The history of Toronto retail in 2020 will be framed in terms of carpentry (forgive the pun). A threat appears and the immediate response is to cover all the windows with plywood to keep marauding hoards from smashing things.
Tag: Toronto
Matthew Hayley #MentalHealthIsVisible
It was strange going out with my camera this morning. I feel like a bear crawling out from hibernation. The light seems too bright. And, god, I’m hungry.
Sleeping Rough in the Time of Covid-19
It’s easy to overlook the possibility that medical guidance is entrenched within or is an expression of middle-class values. But those things we expect of people—self-isolation, social distancing, masks, hand-washing—are not possible for many people.
Covid-19, God, and Aliens
The longer I listened to him, the more I felt like Woody Allen talking to Annie Hall’s younger brother (Christopher Walken) at the family dinner when he cut him off and said: “I’m due back on the planet Earth.”
Bathed In Luxury
Bathed In Luxury. This is the tagline of a new condominium residence and hotel under construction on Bloor Street East. I struggle with the word luxury. I struggle with the way it’s used.
Canada Geese as measure for social distancing
A piece in the Guardian made light of Yukon signs that advise residents to social distance by keeping one caribou apart or, in the absence of caribou, four ravens. Ah, those crazy Canucks! If you read to the end of the article, you’ll note some standard Toronto measures, too. Keep one hockey stick apart or,…
Channelling Jimmy Stewart while Self-Isolating
I hate the thought of spending good money on a new lens and not using it. So, instead of stalking wildlife in Toronto’s ravines, I’ve played Jimmy Stewart in Rear Window, propping my gear on a tripod and waiting to see what happens in neighbouring buildings.
Covid-19 in Toronto – Early Days
In his 1947 novel, The Plague, Albert Camus writes of an epidemic, probably bubonic plague, that decimates the inhabits of the French Algerian town, Oran. One of the curious observations he makes is that the “[p]lague had killed all colors”.
Film vs Digital
I am as happy with the images I make with film as with my DSLR cameras. To me, these formats represent different strategies. The more strategies I use, the more opportunities I give myself to make varied and interesting photographs.
Filmores Hotel
As I continued to shoot, I heard a woman’s voice immediately to my right: Stop shooting! I ignored the voice and kept shooting. Stop taking photographs this instant.
Family Day Photo Walk
To take his mind off the pain and insomnia, he started decorating things, his mailbox and front porch to begin with, then expanding out into the yard to create a garden of glass beads, plastic bugs, pennies, action figures, rubber boots, bicycle tires, teapots, pool cues, ad infinitem.
Sherbourne Street Bridge Fire
On Tuesday January 7th, the City of Toronto conducted a sweep of homeless people from the Rosedale Valley ravine. Mayor Tory cited “health and safety” as an important reason for the sweep. News sources also cited “risks such as fire when open flames are used.”
Doughnuts in the Don Valley
The winter solstice (plus or minus a couple weeks) is the only time of the year when I can photograph Go Trains before sunrise. The first train of the morning commute passes a level crossing along the Lower Don Trail just north of Pottery Road at 7:00 am when the sky is still dark.
Rosedale Valley Homeless Sweep
The City of Toronto is conducting a sweep of Rosedale Valley Road, removing homeless people who live either under the bridges that cross the ravine or in tents in the more densely wooded areas.
Impervious
We eat at the bar; my nephew is serving. A man sits on the stool to my left. He says he’s at the convention for the North American Widget Manufacturers Association or something like that. As soon as he opens his mouth, we know he’s an American …