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Watch for Bikes

Whoever placed that sign there is either missing the point or has a nasty streak:

Sign placed in the middle of a bike lane, blocking it completely: "Watch for bikes"
Click the photo to see the original.

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Toronto Film Festival ’08: Schedule and New Location

The Toronto International Film Festival 2008, which takes place here in Accordion City and runs from September 4th through 13th, has released their full schedule of films. Over its 10 days, they will show 312 films on 36 screens throughout the city; the films will hail from 64 countries (this is fewer films than last year, but more screens).

If you want to see the full schedule, it’s here.

The Festival’s New Home: Yonge-Dundas Square

Yonge-Dundas Square. Photo by Sam Javanrouh.
I’ve got to hand it to Sam Javanrouh, who took this picture. He pulled off a minor miracle, making Yonge-Dundas Square look like some place you might actually want to visit.
Click the photo to see the original.

The new hub of the festival will be Yonge-Dundas Square, which should prove to be an interesting change. The old location, Yorkville, was a pretty nice strolling neighbourhood, while Yonge-Dundas square is closer in spirit to crass main drags like Times Square, after which it seems to have been modelled. This is smack dab in the seething pit of Yonge Street, is dominated by cheap-bordering-on-disposable club clothes, grey market electronics, porn shops and peeler bars, pizza, pizza, pizza.

It seems to be a bit short on Festival-grade restaurants, with plebian chain establishments like The Pickle Barrel, Baton Rouge and the Hard Rock Cafe being the most visible choices. There are some bright spots, though: the Senator and Salad King are nearby, and if you feel like paying top dollar to feed your socially acceptable eating disorders (vegetarianism and veganism), there’s Le Commensal. Maybe the fancy-pants crowd will head for Lai Wah Heen in the Metropolitan Hotel or Barberian’s for steak.

The bar pickings in the neighbourhood, if I recall correctly, are even slimmer. The last time I drank in this neighbourhood, I was underage. Are there any watering holes in the area worth a visit? Let me know in the comments.

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Georgia on My Mind

New York Times' map of Russia and Georgia
Map from the New York Times.

It’s not to late to get a better understanding of the conflict between Russia and Georgia. If you read only one article to get that understanding, I strongly recommend the New York Times article Taunting the Bear.

If you decide to read only two articles about the Russia/Georgia conflict, perhaps the second one should be this now-infamous question posed on Yahoo! Answers, in which a concerned writer from the state of Georgia — as in Jimmy Carter’s home state, Atlanta, Coca-Cola and peaches — asked why she didn’t see any sign of the Russkies:

Dumb question on Yahoo! Answers about Russia invading Georgia

Whether the question was posed by someone who is genuinely clueless or by a prankster, it’s pretty funny. I wouldn’t rule out the former, though.

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The Way Computers Were in the Seventies

Inspired by my earlier post titled The Way Movies Were in the Seventies, I present to you this image showing the way computers were in the seventies:

The way computers were in the seventies: "A small digital computer designed for the businessman" and "a large computer installation"

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Illegal Wrestling Move of the Day

Until I saw this picture, I thought I had completely banished the wrestling term “oil check” [text only, but might not be safe for work] from my mind:


“You think you’ve got me? I can break this hold wi — Mooooooon Riverrrrrrr…
Photo courtesy of Miss Fipi Lele.

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They See Me Rollin’ (Pin), They Hatin’

Here’s a scan of a newspaper clipping that’s currently making the rounds on the ‘net:

Newspaper clipping: "I know when I saw the rolling pin that something bad was going down."

Here’s the text:

PORT RICHEY – Lewis Davis was ready to drive home from a party on November Drive at 2 a.m. Thursday when he saw a green Cherokee Chief pull up.

Six men, their faces covered with red bandanas, got out of the Cherokee carrying a knife, baseball bat, billy club and rolling pin, said Davis, 20.

“I knew when I saw the rolling pin that something bad was going to go down,” Davis said.


If you don’t get the title for this article, it’s a reference to Chamillionaire’s number, Ridin’. Here’s the video.

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The Way Movies Were in the Seventies

The Way Movies Were in the Seventies
Photo courtesy of Miss Fipi Lele and mrneutron.