Saffron Museum

If you read yesterday's Toronto Star, you saw article about a Saffron Museum!http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news/travel/Saffron_is_mountain_village_s_spice_of_life.html?siteSect=415&sid=5293362&cKey=1220517614000&ty=st Purse Museums -Saffron Museums-what next?

135 saffron growers in Mund Switzerland, a tiny village in southern Switzerland spend time on the steep hillsides growing and harvesting the world's most expensive spice. Saffron has been grown in Switzerland since the 14th century but today it's grown only in Mund- the northern most place in Europe where saffron flourishes- in a canton known for other superlatives like the Matterhorn, and Visperterminen-Europe's highest vineyards.

In Mund, you get saffron risotto, saffron bread, and creamy saffron soup at the Restaurant Jagerheim.

A saffron museum opened in October 2007 in a 15th century wooden house here.

"Does it pay off? No," Rohmeder: a pharmacist who now makes Munder Gold, a saffron liqueur, says candidly.

"Nobody is rich here, nobody is poor. Everyone makes as much money as they want and as most have sheep. It's an ideal pre-Marxist society There's no reason to accumulate capital."

Interesting, making as much money as they want. Something makes me think that the accumulation of material wealth is not high on the list of their priorities since they spend their time painstakingly collecting the stamens of the flowers for saffron. 130 flowers result in one gram of saffron, that is a lot of work. Most of the saffron is produced for the village.

I think that someday, I will visit museum's of the world the great ones in terms of size but also the quirky.

Tassen Museum or Purse Museum

Many people are definitely collectors and I just discovered a wonderful museum in Amsterdam which I would love to visit next time I visit this delightful city. The museum was started by Sigrid Ivo who inherited her passion from her mother who devoted half her life to creating one of the biggest walk-in closest in the world. The Museum of Bags and Purses is inside an elegant, five-storey home that houses more than 1,500 bags dating back to the 16th century. http://us.holland.com/e/45245/Evening+bags+and+purses+.phpThis museum would complement Toronto's Shoe museum. Women often buy bags and shoes with the intention of having them coordinate.

I don't think that Michael will be as eager to join me in a tour of the museum but I think that I can arrange for him to sit at a lovely cafe or restaurant and have an ale of some kind.

The article in today's Toronto Star feature some wonderful examples of purses from the museum. They put me to shame with my back-pack bag that I use nearly everyday. I can not be bothered transferring all the things that help me get through a day. I like to know that I have them even if I don't always use them.

I am inspired to think about being more creative and imaginative in my choice of handbags. Dull works but these are more fun.

Local Food

As I continue to discover, we must research environmental decisions carefully. The use of ethanol and growing crops to produce it has demonstrated that our best intentions can have a negative effect when we divert what was a crop for cattle and people to fuel for our vehicles thereby causing farmland to be allocated for other purposes. The other negatives are that the cost of food increases and the actual amount decreases especially in areas that are already experiencing difficulty producing enough food for the local population.

Our 100 mile diet does not always support economic efficiency or best farming practises in. New Zealand researchers have found that the country's natural abundance of clover-filled fields mean it can ship its lamb 24,000 kilometres to Britain and still only produce one-quarter of the carbon footprint of local British lamb raised on manufactured food.

Canada's Atlantic halibut is obtained by using the highly destructive practise of bottom trawling which other nations (not all I will admit) have banned.

What these examples point out is that we must keep examining our assumptions about the 100 mile diet and other practises. Things are not as clear as they might seem at first glance.

Executrix

In case, you are wondering why I have not posted for a couple days- actually only one but it feels like a few days, I am busy focusing on my duties as a executrix and relearning what needs to be done. Unfortunately, I taken care of more than one estate prior to this.

Probate: must be done if property and assets are not held jointly- something to be said for joint accounts but then again there are good reasons for not having joint accounts!

I just contacted the cemetery where my friend's ashes were buried last week. I wanted to make sure that all the details had been taken care of. Well, apparently my friend had been sold two identical headstones! Who would do that?!? The cemetery claims that they can not refund the cost because they make the headstone immediately upon payment and store them. Well, I want to see the storage facility and since they are not refunding, I want the metal which can be melted down and some money retrieved. No really, I think that if they do not refund we are going to Small Claims court. Who would do such a terrible thing to a nice old man. My friend, Charlie was already 75 when he purchased the two headstones!

