Active and Safe Routes to school

As my son enters into his local public school this fall, parents are being introduced to the school facilities and teachers, the public health nurse and so on. Last night was a parent orientation night, and I spoke briefly on the subject of getting kids walking to school.

Background: Recently, I attended a seminar called "Walk and Bike for Life" and was truly inspired by speaker Gil Penalosa. Gil is passionate about improving quality of life through the promotion of walking and bicycling as activities, and the promotion of parks, trails and other public spaces as great places that foster healthier communities with happier residents. Check out his work here.

At the seminar he gave in Caledon, I decided that this was something I could really get behind. I soon connected with the principal of my son's soon-to-be school, and the Parks and Rec representative. We looked at maps of the area to find out potential problem areas we could take to the Town for improvement. We chatted about ways to get parents and kids involved, and how starting them at a young age with walking to school as a way of life is key.

If you are interested in walking your child to school and making your community cleaner, greener, safer, healthier and happier, then I encourage you to check out:
http://www.saferoutestoschool.ca/
I will continue to update this blog as the program gets underway and I will tell you about both the successes and obstacles I face with this project. I look forward to your support.

Summertime

Oh, summertime...I've been loving this summer, deeply immersed in the garden and all of its glory, enjoying drinks on the patio, and interesting encounters in public places. It is lovely to see our school yards and parks in full use. I haven't been writing at all; perhaps the blog will pick up again as the daylight get shorter.

Stayed tuned!

Market on Broadway - opening this weekend

Orangeville's farmers' market is set to open this weekend...a sign that summer is just around the corner. It seems that the market has been re-branded as the "Market on Broadway" ...

Second Street in Downtown Orangeville will be alive with the smells and sounds of summer at the 16th annual Orangeville Farmers’ Market.
Market on Broadway is open on Saturdays from 8 am to 1 pm beginning on May 10th, through until Thanksgiving Weekend (October 11th).
Located on Second Street, just behind the Town Hall Opera House, the Market will feature free weekly draws, live performances, and of course fresh produce, flowers and home-baked goods. - from the Hills of Headwaters announcement - announcement includes a vendor listing and produce availability chart.

See you at the market for the traditional pancake breakfast and hopefully an interesting start to the summer.

When assholes park

Nice job.

Dangerous intersection gets attention

The Camilla intersection is a dangerous one at the best of times, and now that we are entering into cottage season, it will become even more so.

After visiting family on old Hurontario Street, one road east of Hwy 10, I have spent my time waiting to turn left (south) at that intersection. Eventually, in the good weather, I gave up the death-defying act and instead wound my way down old Hurontario to Hockley Road, and then headed to the Hockley Road/Hwy 10 intersection to use the traffic lights. Most drivers do not realize that this road twists and turns its way all the way to Hockley in the good weather (it's not maintained in winter), but it was my route of choice instead of making that trecherous left-hand turn.

Mono Council is considering what to do with the intersection, and is being lobbied by the Camilla's Womens Institute to improve the situation. Good work, ladies. Let's hope Mono Council hears from the MTO soon - The Orangeville Citizen reports that they have not responded to the Mono Council for YEARS on this issue.

Take your butts elsewhere, please

Smoking on public properties and what to do with the air offenders has been an issue with Orangeville council lately. Proposed designated smoking areas are being rejected, and instead, Orangeville municipal staff have been directed to investigate the cost of a smoking cessation program for town employees. This will be an interesting story to follow.

Photos from an Orangeville spring morning

Feeling pesty?

Won't it be nice to know that the green lawns of your neighbours and the grass in our public parks will be a little bit healthier for all of us, now that we are accepting our pesticide bylaw? What, if anything, did you put on your lawn last year? nothing bothers me more than walking by a greenscape and 'smelling' it after a fresh spraying...what is that that I am inhaling?
Congratulations to Orangeville council for pushing this bylaw through.

Who will you vote for?

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!

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.

Feeling mushy

The gorgeous spring weather had some areas of town feeling mushy, as thawing ice flooded playfields and yards everywhere. The footpaths in open areas such as the one that leads from ODSS to Amelia Street were still icey and a bit treacherous on foot. Soon this will be a distant memory though...
However, a mere 8 months from now, we will once again be facing obstacles as we walk through our town. The Town of Orangeville council has recently put in place plans to clear all sidewalks in town limits. Right now, there is no by-law in place for residents to clear their own piece of sidewalk if they have one in front of their property. (More about the demise of the by-law in 1992 here.) Mayor Rob Adams said that this item should have been up for more discussion in the context of the overall town budget, as this will equate to an approximate 1 per cent increase in your yearly tax bill.

Orangeville Blogger alert

Found another Orangeville blogger - Gigi Photography - wonderful photography, musings on parenthood, contests and fresh content. Lovely.

Murray's Mountain

If you grew up in Orangeville, or if you have children now, you most likely know of "Murray's Mountain"...a great little hill situated between Princess Elizabeth and ODSS. Over the winter, the hill gets used as a wicked tobogganing hill, kids and adults whipping down the hill, hoping to catch air. During the summer, it is used for athletes in training, and I've even seen Mommy and Baby Fitness goers parking their strollers at the bottom and making quick sprints up the hill in attempt to regain their pre-pregnancy bodies.
This week, local Banner writer Clare McCarthy, uncovers the man behind the mountain.

Throwdown pics from last year

For those who haven't seen our skate park, I found a little photo gallery that you can check out here.

Maple syrup, candles and skateboards

What a busy weekend! A very crisp forecast had the Optimists not feeling very optimistic about the Maple Syrup festival...early alerts had them worried that they would run out of syrup because it was too cold for the sap to flow. But alas, when I arrived on Saturday with my family in tow, I was happy to see that the optimism was back and that visitors were flowing into the park.

If you haven't been to Island Lake, you must. This is what I think is a 'manageable' park. Nice trails through the woods for young and old to navigate, a little hilly, scenic points to stop and take pictures or look out at the lake. The majority of the picnic tables are still lined up on end like soldiers, waiting for the snow to melt off of them. However, some were dug out for the day, with lots of room for everyone to enjoy a hot pancake and sausage breakfast. It was so nice to see so many local people out enjoying our in-town park.

An unexpected highlight for me was that upon entering the forest, our first tour guide was a well-known Orangevillian, Roger Johnston, a former Chief of Police for Orangeville. Roger led us through the woods, pointing out features like a "maple in training", the stately old maples, woodpecker holes, and the sap buckets. How nice that people who live and work here, stay here. Roger was always a level headed leader in our community and saw Orangeville through the beginning of its growth period. I went to school with one of his sons, who is now digging dino bones out west. What a pleasure to see Roger's smiling face and have a few moments to catch up before moving to the next station where we learned how to tap trees.

Saturday night saw many parts of our area fading to black as businesses and individuals turned off their lights to participate in Earth Hour. In the park behind town hall, candles were provided by the Town of Orangeville and coffee donated by Mochaberry for what I am sure was a pretty celebration. I heard of a lovely evening of food and candlelight - Peter Cellar's pub at the Mono Cliff's Inn always is cosy and warm, but even more so as the lights were turned off and candles adorned tables everywhere, highlighting the stone walls and moody atmosphere. Why not do it every Saturday night?

And finally, a little piece sign of hope that spring may be coming...I saw an impromptu skateboard park set up this weekend on my street - ramp, rails, jumps. The local boarders will have to wait several more weeks to get out in Rotary Park as the public skate park there is still drifted with the white (grey) stuff.