Unfortunately I have been unable to blog due to a nasty throat and sinus infection, however, I expect to be back soon with regular posting.

Its that time of year again with trees beginning to take their sap back into the main part of their form, thus allowing the leaves produced in the spring to die off and fall.

An earlier series of posts dealt with the Berg Lake Trail of which this photo is a part.

Photo Credit: graham CC=nc-flickr CLICK TO ENLARGE

High Park Hillside Gardens (Toronto)

On a recent visit to High Park located in west central Toronto on 161 hectares (400 acres), I walked about half way into the park to the Hillside Gardens to enjoy the cool breeze while staying in the shade. Due to the extreme temperature my camera phone kept taking hazy photos.

A series of three ponds with fountains fenced in by trimmed hedges. This would have been an excellent location to meditate except for other visitors to the pools, some whom tended to be quite vocal.

More information about High Park can be found at: http://www.toronto.ca/parks/featured-parks/high-park/attractions.htm


Photo Credits: BE Martin All Rights Reserved.

Runnymede Public Library - Toronto

Early in July I paused outside the Runnymede Public Library, at Bloor St West and Glendonwynne, where the art deco around the front door caught my eye. Inside one of the librarians was kind enough to assist me in locating information about the architect, one, John M. Lyle.

Mr. Lyle was born in Ireland in 1872, came to Canada at an early age. He was the first architect to use Canadian style, designing the high pitched French Canadian type of roof tiled with the ordinary small black slats used in France. The walls of the library were constructed from the local Credit Valley limestone, grey stone with hints of yellow and red in its texture. Construction began in 1929 and was completed in 1930.

The art deco around the front door was done in a First Nations totem motif: the raven, the beaver and the bear on the bottom.

On the west side of the library is a door that once led into the children’s portion of the library where special spaces (club rooms) were allocated for their activities.

A few of Mr. Lyle’s other creative works in Toronto are the Royal Alexandra Theatre and Union Station which share the similar style of the Runnymede Public Library.


References:

John M. Lyle: Toward A Canadian Architecture by Geoffrey Hunt, Publisher Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario 1982: pp.6, 10.

A Progressive Traditionalist John M. Lyle, Architect by Glenn McArthur, Coach House Books, Toronto, 2009. pp. 152.

Photo Credit: B E Martin All Rights Reserved.

Kafkaesque Anthology- Book Review

“THE TOURIST SHOPS OF PRAGUE SELL DOZENS OF ITEMS COMMEMORATING FRANZ KAFKA. You can drink a latte in the Café Kafka, add sugar to it from a packet with Kafka’s face on it, and then light your cigarette from a box of Kafka matches.


“Franz Kafka died in obscurity in 1936, publishing only a handful of bizarre stories in little known literary magazines. Yet today he persists in our collective imaginations. Even those who have never read any of Kafka’s fiction describe their tribulations with the Department of Motor Vehicles as “Kafkaesque” How did this happen?

“Kafkaesque explores the fiction of generations of authors inspired by Kafka’s work. These dystopic, comedic, and ironic tales include T.C. Boyle’s roadside garage that is a never ending trial, Philip Roth’s alternate history in which Kafka immigrates to America to date his aunt, Jorge Luis Borges’ labyrinthine public lottery that redefines reality, Carol Ernshwiller’s testimony by the first female to earn the right to call herself a “man,” and Paul Di Filippo’s unfamiliar Kafka—journalist by day, costumed crime fighter by night.

“Also included is Kafka’s classic story “The Hunger Artist,” appearing both in a brand-new translation and in an illustrated version by legendary cartoonist R. Crumb (Fritz the Cat). Additionally, each author discusses Kafka’s writing, its relevance, its personal influence, and Kafka’s enduring legacy.”



The stories listed below were some of the most bizarre but ingenious I have ever read. They work on repetitive themes Franz Kafka incorporated in his own work.



