investigating cladding as it is being used in London. When I have some answers, I'll update this post. It's an interesting story as insulating a building with the addition of exterior cladding is not a simple job as the Grenfell Tower fire demonstrates.

A coarsening of Canadian culture

Back when I was a boy in the '50s, I cannot imagine a restaurant chain promoting a name containing the words "Fat Bastard". Not so today. Apparently this restaurant chain was born in Canada; it's a Canadian concept. And it's a Canadian concept the many of us find exceedingly offensive.

Researching this, I came across an article in Now magazine: Fat Bastard Burrito's racy hustle. It said about the company logo at that time:
"Its logo trades on the worst stereotypes about Mexicans. It features a fat man with a mustache and a gold tooth. He's wearing a poncho and a sombrero. And he's riding a donkey while eating a burrito which, for the record, is Tex-Mex cuisine as popularized in North America, not Mexican."

As I write this, I wondered if I was being overly sensitive. I googled it and discovered: research shows that the word "bastard" is generally deemed to be offensive. Criticizing the use of bastard appears to be a safe, conservative position.

OFCOM, the Office of Communications in the U,K. warns regulated broadcasters to stay aware of the 'cumulative effect' of casual swearing. But, you may ask, what is the 'cumulative effect'? These are just words goes the defence.

Casual profanity is rude, its use coarsens society and culture, while the flip side of the coin is that it even ruins the usefulness of swearing itself. A lose-lose proposition.

I still call these 25-cent car washes. Not!

It was when I was a teen that these types of do-it-yourself car washes began appearing. At that time, the mid '60s, these cost 25-cents for five minutes. A friend's father had a car rental business and during the winter we took the rental cars to these to be washed. Working together we would wash each of the small cars within the five minute limit.

These car washes today may look the same as those of old but there are some important differences.

For one thing the dirty water from the washing of cars no longer goes down a storm sewer as it would if you washed your car at home. Using these for washing one's car is easier on the environment.

And today there is not just one hose delivering either a harsh blast of water or soapy water. Today there is also a second hose with a brush at the end. Using the brush dislodges the dirt on a car's finish much better than the hard spray alone. At the end some booths now have a separate third hose to finish the  cleaning.

One other thing has changed as well: the cost. It now costs $3 for five minutes. Pop in five bucks, many booths accept bills, doubles the time.

Icy sidewalks: a winter hazard

A common winter complaint in London is the condition of the sidewalks in the city. It is not uncommon to find a sidewalk unshoveled and lacking both salt and sand. Under the bright fall sunshine, snow melts and then the water freezes. The sidewalks become a threat.

Will the problems clear up as the winter progresses? I wouldn't count on it.

A Beetle facing extinction

It was back in early July when the last of the recent run of VW Beetles rolled off the line in Mexico. Born in 1938, the People's Car may officially be declared dead in 2019. But one never knows the future. Who knows? Maybe it can be brought back from the dead one more time; this time as an electric car. But, don't hold your breath.

The nearby VW dealership, there are two in London, Ontario, has about five Beetles still in stock. One is a convertible. They are all expensive, at least they are expensive to my way of thinking. More than $31,000 for a small, four seater when a much larger Jetta with room for five passengers is thousands less.

My wife loved this little car. She didn't love its big price tag. We drive a Jetta. Bigger, more luggage capacity, even better gas mileage. It's not surprising that many thought of the Beetle as the little car that couldn't, didn't and now is fittingly gone.

Where do businesses locate? Inside or outside the city they serve?

My home was built in the mid 1980s. My wife and I have kept our garage door operating by calling Stewart Overhead Door each time it failed. The repairs were excellent. But after 35 years our door-lift motor finally failed. The bearings were shot and replacement parts no longer available. We had Stewart install a new unit.

