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More NAC Halloween: Hand-made Medusa

2011-10-31T18:21:47Z

Medusa! Photo: Ryan Purchase

By day NAC staffer Barb Irving is a mild-mannered and talented member of our Graphics team.

But today on Halloween her dark side is revealed with her incredible hand-knit Medusa get up!

Barb happens to be a Master Knitter (can you tell?) in addition to being a wonderfully creative member of the NAC Marketing Department.

Just don’t gaze upon her directly or you may turn in to a pile of hand-knit stones!

UPDATE: Barb won first prize in the NAC staff Halloween costume contest!

Lucky lads: Raise a glass to new Broadhead Brewing Co. in Ottawa.

2011-10-31T10:00:15Z

Some things are too important to forget

OCT 31 11 – 6 AM — There are occasions in everyone’s life that stick in your memory. The first time you raided dad’s liquor cabinet, for example, or got lucky after a high school dance. Graduation from university ranks somewhere up there, too, and marriage, perhaps divorce, the birth of a child … You know, the milestones.

And then there’s the happy arrival of a new, albeit micro, nanobrewery in town — now, that’s a show-stopper of no small significance.

Let me introduce to you, Broadhead Brewing Company of Ottawa, Canada.

Open just one month, Broadhead is the product of four thirtysomething young turks — Shane Matte, Jason Smale, Josh Larocque and Jamie White — whose home-brewing hobby kind of got away from them, taking on a life of its own as the basement equipment grew larger and more elaborate, the batches more ambitious. Soon enough, the project was moved into a garage and, now, to premises at 81 Auriga Dr., Unit 27, between Merivale Road and Prince of Wales Drive, somewhere south of Hunt Club Road.

Photo L-R: Jason Smale, Jamie White and Josh Larocque. Sadly, fourth partner Shane Matte couldn’t make the photo session.

It’s still really tiny, even though they’ve been selling the stuff a month already. Where a micro craft brewery like, say, Kichesippi Beer Co. in Ottawa makes batches in the order of 2,000 litres, at Broadhead the batch size is more like 80 litres — a nanobrewery, by any measure.

The partners are all university chums who had, and likely always will have, a passion for beer. And on those frequent occasions they got together at home for some quality hours bonding through malted barley, water and hops, their conversation invariably turned to opening their own brewpub, or brewery, or at least something more ambitious than making a few batches for themselves and eager friends.

The good news is, Broadhead was launched and is now licensed to sell from the brewery. It’s so small they don’t have a bottling line yet but, rather, sell their beer as draft in 19-L stainless steel “kegs” for $79.65 + HST = $90. There is a $30 deposit on the stainless steel keg, called a Cornelius, which is refundable on return. They’re the same containers, incidentally, that fountain soda pop comes in.

I know a little about the process, being a former home brewer myself. How fondly I recall filling the very same stainless-steel vessels with precious home brew in my basement in Kitchener, charging it with carbon dioxide from a recycled fire extinguisher, then rolling it around the floor to influse gas into the beer. (Carbon dioxide readily dissolves in cold liquid, to make it effervescent.)

Isn’t it amazing what you learn in blogs?

This is where the ~~cooking~~ mashing gets done. Labbatt’s, move over.

The better news is, the guys plan to sell 1.89-L bottles — called growlers — beginning in early November at $8.85 + HST = $10 so you won’t need a dedicated fridge to hold Cornelius kegs. There will be a $5 refundable deposit on the bottle, because they really want it back.

I called Josh, the head brewer, the other day for the story and he tells it like this:

“I started home brewing probably five years ago. Shane and I grew up together and we reconnected after some time apart after university and our first jobs. We got into home brewing and, you know, our friends got interested too. Then Shane brought in Jason who was a friend from university.

“From there we started brewing more beer and started talking about building a bigger system — but still for home use,” Josh says.

“Our home-brew system was getting rather large, then Jamie came along who was a friend of Jason. By then we started coming up with the idea of a brewpub or a brewery. We loved beer so much we wanted to take it to another level, you know?

“So we kept the dream alive through our home brew days — it was a fun thing to talk about while we were brewing. Once Jamie came on board, and with four of us behind it, we were finalkly able to seriously entertain the idea of doing something like this. So here we are today.”

Here, indeed.

Products include Underdog Pale, Backbone Standard, Long Shot White, Grindstone Amber and Dark Horse Stout, of varying bitterness, colour and depth.

Every Monday the guys brew three, 20-gallon (80-L) batches. They make a total of 320 litres at a time — those three batches are more concentrated in sugar from malt than normal, to which they top up with water in the ferementation tank to reach 320 litres. It cuts the brewing work by 25 per cent that way.

