Scene and Heard
Gonna hyperthrust through a bunch of items to clear the info cache.
* On Wednesday, October 8 I predicted a Globe columnist would weigh in on the snark debate within a week or two. On October 29 Kate Taylor stepped up to the plate, and earned a B- for her efforts.
* Toronto freelancer Nathalie Atkinson emailed an alert about Saturday’s Globe, specifically an article in the Toronto section by Peter Cheney about Schwartzdale. It appears that Cheney didn’t attribute information about parking fines and the cost of neighbouring houses to Toronto Life. This kind of thing falls into a gray zone of sorts, since plenty of writers (myself included) "borrow" facts from other publications. Still, it smells a bit off, as they like to say.
* I tried the new Lay’s Toronto College Street Pizza flavoured potato chips today. The concoction is part of Lay’s Tastes of Canada initiative, along with Cape Breton Sea Salt & Pepper (which, in the interest of journalistic thoroughness I will try tomorrow). You can vote for the next two flavours at lays.ca. Isn’t there a CBC radio show called Sounds Like Canada? This is the snack food equivalent: sounds exciting, but the execution is a little bland and disappointing.
* Got the new Walrus on Friday, and it looks much better than issue one. (I received a second issue despite canceling my subscription, so my thanks go out to Ken Alexander for his largess). I haven't read much of it yet, but I did see that Douglas Bell has a funny piece about ranting before breakfast, although he fails to mention that he workshopped the article in front of a receptive Trampoline Hall audience in August of this year. I’m all in favour of repurposing (that’s how smart freelancers manage to make a living) but you need to acknowledge you’re recycling, Bell.
* Today I inhaled the odour of democracy (the basement of a stinkhole community centre / holding pen for the dispossessed just south of my apartment that doubles as a voting spot) and heard the sound of democracy (a bunch of bicyclists with placards for some doomed councilor making duck honking sounds with their bells).
* David Miller won! Yes! In your face Tory. Nayh.
