Elgie House, 262 Bessborough, to be heritage site

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Courtesy of Anthony Regan

John Parker (Ward 26) has sent a general e-mail reporting on the status of the Thomas G. Elgie House, 262 Bessborough Drive. He says that the Toronto Preservation Board last week voted to recommend that City Council state its intention to designate the property a heritage site. He recalls that the large property is located on the heights south of Talbot Park overlooking Leaside High School. Mr. Parker notes that the most recent residents were Mary and Sven Linholm, who are said to be well remembered and fondly so by Leaside residents. The proposed designation identifies specific “heritage attributes” in accordance with the legislation. These include “the building known historically as the Thomas G. Elgie House”, “the original centre section of the two-storey house form building with its scale, form and massing,” the “original red brick cladding and trim on the exposed elevations of the original main body of the house,” “the gable roof and trim, brick chimney and original fenestration” on the east facade (facing Bessborough)” and “the original window opening” on the west wall. Mr. Parker’s mail is lengthy and will be of interest to those who know the property. It may be read in full  on this page.

Elizabeth Smart publishes “My Story” memoir

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Elizabeth Smart 2002

Elizabeth Smart has published her own account of her nine month kidnapping in 2002, a crime that rivetted the attention of millions. Smart was 14 when she disappeared from near her Salt Lake City home. Now 25, Smart tells of her experiences in “My Story,” a memoir published this week by St. Martin’s. “I want people to know that I’m happy in my life right now,” Smart told the Associated Press in an interview. “I also, even more so, want to reach out to people who might not be in a good situation. Maybe they’re in a situation that was similar to the one that I was in.” Smart was kidnapped from her home by Brian David Mitchell, an itinerant street preacher. He and his wife, Donna Barzee, held the girl captive and denied her food and water. At a remote location, she was chained and raped. “There was a point that I stopped crying,’’ Smart told Meredith Vieira on NBC on Friday night. “It’s not just because I didn’t feel pain any more, not because I didn’t feel sorrow. It was just to keep going. I mean, it just was to survive, to live.” Smart is now married and finishing work on a degree at Brigham Young University. Her book was co-written by Chris Stewart, author of the “Wrath and Righteousness” religious thriller series, who is now a congressman from Utah. 

Celebrity “engaged” after 6 years and 3 chldren

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It’s like the weather forecast called for high levels of nitrous oxide (laughing gas) all week. Carson Daly, 40, is “engaged” to Siri  Pinter, 31, his effective spouse and mother of his three children. The gossip journals say he is “finally ready to settle down”.  But of course. What expectation would the woman possibly have of a guy after only six years and a barely noteworthy three kids? He’s only 40. (More gas please)  But now the cat is out of the bag. Engaged! Wow! Can we call Carson and Siri an “item” do you suppose? Or does that come after another six years. Such a heavy chemical giggle. (This cylinder is vintage!). We hope the two betrothed are as high as the Bulldog on an “I do, I do” dental anaesthesia cloud. 

Woman, 80, robbed at Castle Frank station

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Toronto Police Service report:  An 80 year old female reports that on Saturday, October 05, 2013 at approximately 1315 hours, she was on the westbound platform at Castle Frank Subway Station when she was approached by a male suspect. The suspect threw the victim to the ground and removed two gold chains from the victim’s person. The suspect then fled the scene in an unknown direction. The victim sustained minor injuries and was transported to a hospital by Toronto EMS. Police are requesting the assistance of the public in identifying the following described person in connection with this offence. Description of Suspect: Male, black, 20 to 30 years, 5’8” to 5’10”, 130 to 150 pounds, medium build.

The pathological, self-hating ban on Halloween

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Now a school in Port Colborne near St. Catharines has declared an end to Halloween. Instead, the administration at McKay Public School will have an “orange and black”: day with no costumes. Earlier this week a school in Winnipeg did the same thing. A common thread running through cases of Halloween cancellation is that school authorities have no explanation or reasoning whatsoever behind their decision. “Why are you doing this?” parents are asking. There is only silence in return.  How is it that a time of childish dressing-up fun is now to be forbidden in our schools? Is there a secret fear that Halloween is rooted in ancient religious rituals? Does it offend somebody (no names please) in a spiritual or practical way? Are school authorities fretful about naughty costumes or the simple high-spirited behaviour of children? The suspicion grows that whatever the nominal excuse, these decisions are born in our society’s pathological need to somehow zero-tolerance itself to a higher-state of perfection. Who cares if this spoils the fun for a lot of kids? What matters, it seems, is our hatred of the harmless way that we are.

Balloons, fireworks colour the skies across world

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The eye-catching events shown here take us from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Sydney, Australia. The balloon event is always a crowd pleaser and the weather was surely never better than this weekend. It is the 42 annual balloon fiesta. In Australia, it is the 100th anniversary of the  Australian Navy. The country has put on what it calls one of the most ambitious firework displays ever..

Malaysia pledges $36 billion petro-investment

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Najib Razak and Stephen Harper 
National oil giant Petronas will invest $36 billion to set up a liquefied natural gas plant in Canada, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced Sunday as he stood with Prime Minister Harper at a news conference. This will make Malaysia the largest foreign direct investor in Canada, Najib told reporters after receiving a courtesy call at his office in Putrajaya from Harper. “Malaysia is confident in the policies of the Canadian government and sees a wealth of opportunities in opening up the country’s energy industry to new markets,” said Najib. “There is a 30-year timeline for the CAD$36 billion investment and Petronas is very positive about taking this decision. We have a high level of confidence about Canada. “Malaysia strongly believes that this decision will not only be supported by the present Canadian government but future ones as well,” he added. Najib said Canadian companies in Malaysia also shared the same confidence about doing business here as well as about government policies. Echoing Najib, Harper said feedback he received from Canadian companies in Malaysia, such as Scotiabank and Manulife Financial Corporation, was very positive.

Sarah’s 6th Annual Food Drive delivers the goods

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There was a great send off yesterday for the hampers of food collected through Sarah’s Food Drive. It happened at Tremblett’s Valu Mart, a store which has been a consistent supporter of the charitable effort, now in its sixth year. The 2013 drive has a new goal — it wants to gather 24,000 pounds of food by October 9 (that’s next Wednesday). Last year it collected 21,000 pounds.  This year, the food drive has expanded to include six local primary schools. Long-time supporter Rob Tremblett was present with  Sarah, 11, and seven-year-old sister Claire and friends, as hampers were packed up and loaded onto the Daily Breads delivery truck. Kraft Canada  also handed in a $10,000 cheque to Daily Bread. Truly an impressive  and moving example of the important good work of all these people. All previous posts

Canadians out of jail but still stuck in Cairo

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John Greyson and Tarek Loubandi were released on Sunday after seven weeks in custody following their arrest amid clashes in Cairo North Cairo Prosecution made the statement after Greyson and Loubandi were released on Sunday morning. They apparently tried to fly out to Germany later Sunday but were turned back because their names are on a police list. They are now said to be safe under Cananadian consular supervision. The men were arrested on August 16, 2013 amid clashes between security forces and supporters of former president Mohamed Morsi while passing through Egypt on their way to the Gaza Strip. There was an international petition and an official Canadian campaign for their release. Both men underwent a hunger strike for two weeks to demand their release. In a joint letter posted on a website created by supporters, Greyson and Loudandi said they were “slapped, beaten, ridiculed” by police after their arrest and accused of being “foreign mercenaries.” Ahram