What I find most interesting in this story is that we live in the far southwest, right on the edge of the city. Yet the Stewart company is located some kilometres west of our home. Originally the Stewart building was surrounded by farmland and I'm sure there were cost savings linked to locating there. For instance, property taxes were most likely much lower for companies serving city residences but locating outside the city.

The other story I find interesting is how the location of the Stewart building has changed over the years, and all without moving the building one inch. Look carefully at the top left of the posted image. You will see a home. The farmland that once surrounded the company building is disappearing. The city is coming.

Getting cirrus about weather

There are some things that I've learned from the other images submitted to this group; all cities enjoy beautiful clouds. Clouds, such as the cirrus shown, are both unique and found everywhere.

Before posting this I looked up clouds using Google. I'd heard of cirrus clouds but it was only a name to me. No longer. A cirrus cloud is a type of cloud characterized by thin, wispy strands. The name, cirrus, comes from the Latin word meaning ringlet or curling lock of hair.

Cirrus clouds develop above 20,000 feet (6,100 m)—an altitude where low temperatures encourage the forming of tiny ice crystals rather than water droplets.

Typically, the weather is fair when one spots cirrus cloud formations. But one shouldn't count on the fair weather lasting. As sailors often warn, "Mares' tails (cirrus) and mackerel scales (altocumulus) make lofty ships to carry low sails."

I checked the forecast for Sunday: sunny. Hmmm. Makes me wonder what do sailors really know about the weather. In my personal life, I have often found sailors to be nothing more than weather worry-warts.

It's location, location, location.

Clearly this is an old picture. It's not that old, a couple of weeks or so, but I didn't have time to post it earlier. But, I think this is an important post and interesting to folk who love cities. Why? Read on.

The home above is in Old North London. My guess is that it sold for more than a million dollars, much more. It is a fine home. It's a classic and in London in that neighbourhood it is easily worth every penny the buyer paid. But, the important information here is that this home is in London, Ontario, and that it is in the Old North neighbourhood.

If you head south about two hours to the Boston Edison Heritage District in Detroit, you can find comparable homes for much less—15% or more less.

The heritage property shown on the left has gone up in value over the last few years as the City of Detroit has taken steps towards recovery. Yet, this home is still priced less than the home in London.

And it may be location, location, location but the next word is time. The London home has always attracted a good price. Over the past six decades it has steadily appreciated in value. The London home has been not just a fine place to live, to raise a family, it's been a great investment.

Fifty or sixty years ago my guess is the Detroit home was a true bargain. Time has been kind to the Detroit home and its heritage neighbourhood. Both survived a very difficult time for the City of Detroit. A lot of properties didn't.

When I went to art school and university in Detroit many of the vacant lots of today held fine homes that proved to be very poor places to raise a family and were also very poor investments.

When someone tells you that one never loses money buying a home, don't believe 'em. 

There's always enough snow to make a snowman or two

Canadian kids wait patiently all summer and most of the fall for enough snow to make a snowman. When there was still just a dusting of the white stuff, my granddaughters managed to sweep up enough snow for four tiny snowmen.

But my grandkids were not alone. A walk about the neighbourhood found lots and lots of other examples indicating a driven but frustrated snowman builder lived there.

Now, that the drive to make a snowman has been satisfied, the big event the kids are awaiting is the appearance of the "donut" in the centre of our court. When enough snow falls that a snowplow is necessary to clear the road, the plow circles the court piling the plowed snow in the centre of the court. After a heavy snowfall, the donut will tower over the court. It will be seen as a mountain to climb, a castle to defend, a toboggan slide to run and much, much more.

Stay tuned.

It was both a day and a world away

When I was a young man I loved to take my motorcycle and later my Morgan roadster and head south or places as distant as Georgia or even Alabama and Arkansas. I loved the little towns that dotted the route in the '60s. I stayed at hotels that were so ancient that even at that time they were considered heritage buildings. 

