Take Off! My Life and Times in Toronto
My life and work in Toronto, Canada.
My life and work in Toronto, Canada.
Tom White found this site detailing the history of the Chrinitoid. It references my Chrintoid photos (and has one), as well as NtRH.
Joe Bob sez check it out!
Mike Jones tells me that Six Flags Over Texas was evacuated thanks to flash floods today! I'll wager the Roaring Rapids were ... well, you can finish the joke. Apparently all the rain during the week has swollen all the creeks that drain out of the park, so it was all but inevitable if it rained hard today (which it did).
Short Instructions for the Dial-A-Nuke
The device yield is always on the W scale. The crater radius of the device is always on the W 1/3rd scale at the pointer corresponding to soil type. Crater depth is read on the W 1/4th scale, after setting W and setting soil type on the center piece. Flash is read on wthe W 1/2 scale, for corresponding W, and mass annihalated on the mass scale. Radiation dose at a distance is done by setting W and sighting to the spiral contour lines in the window of the center piece, against the distance scale at the bottom of the window. Radiation dosage is corrected for neutron and gamma ray shielding effects in air being ionized. Percentage dose (gamma versus neutron plus gamma) also corresponds to air-shielded LD-50 for a device of energy W. Shock wave overpressure corresponds to the device energy on the W scale, and a distance set on the W 1/3rd scale, and is read on the center piece's scale. Overpressure is for the singly-shocked wave. Double the value for ground-bursts and for cases where the fireball center is lower than about 30 degrees above the horizon. Double the value again if a back-reflecting object exists within about a meter behind the area of interest. Reverse calculations are done by setting any needed auxiliary values such as soil type, then reading the required device energy on the W scale.
The Dial-a-Nuke does not calculate the effects of fallout, nor electromagnetic pulse effects, and assumes that no atmospheric blow-off will occur. Results should be within 3 dB or better of actual values. Absolutely no classified information is involved in the Dial-a-Nuke. For more detail, assembly instructions, and actual examples, please read the accompanying article.
-- RPI Engineer Magazine, Nov. 1981 issue
As almost all of you in the U.S. don't know, Canada is electing a new government and Prime Minister tomorrow. Check out this site for an overview of the Canadian way of doing this. Take special note of the Govenor General's role in the election since the two main parties (Liberals and Conservatives) are polling neck and neck and a clear majority government is all but impossible after this election. It's all fascinating stuff and surprising in it's similarity to the last U.S. Presidential Election (e.g. Stephen Harper is a Bush wannabe).
I got an email from a chap who's started a WiKi (a kind of user self-generated website) for RPI. He wanted permission to use Not the Rensselaer Handbook in his Wiki. Both Tom and I agreed and sent an email to that affect. Give it a looksie every so often, and if you're RPI alumni, contribute content!
Ok, I'm still going to see Barbara on Thursday/Friday, and the Ilk on Sunday at the Kraus BBQ. But I've been invited by Charles Forsythe to go to "Dershstock" on Saturday (with a Friday stay over) in the Catskills, and I cannot pass this up.
I don't know much about the event other than it being an informal weekend long get together at the Catskills home of Alan Dershowitz (yeah, that Dershowitz -- as a ardent Leftie, I'm kinda psyched but he rarely shows at these events anymore). It's not a conference or anything formal, just people hanging out and probably behaving badly (I'll probably be the only sober man standing on Saturday night).
This means I'll not be in Albany before Sunday. I'll attend the Kraus BBQ from around noon until a little after 3 o'clock, when I have to bolt for Rochester and a boat I wanna catch.
I got all the way back to within five miles of the RI before I hit bad traffic.
From the looks of it, the SUV flipped twice since there's a splash of windshield debris near, but not right at, the upside down Ford Escape.
I took this shot near the West Mall. The juxtaposition of the grid and the nearly purple sky caught my eye. Alanna -- this is photography as "art". (Oh boy, here come the reviews). Ultor, for the unintiated, is the God of High Voltage.
After the Aero Car ride, I drove down to the main Falls thinking I would do the Table Rock exhibits, but the parking lots were entirely full (and charging the "Gouge the Yankees" rates of $18CDN), so I went back up Niagara Falls Parkway and stopped at the White Water Rapids walkway (which, incidentally, has free parking).
For $8CDN you take a looooong elevator ride down to the river level, and then can proceed up a gang plank path that stretches for 300m or so, along the most violent and powerful section of the Niagara River.
