It's probably impossible to determine the ugliest place in Toronto given all the candidates to choose from. Oh boy, I already sound like a downer. To clarify, while there is plenty of beauty to behold in Toronto, as with any major city — especially ones that don't date back for more than a couple of centuries — there's going to be a few eyesores. Is Toronto uglier than other cities of its age and size? Opinion is divided on this question, and it's not what concerns me today. We've talked about ugly buildings and streets before, and even focused in on condos, but today's question is far more wide ranging, as some of the responses indicate.
The top five places that seemed to attract the most repugnance from our Twitter followers are as follows:
1. Under the Gardiner Expressway
2. Robarts Library
3. The waterfront
4. CityPlace
5. Rob Ford's office
I'm a bit surprised at number one, as I've always loved the hyper-urban setting that is Lake Shore Boulevard under the Gardiner, but I suppose it'd be difficult to make a convincing argument that this part of the city is beautiful per se. The other top responses are less surprising, though I think it's obvious that only parts of the waterfront deserve the ugly tag and I know more than a few people who would passionately defend Robarts against such claims. As for Rob Ford's office, well, I guess that was inevitable.
Oh, and lest all this seem like a blow to civic pride, let's recall what we love about the city and just how beautiful it can be.
Share your #uglyTO nominations below.
Photo by Rick McGinnis
This once quiet stretch of College west of Dufferin is moving on up, the latest evidence of which is this recently opened restaurant. With the feel of an ocean-side eatery, a solid brunch menu, and a liquor licence in the works, it could become a neighbourhood favourite. 
The best tailors in Toronto know a thing or two about fit - they don't just work wonders with a sewing machine; they know exactly how and where to slash, tinker, or adjust to make your off-the-rack garments feel like they were specially made for you. With the wave of a magic wand (read: a measuring tape and straight pins), they can get nearly everything - from a shortened hem or a slimmed blazer - done in a jiffy. Thanks to some reader suggestions, we found the top needle-working wizards in the city, so you never have to worry about a frumpy suit ever again.
Weekend events in Toronto is our guide to events happening this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Here's what's happening in Toronto this August 16-18, 2013.
When one of the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic followers of the Toronto comedy scene hand selects a few comedians for a show, you know it's gonna be something special. Where? When? Follow me as I walk you through This Week In Comedy...
There's a reason why Tony Kushner's Angels in America is hailed as one of our best contemporary plays, maybe the most notable in the last two decades. Like a seasoned conductor, the playwright expertly navigates an orchestra of characters in and out of the social and political arenas into which they venture. The narrative that results, like rich and complex music, hits all the right emotional and intellectual notes.
Part two, Perestroika, is a little more uneven, weighed down by bouts of angel rhetoric that impede the very progress Kushner pushes for. But it's here where the themes of forgiveness, love, and justice blossom. While there are many scenes that can be held up in high regard, the delivery of prayer from Prest and Palk in Cohn's hospital room is one of the most memorable.
In a dimly-lit Yonge Street basement 117 years ago this month, the first motion picture ever shown in Toronto flickered on to a whitewashed projection screen before a small group of expectant patrons at Robinson's Musee, a discount curios emporium sandwiched among fur workshops and portrait studios.
Robinson's Musee was located in a converted shopfront at 91-93 Yonge Street, roughly mid-block on the east side of the road between King and Adelaide. It opened under the stewardship of American curios promoter M. S. Robinson on a chilly December 8, 1890, as the self-described "leading family resort of the Dominion."
Robinson appears to have left the city shortly after establishing the museum, leaving the day-to-day running to a series of managers. One, named "Young," was sued in April, 1896 by Flora Stuck, "The Three-Headed Girl," after she was exposed as a fraud and heckled by a particularly unforgiving audience, much to her embarrassment.
The Vitascope, the simple device used to screen the film, was one of several early touring projection systems that often showed short "actualities," brief snapshots of an exciting activity: a steam train in motion, a few seconds of a boxing match, water crashing over Niagara Falls, that sort of thing.
Edward Houghton, a touring showman, brought the Vitascope to Robinson's Musee a few months after an outdoor presentation of the system in Ottawa had been so well received it generated a letter of congratulations from Thomas Edison to the promoters, the Holland Brothers.
The year before the Toronto movie race, Edison had hired Broadway actors May Irwin and John Rice to act out a goofy kiss scene from the popular farce The Widow Jones at his Black Maria movie studio in West Orange, New Jersey. 
A Toronto institution, this bar and live music venue might not attract all the cool kids anymore, but it still serves an incubator for up and coming Roots and Folk acts, while offering a bit of the old Queen West grit and charm.
Years of engineering expertise go into the design of midway rides, with their collections of gears and machined parts and wiring meant to stand weather and rough use and the strain of being broken down and re-assembled every week or two. But for many people, the most terrifying ride at the CNE this year will probably be a trio of metal ropes strung between two scaffolding towers. It's the simplest, and the most terror-inducing experience, and at the media preview this week, you could get looks of respect and pity if you said you were going to ride it after filling up on 
Zip lines are probably as old as the first long piece of rope, and are common in areas where nobody has the resources to build a bridge, or where the population is predisposed to playing chicken with their death wish. Since they aren't as intrusive as bridges or walkways, they're a standard part of eco-tourism these days, which is probably why Vancouver's 
The longest zip line in the world is in Nepal, a reported 1.8 km dropping 610 metres, reaching a top speed of 75 miles an hour. The CNE zip line is shorter - 1,100 feet, which is still the longest zip line I've ever been on, and takes about 30 seconds to go from top to bottom. A dollar a second - you decide if that's worth your money.
The first step, as they say, is a doozy, and if you watch the video of my descent down the CNE zip line you'll notice that I try not to think about it too much. One step, two steps, sit down, go. After that, you're at the mercy of the bargain, and it's best to just enjoy the scenery.
It all ends with a rude bump as the trolley hits the arrester at the end and you're pulled into the short tower by the southwest corner of the Direct Energy building. The bad part is that it's over. The good part is that you're just by a beer garden when you exit, so you can get something to calm your nerves and lubricate a little bit of bragging.
Sail-In Cinema is a now an annual event, presenting a drive-in experience for the privileged masses who have their own boats, though it also tips its hat to the great unwashed, by offering the presentation on the flip-side of a massive 40'x20' screen to land-lubbers at Toronto Port Authority too. The 700 pound screen is sailed onto a lake with a 90 foot long custom barge. Thursday night was the first of three showings this year, with the classic comedy Ghostbusters on display. The Friday screening was The Princess Bride, and tonight's feature is Back to The Future.
The founders of Ontario Bread Co. Ltd. knew which side their rye was buttered. For 78 years, the little factory, tucked down a laneway off Ossington Ave., churned out Polish-style Mazowieckis, kaiser rolls, egg breads, and babkas, on its way to becoming the busiest bakery of its kind in Canada.
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at 
This week in theatre rounds up the most noteworthy live theatre playing right now in Toronto. It includes just-opened shows as well as productions that are about to close.
If you're interested in sourcing produce from local farmers but don't dig the market scene, farm shares might have significant appeal. Also known as 
Toronto events on August 19th, 2013
Rob Ford is staying silent about reports in the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail this weekend claiming his associates sought the alleged crack video in the days after the news broke. Both stories focus in particular on Alessandro "Sandro" Lisi, an occasional driver and long-time friend of the mayor who has since been questioned by police over his pursuit of the video.
This Week in Music rounds up the latest news, releases and concerts coming to Toronto.