Recently, I found this photo from Helena, Georgia. I took it using a Kodak Instamatic, in the '60s. I checked the Net and learned that at least as recently as a few years ago, the Fire Station was still in use. It looked the same except for a coat of white paint. The City Hall seemed to have been moved but the building was still standing in the photo I found. It had had a few changes, the roof line appeared different, but it  was still standing and still in use.

I loved the southern States but I have to admit that I truly appreciated southwestern Ontario on returning from an adventure. I came to think of the States as a land of extremes. Once traveling through Mississippi I discovered a town so poor that it had resorted to hand-painted, four-foot-square, plywood stop signs to control traffic.

Incredible!

And if you're wondering how I linked this image to a southwestern Ontario city, it was easy. Southwestern Ontario is cold for a lot of the year. A great many of us regularly escape the cold to head south and thanks to the Interstate highway system, heading south is easy. I can be in Kentucky in only seven or eight hours. Tennessee may be another four hours and then one has pretty well escaped winter. This picture was taken during one of those escapes.

Tracks in Snow Tell a Fun-filled Story

The tracks in the snow tell a fun-filled story. The smooth area is the result of kids sliding down the gentle, snow-covered grade. To climb the little hill for another run, clearly the kids walked on either side of the strip left smooth by speeding sleds.

It is clear from the many foot tracks that the kids carried their sleds. And although it is not clear from the tracks, I know a little boy with an older sister lives in that home. It's a safe bet the tracks are evidence that those two had a good time playing for quite some time enjoying the snow on a rather cold, wintery afternoon.

And the quiet is the quietness of softly falling snow.

I have no idea what poem this comes from. It was a line in a poem I had to memorize in public school back in the early '50s. I've tried finding the poem by talking with school principals and librarians and the like but no leads.

And the quiet
is the quietness
of softly falling snow.

A glimpse of life in London, Ontario

I like my posts to say something about the city in which I live: London, Ontario. London is smack dab in the middle of snow country and come winter kids start thinking "snow". Two of my granddaughters are excited that the ski hill will be opening in a month and all three of them can't stop talking about making a snowman. Snowperson may be politically correct but the word hasn't gained any traction in my home.

Since there's not enough snow to make a true snowman, a snowman made out of marshmallows had to suffice.

To satisfy their snowman-making urges, Eloise, left, and Isla, right, got down the hot chocolate, some marshmallows, a few pretzel sticks and some candy corn leftover from Halloween along with a tube of chocolate icing.

Soon, their drive to make a snowman was satisfied. But this snowman didn't hang around to slowly melt. He was quickly eaten, and being washed down with hot chocolate was an added bonus.

Paver Pattern

As one member, Kate Mura, pointed out, "What an interesting pattern on the bricks!" Exactly why paving stones cause this pattern to appear as warm sun melts the light covering of snow is a mystery to me.

Paving stones were very popular in London, Ontario, when my suburban neighbourhood was developed. Over the intervening decades many homes have had the stones removed and replaced with concrete.

Paving stones, also known as paving bricks or simply pavers, are still used for sidewalks and driveways but other materials are also often used, such as concrete and asphalt. And instead of using simply using compressed gravel and sand as the supporting base under the bricks, today, a smooth concrete base may be poured first and then the pavers placed on top in an attractive pattern with a little sand between and below them.

First True Snowfall and Not a Dusting

It wasn't much but it was enough to rate as a true snowfall. If your car was parked outside overnight, you had to sweep it off and once cleaned and on the road, drivers found neighbourhood roads slick and slippery. The salt trucks are not out yet apparently. It is only November 8th, after all.

Adding welcome to a cold entrance

The building is fairly new, it replaced an aging facility that has been on the property for year. Located in one of the nicest residential areas in London, old north, it is not surprising that a large part of the building is dedicated to providing residential for seniors.

The sign above the entrance says Advanced followed by Medical Group and Senior Living. I was there to receive treatment for my sun-damaged skin. I arrived with only an address but once there it was clear this place was more than a medical facility. My question was: "How much more?"

