Reid Humphrey named Leaside Athlete of the Year

Sooner or later all news is local and so it is that 12.36, the curiously-named daily email bulletin of St. Joseph Communications (Toronto Life and others) has noted local interest in the “Blue S” signs posted on the doors of businesses on Eglinton between Laird Drive and Sutherland Drive. The photocopied sheets mean “send the snow shovelers please” or something like that and are posted by Metrolinx. It’s all good. Most importantly, local scribbling about this coded message has again given big-city journalists something to write about. “Leaside, a place where the locals notice the smallest change to anything.” 12.36 tweeted today. But unlike other lazy places we must write it so that others may write. Just essential, this trivial local news.

York University has had to tell 500 applicants that it made a mistake when it sent them mail saying they had been accepted to the University. They were supposed to be told merely that the school had recieved their applcations. The embarrassing mistake came about as the result of a “processing error” which is a new one as excuses go. But mistakes will happen. The university worked as fast as it could to inform the students when it learned of the error.

At least three winning tickets were sold in a record $1.6 billion US Powerball drawing, including one in Florida, one in Tennessee and one in suburban Los Angeles, a California lottery official said. The winning numbers were 4-8-19-27-34 and Powerball 10. One winning ticket was sold at a 7-Eleven in Chino Hills, California where people went quite mad.

Toronto’s outside workers are talking tough about a strike if necessary to get the agreement they want from the city in forthcoming negotiations. A news release from CUPE 416 says large numbers of members over the last two days want to deliver a very strong mandate in favour of the action. This follows a similar decision by CUPE 79, the union representing the city’s inside workers. For the most part much of this may be considered posturing, but it is worth noting that if the mayor had followed through on his promise to privatize garbage workers a large portion of  Local 416 might now be getting ready to work for someone else.

This happened in Manhattan. Note the cook who still has his sense of humour. “This was the most important 20 minutes of my life,” he says.

A man broke one of the front windows of the World Class Baker’s shop on St. Clair Ave West today as dozens of people waited at the shop to get a free Powerball Lottery ticket with their purchase. This video records the moments immediately after the strange unexplained attack and shows the culprit walking away, and then being arrested. We would like to take credit for the inspired tag of “Jerkpot” for this person but we can’t. Video was shot by the Weather Network.

CP24 story recounts visit to Toronto City Hall by the Prime Minister. Video @drider on Twitter via YouTube.

Blue S on door, Mr. Kortleever

Wilmar Kortleever offers a challenge to inquiring minds as he asks on Leaside Chit Chat Facebook who is putting obscure notices on the front of Eglinton Ave. storefronts which simply read: “S” in the colour blue. Wilmar (inset) says this started four or five days ago between Laird and Sutherland on both sides. The simple pieces of paper are taped to windows.  He says: “Only saw them today (Wednesday) triggered my curiosity, had a rare minute to kill between engagements, so inquired a bit. Turns out most (if not all) business owners have no clue what they mean, or who put them up.  Two people suggested it had to do with Metrolinx, but that could be the logical automatism for all the mayhem happening around here.  The most specific suggestion I got was that it signified some kind of ‘being safe’. Which is actually somewhat worrisome, because safe from what? And who is not?”