August 17, 2015
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Milo aka Bruce aka Wonder Cat reunion in Long Branch Aug 16th

Milo Bruce Wonder Cat Reunion in Long Branch Aug 16 2015
The King of Cabbagetown out for a walk with A&D’s pup
Hung over from the party
purrrr, purrr
Milo goin’ strong!

This little fellow had a reunion party on 27th Street yesterday afternoon.  Stories of his running on Cabbagetown Victorian rooftops, going to the Hardware Store, hanging out in the middle of the road, going into neighbours houses, he’s not a cat, he’s a dog, he’s a ‘Dat’, learning to live with George, howling his way to the vet, all that and more from this gentle soul, Milo-Meelo, Bruce, Wonder Cat!

August 16, 2015
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The 27th Street Podcast: Episode 2 is up

The 27th Street Podcast: Episode 2 is now available. Today’s guest is gardener extraordinaire Jennifer Arnott, talking heirloom tomatoes and unique perennials. Here’s Jennifer with a selection of heirloom tomatoes she brought over for Tuffy P and I. They are superfantastic!

IMG_4153Show Notes

Music – I played both the opening refrain and the closing music on my Bart Reiter Standard open back banjo. The opening music is a bit of a fiddle tune known as The Forked Deer or sometimes The Forky Deer. I’m playing it in CC tuning. The closing music is another fiddle tune, Cold Frosty Morning, played in Sawmill tuning.

Tatiana’s tomatobase – where Jennifer sources her heirloom tomato seeds
The big tomato in the photo – the variety is Sicilian Saucer.Jennifer uses Spanish River Carbonitite, or SRC to fertilize her tomatoes.
Visit Jennifer Arnott’s blog.

Jennifer’s perennial picks:
Giant scabiosa
Japanese anemone
Japanese painted fern
Persicaria painter’s palette
Lorraine Sunshine false sunflower

Please feel free to comment on Episode 2. If you have suggestions for future podcasts, I’d love to hear them, or if you think you should be a guest on a future episode, drop me a note and tell me why. Watch for Episode 3 coming in September.

August 16, 2015
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Fantastic Tomatoes

I can’t grow tomatoes very well here at 27th Street. Our place is shaded by several mature trees, and while there is enough sun for some vegetables, my attempts at tomatoes have been grim. It’s too bad because I LOVE homegrown tomatoes.

My friend Jennifer Arnott grows heirloom tomatoes and they are wonderfully flavourful. Jennifer was over yesterday taping Episode 2 of the 27th Street Podcast. That’s right folks, we’ll be talking tomatoes.

IMG_4157This tomato is not only oversized. It is also juicy and delicious. Jennifer generously brought us some samples of this season’s yield. Here tomatoes will continue to fruit right to the first frost. This morning Tuffy P and I enjoyed a simple breakfast of tomatoes on toast.

IMG_4158Wow, super-delicious.

On Episode 2 of the 27th Street Podcast, Jennifer will give us some tomato tips and as well will discuss some of her fave unique perennials. Watch for it coming soon, and also be sure to visit Jennifer’s blog.

August 16, 2015
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The reliable lobster

IMG_4149In mid-August in Southern Ontario the lobster is the mushroom hound’s best friend. They’re plentiful right now and they are wonderful mushrooms, which retain a great firm texture when cooked.

The lobster, Hypomyces lactifluorum, is what happens when a certain cup fungus attacks host mushrooms. The hosts are two mushrooms which look very much alike, Russula brevipes and Lactifluus piperatus.

The attacking hypomyces contorts the shape of the host and covers it with a scarlet coating, reminiscent of a cooked lobster shell. It also creates a super-tasty, firm mushroom that holds its own fried up on toast or adding body and flavour to soups and stews.

Yesterday morning I met up with my brother the trout, Salvelinas fontinalis, for coffee at a Timmies not far from the Enchanted Mushroom Forest. Of course we had to have a quick look just in case there were some good edibles fruiting. We found several choice lobsters, along with a few hedgehog mushrooms and even some boletes.

