Margin Notes: Parade, Ford, Survey, Chetzy

The Swarovsky swan was one of the new floats this year in the annual Santa Claus Parade in Toronto, Ontario, seen in front of the "Crystal" at the Royal Ontario Museum on 21-November-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - The holiday season has officially started in the Greater Toronto Area, as Santa Claus arrived on the streets of Toronto in the annual Santa Claus Parade. While snow showers were noted earlier in the day, spectators stayed dry if more than a little cold as more than 30 floats, quite a few of them new, graced the route ahead of Santa Claus himself. More coverage will be forthcoming on this blog and my photo site.

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Toronto mayor-elect Rob Ford appeared to be at least as large as the elephant walking beside him in the Santa Claus Parade on 21-November-2010

Mayor-elect Rob Ford walked in the Santa Claus Parade today. I was planning to be easy on him, at least for the beginning of his administration, but today he opened himself up to such easy shots that it is difficult not to take them. For someone trying not to emphasize his weight, was it really wise to walk the parade route next to an elephant that had a smaller torso than the mayor-elect? And for someone who many fear will create gridlock in the city council, was it really wise to delay the parade by 35 minutes, the gap created between the group ahead of him and the slow-moving, shaking-every-hand politician? I thought about yelling out to Ford that he should apologize to the children for delaying Santa Claus, but then decided that wouldn't be Canadian.

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Pollster Angus Reid offered some insight into what it is to be a Canadian this week. When asked to choose what would be most important to them, 47% of Canadians chose being healthy, 13% of them selected being rich, and just 9% of them selected being successful. I have a feeling the results from our southern cousins would not match those figures.

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On the other hand, in the Pacific Northwest, those in British Columbia are somewhat envious that those in Washington state have a new ferry. The 64-car Chetzemoka entered service last Monday on the Port Townsend-Keystone (er, Coupeville) route after ceremonies on Sunday, the first of three planned Kwa-di Tabil class vessels. So far, reaction to the vessel seems to be positive--though I note that it has already had runs canceled because of a storm and tides, and its elevator is already out of service. (The elevators are also not working on the Hyak and Issaquah at last report, but they aren't new ferries.) "Eileen" (nicknamed for its list when unloaded) may have a good career ahead of it yet.

Margin Notes: Dining Car, Steampunks, I-Lean

Arno Martens and Michael Guy enjoyed the first meal aboard the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre's dining car on 28-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Those wandering through Roundhouse Park in Toronto, Ontario this weekend were treated to an unusual sight--an approximately one-eighth scale dining car in use on the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre's miniature railway. The car debuted this weekend. The first meal? Barbecued hamburgers and water--what did you expect, wine and cheese?

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A group of steampunks (note the steam-powered gun at left) gathered at the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre in Toronto, Ontario on 29-August-2010

Across the street from Roundhouse Park, FanExpo Canada was going on at the Convention Centre. That can result in some interesting comic book characters running around, particularly when FanExpo becomes so crowded that some cannot get inside. This year, the only significant spillover to Roundhouse Park, appropriately enough, were a large group of steampunks. Could there be a more fitting place for steampunks than a place where steam engines were in operation?

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Some in Washington state must be thinking they would be better off if they had a steam-powered ferry. The new ferry Chetzemoka's acute vibration problems were apparently solved by a software change this week, but the vessel suffers from a multitude of other design issues, large and small; read this thread on the West Coast Ferries forum for details. Amongst the issues is a four degree list, which has led to the ferry's new nickname--"I-Lean" or "Eileen." Eileen is still on target to replace Bob in a few weeks. Bob, of course, is the Steilacoom II leased from Pierce County--so nicknamed because of its propensity to bob in the rough waters of Admiralty Inlet.

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Water is central to Harry Shearer's new film, The Big Uneasy, about the flooding that caused the damage in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina passed through. The only problem is, Shearer's key point in the whole film, that the problem was flooding, not the hurricane, has been rejected by NPR. As told this week on Shearer's weekly radio show, LeShow, he wanted to buy underwriting announcements for his new film, but NPR claimed that only factually incorrect wording for the announcement would be acceptable. Anyone that believes that Shearer is some powerful influence at NPR or that NPR is not corporate radio should give his story some close attention.

