Spring Joy

The flowers of Alium always remind me of fireworks and they are such a joy to see. These ones were part of a huge bed of them that was spotted in the front garden of a home.

Cat In The Lane

I spotted this grand cat from a distance at the end of a laneway and hurried down to catch a shot. I could find no artist name at all which is too bad. It is such an elegant cat. 

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.

Joys And Aromas Of Spring

Lilacs have the most beautiful perfume and this seems to have been a good spring for them. In this shot there is a white lilac at front with a pink lilac to the left and a Redbud tree backing them up. These lovelies all survived the horrible wind storm that we had last week.

A Bath A Day

This shot was taken quickly through a window of the dear Robin who comes every day between 5:30 pm and 6:00 for a bath in the large saucer of water I have out on my roof deck. It especially seems to like it if the water has just been changed and is quite cold.  Other birds drink all day from the water but this bird just loves to get soaked as it is in this pic.

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.

Walking Along

I was walking along through the Yorkville neighbourhood a couple of weeks ago and happened upon this sculpture by Sorel Etrog in the front garden of one of the homes. It had the nice background noise of the water falling behind it to the left. Etrog has done a number of walking figures and this is an especially good one.

A Favourite Style

I'm a big fan of Gothic Revival homes so I was very pleased to come upon this well maintained one in the Yorkville neighbourhood. It is a real beauty.

Love The Truck

It was the truck that first attracted my attention and then the cool graphics on it. Cottage Springs makes vodka based drinks and it sounds like they do events of all kinds. The truck is a '59 Chevrolet and it looks to be in perfect condition.

Taking part in Signs 2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.

Welcome

If you look at the top rim of this bicycle ring you can see the word Welcome has been cast into the steel. It is a nice touch for the ring found along Bloor St W.

A Protective Woman

When I first spotted this image I thought it was a woman holding a cat with a rabbit at her feet but then I noticed that she is holding a gun in her right hand. So she must be protecting the cat and the rabbit from some evil I think. Too bad someone tagged it a bit. 

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.

A Neighbourhood Activity

When the weather is good a large crossword puzzle appears on a fence along the sidewalk in a neighbourhood near me. They even provide a pen which is visible down at the bottom of this pic. A new puzzle seems to go up weekly. This one looks like it is completed.

Not Vandal Proof

The garbage bins that the city gives us are definitely not squirrel proof as you can see from the large hole that has been chewed in the lid of this one. This squirrel was having a fine feast on something that she found in there. She looks like she is probably nursing some young ones. 

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.

Wood Galore

This is a shot of yesterday's laneway houses taken from the street out front. That is the house on the street that is on the left of this shot. It seems to be divided into two flats.  They must be quite unique inside but the outside seems cold despite the wood siding.

Laneway Wood

I hadn't been down this laneway in the U of Toronto neighbourhood for a while and what a surprise it was to see these 2 large laneway houses. They were done to the highest spec and were really large compared to most of these places. Even the house at the front of the lot (to the right in the shot) was covered in wood. I'll show a pic from the front tomorrow.

A Tavern On Bloor St

Duffy's Tavern has been on Bloor St W since 1949 but this building itself was built in the 1880s. It is a great gathering place for viewing sport events and for just chilling with friends. 

Taking part in Signs 2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.

Crowds For Blossoms

When the cherry trees blossom people seem to go crazy to get out to see them. High Park which is one of the largest in the city has a few thousand of the cherry trees and the crowds become unbelievable but there are smaller groups of the trees around the city. This small group of about 20 trees is found on the U of Toronto campus and even it was teeming with people last weekend.

Bird In The Playground

This proud Toucan appears on the side of a garage which borders a small children's playground. It looks like it has been there for a long time but it still brightens up its surroundings. I could find no artist info.

More Changes

This shot was taken just down the street from the little house that I showed you on Friday. These properties had been occupied by an assortment of small factories that had been turned into artist studios and workshops for cabinetmakers.  It was of the more creative areas in the city. The studios are all gone and replaced by yet more condos. It never ends.

Just Hanging Around

The young Red-tailed Hawks are still playing around on the construction crane near my place when the workers are gone. It certainly gives them a good view of their surroundings.

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.

Changes

An old part of the city that had been occupied by a mixture of small factories and some small houses has been undergoing huge changes. This tiny bungalow looks totally out of place now beside its new neighbours.

Filming

This seems to be a popular place for film crews to work. The orange pylons appear and then 10s of trucks of all kinds arrive to park along the street and in large parking lots that are along the right hand side of this road. The filming itself takes place in some of the buildings along the left. I have yet to spot a movie star there though.

Record Store

With a good selection of old and new vinyl records Dead Dog Records is well known in the city for those who are into vinyl. The name comes from a story about wind-up dogs that didn't work and it certainly grabs your attention.

Taking part in Signs 2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.

Yorkville Again

Another wander around the Yorkville neighbourhood was a good thing on a sunny day a few weeks ago. I love these two houses but could find no info on them. The little yellow one on the left is certainly tucked away. They were probably built in the late 1800s.

Little Taggers

I always like to discover a mural by Emily May Rose with her raccoon characters. These guys were found along Davenport Rd and have tagged the building and the van and have even chopped down some of the plants. I like the detail of the hanging shoes up at the top.  

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world. 

Comment troubles continue where they don't always show up on my posts but I do see them on my dashboard. I hope it all gets fixed soon. And I do enjoy them wherever they show up.

The Happy Couple

This is yesterday's Wood Duck with his mate as they rushed over to where someone was throwing seeds out to the ducks. They were able to fight off a few Mallards for some of the treats.

Wood Duck

I went by my favourite duck pond and was lucky enough to spot a pair of Wood Ducks among the many Mallards. It was hard to get a shot of them and then all of a sudden the male scooted out from behind a stone wall and I quickly got this shot which cut off the end of his tail but I loved the detail so here it is. I'll show you him and his mate tomorrow. I hadn't shown a duck for a few weeks so thought it was time to see one.

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.

 

A Fun Door

Wouldn't this be a fun door to great you when you come home. The door leads to an apartment above a store along Bloor St W.

Art In The Sidewalk

While walking around in the Bloordale neighbourhood I spotted these stainless still inserts in the concrete of the sidewalk. Trying to capture the shine of the pieces proved to be a problem so I had my partner in crime help me to make a larger shadow. It helped a bit I think.

Coffee

I must admit that I like funky places much better than posh ones and loved the look of this tiny coffee place. It was taken on Easter Sunday morning when everything was closed but I bet it is busy most of the time. Looking through the door it is only about 6 ft wide but had a nice assortment of imported Italian foodstuffs as well as cool espresso machines. 

Taking part in Signs 2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.

Shadow

This is another bike ring found along Bloor St W in the Bloordale neighbourhood. I loved the shadow it was making on the sidewalk.

Blue Utility Box

This utility box was spotted right beside a kid's playground. At first it looked quite nice but then I noticed the odd figures and hands floating through it and now I am not so sure what it is all about. Maybe a dream? 

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.

May Theme: Shadows

The May theme for the City Daily Photo Blog community is Shadows. My entry for Shadows is this steel sculpture that was found in a gallery. I love the shadow of the bird sitting outside its 'house'. I seem to be spotting a lot of shadows lately so will be posting a few more in the days ahead. 

Taking part in the theme Shadows. To see more shadows from around the world click HERE.