August 13, 2015
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Home Faces part 1

The Last Supper faces
George’s Thursday night face
McCartney face
Wrestler face
Gracie’s face in July
Square Dance faces
Musician face in our kitchen
Plate face
Bluebird face
Doll face
Wonder Cat face July
White Cat face
From Marianne faces
Kitchen cupboard face
Born to Paint – Smoky Brown face
Growing up in Etobicoke face
Birthday in Long Branch face
Best cat you’ll ever meet Jerry face
Tray face
Trip to the Mandarin day faces
Bear face
Anthony Stagg’s street faces
Chuckie’s Atlantic Starr faces
Jack Savitsky Coal Miner faces
The Musicians faces
Justin McCarthy’s Dancer face
Eddy Mumma face
At Sea faces
William’s face
Freddie Brice face
From St. Mary’s faces
c. herbert face
Johnnie Taylor carved wood face
Grizzly face
Faces of Love
Sister Rosetta and Aretha faces
Jimmy after mass face
Jacques as a baby face
Lee Godie pillowcase face
Tin from the neighbour faces
Peanuts face
Elvaston Drive faces
Strachan Ave. face
Gold face
Enrico Baj face
From the Ukraine to Toronto faces
Framed up faces
Chris’ face
Lewis faces
Heat face
Knapik faces
Anthony Stagg’s Car face
Nashville’s Hatch print face
Quebec bird face
Lady Gaga’s Baltimore face
Making the Dog Park Welcome sign mosaic faces
Phyllis and Shadow faces July 2015
Jack Shadbolt face July 2015

Tuffy P posting tonight. I came home tonight and all our faces just seemed to leap out from the kitchen dining room, front porch and hallway.

August 12, 2015
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Garden Walk Buffalo Part 7 – Prospect Community Garden July 2015

In the fork of a tree at the Prospect Community Garden Buffalo July 2015
Freshly picked by these hands on a July Sunday morning in the Prospect Community Garden 2015
Children playing in Buffalo’s Prospect Community Garden showing off their bouquet and fairy house in the distance
Pear Tree in the Prospect Community Garden Buffalo July 2015
The Tree of Life! Pear Tree in the Prospect Community Garden -92 Trinity Place Buffalo
Planted Queen Anne’s Lace as found in the Prospect Community Garden Buffalo July 2015
Pickings by children playing in the Prospect Community Garden July 2015 Buffalo
Prospect Community Garden in Buffalo – July 2015 for more info visit http://www.grassrootsgardens.org/lower-west-side-gardens.html

The Grassroots Gardens of Buffalo truly shone on Garden Walk Buffalo 2015. Congratulations to all those in their communities who have worked so hard to transform these spaces into open pick gardens that feed their neighbours, and look stunning.  So much love going into these community gardens, so worth it!  More posts still to come!   To learn more about the Buffalo Community Gardens check out http://www.grassrootsgardens.org/our-gardens.html

August 12, 2015
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Garden Walk Buffalo 2015 Part 7 – for more see posts on Aug. 2nd, 7th and 8th!

Green Archway discovered on the Buffalo Garden Walk – July 2015
Garden Walk Sidewalk Art July 25
Cottage Gardens Backyard Little Summer Street Buffalo July 2015
Candelabra of Plants lighting up this home- Buffalo Garden Walk 2015
Visitors book found in a backyard garden. A couple from Rouen, France were here first!
Succulent plantings on 16th Street
Backyard of the Just Be House in Buffalo
YEAH!!! Garden Walk Buffalo colour
A side garden calling out to enter! Sunday July 26th in Buffalo
Yellow Lilies in the West Utica Community Garden – Garden Walk Buffalo

Pure delights from the 2015 Garden Walk Buffalo. To see more, visit this blog’s entries on Aug 2nd, 7th and 8th 2015.

August 10, 2015
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Ankle Update

Regular readers know that I took a spill, broke and badly dislocated my right ankle back in March. Today I saw my surgeon who looked at the new x-ray, and told me everything has healed up just as it should (YAY!!!!), so I don’t need to go back to see him again. I’m left with 14 screws in my leg as a souvenir. I can expect some swelling to persist for up to a year. The various aches and pains I still experience when I’m on my feet a lot will disappear over the coming months.

I’m back to doing most things I normally do (well, I won’t be wading any trout streams for a while), but I can’t walk as far or as long as I could before my accident (yet). I’m still doing physiotherapy, and for now I’m still getting a lot of benefit from that.

Now some 5 months later, I look back and think how fragile we are. One little patch of black ice coupled with not using the hand rail and next thing you know I was in surgery, in a cast and hobbling about on crutches.