Margin Notes: Will Power, Oil, Blog, Ferry

Will Power approached the start-finish line during a testing session in Toronto, Ontario on 16-July-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - It turns out that I took only one picture of the car that would win Honda Indy Toronto--Will Power's #12, sponsored by Verizon. (What was I thinking? The guy was the points leader!) It's been said many times, but Will Power has to be one of the all-time great race driver names, right up there with Lake Speed.

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The Indy race was a nice distraction from real news in the world, much of which centers on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Is anyone else amused by the fact that the local accent there makes the word "oil" sound a lot more like "Earl" to my ears? I'd hate to have that name and be living in that region right now; everyone would be watching for me, wanting to clean me up, and despairing that my peak had probably passed.

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I was questioning my own hearing at another point earlier this week, as a story on the radio started talking about "vets." As I pictured military veterans, it seemed to make no sense in the context of the story. Was I losing my hearing? No, the story was just talking about veterinarians.

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That story proved to be graphic enough that it almost needed censoring. One thing I learned in my recent travels is that if you are reading this, it's not in a public library. Libraries across the United States censor pretty much every low-traffic blog, including this one. Yet, high-traffic ones with sexual allusions and swearing (yes, I mean you Blatherwatch) are not censored. I'd love to figure out that algorithm. I think there's a real free-speech issue there--the little guys can't have their say to the whole public.

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One of the libraries that censors this blog is the one in Kennewick, Washington. The city of Kennewick had a moment of pride this week when Washington State Ferries announced that the third of the new 64-car Kwa-di Tabil class ferries will be named the "Kennewick." The second will be named "Salish" and the first, of course, now in sea trials, is the "Chetzemoka." Hopefully, this completes the class of boats which have been nicknamed "Tub Toys" and the next ferry to be built will be a more generally useful 144-car model.

Margin Notes: Photos, Chetzy, Weather

Are these locomotives hungry, or did we invite them for dinner? Two locomotives owned by the city of Toronto, Ontario were posed just outside the Leon's furniture store in the John Street Roundhouse for a photo shoot on 20-March-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - I spent the first half of the day yesterday orchestrating the movement of Toronto Railway Heritage Centre equipment for a photo shoot at John Street Roundhouse, and then putting the pieces back in their places afterward. It took a team of five of us to move the three locomotives and various maintenance equipment into the appropriate positions outside Leon's furniture store for a requested photo shoot from inside the store. It certainly led to a unique sight, with three very distinct locomotive faces peering inside the store, as if they were shoppers wanting to be allowed inside.

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Speaking of transportation pictures, the new Washington state ferry "Chetzemoka" has been launched at Todd shipyards in Seattle, Washington. A variety of photos are posted on this thread on the West Coast Ferries Forum. It seems believable that the vessel may enter service on the Port Townsend-Keystone route this summer, allowing the state to return the "Steilacoom II" leased from Pierce County.

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It's hard to look ahead to summer when the temperatures are heading downward again in Toronto. After temperatures reached 18.5 C on Thursday (that's 65 F), there were actually snow flurries on Saturday and it is expected to freeze tonight. Spring may have officially started yesterday, but it already visited and has decided to leave for awhile.

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Whether it feels like spring or not, Earth Hour is coming next weekend. From 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm local time across the world, various cities and civic groups are calling for people to turn out lights and other energy-using appliances and walk with their neighbours for an hour on Saturday, 27-March-2010.

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Graffiti or art? This painting was located on a pedestrian bridge over the Humber River in Toronto, Ontario on 11-March-2010

This guy isn't going anywhere, nor is he going to do anything for Earth Hour. This resemblance of a monk has been painted on a bridge pillar at the Humber River for some time now, and has been the subject of debates of whether it is art or graffiti. One thing it isn't--unless there's a new gang centered on Buddhism--is an example of tagging.

Margin Notes: Autumn, Royalty, Salish Sea

The leaves were almost all off the trees in the Lambton Woods of Toronto, Ontario by 6-November-2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Most of the leaves are off the trees here in Toronto, as the season of fall colors comes to an end. The view above was from almost exactly the same the location as last week, showing the progression toward winter scenes instead of the fall.

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Already gone from Toronto as well are Prince Charles and his wife Camila, who goes by the title Duchess of Cornwall. Their events in Toronto last week were surprisingly poorly publicized, and I managed to miss all of them. The growing consensus amongst my acquaintances is that Canada is likely to maintain Queen Elizabeth II as head of state until she dies or abdicates, but then will move to the Governor General directly being the head of state instead of being the representative of the Royal Family. Time will tell.

