June 2023 - Toronto ON
MAY 2023 - YONGE ST. TORONTO
The weekend passed as ours usually do, chores, relaxing and doing what we feel like.
We did complete our mail-in ballots for the mayor of Toronto. For once, we voted differently.
Why are we having an election? Well, John Tory (mayor) announced his intention to imminently resign as mayor on February 10, 2023, after admitting to having an affair with a staffer during the COVID-19 pandemic.
John did a run to the liquor store to pick up some canned beverages for his golfing buddies.
We had ordered some racks for the wine drawer, to stop them rolling around and making noise!
Monday Mural was from my visit to Stackt a couple of weeks ago.
Monday was a totally rainy dark day with accidents everywhere, sirens never stopped.
This one took most of the day to clear, we could see it from the window.
We decided on a movie popcorn afternoon.
Tuesday Treasures took us to St. Lawrence Market and the history of the North building.
I met my BFF at Union Station and then we went for lobster rolls.
While I waited for the bus, new chairs were being set up around the condo grounds.
Union Station
Janice Toulouse painted Jiimaan – Canoe in preparation to symbolically travel on my long journey to my homelands in Northern Ontario. I was asked why this canoe was not typically horizontal, and I replied, at times in our lives the waters are rough and we paddle past the rapids towards calm waters. The painted symbols came to me spontaneously connecting the ancient with the new.
Wednesday morning we went for breakfast before John went golfing.
John had an omelet and I had a poached egg on avocado toast. The potatoes were delicious and hot. I would have preferred a sourdough to a regular white slice for the toast.
We stopped to get some herbs and geraniums for the balcony. This was next door.
These will need to be planted at some point.
We have been searching for a photo for our kitchen, but then we moved one we already had!
I went to College Park to find another Luminato exhibit, cutting through Union.
At once buoyant and imposing, Echoes Calling Back by Jordan Bennett will transform pedestrians’ experience of a familiar and well-trodden urban site. The piece may serve as a meeting place, a shelter, a source of joy, or a symbol of our region’s living history.
Exploring the ancient relics of North American mega-fauna and using Bennett’s signature graphic style evocative of porcupine quill work found in Mi’kmaq visual culture, this whimsical antler imagines a playful remnant from a distant past, and will remind us that what we now call Toronto was uncolonized and teeming with life stewarded by Indigenous nations of the territory.
Royal York Hotel decked out for pride.
Just hanging outside the hotel.
Plants waiting patiently to be potted.
Thursday I had to be up at 6 so I did not sleep well. I caught the 7AM (gasp) bus downtown for jury duty. I had to be there for 8:30 so I left early in case of traffic. I ended up getting downtown at 7:30, then walked to the subway with a fellow passenger, took the subway to St. Patrick and walked down to the courthouse and arrived at 7:50. It was a beautiful morning so I wandered taking photos.
University Avenue is a majestic row of buildings on a wide boulevard. There are embassies and it is also known as Hospital Row.
I have written about it often.
The bottom of this building was the
Royal Canadian Military Institute (RCMI) built in 1907. While updates to the century-old building were made throughout the years, there were concerns about its declining state. In 2010, the Royal Canadian Military Institute (RCMI) closed its doors for redevelopment that would become
Residences at the RCMI, a 42-storey condominium tower.
In 2014 The Royal Canadian Military Institute moved back into its rebuilt space, along with residents of the 315 condominium units located in the tower above.
Canada Life Building.
361 University Ave. (1967) Superior Court of Justice is a superior court of criminal jurisdiction that has the power to try any indictable offence under the Criminal Code of Canada.
There were approximately 150 people who were summoned that day from all walks of life.
We were shown this video, Jury Duty and You, which gave you good information and provided charts of the courtroom.
I did some random chores, contacted the blinds guy (he will come by on Tuesday) and reminded the contractor I wanted to get a quote from the electrician.
At 10 we were taken to a courtroom and I was selected at random and ended up as a juror. On Thursday we were given our instructions and required to report on Friday at 9:30.
Lunch was a hot dog at City Hall, pardon my finger!
I was exhausted when I got home but we were going to dinner with John's son who was in Toronto on business.
Photos taken walking to the restaurant.
We chose CKTL as it was on our bucket list to try. Stock market-themed bars are popular around the world, but CKTL & Co. is the first of its kind in downtown Toronto.
Committed to the theme, everything from the bar's name CKTL (referring to the ticker symbol for the word "cocktail") to fluctuating drink prices based on supply and demand is an ode to the stock exchange.
Using a software program called The Drink Exchange, CKTL & Co. uses data collected from their sales for the night, adjusting the prices of select items which then flash across the digital boards in red (indicating a drop in price) or green (an increase in price).
The '34 ($16), which combines gin, Cointreau, Angostura bitters, lemon, and raspberry syrup all topped with a bubble of Earl Grey–infused air.
The Black Market Manhattan ($20) arrives in a smoking treasure trove, its bitter flavour enhanced with coffee liqueur, dark chocolate bitters, and dried blood orange.
The drinks experience is fun. The food was very good, reasonable and substantial. Our only complaint would be the noise level. I'm not sure if it would be better at lunchtime, especially if you were having a business lunch.
Tuna Poke Bowl - JASMINE RICE, PONZU MARINATED TUNA, CUCUMBERS, AVOCADO, EDAMAME, CHILIES, MANGO, AND CHARRED SCALLION & GINGER DRESSING
Arctic Char - PAN-SEARED FILLET WITH TURMERIC & BLACK PEPPER BUTTER SAUCE, SNAP PEAS, AND ROASTED ROSEMARY POTATOES
Grilled Flank Steak - WITH POACHED ASPARAGUS, ROSEMARY ROASTED POTATOES, AND TARRAGON BROWNED BUTTER
We Uber'd home and Joel walked back to the Sheraton.
Friday I took the 8AM bus for jury duty at 9:30, the case convenes at 10AM. I walked up slowly and took some photos.
We were provided a snack and drink on the 11:30 break, I had a bagel and cream cheese which was my lunch. We also get a drink in the afternoon.
Needless to say, I was in bed by 10 and slept 11 hours!
COOKING
Saturday hamburger stew
Sunday chicken wings and fries
Monday pork chops mashed potatoes and corn
Tuesday rotisserie chicken nachos
Wednesday leftover rotisserie chicken sandwiches with gravy and peas
Thursday out for dinner
Friday steak asparagus and baked potatoes.
We finished Top Chef World All Stars and were happy that Buddha won, although I would have been happy with any of them winning.
We continue with Red Rock.
READING
I didn't manage much reading, I continued with Terrible Virtue about Margaret Sanger, the mother of birth control.
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