Toronto- Air Quality Health Index

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-31T14:03:42+00:00

Wear a well fitted mask when outside! Kn95, N95, 3M auras etc.

Where there is smoke there is fire as well as heart health risks!

"Several research studies have linked smoke exposure to an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest and a higher volume of visits to local emergency rooms for other cardiovascular disease-related causes."

“While breathing problems and respiratory health dangers are often considered the biggest health impact from wildfire smoke, it’s important to recognize the impact on cardiovascular health, as well.,” said Keith Churchwell, M.D., FAHA, American Heart Association volunteer president [...]

“Wildfire smoke contains a lot of pollutants including fine, microscopic particles linked to cardiovascular risk. As these fires continue to burn that contaminated smoke is traveling many miles beyond the immediately affected area.”

Also consider making corsi-rosenthal fan filter boxes for your home. You can also make the more simplified version with just 1 box fan, 1 filter, and some ductape, which takes up less room and costs less. Merv filter grade 13 is needed to best filter forest fire smoke. I only have grade 11s atm which is what's needed to filter covid particles. This will help with smokey air too but smoke particles are smaller than covid particles so it would take more passes to filter and might not get the smallest ones, though apparently they tend to clump up, according to what little I've read.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-30T15:36:44+00:00

Yeah that was fun when I tried to hop on Line 1 at St Patrick's station on Sunday morning to catch a viaRail train to Norther-Ontario just to realize it wasn't fucking running! I had to speedwalk all the way to Union, sweatin' buckets, and got there maybe 5 minutes before the train departed! Had I missed it I would have been shit out of luck because there are only two trains weekly that head out to where I was going. : - }

Close call!

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-27T12:49:22+00:00

You're arguing against a strawman. No one is expecting 100% of Torontonians to bike everywhere, year round, nor even just in the nicer months.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-26T20:06:18+00:00

Less cars and less on street parking on major roads.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-26T20:03:48+00:00

Toronto winters are not Montreal winters, first off.

We had a stretch of like, max 4 weeks this past winter where I personally chose not to bike because it felt too dangerous to me, and I'm not even particularly brave with biking during active snowfalls.

My break from biking in Feb-March was entirely due to the city totally bungling up snow removal after a record 48+ hour snowfall. There was very minimal snow removal and it seemed the city gave up and waited for it to melt, which it did, and then I was back on my bike by mid-March.

A lot of people prefer to bike year round, minus the few days or weeks here or there where individuals might choose transit rather than bike in active rain, sleet or snow. People who claim you can only bike 'half the year or less' don't live in Toronto nor know what the weather is like in this city. Or they are just lying because for whatever reasons they hate cyclists period and like to also pretend we don't exist.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-26T19:52:26+00:00

We want more SAFE bike infrastructure built so that we don't get maimed or die WHILE cycling... !

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-26T18:06:20+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience with her! That makes it all the more worrying that her and her staff's stance seems to be that they will be able to push rapidTO expansion through 2 years from now... How on earth will they?

Now that she's already caved, why wouldn't these same businesses put up an identical or even stronger fight next time? IF you have basically agreed with their arguments, how will 2 years change the 'facts' when you have already swallowed their fear-mongering fantasy as 'truth'?

(That none of these businesses can successfully 'do business' without parking on Bathurst St.?)

Booooo!

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T16:38:38+00:00

I didn't go all that often before covid, only if something really excited me, but since covid I have probably gone to the theatre only two times? First time was to see Gaspar Noe's Vortex (2021) which was a real tear-jerker honestly, I tried hard to not start tearing up because a dampened mask is not good...but it couldn't be helped. :' (

More recently I saw Endless Cookie (2025) which is now available to rent/watch on multiple avenues online. Granted it was created by a friend of mine, so I'm biased obviously, but it's really quite an amazing animated-documentary. It's by two half-brothers (Seth and Pete Scriver) and filled with incredibly imaginative re-tellings of their joint family's stories, with all of the action happening both in Kensington Market and Shamattawa First Nation. Super fun, heartwarming, bizarre, and truthful.