Hopefully, everything else will go smoothly and there will not be any major problems. Just the methodical process of applying for survivor's benefits and closing and cancelling accounts.

Oatmeal Bread

It is getting cool outside, not downright cold yet but we are migrating to colder weather and it is time to start making comfort food. One of my favourites is this oatmeal bread which I made yesterday. My goal is to bake something old or new each week. This was the start. Love this recipe, the leftover cheddar cheese will be used for Macaroni and Cheese later in the week. No waste, although we could use the cheese for sandwiches; cheese does not go to waste here.

Oatmeal Bread

To sour milk, use 1 tbs.. white vinegar for each cup of milk. Put the vinegar in the cup before measuring.

1 cup rolled oats
1 1/4 cups buttermilk or soured milk
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg beaten
1/4 cup cooking oil
1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 350o F. Grease a 1 /12 quart casserole well. Combine oats and milk in a medium bowl and let stand 30 minutes. Beat in sugar, egg and oil. Sift together dry ingredients and stir into oat mixture to blend. Turn into casserole and sprinkle cheese over top. Bake until a toothpick stuck in centre comes out clean. about 55 minutes. Cool in casserole 5 minutes, then turn out a rack.

Good, coarse flavourful bread, excellent toasted
Canadian Magazine

THomas Jefferson and the Economy

The first dire warnings about the U. S. Banking system was issued 199 years ago. "I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties that standing armies... if the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporation that will grow up around them will deprive people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent that their fathers conquered. Thomas Jefferson, 1809 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson

(http://www.economyincrisis.org/)

If this concept was there 199 years ago, why was it ignored?

Side-walk artist

Many of us have seen his work. It is often passed around in e-mails. He is Julian Beever, the sidewalk chalk artist who has become known for his 3-D art and illusions http://users.skynet.be/J.Beever/pave.htm He is in Toronto! I hope that his work is still at the corner of Eglinton and Yonge after the rain we had. I am planning to get there and have a look. His work has always fascinated me and obviously many others.

Mr. Beever is from Dover, England. Toscano Pizza has hired him to draw on boards brought in for the occasion. This is the first I have heard of the pizza; will have to look it up. Riocan which owns the building and the square where he is working has not helped make his work easier by placing a giant yellow Dumpster next to the artist. Sometimes people lack understanding of the impact of events. Beever has commented that the area is not particularly attractive and it would be hard to disagree.

Beever left art school and started his career in York, England where he was a busker for a Punch and Judy puppet show. He pioneered 3-D drawings and his career took off when his girlfriend took photos of the 3-D images and placed them on the Internet. Last week, he was in Montevideo drawing a Ballantyne's scotch bottle, next week he is in Bangkok drawing Piper's whisky bottle. Nice life.

Wonderful what images on the Internet can do for some careers.

Facts and Arugments-the Last Goodbye

Recently, the Facts and Arguments section of the Globe and Mail posted an essay that caught my attention. I often glance at the section and wonder what the day's essay is about. The topic this time was " One last goodbye party", the story of a woman who knew that the end was near and arranged to have a garden party with friends. She was discharged from the hospital for the day and brought to the party where she hosted the event for friends and good-byes were said. I often find that many people are upset about some one's death not just because the person has passed away and they will not longer be part of another person's life but that the survivor did not have a chance to say good bye and express their feelings to person once last time.

We regret lost potential when person dies too young. With older people, we regret the fact that they are no longer a part of our days. We miss their conversations, words of wisdom, jokes or whatever made them unique to us.

Yesterday as I was leaving Charlie's house after spending time with his widow and her daughter, I met someone who knew my friend Charlie who passed away on Thanksgiving Day. This man who was walking two beautiful dogs was upset that he had not been part of Charlie's memorial and had not known that about his death. This man had known Charlie for nearly 50 years. Charlie had been his milk man during the 1950's! Unfortunately, Charlie's wife did not know how much Charlie was part of the community, taking walks around the neighbourhood and stopping to pass the time with neighbours and getting to know them. These walks had been part of his time and he had not explained who he met and socialized with.

It is interesting that we can not know everything about the people we live with. Hopefully, we can try to say what we need to, to the people who are part of our lives and not have regrets when our time or theirs comes.