The welcoming fall scarecrow was light on the scare but heavy on the welcome. And the large Apple a Day Bistro sign indicated that there was more to this place than medical offices.

When I got home I discovered there are a number of Internet sites related to this place. First, the senior residences are part of The Manor Village chain. It appears there are at least eight of these Aging in Place facilities.

It is said a Dr. M. Garth Mann started The Manor Village Life Centers out of a belief that staying healthy in one's senior years should be easily accomplished without having to leave the area of one's home. His first Manor Village was built for, and inspired by, his mother some 30 years ago. Linking the London Manor Village with a local medical group was an natural fit.

My guess is that lots of folk living in the immediate area take advantage of the Advanced centre. The little bistro fills a neighbourhood need and the walk-in-medical-clinic is a plus for any neighbourhood.

Medical Treatment is Covered; Cosmetic Treatment is not

When one needs medical treatment in London, Ontario, for the most part it is covered by OHIP or the Ontario Health Insurance Plan. (Dental work is not covered.)

I got too much sun as a kid. Not an uncommon story to tell for a senior. How do I know I got too much? Skin cancer.

There are three major types of skin cancer: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. Plus, there are other less common types of skin cancers.

My family doctors sent me to a specialist, the specialist took some scrapings and yesterday the results were in. Three areas tested were non-cancerous sun-caused skin blemishes and one was squamous cell carcinoma. It would have been removed immediately if it were not for my pacemaker/ICD. I need another specialist. The vast majority of skin cancers do not spread. Still, waiting another six weeks or more for removal is worrisome.

The other skin blemishes, the non-cancerous ones. were removed with blasts of liquid  nitrogen. The cost? $100 plus $13 sales tax. As the removal was for purely cosmetic reasons, the provincial health insurance plan does not cover the removal. At least, the doctor guarantees his work. If the blasted blemishes return, he will blast them again at no charge.

Will winter be severe? Maybe woolly bear knows.

The banded woolly bear caterpillar is said to forecast the severity of the coming winter. Supposedly, the wider the reddish-brown centre band, the milder the coming winter. Of course, there is a more prosaic explanation; the reddish-brown band simply gets a little wider each time the banded woolly bear molts and these caterpillars can shed their skin about six times before reaching full size.

At this time of year, banded wooly bears are a common sight in London, Ontario. This one was caught crawling over a decorative squash in front of my home on Halloween. The caterpillars are easily spotted crawling over concrete sidewalks or crawling on walls as they seek shelter from the coming winter whether mild or severe.

London, Ontario, has two Costco Wholesale outlets

Costco Wholesale is big. Really big. And very popular. London supports two Costco outlets. From the incredibly busy look of  the Wonderland Road outlet Sunday, it's clear the city needs its two outlets.

I know Costco started in the States and I know it stretches across Canada but what other countries have Costco? Answer: It has over 200 outlets outside the U.S. These included locations in Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, France, Iceland, Spain, Taiwan, South Korea and Australia.

But Costco is more than just big and growing. Costco knows how to endear itself to both its employees and its customers and in doing so it locks in support. For instance, the Canadian Costco runs an annual $2500 (Cdn) scholarship competition for its employees and their children. 

The scholarship offer meshes nicely with the carefully nurtured Costco employee-focused reputation. Costco is known for offering fair wages and good benefits to its employees. A fact born out by speaking with some of the London staff. They are very positive about the place. I am more than a little amazed. I didn't expect the reputation to be true.

Costco doesn't carry anywhere near the selection of products carried by competing grocery stores and the like. But what they do carry seems to be of good quality at a fair price. Recently, Costco has been getting heavily into clothing and they are selling such name brands such as Haggar and Nygard. 

I've read stories in business publications questioning this move. Nygard allowing their pants to be sold for $15 and Haggar having shirts going for $20 is good for Costco and its customers but many wonder what is in it for Nygard and Haggar? 