“We’re definitely small-scale at this point,” Josh says.

Products L-R: Long Shot White, Underdog Pale and Backbone Standard.

The name came about as some of the original guys involved in the early days had, as Josh puts it, “large heads on their shoulders relative to their bodies.” Broadhead – get it? Of course, an inspired name like that tends to stick and — voila! — there you have it, Broadhead Brewing Company.

As you may imagine, I expect to check in on the lads for an update soon, and have my first taste of the stuff. Meanwhile, drop by their website or visit the brewery Tuesday and Wednesday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m, Thursday and Friday to 9 p.m. and Saturday to 5 p.m.

Cheers to a good thing, another lasting memory.

(Photos courtesy Broadhead Brewing Co.)

Urban freeways, part II

2011-10-31T13:24:36Z

Alayne McGregor writes, with the blog post I arguably should have written:

Your latest blog post only skims over the surface of the issues you raise.

Firstly, it ignores the fact that Ottawa has many roads that act similarly to freeways but have none of the safety designs associated with freeways, for example:
* March Road
* portions of Hunt Club Road
* Eagleson Road
* the Innes Road Bypass
* sections of Prince of Wales Drive (Greenbelt and further south)

Traffic on these roads easily reachs 90km/h or faster but they’re still built like divided arterials and they often have businesses and residences near them. I’m hardly a fan of any more freeways, but I don’t think you should pretend that what we have is much better.

Secondly, it isn’t “luck” that prevented the 417 from sprawling everywhere, or more and more ring roads from being built. It’s the concerted, strong, and informed opposition from residents in central neighbourhoods who have conclusively shown that cities that promote freeways instead of homes and businesses die from the inside.

There have been plans to widen the 417 downtown proposed many times and they have been pushed off the table again by reasoned argument. It’s not just luck.

Thanks,
Alayne

I think the second part of this is bang on: There’s a sort of automatic tendency on the part of authorities that own and manage highways to widen them perpetually, in the interest of moving more people through them as they get crowded. The impacts on surrounding neighbourhoods are maybe unfortunate but not that important, until the people who live in them speak up.

On the first part, although it’s not generally desirable to have an 80- or 90-km/h road running right through your neighbourhood and there are obvious safety considerations, there’s also a big urban-design difference between an arterial like that and a multilane elevated expressway with a kilometres-long cacophonous cave underneath it. I know I’d rather live near an artery like March Road than an elevated highway like the Gardiner Expressway or the Trans-Canada in Montreal.

OC Transpo isn’t ‘sustainable’

2011-10-31T15:33:26Z

A bit of rhetoric we’ve heard a great deal about the cuts city council made to OC Transpo in the last city budget is that they were all about “making OC Transpo financially sustainable.” It’s come up again now that councillors are considering the 2012 budget for the transit service and have a proposal to increase funding by $5.5 million. That’s for growth and dealing with increased ridership, people like Mayor Jim Watson will say. The $20-million cut (“network optimization,” don’t you know) was about moving the baseline down, so now it can rise again in a “sustainable” way.

I’m not sure what this means. The transit system as a whole lost $212 million in 2010. It’s losing $217 million this year. In 2012, it’s slated to lose $227 million. In no way is this “sustainable,” whether you cut $20 million a year from it or not. The transit system isn’t supposed to be sustainable in the usual sense. It’s partly a social service and partly a planning device, whereby you weigh the costs of transit against the costs (broadly understood) of building and maintaining ever more roads. Transit often comes out ahead in that calculation, though it’s a rough one — I’ve never seen a really rigorous attempt to quantify the city’s savings on roads as a consequence of its spending on transit, and definitely not as part of the cutting process in the last budget year.

But in any event, as a business venture all by itself, it makes no sense. What happened was the mayor decided, and city council agreed, that Ottawa should spend less on its transit services, and could do so without hurting riders badly enough for there to be serious political consequences, or ridership badly enough for there to be serious urban-planning consequences, a decision that’s entirely within their purview as elected officials, and OC Transpo did its best to put on a brave face and work with what it was given. All that just doesn’t sound as good as making something “financially sustainable.”

Awesome Ottawa: "Capcity" - hip hop video about Ottawa

2011-10-31T15:58:00Z

I love this video. It's called Capcity (Ottawa Song) and I hope it goes #1 on every station in O-Town. It perfectly captures the attitude and spirit in Ottawa right now. Written and produced by Peter Joynt, camera by Paul Galipeau. See also: Ottawa Music Guide If you liked this post, please consider subscribing to our blog via email, Twitter, Facebook or RSS. Thank you.