At the bottom of the elevator shaft is a long tunnel that takes you through the rock to the river's edge.
At the end of the tunnel there is a small room with tourist and geological information (plus video), leading out to a platform just down river of the Whirlpool Bridge (the bridge that isn't open to the general public -- it's the commuter bridge between the Lewiston and Rainbow bridges). I took this photo by extending my arm over the rail and pressing the shutter, so it's not a perspective you'll easily duplicate.
All along the walk there are views of water rushing over rocks of all sizes. This particular flow caught my eye. The resulting photo is a fascinating view of the fractal patterns flowing water will take.
Most of the water is exploding up into the air thanks to enormous boulders just under the water. This is the river equivalent of a mine field.
Click here for a small Quicktime movie of the rapids. Watch the left side of the screen for some spectacular water jets. I shot this with my new Coolpix 5400 digital camera ... not too shabby.
At the end of the gangway is an observation area right at the water's edge. It's quite loud and splashy. I think this is just a few hundred meters up stream from the Whirlpool (see the Aero Car photos for a different perspective). The clouds painted different levels of light on the canyon walls, which is why they vary in darkness.
The gangplank it self is very attractive. I felt at times like I was in a section of the computer game Myst.
Here is the view of the humans at the end of the pathway. The lower level is where the water hits the ... uh ... people. There is an observation area above, too, for the aquaphobic.
Never forget that you are in a falling rock zone. All along the path is evidence that rocks of all sizes occasionally come down ... hard.
More Mystian views.
Here is the starting observation area from a different view (coming back down the path to the entrance tunnel). The Whirlpool Bridge is in the background.
The tunnel that leads to the elevator is dug into this riverbank. This is the outside of the anteroom with the maps and video at the start of the walkway.
Proof that ancient ... glaciers ... landed here, thousands of years ago! I took several photos of rocks of various textures.
Today I drove down to the Niagara Falls park region to explore the Whirlpool and Rapids region. Everyone who comes to the Falls from the U.S. side, (like we did in 2002) misses an incredible amount of fascinating geography and well positioned nature tourism if they don't cross, or if they only stay near the Falls themselves.
This funicular is one of the best in the world. Six cables support the open air car as it makes its slow trip across the entire Whirlpool and back. The ride is around five minutes long, and is amazingly smooth. The only jarring occurs at the dock itself. I don't recall how high up it is, but I'd wager 80m or more. It costs $10CDN to ride it.
The bottom of the Whitewater Rapids.
This is a zoom of the white water section of the Niagara (see the White Water Rapids Walk for other photos), seen from the Aero Car. We're looking upriver, towards the Whirlpool Bridge with the U.S. on the left bank and Canada on the right. These rapids are the strongest in North America.
Looking back at the loading station. No doubt this view is the one many dread!
This is the Whirlpool viewed from 3/4 across the funicular. Some campers were down on the shore of the river (you cannot see them on this reduced image). This view is entirely of the Canadian side of the river. The Whirlpool Golf Course is behind the trees.
This view looks upriver, towards the Whitewater Rapids, the Whirlpool Bridge, and back towards the Canadian side of the river. The direction of the Whirlpool changes depending upon how much water we draw into the electric turbines at night.
The Spanish Aero Car does not stop on the United States side, so you must cross into Canada to ride it. Here is the view on the States' side.
After the ride, I stayed at the exit stairs hoping to take some more photos of the car itself, and possibly other events and views I had missed. Here you can see the elegant six-cable truck that rides on the wires.
Another attraction for the lower river is the Whirlpool Jet Boat. I saw this vehicle on the PBS special on Niagara, so I knew it would show up at the whirlpool if I just hung about for a few minutes. Sure enough, it came up river and into the Whirlpool. They slosh around the pool itself, and then teasingly dip the nose of the boat into the whitewater rapids, then turn back. Nonetheless, you get a serious soaking on this boat.
The Globe and Mail has an article about riding the Breeze (i.e. "Spirit of Ontario") fast ferry from Rochester vs. driving. Does it come as a surprise to anyone that the ferry isn't as fast as driving (assuming you can go 120 km [72 MPH] the whole way)? The fellow who rode the ferry pointed out it's obvious advantages, and frankly, I think the race should have started at the dock when the ship departed. The outcome would be different under those circumstances.
The world's tallest free standing structure is twenty-eight years old today.
Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray!
Tonite I'm watching Fahrenheit 9-11 at least once!