My wife says the Nygard pants she buys from Costco are not available at the Nygard store. The pants are well made, stylish and comfortable but she believes only available at Costco. The  Costco sales appear to increase a brand's name recognition but whether this translates into more sales of the higher priced line is an open question.

And Costco seems to be quick to support local businesses. The Greek style feta cheese sold in the London stores is made in a small town outside of London from a mix of sheep and goat milk. It's a great tasting feta at a good price and locally made. 

These are all smart business moves and from the busy lot, filled with cars and, of course, shoppers, both coming and going, it is clearly a winning strategy as well.

Dahlias fighting Canadian cold, fighting losing battle

The pretty dahlia flowers are not supposed to survive the first heavy frost. Cold Canadian fall nights leave the bright yellow flowers black, along with the green stems and leaves, according to the experts. So how our Dahlias dodged the first frost bullet is a good question but they clearly have. Look carefully at the pedals and you will notice some streaky cold damage but, all things considered, the flowers still look pretty good.

The Dahlias are not the only surprising survivors of the recent cold snap. Our raspberry bushes are still bearing fruit and that fruit is still ripening. But no matter, the Dahlia flowers will soon wilt and the raspberries fall from the bushes. It's inevitable. Snow is in the forecast and the water in our bird bath will soon be ice.

Today is NOT feature-the-colour-brown day

Yesterday members of the Daily City Photo group were asked to feature the colour brown in their November 1st post. While searching for my brown-photo post, I was thinking fall leaves, I saw this red, wet leaf on my paving stone driveway.

The image in my viewfinder said minimalist art and brought to mind the city of Trieste. Why Trieste? Because that's the city Nora Pallavicini calls home. And who is Nora Pallavicini. She is one of my favourite people on the Net. She shoots and shares colourful, simple but sophisticated, images which are often posted as minimalist art.

Nora Pallavicini: click her name, it's a link and scroll her page. Note, Pallavicini doesn't shoot everything she posts. But she does give credit to the artists, and make no mistake, the images she posts are art and the photographers talented individuals.

And if you do visit Pallavicini's page, you might find yourself seduced by a page dedicated to Doors. (Click the word "Doors". This will take you to another amazing page.) I worked for a chief photographer who understood the visual power of doors. The paper would feature a page of doors annually just before Christmas. The seasonal decorations tied the entire page together.

The Doors page features doors from around the world. Some are absolutely incredible. Give it a visit and follow the links you find. I don't think you will be disappointed.

Cheers, Ken!

Theme for the day: Brown (but not a photo of rust)

Fall leaves sitting in fallen water, a sparkling brown mix to all taking the time to notice.

The kids appreciate the duck

Condo living is popular in London. The other grandparents of two of my granddaughters live in this complex. They sold a wonderful lakefront home to move here. The lakefront home had clear advantages but it also had one big drawback: it wasn't close to the grandkids.

The grandchildren love the condo. The oval roadway is ideal for practising riding one's first two-wheeler. There's next to no traffic. The only problem for a child of five is finding the right unit when it is time to return home.

Hence, the importance of the black-painted, iron duck. No one else has a black duck displayed on their privacy wall. Thanks to the duck, the kids never have a problem finding their grandparents' unit.

Differentiating the units when viewed from the back can be almost as hard as telling them apart from the front. But, if you are observant, there are clues: gas barbecues, planters, patio furniture and pumpkins at Halloween.

Look for the duck

Condo developments are everywhere in London, Ontario. Often condos like these attract seniors. With bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and living room all on one floor it means there is little need to go up and down stairs. Also, condos like these are compact and that translates into easy to clean and inexpensive to light and heat.

Keeping the design simple and repetitious helps to deliver an attractive selling price. But there can be a downside to the look of the units. Seniors with grandchildren may find the little kids have difficulty telling one unit from another.

