Results tagged “florida”

Can’t get to Florida for Spring Break this year? Don’t fret, for with a few accessories, you can enjoy a Florida vacation in the comfort of your Toronto home. Sun, sea and surf are the essential elements. Add some Jimmy Buffet and break out the Coors Light—you’re on vacation!

City councillor, unintentional humourist, and Torontoist favourite Councillor Rob Ford has grabbed himself some headlines again. He refuses to apologize for his comments on Wednesday, "the Oriental people, they're slowly taking over...they're hard, hard workers," because his sweeping generalization was intended as "a compliment." However, a spokesperson for the Canadian Council of Lazy Asians has said that the remarks were "deeply offensive."

Premier Dalton McGuinty has fired off a whiny letter to the PM complaining about Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's public criticism of Ontario and its tax laws. Flaherty, who apparently counts all time lost when he's not psychologically bitch-slapping his governmental inferiors, responded by calling McGuinty a "big stupid crybaby."

Toronto Zoo to go green. The Zoo will now focus on biodiversity and sustainability while presenting animals from around the world in small, depressing, joke-like habitats that offer a crude mockery of how the animals would prefer to live, focusing on the fact that while their lives in the zoo might suck, at least nobody is killing these animals for fun, as would frequently happen in the wild.

Far be it from us to conflate professional sports with Bill Shakespeare—but the Toronto Maple Leafs’ actions before, during and after Tuesday's NHL trade deadline recall Macbeth’s famous words: full of sound and fury, yet ultimately signifying nothing. Charges of heresy will be duly acknowledged.

Imagine what the Caddy would think of this month's snowfall. The car wouldn't bother waiting for a driver to take in the greyhounds before the next storm strikes.

It's been the best of times, it's been the worst of times for the Toronto Maple Leafs; in fact, the past couple weeks have been nothing short of surreal. First, the best of times: wins against the high-flying Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens, followed by a thoroughly unexpected Hockey Day in Canada victory over the league-leading Detroit Red Wings, have given the team a boost. Injured players are getting healthy. The return of the much-maligned Bryan McCabe has apparently galvanized the team's defensive corps, not to mention relegated Andy "The Cause" Wozniewski to the Toronto Marlies. Mats Sundin, meanwhile, who turns thirty-seven years old today, has fifty-eight points in fifty-seven games—not bad for a guy with a "career-threatening" injury (we'll never tire of using it against you, Steve Simmons!).

Chalk River reactor's risk level was 1,000 times greater than normal. However, Stephen Harper is a certified nuclear engineer, so if he says it's safe, then shouldn't we trust him? Wait, what? He's not a certified nuclear engineer? Well, dang.

David Miller delivered a balanced budget yesterday, thanks to higher property taxes, some fabulous new tariffs, and a one-time infusion of $150 million from the the provincial government. According to Miller, the property tax increase of 3.75% is in line with his commitment to limit raises to the rate of inflation (1.9% in Toronto last year), evidence that the mayor is either math-illiterate or assumes that everyone else is.

A Good Idea (In Theory) is a new play currently running at Passe Muraille that, as its title implies, is trying to do things a little differently. For starters, in lieu of a program, audience members are given a soundtrack CD. As the play's website explains, the idea behind the project came from the question: "What would happen if an award-winning stage play by a young Canadian was supported by a group of independent...

After MasterCard agreed to ante up $160k to keep city skating rinks open this December, local newspapers spoke with one voice in reporting the story. The Star offered the headline "Private bailout of city rinks...priceless," the Post weighed in with "Skating in December...priceless," and the Sun daringly dropped the ellipsis with "Donation: Priceless." The Globe alone experienced a spasm of originality, settling for a subheading of "Skating still in the cards."

Spring is a time of renewal and rejuvenation. A time of change and new things. It makes sense that spring marks the start of the complementary health trade show circuit, with virtually every weekend promising another venue in which people can explore and learn. Some shows are a bit too “wacky” for some, but a few manage to tread close enough to the mainstream to attract a broad audience. These shows have exhibitors and lecturers which many people can relate to, and address topics and concerns which are worth paying attention to. If you are interested in improving your health naturally, and care about your access to natural products and therapies, this weekend is one that you don’t want to miss.

The University of Toronto received $2.4 million in a class-action settlement pertaining to vitamin price-fixing thanks to a court-ordered distribution of penalty funds. Seven other universities received the other $17.6 million in the settlement, including $4.8 million to the University of Guelph. No word yet on what U of T will do with the money, although rumours swirl that the university's president will ask for it all in twenties, pour it out into one room, and try to swim in it.

A coalition of Ontario municipalities created to fight Toronto's garbage may collapse, writes the London Free Press.

How’s that for a sports headline?

Or was that I went to a boxing match and a reading broke out? Or both? Torontoist thinks you should wander over to Florida Jack's Boxing Club (782 Yonge St) tonight (7:00) to find out which one.