I'm staying in Ontario this weekend (for once), but I am thinking about shooting down to the Niagara Whirlpool to ride the aero car and take photos on Saturday. Then I may stop at the Hamilton Canadian Warplane Museum on the way back.
I'll probably be working at ATI on Sunday in preparation for a short and brutal week.
Thursday of next week I'll drive down to Whitney Point and stay with Barbara for the night. Friday I'll probably do some exploring in the Finger Lakes area, and I plan on being in Albany-Schenectady-Troy on Saturday and much of Sunday. I have booked passage on the Breeze for the 4th of July, taking the 7:30pm leg back to Toronto from Rochester. That afternoon is the Kraus family BBQ, which I'll be at for a while (till around 3p). I have to drive 240 miles to catch the ferry!
I finally processed a roll of Fuji Provia 100 slide film I've been shooting since May in my Minolta XD-11. Here are the results.
First up is a gorgeous shot of the Whitney Point, NY reservoir and the valley surrounding it.
The Toronto Star reports that the nation's first Linux-only computer store is opening in town this weekend.
Toronto will become home this weekend to what's being touted as the first retail computer store devoted exclusively to Linux-based products.Marc Silverman said many people are tired of having "Microsoft shoved down their throats" and a store dedicated to Linux gives the average computer user a chance to test computers and applications based on the operating system before making a purchase.
The store will have Linux experts to answer questions and a service centre that can handle repairs and upgrades.
Sometimes Toronto can be so cool!
I went to see Super Size Me last night.
Oh. My. God.
I'll never eat at McDonald's again. Jumping Jesus, this documentary should be shown at all high schools to 9th graders alongside the "driver's ed" films, it's that scary. "Word up" to all dieticians and nutritionists -- go see this film! It will give you great ammo in the war against all things Fast Foodish.
The film follows the 30 day "diet" of the star and director -- Morgan Spurlock -- eating only at McDonald's, and ordering "super sized" meals (if offered by the person at the counter). As the film opens, he goes to several medical professionals who certify that he is in excellent health. Over the course of 30 days (90 meals), he gains 15% body mass (all fat), develops liver problems and suffers from the addictive maladies that eating only highly saturated fats and lots of salt and sugar will inflict on you.
He makes a point of ordering every different item on the McDonald's menu over the course of the 30 days, which means he ate even the dreaded "McFilet". When he covers the history of the chicken "McLugnut" (as I like to call it) is enough to make you never touch one again.
As the film progresses, sidebars discuss how the fast food industry pumps 10,000 ads onto the average U.S. child each year, and how they have made their restaurants into replacement playgrounds for urban and suburban kids. A telling piece shows 1st graders unable to identify George Washington and a "velvet" Jesus -- but they spot Ronald McDonald in an instant (they even stumble when presented with 'Wendy' from Wendy's Hamburgers). Food industry lobbyists are portraited as monsters (he even gets one to admit, on camera, his products are harmful) and the power of the industry is highlighted.
There are lots of insights into the impact the generational paradigm shift (from rarely eating out to almost exclusively eating fast food) has had on U.S. culture and health. Public policy and the nature of health care have been negatively impacted by the fast food business.
As the film progresses, we watch Spurlock's health go in the crapper as the toll taken by eating only at Mickey D's kicks in. All the doctors who monitored him assumed the diet would make him fat, but by the end of the 30 days, they're horrified at the liver damaged caused by this diet and several are begging him to stop before the 30 days are up (the moments spent with his nutritionist are almost agonizing as she wracks her brain for ways to eat a borderline nutritious meal while remaiing on the McDonald's diet -- big surprise: there are none).
You'll be grossed out, scared and hopefully put off this crap for good. If your BMI is over 30, I urge you to see this movie! It's the "Scared Straight" film of our times.
Joe Bob sez "check it out".
CNN has a story about a Ben Folds and William Shatner collaboration album coming out next year.
"It is a great record and it is really worth going out and doing some shows in major cities," Folds told Billboard.com. "(Shatner) is not a musician at all -- he's not rapping or singing -- but he is still part of the music. I've never heard a record quite like it." Shatner previously guested on Folds'1998 solo album "Fear of Pop, Vol.1"Shatner's album was produced and written mostly by Folds and includes cameos by Henry Rollins, Aimee Mann and Joe Jackson, who duets with Shatner on Pulp's "Common People." Author Nick Hornby ("High Fidelity") also co-wrote a song with Folds for the project.
