The South Bayview Bulldog

CGS Christmas wishes

Sarah and Claire

Nancy with travellers

Air conditioner replacement at 1387 Bayview

What’s going on opposite 160 Vanderhoof

Everyone has a smile as Christmas approaches and the lovely card of good wishes from Children’s Garden School has 21 of them by actual count. Thank you all. To the right, Sarah and Claire’s Food Drive has been part of the community for ten years and time is showing how the namesake sisters have grown. This becoming picture taken by dad Mark Jordan was posted to celebrate the successful 100,000 pound food target of this year’s drive. Below that, we have Leaside United Church parishioner Nancy with the Mary, Joseph and donkey toys re-enacting the journey to Jerusalem. On this occasion, Nancy and friends took in the Biblical travellers at the Leaside Curling Club. Ladies of the club offered shelter during the festivities of the Santa Spiel. Lower right, residents at 160 Vanderhoof are curious about the trucks unloading earth in the space east of Leonard Linton Park between Vanderhoof and Research Rd. The Bulldog mailed the picture fo Councillor Burnside’s office to see if there is an answer. And finally, they were changing the air conditioning unit at 1387 Bayview Ave. (at McRae Dr) Thursday morning. McRae was closed for a couple of hours as the workers did some derring-do with their heavy freight around the wires out front.

An arbitrator has given Ontario college faculty the same money settlement that was being offered by the employer after the disruptive and expensive five-week strike that the government force-finished in November. The sum is a 7.75 per cent raise over four years. The rancorous strike interrupted, delayed and in some cases likely destroyed the education plans of young people both foreign and Canadian. Thousands have been handed a full refund of their tuition, a surprise cost of the strike that has run to millions. In the end, the union said the strike was about the right of to “speak freely” on academic matters without fear or reprisals but the nature of the employer-employee relationship leaves this somewhat uncertain. The arbitrator wrote language which is said to please both sides. The colleges said the academic freedom section enshrines policies that “already existed at most colleges.”  An expensive saw-off it seems.

Passengers have been stuck on stopped train for two hours/@ConteJaswel

Graham Paine/@GPMedia

A vehicle was struck by two GO trains Wednesday evening east of the Oakville GO station in southeast Oakville. As a result, train service on the Lakeshore West line between Clarkson and Oakville stations has been suspended. Buses are shuttling passengers between the affected stations. Brampton Guardian 

https://twitter.com/ceconde/status/943659793092366336

Snow is forecast to begin falling late Thursday afternoon with general snowfall amounts of 5 to 10 cm by the time the snow begins to taper off Friday morning. Some areas could see locally higher amounts, possibly in the 10 to 15 cm range, under a heavier band of snow Thursday night. Motorists should be prepared for reductions to visibility and poor winter travelling conditions Thursday evening into Friday. The Friday morning rush hour commute could be particularly slow and messy — Environment Canada.

The prime minister has apologized for his visits and those of his wife to the luxurious private island retreat of the Aga Khan. Criticism from the ethics commissioner seems like a slap on the wrist. Trudeau claimed the billionaire religious leader was a friend (which would have made it all okay) but the ethics cop said no. Then, a City News take out on the bread price-fixing affair. Where the meat?  Below that, the massive US tax bill is trumpeted as a victory for President Trump but can he make people believe that?  And finally, a last look at 100 years of Maple Leaf hockey.

More than 40 minutes of daylight will be added by Januiary 31

The calendar doesn’t lie. Thursday is December 21 and the start of winter. It is also the day the earth takes its furthest tilt from the sun and turns around. Yeah. By January 31 we will have added more than 40 mnutes of daylight to each day. CBC

