The Beach-Riverdale Mirror

I would then make sure there were lots of trains to get us up there and that they ran on time and that the fare was dirt cheap. My thinking is that every Canadian should have the opportunity to see ice fields and polar bears and all the other things that are embedded in the Canadian psyche before they succumb to global warming.

And in one final stroke of the pen, I would decree that by 2020 the trains should have refrigerator cars to bring back the bananas and pineapples and so forth that would be flourishing in verdant hot spots such as Yellowknife.

And here's another thing. Whenever Canadian newspapers run stories on some professional athlete who has signed a new contract, the amount of his or her salary is always followed by the term "All figures in U.S. currency," so it must be serious money we're talking about as opposed to the undernourished Canadian loonie.

The fact is our buck is rising faster then the hopes of Maple Leaf fans when training camp opens so it is high time we shed that particular chunk of inferiority complex.

And finally, I draw your attention to a humble little structure on the water's edge just south of the boardwalk. It is an unprepossessing building that for more than 80 summers has been the base for a platoon of young lifeguards who are ever on the alert to save us from nautical mishaps.

It is a workaday building devoid of architectural flourishes, but speaking as a proud Beach(es) resident, I can state without fear of contradiction that Leuty is in the eye of the beholder.

A few years ago the community banded together to rescue it from years of civic neglect and that is a matter of satisfaction to all of us.

We take a justifiable pride in what we have accomplished and we take it personally when we see it covered with graffiti scrawls that re-appear every time they are erased.

The Leuty Lifesaving station says the Beach(es) to thousands of visitors every year and perhaps it could become a lightning rod leading to the eradication of that urban blight called graffiti not just on the waterfront, but all over the Beach(es).