news
Torontoist Week In Review: July 20-24
A lot happens in the course of a workweek. Here’s a look back at the top stories from the past five days that you might have missed, or might care to revisit.
Courtesy of the Toronto Wildlife Centre.
A week-and-a-half ago, an accident on Highway 427 resulted in a 6,000 litre oil spill, some of which seeped into the nearby Mimico Creek. We interviewed Julia Pietrus from the Toronto Wildlife Centre, a North York wildlife charity responsible for the safety of more than 100 dirty little duckies affected by the incident.
From the article:
It’s been a week since a truck rolled over on Highway 427, spilling nearly 6,000 litres of mineral oil onto the road and contaminating nearby Mimico Creek. Though there have been a few animal fatalities since last Monday’s event, employees at North York’s Toronto Wildlife Centre have been able to rescue more than 100 ducks in the calamity. Not half-bad in the wake of the biggest oil spill TWC spokesperson Julia Pietrus has seen in the eight years she’s worked there.
Photo by Scott Snyder, from the Torontoist Flickr Pool.
A humble proposal by Torontoist guest writer, Jordan Foisy, asking for nothing more than a little compassion for City workers.
From the article:
Three years ago I was taking the Blue Line bus after a night of revelry. I put my bike on the front of the bus, then entered with my friends. Ten minutes later, I had to get off the bus as the revelry was beginning to segue into its natural partner: needing to vomit immediately. My friends, because they are good friends, followed me off the bus and started consoling me as the bus took off and the night’s festivities began their liquid exit from my belly onto the back of a Toronto Sun newspaper box. After I rose and wiped my face, I looked at my two wonderful friends and dribbled out of my disgusting mouth, “Did any of you grab my bike off the bus before it took off?”
Photo by Alex Luycyx from the Torontoist Flickr Pool.
Education advocacy group People for Education calls for de-streaming in Ontario’s high schools, arguing that it would result in increased flexibility for students pursuing their academic career.
From the article:
It was not until Grade 12 that Dimal Kaci realized he could not go to university.
When Kaci was in middle school, his family moved from Albania to the GTA, and they lacked a firm grasp of the Ontario high school system. Kaci was put into the applied stream when he entered high school, and years later he is still dealing with the consequences.
Meet your new ruler. Photo by David Timchuck from the Torontoist Flickr Pool.
Dominating Pan Am stores, bus stops, social media, this website, your subconscious, and the bosom of your nightmares, please welcome your new dark overlord, Pachi the Porcupine.
From the article:
According to the more than 50,000 people who have signed the petition for his removal as closing ceremony headliner, Kanye West is antithetical to the spirit of the Pan Am Games. According to some of the top-ranked commenters, the divisive artist is “arrogant, disrespectful and overpaid,” a “jerk who acts like a spoiled toddler,” and his “persona is hardly representative of someone who embodies grace in the face of defeat, humility, empathy, fair play, etc.” Rightly or wrongly, these people feel the world’s third-largest multi-sport event deserve a less prickly, challenging spokesman.
audience members / paddlers arrive at the Toronto Islands for It Comes In Waves. Photo by Michel Mersereau.
Squeeze exercise and art into one fun-filled adventure with interactive plays, It Comes in Waves and Monday Nights.
From the article:
For It Comes in Waves, audience members started their journey by meeting guides at Harbourfront Centre Canoe and Kayak. They divided us into groups to power the paddles of traditional war canoes, each holding up to 20 people. The boat we were in had a mix of novice paddlers and experienced ones, including canoeing instructors and former competitive paddlers (like ourselves).