New appliances-Catch 22

Environmentalists constantly encourage to us to buy new appliances and save energy. I am firm believer that there is a good and bad to everything and you have to weigh decisions carefully to make sure that the best decision has been made. The appears to be true as far as appliances are concerned. Apparently, new appliances do cut energy consumption but they don't last as long as our older and more durable appliances. Your old washing machine lasted 20 years, mine did but my new one wish is certainly quieter and does not use as much water according to studies will not last as long. Manufactures are driven to have us consume more and to insure that we do they are building obsolesce into their products. Life expectancy is half of the previous products. Another explanation is that we like gadgets in our products and do not demand quality.
I have often commented that you get what you pay, a saying that my mother lived by. She was willing to pay a little more for something that would last. She was not part of the disposable generation, she wanted things to last and to be built well.

Not far from the tree

Often I fear for the planet and what we are doing to the environment, and then I am reassured to see that there are people who are looking around their community and trying find ways to act in responsible manner. One such group is: Not far from the Tree: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/07/community-fruit-harvest.php

This group supports the local food movement by looking around the community and finding those sources of food especially fruit trees that offer fruit which is usually left to squirrels that could be a source of food for local citizens. The squirrels are going to have to find other sources of food as the groups searches for fruit bearing trees and maybe even nuts. The groups picks the fruit: 1/3 for the owners of the trees, 1/3 for the volunteers and 1/3 to community organizations that can use the fresh fruit.


Apparently these kind of projects exist elsewhere and Toronto is a little slow to start but with the leadership of people like Laura Reinsborough many parties are benefiting. The group also visits Spadina House which has a historic garden and orchard-the same orchard that my trio plays in during the spring. Every Saturday, Suzanne Long, the volunteer in charge of the Spadina Saturdays receives a note from the museum's head gardener letting her know which trees are ready for picking. Her crew arrives picks the fruit for distribution.


Jamie Kennedy recently bought a bushel of heritage apples from the group and pears culled from the backyards of Ward 21.


This fall, the group plans to learn about canning and preserving and next year host public preservation workshops.


What a wonderful initiative!


http://www.notfarfromthetree.org/

Eulogy

Today, as I look out and see the neighbour's tree turning yellow and sparkling in the sunshine, I am reminded that the seasons change and we all have our turn on this sphere. As those readers who read yesterday's entry know, my friend Charlie passed away on Monday at the age of 97. After a flurry of activity, I now have time to reflect and prepare a eulogy, something that I have never done before. I have certainly been to funerals and memorials, the most recent last week when I heard the poem, Dash for the first time. I have two days and unlike the many unrehearsed talks that I give at my chamber and orchestral concerts, I want to make sure that I do not end feeling that I did not do his life justice.

Computers are wonderful. I checked for the definition of Eulogy: and found that the Eulogy is an opportunity to praise a person at a funeral or even before the person has passed on which I think is nice because rarely do people have the chance to find out what people think of them and others to honour them. While searching the web, I found an oration that was given at Graham Chapman's funeral and it ends with members of the Monty Python troop and others singing the song about life from the Life of Brian. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU19euwEe3k&feature=relatedNice to be able to laugh at a time like this.

Time to collect my thoughts and organize my memories.

Fall Colours

Went to Kingston on Thanksgiving weekend- one of our traditions started many years ago, the Limestone capital for the weekend and it was a wonderful chance to get away and relax. The fall colours were lovely and we even enjoyed the colours on the drive home. This is beautiful season, probably my favourite even if it means that winter is coming.

Sadly, it reminds us that there is a season for everything. On Monday, a dear friend, Charlie passed away in his 97 year. A good age but we had expected that with his good health and vigour that he would reach his 100th birthday and we would have an extraordinary celebration. His brother is 101 years old. Charlie passed away peacefully and now is time to prepare for his farewell.

This will remind me and hopefully others to enjoy the Dash, a poem recited at a memorial that I attended on Friday. That dash between birth and death is very important, we must spend the time well.

Enjoy your dash!

Americathon

Many years, Michael and I watched a movie that seemed ludicrous at the time Americathon. America is bankrupt! Well this morning, the United States is planning to ask the IMF for help and many countries in the EU are in the same position. For goodness sake, these countries are the IMF; not the third world countries that they are meant to help. In the movie, the United States needs $400 billion, a sum that seemed beyond comprehension in 1979, now that is less than the recent bailout which is not working.

If George Bush wanted to go down in history, he has his wish. He will be remembered in the same breath as Hoover and probably because his understanding of the gravity of what has happened and what needs to be done is parallel. The situation has too many similarities to be comfortable.

