April 2 Saturday at the beach

Mosaic coffee table at Origin/Kevan Menager

1220 Bayview Ave/Bulldog

Sorry, broken toys are gone/Itag Poleg

Retaining wall on Wicksteed Ave/Bulldog

It’s still pretty chilly but a bunch of young pals was out on Woodbine Beach Saturday for some spirited fun. They were discovered and recorded by Clara Tucker and posted to a private page. Then at upper right we see a remarkable mosaic coffee table at Origin Coffee, 687 Mt Pleasant Rd. Kind of fun. At centre left, the old mid-rise apartment at 1220 Bayview Ave (enter off Moore Ave) is holding its title as cell tower central. This scene is from Thursday when traffic was backed up to Mt. Pleasant all day while the 5G skywalkers did their thing. At centre right we see the sad note left by the City at Mona Piper Playground telling parents that much-loved toys have been removed because they were broken. Finally, at the bottom, we see how construction along the north side of Wicksteed Ave is changing the size of Lake Leaside. Look at that retaining wall. Your guess is as good as ours as to what Wicksteed will look like in a year.

After going unclaimed for weeks, the whopping $70 million jackpot in Friday’s Lotto Max draw has been won by a lottery player in the Prairies. The exact location of where the ticket to riches was sold has yet to be revealed. The draw also included 40 Maxmillions of $1 million each, and 12 of them were claimed, with that prize money being shared amongst 18 winning ticket holders across the country. By Prairies, Lotto Max means Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

The promise

The reality

The Federation of North Toronto Residents Associations, including the Leaside Residents Association, is urging homeowners to demand that the City’s recent approval of so-called Garden Suites be withdrawn and rewritten. Many other residents groups also oppose the legislation. Council voted with only five dissenters on February 2 to permit the building of houses in backyards. No appeal is permitted. Many see it as a sea-change in the composition of single-family neighbourhoods and are girding for the onslaught of cheap name-calling that is hurled at anyone who dares to object to what’s happening next door. Research suggests that the backyard home legislation is appealing to people who buy homes for investments. It raises memories of what was known as neighourhood busting in 1970s Toronto. It’s not recorded whether former Mayor David Crombie, who tackled the problem, was denounced as a NIMBY. Homeowners are invited to send mail to their Councillor.

Governor General Mary Simon

A 21-gun salute has echoed across the City as Governor General Mary Simon was received at the Ontario Legislature. The cannons were heard in neighbourhoods north of Eglinton in some cases.

Lots of different brands

Bears say goodbye, but why?

Kraft announced that the two cuddly bears on the front of its peanut butter jars would soon be gone. It was an April Fool’s joke published a full 24 hours in advance. We fell for it but then, it might just as well have been announced on February 15 or July 1, for that matter. Maybe they’ll give the sales receipts to charity.

Tien Ly, 46

Dallas Ly, 20

Toronto Police have identified the woman whose body was found partly dismembered near the corner of Eastern Ave and Berkshire Ave about 1.30 p.m. Monday afternoon. The remains of Tien, Lym 46, were in a plastic bag. Now police are seeking her son, Dallas Ly, 20, and say they are concerned for his well being.

Belsize Drive

The long-time residents association known as SERRA (South Eglinton Ratepayers and Residents Assocation) has changed its name to better reflect the area it represents. Its new name is South Eglinton Davisville Residents Association or SEDRA. Here are the executives of the newly renamed body.

The huge municipal union known as CUPE 79 is struggling with allegations of under-the-table payoffs between its two top executives as described below in a tweet Wednesday from the Toronto Star. They are David Mitchell and Jason Chan. CUPE 79 members serve as nurses, planners, clerks, social service employees, cleaners, court services staff, ambulance dispatchers, child care worker,s and many other occupations.

CUPE National asked for the resignations after being informed by OMERS that it had probed concerns that Chan — who sat on the OMERS “Sponsors Corporation” board — had been forwarding a portion of his $46,000 “annual retainer” for board duties to Mitchell.https://t.co/0P6i3CjWMQ

— Toronto Star (@TorontoStar) March 30, 2022

Eastern Ave and Berkshire Ave

Police have reported a grisly discovery of a woman’s partly dismembered body in a garbage bag at or near the corner of Eastern Ave and Berkshire Ave Monday afternoon. The victim is described as having a light complexion, 5’2″, 118 lbs. with short dark shoulder-length hair. The woman’s remains have distinctive green-painted fingernails. She wore an Armani Exchange shirt (see pictures below). Investigators are appealing to members of the public who were in the area of Berkshire Avenue and Eastern Avenue between 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., who may have observed anyone pushing a foldable shopping cart filled with black waste bags to contact police immediately. Anyone driving in the area at that time with a dashcam is urged to contact the Toronto Police  Homicide Uni at (416) 808-7400. Local Facebook comments

Painted fingernails and toenails

Armani shirt

A special weather statement warning of freezing rain is in your Wednesday forecast. We’ve had a bit of a false start to Spring but Thursday’s high of 15º Celius may hold more promise for a stretch of better weather.

Kids with cancer land in Toronto

Will Scotland be my new home?

“I hear it is very beautiful”

Is there any sanity at all left in the world? Late reports say that Russia will scale back attacks on the Ukrainian capital as talks continue. The heartbreaking cost of Putin’s apparent megalomania is seen among the children being housed in adjoining countries like Poland and Romania. Five Ukrainian kids with cancer are now at the Hospital for Sick Children. And a planeload of orphans has arrived in Scotland. It was a huge challenge to get them there.