Friday, June 23, 2017

Hot Plate


June 2017 - Toronto ON



You have got to click on this link to check out some of the most amazing cakes in Toronto.


SATURDAY

Decided on a lazy Saturday. But I did reorganize the cupboard with my baking pans.  I have a pantry for all the extra stuff, They had been in the cupboard by the water cooler, making it awkward to get them in and out. I moved them to the left cupboard and put most of that stuff, rarely used, into the other one.


I also used a couple of office file holders to contain the various trays. These were "acquired" when I was working.

Image result for magazine holders open endedImage result for file holders for drawers



I keep the most used pans in the kitchen cupboards.

I also tidied out a cabinet in the bathroom.

John also figured out why the Ikea under cabinet lights were not working. Problem? They didn't like the Ikea batteries, go figure...

So I'm on a decluttering/organizing mission which will continue this week.

Dinner was steak and sauteed mushrooms, green peppers and onions.

SUNDAY
Was more of Saturday. There was rain and thunderstorms in the forecast.

I tried this pork loin in the slow cooker. It was good but the gravy was amazing!
We had it with mashed parsnips and potatoes and mushy peas.

MONDAY
Monday Mural
Foto Tunes
Good Random Fun


I headed out to find a mural I had seen online. I found a few more as well.

Some photos from my stroll.

Perched outside the Shangri-La building at street level, a flock of birds is ready to take flight across the façade. The birds are part of a 22-tonne, multi million-dollar stainless-steel sculpture by the Chinese artist Zhang Huan. Up close you can see that the birds are perched all over a giant tree root

The title of this bold piece of public art is Rising. That may be a reference to the birds or it might be a reference to the 66-storey hotel and luxury condo tower that soars above them.


Left onto Queen St. where they are dismantling the stages from Sunday's MTV awards.


A mural by Birdo.



Ikea opened a pop-up store on Friday.
The IKEA Play Café will combine shopping, playing and eating in the almost 8,000 square foot space through June 27.


I was drawn into this new building at Richmond and Peter by the atrium filled with soaring x-shaped delta frames.

Known as the QRC or Queen Richmond Centre.

Architects at Sweeny &Co. incorporated the more than 100-year-old Weston factory - the original 134 Richmond - into a 17-storey tower.



Art in the RBC building on Wellington.


Some fun treats in Bulk Barn.



For dinner I tried a new meatball recipe Spicy Korean meatballs which turned out really well. When I was making them, I thought the recipe was a little boring so I added some Chinese 5 spice and lemongrass. They turned out delicious although John said he wanted more of the sauce even though I had already doubled it!

Steps taken - 9,310
Just a note these steps are counted by my phone so it only records my steps while I am walking with my purse and phone. At home the phone is usually on a table.

TUESDAY
I had registered for another session at the AGO Mindful Movement. Slow Looking: Georgia O'Keeffe. Traffic was so bad that I just made it there in time for class.
After class, I again stayed and looked at some exhibits. I focused on the Canadian galleries click on the link to see some works.
The Painter 1964 William Kurelek


I then had lunch in the lounge, mushroom rice soup and tea.


I decided to walk back to Union Station, and of course, got sidetracked with my camera.


I treated myself to some gorgeous peonies.




Dinner was Mushroom Bolognese, from the cooking class a couple of weeks ago.


Steps taken - 10,334
Just a note these steps are counted by my phone so it only records my steps while I am walking with my purse and phone. At home the phone is usually on a table.
Today the phone was turned off while I was at the meditation class.

WEDNESDAY

I headed out at 9:30 to meet my BFF for a meander around town, with Chinatown as a somewhat possible direction.

While I waited for her train to arrive I spotted this exhibit in Union Station.
TD is one of our Big Five financial institutions.
A generous donation from TD Bank Group will support The Remix Project, a local initiative aimed at helping youth from priority neighbourhoods in the Greater Toronto Area by empowering them with the skills and personal networks needed to succeed in creative industries or to further their formal education.




I am inspired by this photo to recreate it myself with my photos.




We took some of the same streets as I did earlier in the week.

An amazing food truck on King St. W.


The new and old, short and tall. The Royal Alex theatre built in 1907, the 1,497-seat Royal Alex is the oldest continuously operating legitimate theatre in North America.

Beside it is Theatre Park a striking 47-storey point tower on a site which has been occupied by a parking lot for the past 40 years. It was completed in 2015.A one bed, one bath, 600 sq ft will cost you around $600K.


We made a quick stop into Marshall's and saw this. Lots of Canadiana merchandise available about town in celebration of Canada's 150th.


We made a side trip (well, really this whole outing was side trips) to see if the Elicser mural (above) was visible. They had almost finished demolishing the set from Sunday's MTV awards, but not quite.


But just up a block is this Elicser, which has been there for many years.



We dropped into Umbra to check out the fish hotel.

Finally we get to Spadina and Chinatown. We investigate all the exotic items for sale in an Asian grocery store.

I buy a Toronto coffee mug like I was a tourist.


I had fun arranging these guys to reflect our cultural diversity!



We make stops in De Serre, Dollarama and Home Sense where K finds the baskets she's been looking for for her photo shoots of babies.

I see that What A Bagel has gluten free bagels so in we hop to get some.



Steps taken - 13,650
Just a note these steps are counted by my phone so it only records my steps while I am walking with my purse and phone. At home the phone is usually on a table.


THURSDAY
Thursday Doors around Toronto

We decided to catch the 10:30 but as we waited it was cool and felt like rain. We came back in and changed and headed back out at 11:20 when it started to pour. We decided to take our changes and adjust our plans based on the weather. Traffic downtown was horrific and we were quite pleased to be sitting on a shuttle.
The driver took a different route and I amused myself with my camera.
This is the latest library to open in Toronto.