CSC_0116

2011-10-26T04:49:23Z

philip.nossik has added a photo to the pool:

Refugee

2011-10-30T21:50:00Z

Refugee Mother and Child, the first monument in the world dedicated to the Vietnamese Boat People.

A few photos of fun Halloween costumes in Ottawa

2011-10-31T03:32:00Z

Last night we asked our readers on Twitter to send us photos of great Ottawa Halloween costume. Here are a few of the best ones. If you have a great Halloween costume, post your photo on Twitter with hashtag #ottawacostume, or email the pic to feedback@ottawastart.com. Best photo gets a bag of candy from OttawaStart. @ottguy as Jim Watson with LMFAO The real Mayor, with a firefighting

91. Chris

2011-10-30T12:37:49Z

When I started LeMien, I asked a few friends to volunteer; in those early days, I needed to be sure I was up to it. Chris was one of those friends.

Anyway, with the passage of time, so too go best intentions. When he asked me about it recently, I didn’t say no.

He was the MC at my wedding.

The path of the Westboro-to-Vanier bikeway

2011-10-27T16:45:21Z

Cyclists were pretty pleased by Mayor Jim Watson’s announcement yesterday of an extra $10 million in funding for cycling “facilities” (lanes, paths, and whatnot) over the next three years, and particularly the idea of a bikeway connecting Westboro to Vanier. What’s not entirely clear from the budget announcement is where the bikeway would be. Because it’s the result of connecting a bunch of existing lanes and paths, and it’s spread out over three years rather than all happening in 2012, it’s not even quite possible to figure it out from the 2012 budget.

So here you go. It’s the highest-quality version of the graphic I’ve got, courtesy of the mayor’s office. Click to embiggen slightly.

I’m a bit surprised by the northerly jog at the east end: if I’d had to guess, I’d have said the route would cross a new Rideau River bridge between Donald and Somerset Street East.

The feeder routes that don’t currently exist, such as a bike lane on O’Connor Street and a multi-use pathway (“MUP”) between Campus and Lees stations, are all already on the books as plans.

I’m told the route through downtown is via Laurier Avenue, which is interesting. Even if the segregated-lane pilot project doesn’t work out, a non-segregated lane is plainly in the plans.

Update: Here’s a story, based on conversations with city officials, and with a much better graphic.

If you ride OC Transpo, this is the most fun you’ll have all day

2011-10-28T03:03:05Z

OC Transpo puts out live information about which of its runs are cancelled. And then wheresmybus.ca goes and scrapes it off OC Transpo’s website, remembers it all, and does brilliant statistical things with that information.

For example, we learn that:

Things get worse in the afternoon rush hour, presumably as bus maintenance failures throughout the day begin to mount up and/or failures to meet time points become catastrophic and giving up on certain runs becomes the only solution.
OC Transpo is telling the truth (assuming the cancellation data it pushes out is accurate) when it says most of the buses that get pulled and reassigned come from high-volume Transitway routes on which buses run frequently. The No. 95 is a real whipping-boy of a route.
Notwithstanding the preference for cutting runs off the Transitway, the 12 and the 118 take a whole lot of abuse as well.
September was a rough month compared to months that had come before. October is going reasonably well, though.

Ottawa supermarket specials Oct. 28 to Nov. 3

2011-10-27T10:00:18Z

OCT 27 11 – 6 AM — I confess to being something of a Philistine when it comes to my half cup of morning coffee. While dear Nancy gets up early and brews a pot of Bridgehead East Timor, which she grinds herself, I always reach for a jar of Maxwell House or Nescafé instant because that is what I’m used to and, well, old habits die hard.

There was a time my wife roasted her own beans, but she found it to be a bit of a pain and, besides, she had to do it outside because roasting green coffee beans is rather smelly business — and not in a good way. I think one Ottawa winter with her roaster banished to the porch was enough to break that habit.

So, as a nod to the coffee unsophisticates among us, and I am a charter member, my top gold pick for the week of Oct. 28 to Nov. 3 (Farm Boy, Oct. 27 to Nov. 2) goes to NoFrills out in Orléans selling Maxwell House instant coffee in the 150-200 g jar, selected varieties, at the rock-bottom price of $3. My, it might even be worth a drive to the east end to stock up, along with some other good deals NoFrills tends to offer.

Oh, I should mention that Metro opened a new 35,000-square-foot Food Basics yesterday at 3712 Innes Rd., also in the east end between Orléans Boulevard and Boul. Jean d’Arc South, making it the 7th Food Basics location in the Ottawa Market.

