Drinking & driving

The LCBO has finally decided where to put its Roncesvalles liquor store. This comes a year--a full year--after they told me that they were close to picking a location. And the new location won't open till next summer. It's great to see how quickly this retail monopoly works.

Now, they could have had a role-model store on Roncey. Something cute, storefront and pedestrian friendly. But no. The LCBO's passion for huge parking lots won out. They're putting it in the the plaza currently shared by the city's saddest Loblaws and a contender for the city's saddest Zellers (the latter category is a very competitive one, I know, thus the qualification). It's a dying plaza. There used to be a dollar store or two there, but they're gone now. It's certainly close to Roncey. It's walkable, yes. But it's really meant for driving to. The LCBO's suburban car-oriented mentality again trumps all other factors.

Red wine's got him gaga

My admiration of Sasha Frere-Jones’ writing on music for the New Yorker, though enough in itself, also makes me feel a little smug to see that he’s fallen into the much derided “red wine” trap in his analysis of Lady Gaga. The cri de guerre at the beginning of “Just Dance” certainly sounds something like “red wine/got me/gaga.” It's what I sang for a long time until online flamers set me right. The spoken phrases are actually the part of the song where its architects are announced: Red One/Konvict/Gaga. I’m sure Lady Gaga is more of a vodka drinker; red wine is for the bourgeoisie.