Captain Hook & Baby

I took photo this during our trip to the Saguenay region this past summer. This is a Fin Whale that local observers gave the name "Captain Hook" due to the shape of his dorsal fin.

After "she" had a baby, they decided to keep the name regardless.

The whales come here to the convergence of the St Lawrence River and the Saguenay fjord to feed during winter. The food supply for them here is plentiful due to a combination of the subsurface geography and the tide meeting the convergence of the rivers.

In the two times that I’ve been to Tadoussac to see the whales, this is the extent of what I have seen having only seen Minke, Fin, and Beluga whales. They come to the surface to breath and then dive with only the Belugas occasionally lifting their tails out of the water. We have not seen the occasional Humpback or Blue whales in the area. Those two types of whales tend to lift their tails out of the water. There is also very little breaching of whales since it is more of a mating activity likely to be seen during the winter months in the warmer waters like the Caribbean and near Hawaii. So many like myself tend to be a bit disappointed on their first whale watching tours here since they think those activities might happen. Since this was my second tour, I was much more open to appreciate the simple breath and dive that normally occurs. Plus we were very fortunate to have incredibly still water.

Seven

Our oldest turned seven today. A while back when I noticed that she would be turning seven, it kinda took me aback. We all have in our minds certain milestones that define age and in my mind seven years old is one of them. When they are young, the milestones are quite frequent. One month, two months, three months, one year, two years, three years, then the following year milestones seem not as important as they make their way through their preschool years.

But why does seven years old stick out in my mind. Of course there is that it is the age that they start going to “real” school. It’s not constant playtime like daycare and it’s not playtime peppered with elements of attentive learning thereby phasing them into first grade. First grade is much the opposite. Attentive learning most of the time with elements of playtime mixed in. They begin learning how to read and write. They learn math in a more formal setting. That’s part of the reason it feels significant, but there’s more.

For myself, it was the age that I became aware of the larger world. It was when I asked my mother what year it was (1978). I remember that moment distinctly and I remember every year since. In many ways it seems like my consciousness began at that age. I have more memories after that time. I remember much about that time at grade school, but I remember very very little about kindergarten the year before. Though that may be due to attending kindergarten at another school and then spending eight years at the grade school. So some of those first years at the grade school likely bleed together.

That consciousness is what excites me about my daughter turning seven. One of the main reasons I wanted to become a parent is to pass along much of the information I’ve learned. Much as my parents did for me. So it excites me that she is at an age that takes interest in issues other than cartoon characters and princesses. My father got her an interactive globe for her birthday and she was ready to stay up learning about all the different countries before we told her she would have to wait until tomorrow. As with most kids her age, dinosaurs were of great interest and she can rattle off all the different kinds. Today she mentioned a Quebec artist named Marc-Aurèle Fortin and was describing his life story and work to us. When we were at the Guggenheim in New York, she followed my wife around the exhibit with the free audio guide learning about Frank Lloyd Wright. We bought the series Blue Planet and Planet Earth and she not only takes interest in it, but remembers the information they talk about. She’s started learning more about sophisticated subject matter.

It’s an exciting time and I’m really looking forward to presenting her with all the knowledge available to us. We must also take advantage of the time before she reaches that next stage: adolescence.

9

The Guggenheim Museum in New York City.

A Year Downtown

Well, actually that’s not true. My original idea was to give my impressions of working downtown after a year, but I never really got around to it. Now it’s actually a month short of two.

So almost a couple years ago our office moved from the southeast part of Plateau Mont-Royal to the west end of downtown Montreal. Being in the Plateau was fun, but we were a good 20 minute walk away from the east end of the action of Mont-Royal Avenue. So unless we took a long lunch there was very little chance to enjoy or take advantage of the shops and restaurants. There were a few restaurants that were closer and some have become my favorites, but you can get bored with a limited selection like that quite quickly. Though one advantage about being away from the action was that parking was quite easy. But we were quite a hike from the nearest metro station. Not fun in winter. The area was largely francophone while often English or other languages could be heard on the street. This along with working in a primarily francophone office greatly helped my learning of French.

