Sometimes you just feel like you need a nice warm bath and this little sparrow must have felt that way when I spotted it. The birdbath itself is heated so the water is warm despite the ice around the edges but I couldn't help thinking how the poor bird will feel when it gets out and is wet!
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
There is such a sense of peace and quiet when walking in the snow on a still day. This pic was taken last week before we got warmer temperatures and the snow disappeared or became very dirty!
I tried to go to take a pic of this path with snow just before Christmas but the footing was quite slippery so I will have to wait until we get another nice fluffy snowfall. We have had a lot of warm weather the last few days so it is not a pretty sight right now.
There is no missing this food truck with its bright green paint. I'm not sure what a beet & beef burger is but it sounds interesting.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
If I lived in a castle I would want windows just like these ones which I found at Casa Loma. Casa Loma is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Toronto and it is owned by the city but is now being run by a new company which is spending a lot of time and money restoring and maintaining the wonderful structure.
This 3-dimensional mural carved in wood is found in the lobby of the Vets Centre at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. The artist was Sigg Buhler and it was done in 2008 but I could find no other info about it. The main subject is a nurse and she is surrounded by scenes from past wars.
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
A shot of my mum's Christmas tree to set the mood for the day. She has hundreds of decorations, many of them antiques! Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it!!
So many Christmas cards have Cardinals on them and that is what this scene reminded me of on a very cold snowy day. Those are a few Goldfinches in their winter garb off to the right of the Cardinal.
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
I've shown you this greenhouse from Spadina House before but I couldn't resist a sunny autumn shot of it since it is so elegant. I love the shape of it!
It is only the end of December and already I am craving some colour in our landscape that has become very monotone except for the Christmas decorations. This is a shot taken through the fence of part of the gardens at Casa Loma taken in November. The leaves were so beautiful to see - can hardly wait for spring to arrive!
I took this pic in the fall when the leaves were still around to cast nice shadows. This is the sign for the Hillcrest Park Community Garden which is a collaborative effort between the Stop Community Food Centre and the Na-Me-Res/Sagatay shelter for First Nation people. The food from the garden is used at both locations and the participants from each place learn about growing food for themselves and learn new skills.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
I was back in the Weston neighbourhood a few weeks ago and thought that this house was dressed quite nicely for Christmas. I haven't been by after dark to see if there are any lights involved in the decorations. And you can see some of the flagstones from the Humber River framing little garden spaces.
A new Little Free Library has recently sprung up and it is a cute one. With that old wooden fence beside it is hard to believe that this is the middle of the city but it is. I'm counting the decorations on this one as a mural!
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
A few weeks ago on a sunny day I went by Casa Loma and noticed they are getting ready for the winter display there. Those yellow and white trees on the other side of the wall are actually artificial trees and those are coloured lights that we see. I must go by after dark to see the Christmas display!
I was at the garden centre this week picking up some boughs from a protected but still outside area where they have all the winter arrangements for sale. As I walked by a huge table of urn arrangements I noticed movement in the display and realized that there was a whole flock of sparrows climbing about among the branches and eating all the seeds off of millet stems. If you look closely in this pic you can see five of the wee vandals. I'm guessing there won't be many seeds left by the time these arrangements are sold.
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
In even the most exclusive neighbourhoods older homes on good sites are being purchased for a lot of money and are then torn down and even bigger more luxurious homes built to replace them. This site is along the same street as the home I showed you last Sunday, just beside Casa Loma and at the top of the steep hill along Davenport Rd. This is going to give this new house a great view of downtown and Lake Ontario!
This gate probably led to a home which had been in this ravine along the Humber River but since Hurricane Hazel in 1954 there have been no homes allowed in the floodplain of the river. The small wall on the right side shows the flagstones which are found along much of the Humber River and which have been used in many local gardens. My parents have a patio of these stones.
This sign is found in a small park by the Bathurst subway station almost diagonally across the road from Honest Ed's store which I have been showing you the last few Signs Signs days. It commemorates Honest Ed and his wife Anne for their contributions to the city by developing the Mirvish Village arts Colony, rescuing the Royal Alexandra Theatre, pioneering the Entertainment District, and generally supporting the arts and the community in general. Their son David continues to support the arts here and has commissioned Frank Gehry to design a major development on King St which will change that area forever.