My second or silver pick for the week goes to Farm Boy and Sobeys with fresh boneless, skinless chicken breast at $3.99/lb ($8.80/kg). Normally, chicken breast is not my first choice — especially without the bone and skin, which add flavour — because it is rather bland on its own. But it certainly is convenient, and sometimes just what you need to toss in a quick and nutritious stir-fry. A preferable choice in my opinion would be the richer-tasting deboned chicken thigh. Even better, leave the bone in.

And while I’m on the topic, I notice Food Basics selling frozen, seasoned boneless and skinless chicken breast this week at $1.97/lb ($4.34/kg), but I do not recommend it. I bought it — once — and found the texture unpleasant and mushy, doubtless because of the combination of pre-salting the meat and then freezing it. I just didn’t care for it.

Finally, bronze this week goes to FreshCo. with Simply Orange 100% Pure and Natural juice in a 2.63-L jug at $2.97. Try not to glug too much of it in one sitting, though, because its sugar content is high. Don’t be afraid to dilute it with water — you’ll still get the orange taste, but with fewer calories.

One can’t-help-but-notice footnote this week: Under the category of “Other Gems,” below, I wonder what’s with all the cheap frozen cardboard pizza? Have our eating habits really come to this?

And now for the rest …

BEEF:

Food Basics, Rachel’s corned brisket $3.99/lb ($8.80/kg);

Your Independent, lean ground $1.99/lb ($4.39/kg);

Metro, Value Pack Red Grill Angus sirloin tip steak or roast $4.99/lb ($11/kg); Value Pack extra-lean ground or stewing $2.99/lb ($6.59/kg);

NoFrills, extra-lean gound in 1-lb (454-g) tube $3; strip loin portions in cryovac $3.97/lb ($8.75/kg);

Superstore Loblaw, Angus Pres. Choice T-bone steak $4.98/lb ($10.98/kg);

Farm Boy, outside round oven roast $4.49/lb ($9.90/kg);

Loblaws, Your Independent, tenderloin roast $10.99/lb ($24.23/kg).

PORK:

FreshCo., Lou’s cured boneless loin in cornmeal 800-g bag $3.97 (=$2.25/lb);

Your Independent, cured pork loin in cornmeal $2.79/lb ($6.15/kg);

Farm Boy, boneless loin centre roast $3.99/lb ($8.80/kg);

Sobeys, shoulder boneless blade roast $2.99/lb ($6.59/kg); shoulder blade chop $2.49/lb ($5.49/kg);

NoFrills, Maple Leaf bacon 500 g at $2.97;

Walmart Supercentre, Lou’s peameal bacon in cornmeal 1-kg bag $7 (= $3.18/lb);

Superstore Loblaw, Pres. Choice Vermont-style ham $3.49/lb ($7.69/kg).

POULTRY:

FreshCo., fresh large whole chicken minimum 2.9 lbs (1.3 kg) at $4.97 (= $1.71/lb);

NoFrills, Club Pack boneless, skinless chicken thighs $3/lb ($6.61/kg);

Superstore Loblaw, halal fresh chicken legs back attached $1.39/lb ($3.06/kg); Pres. Choice fresh whole chicken $2.29/lb ($5.05/kg); Club Pack Pres. Choice chicken breast fresh, bone-in, skin-on $3.99/lb ($8.80/kg);

Farm Boy, fresh turkey wings $1.79/lb ($3.95/kg);

Metro, fresh whole chicken $2.49/lb ($5.49/kg); Irrestibles fresh boneless chicken breast $4.99/lb ($11/kg);

Your Independent, Club Pack fresh chicken legs back attached $1.99/lb ($4.39/kg); fresh chicken wings in bags $2.99/lb ($6.59/kg); Maple Leaf Prime fresh boneless, skinless chicken breast or thin sliced $4.99/lb ($11/kg);

Food Basics, fresh Maple Leaf Prime whole chicken 2-pack 2.4 kg at $15 (= $2.84/lb);

Loblaws, Club Pack fresh Pres. Choice boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs $4.99/lb (11/kg); fresh chicken drumsticks or thighs $2.99/lb ($6.59/kg).

SEAFOOD:

Farm Boy, dressed fresh rainbow trout $5.99/lb ($13.21/kg); PEI fresh mussels $1.99/lb ($4.39/kg); boneless wild sole fillet $6.99/lb ($15.41/kg);

Sobeys, fresh tiolapia fillet $6.99/lb ($15.50/kg); fresh wild chum salmon fillet $7.99/lb ($17.70/kg);

Loblaws, Your Independent, live Atlantic mussels 907-g at $3.99;

Walmart Supercentre, Value Pack fresh Atlantic salmon or tilapia fillets $7.97/lb ($17.57/kg).