Hence the metal duck perched on the privacy wall pictured above. The grandkids look for the black-painted duck and when they spot it they know they have found their grandparents' place.

Tomorrow we'll take a look at what this type of condo looks like at the front and at the rear. You will appreciate why the grandchildren are glad to have the duck.

Columbaria: apartment living for eternity

Room for the living is shrinking. The planet seems be getting smaller. Room for the dead is shrinking too. Housing for both the quick and the dead just keeps going up in price.

Woodland Cemetery doesn't push its clients to choose cremation over traditional burial but the advantages are clearly spelled out: it's less expensive, simpler and saves valuable space. I'd call the columbaria for holding the ashes a green solution but the scatter garden is surely an even greener solution.

 I  haven't gotten the details about the columbaria straight from the folk at the cemetery but these units appear to be like those at other cemeteries. If I'm right, these circular structures come in a variety of standard sizes with each move up in size offering more niches for cremation ashes. Each niche often holds up to two urns. One good sized columbarium may have 84 niches holding as many as 168 cremation urns.

My wife is not keen on the scatter garden. I'm not even sure she would feel comfortable sharing a small niche for eternity. She's a private lady and never liked apartment towers in life. An "apartment tower" for eternity may not be for her. But me, I find the concept appealing. 

I confess, I find the immediate wild debauchery of the scatter garden appealing. And, when my ashes tire of the mixing, I would be off to see the world on a beckoning breeze to become one with the world. All very Zen.

Annie Pixley: Queen of the Victorian Stage

This is a photo of the Fulford - Pixley Mausoleum on the grounds of the Woodland Cemetery in London, Ontario. Annie Pixley was a popular stage actress of the 1870s who won international acclaim for her stage performances. 

After her marriage to fellow actor Robert Fulford, she frequented the London, Ontario, area, spending many summers in Port Stanley and occasionally performing at London's Grand Opera House (now the Grand Theatre). 

In July, 1886, Pixley’s 12 year old son Thomas died of what was then known as "brain fever". He was buried at Woodland Cemetery. Just seven years later, on Nov. 8th, 1893, Annie herself died while visiting relatives in England. 

In memory of his late wife and son, Robert Fulford built the Fulford - Pixley Mausoleum. It was completed in 1897. It is one of the finest funerary monuments in Canada. For more information about Annie Pixley, and about the Mausoleum, follow the link and scroll down to the two-part documentary with local London, Ontario, author and historian Victoria Purcell.

A Silent City

I had no idea that old cemeteries are such interesting places. Woodland Cemetery may be the last resting place for ten of thousands of London and area folk but it is also filled with memories and absolutely great stories. The trick is to uncover these secrets.

Many mausoleums have value as heritage structures. These two handsome mausoleums have been standing here for more than a century. I'm positive these two both have stories to be told. Sadly, I haven't been able to unearth either one.

I did discover that the cemetery has a blog. I found an entry that asked the question: "How can we re-animate Woodland Cemetery?" It went on to say, "Our dead stories don’t have to stay that way." That may be true but you can't prove it by me. When it comes to these two mausoleums the story seems to be "Dead men tell no tales."

In researching this post, I did find one interesting fact: the Victorians engaged in post mortem photography. In other words, the Victorians took pictures of the deceased. The following is from the cemetery blog.

Over a century ago, disease and infection increased death rates. It was common for children to die before turning five. Devastated, parents wanted something tangible to remember their late children. To this end, they employed photographers to capture the dead child's image one last time before burial. 

The children were dressed in their finest attire and were posed carefully to maintain the integrity of their forms. In some cases, an infant would be propped up with a post, or held by their mother who wore a black veil. 

Once the daguerreotype photographs were developed, the artistic photographer would paint eyes onto the child’s eyelids and add some blush tones to their cheeks (colour photography was not widely popular in the 1800s because of its intricate process and high costs). The goal was to make the child appear alive again. 

