Shy Coffee Co

 Linking up with Marg at The Intrepid Reader

Weekend Coffee Share
Sunday Salon

July 2024 - Toronto ON

King St. West Toronto ON

We had our usual lazy, hang around kind of weekend that we like. 

Monday - John had an appointment downtown so we met up at Wellesley and Yonge. These are some photos he took on his walk up Yonge.

We walked along Wellesley and discovered this park, relatively new, that had been on my To Do list.

Named for one of Toronto’s most prominent and accomplished First Nations women in recent memory, Dr. Lillian McGregor Park sits right downtown in a forest of condo towers, several of which helped fund its creation. 

The park itself is quite beautiful, with huge sculptures of birds and feathers scattered around the space, and entrances to the underground parking lots fairly well-hidden by the landscaping. The park’s main paved area includes the iconic circle symbol associated with many aspects of aboriginal culture. A quick glance west and you can catch a glimpse of the U of T campus, where Dr. Lillian McGregor served as Elder-in-Residence of First Nations House.

We were killing time until our lunch reservation.

Of all the weird statues in Toronto, this 12-foot-tall donkey with casts at Clover Hill Park might be as cute as it is strange. 

But Primrose, which is the name of this piece by acclaimed Canadian artist Myfanwy MacLeod,  why the heck is there a donkey on U of T property, and what happened to its front legs? 

The work is based on an actual baby donkey named Primrose who was born prematurely in 2012 at the Bind Equine Veterinary Practice in Shropshire, England.

Primrose's underdeveloped bones would have led to permanently bowed legs, so local vets put some custom pink casts on her to straighten them out.

It took about three weeks for the foal to start walking on her own, but not before the adorable ass had captured hearts worldwide as the "wonky donkey" from England. 

We had reservations for the lunch Summerlicious menu at Gatsby in the Windsor Arms, another ✅on my list.

The Windsor Arms is a boutique hotel in the southern part of the Yorkville neighbourhood. The hotel includes a restaurant, tea rooms and a spa.

The neo-gothic style building was designed by architect Kirk Hyslop of Toronto and built in 1927. It was listed as a historic property by the City of Toronto in 1983, and designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 1992. Run down by the 1980s, the original hotel closed in 1991. After purchasing the property in 1995, developer George Friedmann commissioned architect Sol Wassermuhl of Page and Steele to rebuild the hotel as a skyscraper that included condominium suites while maintaining the St. Thomas Street façade.

The Toronto International Film Festival was founded at the Windsor Arms in 1976, and the hotel's involvement in the festival continues to this day.

The hotel has been known to be frequented by celebrities such as Katharine Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Woody Allen and, more recently, Richard Gere, Britney Spears and Tina Turner. The location was featured in the 1973 film The Paper Chase. It has been used twice by Atom Egoyan in films – Speaking Parts in 1989 and Chloe in 2010.

The venue is quaint and charming. 

Set menu $48 person.

John had the tomato salad.

I ordered the crisp calamari, I tried one and it was so chewy and John tried it and agreed, so I sent it back. Both servers came back and said they had tried it too and it was very overcooked.

 I was asked if I would like it grilled instead. I was astonished by this offering and very pleased. It came out grilled and delicious in a light broth. That they could pivot like this impressed me.

It slightly amused me, when the other server, Jamaican, addressed me as "aunty" when saying she agreed about the calamari!

The servers were pleasant and very efficient. I had the steak, a very generous portion (the server kindly wrapped the remainder for me) and John had the mussels which he enjoyed immensely.

 The pavlova ✅was to die for! My mother had made meringue when I was a kid but I hadn't thought much of it until I started watching Australian cooking shows!

Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert. Originating in either Australia or New Zealand in the early 20th century, it was named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. Taking the form of a cake-like circular block of baked meringue, pavlova has a crisp crust and soft, light inside. The confection is usually topped with fruit and whipped cream.

 John had the fruit and sorbet. 

Ladies' room.

You can select your hat for afternoon tea.

I didn't realize John took this while we were waiting for the bus! I had lost one of bottom heels of my shoe, so I sounded like a horse that needed reshoeing. When we got home I had lost the other one, what are the odds? I'll take them to the shoemaker next week.

Tuesday was a hot, muggy day.

I went for a mani-pedi ($50), house on my way.

I picked up some groceries in Rabba and ice cream (sassy sea turtle and almond raspberry $24! Yikes they used to be $5 each before the pandemic) from Lola's, a local shop.

This drove by me on the way home.

I baked a lemon blueberry loaf and some other chores and then read. 