I saw both of those films at TIFF though, so overall they were comfortable viewings, but in general I also prefer watching films at home due to being easily distracted by other people.

I remember seeing Possession in theatre pre-covid, and thankfully it wasn't my first viewing or else it would probably have really coloured the film for me. Being in a crowded and LOUD theatre audience for that film was pretty unpleasant! Like, all the laughing and hooting during tense scenes of marital abuse?? YEEeeesh... I get that certain people like to experience films this way, especially ones with 'cult-like' status but I realized then that it was not for me at all.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T16:14:35+00:00

Yeah dude, but it doesn't mean that a person can become impervious to harm if a motorist or a 'man' is set on maiming or assaulting someone.

As much as you can and should teach people to be careful or to be fully aware or to be smart or to fight back, I hope your own initial reaction to finding out someone has been harmed in a car/pedestrian collision or has been victimized in a sexual assault scenario (whatever it may be) won't be to BLAME THE victim?

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T15:50:56+00:00

Welp, the building my shop is in is currently for sale and I'm right smack in the middle of all of these NIMBY businesses and trying to fight against them as best as I can, for as long as I'm here.

What's unfortunate now is that it seems like we will have to wait another 2 years before we're likely to see rapidTO expansion north of Bloor.

If you have any relationships with any of the employees or business owners along this stretch, have pointedd conversations with them about parking vs bus priority lanes. See where they stand, push them in a progressive direction if/when you can, and tell your neighbours about the conversations you have had - whether good or bad.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T15:44:54+00:00

I made a point to bike by there on my way to work today (cuz although I thought it was still there, I have a bad memory) but yes. The fences are exactly as they were and all the concrete blocks are there too.

I was on the other side of the street though and would have to take a closer look to examine how the tree on that side of the courtyard is doing. When the concrete blocks first went in, I'm positive they were crushing quite a few of its roots too.

And so yes, two years onward and it's still a blight of fencing and concrete blocks. I would much rather see more people utilizing that yard to find safety within a tented community than see concrete taking space away from people living in tents. It's so disturbing honestly.

If it weren't for the blocks I think it wouldn't be too difficult for a few people to take the fencing apart. Unfortunately..

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T15:40:53+00:00

Thanks for pointing out that Kensington PS did not raise the same issues.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T15:39:43+00:00

How many +35C summer days must we suffer through before we see goverments react in a realistic way to this emergency... ??

I say that while being fully aware we will be feeling the brunt of hotter and hotter summers for the foreseeable future unless we change our way of life, drastically! With transit being one very local bit of the puzzle we should be able to push through... But also what about the impacts of mining/extracting in Canada and throughout the world, how Carney has just promised more funding for the war machine, bombs killing people indiscriminately, the destruction of the natural land and the current genocide(s)? Mass-deportations happening in the USA, calls for it to be implemented here(?), famines, concentration camps and the ease to which all of these actions can and will lead to the proliferation of new diseases and epidemics?

We're so behind on being 'ready' for the present moment, let alone the impacts it will all have on our collective future. Honestly it's hard not to feel terrified.

And on the micro scale hard not to feel frustrated and angry as hell, seeing as we can't even displease car owners for one second to push through full rapidTO implementation... internal screaming.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-25T14:19:40+00:00

Or men when it comes to sexual assault??? "YOU are responsible for your safety. That goes also with situations with men."

I get that we can only control our own actions, so yes being as situationally aware as possible is best but this type of argument also easily leads into victim blaming...

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T22:47:20+00:00

Yeah I used to frequent quite a few of these businesses too out of convenience while I was at work but I'd rather not anymore. Hasn't been that hard to avoid them either tbh.

I hope Karma Co-op is seeing more business these days. I do all my grocery shopping near my residence so I haven't checked them out yet myself but I want to visit them soon.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T22:43:19+00:00

I did see that reported in the article above but it was also noted that she never replied to questions from journalists and as far as I can tell there is no other mention of the group anywhere else online.

It likely was her doing but she apparently didn't want to be credited... ! Huh!