Lineup to try to fix Presto duds/@jenny1ofmany

Raccoon or trash panda/Twitter unattributed

Creeds new location/Bulldog

East York Hall of Fame meeting/Mary Fragedakis

Refuel Juicery open/Bulldog

Duck confit at Avenue Bistro/Avenue Twitter

Food Drive hits 100,000 pound target/stock

Upper left, a drama playing at Davisville Station is tweeted at length Wednesday by @jennie1ofmany. She is in a lineup with a Presto card which han’t worked for months and is bouncing around from wicket to wicket for a solution. We do wish you well with the oddly-named Presto Jenny. Upper right a photo of the raccoon seen in the Leslieville Shoppers Drug Mart over the weekend. No word in the Beach Mirror as to just how the management dealt with this cheeky specimen of the protected species frequently called trash pandas (and worse). Centre left, work is proceeding on renovations to the new Creeds Coffee Bar and Dry Cleaners at 1595 Bayview Ave. It is set to open Monday, January 15. Centre right we see City staff York personnel with Mary Fragedakis (Ward 29) and the tireless Justin Van Dette as they plan (plot?) the next event of the East York Hall of Fame. Then we go that back to Bayview Ave where the decorative lights beckon you into the newly-opened Refuel Juicery.  Lower left we see Duck confit, sweet potato hash, poached eggs and maple hollandaise at Avenue Bistro, 1568  Is it lunch yet?  Finally, the familiar logo of  Sarah and Claire’s Food Drive reminds us that the selfless work of these girls, their family and many volunteers as hit the 100,000 pound of food target. Well done everyone.

A Burlington man who has brought joy to families for some 30 years with an elaborate Christmas light display at his home has died in a fall from the roof. It is said that Doug Musson, 83, fell while trying to fix a leak that was affecting the display. A statement on the family website celebrating the lights said Mr. Musson was “up on a ladder trying to find out why water was dripping on the pathway which might drip on visitors to the display when the ladder fell.”  The statement said Musson died in hospital on Monday.  “Our family is devastated. I debated even turning on the lights but decided he would want them on and he worked hard on making all of the displays,” said the statement from one of his children. A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family and as of Wednesday morning had raised $9,835, already past its goal of $5,000 goal. Burlington residents pay tribute online to Doug Musson

Doug Musson

Wonderful Christmas lights

James Giles seen with mayor of his hometown, Terrace BC

Cut rate plans for the holidays

Saving the bees

James Giles (left) is being treated like the hero he is this week as the Carnegie Hero Fund, based in Pittsburgh, added Giles and handful of other brave people to the very few who will hold the Carnegie Medal. Giles twice ran into his neighbor’s home to save two young children. He is seen above with Carol Leclerc, mayor Terrace BC, which earlier this year recognized his bravery.  Then, major cell phone providers in Canada are waging a price war, offering consumers deals on data plans. Rogers, Bell and Telus are offering plans that include 10 GB of data for $60 per month for customers who already have their own device. Right, saving the bees is a national mission as Canada will limit but not ban the use of two neonicotinoids (also known as neonics) that are said to be killing off bees and important insects at an alarming rate.  And lastly, on video, the Maple Leafs have celebrated 100 years of Go Leafs Go by thumping Carolina 8 to 1.

• Non-residents make up 3.4 per cent of residential property owners in Toronto

Police are warning GTA merchants about fake $100 bills circulating this Christmas season. They have been found in Peel Region and all bear the number FKW4346846. George Weston Ltd., owners of Loblaw Companies Ltd., is saying that it was part of a price-fixing scheme on packaged bread unknown to management. It says that it learned of the practice in 2015 and told the federal Competition Bureau as soon as it discovered the decade long practice in 2015. The people who were part of the arrangement are no longer with the firm. And a  person is dead following a crash on Highway 409 in Etobicoke on Tuesday evening. OPP say the eastbound lanes of Highway 409 were closed between Martin Grove Road and Kipling Avenue due to a “vehicle fire.” The two-vehicle collision happened around 5 p.m.

Four-way corner at entry to new Costco

Work goes on at all hours on new store

Window work on integrated offices of Coca Cola

A four-way intersection has been created on Overlea Blvd at the entry to the still-unfinished parking lot for the new Costco store. Drivers going east on Overlea will be able to turn left into Costco or right into the East York Town Centre. Work continues at all hours on the Costco to meet a planned opening of the store late in February.

Street ticketed nine nights straight

There is a lively and extensive discussion of street parking underway on Leaside Community Facebook page Tuesday. It is inspired by Peter Baugh of Leaside who has started a petition to abolish the long-standing three-hour parking limitation on City streets. Mr. Baugh says he and his neighbours have been ticketed nine nights running because someone is making serial complaints about street parking. By midmorning there are more than 20 posts. One is from Justin Van Dette who supports the bylaw and says during the winter, street parking and snow tend to narrow streets to one lane. Another says she favours cars on the street because it slows traffic. While another point of view is that the bylaw addresses commuters who park on residential streets to take transit. Mr. Baugh has made a supplemental post about what he called the “arbitrary nature of enforcement of an unjustifiable and pointless rule. Virtually any objective that people *think* this rule serves could be achieved more directly and fairly with other more sensible measures,” he says.