Wednesday golf hair trim was a washout with heavy rain as a result of Hurricane Beryl. Up to 60mm of rainfall expected by Wednesday evening: Environment Canada.

Thursday it was warm, the air conditioning wasn't working. We remembered this happening before, I was thinking a battery. But John removed the cover, no battery (hardwired), hmmm, put the cover back on and it is working so far. Stopped again. I put in a work order to the office and of course, it started working again.

I went to the Eaton Centre as I wanted a pair of black Sketchers to replace my old ones.

We waited for the 4PM shuttle which arrived around 4:17, still in plenty of time to catch the King St. streetcar to the Distillery District for our 5:30 dinner reservation ahead of our 7:30 Soulpepper theatre production of A Streetcar Named Desire.

Wandering around before dinner.

The Lavazza IncluCity Film Festival (ICFF) is taking over the Distillery with its iconic, cozy couches and red carpet for 25 days of films, concerts and events.

The festival will be paying tribute to a number of icons, such as Federico Fellini, with a tribute showcase of his most famous films, and Norman Jewison, with screenings of his greatest accomplishments like In the Heat of the Night and Moonstruck.

Cluny's for dinner. We always enjoy this French bistro.

I didn't realize they also had a Summerlicious menu! Dinner for $55 was a good deal. I chose from it.

Salmon tartare (me) delicious!

Mussels, again, for John, he loved the tarragon sauce! Delicious fries!

My poached turbot in a mushroom broth.

We shared my Paris brest ✅! 

Washroom doors!

The set for Streetcar.

This is a 3.5 hour production, intermission took place at 8:49, and we had had enough of Blanche's everlasting moaning. The cast and sets were superb, but this just wasn't for us.

We did leave, sorry, not sorry!

The streetcar journey home ended with us catching an Uber at Roncesvalles, after waiting too long for our transfer to Humber Loop.

Friday we went to College Park to DUCK for duck noodle soup. Blogger won't let me upload the photo, I'll try later.

Then John bought a golf wind jacket at Uniqlo and we picked some croissants, custard and honey citrus.

Maintenance came to look at the air conditioning, which of course has been running fine.

Seems we're not the only ones interested in Summerlicious. Our mayor dropped by to sample our building restaurant's, Velouté, Summerlicious menu. Again, stupid Blogger!

COOKING

Saturday CURRY NIGHT lamb vindaloo and aloo gobi

Sunday chicken wings and potato salad

Monday out to lunch - popcorn

Tuesday coconut shrimp and Caesar salad

Wednesday GOLF liver, bacon, onions, mashed turnip

Thursday out to dinner/theatre

Friday STEAK NIGHT with sauteed green peppers, onions and mushrooms

WATCHING

We were left hanging at the end of Iron Reign, so there will be a season 2.

Obituary is a 2023 Irish black comedy television series that John had started watching and then decided that we should watch it together.

 In a small Irish town, a young woman obsessed with death becomes an obituarist for the local newspaper. Seeking more interesting deaths to write about, she begins to murder local people.

In the Land of Saints and Sinners is a 2023 Irish action thriller film directed by Robert Lorenz and written by Mark Michael McNally and Terry Loane. The film stars Liam Neeson in the lead role, alongside other Irish actors including Kerry Condon, Jack Gleeson, Colm Meaney and Ciarán Hinds. 

A disillusioned hitman comes out of retirement for one last job when an IRA bomber on the run from the law arrives in his sleepy Irish village in 1974. We really enjoyed this.

One Ranger is a 2023 American action thriller film. Recruited by British intelligence, a Texas Ranger must track down and stop a dangerous terrorist from attacking London.

We watched an old one, Gaslighting, which I really enjoyed. And another old one, Victim.

READING

I read Remember Me? in an afternoon, it was a good read until it wasn't, I did not like the ending at all. It seemed a little ridiculous.

Three Sisters is not capturing my total interest but I am curious about the outcome.

Weekend Roundup

 Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler

1. Starts with "B"
2. A Favorite
3. BALL - Chosen by Tom

Starts with B (BIGGEST/SMALLEST/LONGEST/SHORTEST)

BIRDCAGE

FAVOURITE

BURGERS!

BALL

BALL PARK

Signs

 Joining Tom at Signs2

Wordless Wednesday Wordless Be There 2day

March 2024 - Las Vegas NV

Jury Duty

June 2023 - Toronto ON

 I was summoned for jury duty selection on June 15 2023 at 8:30 AM. The primary courthouse located at 361 University Avenue in Toronto is the Toronto Courthouse (formally housing the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for criminal and family matters).

