The Hills of Headwaters Tourism Association just opened up the nomination process for the 2008 Tourism Awards. The Awards recognize businesses "that have provided superior customer service in a manner that promotes our spirit of community and that is respectful of our extraordinary natural environment and rural heritage."
Visit the site to vote for:
Attraction/Event of the Year
Retailer of the Year
Restaurant of the Year
Accommodation of the Year
Professional Service of the Year
Artisan of the Year
Tourism Ambassador of the Year
Good luck to all businesses!
Showing posts with label Orangeville. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orangeville. Show all posts
Friday, April 11, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Xeriscape!
It sounds like such an exciting word! I love it.
I have been thinking about xeriscaping ever since the snow began melting and the little irrigation tubes began to show in my garden.
The former owner of my house was a passionate gardener and spent many years lovingly building this property into a spring, summer and fall oasis. Waves of colour and green greet me when I look out from the windows to my backyard. Underneath the surface though, lies a twisting labyrinth of irrigation tubes. They basically look like earth-coloured hoses, that have tiny holes in them, which drip water out based on how I set my timer to do so.
When I first moved in, the system seemed to be on all of the time! I could hear the water turning on from the garage area and it made me crazy! I love my gardens, but I was not loving my water bill. Orangeville has metered water systems, and wow, it is expensive to irrigate a large garden. Not to mention, environmentally insensitive.
This year, I am removing one large garden. I will replace it with seed for now and hope that the little ground cover that is other parts of my "lawn" (I believe it is called "Ajuga") will creep up and take over the grass. Ajuga grows like mad, is great in shady areas it seems and is lovely to walk on. Plus, I found out last summer it doesn't need cutting!
I have also become really interested in Xeriscaping while I ponder my water-loving gardens. On a recent walk, I discovered a series of homes that have some great front yards very creatively xeriscaped. Xeriscaping just means "An environmentally friendly form of landscaping that uses a variety of indigenous and drought-tolerant plants, shrubs, and ground cover." These homes, located on Woodvale Court, feature scrubby trees and grasses, dry "streams", driftwood, stone pathways and sitting areas. They are lovely and interesting, and not a patch of turf is to be found. I will take a photo the next time I am by; this is an interesting stretch of street in Orangeville to be sure.
I have been thinking about xeriscaping ever since the snow began melting and the little irrigation tubes began to show in my garden.
The former owner of my house was a passionate gardener and spent many years lovingly building this property into a spring, summer and fall oasis. Waves of colour and green greet me when I look out from the windows to my backyard. Underneath the surface though, lies a twisting labyrinth of irrigation tubes. They basically look like earth-coloured hoses, that have tiny holes in them, which drip water out based on how I set my timer to do so.
When I first moved in, the system seemed to be on all of the time! I could hear the water turning on from the garage area and it made me crazy! I love my gardens, but I was not loving my water bill. Orangeville has metered water systems, and wow, it is expensive to irrigate a large garden. Not to mention, environmentally insensitive.
This year, I am removing one large garden. I will replace it with seed for now and hope that the little ground cover that is other parts of my "lawn" (I believe it is called "Ajuga") will creep up and take over the grass. Ajuga grows like mad, is great in shady areas it seems and is lovely to walk on. Plus, I found out last summer it doesn't need cutting!
I have also become really interested in Xeriscaping while I ponder my water-loving gardens. On a recent walk, I discovered a series of homes that have some great front yards very creatively xeriscaped. Xeriscaping just means "An environmentally friendly form of landscaping that uses a variety of indigenous and drought-tolerant plants, shrubs, and ground cover." These homes, located on Woodvale Court, feature scrubby trees and grasses, dry "streams", driftwood, stone pathways and sitting areas. They are lovely and interesting, and not a patch of turf is to be found. I will take a photo the next time I am by; this is an interesting stretch of street in Orangeville to be sure.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Too much snow to go skiing?