If you find a copy of Americathon watch it. We might be watching this reality show soon and trying to find a way out.

All of this is established amusingly but all too quickly, before "Americathon," which opens today at the Paramount and other theaters, moves on to the soggier business at hand. To keep the country from going broke, the President decides to stage a 30-day telethon with a $400 billion goal. If this isn't the world's greatest idea, at least it's better than anything his First Lady — or his Old Lady, as he likes to call her — has been able to come up with. Her plan was to throw a big dance and charge everybody a $5 admission fee.
Once the telethon — hosted by Harvey Korman, who plays the transvestite star of some very successful sitcom — gets under way, the movie stops in its tracks. There's nothing to satirize here; the real thing is ridiculous enough. When the director (Neil Israel, who also made "Tunnelvision") brings on the ventriloquists and the tap-dancing moppets and the roller-skaters, he achieves a feeling of clutter and little more. The show also features a very unfunny Vietnamese rock band and fleeting guest appearances by Elvis Costello and Meat Loaf, neither of whom does anything that might make the rest of the movie worth sitting through for his fans.

Orphaned Spaces

While researching the Annapolis Royal award for Communities in Bloom, 2008, I discovered a project that was launched in 2006, Orphaned Spaces in Toronto. The orphaned spaces are areas that become lost in the shuffles of creating homes, businesses, parks, utility and transportation corridors and other phenomenon associated with large urban spaces. The Design Exchange and the Clean and Beautiful City Secretariat ( not sure that it is doing much based on what I observe around me) and the City of Toronto launched this project.

What a wonderful idea and I have seen at least one location that I now know has benefited from this programme, the intersection of Front and Eastern Avenue. I wonder if the rest of us can take on projects even we can not access the $1500 that had been allocated to each ward.
Will try to get a picture of the area.

Will be following up on the excellent concept.

Butter

Do you ever wonder how some foods were discovered? There are certain foods that suggest that mankind must have been very hungry; for example why did we learn to eat octopus and eel.

According to historians, butter was discovered about 11,000 years ago in Mesopotamia when goat or sheep milk was shaken as the person or animal carrying it walked along.

All milk contains microscopic fat molecules and cream contains significantly more. By agitating or "churning" the cream, the fat pools together to form globs of butter.

It was so tasty and nutritious that people began making it on purpose.

Butter factories appeared in North American in the 1806's, soon after cheese manufacturing.

Butter does fall in and out of favour based on current theories about weight and diet. While butter contains more calories than margarine, recent studies show that it gives people a satiety- a feeling of fullness-that margarine doesn't.

Enjoy your butter and think about that person who looked in the container that was being transported and tasted the substance and decided that it might be worth using. Very adventurous and we are glad that it happened.

Annapolis Royal

In 2004, Annapolis Royal was designated "the most livable small town in the world". Recently, the town received another distinction-its the International winner of the Communities in Bloom program. This programme recognizes improvements to the quality of life through beautification, community involvement, environmental awareness and heritage conservation.

This award demonstrates some lessons for Toronto: about how we should stop depending on the city or government in general to be the stewards of the environment and instead, take matters (if not rakes) into our own hands. Recycling is important but the place to start is the same place that Annapolis Royal did: One of the criteria of the Communities in Bloom is "tidiness". One place to compare is the parks in Annapolis Royal and Toronto- Annapolis Royal has a magnificent park and our are very unkempt!

Pupils at Champlain Elementary School grew sunflowers seedlings that were subsequently planted in the Historic Gardens and throughout town. An extreme makeover team gathers on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, garbage bags in tow and converges on public areas that need attention. The town doesn't rely on others to beautify it, it takes up the challenge. There's a lesson here, too. The spirit of what is going on in Annapolis Royal is something that we should emulate.

Tidy is an admirable start for Toronto. Let's all start and let our council know that we are going to start and let's all set an example and not accept the mess that continues to develop around us. Let's look to Annapolis Royal as an example of what can be done.

Credit Cards

As impossible as it seems, I can remember a time when credit cards were not the norm. I can also remember living on a street with a black smith-( I lived in the Junction area of Toronto at the time.) Milk was delivered by horses and we had an ice box for our fridge. I loved the summer when the ice truck came and we would all try to grab a chunk of ice from the truck to eat and relive our thirst and the heat.

