Anyone have any idea what's going on with it?
It moved to the corner of Niagara and Lakeshore a few months back. They posted on their socials that they were just waiting on a couple permits to open. That was about 5 to 6 weeks ago. I was excited to try it out when it finally opened. And have been checking almost daily (in person)
Went to their pages today and all of them have been deleted.
Sometimes, I play the game when driving where I am like... I have never been in that damn Avondale in my entire life. Which is wild to think about when you have lived here forever.
I realized there are 26 Avondale's in the city. Plus a couple more right along the border of the city. The first store opened 60 years ago.
We have more Avondale's, than we do TIM HORTONS! I think there are 6 I haven't been in (Glenridge, St Paul West, Ontario by Jaycee, Niagara by Linwell, Linwell, Martindale) . Some I didn't even know existed...
Anyway, boring Friday morning post sharing my random thoughts. Have a great day.
Ignoring the fact this would kill billions of species. I feel like the number is either going to be wildy insignificant OR way more than I would imagine.
If you drive down Highway 20 through Allanburg today, you know you will see the huge 20 foot+ fiberglass giant standing outside. Wearing a pink shirt, and holding a sign for Rosehill, it is a famous local landmark known as the Allanburg Giant.
But this giant hasn't always had a life selling furniture. Over the last forty years, it has moved all over the Niagara Region. It has been a Jockey, a Water Man, and a Furnace Technician. It was even stolen for a high school graduation prank and survived a bad case of vandalism.
The story starts far away in Chicago, where the giant was built, sometime in the late 1960s. Sometime around the late 70's, a businessman named Jim Clement and his wife FOUND the giant abandoned in a field between St. Catharines and Fort Erie. They bought it, fixed it up, and brought it to their store front. Which many locals will remember being called "pop n pools". Right in the smack dab of busy Garrison road in Fort Erie.
In researching for this post/article. I spoke with both Jim's daughter Pam, and Grandson Bob. Who were very kind in sharing some of the details shared today. Alongside some articles and pictures that they have shared. Pam mentioned how her Father actually painted the Statue to look like a Jockey due to the popularity and proximity of the Fort Erie Racetrack.
The newspaper wrote a story about the giant in 1981 called "That's Some Jockey" You will see I attached it here. The article stated the statue was 26 feet tall (on top of the platform Jim had fabricated for it), weighed about 500 pounds, and was worth around $5,800 back then. It stood on a thick metal platform held up by steel beams. Jim Clement originally wanted it to hold a Canadian flag in one hand and an American flag in the other. It was a fun attraction right near the border, standing alongside other odd things Clement collected, like a mechanical cow and a gold bust of Dwight Eisenhower. And many long time local Fort Erie residents still remember it and it's time spent outside the store.
By late 1985 Jim and his Wife decided to sell, and the giant's life got a lot more exciting. A man named Andre Verreault, who owned AV Water Distillers and Supplies, bought the giant from the Fort Erie store for about $1,000. He moved it to his backyard in Pelham while he made plans to set it up at his business, located at 1874 HWY 20. Very close to where the giant stands this day. He wanted the giant to hold a massive bottle of water to advertise his shop. But before he could set it up, some local teenagers were able to get to it first.
The crazy journery for the giant started when graduating students from Notre Dame in Welland pulled off a huge prank. They kidnapped the 500 pound statue from Verreault’s yard and set it up on the front lawn of their high school. As shown in the newspaper article image I attached, Verreault wasn't even mad. He laughed it off, praised the students for being so organized, and said he didn't mind the prank as long as it came back in one piece.
Unfortunately, the next people to find the giant were not as gentle with our giant. In August, while the statue was sitting behind Andres's building, real vandals attacked it in the middle of the night. As reported in The Standard, they ripped off the giant's left foot and lower leg, cracked its back, and tore its head completely off at the neck. Verreault paid a fiberglass company in Port Colborne $900 to make a new foot, but replacing the head was going to be almost impossible. He was worried the giant was ruined forever, and even offered a $500 reward to get the pieces back.
The mystery was solved just a few days later. When a couple living in St. Catharines found the giant fiberglass head and leg dumped on their front lawn on different days. Once they saw the story in the newspaper, they called the police. Andre happily paid them the $500 reward, and the giant was sent to Peninsula Fiberglass to be put back together.
By February 1987, the giant was finally fixed. And as shown in one of the pictures, you can see Andre Verreault proudly standing next to the fully repaired Giant, "AV Water Man". And it was finally secured and bolted to the ground on Highway 20, holding a giant water bottle. like Andre wanted from day one.
As the years went by, the giant changed jobs again. When Andre Verreault sold his water business, the giant caught the eye of Larry Reid, the founder and owner of Mr. Furnace.