FEWER JURY TRIALS

We have fewer jury trials. In Canada, trials before juries are typically saved for criminal cases. In the US, juries are used more often, including on non-criminal cases that, in this country, would typically simply go before a judge.
The United States Constitution provides for the right to a jury trial even in civil cases. In Canada, there is no such right and therefore no jury trials in civil disputes. This substantially alters the nature and outcome of product liability and patent infringement and invalidity litigation between the two countries. In the criminal context, juries in Canada are prohibited from discussing their deliberations after the trial is over, unlike their American counterparts who sometimes speak to the media.

CANADIAN CRIMINAL LAW IS UNIFORM ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Canada possesses a single federal criminal code that applies to every single province and territory. The US, for contrast, has different laws from state-to-state, leading to the kind of jurisdictional clashes you’ll sometimes see on those crime TV shows, which doesn’t really happen here.

Gavel to gavel
Thanks to Hollywood, a small wooden mallet called a gavel is one of the most emblematic symbols of justice. However, in modern times the gavel is nearly exclusively associated with American justice. Canadian judges don't even have them in their courtrooms.

About half of all Canadian judges, and all those sitting on superior courts, are appointed and paid by the federal government. We have a small federal court that operates as one travelling court for limited federal matters.

The Supreme Court of Canada has final authority over all public and private law throughout Canada. This includes all municipal, provincial, and federal law, all common law, legislation, and constitutional interpretation. The Supreme Court of the United States has a more limited mandate: it deals only with federal legislation and the US Constitution. It plays no role in private law and relationships such as debt collection, family law, land, contracts, and negligence. 

Each year, jury questionnaires are mailed to about 800,000 people living in Ontario to determine if they are eligible for jury duty.
People who qualify to serve as jurors may receive a letter in the mail (a summons) asking them to go to an Ontario courthouse or other location to participate in the jury selection process. Being summoned to jury duty does not mean you will be selected to be part of a jury.

Provincial judges are appointed, as considered necessary, by the Lieutenant Governor in Council on the recommendation of the attorney general. A person cannot be appointed as a provincial judge unless he or she has been a member of the bar of one of the provinces or territories of Canada for at least 10 years.

In Ontario, a potential juror must be a Canadian citizen, at least 18 years of age, and a resident of Ontario. In this case, you must be a resident of Toronto, that is your postal code starts with M.

Property owner to OHIP

At the location on your summons, people are randomly selected to participate on a jury. You might not be selected.
If you are selected to be a juror, a judge will provide information about what to do next. If you’re not selected, you might be asked to return the next day to repeat the process.

Upon arrival, you check in by last name. Around 9:30 we were shown a video, Jury Duty and You.

It is the civic duty of all Ontario residents who are Canadian citizens 18 years of age and older to serve as a juror if selected. It appeared to be about 150 people.

A juries manager arrived to give us information regarding emergency instructions, said there were at least 10 cases that would need juries. She would be back around 10, so take a break and use the bathroom.

REMUNERATION
Day 1-10: $0
Day 11-49: $40
Day 50-end: $100

At 10, 150 of us were taken by escalator (not allowed to use the elevators) to a 6th floor courtroom. The judge, registrar, secretary, accused, accused lawyer and assistant, crown and assisting detective were in the room

The charges against the accused were read, to which he pleaded not guilty to all three.

The judge then asked people to raise their hands if the question applied to them. They would then approach the microphone and the judge further questioned them.

Do you know any of the lawyers/accused/judge in the room? 0/0

Are you hard of hearing ? 2/3 dismissed

Do you understand English? 2/2 dismissed

Convicted of a crime? 0/1 dismissed

Are you members of Parliament and provincial legislatures, senators, federal and provincial justice department employees, police officers, lawyers, judges, correctional officers, medical doctors or examiners, and probation officers. 6/7 dismissed

Then the list of witnesses is read and we are asked if any of the names seem familiar. No one raised a hand.

The trial then starts with everyone standing and swearing allegiance to the King.

The charges were read and the accused stated not guilty to 3 counts.

The Registrar then starts pulling juror numbers. 20 (A) people are selected and led away for further vetting.

The judge suggests, and the lawyers agree, to another group of 20 (B) be selected to speed things along. 

I am B1 selected. 19 more are selected and we are moved to the 4th floor to be listed by hand (and not by the sharpest individual) and adding our phone number. We are given questionnaires to complete and lead back up to the 6th floor where Group A are appearing individually to the judge. They are up to # 12 or 13 at this point.

This is the moment to list your hardships.

