[PHOTO] South on Hallam past the patio, Dovercourt Village, Toronto

I was wandering around the intersection of Dovercourt Road and Hallam Street Tuesday evening, waiting for my laundry to finish its wash cycle, when I saw the moon peeking over this backyard patio.

[BLOG] Some Wednesday links

• James Bow shares his story of how he met famed Canadian kid's author Gordon Korman.


• Paul Drye has sales on this month for his two books, space race WI book False Steps and his first, Passing Strangeness.


• Far Outliers' Joel notes two overlooked episodes of migration in Canada, of Hawaiians in British Columbia and Canadian exiles in Australia.


• The Great Grey Bridge's Philip Turner shared, again, his personal photo essay about his links to and love of Canada.


• Language Hat looks at the potentially Australian slang phrase "good on you" (pronounced "good onya", apparently).


• Language Hat looks at claims that translation and grammar complicate the meaning of the text authorizing the handover of Hong Kong to China.


• The LRB Blog announces that their #readeverywhere photo contest is up and running for July!


• Cheri Lucas Rowlands shares a gorgeous photo essay of her trip to Chania, on Crete.


• Unicorn Booty has an interesting essay looking at the barriers to membership imposed by gay culture on newly-out members of the community.


• Window on Eurasia looks at the cost of the Russian war in Ukraine and argues that the consequences of a crash now would be worse than in 1998.

[URBAN NOTE] Four links about infrastructure and parks in Toronto, including the Toronto Islands

• Torontoist's Emily Macrae notes the importance that parks will have for a Toronto with an aging population.


• The Toronto Star's Ben Spurr reports that Siemens is challenging Metrolinx's award of the contract for new streetcars to Alstom.


• Global News shares arguments from business owners that the floodwaters around the Toronto Islands has fallen enough to reopen them.


• CBC News' Justin Li reports that Ward's Island, easternmost of the Toronto Islands, actually is open for business.

[URBAN NOTE] Five notes on the housing market in Toronto, from TCH to Parkdale to investors

• In an old NOW Toronto article from March, Lisa Ferguson writes about how a neighbourhood land trust hopes to control prices in Parkdale.


• The Globe and Mail's Jill Mahoney and Justin Giovannetti note a recent study suggesting that less than 5% of home sales in the Toronto area are to foreign buyers.


• The Globe and Mail's Carolyn Ireland notes that, in a fluctuating market, homeowners are caught between pressures to buy and to sell.


• NOW Toronto's Sheila Block argues that, among others, the Bank of Canada needs to prepare for a housing crash.


• The Toronto Star's Jennifer Pagliaro notes that Toronto Community Housing has been ordered to close no more units. No word on where the money will come from.