Museum Piece Uses Street Parking

The most famous van in Canada is parked on the street in front of my house. The decals on both sides and the distinct shape make it unmistakable. The now vintage, beige vehicle that followed Terry Fox during his Marathon of Hope has been there for several weeks. This is not the first time I’ve seen the van. It used to park one street over so I was not completely startled when it appeared out my living room window.

Leslie was here last night and I pointed it out to her as she left. Her surprised reaction got me thinking. This van played an important role in an event that has become part of Canadian lore. It seems like it should be in a museum. I love the fact that it isn’t, that the van is parked on a residential street in Toronto with snow providing a subtle cover. Seeing it there makes me wonder about the stories of those who live around me and about what parts of our collective identity might be just down the street.

Room for Debate – Part 2

The mayoral debates have opened a door into some interesting gathering spaces in the city. Today I attended one held on the Trading Floor at the Design Exchange. I have been here before for various lectures and events, but never a debate.

The five candidates sat at a raised table, visible to all in the audience. Well circulated, cool air filled the old home of the Stock Exchange. The air quality was far superior to the stuffiness I experienced during a previous debate at Trinity-St. Paul’s. I left that debate drained, after struggling to concentrate. Today, I was

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New View of the Usual

My fourth new hairdresser since Isabelle stopped. The shop is on the second floor, a spacious corner unit with huge windows. Instead of watching others get their hair cut as I usually do, I have a raised view onto Queen Street. I feel like I am hovering over the adjacent construction site. My view is no longer confined by the hole cut in the hoarding. Across the street, what was once a bar is now the second floor of Shopper’s. Are those bad greeting cards I see? Peeking is fun or should I say refreshing.

Cat a Sign of Life

I have walked the stretch of Dundas Street east of University Avenue countless times over the years. Non-descript storefronts are all I remember. Today I sat in the Longo’s at Dundas and Elizabeth and saw an entirely new street, thanks to a cat.

I stared out the window eating my lunch, nothing remarkable to note. I must have looked down at my food and when I lifted my gaze there was a cat in one of the bay windows on the second floor of the strip of buildings. Like a cat anywhere, this grey, maybe black feline surveyed his territory. This is not strange, but somehow it let me understand that people (and their pets) live in those buildings, that there is life behind what often feel like blank walls.