The South Bayview Bulldog

You keep everything done up in this weather

When the temperature is 30 below the half-time act moves it, baby, and Hedley certainly moved it. And oh yes, there were no wardrobe malfunctions from any of the mighty cast of healthy young people who rocked Mosaic Stadium this evening (Sunday, November 24, 2013). After all, when its that cold you just do not take off your clothes, even when you have propane volcanoes exploding a few feet away. So the Abbotsford pop-rock foursome plus we-don’t-know-how-many others showed Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson how to do it. Hedley, incidentally, is named after the unincorporated community of Hedley, British Columbia. The name was chosen after members heard that the place was for sale for $346,000. Hedley is known for its singles “Never Too Late,” “Cha-Ching” (performed at the closing ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver), “Invincible,” and “Kiss You Inside Out”, and for the band members’ philanthropic work as ambassadors for the charity Free The Children.

Isabelle Peladeau, the sister of Pierre Karl Peladeau, the former president and CEO of media giant Quebecor, has died in a car accident north of Montreal. The accident occurred  Saturday night. Ms Peladeau was a passenger in the vehicle. The driver’s condition and name are not released so far. Isabelle Peladeau was 55. Provincial police said Peladeau wasn’t able to escape from a car that had slid into the icy waters of Achigan Lake, in Saint-Hippolyte, Que., about 77 km north of Montreal. Other reports said the car was trying to turn into a residence.

Who caved? Maybe the good guys. It’s being called a preliminary agreement. What remains? The Canadian government is taking a wait-and-see approach to the newly brokered nuclear deal with Iran. By Sunday morning, Canada was saying it hopes the words are backed up with actions. ABC 

Neighbors on Manor Rd. express the kindest concern for their evicted fellow resident Dennis Cibulka. “He’s a very nice man. I worry about him a lot,” said a woman who lives on the opposite side of Manor. Mr. Cibulka is living outdoors after his home was boarded up by the health department. He spends his nights, it is said, behind the piles of boxes stacked up on his front porch. The experience of watching someone who is of sound mind endure Mr. Cibulka’s self-imposed hardship is perplexing. “I honestly don’t know how he does it,” said another neighbor. “I believe he has a very good lawyer.” Mr. Cibulka inherited the modest semi-detached home at 313 Manor from his mother in 2004. He is said to have more than sufficient means to live other than he does. His occupation is the care of his many pet cats.  He is, neighbors say, a man perhaps in his 50s who loves to store things. Such people are often reclusive.(Previous post).

The most famous hoarders were the Collyer Brothers, two New York City men who were finally found dead in their midtown brownstone home in 1947. It was determined that one of the brothers, Homer, had starved after his brother, Langley, had been fatally injured while bringing him food as he crawled through a tunnel of junk. The home was filled with booby-traps to catch intruders but in this case Langley apparently tripped a wire that sent a heavy suitcase as well as bundles of newspapers down onto him.

New York brownstone owned by the Collyer brothers

It was a day of snow and sunshine on Saturday for shoppers in South Bayview. The brilliant sunshine encouraged many people to get busy with their errands but the pleasant weather was frequently interrupted by nasty snow showers like the one plaguing these people near the CIBC on South Bayview. Wind gusts of up to 50 km//h made the minus 3 temperature feel more like minus 10. Tonight it will be minus 8 and tomorrow it will continue cold but with the sun being a little more consistent.  There will a 30 percent chance of light snow. 

Olympic swimmer Martha McCabe will be honoured as Leaside Athlete of the Year at an evening event of the Leaside Hall of Fame next Friday night (November 29, 2013). Marhta is the daughter of Joe and Nancy McCabe of Heathbridge Park in Bennington Heights. Martha is a alumnus of Leaside High School and trained at the Unviersity of British Columbia. These days she lives and works in Toronto. Martha is a member of the RBC Olympian program and swims at the University of Toronto Aquatic Centre. Martha, 24, trains daily in hope of gaining an opportunity to swim at the 2014 Commonwealth games and possibly at the World Championships in 2015.  

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Hardy residents of the Garden District Residents Association turned out today (Saturday, November 23, 2013) to clean up Allan Gardens. What a public spirited crew. But first there was the group photo to be taken by the Toronto Bulletin. The photographer spent a while getting the 20 or so volunteers organized just as he liked. Kristyn Tam-Wong (Ward 26) was there with other blue-bag equipped residents ready to scour the 155-year-old park. But then individual members of the clean up crew needed their shots. Bottom is an image similar to what will appear in the Bulletin. Allan Gardens is one of Toronto’s largest downtown parks. It is also notable for the Edwardian conservatory (1910) and famous for seasonal displays of chrysanthemums. Some say Allan Gardens has no natural constituency or support group as other major parks do. In a recent article the Bulletin called it “a 150-year-old community orphan.” Riverdale Farm has a stewardship group as does the new Corktown Common.