Even a snowperson needs to sit down

Years ago when we were all making the switch from fishermen to fishers, from mailmen to mail carriers, from manhole cover to access cover, I handed a picture of a snowman in to the desk at The London Free Press. An argument ensued over what to call the snowman in the paper. Should he, it, be referred to as a snowperson?

I got snowman into the paper by assuring the desk that the snowperson pictured was truly a snowman. With today's picture, I am not so sure of sex, I'm not sure who wears the pants in snowperson culture, and so I am going with snowperson. I don't wan London Daily Photo to be a sexist blog.

Storybook Gardens skating

I'm one of those Londoners who still loves Storybook Gardens. I especially like the park in the winter with its skating trail making a curved loop about a quarter of a kilometre long through the trees and bushes, past the Storybook exhibits and the seal pool.

Illuminated by festive holiday lights, it really is the prettiest skating location this side of Ottawa. (One person with whom I chatted came from Ottawa and said that it really did remind them of skating on the Rideau Canal.)

You don't even have to own your own skates; There are rental hockey and figure skates available in the Storybook castle.

Note: Children under 5 years-of-age must wear a helmet. No hockey sticks, pucks or balls are permitted on the skate trail, nor are sleds or toboggans. Strollers and wheelchairs are permitted but people are asked to clean the wheels of any debris before heading onto the ice.

Yes, there are seals in London Ontario.

It may be cold in London Ontario at this time of year but for harbour seals the water's fine. In the wild they are commonly found in the cold coastal waters of the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

There are seven harbour seals presently swimming about the Storybook Gardens pool.

According to the park's Website, if you come by the park any day at 2:00 p.m., you’ll find the staff feeding the seals their favourite dinner: Fish.

The site also states that the harbour seals Loki, Cricri and all the others were born in captivity and can’t live in the wild. They want their dinner hand delivered. Maybe it's a good life; I don't know.

Hooded Merganser

The little duck in the bottom centre of this picture is a hooded merganser. It was an uncommon visitor to the pond in Springbank Park and a gentleman with a big camera pointed this out to me. I thank him for the tip.

Hooded mergansers have a crest at the back of the head which can be expanded or contracted. In adult males, this crest has a large white patch. It can be quite an impressive display.

Hooded mergansers are short distance migrants and winter in the United States and southern Ontario wherever winter temperatures allow for ice free conditions on ponds, lakes and rivers.

Dominion Public Building

The two architecturally impressive Richmond St. entrances to the Dominion Public Building are both missing their original ornate doors. I think this picture tells the story.

Cheers,
Rockinon

Dominion Public Building

As promised, here is the exterior of the Dominion Public Building.

According to Canada's Historic Places, the DPB is classified as a Federal Heritage Building erected under the Public Works Construction Act of 1934. In an effort to alleviate the worst effects of the Great Depression the Federal Government allocated 40 million dollars to public works, generating employment and stimulating the economy. The Dominion Public Building is one of the more prominent of the 26 buildings erected under this Act.

An excellent example of modern classicism, a variant of the Art Deco style, the reinforced concrete building is both functional and beautiful.

The original ornate brass doors at the two front entries are gone; I was told they were too difficult to keep shiny, too labour intensive. As I said yesterday, the large art deco lamps inside are now replicas, with the original lamps being lost in storage. Some 1930s decorations are still in place, and the brass elevator doors are wonderful and probably irreplaceable today.

Dominion Public Building

It's called the Dominion Public Building and when I moved to London thirty some years ago it was the main downtown post office. Coming up we will have a look at the outside of this fine art deco structure but today we are seeing the replica art deco lighting. That's right, replica.

It seems that at one point in this building's life, it was decided to remove the original art deco ceiling lights. They were sent to Ottawa for storage. Years later it was decided to restore a bit of the building, bringing it back to its original elegance. Word went out to have the removed ceiling lights returned. But, the valuable lights were nowhere to be found.

The replicas are not bad but up close they look like what they are - replicas. As for the rest of the aging restoration, much of it has been allowed to deteriorate. The post office is gone, the counters removed and the space crudely divided and dedicated to other uses.