DAIRY:

FreshCo., Silani shredded cheese 100 g, Schomberg Farms grated parmesan or romano 70 g at 97¢;

Metro, Black Diamond cheese slices or Kraft Cheez Whiz 500-g jar, selected varieties $2.99;

Superstore Loblaw, Philadelphia cream cheese 150-250 g, selected varieties $2.47;

Food Basics, Philadelphia cream cheese 250 g or whipped cheese dips 227 g, selected varieties $2.49;

Walmart Supercentre, Lactantia butter 454 g at $3.33.

BAKERY:

Sobeys, in-store baked Italian or French bread 450-g loaf $1.69;

Superstore Loblaw, D’Italiano bread 675-g loaf, selected varieties $1.79;

FreshCo., Dempster’s Everything bagels 6-pack $1.48; Alwatan pita 400 g or Byblos pita 340 g at 88¢, Compliments garlic bread 284 g at 99¢; Premium Plus crackers 450-500 g at $1.88.

FRUIT:

NoFrills, 4-lb bag Farmer’s Market McIntosh apples $2 (= 50¢/lb); red or green seedless grapes 77¢/lb ($1.70/kg); blueberries 4.4-oz (125 g) at $2; whole pineapple $2;

Walmart Supercentre, Gala, Empire, McIntosh or Golden Delicious apples 66¢/lb ($1.46/kg); mandarins 5-lb box $3.97; red or black seedless grapes $1.27/lb ($2.80/kg); avocadoes 67¢ ea;

Metro, whole pineapple $1.99;

Farm Boy, small watermelons 2 for $5; avocadoes 2 for 99¢;

Superstore Loblaw, Spartan, McIntosh, Cortland or Empire apples 69¢/lb ($1.52/kg); Delmonte pineapple or cantaloupe $1.88; blueberries 4.4-oz (125 g) $1.99;

Food Basics, 2.3-kg box clementines $3.97; 5-pack avocadoes 2 for $5;

FreshCo., seedless oranges 65¢/lb ($1.43/kg);

Sobeys, 1.89-kg box clementines $3.99;

Your Independent, strawberries 454 g at $2.50;

Loblaws, large red or black seedless grapes $1.29/lb ($2.84/kg).

VEGGIES:

FreshCo., hot house tomatoes 69¢/lb ($1.52/kg); 5-lb bag yellow onions, carrots or beets $1.45; 2-lb bag baby-cut carrots $1.88; 8-oz (226-g) white mushrooms 95¢; Valley Farm frozen french fries 1-kg bag 67¢;

Superstore Loblaw, 6-pack romaine hearts $3.79; cauliflower $1.29; 10-lb bag red, white or yellow potatoes $2.99; 2-lb bag miny baby-cut carrots $1.89;

Walmart Supercentre, romaine, red or green leaf lettuce 97¢; 3-lb bag sweet onions $1.97;

Farm Boy, white or green zucchini 69¢/lb ($1.52/kg);

Food Basics, tomatoes on the vine, green beans 99¢/lb ($2.18/kg); seedless cucumber 99¢; 4-pack rainbow peppers 2 for $5;

Metro, Andy Boy 3-pack romaine lettuce hearts $1.99;

Loblaws, broccoli $1.50; 10-lb bag white potatoes $2.99.

CEREAL:

NoFrills, Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats 445-555 g, selected varieties $3;

FreshCo., General Mills Multi-Grain Cheerios 265-330 g at $1.67.

JUICES/DRINKS:

NoFrills, Oasis Premium orange or Health Break juice 2.63-L jug, selected varieties $3; Allen’s juice or cocktail 1-L, selected varieties $1;

Superstore Loblaw, Minute Maid juice 10 x 200-mL boxes, selected varieties $1.87; Oasis Premium orange or Health Break juice 1.75-L carton, selected varieties $2.49; Allen’s apple juice 1.05-L can 89¢; Maxwell House instant coffee 150-200 g, selected varieties $3.99; Red Rose or Salada tea 60-72 bags $2;

Metro, Allen’s apple juice 1.05-L can or Selection orange juice 1-L carton 99¢;

Walmart Supercentre, Oasis juice 960-mL carton $1; Maxwell House ground coffee 910-925 g at $7.97;

FreshCo., Maxwell House ground coffee 631-g at $3.97;

Loblaws, Your Independent, Allen’s juice 8 x 200-mL boxes $1.79; Minute Maid orange juice 1.75-L carton, selected varieties 2 for $4.

