JB's Warehouse & Curio Emporium

This post was made possible by the lobbying efforts of former mayor Mel Lastman. Without his dogged perserverance to have the Sheppard subway line built after the provincial government cancelled plans to build an Eglinton line , this might have a post about a psychogeographic walk that started at Caledonia or York Centre stations. I doubt I've used the Sheppard line more than twice since "Mel's Folly" opened in 2002. Both were out of curiousity, since I usually require a car for most destinations along its length (hi IKEA!). According to the TTC's 2005-2006 statistics , Bessarion had the second-lowest ridership of all subway/RT stations, with an average of 2,130 passengers a day (the bottom was Ellesmere, with 1,960). Spending half-an-hour in the concourse on a weeknight while waiting for other intrepid psychogeographers lent credence to the numbers, with more passengers depicted on the walls than live human beings passing through. Definitely not enough

I spent much of Wednesday keeping tabs on the fire on Queen West ( more links ). Adios trips to the affected branch of Suspect Video, which seemed to have more oddball flicks than their Mirvish Village location. You won't find Turkish remakes of Superman at Rogers Video... Several co-workers also kept track over the day. Since I work with cycling enthusiasts, there was a moment of silence when word leaked that Duke's Cycle had collapsed. In tribute, they were clad in black yesterday. I walked by the remains last night, joining a long line of photographers pressed against the fencing erected along the block. The mix of burned facades and icicles resembled a melting candle. All of the conversations I overheard had notes of loss in them, but luckily none of the conspiracy theories that have cropped up (most stemming from the interest of developers in the area and plans to the east of the affected buildings for a condo and possibly a Home Depot). Photo taken February 21,

Ingredients : 1) One slightly-geekly-yet-slowly-becoming-cool university freshman who happens to shoot webs at guys in rhino suits in his spare time. 2) One foxy gal prone to spouting period slang and dancing to the nearest 45 in the room. 3) Two elderly doting aunts determined to play matchmaker. 4) A large pot of coffee. Page taken from Amazing Spider-Man #43 (December 1966). Story by Stan Lee, art by John Romita. 

Today's dig into the box of 1970s family photos centres on a couple of Detroit landmarks - one altered, one gone. A recreational site for Detroiters since the late 19th century, Belle Isle was also one of the starting points of the 1943 race riots . Many of my experiences on the island involved traffic jams spurred by passengers in other vehicles reaching out to pet the island's deer population (who appear to have been rounded up by the island zoo ). On the left is the Belle Isle Coast Guard station . The white tower no longer exists. On the right, located on the mainland, is the Conners Creek Edison Plant. Opened in 1915, its set of smokestacks earned the nickname "Seven Sisters". The plant was demolished in August 1996 . Photo taken sometime in the early 1970s - JB

The morning after the night before is rarely easy, especially if you're a hard-partying snowman and the King of Kensington . Either this snowman has legs or some neighbourhood bowlers tested their aim. The party rages on... Photos taken in Bellevue Square Park, February 3, 2008 - JB

Ice skating and I have a strained relationship. Skating was not a skill that ran in our family. Pictures exist of Dad in full hockey gear from a stint in a mid-60s recreational league in either Leaside or Kirkland Lake. He claimed that he wore Alex Delvecchio's skates for a few games after a teammate found a pair lying around, making me wonder how easy it was to swipe an NHL star's equipment from Maple Leaf Gardens in those days. My problem was my feet. Within a quarter of a lap around the arena, my feet cried uncle. Compared to that pain, falling was pleasurable. Skate size didn't seem to matter, resulting in as much time off the ice as on. Every year, my elementary school had a skating party. Early on, my parents would buy me skates and we'd go to at least one or two other rec skates a year. When it became clear skating was a once-a-year attempt, Dad arranged for hand-me-downs from other teachers. After a few years of this, I resorted to sliding on my boots.