After speaking with our friendly local Randy Norton (formally from Mr. Furnace and now Hubbard Air) He confirmed for me that Larry Reid bought the giant separately, kept it on Highway 20 by moving it to where it stands today, and painted it to look like a furnace repair technician. For a very long time, the statue was the official mascot for Mr. Furnace. In 2013, when the business moved away from the property, they decided to leave the giant behind.
Today, the property is owned by Rosehill Auctions, which is where the giant still stands now. Even though it wears a pink shirt today instead of a technician's uniform or a water bottle vest, its face looks exactly the same as it did in the 1980s newspaper photos. And our Giant still stands strong.
MORE TO THE MYSTERY : Although I was able to track the history of the local giant pretty far back into what is believed to be the late 1970's. There are still many questions that remain.
In my search for answers. I was led to, and had many great conversations with an amazing gentlemen out of the USA named Joel Baker. Joel helps run, curate, research, restore and purchase for what is known as the American Giants Museum. A project he and his colleagues/friends have worked many years on.
For those wondering, “Muffler Men” are giant fiberglass roadside statues that started in the mid-1960s in the United States as advertising tools designed to grab the attention of passing drivers on busy highways. They were originally created by International Fiberglass in California and first appeared as tall “Paul Bunyan” style lumberjack figures holding axes. A business contracted them to build the Paul Bunyan statue but never paid. So the company (International Fibreglass) started to mold, and sell them to other businesses. The idea quickly caught on with roadside businesses, especially auto shops, which began customizing them to hold items like mufflers or tires. This is why they are named “Muffler Men.” Over time they became a popular form of roadside marketing during the peak of car travel in North America, before modern highways reduced the need for such attention grabbing signs, and today they’re mostly seen as nostalgic landmarks or collector pieces.
These are the questions that Joel and I still have no answers for.
Who originally brought the giant to Canada and why? As there is a big gap in its timeline. And why was it abandoned in a field when Jim Clement found it.
An even more deeper rabbit hole. This and another statue outside of Montreal are the only two EVER to be known to have this version of FACE. And no one knows why. It has been confirmed to be an original Muffler Man body mold (Paul Bunyan Style). But the unique face known by some as the "french face" has little to no history. As the two Canadian Versions are the only two in the world. A fun little tidbit, to go along with that. Is that all US versions were built with one hand facing up and one down. Both Canadian versions were built with both hands facing UP.
Joel continues to research the mystery of the heads, and the history of our local giant. But any information anyone may have from them, or their families could also help solve these long lasting questions. I have added links to Joels Youtube page and a link to the video of Joel visiting the Quebec version.
ARTICLE BELOW
Far too many Canadians are struggling to find homes they can afford. Solving Canada’s housing crisis requires immediate action to bring down costs, cut red tape, and build homes more quickly. The Government of Canada is stepping up with a bold new approach to build affordable housing across the country.
Central to that work, the Government of Canada has launched Build Canada Homes, which is helping increase the pace of affordable homebuilding. Build Canada Homes is also helping fight homelessness by building transitional and supportive housing — working with provinces, territories, municipalities, and Indigenous communities. It is building deeply affordable and community housing for low-income households, and partnering with private market developers to build affordable homes for the Canadian middle class.
As part of the Government of Canada’s broader efforts to respond to the housing crisis, investments are being made across the housing continuum to respond to the needs of communities across Canada.
Today, the federal government, announced over $183 million in funding to help build 492 secure, rental homes in St. Catharines. Located at 159 Ontario Street, The Collective Housing Co-operative provides affordable, non-profit, and community-governed rental housing. The project includes a diverse mix of studio, one‑, two‑, and three‑bedroom homes designed to support residents at all stages of life. The development will also feature a range of shared amenities that promote community connection and well‑being, including rooftop terraces, outdoor BBQ areas, pickleball courts, a fitness room, party and multipurpose spaces, a spa, and a dog wash station.
The announcement was made by Chris Bittle, Member of Parliament for St. Catharines, on behalf of the Honourable Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada alongside Mat Siscoe, Mayor of St. Catharines.
The Government of Canada is making the housing investments that will help strengthen Canadian supply chains and create good jobs at every step of the homebuilding process — helping to build more homes and a stronger Canadian economy at the same time.
Not that it matters or anyone cares. Just noticed today that the piece of Westchester between Geneva and St. Paul, is actually called Westchester Crescent and not continuation of Westchester Avenue. Like why? Strange story of my rainy day.
Hey guys. Ever since I received the updated UI. I have a very annoying problem where my Firestick will not open it's home screen when I am coming from a different input.