Taking part in Signs,Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
I took this pic a few weeks ago beside the stone wall that surrounds Casa Loma and runs along Davenport Rd. The leaves are all cleaned up and gone now but it looked lovely there that day!
How would you like to be greeted by this guy when you approach your garage? He seems to be doing a good job keeping evildoers and taggers away from this garage door though! The artist looks to be Merak Kops.
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
I went for a walk down a street beside Casa Loma that I haven't been down in a couple of years and there was a new house where two other houses had been. This is the view from the front but the side views are just as interesting with different levels and planes - I love it. The architect firm for this one is Hariri Pontarini who are known for a lot of high end projects around town. Rumour has it that this one cost many millions $$$ to build!
One of my favourite birds is the Chickadee. They are so cute and friendly and at this time of year you can easily find them around the feeder.
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
It was the deep pink door that first attracted my attention to this house and then I realized that what looked like a tiny place actually had a huge addition on the back making this quite a large house. And the fact that there are 2 mailboxes means that there are at least 2 living spaces in it. I like their round window and the heart on the door too.
I'm back in one of the ravines along the Humber River. I didn't head up these stairs so have no idea where they end up. Might be fun to check out in the winter when there is snow - or it may be too slippery!
More of the signs from Honest Ed's showing a bit of the sense of humour that he had. I intend to go back at night before it closes at the end of the month and get a night shot of the big signs at the corner of Bathurst & Bloor. The 4.5 acre property that includes the store and many heritage buildings along Markham St are to be developed with several towers of varying sizes as well as parks and the renovation of some of the heritage buildings.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
I spotted this woman at the top of the stairs leading to Casa Loma as she was taking pics of the CN Tower in the distance. She was dressed rather elegantly compared to most tourists who have climbed the 110 steps to the top. As you can see it was a bit hazy that day so I'm not sure how her pics turned out.
I showed you a utility box a while ago with exactly the same design on it as this one but I'm showing it from a different angle. The artist, Gary Taxali, must use a good stencil or vinyl sheeting to get such an exact fit on the box. I found this one quite far from the usual locations for these so it is good to see that the city is spreading the art out into the whole city.
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
This wonderful little doorway is on the side of a small rather boring factory building but when it was built someone made an effort to make the entrance interesting. So many times this would have been an uninteresting flat steel door but here we have this nice deco detailing. Love it!
These two black squirrels could not agree to share their lunch. The one up top on the loop tried to get onto the lower part of the feeder a couple of times but the other one was having no extra guests so he finally gave up and went down below to eat the fallen bits!
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
When wandering around along the ravine path I have been showing you lately I spotted this home which has a huge deck built out over the edge of the ravine. On closer inspection I discovered stone steps which led up to this place but which were all covered in leaves. This I'm sure was private property at the top so I didn't head up.
The City Daily Photo Blog community's theme for December is Transitions and that is definitely what is happening here at this time of year. I took this pic last week after we had our first dusting of snow while there were still flowers around in the gardens. Autumn is transitioning to winter!
To see more examples of Transitions from around the world click HERE.
I showed you the sign from Honest Ed's a couple of weeks ago and today I am showing the tribute that the city has done to the iconic store for its upcoming closing. Ed's was known for the handprinted signs that were always used in the windows of the store and the city had replicas of these signs made and decorated the nearby Bathurst subway station with them. The store had saved all of the original signs and there have been several sales of them with some going for hundreds of dollars as collector items.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
I took this pic a couple of weeks ago in James Gardens when there were still some leaves on the trees. There is a small creek that runs down the hill in the park and it feeds several ponds along the way including the duck pond which I've shown you several times. I particularly like this serene spot with the cute little bridge.
I spotted this mural in a laneway and was impressed with the idea of having a rainy day reflection in it. It shows one of our trademark red streetcars with passengers waiting to get on and out of the rain. Nicely done don't you think?