Although I enjoyed many aspects of living in that area, after four years, the prospect of moving downtown was a welcome change. I’ve always loved working downtown despite some of the downsides. Having the wide assortment of restaurants, shops, and cultural establishments make life so much more interesting. I guess I’m just a city boy and love having all of that at your fingertips.

Of course, working downtown offered all of that. But what has been interesting is seeing the difference. We are not far from both of the large anglophone universities (Concordia and McGill). So a large number of the people behind the counters at many stores are college kids working part-time. Even though I can speak French quite well, it is nice to be able to walk into a store and speak English. Not something I’d do in other parts of Quebec out of respect for the language, but this area seems slightly more anglo than franco.

Another difference is the wealth. It’s hard to miss. Luxury cars are everywhere and teenagers from money seem to spend their days walking up and down Ste Catherine from fashion store to fashion store. I don’t have a problem with the wealthy, but I am annoyed at the aire of superiority and entitlement that often accompanies it. But that’s nothing new.

One aspect that I’ve really enjoyed is the influence of the universities nearby. It’s like it infuses elements of that college atmosphere into the overall energy of the city. You have the combination of socializing and studying in coffee shops. You have many cheap eats shops nearby. Plus there’s the addition of both the youthful energy and looks. It’s a welcome dynamicism.

So it’s been a blast moving back downtown. Exploring the different restaurants, taking photo strolls, climbing Mont Royal, or just hanging out at a cafe. I just enjoy the energy.

Folds

From our recent trip to New York City. You kinda loose the sense of scale. This portion is some 40 feet tall. It looks like it could be only a couple feet.

Fly Porter

Well today I took my first flight on Porter Airlines. I have to say that it was quite an interesting experience. For those who don’t know, Porter Airlines is a new small airlines that primarily flies within Eastern Canada but recently started service to Chicago, New York, and Boston. Now I had heard of Porter through their ad campaign, but it really wasn’t until they started offering that service to Chicago that I started to take notice.

So what was it like? Well as you walk onto the plane, the flight attendant wears a pillbox hat, a little scarf tied around her neck, and a full stewardess uniform from the fifties. On board much is the same as most modern flights except that the orange juice I requested came in a glass. Plus the snack was bigger than I would have expected on a one hour flight (yogurt, a small muffin, and a granola bar).

One of the big advantages of taking Porter to Toronto is that it flies to Toronto City Centre Airport which is on the lakefront in front of downtown. For those from Chicago, it’s the equivalent to the old Meigs Field. It’s a small airport with a small terminal but it appears to be expanding to respond to demand. One of the quirky things about the airport is that it is on an island. Apparently Porter had pushed for a bridge to be built, but local residents opposed to increase traffic at the airport blocked the project. So after you pass through the terminal, you walk up to one of the shortest ferries on the planet. It leaves every 10 minutes and crosses a canal that is less than 100 feet wide. Another nice thing about Porter is that not only are they very very close to downtown, but they also have a free shuttle to take you from the ferry to the center of downtown Toronto. As my client mentioned when I met up with him today “It’s a no-brainer for anyone coming to downtown Toronto. Why take Air Canada all the way out to Pearson and have to take a taxi back?”

When I returned to the airport, there was another interesting deviation from what other modern airlines are doing. In the waiting area, they had free drinks (soft drinks, water, and juice) along with free sugar cookies. Plus they had free internet available at close to a dozen computers in the room. Most of us were placated with the liquids and sweet things. Though I got the impression that some of the older business-folk wanted their stiff drinks and sports channels.

As for the demeanor of the employees, they all seemed cheerful, young, and excited to be working there. I don’t know if they had been doing this sort of thing for very long or if their attitude had to do with being young and naive, but it was still refreshing.