I've booked passage from Rochester to Toronto for the evening of the 4th of July, when I'll be returning from Albany and the BBQ party at the Kraus Haus. this is the new catamaran ferry that runs between Toronto and Kodakville ;-). I'm taking the 7:30pm run back to the Great White North ...
Look for the review of the Da Breeze the night of the 4th, same blog channel, same URL.
Check out this T-Shirt:
Now that I think about it, it's not so much funny as ironic.
CNN has an article about the Whistler exhibit at the Art Gallery of Ontario.
American painter James McNeill Whistler is the pivotal artist linking the styles and influences of Frenchman Claude Monet and Briton J.M.W. Turner in a three-man exhibit of impressionism at the Art Gallery of Ontario.The show of the 19th-century landscape painters, making its only North American stop in Toronto, chronicles how a friendship between Whistler and Monet helped to establish impressionism under the industrial revolution's polluted skies.
Whistler broadened Monet's experience by stressing the importance of Turner's epic, atmospheric oils from the first half of the 1800s, said Katharine Lochnan, senior curator at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Lochnan conceived the show while studying Whistler's work.
"He is the pivot, the catalyst, the link between Turner and Monet," Lochnan said. "Whistler was fluent in both English and French and at home in both cultures, so he was a great carrier of ideas."
Months ago I was planning on going home for my 42nd birthday (7-2-2004), but because of scheduling issues, I'm flying to Dallas on the 8th instead (same flight time, same gate Mel). My mother-in-law will come into town that weekend, too.
The weekend of my birthday is, of course, the 4th o'July (officially known as "burn your neighbor's house with a bottle rocket" day in Dallas) weekend. I have a couple of days "banked" with ATI, so I am thinking about driving down to Barbara's on Thursday (the 1st, a Canadian holiday, too). Saturday and Sunday I'll be in Albany, doing the Kraus family BBQ and doing stuff around the cap district.
Update: I will try to take the Breeze from Rochester on the inbound leg, possibly in both directions.
I'll have to drive back to Toronto on Sunday evening (it's around six hours, so I'll need to leave by six o'clock).
As always, when in the U.S. call my cellphone to reach me.
According to SciFi Wire, J. Michael Straczynski may be working on a completely new Star Trek series with Dark Skies creator Bryce Zabel.
Straczynski added that Paramount called him last year to accept an executive producer position on the currrent Trek series, Enterprise, in its upcoming fourth season, but that he declined. "The series I mentioned has nothing to do with any current series," he added. "It's a new show."
Folks, I'm "gobstopped". Paramount flat out stole the idea of Babylon 5 when they rolled out Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. This could be really, really weird.
I just got off the horn with Anne in Dallas -- they're back in the U.S. of A. My brother is waiting for them with her car, so she should be home around 10pm or so. Awaiting her is an insane Persian cat who has left her surprises everywhere, according to the friend who watched over her while Anne was gone.
Look for Alanna on line later tonite ... two days without the Internet has certainly driven her mad, too.
Update -- they're all the way home, safe and sound. The cat is probably driving Anne nuts as I type this.
While we all went down to the Canadian side of the Falls on Friday, today's weather was orders of magnitude better. We had clear skies, and lots of sun. While everyone else went to the Journey Behind the Falls, I walked along the Niagara River stopping to photograph the river and falls.
A close up of the Horseshoe Falls from the Table Rock observation deck.
Two of the Maid of the Mist boats between the American Falls (in the background) and the Canadian Falls. The Rainbow Bridge is visible in the background.
The American Falls and the Table Rock observation decks in the foreground. Rainbow Bridge and Maid of the Mist elevator and platform in the background.
A close up of the Table Rock tourist building and the Horseshoe Falls, taken from the 28th floor of the Embassy Suites.
The Ontario Power Plant and the older and defunct Canada Niagara Power plant, along with the Niagara Falls Park tourist parking lot along River Street. The Botanical Gardens building is between the two power plants.
This is the whole enchilada ... the Canadian (Horseshoe) Falls, Table Rock tourist center, the power plant water inlets, and on the left, Goat Island's viewpoint of the Horseshoe. Niagara Falls, NY is in the background.
Barbara took this family portrait. I need to work on it a bit ... I had the camera setup to over expose the background in order to get our faces more clearly. Of all the shots, this is the one where the kids are not frowning or looking away :-( !
I took Anne to Peller Estates Vineyard for dinner this evening.
We visited the facility when we first drove into Niagara-on-the-Lake (we came up the Niagara Parkway). We were still dressed for Marineland, so we didn't hang out for too long at the wine store.
