The South Bayview Bulldog

A British cat survived eight days in the mail after she was accidentally sealed in a box of DVDs and sent 400 miles. “Cupcake” travelled from Cornwall to West Sussex.  She was severely dehydrated when she reached her destination, but otherwise okay.  Nine lives indeed.

Mr.Ford’s wife Renata with children Dougie, 8 and Stephanie 10, at City Hall

A full day of sombre reflection on the service to Toronto by former mayor Ford will be followed tomorrow by similar honours. Some 2,500 paid their respects Monday as his casket rested in the heart of City Hall, the Main Rotunda. Mr. Ford died last week after a struggle with a difficult form of soft tissue cancer. Among the many citizens young and old were members of  the Don Bosco Catholic High School football team who were coached by Mr. Ford. Many photos of the mourners are posted on Twitter.  Dan Jacobs, chief of staff for Ford, said members of Ford’s family greeted mourners who came to the Rotunda. The lineup stretched out the front door of City Hall.  Jacobs said members of Ford’s family will be back Tuesday, when Ford will lie in repose from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. The casket arrived at Nathan Phillips Square just after 8 a.m.  Monday.Jacobs said he has been urging family members to take breaks from the “emotionally draining” process in the rotunda. Live link to Rotunda courtesy of CTV

Wally Crouter has died at the age of 92. He was a radio legend in Toronto, working as the morning host of CFRB (now NewsTalk 1010) for 50 years. The Deer Park neighborhood remembers him still with Wally Crouter Lane, the walkway from Yonge Street to the parking lot on Alvin Ave. Crouter held sway at two of CFRB’s famous locations. One was the then Proctor and Gamble building at Yonge and St. Clair and before that at the station’s long-time studios over Stollery’s at Yonge and Bloor Streets. Although Crouter had a simple style, his folksy manner and rich voice won him a huge following. He was beloved both as a constant radio companion and a notorious night owl among radio associates. His former employer said Monday that he had passed away peacefully in his sleep. Wally Crouter was born on August 5, 1923 in Lindsay and joined CFRB on November 1, 1946 after a brief stint with CHEX in Peterborough. Crouter retired exactly 50 years later on November 1, 1996. He was later inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. Prior to his career in radio, Crouter served with the Canadian Army in World War II.

A streetcar went off the track at Broadview Ave. and Dundas Street early Monday. TTC says it was “a switch problem.” City News tweeted these pictures.

Bloomberg News has analysed the widely-heralded arrival of cage-free eggs at supermarkets and fast food places and what they found was that retailers at least stand to make a killing (so to speak) with cage-free eggs. After the first costs are dealt with it looks like cage-free eggs will cost only about fifteen cents per dozen more to produce but retailers can — and will — charge double for them. Yes friends, it’s a lot like the organic food gold mine. And no doubt it is worth it to some consumers. The chickens?  Well who knows what the life of a chicken is really like? Bloomberg examined the rush in recent months for retailers to join the cage-free egg party. Most companies, especially the biggest ones with the most complex supply chains, plan to hit 100% cage-free as far as 10 years out. That’s because they must wait for existing supply contracts to run out and supply chain changes. Bloomberg 

As of today, it is illegal to hand write a prescription in New York State and doctors who continue to do that face a fine. Physicians will be required to work with drug stores to email scripts. It will cut down on inaccuracies but is mainly aimed at the drug fraud that flourishes with paper prescriptions in New York City and elsewhere. The system is being lauded by authorities as easier for the patient because there is no trip to the pharmacy. The actual command system of electronic prescriptions is not clear but presumably patients will not be required to give the doctor the pharmacy email address. It seems likely some form of drug industry clearing house will be required. Still, it seems email prescriptions will eliminate errors at the dispensing counter.

The long-standing tradition of the Beaches Lions Club was a repeat crowd pleaser this year,.where many people insist there is just one Beach, not several. Even so, it is the Beaches to most.  Either way, Rick Madonick took some pleasant pictures for the Toronto Star 

Police are trying to make some sense of the death of a man, badly injured in some way and  wrapped in a sheet near Passmore Road and State Crown Blvd in Scarborough Sunday. They were called to the scene by someone who was cleaning up in an open area. They began life-saving measures but the man succumbed to his injuries.

The girls hockey Panthers of Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute have distinguished themselves and honoured the old school at 125 Chatsworth Drive by winning the provincial girls high school hockey championship. The Panthers beat Guelph Centennial Spartans 3-0 March 9, 2016 in Stratford. This was the scene of the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) finals. The OFSAA gold was particularly rewarding because it was first time a Toronto and District School Board school had won the championship. Understandably, coach Karen Daigle had praise for Panthers netminder Samie Gorman who stopped everything the Spartans fired at her. The Panthers are Lucy Birrell, Maddie Carew, Grace Doris, Leah Ellement, Samie Gorman, Emily Harper, Quinn Johnston, Julia Keogh, Megan Killeen, Veronica Moore, Emily Morgan, Natali Robinson, Jamie Samson, Riley Samson, Michelle Scully, and Riley Smith (a PWHL veteran with Etobicoke). .The Coaches are Karen Daigle and Colette Scully. Norm Nelson has a longer treatment of the story here.

The heavy rain warning issued earlier Sunday has now been called off for the GTA. Heavy rain is still expected to the north. It will be some what soggy here according to the Weather Network, but much more manageable. Current forecast below.

The championship game between Peewee AA girls teams in the Females for Hockey Nova Scotia league had to be called off Saturday after a staggering seven periods of overtime when it was unable to break a 1-1 tie. Parents and officials were concerned as the marathon match went on and on that the young players — 10 and 11 years — were at the limit of their physical and psychological capacity. The league declared co-champions and sent everyone home. Peter Twohig, regional director for Females for Hockey Nova Scotia said  “I’ve seen a lot of triple overtime games, but I’ve never seen anything like I watched today.”

DUCKS VS SELECTS

The game was for the Peewee AA championship between the TASA Ducks of Tantallon and the Pictou County Selects. The game started at 11 a.m., and was finally called at about 3:30 p.m., after the seventh 15 minute overtime period. “It was amazing to me to watch throughout overtime. They were playing with heart and determination. They’re really exceptional athletes,” said Twohig. There had been no scoring since the second period. The girls were given oranges and other sustenance to keep them going through each 15-minute period, but eventually parents and coaches began to worry about the girls’ safety, Twohig said. “By the time it got to the 7th overtime, it was getting clear to me a lot of the girls were at their limit — their physical limit, and also their psychological limit too.” Hockey Nova Scotia has no rules on how to handle such circumstances. Twohig consulted with league officials, and they decided to end the game after 10 periods. Stephen Murray, director of female hockey in the province, said they initially thought they would schedule another championship game later.

SHOOTOUT VS OT

“We’re not going to settle it by way of a shootout, it just doesn’t seem fair to these kids,” said Murray. That’s a judgement not shared by minor hockey organizations elsewhere. Shootouts are the accepted way of deciding a match in Ontario minor hockey. At the recent March Madness Tournament sponsored by the Wildcats Hockey Association, Atom teams (10 and under) from Nepean and Leaside battled to a 1-1 tie after three regular periods and an overtime period of five minutes. It then took three shootout rounds for Nepean to win 2-1. The emotional toll on some of the Leaside girls was evident. They were all fine a few minutes later at the silver and gold awards but parents would probably conclude that the game ended when it should have.  It’s tough to lose a game in a 3-round shootout

The former TDSB director received $272,000 in salary and a payout for unused sick days of $315,000.  CBC