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
The walkway which I showed you on Friday continued up the side of the ravine and when I reached the top this is what I found - another park. At least I think it is a park. If so it is in the middle of a very exclusive neighborhood and I've never seen any sign out on the roadway saying there was a park here but I didn't have time to go much further so I will leave it for another day to explore the street looking for a park entrance. I was a little nervous that I was in someone's private space!
I took this pic through a window so it isn't really sharp but I loved how these three creatures went about their business paying little attention to each other. The chipmunk in the middle has stuffed his cheeks with seeds and took off to store them right after this pic while the Cardinal & the squirrel stayed behind eating their fill!
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
I actually went back to explore the walkway I showed you yesterday and after climbing almost to the top of the side of the ravine I came upon this. I was thinking how odd it was to end the path at a big tree but when I looked closer there were some small stone steps going around the roots of the tree and leading to some more steps which took me up to the top. I'll show what was up there on Sunday!
Just along the hill from the stone wall I showed you on Tuesday there is a walkway that looks like it heads up to the top of the ravine. I didn't have time to explore it when I was the were so will head back another day to see where it ends up. There will probably be no leaves left on the trees by then.
Taking part in Good Fences. Click HERE to see more fences from around the world.
Somehow I forgot to post this pic which I took on November 11, Remembrance Day in Canada. It was taken at James Gardens and shows a small grove of Rose of Sharon bushes which have been decorated with flags and red ribbons. The tribute was done by the Rose of Sharon Association as a remembrance of the over 26,000 Canadians who had fought in the Korean War and the 516 of them who were killed there. There are 516 red ribbons tied to the Rose of Sharon bushes - this is the national flower of Korea. It was very moving to just happen upon this display.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
I spotted these lovely stone retaining walls when walking through one of the ravines along the Humber River. The river is a great source of stones like this so I'm sure they were all locally sourced many years ago when a house stood in this part of the ravine.
I like the sharp graphics that were used to paint this mural on a garage that I discovered just by wandering down a lane way I hadn't explored in a long time. It looks like the artist for this one is Andrea M - she did a good job!
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
This building on Bathurst St was built in 1888 as a Methodist church and continued as one until the 1950s when parts of the building were rented out for concerts and events as the congregation was shrinking. In 1985 the whole structure became a permanent theatre which is now called the Randolph Theatre. There is one main space as well as smaller ones used for practice studios and smaller productions. The Gothic Revival building has heritage protection so the exterior will remain as is.
Taking part in Inspired Sunday. Click HERE to see more religious buildings from around the world.
Two of these little Sparrows spotted the camera but the rest of them were busy eating. It seems that all the birds are in flocks these days, even the ones not heading south for the winter. I've seen huge groups of Starlings in the last couple of weeks!
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
For some reason this weathervane looks like a pirate ship to me although I'm sure it is not meant to be. It's always a treat to find a new vane!
Another ravine shot to show how pretty autumn can be. There will soon be no leaves left at all and then the dreaded snow will come!
Taking part in Good Fences. Click HERE to see more fences from around the world.
Honest Ed's is an iconic discount store that was opened in 1948 by Ed Mirvish at the corner of Bathurst & Bloor. It is huge and covers a whole city block and is covered by these wonderful signs which have over 23,000 lights on them. I know I have posted a night shot before but can't find it so will go back for a night shot soon as the store will close on December 31. Ed Mirvish died in 2007 and the store and the surrounding buildings which he owned have been sold and new development will take place in the whole area.
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
We are back in the Weston neighborhood for this one which was a tiny little house with a turret when first built many years ago. But if you look over the shoulders of the roof you can see that there has been a large addition to the back of the house. I would like to see that room with the turret!
I spotted another mural by Elicser this week but there was a huge truck parked beside at least 3/4 of it so I will have to go back to see what the rest is. It is on the side of a restaurant on Bloor St W and judging by the mural they must serve a nice big milkshake. I like how the pipe has been painted to look like a straw coming out of the shake!
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.
The oak trees seem to be putting on a great show of golden yellows this year. I took this pic about a week ago and then a few days later the leaves were losing the glow and turning brown.
These girls seem to be not too interested in heading into the water even though it was a sunny day.
Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
