Trump’s Phony Polls

For some reason I was added to the mailing list of Donald Trump’s fundraising emails. I seem to receive a begging letter from him every other day. Today’s missive was in the form of a survey in which certain questions are asked. It is presumably from polls like this that Trump makes claims that, for example, 98% of voters think he was the greatest President in history.

Whenever you hear such grandiloquent bullshit from the loser, I want you to remember that these polls are constructed around survey choices such as these (taken verbatim from today’s email):

I wonder if any legitimate poll takers think these are anything but phony choices, designed to produce a desired result?

The Heat Made Me Do It

I am not one for sodas or soft drinks of any kind. In a usual month I drink only tea, water, and the occasional beer. But in the last few weeks I have discovered the inestimable joy of the peach quencher at Timmies.

Don’t want to sound like a jingle or an ad, but it is a great drink — not at all sweet, with a powerful peach flavour, and totally deserving of the name “quencher”.

I know that by summer’s end I will have drunk far more of them than I should. Oh well.

Image: Street Art #19

Changes On The Drive #120

As the title states, this is the one hundred & twentieth edition of Changes — one each month for the last ten years. Taking a quick look back through those posts, I am amazed at how much change has happened in the relatively compact stretch of fourteen short blocks from Venables to N. Grandview Highway that is the world of Changes. Unfortunately, this may be one of the least interesting editions as there are very few changes since the last post.

It sure was humid yesterday when I did the walk, though fortunately not nearly as hot as I had expected.

I have noted over the last few months the significant growth in the number of patios on the sidewalk. Most of them make a good deal of sense, but the brand new one outside the bowling lanes seems oddly placed as there is only a small snack bar inside and no other restaurants nearby.

The one new opening this month is Loula’s Taverna at 1608 Commercial. There is a good piece on the new place, and something odd about the bathroom here.

Image: Loula’s

There is a long advertorial about the Tandoori Palace‘s 20th anniversary at 1434 Commercial.

The Little Earth toy store at 1020 Commercial has a smart new sign.

Vacancies on the Drive this month: 

2283 Commercial (8 months vacant), 2277 (25 months), 2247 (2 months), 2223 (29 months), 2111 (15 months), 2057 (8 months), 1983 (2 months), 1816 (15 months), 1748 (12 months), 1733 (11 months), 1728 (15 months), 1678 (11 months), 1503 (7 months), 1305 (15 months), 1303 (1 month), 1301 (10 months), 1191 (3 months), 1126 (2 months), 902 (10 months).

As the graphs show, Commercial Drive is still deep into a pandemic slowdown. However, we are in far better shape that commercial streets in the UK where one in seven shops are now vacant: One in seven shops now vacant across the UK | Retail industry | The Guardian

Previous Changes On The Drive editions.