Though this post-mortem photography process seems morbid today, what with painting eyelids and such, the images brought comfort and closure to those who lost their loved ones back in the 1800s.

Visit Woodland Cemetery To See Some Deer

Woodland Cemetery is deep inside London, Ontario, and yet it the home to numerous deer. Visit the cemetery and see some deer. It never fails. Some days it seems there are at least two  good sized herds living on the grounds.

And these deer are semi-tame. My eight-year-old granddaughter, Eloise, took today's picture using my little Canon point-and-shoot. The deer saw the car stop and immediately, with just a little hesitation, approached us. The young deer had clearly never encountered a hunter.

Woodland Cemetery is a multi-faith cemetery owned and operated by St. Paul Cathedral, the Anglican cathedral in the downtown core of London. Founded in 1879 on the banks of the Thames River, today the grounds have expanded to almost 100 acres and hold more than 50,000 burials.

I  believe being on the banks of the river is important, at least when it comes to the deer. The deer population rises and falls and I think they come and go unnoticed by using the river valley for cover. The river in London is quite shallow, only inches deep in some places with numerous shoals. The Thames River would present no danger to deer on the move.

Roof Top RF Base Stations Everywhere

Look at the top of the apartment building. Do you noticed the array of antennae installed on the highest point of the multistory residential building? I believe this is called an RF Base Station. Google "RF Base Station apartment building" and click on images. You will discover that these installations are common worldwide.

Many people  question the wisdom of putting these towers on residential buildings. They are concerned with people living in such close proximity to a transmitter/receiver of RF (radio-frequency) signals.

Yet, others are ecstatic about such an installation. They claim they live in iPhone heaven. Maybe, maybe not. Others say great reception is not a give; they say it depends upon how the antennae were aimed during installation.

I don't believe these towers are not sitting there gratis. The owner of the building most likely collects a fee for allowing the cell phone company to locate its towers on the apartment roof.

When I researched the question of whether or not these towers are safe, I found lots of scare stories. That said, the Amercian Cancer Society doesn't seem to be too concerned. If you want to worry about RF signals, worry about the cell phone held to your ear and forget about the base station on the roof.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies RF fields as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” This is based on limited evidence of a possible increase in risk for brain tumors among cell phone users.

The IARC also noted that RF field exposure from cell phone base stations (mounted on roofs or towers) is usually less than 1/100^th the exposure to the brain from a cell phones. Should you be worried? For perspective, IARC also classifies coffee as "possibly carcinogenic to humans."

As a flip phone user and only sporadically at that, I am not in the least bit concerned. Now, I'm off for my morning coffee.  ;-)

On a walk, backlit, low-hanging leaves a highlight

For many people around the world, the maple leaf symbolizes Canada. When I was young, many young Canadian travelers identified themselves as Canadian by displaying a Canadian flag stitched to a jacket or possibly a backpack. The Canadian flag sports a stylized red maple leaf on a white background bordered by wide red bars.

Taking an evening stroll in my London neighbourhood, the backlit, screaming bright, red leaves are the highlight of the walk. The tree in front of my home, planted a few years ago by the city, may be a red maple. I say "may be" as there are a number of different maples and telling them apart is not my specialty. I'm Canadian but that doesn't make me a maple leaf expert.

Red maples have green leaves for the majority of the year and then they turn a bright red in the fall. My tree certainly checks that box. But whatever it is, it's beautiful.

Red Light, Green Light: Not a Game

According to a City of London web page, there are almost 280 traffic accidents annually in the city related to running a red light. In an effort to reduce this number, the city has installed red light cameras (RLC) at ten intersections.

Not every car is photographed. Only those cars entering the intersection after the light has turned red. Enter on a red and trigger the RLC system. Some drivers erroneously believe they exempt if they are part of a funeral  procession. Not true.

When a car approaches a monitored intersection, two pictures are taken. The first photo shows the car in question immediately before entering the intersection and the second photo shows the car in the intersection.

