I'm Crosby!

The shouts from the street carried right into our kitchen. "I'm Crosby!" "No, I'm Crosby!"

I went outside and in the centre of our court five boys were playing street hockey. Each player, but the goalie, loudly proclaiming he was Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins. For young boys, Crosby has surpassed Brantford's Wayne Gretzky as the hockey hero to emulate. When one player suggested another could be Gretzky, the offended player shot back, "No way! He's too old!"

Too old? Ouch! I put may camera in my pocket and returned home, all the while muttering, "I'm Rocket Richard."

Colonel Talbot, the Hill

Outside of London, the community has the reputation of being devoid of hills. Not true. The western end of the Ingersoll Moraine, a mix of silt, sand and stony soil (till) deposited by a melting glacier about 13,000 years ago, runs east to west through the southern part of the city. Just over a km from my home in southwest London there is a fantastic little ski hill. It is more than twice the height of the hill near Oxford, Michigan, at which I skied as a teen. Commissioners Road, as it approaches the suburb of Byron, has the well-known snake hill and Colonel Talbot Road at its northern end has as a similar stretch of twisting pavement.

If you have been following my posts, you will know that I have been featuring my lilies. I cannot say enough good things about Horner Lilies northeast of town. I'm buying a few more to add to my growing collection of these gorgeous flowers. (This is not an ad, by the way, I get nothing for this plug.)

Blue and Gold Macaw loves the Forest City

In Victoria Park checking out the Caliente Festival Hispano, I saw this gentleman strolling through the park with a beautiful Blue and Gold Macaw (Ara Ararauna) perched on his arm. These incredible parrots are found wild in the tropical rain forests of Central and South America. Very trainable and quite intelligent, these birds are considered by many to be the most beautiful of all parrot species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classes these birds as of least concern for, except in Trinidad, they are still plentiful in the wild.

Caliente Festival Hispano

Some of the cool things about living in London, Ontario, are the multitude of summer festivals. This weekend saw the Caliente Festival Hispano in downtown's Victoria Park.

This Hispanic cutural celebration ran from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. with music, dancing, children's activities (Laff Guard Bill Paul did face painting) and , sports tournaments plus lots and lots of food booths. Yum!

Cheers,
Rockinon!

Lilies on the Hill

About a week ago I blogged about my bright orange Asiatic lilies which were then in bloom. At one point, I had about four dozen flowers screaming for attention. The reason I had so many is that Asiatic flowers stay at their peak for days. As new buds open, the new blooms join the ones that opened days earlier; together they make an impressive presentation. Now, it's my daylilies seeking attention with the first two opening this morning. They are called daylilies because their flowers last but a day. Tomorrow other buds will open and another set of flowers will take centre stage. Each year I buy another few lilies from Horner Lilies northeast of London. (The time to visit them and make your selections is now.) In time, I will have quite the beautiful presentation fronting of my home.

It's Canada Day!

Byron, a southwest suburb of London, was the place to be Wednesday night. Despite the steady but light rain, the Optimist Sports Complex on Boler Rd. was packed for the Byron Optimist annual Canada Day celebration fireworks. The Byron Optimist club is currently seeking new members. If you have an interest, contact them by e-mail at: ocb@byronoptimists.ca.

Cheers,
Rockinon

City fields Citi Plaza

Citi Plaza? I was startled to notice that Galleria London is no more. It is now Citi Plaza. A quick google and I find a blog, Urbanity, that discusses the change that was official as of May 7, 2009. I find it rather sad to see the Galleria name abandoned. The mall in downtown London was named after the famous Galleria in Milan, Italy. The Galleria in Milan was restored after it was seriously damaged during the Second World War. Who knows what the future holds for the former Galleria London.

I also found a lot of information on the rebranding on Iconoclast Media, another London, Ontario, blog. Apparently, as part of its lease agreement for a 114,000 sq. ft. call centre, Citigroup demanded the giant mall complex be renamed to honour the famous TARP recipient. In 2008 Citigroup posted a record loss of $27.7 billion and has had to be bailed out on three separate occasions by the US Treasury Department. Citigroup is the American financial services company that is paying $20 million a year for 20 years for the naming rights to the new New York Mets stadium, Citi Field.

All too weird.

Milan is above; London is right.