Thanksgiving

My family's Thanksgiving meal is not a traditional one. No one can stand turkey or ham. We're not real fans of stuffing either...or at least the bread crumb kind. Instead, we had a BBQ in honour of the lovely warm weather. Chili chicken skewers, pork cutlets, beets, corn and rosemary roasted potatoes were washed down with some chanti.

Instead of the usual football game, we took pictures from my parent's recent holiday in Ireland. The seascapes and ruins left me with the impression that Ireland is very windy and very wet. In fact, it did rain a little everyday they were there. It is no wonder with such a climate that the emerald island has earned this island its nickname.

In direct contrast, the Niagara escarpment is going golden and scarlet. Walking through the various parks and conservation areas around Milton, crisp scent of autumn was in the air. Quite wonderous to take in nature that is but a few steps from your home. The afternoon hike around Mill Pond revealed a bit of history. The hiking trail lies on the path, millworkers of old would take to the Old Mill. Today, only the pond is left from Milton's early days as a rural village.

La Nuit Blanche Boring TO

That all night art festival in the wet night in Toronto was quite a disappointment. This event that was launched in Paris and held in other world capitals from Madrid to Brussels and even in Montreal was to be showcase of art in Toronto. It was more tacky than style. The best of the night's offerings were in Yorkville. The "Hold that Thought" exhibit in the lovely church at the corner of Avenue Road and Bloor Street was what the night could have been. A chance to encounter the quiet private spaces of the city normally reserved to a precious few. "To a watery grave" at the UC college was another clever collection of pieces in private gallery mixed with a sound bite of a ?drowning death in the UC quadrangle.

The rest of it,well it was very weird and quite frankly lacking in originality. The students chained to the stairs in front of UC college attempting to paper the floor, the collection of family board games in the OACD courtyard and the neon word poetry on Baldwin were quite uninspired. The fog at Philosopher's Walk was more touristy than art. Surreal though it was to see the mayor TO David Miller stubbling the mist with the students. The little round table discussion on art in the Buttery park was quite lame.

Not sure if I can recommend La Nuit Blanche to anyone if there was a second event or perhaps the question is will there be another La nuit blanche in TO.