Group B #1 and 2 now move to the hallway where A 18,19,20 are seated. They head into the courtroom and all come back and head into the Jurors' Room, they now have 10/12 selected.

What are the odds? I head in as B1, given a choice of swearing on a holy book or affirming. I affirm. Judge goes through my papers and says he sees no reason I shouldn't be selected and lawyers agree. I leave as Juror 11.

I go back and enter the Jurors' room. I look around and see that women are underrepresented and sure enough B2 is now Juror 12.

B3 and 4 enter the courtroom. We knew B3 will be dismissed as a student doing exams. B4 is now Alternate Juror 13 and Alternate Juror 14 joins us.

Again our names are recorded by hand along with phone numbers.

#1 Male White

#2 Female Indian

#3 Male Black

#4 Male Muslim

#5 Female White professor

#6 Male White? beard 

#7 Male Indian

#8 Female White social worker

#9 Male White CEO research

#10 Male Asian teacher

#11 Female White 

#12 Female White nurse

#13 Female Muslim Government CS

#14 Female White director HR

We are all taken back into the courtroom where the judge advises us on our duties. Also in the room are the Registrar, Secretary, accused lawyer (MS), and assisting lawyer, accused.

Crown lawyer (M) and assisting police detective.

The case is listed as R. v. Accused. R. meaning Rex/King or Crown.

The Crown Attorneys’ offices are responsible for prosecuting a majority of criminal offences in the Province of Ontario, from summary conviction offences in the Ontario Court of Justice to the most serious indictable offences in the Superior Court of Justice. Prosecutions occur throughout the province, from locations as remote as fly-in First Nations communities to the country’s busiest courthouses in downtown Toronto.

Assistant Crown Attorneys attend court routinely and have carriage of prosecutions ranging from minor thefts all the way up to first-degree murders. The Crown Attorneys’ offices are also responsible for summary conviction appeals.
Crown counsel hold a quasi-judicial role as a minister of justice.This mea ns that the Crown does not win or lose, nor does the Crown seek a conviction at all costs. At the same time, Crown counsel must be strong and effective advocates. The adversarial process is an important part of the Canadian judicial system. Therefore, it is permissible for Crown counsel to vigorously pursue a legitimate result to the best of their ability. Public confidence in the administration of justice is bolstered when Crown counsel effectively lay before a trier of fact credible evidence relevant to an alleged crime, firmly and to its legitimate strength, but fairly. At all times, Crown counsel must act fairly, independently, objectively, and without negative or positive animus towards the accused or victim(s)

At 4:45 we are dismissed. We head back to the Juror Room, and are given further instructions to meet at 9:30 on the 6th floor tomorrow. 

We are given information on what to do if we are delayed. 

We are to keep straight faces in the courtroom. 

We may raise our hands only if we can't hear, see or need a "comfort" break. 

We cannot take the elevators.

We must always knock before we open the door.

We must leave the room as a group.

Bring IDs tomorrow? Seriously we have been selected/approved/sworn in and now you want ID?

Morning and afternoon snacks will be provided. 11:30 bagels or muffins and a drink. 3:30 drinks.

Day 2 Friday - we meet at 9:30 and morning snack orders are taken as we wait. We are then escorted to our juror room. We line up by number and enter the courtroom.

This is the configuration, except we do not have either of the accused boxes. The accused is sitting on the left side with his two lawyers. The Crown lawyer is sitting on the right with a detective.

We also have the two alternatives sitting in the jury box.

The lawyers and judge, registrar, and reporter have computers. The reporter also has a video camera atop his computer filming the proceedings.

Where the accused box is on the far left, we had two video screens for evidence and Zoom witnesses.

Image found online - Toronto Star. Flip the image so the jury box is on the right.

There are a variety of coats of arms on display in Ontario courtrooms. In many of the Superior Courts, the ‘Royal Coat of Arms’ is found. This coat of arms identifies the person who is the head of the state. The Superior Court judges sit under the Royal Arms to show that they represent the monarch, as appointees of the federal government. Older Ontario courtrooms display the ‘Royal Arms of the Monarchs of England’, with the English ‘Lion’ and the Scottish ‘Unicorn’ supporting a shield with a Royal Crown above it. The shield shows various Royal Emblems of the UK (the three Lions of England, the Lion of Scotland and the Harp of Ireland). The Shield is surrounded by a garter bearing the motto “evil to him who thinks evil” in Latin, which symbolizes the Order of the Garter, an ancient order of knighthood of which the Queen King is sovereign. Below the garter and the shield is a banner with the motto “God and My Law” (a statement of the rule of law). Some official plants of the United Kingdom – the rose, thistle, and shamrock – are displayed beneath the Shield. Courtrooms of the Court of Appeal for Ontario in Osgoode Hall, the historic courtroom at Old City Hall in Toronto, the Superior Court of Justice and some other pre-1931 Ontario courtrooms display this coat of arms.

