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Comments are curated and edited for clarity. They reflect the opinions of the writers, not of Living Toronto.

About Switching Sides of the Lake:
A great reminder of all the talented people we were lucky to inherit because of that ‘divisive war’ in the U.S.
Carol Phillips, Richmond Hill

About Toronto’s Chinatowns:
Robert Fisher really has intimate knowledge of Chinese culture in the GTA. Much more so than most Chinese people. He actually studies it. The history lesson rings so many bells in my head. The very last picture shows the most recent T&T supermarket that just opened a year ago on Kennedy Rd. just south of highway 7. Neat.
Steve Li, Toronto

About Chicken Haleem:
Sounds scrumptious! What a great winter meal – thanks for sharing.
Carol Phillips, RIchmond Hill

About 11 Division’s Police Station:
Just want to back up the authenticity of Claude Bergeron’s account of the history and evolution of the modern 11 Division police station at Davenport Road and Osler street.
Thanks for chronicling not only the trials and set backs, Claude, but also the triumph of preserving such a fabulous work of architecture and art. Thanks again for a well written account.
John Sweeney, Toronto

Enjoyed the story about the TPS “New” 11 Division station. Amazing what we can do to preserve our built heritage when people care. 
Mike Filey, Toronto

Found this article very interesting. I had no idea the police division building was completed, etc. This is the first info I have received about it.
I completely enjoy the Living Toronto online journal. Thank you to all of your team
Angela Muto, Toronto

About The Joy of Hags Singing:
It seems that every year something happens that prevents me from getting down to Kensington. I hope this time I will at last be able to take part in the solstice parade and enjoy the befana choir which I’ve heard so much about!
Gwyneth Fatemi, Toronto

HOW EXQUISITE, BUT NOOOOOOOOOOOO, I THINK I HAVE THE MOST , THE WORST, THE BEST , THE NASTIEST OR WARTY VOICE!!!!!!!!!!!
UNTIL NEXT SOLSTICE, I WILL REHEARSE (IN THE SHOWER)
Anne Egger, Toronto

About Little Free Library:
Love the little free library and thinking I might install the first one in Port Elgin Ontario. Thanks for this lovely story and photographs.
Cheryl Kryzaniwsky, Port Elgin, Ontario

I found out about this in Vancouver and it is so good to see it here in Toronto, in my neighbourhood. Love it. Thanks for letting us know, Elizabeth!
Mariella Bertelli, Toronto

About St. Clair Streetcar is 100!
The TTCriders organized a series of mass deputations at the TTC Board and City Budget Committee hearings on December 2, where our august representatives agreed to raise fares and not improve service, in the face of increased ridership.
At the Budget Committee – staffed with councillors associated with the “right” – there was a nasty exchange between Jess Bell of the TTCriders and Frances Nunziata. Jess argued against the fare increase and for improved service, funded by the city and province, when Nunziata croaked out some negative comments about the St. Clair right of way being partly responsible for the need to raise fares. It was an embarrassing moment (for almost everyone in the room, except Nunziata and Doug Ford, also on the committee).
Herman Rosenfeld, Toronto

About Pumpkin Pie:
I read your culinary essay about making pumpkin pie. A week later, in my sculpture studio, an image of the crust’s broad thumb prints meandered into my thoughts, the caramelized skin appeared before me while applying little bits of clay to a female maquette. Phantom pains squeezed my stomach, and I thought about envy. How enviable it is to have your art consumed.
Alex Moyle, Toronto

About How did I End Up in Australia? and Pumpkin Pie:
I just love your blog, and lately really enjoyed “How Did I End Up in Australia?” (that brought a tear to the eye as I have also come to love the gum trees and the rainbow lorikeet.) Also your pumpkin pie photo essay, as my expat Aussie daughter tries each year to introduce her mates to pumpkin made into a pie. Pies for everything in Australia, but pumpkin?? That’s weird!
Beth Oram, New York City

