The South Bayview Bulldog

Wildcats (in black) try to centre puck in front of Lancer net

Leaside Wildcats lost a tough one to a surprisingly strong Kitchener-Waterloo Lancers team Saturday night at Leaside Arena. It ended 1-0 Lancers after Sammy Burbridge scored the only goal for K-W at 11.18 of the second period. She was assisted by Sarah Rettingger and Brooklyn Cole.The loss demotes Leaside to seventh in the 20-team league with a record of 12 wins, five losses (one in overtime) and two ties. Sunday afternoon Wildcats meet the Kingston Ice Wolves in Leaside.

The annual madcap dress-up (in not much) run was held Saturday in Yorkvile where participants collected money through pledges for the Hospital for Sick Children. Such things make us great. Video courtesy CBC

The challenge presented by the task of holding the global temperature increase indefinitely at less than  2 degrees centigrade is no doubt well understood by those who have now agreed to try to achieve this remarkable goal. It seems even more daunting to help underdeveloped countries re-tool away from fossil fuels. They are the least able to apply solar and wind power and the most likely to see the billions given to them disappear into the black hole of corruption. CBC

The Leaside Jr. Wildcats of the Provincial Women’s Hockey League plan a busy weekend, facing off against Kitchener-Waterloo Rangers at 7.40 tonight (Saturday, December 12, 2015) and then tackling Kingston Ice Wolves at 3.40 Sunday afternoon. Both games are at the Leaside Arena. The Leaside women currently claim sixth place in the 20-team PWHL with 12 wins in 18 games compared to the league-leading Durham West Lightning who have 16 victories for 21 games.

The new mortgage rules apply to homes over $500,000. A buyer will have to put down 10 percent of the price as a down payment. It’s potentially a lot of money but similar down payments are not unknown in Canada. In the 1970s and 80s, another time of fast growth, a home priced at $200,000 typically required a down payment of 25 percent, or $50,000. It didn’t stop homes from soaring in value. This was shot in Leaside by the way.

Picture taking with Santa between noon and 3 p.m.

There are some nice free offers Saturday on Bayview. Patrick Rocca and Valumart are offering complimentary poinsettia plants to customers while they last. There is also a Santa at Valumart as well as COBs. How about that.

Rexall Health, the re-named pharmacy chain previously known as Pharma Plus, has cut hours at South Bayview locations and perhaps elsewhere. The tightening of the payroll has rather soured the mood in the stores at 320 Moore Ave. and Sunnybrook Plaza where the wait to see a pharmacist or assistant has run to nearly ten minutes in some instances. Midweek the lineup to see the single pharmacy employee at 320 Moore numbered seven. Earlier this fall the chain got a new president, Jurgen Schreiber, who as stories in both the Globe and Mail and Financial Post suggested, is seen as an agent to the possible sale of Rexall Health. Long-time customers at 320 Moore were a bit grumpy about the delays. Cutbacks are often a sign of an attempt to prepare a company for sale.  Some of the possible purchasers were speculated about in this previous post from May: Rexall boss Schreiber seen as agent of possible takeover

Hamilton’s CHCH, which was among the first private television stations in Canada, has declared bankruptcy. The 61-year-old CHCH announced Friday afternoon by email to staff that the corporate entity Chanel ll L.P.  was broke. In recent years the station has been known somewhat prophetically it seems as Channel Zero. It was bought by Channel Zero in Toronto in 2009. At that time it was on the verge of going off the air when CanWest Global collapsed. Today’s announcement brought an abrupt halt to all news broadcasts although Channel Zero chair Romen Podzyhun said on air that news broadcasts will resume on Monday. Just what form they will take or what it means for staff in is unclear. Station statement

The City has planned a series of public meetings to hear concerns about the growth near Yonge and Eglinton Ave. related to the Crosstown LRT. The first such gathering will be in the Centre Court of the RioCan Yonge Eglinton Centre from 12:30 to 2 p.m. on Sunday, December 13, 2015. Others are planned at North Toronto Collegiate and Northern Secondary School.There are yet more such meetings to be held in the new year.