Judges of the Superior Court of Justice wear black gowns, white tabs, and a red sash. Judicial gowns are adorned with a badge created by Canada’s Chief Herald, which consists of the sun in splendour, representing the majesty of the law, as well as a red maple leaf, the scales of justice, and a Royal Crown that rests on the sun’s upper rim.

The standard lawyer's robe in Canada is black, made of wool or a wool blend, and has long, wide sleeves. The robe is designed to be worn over a petty coat, white shirt and tabs and the robe extends to the feet. It is made of heavy material to give it a dignified and formal appearance. The petticoat worn under the robe is black with sleeves that extend to the wrists. The white tabs, strips of white cloth extending from the collar of the robe, lay flat against the chest.

Lawyers and judges do not wear wigs in Canada.

Image found online Twitter account Superior Court of Justice.

Lawyer on left, judge on right.

Court begins about 10:10 and the Crown makes his opening remarks and outlines what we will hear.

On July 4, 2020 a Saturday 

Injuries

Witness 1 (B) July 4 2020

January 6 2021

July 2022

Witness 1 (B) took the stand around 10:30

Shows a couple of video exhibits of location

At 11:15 there is a discussion and Judge asks us to leave. Our snacks have arrived and we are escorted back (in numerical order) around 11:30.

Break for lunch at 1 with orders to be back by 2.

Lunch with #2 chat with #1

 Into court at 2:15.

Cross witness very showy 

Better, more detailed exhibits.

Witness 1 steps down around 3. 

Witness 2 police officer (AF) via ZOOM 

Problems with audio

Questioned by accused lawyer

Missing pages from officer's notes

Asked to leave - take our break

Resume 3:30 notes found

Finish 3:45 leave building at 4 PM

Thursday June 15 jury selection

Friday witness 1 B PO

Monday victim M

Tuesday victim M PO contempt of court

Wednesday POs

Thursday off

Friday off

Monday off

Tuesday closing arguments - judge instructions - deliberation - verdict 9:30 PM

TOTAL TRIAL  9 days

TOTAL JURY   6 days

Judge Pinto

Defence Nabeel Shaliman

Assistant Crown Daniel Mapa

Typical day 

Wait for 2 to show at 9:50. Into court 10:40 Break at 11:30 back in court 12:30 break at 12:45 for lunch back at 2 into courtroom 2:30 Break/dismissed 3:30

No jury sitting Thursday, Friday, return Monday 12:30 (due to city elections) - cancelled Friday PM

Tuesday 9:30 with suitcases. As per every day #13 is late. #2 very late as we went to courtroom without her.

Finally entered court around 11:10. Judge dismissed alternates # 13 and 14. Judge announced that charges 1 and 2 were dismissed and we would only have charge of aggravated assault to consider.

#3 is chosen at random as foreperson

Closing statement by defence 1 hour. 

Break 12:15 - 12:30 for snacks.

12:30 - 1:15 Closing statement by Crown 1 hour.

1:15 - 2:15 Lunch break 

Break hotel rooms booked, phones removed, dinner ordered placed for 7PM

Hotel Holiday Inn Airport 

2:30 - 6:00 Judge 

#3 prefers not to be foreperson so #10 assumes

6:00 dismissed Judge asks how long we would like to work we say 8:30

7-8 court closed for dinner

We chose to have dinner (in another room) from 7-7:30 

7:30 resume deliberations

Decision chart

By 8:30 we ask for 20 more minutes as we are close.

We vote Not Guilty

Back in court verdict announced (hugs accused and lawyer) Crown asks for jury to be polled

Judge comes to jury room to thank us

We tidy up exhibits and our notes

Taxi chits issued and we leave the courthouse together.

Criminal assault in Canada

Transport

 One Word Sunday

Whitehorse Yukon

Monday Mural

  I'm linking up at Monday Mural

March 2024 - Las Vegas NV

Taken in the Art District, Main St.

There’s a party goin’ on. French artist Pwoz (pwoz.art)—he pronounces it proze—is a Las Vegas resident by way of Saint Martin, Tahiti, Montreal and Amsterdam, and that worldliness really shows in this Arts District mural, in which folks of all shapes and skin tones simply get on their feet and celebrate being alive. To look at this wall is to fervently wish you could jump into it and join the fun. Joie de vivre, indeed.

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