Excuse me for the lateness of this week’s listing. I’m still on Nuit Blanche time. And yes, I made it until 7am. This is an absolutely fantastic week for word nerds. And check this – if one of your friends is more into sports, you can bring them to a literary event disguised as a boxing match. For a boxing fan like me, it doesn't get any better.

Seattlest saw a house party get senselessly attacked with a shotgun and end in seven dead. A local senator is debated and their version of the big dig is investigated. To truly get to the bottom of it they interview the writer Jonathan Raban.

Canada faced a tougher challenge than expected in their World Baseball Classic opener Tuesday evening. After giving up three runs during an eighth inning South African rally, Ernie Whitt's team found themselves heading to the ninth trailing by a run. Fortunately the team exploded, scoring four in their next series while creating some breathing room for Minnesota Twins Jesse Crain to close out the 11-8 victory. Former Blue Jay Corey Koskie homered for the Canadians.

With the signing of AJ Burnett (pictured with Florida singer Brandy Rich) and BJ Ryan, the Toronto Blue Jays will pay $102 million to two pitchers who use letters as first names. (No offense to Torontoist blogger JK Nestruck.) Letters they want, letters they'll get. Here's the ABC's of the Jay's off-season thus far:

Torontoist has everyone on shoe patrol these days, and yesterday informant Nathan sent us this photo from Charles St. Rumours are flying about what it all means - in Florida and San Francisco, the shoes indicate a nearby crackhouse, while we've been told that in DC there is a certain tree for fratboys to fling their footwear into every time they've devirginized a coed. But in Toronto the Good the mystery lingers on, and your crack pot conspiracy theories are still most welcome.

After sifting through the heaps (mounds?) of MIA discussion around the internet over the past few months, Torontoist thought it's about time we came up with some of our own opinions on the Sri Lankan/British, by-way-of-blog superstar. As most conscious MIA listeners already know, there's a growing controversy over MIA's Palestine Liberation Organisation shout-out as well as alleged ties to the Tamil Tigers. As Torontoist interprets it, the MIA debate surrounds the political message of her songs, and her attachment to said message.

Early this morning police arrested a man wielding two knives at the corner of Yonge and Wellesley. But the arrest was far from normal, police could not subdue the man and had to pin him to a bike rack using a police cruiser, here's the video. Bet they didn't teach you that at the academy.

First it was Mayor Mel, and now delegates sent in place of MDM have been dissed for dining on Dunedin, Florida's tab. Dunedin has long picked up the check for visiting TO dignitaries, in an effort to keep good relations afloat between the Jays' winter and summer homes. But Dunedin (pronounced Done-Eden, and not Dune-Din) is well nigh sick of it, and doesn't want to pay to entertain TO mayors or their minions anymore. As a return on the favour, TOist thinks Mel should invite the Mayor of Dunedin up to North York, all expenses paid.

One of the true misfortunes of living in our great city is our reliance on the National Hockey League as our sporting lifeline. Day-in, day-out we Torontonians are faced with countless hours of lockout coverage with every union meeting given more press than a Presidential Address.

Selon le chercheur américain Richard Florida, Toronto arrive en première position pour l'importance de son noyau créatif, qui regroupe les emplois liés à la technologie et à la culture. Toronto est suivi de très près par Montréal.

To the six people who thought there was a chance Carlos Delgado would offer the Jays a discount and become Toronto's first 500 homer man: the dream is dead.

To inaugurate the New Year, JetsGo Airlines is offering seats for $20.05 to any of their North American destinations. The discounted flights are only valid on departures from Toronto, require a return ticket purchased at regular price, and surcharges do apply. Destinations include Fort Meyers, Florida and Fort McMurray, Alberta. While the said seat sale is considerably cheaper than full price, it also conjures up a little-known concept we at Torontoist like to call "opportunity cost." This means that the twenty dollars spent going to Sarasota, Florida could be spent elsewhere, thus upping the real aggregate cost of the trip. Instead of flying to Florida or who-knows-where, a person can get four meals at the Taco Bell in Paramount Theatre. Knowing this information makes this post, as well as any such JetsGo trips, completely irrelevant.

We at the Torontoist would like to apologize for how repetitive our basketball reports are becoming. As sorry as we are, though, it appears that nothing is changing.

At first, it seemed a little odd that Toronto Argonauts' coach Mike "Pinball" Clemons was left off the CBC's "Greatest Canadian" search. This man has devoted his entire playing career to the CFL's Toronto Argonauts, and now has led the team to the Grey Cup final as a head coach. The case for Clemons as the "Greatest Canadian," however, is quickly derailed by the fact that he's from Florida. Still, Clemons has taken the underdog Boatmen all the way to the final against the B.C. Lions this Sunday in Ottawa, the first time since 1997.