One of my first full-time jobs was working at a major bank for Chargex. This was before the cards became VISA. Most people did not have cards and certainly they were not as common as they are today with 64 million credit cards in Canada for a population of 31 million. Stores had cards and some stores had lay-a-way plans. What happened to that practice? You would pick an item and have it layed away in the store. You would then make regular payments on the item and when you paid it off it was yours. Certainly, made people more aware of the cost of purchasing things. Credit cards which people even use for groceries in some cases- so that they can collect points for travel or pay for restaurant meals were not the ubiquitous sources of funds and purchasing power they are today.

This is interesting: Banks did not get involved in credit cards in a big way until the 1960's when the 6% (interest rate) ceiling which had existed for 150 years was removed. "that really got the banks going... All of a sudden their opposition to credit cards changed." It certainly did! What is the interest rate on unpaid credit card debt? It is certainly in the double digits.

Merchants accepting credit cards has risen 5 times in the past 30 years to almost 1.2 million. Some merchants will not accept credit cards because they must pay a fee for the opportunity to offer this service. This means when you use your credit card that a percentage goes to the credit card company. Interest on the unpaid is paid to the credit card company and most people do not pay off their cards each month.

Canadians do not use credit cards as freely as Americans which may help us personally during this financial crisis but will not stop the meltdown caused by the greed of some financial companies and policies of the American government which allowed the Freddy Macs and Fannie Maes to loan mortgage money to people who were not really in a position to sustain the debt that they were incurring. Other financial institutions compounded the problem with other questionable practices.

Sorting out what caused this situation and how to solve it will cause many thinkers to pause and consider why, how and what next.

Garbage Bins

If you live in the city of Toronto, you are aware of the many garbage bins which can be found sitting on the sidewalks of the city during the week. These bins are large and cumbersome and not particularly attractive. To overcome the last issue, there are companies that are designing bins to house the bins when they are not sitting at the side of the street and to prevent our furry friends from visiting their local buffet. Yes, raccoons have figured out how to open the lids of the bins and help themselves to the delicacies that they are searching for.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raccoon( Oh yes, I feed birds and have been putting the unroasted peanuts on the shelf of the barbecue. Two days ago without thinking I put out peanuts after the evening dishes forgetting that it would soon be dark. The next morning when I looked out to see if the peanuts needed to be replenished, I discovered that the self had been knocked off. My furry friends had decided that they wanted the appetizer before they got to serious eating in the composter. )

My concern about these bins is "why are they are not being emptied when they are supposed to be". Despite our best efforts, our garbage bin was not emptied for the second time last week. There could be no suggestion that it was not out early enough- the bin was out by 6 a.m. It seems the crews are selective about emptying the bins. Next time, I am taking pictures of the bins so that it is clear that there is no inherent logic to the process.

The one good thing that I learned last week was that my councillor's office is very responsive. I sent an e-mail to the city and copied my councillor on it. The councillor's staff contacted the appropriate person asap and also called me to let me know what had been done. I had not been able to get through on the city phone line and did not receive a response from the city until the next day.

Garbage collection should not be a challenge and it wasn't until the arrival of the bins. Just getting the bins to the curb can be tricky with cars in the way and I can hardly wait for the snow to see how well the wheels manoeuvre over the snow. Will keep you posted.

Careers!

I have taught students for over 32 years. It has been a challenging but also enriching experience. Some of my students have gone on to enjoy exciting and rewarding careers. One of my former students started medical school in September and she will become an outstanding doctor who will contribute to her profession and society, continuing what she has done since I first knew her. Another student called me this week, asking if I would be one of his references for his medical school application. Originally, he planned to be a teacher and he would have been a much loved and respected teacher. Unfortunately with the tight job market he might have become disillusioned while he waited for that illusive teaching position to become available. The job market for teachers will be tight for the next ten years, a fact that corresponds with hiring practises 30 years ago. 30 years ago, very few new teachers were hired which means that there will be very few teachers retiring and this economic situation will also make it more unlikely that teachers will retire. All of this brings me to a student who I talked to this summer. She entered grade 11 this year. She is a very bright young girl: studied figure skating, piano, has completed hundreds of hours of volunteer time, started an orchestra at her high school where there is none. What surprised me about this talented and very hard working young girl was her girl choice- she wants to be involved in the stock market. In July, that might not have seemed a bad choice although it was not hers. Her parents had decided that this was a good choice and had not considered what her talents and desires might. She is a young girl who believes and obeying her parents. After the economic excitment of the past two weeks, I wonder if she is going to rethink this choice. Her goal is to go to an American University on scholarship followed by the London School of Economics and then become involved in funds and trading! Would love to see what she thinks about this plan based on current economic situation and theories about what needs to be done. All signs point to the fact, that we are going to have to rethink Capitalism- pure capitalism does not work!
I will leave my thoughts and the theories about Capitalism that are now considered acceptable for another post.

