Linking up with Marg at The Intrepid Reader
22 May 2026
SATURDAY
WOW my cactus continues to bloom!
This is exactly me at the $ store!! However, this week, I kept by (big) bag on my shoulder and didn't set off any alarms. Awkward, and silly, then packing my stuff.
Did I finish off those projects that need doing? No, instead I took on a couple of new ones, not on any lists!!!
I had a discount for photo printing, so I decided to get some canvas prints done for the kitchen. One framed picture had fallen a few weeks ago and the frame had to be thrown out. I didn't want that happening again. I also printed out a Tokyo photo for the wall.
Then I started planning our short PEI trip and discovered I had never posted our 1990 visit, so I wrote that for Throwback Thursday!
We bought 2 - $10 VIP cards, should have gotten only 1. It entitled you to $5 samples at SOME vendors.
SUNDAY
We left at 11 and took the streetcar and the 114 bus to Sugar Beach for a food festival.
Cherry blossoms are still on display at High Park.
It was quiet when we got there but later it got ridiculously crowded. That venue isn't wide enough to accommodate those crowds. They advertised 50+ vendors, I doubt they had 25.
We tried it here, a sampler of hot dog, fish ball, pork, quail egg...
Looks and sounds delicious!
John sampled the birria taco.
I wanted a paleta, but then forgot about it!
This became packed later.
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Delicious mango juice and chicken and fries for John, after we walked along the lake.
,
I've wanted to check this out.
Standing like a bronze mountain range over Queens Quay’s eastern edge, it’s like nothing Toronto has ever seen: undulating balconies that eschew cheap materials for copper railings, large terraces dotted with greenery and panoramic views from each of its 243 units.
1 Yonge St. topping out at 106 floors. Pinnacle One Yonge, for 1 through 7 Yonge Street, is designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects for Pinnacle International. This database entry covers the half of the block north of the Harbour Street extension, covering three primarily residential towers approved at 65, 95, and 105 storeys. The 65-storey 'The Prestige' building is completed. The 105-storey 'Sky Tower' is under construction through 2026 and will feature a Le Meridien hotel in its podium.
We walked and caught the 510 streetcar to Queen St. W and the 501 home.
I did finish 1 item on my agenda, I added my notes from Italy 2004, that I found to that post for a Throwback Thursday.
MONDAY
OMG we didn't have any coffee pods left!! This has never happened before!! We did have ground coffee in the fridge (from a road trip). We actually enjoyed it more than the pods!!
I got some laundry done AND put away!
I cleared more "memorabilia" from the trunk. I would love to get it emptied and given away.
I checked on getting rid of the old watches etc. rather than it going to landfill, a few options. I put like with like, old keys, foreign coins, photos, postcards etc.
A couple of things made it to the charity bag.
After lunch, we took the streetcar along Queen St. West, the plan was to get some murals in Parkdale. At Parkside, the streetcar driver announced that we were blocked by the streetcar in front of us due to a medical emergency. This part of the 501 streetcar in the Queensway operates primarily in a dedicated, separated right-of-way located in the middle (median) of the roadway, making it a true median streetcar.
Dedicated Right-of-Way: The streetcar tracks are physically separated from regular vehicular traffic, running down the center of the street. This design is often considered a surface-level light rail or medium-capacity transit system, as it allows streetcars to bypass traffic congestion.
Therefore the ambulance had to mount the median to service the passenger.
We were there for about 20-25 minutes, with cars backing up behind us. Everyone stayed calm and just waited.
UPDATE someone posted this image on Book of Faces.
We missed the first mural on my list, I'll get it another time.
Since it was a holiday, none of the coffee shops on my agenda were open.
John always mentions how grotty (yes, Spellcheck, it IS a word, based on British slang from the word grotesque) Parkdale is, and it definitely has not been gentrified.
Defined by the Queen Street West and King Street West corridors, it holds a "gritty" reputation due to older rooming houses and transitional street life.
Parkdale’s edge comes from the 1960s/1970s when the Gardiner Expressway displaced lower-income families and the closure of a psychiatric facility shifted the demographic.
Hopped on the streetcar to Bathurst, we weren't sure we'd be able to get off, it was so crowded. We were stuck between a stroller (mom, sit down it the empty seat you are blocking!!) and man in large motorized scooter (sir, situate your scooter, properly, sideways), with everyone stumbling over the wheels of stroller and scooter! We made it out, to John's relief.
This looked interesting!
We will come back here.
So we strolled to Spadina for beers at the Horseshoe Tavern ✅, enjoying the sun and the holiday strollers.
Another AI correction.
WOO HOO! RECEIVED my $49.11 from the Bread Scam by Loblaws, it doesn't seem like enough considering Loblaws made MILLIONS and are still scamming Canadians. I haven't shopped there in years and plan to BOYCOTT these criminals for the rest of my life.
I never would have expected this invite! We were members last year, but I haven't renewed for this year, as we didn't even use it. Alas, we won't be able to attend.
TUESDAY
We took the streetcar to Chinatown.
I had found this bahn mi sandwich place last summer and wanted us to try it.
At the time I was searching for a literary plaque.
We both had the assorted cold cuts, one small $4.50 and large $5.50, sure beats a Subway!!!
This might be our next choice.
Or we might try this. The recently-opened Mexi-Pak Tacos is cooking up, as its name would suggest, bites that deftly combine Mexican and Pakistani flavours.
We wanted Asian coffee.
I had blue coco latte (on right) and John had the orange Americano. Really good.
Chinatown is evolving as the younger generations take over.
Doing our bit for the local businesses, we picked up two cream puffs.