A Hunger Artist by Franz Kafka

The title introduces the topic of the unfolding story of a man on exhibition, fasting. Initially I wondered where it was going, and soon was mesmerized by the words and the story.


The Drowned Giant by J.G. Ballard

A rendition of Gulliver’s Travels with macabre twists.


The Cockroach Hat by Terry Bisson

Love, death and misdirection as told in an alternate reality by a cockroach.


Hymenophera by Michael Blumlein

A clothes designer discovers an eight-foot wasp in his salon.


The Lottery in Babylon by Jorge Luis Borges

As was in Babylon of old with wanton and unusual tastes, the lottery fulfilled most of the buyers’ dreams with its prizes.

The Big Garage by T. Coraghessan Boyle

An Audi owner joins three bedraggled car owners living in a garage while waiting for repairs that may never come.

The Jackdaw's Last Case by Paul Di Filippo

A journalist turns crime fighter by night in Kafaesque style.

Report to the Men’s Club by Carol Emshwiller

A feminine take on living in a patriarchal society.

Bright Morning by Jeffrey Ford

An escape story with a twist, of a fantasy/science fiction writer implementing Kafka elements.

The Rapid Advance of Sorrow by Theodora Goss

A surreal look at communism in eastern Europe.

Stable Strategies for Middle Management by Eileen Gunn

Bioengineering has its disadvantages when applying insect genes to facilitate organizational abilities.

The Handler by Damon Knight

A story difficult to interpret except to stay it has the aspect of a Trojan horse.

Receding Horizon by Jonathan Lethem & Carter Scholz

A parody on “It’s A Wonderful Life”.

A Hunger Artist by David Mairowitz and Robert Crumb

A pictorial version of the story by Franz Kafka.

“I Always Wanted You to Admire My Fasting” or, Looking at Kafka by Philip Roth

Humourous reminiscences of a boy’s Hebrew-school teacher being invited to dinner.

The 57th Franz Kafka by Rudy Rucker

Not my type of story. Someone else may find it entertaining.

The Amount to Carry by Carter Scholz

An insurance broker composes music meets Mr. Kafka of Workman’s Accident Insurance Institute.

Kafka in Bronteland by Tamar Yellin

In reflection of her Jewish upbringing, a Yorkshire woman encounters Kafka on the moors.


JOHN KESSEL and JAMES PATRICK KELLY are the award winning co-editors of canon-defining anthologies, including Feeling Very Strange, The Slipstream Anthology, Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology, and The Secret History of Science Fiction.


The review copy was provided by Charlene Brusso, with many thanks.

Book format: paperback, 288 pages
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Available:
amazon.com
chapters.indigo.ca

Tenancies (2)

After a somewhat lengthy delay the landlord tribunal is being held on Wednesay where the tenants of the apartment complex will hopefully find resolution in rent reduction, as well as the proper repairs to their units (preferably in a timely manner). It has been a time consuming endeavour to collect tenant signatures in order to obtain a city grant to fund a paralegal to attend.

UPDATE: 17JULY13 - Through mediation at the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Tribunal our Tenant Assocation has obtained retro-active rent reduction on the rent increase over the guidelines, as well as positive feedback on working together to provide satisfactory resolutions on repairs to units.

This photo is of an old farmstead on the central plains in Saskatchewan.

 Photo Credit: kiwehowin CC=nc-nd-flickr.

Strangeness and Charm by Mike Shevdon (Book Review)

From the back cover:

“Niall Petersen’s whole life has been turned on its head by the revelation that he can do magic. Now a Warder for the ancient Courts of the Feyre, duty and honour must be upheld. His daughter Alex, newly awakened to her own magical powers, has been saved from the terrifying Bedlam prison, but in freeing her, Niall has released others of their kind into the population – half-breed fey who have been mistreated, abused and tortured by the very institution that was supposed to help them.”

“Now Niall must track them down and persuade them to swap their new found liberty for the security of the Courts – but is the price of sanctuary merely to swap one cage for another?”

