More Pride Photos

I went to the parade today. Next to San Francisco, Toronto has the largest Pride parade in North America. It was a beautiful sunny day here today. I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them!

Pride Parade 2006

My New Look

I had a few too many drinks the other night ... LOL

Party With Pride

My life is rife with Geminis. As a result, I've been busy with birthdays lately. On Tuesday night, I was invited to join some friends in The Village to celebrate two birthdays. We met for dinner at Cafe California which, coincidentally was hosting the Fourth Annual Men's Underwear Fashion Show from The Bay. It's Pride Week in Toronto and this restaurant is in the heart of The Village. Or course, wild horses couldn't keep me away from this event ... LOL For a close up and personal view of what I saw, check out this slideshow.

Honour Thy Father

My Dad lives in a townhouse complex where, every year, they have a communal garage sale. I offered to come down and lend a hand, bringing a few of my own things to sell. I took the train late Friday afternoon from Toronto to Kitchener. Normally, it costs $27 to travel about 100 kms but with a $10 off coupon from work, it only cost me $17. Dad was there waiting for me. Whenever we're at the Kitchener train station together, I always think back to April 1984, when I joined the military. My Dad took me to the station so I could catch the train to CFB Trenton, where we were going to catch a military flight down east for my basic training.

Anyway, my Dad got on board the train with me, obstensibly to help me with my bags but I knew he just wanted to hang around and delay saying goodbye. I was sitting with 3 guys who were also new recruits and we were all nervously optimistic about our upcoming adventure. Eventually the train started moving and my Dad was still on board. As the train started pulling out of the station, he hugged me goodbye one last time and then went looking for one of the train officials so he could get off the train. We felt the train stop and as I looked out the window, I could see my Dad, standing there at the side of the tracks, waving goodbye to the train. That's just the kind of guy my Dad is ...

MY DAD'S FAVOURITE SWEATSHIRT














WHAT THE SWEATSHIRT REALLY SAYS














MY DAD














BTW, that hat he's wearing is made in Mexico. He bought it in Dallas, Texas during one of his visits to see my brother. Another funny Mexican-related thing happened during the garage sale. Two couples came to look at our stuff and I noticed they were speaking Spanish to one another so I asked them, in Spanish, where they were from. They answered Veracruz and then the conversation flowed, in Spanish and English (for my Dad's benefit). I learned that they had only been in Canada for one year and were there to eventually work on the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. BTW, they absolutely LOVE Canada and the husband, Mario, told me he felt it was much better for them than going to the U.S.A.

Try to spend some time with your father this upcoming weekend.

Out and About in Toronto

I have no excuse for not blogging. I've been busy doing stuff -- dinners, movies, clubs, work, gym, shopping, etc. I guess my life is getting in the way of my blog! Today I went out and took a few photos. I was very cognizant of the fact that I looked like a tourist doing this but I figured I just fit in with everyone else. We're a little worried about our tourism in Toronto this year because of the rising Canadian dollar (and the subsequent drop in the value of the $US here). Oh well, so sad. They don't know what they're missing!

Take a peak here at some of my local sights. I'll be adding more as time goes by ...