We had a late reservation, and so we arrived at nine on schedule. Anne quickly chose to order the James Beard Tasting Menu:
She urged me to join her in this, and I agreed. So, for the first time I had oyster fritters, bison, and foie gras. On the whole, it was rather good. I was surprised how rich the 6 yr. old cheddar tasted, for example. Anne was in heaven, and since she had the wine with the meal, was able to enjoy five different Peller drinks.
For dessert, they served a "Valrhona Dark Chocolate & Cabernet Franc Icewine Cube":
By the time this was served, we were so stuffed we could barely finish it (in fact, we didn't). We were there until 11:30pm, after which we only had enough strength to crawl back to the B&B and crash (ok, I did watch a bit of SNL).
Saturday evening before eating at Peller Estates Vineyard, Anne and I went downtown to look out over the lake, do some shopping (I needed a necktie), and take a carriage ride.
You can see the map-themed tie I bought (ironic, given that tomorrow is Father's Day) tied (badly) around my neck. Anne was reluctant to take a horse ride, but I insisted and we got a surprisingly interesting tour of the town, some inside dirt (a Hong Kong woman is buying all the best hotels and B&Bs), and found out the driver was friends with Linda Evangelista's brother.
Historic Fort Niagara (the one we ... America ... used to attack Canada) is clearly across the river on the lake. A local said that the U.S. Coast Guard still used it. I thought that was rather tacky of us.
We had a good view of Toronto 35 miles across Lake Ontario.
On our second night in the Niagara region, Anne and I stayed at the Victoria Street Bed and Breakfast on (where else?) Victoria St. in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario.
This is the B&B that Brian and I visited a few weeks back. I didn't get to see the Winter room in the inn that I reserved, so I took this room sight unseen:
I knew that we had a large bath and a sleigh bed, but the owners took my plan for a belated honeymoon to heart.
While I was in the bathroom, Anne started laughing out loud. When I came into the room she challenged me to "spot the hint". It took me a few moments to spot the blocks on the mantle ... and burst out laughing myself. I had to explain that I had told the owners that this was to be a surprise, 14 yr. after the fact honeymoon. At the time I told them this, I had completely forgotten that our trip to San Antonio in 1993 was are "real" honeymoon. Doh!
Take a trip with us now, through time and space. To the late 1960's, and to Southern Ontario. To ... Marineland.
It was my idea to drag the kids, Anne and her mother to this theme park. I figured there would be decent animal shows, and a good aquarium. I knew that they boasted the "longest" steel roller-coaster, so I figured that the kids would like that.
What we found was a theme park that has scarcely changed from the 1960's Marineland that I remember going to in California when we lived a few miles from Marineland of the Pacific.
The first thing we did was stand in line for twenty minutes to attend the main animal show. They used seals, a walrus, four dolphin and a smaller female orca in what was largely a traditional yet extremely corny show.
One of the highlights was the unintended switching of walruses as Walrus #1 refused to come down the slide (from my vantage point, I could see the staff struggling to get the beast to move). In case anyone has forgotten ... the Walrus is one ugly critter! Not cute like Mr. Seal.
The show included four very frisky dolphins who did the usual high jumps, flips and squirting the staff. They are so agile, it's startling sometimes. When the orca was brought out these guys made themselves scarce in the adjacent pool.
What Marineland would be complete without a stunt orca? This female was amazing to watch ... an eighteen foot long uber-dolphin that eats fifty pounds of fish a day.
The show ended with the requisite "wave good bye".
A viewing tank held a large collection of Beluga whales. Two of the females were pregnant ... they look like double-wide dolphins.
Alanna and Leo rode this vomit comet ... it's a "Scrambler" that climbes into the sky.
We all rode the Dragon Mountain roller-coaster. The ride ops said the ride was four minutes long ... and it probably was. A very, very long steel coaster that felt like two regular coasters combined. It was cleverly built into a mountain side, with hidden turns and two inversions plus a head-banging cobra head.
The park has only a handful of attractions spread over an enormous area, which meant we spent most of our time walking, walking walking.
After dinner on Friday, Anne and I retired to our "Fallsview" room. Around midnight, I took these photos from the 14th floor of the Marriott Renassance Fallsview.
This image is looking down the Niagara river towards Lake Ontario. The new Casino dominates the image (and the parking garage in front it) but the Rainbow Bridge is visible as a line of lights behind the Casino, and to the right of the Skylon Tower.