Someone said to me today that he thought there was too much snow to go skiing...doesn't that sound kind of backwards to you? The roads continue to be covered in the white stuff, and the wind was blowing absolutely sideways today as I trudged to Mochaberry to get a soup and bagel. Everyone in line commiserated. It truly is a tired old story, but one that we still have to tell.
Anyways, my friend decided to go skiing after all. As a skier, he's had a great season. As a non-skier, I'm sick to freakin' death of the white stuff.
My plan was to start a little tour of the tree-stump sculptures around town, as encouraged by the mayor's most recent front page question on the Town's website. Personally, I do not love the sculptures, but public art is important and I am impressed that the town has taken steps to make public art a priority. I hope that by taking the tour, I can appreciate the sculptures a little more and decide which is my favourite. However, until the snow stops, I'll sit tight.
Anyways, my friend decided to go skiing after all. As a skier, he's had a great season. As a non-skier, I'm sick to freakin' death of the white stuff.
My plan was to start a little tour of the tree-stump sculptures around town, as encouraged by the mayor's most recent front page question on the Town's website. Personally, I do not love the sculptures, but public art is important and I am impressed that the town has taken steps to make public art a priority. I hope that by taking the tour, I can appreciate the sculptures a little more and decide which is my favourite. However, until the snow stops, I'll sit tight.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Looking for other bloggers
Like attracts like, so I am putting a call out to see if there are any other bloggers in the area. This is who I've found so far. If you know of any others, let me know.
Lilyonthedustbin - looks like this local artist has been blogging since 04 - check out her artistic creations on her Etsy site as well, many created from cast-offs from our local Paws & Claws thrift store
Sheri Smith's Real Estate Blog
That's it for now. Let me know if you know of any others, or of Orangeville news you would like posted.
Lilyonthedustbin - looks like this local artist has been blogging since 04 - check out her artistic creations on her Etsy site as well, many created from cast-offs from our local Paws & Claws thrift store
Sheri Smith's Real Estate Blog
That's it for now. Let me know if you know of any others, or of Orangeville news you would like posted.
Monday, March 10, 2008
fields of diamonds
I walk to work. It's been a dream of mine to do so, and now I can.
This morning, it was a crisp -22 degrees, and the open spaces sparkled like fields of diamonds. After our weekend snowfall, everything was crisp and white again.
I passed only 3 people on the street: a man walking his little dog (that gave me a bark and then a quick jump up to sniff me out), a smoker outside of his apartment on Broadway, and the fellow from Citrus City Tattoo out clearing the sidewalk in front of his store. It is march break, so I suspect that many people are still hunkered down inside, maybe even serving up pancakes for their kids.
My walk is about a kilometre and a half, about 10-15 minutes depending on the weather. The snow lately has of course slowed me down. There has been a lot of snow this winter, but the effort to clear snow from sidewalks has not increased relatively. It has been an ongoing debate in Orangeville, I know, with the Town taking responsibility for the main thoroughfares and individuals to take care of the rest. Why can't we hold up our part of the deal? It seems that there are some areas on a regular basis that never get cleared.
If you know of an elderly person, or maybe just a lazy person, why not help them get the job done? You will be helping your neighbours and the other residents of Orangeville who choose to walk. I am blessed that in my neighbourhood, the neighbours are very friendly and helpful and will even come and clear my driveway if I am a little behind schedule! We in turn will help out if needed. It is this kind of "Be Nice, Clear Your Ice" attitude that I wish there was more of in Orangeville when it comes to our public spaces like sidewalks.
This morning, it was a crisp -22 degrees, and the open spaces sparkled like fields of diamonds. After our weekend snowfall, everything was crisp and white again.
I passed only 3 people on the street: a man walking his little dog (that gave me a bark and then a quick jump up to sniff me out), a smoker outside of his apartment on Broadway, and the fellow from Citrus City Tattoo out clearing the sidewalk in front of his store. It is march break, so I suspect that many people are still hunkered down inside, maybe even serving up pancakes for their kids.