About The City:
I wanted you to know how thoughtful I found this recent post about Toronto. People thinking through and articulating exactly what Rob Ford has done and will do to our great city. It really made me think about responding in a similar way. Opposite to the kind of reports we are use to reading. It made me think of the many countries I visited and proudly wore my Canadian pin on my backpack. Hate to think of the conversations that would conjure up these days.
Posted on my Facebook page as a result of your blog that we shouldn’t forget that Harper, Flaherty and Mike Harris along with the Conservative campaign team helped get Ford elected. Something we shouldn’t forget.Thanks.
Cheryl Kryzaniwsky, Port Elgin, Ontario

This is great stuff….good on you all for putting in out there!
Joe Mihevc, Toronto

About Homecoming:
Doing yard work at your parents house is a very different experience than doing yard work at you own. I really enjoyed the reflection.
Alex Moyle, Toronto

Excellent reading!
Joe Mihevc, Toronto

About Finding Home:
YES, where is home was always a big hmmmmm, growing up. Born in France of Swiss-German parents, lived in France, India, US and settled in Canada!
Insisted early on in Toronto (’72) that people call me Anne, the way the french say it; all the anglos could pronounce was a john without the J!
Oh well…,
love the postings,
Anne Egger, Toronto

About A Wedding Walks By:
A number of years ago, after the marriage ceremony in the living room of our home on Hazelton Ave. in Toronto, we walked with 18 guests to the Arlequin restaurant at Avenue Road and Davenport (now closed) for the reception. Passing cars honked their horns and waved as I walked in my Laura Ashley meringue dress and John, my new husband, and his brother in tuxedos. Apparently, some tuxedos don’t come with pockets so John had no wallet to pay the bill at the end of the night. The chef said it could wait till we returned from our honeymoon. He didn’t know us very well and yet he was trusting. That’s a great Toronto story in itself!

Elaine Thompson, Valetta, Malta

About The View From Here:
I enjoyed your piece on high rise living – made me think of London after they knocked down all the terrace houses and relocated people to “streets in the sky”. Of course in that case it was a disaster because they were relocating the poorest of the poor and destroying existing communities in the process. They never did manage to recreate a sense of community in high rises, mothers with small kids needed communal places to socialize and safe places for the children to play – can’t really send them outside when the only play area is a trash strewn, vandalized concrete strip 22 floors down. Of course the disaster that high rise living was for those forced there by ignorant planners was the opposite for wealthier, mainly older people who bought apartments in desirable neighborhoods. They built The Barbican in the City of London intending it to be ‘mixed’ occupancy but it soon became the enclave of wealthy bankers and the like who loved the convenience of living in the City and didn’t care that there weren’t facilities for children or any of the amenities that make for a sense of community. I think you have to work super-hard to create links between residents when the only common areas are the foyer and the elevators – and also when that ‘glue’ of society – children – are largely absent.
Viki Carter, Massachusetts

About A Thousand Cranes:
Now that I travel the Go train in from Richmond Hill I’ve been fascinated by the cranes as we approach the city through the green forest of the Don Valley. I’ve watched over 5 years as the once interesting area around the distillery district be turned into a tourist ghetto as it’s surrounded by those monstrous, glass towers. There was so much possible with repurposing the old warehouses and factories in the district – Chicago has done such interesting things with their old industrial buildings. But now its gone and you’d never know it was even there.
Carol Phillips, Richmond Hill

About A Thousand Cranes:
Thanks so much for sending me this amazing collaboration of photos, history, stories, and visions for your city. I was captivated and felt like I got to know people and neighbourhoods from a city I do not live in. Imagine the impact for those who do live in Toronto. I think this is a wonderful and innovative way to connect communities. It is interesting to me that I have had many thoughts of the number of cranes around Vancouver, the never ending construction and parts of my community in North Van hardly recognizable with all the density of the never ending Condos. You may have heard this week, that Donald Trump hit town to announce the building of a 63 story Trump Tower on Georgia street. Enough to make me choke. I think your online journal is going to be very successful. There are so many stories around landmark buildings that just get demolished. Perhaps we would all have a greater respect for preservation when these buildings get personalized around photos and family stories.
Denise Kellahan, Vancouver