Fallingwater

As some of you already know, I do admire architecture - I have seen the Parthenon- amazing despite the destruction and deterioration- and Fallingwater, a Frank Lloyd Wright home near Pittsburgh http://www.fallingwater.org/2/visit.

If you don't want to travel that far from Canada, Buffalo also has a number of Frank Lloyd Wright homes. Wright was one of the giants of 20th century architecture. If you have the chance, Fallingwater is definitely a gem worth the visit. Plan for a whole day since the house, a country home is not in an urban area. (Suggestion: stay at the Priory, a former religious order's home in Pittsburgh.)

A number of years ago, we had the opportunity to visit the home with friends and it was a wonderful trip. Wright not only designed homes for his clients but all the furnishings for the homes as well. He designed a complete look. It is a aesthetic that will always stay in style and his early designs were part of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Hope that you have the opportunity to see some of his homes.

Palladio

One of my passions is architecture. I love going on walking tours and learning about the architecture and history of an area. One of the reasons that I love San Francisco is that it respects its past and has managed to preserve its Victorian buildings -those not destroyed by the great earth quake and also look to the future with its new buildings. A fascinating city.

Next weekend, we are going on our annual weekend away in Kingston. While there we are going to see an exhibit about the architect Palladio. His buildings are not usually on lists of must sees, but his influence wa far reaching. His texts on architecture have influenced many architects over the centuries. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Palladio

I also enjoy the architecture of Kingston which has also managed to retain some of its older buildings and is a city that is a manageable size. We generally leave our car parked at the B&B and walk while in Kingston, a most enjoyable town.

Another time, I will discuss the many fine restaurants in Kingston. More about the exhibit next week.

Furniture Bank

A number of years ago, Sister Anne Schenck founded the Furniture Bank. http://www.furniturebank.org/org.htmlThis is a wonderful concept which I only wish had been available when I bought some new furniture and could only find one way of clearing out the old furniture. It went into the garbage. Despite the fact the couch and chair were solid and only needed the slip covers that were on them. We wanted different furniture for our new home and also a sofa bed.

Refugees and those living in shelters are forwarded to the Furniture Bank by service groups, such as World Vision and the Salvation Army to help them get a dignified new start on life.

Schenck opened the Furniture Bank in a 25,000 square foot warehouse on Madison Avenue in January of 1998. The property, as well as a delivery truck, were donated to them by movers Tippet Richardson- what a wonderful gesture!

Most of the furnishings that come into the Furniture Bank are left over from estate sales, but some are donated by members of the community. In one case, Schenck says there was a woman who told her children, that when the time came that she no longer needed her furniture, she wanted it to be donated to the bank, so that it go those in need.

The Furniture Bank recycles approximately 250 metric tonnes of furniture each year and furnishes an average of 10 homes in need each day.

One of the local papers recently profiled Sister Anne Schenck the founder of the Furniture Bank, a worthy local hero.

Guild Inn

Finally, a project that just might work for the Guild Inn. http://www.guildwood.on.ca/Site/Guild%20Inn%20history.htmlCentennial College and the city of Toronto have started negotiations to restore the oldest part of the Guild Inn, demolish and replace the rest and make it the home of its Culture and Heritage Institute. The Guild Inn has an impressive history as an arts colony and then Inn. Unfortunately, when the City of Toronto gained control of the site, it mismanaged the site and the Inn was forced to close.

I have fond memories of the Guild Inn- friends were married there. When I worked close by, I used to arrange end of year luncheons and retirement functions at the Guild. One year, I booked a Christmas dance and dinner at the Guild. We would have our own room; food was buffet style. If you came on a nice day, you could sit outside and enjoy the view of the gardens which are still maintained and hopefully as part of the new facility with a boutique hotel and restaurant guests, we will again enjoy what was a gem in Scarborough. Sad that the city could not figure out how to run the site.