OTHER GEMS:

NoFrills, Dr. Oetker Casa di Mama, Ristorante or Panebello frozen pizza 325-450 g, selected varieties $3; Majesta paper towels 8-pack $3; Kraft Dinner 67¢;

Superstore Loblaw, Royale toilet paper 30-double rolls $9.97; McCain Crescendo Rising Crust or International frozen pizza 465-900 g at $3.67; Lay’s super-size potato chips 300 g at $2.44;

Sobeys, Lipton’s dry chicken noodle soup mix, 4 pouches $1.44; Aurora diced tomatoes 796-mL can 77¢; Unico passata 680-mL bottle 99¢;

Farm Boy, gingerroot 49¢/lb ($1.08/kg);

FreshCo., McCain traditional crust frozen pizza 416-433 g at $2.97; Michelina’s Classics or Harmony frozen entrees 227-255 g, selected varieties 88¢;

Loblaws, Kellogg’s Eggo frozen waffles 16-pack, selected varieties $3;

Metro, Delissio frozen pizza 370-931 g, selected varieties $3.99;

Loblaws, Your Independent, Delissio frozen pizza 627-931 g, selected varieties $3.99;

Walmart Supercentre, Lay’s Kettle or regular potato chips 180-220 g at $2; McCain, Crescendo, International frozen pizza 480-900 g at $3.97; Cashmere toilet paper 24 double rolls $9.98; Skippy peanut butter 750- jar $2.50; Sponge Towels 6-pack $4.98.

While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, this is my subjective and independent listing of good deals but I do not warrant these prices. The final say is up to the store(s). This is not an advertisement, as no store pays for inclusion in this listing. Individual stores may offer additional in-house specials.

As if I could love the Gatineau police any more

2011-10-28T03:07:33Z

An actual press release sent this afternoon by the Service de police de la ville de Gatineau:

Appeals in connection with two animals.

On October 27, 2011 to 12h22 P.M.

The SPVG received a call in relation to an animal or a beef, who was walking in public at large and was threatening to the population. The call stated that there could be two beef in liberty.

The call was received October 27, 2011 to 12:22. The beef was walking freely on the 148 or the Montreal Road West, near George Street in Gatineau (Masson-Angers). Throughout the duration of the intervention, the police found that the animal was aggressive and threatening to the population. The police even had to ask staff to primary school St-Jean de Brebeuf to bring the children inside the school for safety. Several times the animal has dark on patrol cars and police officers.

Around 1:27 p.m., the animal was at the height of the shore road and path of the Quai. It was impossible to contain the animal because of its high aggressiveness. With the consent of the owner, the police had no choice but to kill the animal. The animal has since been taken over by its owner.

Meanwhile, a police officer spotted the second animal in the George Street exit of Highway 50 eastbound. The police managed to contain the animal for some time, but again, the animal was aggressive and difficult to contain. With the consent of its owner the police had to shoot the second animal (2:08 p.m.).

It is important to know that prior to slaughter animals, including the police tried a few times to get the beef into the trailer of their owners using different tactics (in collaboration). The animals showed a lot of aggression and loaded with police officers, patrol cars and the trailer’s owner several times, the decision to kill the animals was necessary to protect citizens (the animals were threatening the population). All measures have been taken to ensure that no person has been put in danger when the shots were fired police officers.

One imagines Google Translate, or something like it, was involved.

As I’ve written before, and I’m dead serious about this, some of the vocabulary here might be a little daffy (and I confess I can’t make head or tail out of “the animal has dark on patrol cars and police officers”) but if every francophone were this unselfconscious about their English and every anglo this unselfconscious about their French, and everybody were OK with it, this’d be a happier place.

City awards prize, whilst frowning on the design

2011-10-28T08:19:58Z

The above house near the Parkdale market got an award of merit for urban design in the City’s recent competition. Frankly, I was surprised, and bit annoyed too.

The upper deck, which doesn’t relate to the street so much as soar above it, does have a neat angled sun roof. The exterior materials are well handled, and the design is neat. But only neat in an architectural way. I don’t think it is good urban design.

First, the entire front yard of these two houses is gravel. Is it really a xeriscape garden? Fess up, it’s two car parking spaces taking up 100% of the frontage. Front yard parking is justifiably frowned upon by the City and its residents for a variety of reasons: it looks bad. It cheapens the look of a street. It removes useful on-street public parking in favour of private parking. It eliminates green space. Can this front yard ever support a tree? Cars have to cross the sidewalk, which has become just a lengthy dip for the w-i-d-e driveway. And those sono-tubed columns of concrete below the steel posts grate on my eyes.

It is, however, convenient for the householder; and increases the selling price of the house.