Overall I would say that the little quirks like the uniforms and the free food at the waiting area made the experience kinda fun. Though you have to wonder if these little perks will remain permanent or if they are only to entice people to get people interested in flying with them. Then once they reach a certain profit level, they’ll start raising prices and cutting perks. But in regards to the flights into Toronto, that terminal location next to downtown will always be a big advantage over the other airlines flying into Pearson. I’ve already booked a flight back to Chicago in October, so we’ll see how that goes.

Swoosh

The departure canopy at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.

Facades

Last night a woman was killed in downtown Montreal when a 3 foot by 5 foot section of precast concrete came loose from the facade of the building above her and fell to the ground. A very tragic story since she was seated at a table in a restaurant across from her husband celebrating her birthday.

As with previous events where structures have failed, there has and will be a flurry of people asking why, assigning blame to which person or group they feel deserve it, and calling for more regulations or frequent inspections. Just over a decade ago a series of similar events occurred in Chicago on buildings older and taller. I think it might be pertinent to relay both what happened and what was done to avoid futher occurances.

My recollection of the events of facade failures is by memory, but I’m fairly sure they are correct. Within about a two year period, there were a handful of cases where pieces of brick or terra cotta fell from the upper stories of turn-of-the-century buildings. In one case, it was a piece of brick that fell and bumped someone on the head. Another case was a section of brick wall about four feet square that fell overnight onto the roof of another building. And I do remember pieces of terra cotta falling off one building overnight onto some parked cars below. After a while it started to seem like you would need to walk around downtown with a hard hat on. Many building owners took action by hiring facade inspection agencies to assure their buildings were secure. Many downtown sidewalks were covered with scaffolding to both protect the pedestrians and to provide a platform for the inspectors.

But there was one incident that was very similar to the tragedy last night. A woman who had been hard on her luck had just learned she would be getting a new job. She was walking downtown with her mother and was holding the hand of her young daughter. Across the street a window pane came loose from one of the upper stories of the building. It sailed down and across the street and decapitated her.

As these events were taking place, the mayor and the city government worked out ordinances requiring owners of tall buildings to undertake periodic inspections of their buildings. The ordinance they created gave the building owners two options. The first option was to have the building inspected from top to bottom by a building professional at arms length. Of course this is a long and costly process involving swing stages and street level scaffolding, but it would only be required every five years. The second option would be that a building professional would inspect the building, but through the use of binoculars. This would require that adjacent structures provide vantage points which would allow for an adequate inspection. This option costs less, but it would need to be undertaken every year. Though the building professional may deem a closer inspection is necessary depending on their findings. Either way, there would be some measure of security to protect the public. Many building owners were in an uproar, but they were likely the same who were saving money by not maintaining their buildings therefore contributing to the dangerous situation.

On a personal note, I almost went into the field of building forensics and facade investigation a couple times during my career. When I first left school I had an interview with Wiss, Janney, Elstner. They specialize in all manner of building forensics and it was seen as a dream job by many of us. I bombed the interview by showing up late and disheveled. Plus I think they relied heavily on the opinion of our professors whose favor I did not have. Many years later the office where I worked had a division which specialized in facade assessments. The ordinance in Chicago had recently been passed and there were not enough facade assessment specialists in the city to meet the sudden demand. I was asked if I was interested and I weighed the pluses and minuses. It is an interesting field, but a very specialized one. There is a long learning curve and as it takes many years of experience to get good at it. As a young engineer I was worried that I could get pigeon-holed into it not be able to get back to building new buildings. My boss put an end to that possiblity saying I was too deeply involved on a large project and could not be spared. That said, it’s possible I still could get into that type of work. Bits and pieces of experience that I’ve gathered over the years would probably shorten the learning curve. We recently acquired some people who specialize in building forensics and they look like they’ll need a hand. Even before any new regulations are created here.

Blue Lady

Notre Dame Cathedral in Montréal.

Taken with our point-n-shoot back before I got the DSLR

Rabbit Vomit