We also picked up blackberries, blueberries and gochujang at a local greengrocer's.
WEDNESDAY
We had the cream puffs for breakfast.
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John went to golf and I headed to College Park. I poked in Winner's, picked up some $ store stuff and got bread and cheese in Farm Boy.
I didn't feel like going to Cleo's for my order.
Sample from Union Station, only snagged one this time, it wasn't open when I came through later.
THURSDAY
I cleaned out the fridge in preparation for John's Costco run. I made a pot of soup stock from the freezer soup starter baggie of bits and bobs of vegetables - now known as Franken-Soup.
I cleaned the cabinet in the large bathroom.
We spent an hour sorting and dividing our Costco order. Coffee was $50 for 80 pods (no Costco brand available). Since we've been enjoying the ground coffee we've decided to continue with it. John ordered a couple more of the reusable coffee pods.
Buying ground coffee is significantly cheaper. Ground coffee typically costs about $0.15 to $0.30 per cup, whereas pods (like K-Cups or Nespresso capsules) generally cost $0.70 to $1.20per cup. This means pods can cost up to 400% more per ounce. Since we are preferring the ground, there's no argument here!
Buying ground coffee is significantly cheaper. Ground coffee typically costs about $0.15 to $0.30 per cup, whereas pods (like K-Cups or Nespresso capsules) generally cost $0.70 to $1.20per cup. This means pods can cost up to 400% more per ounce. Since we are preferring the ground, there's no argument here!
Costco sells bananas as a "loss leader" like they do their rotisserie chickens. Fine with me, extra bananas can go into the freezer for banana bread. They are also a good substitute for eggs. One mashed banana replaces one large egg!
We were going out for lunch but realized that by the time we put Costco away it would be later. And we had fresh food at home so we didn't bother. As well, it got freezing cold overnight, the temperature was only 12 C!!
We did some much needed chores. Washed the air purifier filter. John went to the office and got a new air filter, they are provided quarterly. I tidied the main bathroom's cabinets.
I put three tops in the charity bag.
FRIDAY
I made John a breakfast of stuffed French toast with blueberries and sausages before he went to golf.
I got the soup stock strained and frozen.
I finally went to pick up my Cleo order, two pairs of pants. Neither fit, so they will be returned on Monday.
I did pick up a bag at Yonge Bloor just because. I also went to the Eaton Centre and found a ball cap in H&M.
The city is gearing up for FIFA, although reports say we will not get the crowds that were expected, hotel rooms are sitting without the reservations expected. That's what happens and you get greedy, hiking up prices over 75%.
This is great advertising on King St.
Air Transat and their agency Courage launched a viral out-of-home (OOH) ad campaign in Toronto capitalizing on fan frustration over the sky-high resale prices for FIFA matches. The ads feature minimalist billboards comparing the price of a single match ticket against actual return flight costs to the home country of the teams.
FIFA signage is purple, giving directions.
We had four packages waiting when I got home. The prints I ordered above were delivered.
John ordered a cigar holder, bags for the new vacuum and the reusable coffee pods.
COOKING
I took the last, unlabeled, "je ne sais quoi" soup bag from freezer for lunch. AHA it was lamb shanks!! So it became lamb soup with lentils.
Nothing goes into freezers without labels anymore, since I got more of those reusable baggies.
I have changed this menu twice three times, after the initial plan!
MENU
Saturday - ham, au gratin potatoes and Brussels sprouts
Sunday - steak green peppers onions mushrooms and bean sprouts, leftover au gratin potatoes
Monday - holiday - burgers and potato chips. John cooked.
Tuesday - ham salad (tomatoes, lettuce, hard boiled eggs, pickles, beets, cheese and fresh rolls)
Wednesday - pork schnitzel, mashed potatoes and beans
Thursday - maple glazed baked salmon, roasted parmesan potatoes, asparagus
Friday - steak, baked potato and asparagus
WATCHING
I now have 19 episodes of MasterChef Australia downloaded.
I remembered I hadn't finished Traitors Ireland! Kitchen watching.
We watched the other prequel, Berlin and the Jewels of Paris.
Berlin (Andrés de Fonollosa) is a fictional character in the Netflix series Money Heist and in its prequel spin-offs, Berlin, portrayed by Pedro Alonso. A terminally ill grand larcenist, jewel thief, and cracksman, he is the Professor's second-in-command and brother.
We started the series Chestnut Man, (Danish: Kastanjemanden) is a Danish crime series. The series stars Danica Curcic and Mikkel Boe Følsgaard as Naia Thulin and Mark Hess, who investigate the dismemberment and murders of several mothers in Copenhagen by a serial killer who leaves figurines made of chestnuts at the crime scenes.
Hallow Road s a 2025 psychological horror film. Two parents enter a race against time when they receive a distressing late-night phone call from their daughter after she caused a tragic car accident.
Narrow Margin is a 1990 American neo-noir action thriller film. Based on the 1952 film The Narrow Margin, it is the first of two RKO reimaginings by Hyams, the other being 2009's Beyond a Reasonable Doubt.[6] The film keeps the same general story, and follows Los Angeles deputy district attorney Robert Caulfield who attempts to keep murder witness Carol Hunnicut safe from hitmen while traveling on a train. However, it changes the moral alignment of some characters, and the setting from the Super Chief route to the Canadian Rockies.
READING
I didn't read much again, this week.
I started Waiting for the Miracle, a first for me, by Anna McPartlin. Unfortunately, the only one of her books at my library. She took a taboo subject, infertility and wrapped a heartfelt story around it. You laugh and cry! AND get absolutely furious with the Catholic Church's horrific abuse of women in their Magdalene laundries, making money, hand over fist.
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