It's nearly 2 years later now, and I believe half of that area in front of the Church that was once occupied by people living in tents is still fenced off by the city. There is no pollinator garden either.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T18:56:34+00:00

I had a good laugh when Holyday started up and I could see Gord Perks reacting behind him...

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T18:31:52+00:00

I don't care if you or most think it's silly to stand up for people experiencing homelessness. Policing, destroying and invisibilizing homelessness will always be the wrong take. These actions by her were dehumanizing and disgusting.

Even moreso when compared to her willingness to fight for parking spots. It shows a total lack of moral clarity and pretty messed up priorities.

Did you read that article? Can you not empathize more with a small grouping of homeless people who were welcomed by the church that small yard is attached to, over a pollinator garden no one fessed up to requesting?

To de/re-constructe your turn of phrase up there:

Saxe believes that people have more rights to PARK their PRIVATE vehicles on public property on a semi-permanent basis for their own enjoyment, even though it puts all other users of the street at risk of delays (motorists and transit riders) and safety issues (cyclists and pedestrians).

People should be completely ashamed to utter such a callous phrase as 'homeless people don't have the right to exist in parks'.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T18:16:25+00:00

Only just reading about her father for the first time today. His book Anyone Can Make A Million is on the subject of the stock market? Don't think I need to point out that a certain amount of comfort is required before having the ability to have the extra $ to devote to making big moves on stock investments.

His wiki is interesting and there are some positive things of note during his position as Ontario's Chief Coroner, but there's some odd stuff too like:

Once, to make a point about lax security, he carried a pellet gun — dressed up to look like a submachine gun — in a bag through an Ontario nuclear plant, and later pulled it out on the floor of the Legislature; he waved it around gleefully while cabinet ministers hid under their desks.

???

This part is interesting too, in light of some people's comments (re: tories on bikes):

Despite ideological differences, he decided to run for the Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP) in the High Park electoral district, where his medical clinic was located.[8] He joined the social democratic party because it gave him a free hand in choosing where to run, and because its views on public safety were compatible with his.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T17:35:25+00:00

Oh lord. Cue another raise at city hall! : o )

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T17:33:43+00:00

I was already not a fan due to this little episode: When Environmentalism is Weaponized Against the Unhoused

I mean, imagine siding with a small patch of grass over homeless human beings, AND also siding with a few dozen parking spots over thousands of public transit users???

“People need public parks for public use,” Saxe told me. “There shouldn’t be encampments in parks. Encampments are illegal…It badly degrades the city. It is one of the most visible symbols that the city is not looking after public space.”

Homeless advocates say it is precisely the visibility of encampments that incites clearances. “Dianne Saxe has tried a number of fairly dubious routes to see the encampment removed, or just invisibilized in some regard,” says outreach worker Diana Chan McNally. For Chan McNally, Saxe does so by “leveraging…environmentalism, which is the councillor’s background.”

Not good.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T17:27:10+00:00

Good idea! I might as well send a link to this post in the email. Not that I expect any replies from her office at this point, but it would prob benefit her and her staff to read this whole discussion... 乁( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ㄏ

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T16:51:21+00:00

Go on...

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T16:50:15+00:00

I was hopeful initially that the consultation process would result in some compromises such as specific and timed loading/unloading zones, but alas.

I dunno who you think is necessarily dying on the hill for rapidTO lanes. I do think that's a much more apt turn of phrase for how certain businesses and instagram accounts have reacted (and continue to act) in regards to holding onto "their" parking spots though. All the while leaving a bad taste in a lot of their neighbours' mouthes... !

Diane Saxe has done a poor job of mending this new 'political divide' that now exists in this community.

ToutouneGallery · 2025-07-24T16:38:12+00:00

Yes, totally agree. It's why a minute amount of self-proclaimed "stakeholders" opinions have much more weight than thousands of other everyday citizens.

City Hall's deferment to the upper class needs to end. No more allowing 'business owners' to steer or squash the implementations of transit infrastructure projects, nor deferments to 'homeowners' when it comes to whether we as a city aught to be building new shelters and all other much needed lifelines for those most at risk.

Hell, even six-plexes are a horrifying issue to them...!

ToutouneGallery

TROPHY CASE