My walk is about a kilometre and a half, about 10-15 minutes depending on the weather. The snow lately has of course slowed me down. There has been a lot of snow this winter, but the effort to clear snow from sidewalks has not increased relatively. It has been an ongoing debate in Orangeville, I know, with the Town taking responsibility for the main thoroughfares and individuals to take care of the rest. Why can't we hold up our part of the deal? It seems that there are some areas on a regular basis that never get cleared.
If you know of an elderly person, or maybe just a lazy person, why not help them get the job done? You will be helping your neighbours and the other residents of Orangeville who choose to walk. I am blessed that in my neighbourhood, the neighbours are very friendly and helpful and will even come and clear my driveway if I am a little behind schedule! We in turn will help out if needed. It is this kind of "Be Nice, Clear Your Ice" attitude that I wish there was more of in Orangeville when it comes to our public spaces like sidewalks.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
welcome to orangevillespaces
For a long time, I have thought about starting this blog. Welcome to orangevillespaces.
I am inspired by Spacing magazine and how they began and grew from mattb's acute observations in his comic strip on life in TO, to an award-winning, politically charged and influential magazine.
There is a dearth of information about our culture as Orangevillians. Where can we hear casual observations that reinforce, question and relay who we are? (for instance, are we "Orangevillians"? "Orangevillites"?) I want to share what I see, question why things are the way they are and open up the discussions that need to take place as Orangeville continues to grow and morph, always changing.
Orangevillespaces, I think, I hope, will be a place for observations and discussions, photos, poetry, who knows what else. Open your eyes, ears, smell the smells. What do you see? What do you like? (medians, anyone?) and what could you do without? (medians, anyone?) If you are listening (well, reading), then let me know. I will remain anonymous, and perhaps you will enjoy my ramblings, my reminiscing. Please let me know by responding - good and bad.
I grew up "in the Orangeville area", attended ODSS, and to date myself just a little bit, I worked for the Preuss' at a Tim Horton's that no longer exists. I remember Mary Browns, Pizza Delight and the Uptown, especially on $2.50 Tuesdays when the line-up stretched to the corner. The Grand Hotel and the Paradise. The original Harvey's location.
After a number of years studying and working south of here, I moved back in 2001 when it was time to buy real estate and work my way out of the rat race. I hoped to renew links to old friends, and that things would be the same as they used to be. They weren't. For many reasons.
For me, coming back to Orangeville after so many years has been eye opening on many levels. I hope you will come with me as I share my thoughts through orangevillespaces.
I am inspired by Spacing magazine and how they began and grew from mattb's acute observations in his comic strip on life in TO, to an award-winning, politically charged and influential magazine.
There is a dearth of information about our culture as Orangevillians. Where can we hear casual observations that reinforce, question and relay who we are? (for instance, are we "Orangevillians"? "Orangevillites"?) I want to share what I see, question why things are the way they are and open up the discussions that need to take place as Orangeville continues to grow and morph, always changing.
Orangevillespaces, I think, I hope, will be a place for observations and discussions, photos, poetry, who knows what else. Open your eyes, ears, smell the smells. What do you see? What do you like? (medians, anyone?) and what could you do without? (medians, anyone?) If you are listening (well, reading), then let me know. I will remain anonymous, and perhaps you will enjoy my ramblings, my reminiscing. Please let me know by responding - good and bad.
I grew up "in the Orangeville area", attended ODSS, and to date myself just a little bit, I worked for the Preuss' at a Tim Horton's that no longer exists. I remember Mary Browns, Pizza Delight and the Uptown, especially on $2.50 Tuesdays when the line-up stretched to the corner. The Grand Hotel and the Paradise. The original Harvey's location.
After a number of years studying and working south of here, I moved back in 2001 when it was time to buy real estate and work my way out of the rat race. I hoped to renew links to old friends, and that things would be the same as they used to be. They weren't. For many reasons.
For me, coming back to Orangeville after so many years has been eye opening on many levels. I hope you will come with me as I share my thoughts through orangevillespaces.
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