The City’s prize went to a pair of semi-detached infill houses. Rather than side by side, as tradition has wont, this house follows the new trend of putting one house forward on the lot, and the other behind it, facing the yard. Provided the back unit has a front door facing the street, presto, it’s a side-by-side. Many times this works out really well.

I took these pic on a weekday. All the City’s pic for the awards ceremony also showed the houses this way. Car-free. Nary a shot with two cars parked there. I suspect that this house, or any similar, would look rather different with a bright yellow Hummer and a gray Astrovan twinset.

The City just went through a lengthy public consultation and drafted new infill rules. These are chock full of measures designed to discourage or ban the front-of-house-disguised-as-a-garage look. And its full of measures to keep front yards green. Reducing front yard parking for new infills was a key factor in the process. And to encourage living space at street level rather than one floor up. And yet … this whole house front at the sidewalk level, or the pedestrian view from the sidewalk on either side of the street, is of an open carport, or a side-wall-free garage.

I realize the new rules are yet to come into effect. And this house was legit when built. And no doubt there were compromises to get it built at all.

Am I the only person who thinks it a tad … odd … for the City to grant an award of urban merit to an infill that runs contrary to the spirit of their contemporary thinking?

And no, it is not a cantilevered house. It’s a carport. And it is not urban-friendly enough for a prize. We can and must do better.

What’s On This Weekend

2011-10-28T11:00:49Z

Edited on October 30th to highlight Halloween Fun:

Halloween Monday in Ottawa:

Get free face painting, crafts and Halloween treats at Place d’Orleans;
Dovercourt Recreation Centre is hosting a free Haunted House from 6 to 8 pm;
Enjoy a “Mad Science” Halloween at Rideau Hall with special Halloween activities and treats, and stop by the Prime Minister’s Residence at 24 Sussex Drive for some treats too!
The Fiery Faces Fundraiser continues tonight at the Boys and Girls Club Britannia Clubhouse (2825 Dumaurier Avenue). Hundreds of carved pumpkins will be lit between 6 and 10 pm. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. If you stop by, look for the Frugal Fun Ottawa pumpkin! B.G. and I had a chance to see the pumpkins on Sunday and she just loved them. You can see more photos here. (I should mention that B.G. took some of the photos. Hers are the ones that aren’t blurry. :) I was dismayed to find out that vandals smashed several of the pumpkins on display. I hope their loot bags are filled with rotten candy apples and sugarless gum. Such a nasty thing to do.

Some of my favorite Fiery Faces photos:

This Halloween weekend in Ottawa:

The Fiery Faces Fundraiser Lit Pumpkin Display takes place from October 28th to the 31st at the Boys and Girls Club Britannia Clubhouse (2825 Dumaurier Avenue). Hundreds of carved pumpkins will be lit between 6 and 10 pm each day. There will also be a family day with pumpkin carving, cookie decorating, and Little Ray’s Reptiles on Saturday between 12 and 5 pm. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. If you stop by, look for the Frugal Fun Ottawa pumpkin!
Enjoy Halloween fun at the Currency Museum on Saturday and Sunday;
The My Little Pony National Tour stops at the St. Laurent Shopping Centre on Saturday and Sunday with shows at 11 am and 2 pm;
Mayor Jim Watson is throwing a Halloween party at City Hall on Saturday; admission is a donation to the Ottawa Food Bank’s Baby Supply Cupboard;
Wickedly Westboro takes place on Saturday;
Michaels Craft Stores are hosting free face painting and a Halloween parade on Saturday, and a free Halloween Crayola® Pumpkin Patch event on Sunday;
Take in some vintage Halloween Hijinx at Cumberland Village Heritage Museum or a Halloween Party at Billings Estate on Sunday (Almost Frugal);
The 6th Annual Howl-O-Ween Pugstock takes place on Sunday (admission is $2/person);
Visit the Ottawa Farmers’ Market at Landsdowne on Sunday and enjoy pumpkin painting, face painting, bobbing for apples, and the Little Ray’s Reptiles nocturnal display;
Catch a movie at Rainbow Cinemas at the St. Laurent Centre – this weekend’s family-friendly showings include Spy Kids: All the Time in the World; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2;The Smurfs, and Cars 2 (Almost Frugal);
Get free face painting, crafts and Halloween treats at Place d’Orleans on Monday;
Dovercourt Recreation Centre is hosting a free Haunted House on Monday;
Enjoy a “Mad Science” Halloween at Rideau Hall with special Halloween activities on Monday, and stop by the Prime Minister’s Residence at 24 Sussex Drive for some treats too!
You can find more great activities to do this weekend in my year-round activities listings.

Congratulation to Lindsay, who won the passes to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show at the Mayfair Friday evening. You can still enter to win one of two family four-packs to see The Backyardigans in November - details are on my contest page.

