The South Bayview Bulldog

Many friends of Aristotle & McGregor’s at 525 Mt. Pleasant Rd. have written to express their regret on the pub’s closing. Owner “Joe” wrote to his customers on July 16 on Facebook to say he planned to move on to other ventures after a long career as a publican. He wrote in closing: “I want to thank everyone for the great memories and friendships that we made. I hope to see all of you in the near future. Joe.”

“Attractive” trailer

Open to all

Can’t miss it

Amid the fury of residents and the patronizing responses from City Hall about the unlovely kayak rental concession on the eastern Beach, the question must be asked: “Why does the Beach need a kayak rental?” Or, for interested Leaside residents: “Why does Trace Manes Park need a kite rental trailer?”  Relax. There is no such kite rental planned for the Millwood Rd. park nor for Davisville Park, or anywhere around South Bayview (so far as we know). But the question puts the justification of the kayak trailer rental into perspective. Mary-Margaret McMahon (Ward 32) says it’s so the Beach can be shared. “We’re very spoiled in the Beach. We view it as our backyard, but it’s for the GTA, for Ontario,” she told the CBC. She says businesses like the kayak rental help to “animate” the area, making it more attractive to visitors. So there you are. Our quiet otherwise non commercial places — beaches, parks and perhaps even ravines — need to be animated by tacky trailer businesses to make them attractive. They’re already open and available to everyone — just like the Beach — but not attractive enough. Drop a trailer in there. Maybe its the Beach air or just a City Hall state of mind but Councillor McMahon seems quite detached from her spoiled constituents.

Friends of Norma Innell may pay respects to the long-time Ranleigh Ave. resident on Wednesday, July 26 from 3 to 7 p.m. at Humphrey’s. She and her husband Harold, who predeceased her, raised their two sons there. Mrs. Innell remained active to her final days, volunteering to serve tea and lunch to fellow seniors two days before her passing. Obituary

Graduates of Leaside High School class of 1957 met in June at Fantasy Farm in the Don Valley and posed for this truly wonderful picture. Alumnus Peter White set it up and then dashed into the rear row. Front Row: Anne High (Shields), Sally Hergert (White), Greg Kasparian (School Captain), Jackie Hough(Williams) and Ron Williams. Back Row: John Cowan, Gary Hodgins, Stan Litch, Marie Allen (Plummer), Stewart Halliday, Peter White, Al Pounsett, Betty Pounsett, Nancy Doige (Wahlroth), Don McCrossan, Joy Bingley(Upland), David Martindale, Marie Ellis(McCready), Liz Brown (Fletcher),Doug Linton, Barb Ferguson (Bassett) and Ellen Phin (Thompson).

Lillies

Echinacea

New this week

Nancy Lewis

East York horticulturist Nancy Lewis is an active gardener who shares her lovely work on Instagram. nancyalewis

Shattered motorcycle

Struck broadside

A middle-aged woman has been seriously injured in the collision of her motorcycle with an SUV at the intersection of Albion and Islington Rds. Saturday night in northern Etobicoke  She is in Sunnybrook HSC. Photos seen above were posted by DR@media371 to Twitter about 11.45 p.m. Albion and Islington is a wide intersection with traffic lights.

The extension project and renovation at 111 Airdrie Rd. (door on Hanna Rd.) is proceeding. The City fencing to save trees is also used to protect the lawn and landscaping along Hanna.

Toy gun

Real knife

Macchiato Chair

This occurred in Fresno California and while police say the gentleman with the chair is a hero, they don’t recommend it. Good for free coffee though.

A sad dispatch from the Midtown traffic trap comes from a driver who was sent literally in a circle as he tried to get across Yonge St from east to west during rush hour. Construction at Yonge and Chaplin/Davisville has cancelled left turns west. The next legal left is at Berwick Ave.  From here it is normally possible to turn right on Duplex and left on Eglinton to then head west. But no. Construction on Duplex required all traffic to go south again past many westbound streets where right turns are forbidden. Welcome back to Chaplin Crescent.

Perfect circle

Metrolinx will cut Bombardier out of a little-understood contract in which the Montreal firm has a role in the operation of GO and UP trains, says Canadian Press. Bombardier has apparently had this arrangement for decades — the history is not stated — and collected $100 million taxpayer dollars annually for the work. CP says Metrolinx announced it will seek new operators to take over the commuter and airport rail services after the current contract expires in 2023. The winning bidder to be chosen in about a year will first review the current operations by Bombardier and two other Canadian companies and then operate the services as it quadruples in size to 6,000 trains a week from 1,500. At the same time, Metrolinx more or less surrendered to dealing with Bombardier for the delivery of LRT vehicles after a court found that the train maker had not breached its contract, notwithstanding its late and sloppy performance.

St. Lawrence Market is open Saturday with the help of back up power provided by a generator which was brought in after the old building went off grid about 2 a.m. Early shoppers arriving for the official 5 a.m. start of the market found the place in darkness. Lights came back on about 8 a.m.

Shipping firm FedEx has decided to close all 24 of its retail office stores in Canada. It seems to be the end of a losing battle against more numerous UPS locations. Some 214 people will be out of work at FedEx. It will continue to ship within Canada but its copy and office supply stores will close Aug.18. The nearest store to South Bayview is on the east Danforth.