Here is a closeup of the Rainbow Bridge. Cars coming from the U.S. still covered half the bridge -- at midnight. When you gotta gamble, you gotta gamble.
I arrived early on Friday, leaving Markham at 11am and reaching the hotel around 12:30pm. I pulled up to the newly built Marriott Fallsview hotel on Fallsview Rd. (seen on the left in the picture below).
As it turns out, I didn't have a reservation here (I had a reservation, just not at this Marriott). In fact, there are two "fallsview" Marriott hotels in Niagara Falls, and they're both on Fallsview Road. The one I had a reservation with was across the street from the enormous new Fallsview Casino, which just happens to block our view of the American Falls. We stayed on the 14th floor, which is the lowest level of the glass rooms in this image (we were right smack in the middle of the floor).
We ended up a block down the street from the Embassy Suites, where Barbara stayed on the 28th floor with the kids. Thanks to her room, I was able to take all of the spectacular aerial shots of the Horseshoe Falls and surrounding areas. The Konica Minolta Tower was right outside her window.
The Breeze finally took some passengers somewhere. On it's maiden voyage from Rochester to Toronto (a telling thing, that is), for a tux and gown $500/seat gala. Hopefully he damn thing will be running regularly (and smoothly) staring this month (just in time for Anne and the kids to miss it!).
"We're good to go," he said. "This is a green light." He said service would start today with a 9 a.m. departure from Rochester, returning from Toronto at 6 p.m. On Saturday, the ferry would start operating two roundtrips a day. The trip takes about 2 hours and 15 minutes.
At least Barbara and I can experience it this summer.
Update - as if to "rub it in", I received an e-mail today (June 20th) announcing the regular service of the Breeze -- just a week too late to be of use to me and my family. Feh.
This weekend it's back to the Falls.
Anne's mom is driving her and the kids to Niagara Falls, ON on Friday, where we'll all spend the weekend there until I take them to Toronto's Pearson airport late Sunday and send them home.
Anne and I will stay in the Marriott Fallsview hotel on Friday night, and then on Saturday we'll stay at a bed and breakfast in Niagara-on-the-Lake (yes, the hyphens are part of the real name). Barbara will keep the kids at the Embassy Suites back in Niagara Falls. Saturday we'll go to Marineland, Ontario and see the orcas and manatees.
This will be my umpteenth trip to the Falls, so I'm acting more as tour guide than tourist. It'll be fun to be on the "cool" side and for the wife and kids to finally see the falls in their full glory.
I can't pass up this magnificent bit of science. The NASA probe Cassini has imaged Saturn's very odd moon Phoebe.
Read the article for more information about this fantastic bit of robotic astronomy!
I took the family to Whitney Point, NY yesterday after visiting Paramount's "Canada Wonderland" theme park. We drove across the Peace Bridge after a more-or-less uneventful trip down the ETR and the QEW through the Niagara region.
We got into Broome County, NY around 10:30pm, stopping at Anne's mom's home briefly. We spent the night in a Fairfield Inn (Marriott points!) and went to Barbara's around 10am. Anne and the kids are staying the week until Friday, when Barbara drives them back to Niagara Falls, ON for the weekend.
All of Anne's siblings were there: Stephen and Sue Gerard with their two sons Adam and Ben. Paul and Chira Gerard with their son Mitchell. Barbara's brother David and his wife Margie also came to visit on Sunday, so it was a big reunion for Barbara.
I drove back from WP around 5p, and things went swimmingly until I hit a 45 minute backup on the QEW just east of the 406 interchange. The highway was backed up for 12 km! Blew my awesome trip time (I was on track to make the entire drive in 4h 15m -- instead it took 5h 5m) but I still got to the RI around 10:30pm.
Sunday was a family reunion for Anne's mom, Barbara Decker. Her brother and all her children and their kids showed up for an afternoon together in her Whitney Point country home.
As soon as I got to her house, I started working on getting the laptop working for Alanna. I was able to activate the WiFi tap without incident (and for you war drivers, there's a WEP enabled so don't bother!). As soon as it was working, she was back on line (to Barbara's dismay).
Unfortunately for me, Anne's brother Stephen is a real photographer. He grabbed my camera and capture some "precious moments" of myself, much to my horror ;-).
Here I am as Hank Hill from King of the Hill. Imagine my surprise in discovering the steering wheel is just a prop on this thing. In the trailer is Adam (not pictured) and Ben Gerard, Stephen's sons, Mitchell Gerard, Paul's son, and Leo. That's right, four grandsons and Alanna the only girl.