Have a great weekend, and happy Halloween!

Photo by Erwss (Flickr Creative Commons)

Halloween Costumed Dogs Go Feral On Owner

2011-10-28T13:23:00Z

Ottawa - Two pet dogs went absolutely feral on their owner after being made to wear ridiculous Halloween costumes which may have triggered aggressive behaviour in the dogs. "Rory" an Alsatian mix, and "Sally" a Golden Retriever were forced to wear an Elvis and fireman dog costumes respectively for a neighbourhood Halloween party but the simple act of "dress-up" turned sour when the two dogs snapped, and then turned on their owners resulting in a viscous attack that leaves 38 year old Terry Howitz in hospital with multiple lacerations.

Dog expert and local veterinarian Dr. Laura Goldstein believes the unprovoked attack is a direct result of the dogs feeling ashamed and dis-respected, belittling their primal pack instincts, and ultimately leading them to lash out through a feral attack. "We see this kind of feral attack behaviour more often around Halloween and Christmas when owners think it's cute to outfit their pets in hilarious outfits, but most pet owners forget these are pack animals derived from the wolf genus, which can lead to an unprovoked attack due to feelings of shame and ridicule." Goldstein remarked.

Pet owners are advised to use caution when donning their dogs in goofy outfits, and to respect the dog's feelings. "Maybe your dog doesn't really want to be dressed as Darth Vader or Elvis." Goldstein commented. "Dogs can be unpredictable, especially when in a super-hero costume."

Ottawa Job of the Day: Zamboni Driver

2011-10-28T15:30:00Z

Facility Operator (Zamboni Driver), Bell Sensplex. Responsible for operating and driving the Zamboni (ice resurfacing machine) and other motorized equipment. Responsible for the daily operation and maintenance of the facility and all systems. This includes, HVAC, sound, lighting, ice making, fire protection, safety, scoreboard, communication etc.
More info (PDF)

Ode to beavers

2011-10-28T17:15:00Z

Who could ever forget the Elgin Street Irregulars' historic, heady foray into the (very likely lucrative, if we'd ever actually winched our notoriously incoherent act together...) BeaverBalls™ biz?

Yup, we've long reserved a warm spot for Castor canadensis and his charming, if strange, habits. Such as (allegedly) eating his own testicles when threatened.

So, it is with a certain, ummm, proprietorial disdain that we tee off to trash conservatory senator Nicole Eaton's (ev)ill-conceived proposal to replace Our Illustrious National Rodent with some polar bear.

If beavers were ever to actually chew off their own business to spit at somebody, they might wish to begin with Ms. Eaton.

Her cover story is that the Beav is a "dentally defective rat". We need barely slow down to point out that slagging rats places her in the position of badmouthing many sitting members of her party, before hitting the gas to note that the more plausible reason for her libel of our furry pal is that, while he's claimed squatters' rights to the national identity for centuries, he was only officially installed in 1975. Under, you guessed it, Pierre Trudeau's Liberals.

It takes no genius to see that the focus of the Harper Government™®© since gaining its coveted strong stable majority™®© ain't so much the stupid economy as tearing down, stomping, burning, shooting and pissing on any and all things liberal. And calling it nation building. ™®©.

So despite the senator's cutesy persiflage, we can, ummm, probably agree that this is one more case of these guys' systematic scorched-liberal policy, as they try to replace all those inconvenient decades of collective national memory with (yet more) crap, artfully spin-doctored from the whole cloth.

Do I have to stoop to quoting literary classics, like some intellectually-bankrupt Ottawa Citizen columnist? Yes? Crap. Okay:

"If all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth. 'Who controls the past' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past."

You already know the book. Oh, never mind. I digress

Base image: Wikimedia Commons

Ottawa Job of the Day: Professional Dog Walker

2011-10-27T15:30:00Z

Boogity Dog Walking is seeking a Dog Walker in the Kanata & Stittsville area. The qualified applicant will be responsible for providing off-leash walks to small groups of 4 – 6 socialized dogs at a local park. The individual will be hired as a Sub-Contractor, but extensive training will be provided by the owner.

More info via Kijiji...

You gotta watch this: Ottawa-produced music video "Haunted House"

2011-10-28T00:23:00Z

You have to watch this video -- written by Ottawa songwriting duo Brian Asselin and Eric Disero and shot at Saunders Farm. I asked Brian for a bit more background about the video. He says: "Halloween has always been my favourite time of year and I have always wanted to write a tune about it. I started songwriting with my buddy Eric Disero about 4 years ago and when I brought him the idea, we