A different view.


Flower Power by Mark Di Suvero.



Since it was raining still we went to a new food court in the PWC building that we could reach through the PATH, without going outside.
Z-teca was our choice for Mexican, a chicken bowl for John and shrimp tacos for me.
The sun was coming out so we headed out for our initial plan, to go to the market and get some steaks.
First, though, we checked out the Market Gallery exhibit.

Settling in Toronto: The Quest for Freedom, Opportunity and Identity


The Market Gallery animates the second floor of the South St. Lawrence Market which encloses all that remains of Toronto’s original 19th-century Front Street City Hall council chamber, operating from 1845-1899. The historic site presents a variety of changing exhibits related to the art, culture and history of Toronto. The gallery's signature fan windows, which once overlooked Toronto’s harbour, today overlook the main floor of the market featuring various food vendors.




Somehow we left the market with 4 steaks, a pound each of ground chicken, beef and pork and five skewers, 2 lemon chicken and 3 Asian beef. And raspberries.

I wanted the raspberries to make cream truffles. The recipe called for strawberries but we prefer raspberries.

We were invited to a dinner and a financial presentation at the Granite Club.

Steps - 8,866 same caveat as above.

FRIDAY
Friday Finds
My Town Shootout
Weekend Reflections
Toronto Pride

The day dawned rainy and foggy and remained that way. I took a quick trip for some vegetables for the weekend and then decided to treat the day as my Saturday since we will be out all day tomorrow.

I usually take a photo of this from the other side.
It is a piece by John McEwen entitled Search Light, Star Light, Spot Light. It is said to have been inspired by a quote from the author Louis Untermeyer, “God, if you wish for our love, Fling us a handful of stars.” The surface of each steel column is perforated with star-shaped holes, which glow from the inside when lit. They are reminiscent of the spotlights placed on players during sporting events. It is outside the Air Canada Centre where hockey and basketball are played.


Dinner was steak (of course, it's Friday) baked potatoes and balsamic honey Brussel sprouts. And then fresh raspberries, cream and a truffle or two.

BOOKS

Not getting much done this week. I am reading Conclave but it is a slow read.
I also started listening to The Royal We.

DECLUTTERING

Some old Tupperware containers
Thingie for opening jars
Scissors even though John sharpened it they were still dull
Red dress
John a pair of dress pants


19 comments:

  1. You have some nice art galleries and art displays around your city. I like doing the painting by William Kurelek.

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  2. That bird sculpture looks utterly fantastic. In fact, it's got me thinking of a weekend road trip. Love the murals, esp. the armadillo. Cool architecture and art and Canadian history -- and that photo of the stormy sky is awesome.

    I plan on doing a lot of book decluttering this weekend.

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  3. Such an eclectic mix of fun! I love that mug...and the organized shelves. The murals are great, too. Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

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  4. I prefer the Royal Alex to that gigantic tower beside it.

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  5. I love your collection of unique architecture in Toronto. The Rising sculpture is very intricate and delicate.

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  6. So glad I found my way here today via Saturday Snapshot & Weekend Cooking! I think we have settled on a short trip to Toronto with our sons this summer. I used to go a lot when I was a kid/teen (I grew up in Rochester, NY) but haven't been there in decades.

    I always enjoy your photos of the city!

    What would you recommend for a visitor who has just 2-3 days, keeping in mind our sons are 19 and 22. When I was a kid, we always went to Ontario Place, sometimes the Toronto Zoo. We'll definitely take the boys up Skylon Tower and I know there are some great ethnic areas of the city with all kinds of awesome food 7 culture...but it's been a LONG time!

    I appreciate any ideas on what to see and do there.

    Sue

    2017 Big Book Summer Challenge

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    1. Sue, I left left you some ideas over on your blog. Also meant to say if you were going to the CN Tower we find it best to do it for lunch, that way you walk to the front of the line, and don't pay the entrance fee. Lunch is very good and a great way to revolve around the city.

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    2. Great tip! Thanks, Jackie. I haven;t been to the CN Tower since I was a little kid, so I appreciate the advice. We have some chronic health issues so don't do well standing in lines - thanks!

      I had another question for you - we love the outdoors & normally spend our vacations in national and state parks camping, hiking & kayaking, so I am thinking that we might enjoy breaking up a city trip with a little nature. We will have our car with us - are there any nice parks within short driving distance of the city? I guess they would be Provincial Parks up there, right? It would be nice to see the natural side of Canada, too. You mentioned canoeing among islands near/in Toronto - is that closed for the whole summer or just until the water levels return to normal?

      Thanks!

      Sue

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  7. Rising looks rather fabulous, Jackie. I bought some peonies the other day, too, and they're flowering their socks off! :) :) Many thanks for the share.

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  8. Love that stainless steel sculpture from Huang, and the mural from Birdo - Toronto is quite a city for art lovers - even the buildings speak of it! That's what I missed in Los Angeles while living there. Thanking you from All Seasons for these lovely Toronto views, and wishing you a lovely week!

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  9. All really great finds! It has been a while since we went to Toronto. Though we didn't explore much of the inner city as I would have like too.

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  10. I've never spent any time in Toronto, I think you've changed my mind! Thanks for linking in to #wkendtravelinspiration!

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  11. I would love to see the exhibit on the immigration wave to Toronto!

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  12. Some fascinating sites and artwork in Toronto! Never been to Canada...hope to get to go!

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  13. We are in the same frequency. Every time I read about a new mural, restaurant or festival, I make plans to check it out. You can never get bored in that way. Toronto is so interesting. #TPThursday

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