The Bulldog

Woman, 54, victim of unexplained plunge into Ship Canal

Police say there is video showing the car that sank off Cherry Street bridge speeding north on Cherry and breaching the guardrail. It is a silver Toyota Corolla, say police, and it was travelling much faster than the 50 km/h speed limit. A woman, 54, died in the occurrence and if she drowned rather than sustained a fatal impact, it was a horrifying death. Police say the occupant of the car who was still conscious might sit in the vehicle for five minutes or more before being inundated. A cyclist who witnessed the crash tried to rescue the occupant but could not. It is not clear whether the crash was accidental or intentional.

FINAL: Indians 1, Cubs 0 at quiet Wrigley Field

New York Times 

Passengers tumble out of flaming jet at Chicago airport

Flames and heavy smoke poured from the side of an American Airlines jet that aborted takeoff and caught fire on the runway at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, forcing 170 crew and passengers to evacuate and resulting in eight injuries — AP

Curse of Billy Goat hangs over Cubs at old Wrigley Field

goat

Tavern owner William Sianis and Murphy

The Curse of the Billy Goat is the part of the lore of losing accumulated by the Chicago Cubs. It is rooted in the curse that was supposedly placed on the Cubs in 1945 by Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis. Because the odor of his pet goat, Murphy, was bothering other fans, Sianis was asked to leave Wrigley Field. Outraged, Sianis allegedly declared, “Them Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more,” which has been interpreted to mean that either the Cubs would never win another National League (NL) or else that they would never again win a World Series. The Cubs lost the 1945 World Series to the Detroit Tigers, and have not won a World Series championship since 1908.

TONIGHT

The winds are expected to be around 15-17 miles per hour in a similar direction throughout the expected game time. Josh Tomlin is starting for the Indians. He gave up 36 home runs this season, second only to Jered Weaver. He gives up fly balls on 35.2 percent of the batted balls against him, which was 32nd of 73 qualified pitchers this season; it might be fair to call him a fly-ball pitcher, but he’s not extreme by any stretch of the word. He did rank 13th of 73 in hard contact rate, though. On the Cubs’ side, Cy Young candidate Kyle Hendricks gets the ball. He allowed only 15 home runs in the regular season, good for the fifth-lowest home run rate (HR/9) in the NL. His 31.3 percent fly ball rate ranks 51st of 73 qualified pitchers in the majors, meaning he’s a decent amount better than average at not allowing fly balls. He also led the majors in soft contact rate. Enjoy the game.

 

Bell loses firm’s long-time phone # — can’t retrieve it

CBC story tells a story oft-repeated in the wonderful world of digital upgrades. Bell Canada loses a phone number used by a trucking firm for nearly 40 years. That’s as old as the rotary phone. They can’t replace it. This would be funny if it weren’t so awful. CBC

Ribbon-cutting Saturday at East York Centre grounds

A public ceremony is set for the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the renovated grounds at East York Civic Centre beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday, October 29. That’s at 850 Coxwell Ave. at Mortimer Ave.. The event will feature remarks from Councillor Mary Fragedakis (Ward 29) music by DJ Elegance, face painting and refreshments. People are asked to bring a non-perishable food item as a donation to a local food bank.

Twitter layoffs, death of frantic six-second Vine videos

Twitter is pulling the plug on its six-second video platform Vine. Hours after announcing layoffs of nine percent of its staff, aimed at cutting costs and getting the company closer to profitability. Twitter said Vine video service would be shut down in the coming months.

“Green-eyed girl” found 30 years later in Pakistan court

The memorable green-eyed “Afghan girl” whose picture touched a generation in 1984 has appeared in court in Peshawar, accused of having a fake Pakistani identity card.  Sharbat Gulla shot to international fame when a photo of her, as a refugee girl, made the cover of National Geographic. Elsewhere in Your World, ripples of laughter rolled over delegates at the International Whaling Commission meeting in Slovenia as Japan voted “no” to a proposal for a whale sanctuary. The Japanese are enormous whale eaters. Other IWC news. And advance voting has begun in the U.S. general election.

Who’s using student pass to scam TTC out of $342 a year?

TTC bosses think that many adults are using  student Metropasses instead of buying adult passes. It saves such a trickster $28.50 over the 30-day life of the pass. That’s $342 a year. Not as good as getting on the streetcar for free by the back door, but pretty good. The suspicion arises as an increase in the sale of student Metropasses matches a drop in the sale of adult passes. The issue must be faced and dealt with elsewhere. London’s tube system sells thousands of so-called Oyster passes every day and presumably has a handle on student use.

Police recover body from car in lake at Cherry St. bridge

Police have recovered a body from a car that was driven through the guardrail of the bridge on Cherry Street at the ship canal Thursday evening. CBC

Peter Robinson to visit Sleuth of Baker Street Friday

Author Peter Robinson will pop by the Sleuth of Baker Street today (Friday, October 28) about 5 p.m. to sign copies of his latest Inspector Banks novel  When The Music’s Over ($29.95). Sleuth is at 907 Millwood Rd and Sutherland Drive. Previously on Peter Robinson 

 

Lane closures at Bayview and Finch Oct 28, 29 and Nov 5

The intersection of Bayview Avenue and Finch Avenue in Toronto will be affected by a series of lane closures to accommodate road resurfacing work. The closures will extend from this evening (October 28) at 7 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 29, and will occur again on Saturday, November 5 from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. During the closure period this weekend, two eastbound lanes of traffic and one westbound lane will be open at the intersection of Bayview and Finch when grinding takes place in the westbound lanes. The opposite will occur when work is done in the eastbound lanes.During the November 5 closure, only one lane of traffic in each direction will be able to access the intersection. Regular work hours, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., will be in effect other days during the work period. Release