According to the city, "Both photographs show a red traffic signal, when the photograph was taken, the length of the amber signal, how long the signal has been red and the speed of the vehicle."


The penalty for being photographed running a red light is similar to the penalty when given a ticket directly. The amount of the fine is the same $325 but being stopped by a police officer results in demerit points as well. There are no demerit points associated with a red light camera ticket. This may be because the red light ticket is issued to the owner of the car. It is not assumed the owner and the driver are the same person.

London: The Forest City

London certainly looks like a Forest City when viewed from the highlands of Byron in the city's south west.

London, Ontario, is called the Forest City. Why? Nitpicking history buffs like to point out it is not because present day London is blanketed with trees. The canopy can be a bit thin in places. No, the nickname has much deeper roots that reach well back into the past.

London arose at the Forks of the Thames surrounded by a dense, virgin forest. It was a city deep in an untouched forest. Whether this is completely true or not is open to argument. Some say there were always open fields and the like in the area and as the city grew the forest shrunk. It is quite possible that some of the forest was chopped down and milled for city housing. The only constant was the name: The Forest City.

Today it  is said, according to the CBC, "For every 1,500 trees that are chopped down annually due to poor health, the city replants 5,000."

An NPO ski hill needs community support

Boler Mountain, the ski hill in London, Ontario, is run as a not-for-profit organization. It qualifies  as an NPO because it was organized for, and it is operated solely for, recreation. Earning shareholders a return on their investment is not one of its goal. Improving the city by providing pleasure for residents is what Boler does and does well.

Years ago I sailed on Lake Huron and a fellow with a large yacht docked near mine was one of the original creator of Boler Mountain. Irish Ferguson was a very successful businessman and he and his friends used their business acumen to successfully create a ski hill for the city. Irish was a man who lived life fully and well. Boler Mountain with its downhill skiing is not the only recreational pursuit that bears his mark in the London area. Irish is one of my personal heroes.

As can be seen by the family name adorning the chairlift, there are lots of folk working to keep the dream of Irish Ferguson and his friends going. When I take my granddaughters to the hill to ski, I see signs everywhere that make it abundantly clear it takes a lot of community-minded folk to keep the Boler Mountain NPO going. I doff my hat, uh, my toque, to these generous people.

Boler Mountain: a not-for-profit ski hill

The chair lifts are still and the open slopes are quiet but thoughts of skiing are in the air at Boler Mountain, London, Ontario. How do I know? Two of my granddaughters ski at Boler. To ensure they are in the classes they wanted, I signed them up and paid all fees weeks ago. It is now mid-October and if you are just starting to think about skiing, you may already be too late for some classes.

If the hill looks small, it's because it is. The vertical  drop at Boler is greater than I thought but it is still only 207-feet at its highest. It seems as if no sooner are you up than you are down. For this reason, Boler has excellent chair lifts to keep lift lines as short as possible. People come to ski, not to line-up. And Boler does its best to deliver.

The best thing about Boler is its location. It is smack dab in the city's west end suburb: Byron. Boler is but minutes from my home. To take my grandkids to a ski hill of any size, I'd have to drive three hours to Blue Mountain. That's a long time for a little kid to patiently sit in the back seat of a small car. We've discussed Blue Mountain but at their age instant gratification wins.

Come to think about, when I consider the ages of the skiiers I see using the little hill, it is pretty clear instant gratification is a strong pull for lots of us.

A dream home embarking on a new adventure

It's an elegant home and a few days after taking this picture a for sale sign went up. It's the end of an era for this home. The couple who had lived here, raised a family here and grew old together here have both departed. It must be time to tie up lose ends for the family and to hand the home over to new owners with new dreams.

On a court overlooking the west end of the city, this home stands proudly in a dream location. The perfect home in the perfect location for nurturing fresh, new, perfect dreams.