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For example, IF I have been using HDMI 1 and then am no longer using it. I can USUALLY hit the Home button on my REMOTE and it will automatically switch over to the Firestick home screen. But now If i do that it switches over for like 2 seconds and then just automatically switches back to the previous input. This happens no matter what button I press on the remote (I have tried like Netflix or Apps or TV etc) The ONLY way I can get it to stick on the home screen is by rebooting the Firestick.
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This is a brand new issue and started exactly when the UI switched.
So, I keep seeing other teams s*it on Beane and the Bills for not making a trade for AJ Brown OR even Myles Garret for that matter. You know you are the center of the universe when everyone can't keep your name out of their mouth. That being said, I REMOVED the outlier seasons for a full analytical approach at each players stats (removing worst and best seasons for each player).
Average Receptions per season - Moore = 77 / Brown = 74
Average Yards Per Season - Moore = 1028 / Brown = 1132 / (60.5 PG vs 66.5 PG)
Average TD per season - Moore = 4..5 / Brown = 8
Average YPC - Moore -= 13.5 / Brown = 15
Important considerations to consider when comparing stats
1: DJ has not missed a single game in his entire career (knock on wood) / AJ has missed 14 games.
2: DJ has received a pass from 11 different QBS. And in his 8 seasons in the NFL, has had 7 different everyday starting quarterbacks. Every single year in Carolina, his QB changed. / AJ Brown has had 3 main Starting QBS, and the same one for the last 4 seasons.
3: DJ Has played in a total of 2 playoff games in one season (last year) / AJ Brown has played in 13 playoff games. (Better offenses end up on the field more often)
4: Snap Count / Time on Field - Although AJ has a lower snap count average than DJ, AJ averages more Targets per game. This is again due to AJ having better offenses throughout his career. He is spending more time on the field on average. This can sound confusing, but what it means is that AJ Averages a lower amount of the teams overall snap counts compared to DJ. But since his teams have averaged higher snap counts, he averages more targets.
What each player COST
DJ came at the cost of a 2nd round pick that we received back by trading down. We also gained a 5th round pick in the trade.
AJ came at the cost of a FIRST ROUND pick and a FIFTH round pick.
Each player is making nearly the same amount of money, with DJ making a bit less compared to AJ. $28 Million vs $27.5
SO, did Beane REALLY eff up that bad? I do not think so in any way. We received a top NFL WR without losing any draft capital. He's durable, and plays nearly every snap. His stats are a tiny bit worse in comparison, but his teams have historically been very bad.
Hey Everyone
We are almost half way through the year. Wanted to share some quick insights for increased transparency from the moderators.
Banned Members - We have banned 11 members in 2026. These have been because of (Racism 3, Excessive Attempts at trying to sell 3, Inciting conflict or drama 3, Spam 2, and one advocating sexual assault against homeless)
Members - We on average have an increase of 400 new members per month. This month we are up 514 members.
Posts / Comments - We are averaging 250 posts per month and around 4400 comments per month.
Visits - We are averaging 8000 visits per day (Unique).
Posts Removed - Average has been 80 per month. This is a full 50 % to 50% average between Reddit/Auto-moderator removing 50% of those and Mods removing 50%)
Comments removed - Average has been 400 per month. This is HEAVILY weighted to Reddit and Auto-moderator. 97% of comments removed are Reddit and Auto-Mod, and only 3% mods. This is because anything that gets 2+ reports get removed automatically, so before we can even get there, they are removed. Now please also note, that a lot of these will also get approved by mods afterwards.
Pretty much every single tour I needed specifically cars for I can now use ANY of my cars. Even on car Brand specific tours, a lot of them dont require that specific brand anymore to get your flag (some events in that tour do, some don't).
ALSO, the bot cars now ram you like you're playing in multi-player. This is also true in a lot of daily events.
And I have noticed you don't have to wait to 60-70% through the race to gain a significant lead. If your car is much higher rated. You leave them in the dust much sooner.
Everytime the MP reward is "bigger" once I get enough. It never actually gives me the damn reward and then just continues on to the next reward which is always way lower.
See photos. I progress towards reward, then once I have enough it just goes "oh well F you"
Not a huge topic or deal. Thought it was a bit strange considering mostly all the newest ones I have seen are currently around DJ** or DK**. But yeah, saw a license plate of FAAV ***.
But thought to myself, its been around 30ish years since we started with AAAA. Which means by the time ZZZZ-999 comes around, we should all pretty much be dead.
Hey, I know this 6% milk has been the craze lately in Ontario. I saw a few bags at Welland Ave Walmart if anyone has been looking.
Overclocked. Not missing a single beat. Still running out of time around 35 "beats"
I really feel that this show WOULD NEVER be made today.