Neo-Renaissance Order

Renaissance Man, an oasis in the desert of malls, chain stores, and urban ugliness, a place of calm, culture and beauty, where fine clothes can be bought and ideas can be discussed, has been of late a target to the lowest of the low - shoplifters, thieves and robbers.
Some people can't leave something good alone, they must try and destroy it. Those who do it are surely the most miserable people among us. Let the universe bestow on their small insignificant souls as much misery as they spread around them wherever they go. I know it will. The universe knows who you are, and so do I.

But in the meantime, until the universe gets rid of you, here's what's going to happen:

From now on everyone coming in should know - you're on a video recorder everywhere around the shop, even though you can't see it be sure it's there, and a still photo of you will be taken for the record. Don't like the idea? don't come in. Don't even stand by the window.

We are starting a collection of identified offenders, and the downtown business association will share it with all business owners. Be warned, m***erf***ers.

My Good Old Bike

I'm pissed!!!! And sad.
Last night i went to visit a good friend in the cardiac ward at TGH. To compensate my boy for his patience while we took our time visiting, I took out him to dim sum on McCaul street (I do not recommend that place - the food was atrocious).
We locked our bikes together to a pole. By the time we came to get them, they were gone.
Today I came back to get another visit at the hospital, and while searching for a parking spot I saw a man with my bike. I stopped the car in the middle of the street and chased him, to no avail. He got away. But - I knew he came out of the homeless shelter across the street.
I went to talk to the management there. I found the stash of stolen bikes around the corner and there were my boy's bikes. I took them home.
But even after hours and hours of combing the nooks and crannies of the neighbourhood I couldn't find my own.
I loved them, my old scratched blue Marlins.
Tomorrow I shall look again. Maybe I'll get lucky.

You Can Sleep When You're Dead

In a coffee shop, in a village called Cambelford in Trent Hills, on a lovely summer morning, this gem was calling for me:

Carlton Cinema Delight

These guys play there whenever I happen to go. What a pleasant thing to find.

August Sale

Check out the clearance sale this month - 70% off selected suits and jackets, and they are good.

A Fine Summer Day

The long weekend is behind us. Sweet warm and short.(Thanks for the pictures, DW).

A New Sign

I made this sandwich board myself, from scratch. I like it. Now lets see if it is effective.

Summer Night's Laughs

Thank the universe for our love of dark humour. This one took me a few seconds:

"....and aside from that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you enjoy the show?"

A Lesson in How Not To Be A Man of Substance

This story is a sad one, for me. It might not be the best business-like approach to tell you, but I think people need to know how not to behave:
A consignor came in yesterday, after vanishing for 2 and a half years, to claim his share. I looked up his file, and recapped what I paid him then for the items I sold, and what was left at the shop for all these years and did not sell - I said I gave it away eventually since no one wanted to buy it even from the $5 bin.
He got angry.
Let me explain what these things were: an old red polyester pyjama (he thought it was silk) and an old red sweater.
The man said - you have to pay me for them. I guess these things were so dear to him he forgot them at my shop for close to 3 years.
I wanted him out of there. To cut it short I said - lets assume someone did buy them from the $5 bin, which they didn't - I'll pay you for that. He didn't like that either. I gave him $5. For donating his old pyjamas.
He took the money. Thanks for nothing, he said at the door.
Shame, I guess, is not in his repertoire.

White Cherries - Summer Treats

The most succulent, sweat and juicy cherries I've ever tasted. The little Chinese man at the grocery store around the corner was absolutely right about them - they are the best, he said, you'll love them.

Africa, Oh Africa

Today we went to Africa - or so it seemed in Woodbine Park.
Music, fragrant spicy foods, goods with colour and substance, and a magical mix of people. This is the beauty of Toronto - the world is here.

Bring Good Luck, Little Fellow

In the shop, on this hot afternoon, this butterfly came to rest for a short while:

Rockport Shoes Rock

OMG - readers with shoes size 12 who love good solid walking shoes need to come here asap - I just got a fantastic collection of perfect condition shoes of excellent brand names: Rockport, Ecco, Williams, and L.L. Bean.
I LOVE SHOES - everyone who knows me knows this to be true. Sadly my size is considerably smaller, so I leave them for my good customers to enjoy.
My favourite today:

Moonrises and Waltzes - Summer Movie Review

The amount of movies coming out regularly is staggering, but the good ones are so very rare. Why is that? we know money is no guarantee for quality, and neither is star power.
Anyway, whatever the formula, one thing is true - good writing is always at the root of them all.
Moonrise Kingdom is the best of the crop at the moment - a solid, funny, smart and effective story that keeps moving along at a summery pace, packed with little visual and literal surprises that warm our hearts and remind us of our own past dreams and unlived adventures, family craziness, and the simplicity of life in the summers of our youth, before technology invaded every aspect imaginable.

Then there is Take This Waltz - a Canadian production, filmed in Toronto's familiar downtown streets and neighbourhoods. It's like watching a Tourism Ontario promotional video, starring Michelle Williams, for 2 hours.
The visuals are stunning, both Toronto and Michelle never looked better than through the lens of Sarah Poly. Beautiful eyes, luminous skin, graceful body and lips to die for, and the lovely decrepitness of those Victorian houses we know so well, the beaches and markets - but all that beauty is not enough to save us from wondering why we are watching this predictable story. We are bogged with that familiar nagging question: "are we there yet?" every 5 minutes or so in the last 45 minutes. The soundtrack is also very Canadian and lovely, which helps but - we know from the title that Leonard Cohen's song is bound to resonate, and when at last his comforting voice comes on, when the credits start to roll, all we want it to be released.

On the Subject of Beauty

This little marvel of nature - Glaucus Atlanticus, a particularly small and poisonous sea snail, only 3 cm in length, knows how to dress to impress. Believe it or not, it's real.
I can't get enough of looking at this thing.