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The West Toronto Railpath crossed Dupont Street on a well-marked bridge days after its opening on 2-November-2009

Yet another event that I missed recently was the formal opening of the West Toronto Railpath on 31-October-2009. The path parallels the Parkdale Rail Corridor to the east from Dundas Street to Cariboo Avenue (north of Dupont but short of Rogers Road), and actually is rather useful between intermediate points even if its overall utility to the transportation system in Toronto is rather questionable.

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I also missed the announcement of the name of the first of Washington State Ferries' new fleet of 64-car auto ferries. As desired by activists, the ferry will be named the Chetzemoka, after a local native leader. A previous wood-electric ferry that had also served the Port Townsend-Keystone route more than a generation ago had also carried this name. Here's hoping for more appropriate old names for the other two vessels on order.

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Yes, I also missed until this week the fact that body of water to be plied by the Chetzemoka is likely to gain a new name. In recognition of its status as an integrated ecosystem, the inland sea waters of southern British Columbia and Washington State are to gain the name "Salish Sea." Considering the fact that nobody seems to know where the boundaries of Puget Sound, Admiralty Inlet, or even the Strait of Juan de Fuca are located, this strikes me as a very reasonable idea.

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About the only thing I didn't miss this week was the 20th anniversary of Liane Hansen hosting National Public Radio's Weekend Edition Sunday...and frankly I didn't find it very interesting. I have no objection to ginger recipes, but why was there an irrelevant and irreverent message from the Car Talk guys? More retrospective features (Hansen has done plenty of good interviews over the years) would have been nice.

Heritage: Saving the Steel Electrics?

BELLEVUE, WASHINGTON - For much of my life, the Washington State Ferries fleet contained operational floating museums. Time finally caught up with the four "Steel Electric"-class vessels about a year ago, and rather than at least one being preserved for history, it appears that all four will be scrapped.

The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1930's had nearly as large of an impact on commuting across Puget Sound in Washington State as it did locally in California. The car ferries that previously crossed San Francisco Bay became surplus, and many were purchased by the Puget Sound Navigation Company that at the time operated the majority of ferry services in the northwest corner of the United States.

The ferries were re-named from local California names to Chinook Jargon native names upon their arrival in the Pacific Northwest, and many were extensively rebuilt. In their new forms, they became the core of the ferry system serving Vashon Island, the Kitsap Peninsula, the Olympic Peninsula, Whidbey Island, and the San Juan Islands from the Washington state mainland.

In 1951, the state of Washington took over most of the former Puget Sound Navigation Company's routes and ferries. Soon thereafter, a modernization program gradually led to the retirement of many of the former San Francisco bay transplants. Four, however, were retained by the state and came to symbolize the system, their silhouette forming the official logo of Washington State Ferries to this day. These vessels, all built in 1927, formed the "steel electric" class for the state.

While extensive rebuilding in the 1980's changed their appearance considerably, it also gave them a life extension. As cars increased in size, their capacity and usefulness was diminishing, but they were still regulars as the "inter-island" ferry in the San Juans--and they were the only boats that could operate into Keystone Harbor on Whidbey Island and hence had a monopoly on the Port Townsend-Keystone route.

All that started to come to an end in the spring of 2007 when cracks were found in the hull of the Klickitat. As the vessels started to be more closely inspected, stern tubes in the Illahee had to be replaced, and work had started to do the same on the Quinalt. However, while that was going on, it was determined that corrosion on the Quinalt had proceeded to the point that 60% of the steel in the hull would need to be replaced. Besides being a major expense, it would mean that the grandfathered safety status of the boat with the Coast Guard would end, so there was little choice except to retire the Quinalt. On 20 November 2007, the other three vessels were withdrawn from service, and officially retired on 13 December 2007. Their eighty-year careers, more than sixty on Puget Sound, had come to a close.

With other problems to deal with, the ferry system quietly put all four boats up for sale. Quietly, in September, all four were sold to Environmental Recycling Systems, which intends to tow them to Mexico for scrapping. This move angered preservationists. However, with the preservation of the Kalakala art-deco ferry, the clearly most prominent of Puget Sound ferries, having been through many problems since its return from Alaska in 1998, it seems unlikely that any action will be taken to undo the sale for scrap.

A petition drive is in progress, so perhaps a way will be found to preserve at least one of the boats that served in the west for 80 years.