Here I am reliving my days in the circus as a stunt rider. This made me appreciate the work my motorcycle was doing on my behalf.
David and Margie Decker got the "kids" playing baseball (of sorts) in the front yard. Paul (Anne's brother) was the favored hitter. Behind him is Margie, Alanna and Mitchell, his son.
But Leo drove some nice grounders under the gazebo. On the deck is Stephen, Anne, Barbara and standing behind Leo is his great uncle David Decker.
Alanna was the suprise home run hitter (they should have known better, she played softball for a while).
And of course, Paul tried to knock them out of the 10 acre property.
We did the Toronto theme park located a short drive from the RI (just up 400 from the ETR). We arrived around 10am and found the line of cars leading to the entrance rather spectacular. After some derring-do, we were parked and inside this compact yet full featured amusement park.
The Paramount tie-ins were abundant and amusing. I found many references to Jimmy Neutron, which was produced by an old HS friend (John A. Davis). We saw the Spongebob character walking around the park, too. It was wall-to-wall Spongebob, and almost no Star Trek to be seen!
The first ride we stood in line for (about 1h) is the new Tomb Raider coaster. This was our first "lie-down coaster", essentially a mouse-style coaster with the added bonus of corkscrew flips thanks to the enclosed cage cars. It was a bit of a head banger, and really not much of a thrill ride.
We didn't ride this vomit comet, but we were amazed to watch it balance upside down on some runs. Note the irony of using the Space Shuttle in a theme park ride. A startlingly large number of rides fell into the "spin and puke" category, including the infamous "Spinnaker" ride that graced Six Flags Over Texas in the eighties.
Anne and Alanna rode this stand up coaster (the name of which escapes me). Leo decided not to ride while in line, so I just took him through and we waited for Anne and Alanna to report. They said the stand up coaster at Six Flags Fiesta Texas is better.
One surprising sight was dozens of carp swimming almost out of the creek at the feeding bridge. These fish were aggressive and most had their snouts out of the water. Scary.
We rode the hanging gondola ride which is similar to the XLR-8 at Fiesta Texas, and the "mountain train" which is the run-away mine train inside a cave. It was fun, but like all the rides we experienced, very short. No single ride was more than a minute, which was dissappointing. The park was very clean and attractive, but the themes were very dated.
Anne and I went to Le Select for dinner tonite.
We left the kids on their own at the RI (they had all the gear and an entire hotel full of staff backing them up), and drove down Leslie to Don Mills, then across to the DVP and downtown. Traffic was pretty insane thanks to a Blue Jays game, but we found our way to Queen Street and the same parking garage I used last week when I came down to get Melanie's Lush soap.
We walked down Queen Street and visited Lush. Anne found some massage oil bars and some soap she wanted to try. We looked in the silly boutiques and marveled at the urban critters.
At Le Select, we were seated in the front table (#1) by the window. We had a good view out the front but were not really in the romantic section of the restaurant. Anne had lamp chops and cous cous, whereas I ordered the prix fix flank steak and frites. Anne enjoyed the meal, the brandy, and the time away from the kids at the RI ;-).
Took Anne and the kids to Scooters for the Wed. night family skate. There were two young kids' birthday parties going, but other than a small swarm of rugrats on roller-blades, we had the rink to ourselves.
Dinner was at a local Boston Pizza. The power was out for an hour before we showed up, so the restaurant was understaffed and hobbled. Service and food were ... well lousy is the word I'm going with here. We passed on a Wolfgang Puck restaurant, too!
 The Royal Alexandra Theater | Tonite we went to see Mamma Mia! at The Royal Alexandra Theatre on King Street. Astute readers of this blog will recall I went to see the musical months ago. It was just as good for me this time, although we were in the nose bleed section (upper balcony ... waaaay upper balcony). Almost all of the upper balcony was full of 7th graders from Western Ontario, almost in Manitoba. They had come to Toronto earlier in the week after nearly 24 hours on the road in chartered buses. Their chaperons were rather stunned to find themselves in a very adult (and ribald) musical. It was fun watching the kids squirm. But it was great to finally get to share the musical with Anne and Alanna and Leo. We had a great time. |
Today we went to the CN Tower. All week the air in Toronto has been smoggy, so no one has even seen the tower before today. I was wondering if Anne was going to go through with this -- but not only did she go up the tower, she put a foot on the glass floor!
