croissants

the sign went up last week,

my favourite bakery is closing.

the owner is retiring after 33 years.

the building where he is located

has housed a bakery

since 1910. 100 years.

traditional privately owned bakeries

are becoming scarce,

replaced by cupcake shops and

franchise bakeries where the batter

is delivered in vats

and baking technicians extrude it

into glutinous forms.

what is replacing the bakery

you ask?

an anti-aging clinic.

i did not consume the platter of

pastries in one sitting... honest.

chicks and eggs

at

the shops

these days,

chicks in a bowl,

yellow egg candles

and

a decorative

boiled egg.

earth hour observed and dinner

it was not unexpected to read in today's

paper that not as many people observed

earth hour this year. the city hydro authority

recorded a 10 per cent drop in power use

compared to 15.1 per cent last year.

this did not surprise me,

more lights were on in my

neighbourhood.

disappointed, yes.

it is still rather cold here, last night's dinner

was a warming chili and wholesome cornbread.

the avocado and lime were not locally grown,

hmm.

sunshine

intense sunshine

tree branches

are sprouting

decorations

daffodils in pots

shiver

from the cold.

clock

let's

meet at

the clock

same time

any time.

warmth

spring arrived

the temperatures

have dropped.

yellow flowers

warm rice pudding

brighten

the day.

flamingo

flamingo is one of those happy words,

saying the word flamingo

makes one want to dance,

flamingo!

a porch detail on an old house

and from my favourite

old stock department store

thermos flasks made in czechoslovakia

and hungary.

baked goods

a very cheerfully yellow shop front,

and some real baked goods,

not from the same bakery.

the cupcakes are vegan, i was not able to

sample one, the café attendant disappeared

for an unusually long time...

the only treat i took home with me

from an interesting bakery

was the portuguese custard tart,

looks nice but was disappointing.

shopping

today was a good day to go

shopping in

kensington market,

there is always something

to see.

greeting spring

spring arrived with greyness,

snowflakes and cold temperatures.

a canada goose greeted us

from a distance.

for colour inspiration visit dear ada

and definitely continue to frances pelzman liscio.

rose coloured day

spring is arriving tomorrow

and what a better way to confront

urban lovelessness but shop

for spring clothes.

at the grocery store a cheery display

of umbrellas ready for april showers.

then a break for excellent cappuccino

at zaza, an italian expresso bar

in yorkville.

home for tea and a pastry from my

favourite bakery that I will take

you to in the future...

all in all, an excellent day

in the big smoke.

out of love

i have

fallen

out of love

with

the city.

march walk

under a blue

sky

we walked by the

dangerously swift

muddy river.

in the woods

there were

signs of

construction

activity.

spring is almost

here.

pumpkin seeds and soup

needing something restorative for dinner and

having the ingredients on hand, i tried the

pumpkin soup with spicy seeds (page 77) in

david leite's book the new portuguese table.

the squash i had was rather small

so the soup came out on the thinnish side, and

i could not push the solids through a very fine

sieve successfully, so it did not look as pristine

as in the book's photo. i used a vegetable stock

instead of the recommended chicken.

the soup was very good (next time i will use

a more generous butternut squash),

and the spicy pumpkin

seeds were excellent. this method will be

a great way to spice up the halloween pumpkin seeds.

david leite has an interesting site here, have a look.

carpet factory

many old industries have all but disappeared,

i love to visit old and new industrial buildings.

commemorative murals of this carpet factory

complex serve as a colourful reminder of

the past.

at least the buildings were put to good use

and not torn down.

white flour and a musical chair

having been house bound

for a few days

due to a cold,

it was exciting to see

a massive white flour delivery

at an industrial bakery

and

experience the dulcet tones

of a musical bench.