This is the third novel in The Courts of Feyre urban fantasy series. Sixty-Nine Nails and The Road to Bedlam introduced Niall Petersen learning about his inherited abilities as a wraithkin, joining the Warders to protect the High Council. Due to personal feelings over his daughter’s welfare taking precedence over his duties at the Feyre Court; Niall is encountering a strained relationship with his boss, Gavin. Increasing the tension is Blackbird, who has delivered a son, and needing some time away.

Niall’s daughter, Alex, is irritated and frustrated at being under “house arrest” at the location of the Courts. After a brief reunion with her mother, Katherine, Alex runs away; joining up with Eve, a fey mongrel and her companions from Porton Downs where they had undergone scientific experiments. Together they obtain six ancient relics from different locations in London for a ritual Eve plans to change the universe with.

Niall has been assigned to search for the errant fey mongrels and bring them in to the Feyre Court. Alerted to one location, he uses his glamour to skirt a roof top extension to enter an upper bedroom in the next house. There he locates the “huge black cat” he encountered at Porton Down during the rescue of his daughter. After dispatching the shape-shifter there is a touching scene with a girl named Lucy. Another location is of a roof top garden, a beekeeper’s delight.

Told in multiple points-of-view from different characters, the story unfolds in richness and depth. Historical detail of locations such as the Tower of London, British Library, Covent Garden, Glastonbury, the Houses of Parliament and London provides a colourful background. Scenes with the aviary of the ravens at the Tower of London and the interior of the Houses of Parliament were memorable with the action unfolding to ramp up the suspense.

As in his previous novels in this series, Mike Shevdon provides further information on the historical detail surrounding The Ceremony of the Keys which forms the background.

Another enjoyable read in this series which I recommend wholly and look forward to the next in this series.

With thanks to Darren Turpin for providing the review copy.

Book format: Mass Market paperback, 392 pages
Publisher: Angry Robot Books, imprint of Osprey Publishing
Author website: Mike Shevdon
Available in paperback and ebook at:

amazon.com

chapters.indigo.ca

Heathrow Park Trail (Toronto Ontario)

This afternoon I decided to explore one of the walking trails in North York named the Heathrow Park Trail. This walking trail extends from Exbury Road south to Jane Street near Heathrow Road. On a warm sunny day, like today, it was a pleasant saunter under newly budding trees and a light breeze.

The trail begins adjacent to Exbury Park at 136 Exbury Road with a paved portion down a short incline in a southerly direction. At the bottom is a junction where a trail to the left leads to Tavistock Road. This portion of the trail was closed for repairs by the Parks Department of the City of Toronto.

Looking back toward Exbury Road (straight ahead) with a fork near the post to the right of centre and a path leading to a beamed staircase to west end of Tavistock Road over a small bridge.

The trail narrows slightly, the pavement changing to packed dirt and gravel sections. Repairs are being made to the water channel of Heathrow Creek to stabilize the banks and the culverts leading in from the side streets.



While making my way down the trail I met several walkers in both directions.

The above photo is looking back (north) along the trail.

Toronto City Parks have a code of conduct for their trails throughout the city:

Stay on the existing trails.

Respect trail closures.

Keep dogs on leash.

Leave no trace.

There are several litter bins along the trail including blue recycle bins.

The trail crosses Heathrow Drive to continue south.

Here the trail makes it way between residential homes linking it to Heathrow Park and Jane Street.

The photo below is looking east to Heathrow Park from the gate to Jane Street via a parking lot of a small strip plaza.

Looking toward rear of parking lot where entrance to Heathrow Park and the Heathrow trail is located.

Many locals use the trail as a shortcut to the Sheridan Mall shopping centre and local merchants in the area.

More information on Toronto's city trails can be found at : www.toronto.ca/parks/trails/.

Photo Credits: BEMartin All Rights Reserved.