We had a spectacular view of the Blue Jays game going on in the Skydome below us.
Leo was very reluctant to get on the glass floor, but he was delighted to roll my carcass over it!
The things kids'll do to their parents. That really is me lying on the glass floor, 1,122 ft. above home plate (or so it seemed).
After we descended the tower, we did the Lego Racers VR ride, which was amusing but nothing to blog about, so I won't.
We were in a bit of a pinch for time as we were planning on eating at the Horizon's Café at the CN Tower, and it was closed for a group event. Instead, we went to the Texas Lone Star Grill down Front St. after being taxied there on a rickshaw.
We visited the Pacific Mall today. I had never been there, so it was an adventure for all of us. Anne looked longingly at jade and black pearl jewelry, Alanna lusted after plushies and Pocky ("pocky ... pocky ... pocky ... mushroom -- mushroom"), and Leo found almost every console game store. Anne picked up some fried squid bits, and Alanna and I stocked up on Cowboy Bebop posters and cards.
We had an uneventful trip to Toronto. Amazing.
We drove down to Clemmie's around 11:30, and took John with us to D/FW (he drove our car back to Clemmie's ... thank you!). After a non-working escalator and a bit of a wait getting our boarding passes, we were in the terminal with an hour to go. I took the kids to McDs for lunch while Anne more sagely ate an A Bon Pain sandwich. I got the kids (and me) some plane munchies, and we boarded (right behind my on-again, off-again boss from ATI!).
The flight was fine. I was able to spot our path across Lake Erie, and even pointed out some landmarks to Alanna (she had the window seat).
We got to see all three Terminals at Pearson thanks to the ever so slow shuttle bus, but we dashed to our car and were only second in line to pay and exit. Kudos to Anne and the kids for expert cargo insertion! Driving back to the RI was a relative delight.
We have two rooms, one for the kids and one for the adults. We did the pool (my first time in it ... it's nice) and this morning everyone got an early breakfast. So far it's looking good.
This weekend I took Alanna to A-Kon 15, held at the Adam's Mark Hotel in downtown Dallas.
For those not "in the know", this is the largest anime convention in Dallas, and likely Texas. Anime, for those really not in the know, is Japanese animation. What used to be Astro Boy and Speed Racer is now a full ecology of media spanning all ages, tastes and desires. Everything from goofy school girl cartoons to, well, sexy school girl cartoons.
Anyway, I have taken Alanna to A-Kon for three years running, and it's now her official birthday convention. I missed A-Kon #2 because it was on her birthday (you know, the one in 1991). She's quite the genre fan, and this year she even went in costume as one of her favorite characters: Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky 4th
Alanna stayed over night at the hotel with Anne's friend Cynthia Amaya and her two daughters, Shelby and Erica Reis. Erica is an art student at Savannah College of Art Design who just got a book deal based on her short comic called Utopia Device. Erica had a booth at A-Kon offering her comic and private drawings.
One of the funnier costumes was Pocky Man, a fellow dressed up as a box of the Japanese confectionary.
The convention was enormous, crowded, and utterly disorganized, which is too bad because it's a great gathering otherwise.
Happy Birthday to you.
Happy Birthday to you.
Happy Birthday dear Alanna ...
Happy Birthday to you!
See you tonite kiddo! I'm wearing my Snuffer's T-shirt in your honor ;-).
After eating dinner in Buffalo on Sunday, I had to choose which bridge to take to cross into Canada. I typically choose the Lewiston bridge (the northern most) because it isn't interesting to tourists and was the shorter route from north Buffalo (although it involves paying a 50 cent toll to cross Grand Island bridge). When I arrived around 7:38 pm, the NY State Troopers were turning all cars back from the bridge. They wouldn't say what the problem was, either.
I had to take the Moses Parkway south to the Rainbow bridge, which is at the Falls. The line was long, but not as bad as I expected. I got a good photo of the "Around the World in 80 Days" style balloon (see photo) on the American side (hey Anne, wanna take a ride?). None-the-less, it took around 27 minutes to cross. After crossing I drove down River Street to catch a view of the Falls, and then I ended up driving down the road to Marineland, just to see where it was. I ended up driving a big N down and up and then back down to get to the QEW.
Yesterday I found out what happened at the bridge. There was a church bus accident on the Canadian side of the bridge around 6:10pm. The driver lost control of the extended van he was driving when a metal coffee cup became stuck under the brake pedal. Of the twelve passengers, three died on the spot and most of the rest are in hospital recovering.
