Photo: "Graffiti Artists At Work" by marty_pinker, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

In addition to pro athletes getting vaccinated ahead of high risk groups, we're now learning that members of the board of directors at Mount Sinai Hospital also got the H1N1 shot in advance. While they claim that they made the decision before they knew that there would be a shortage of vaccine, it doesn't look good that hospital executives have little regard for what are supposed to be strict deployment guidelines. Is it fair to call this vaccination process a fiasco yet?

TTC Chair Adam Giambrone appeared on CP24's new "On the Rocket" show last night, and was interviewed by the Star before taking to the air. He hinted that the insane $126 price tag for the Metropass (proposed for January 2010 implementation) may not have his endorsement (and hopefully won't get approval!) - probably because it makes no sense and they can't spin it to make any sense. Rob Ford would rather see the 22,000 free passes for TTC employee and retiree revoked.

Will Toronto score the 2015 Pan Am Games? We'll learn later today. In the final push to convince the deciding committee members that Toronto is their best choice, we waxed them with showers of Toronto's finest poutine, smoked salmon, and chardonnay.

Photo: "Carpet of Fallen Leaves" by Bobcatnorth, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

Given our dire financial state, should Toronto introduce a municipal sales tax? Other large cities in North America do it, so perhaps we should consider it. The idea of paying more taxes for goods and services when we're already taxed to the extent we are really hurts, but it could be a solution to some of our biggest problems (like our grossly underfunded transit system).

We expected a TTC fare hike to be proposed, but I don't think anyone thought that the monthly Metropass would go from $109 to $126 (an almost 16% hike). Doing the math reveals that Metropass holders would have to ride the rocket a minimum of twice daily on 6 days of the week, in order to make the per ride fare less than the cost of tokens. Where's the savings for the most frequent transit users?

Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors players got H1N! flu vaccinations from their team doctors. But are they in high risk groups? (I know they're high risk for not making the playoffs again, but that doesn't count.) Should they have had to wait like the rest of us, especially given the inevitable shortage of vaccine supply?

Photo: "60 Havelock St. #01" by Michael Pierro, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

Toronto's capital budget for 2010 will focus largely on transit initiatives including spending $217.6 million on new subway cars (nice, but crucial?), dedicating $72 million for new buses (much needed, in my opinion), and injecting $22.6 million for new bike lanes (which will make cycling advocates happy and drivers unhappy) . We're also likely to see a TTC fare hike in the New Year.

Given that the 2010 race for mayor is still a long ways away, it's not surprising that an early poll (PDF) shows almost half of Torontonians undecided on which would-be candidate they'd support. It's also not surprising that John Tory leads in polling, given that he's able to campaign daily on the radio.

Police in Etobicoke are warning residents about a con involving a couple of "non-citizens" who claim that they're unable to collect lottery winnings due to their status. I know most astute people wouldn't take strangers they just met in a bus shelter to an ATM and give them $18,000... but it did happen to one very unfortunate senior.

Photo: "Rub my belly" by Daifuku Sensei, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

The morning commute in the Toronto area (which is never fun) may be even less fun than usual, given that a hundred truckers are planning to take to the roads in protest of the ongoing DriveTest strike. The strike has been in effect since August, preventing new truck drivers from getting licensed.

The City of Toronto is opening its data doors, so to speak. In an effort to increase transparency and improve information flow, a web site containing data on public transit, parks and recreation, daycare facilities, and more has been made available for the first time in such an open way. I suspect it won't be long before he public finds creative uses and applications of the data.

CP24 will be launching a new monthly talk show called "On the Rocket"... live from on board a TTC streetcar, with TTC Chair Adam Giambrone fielding rider questions and comments. Providing the public with access to this kind of interaction with a personable official from our loved and loathed transit system is a great idea and should fit the TV format nicely.

Photo: untitled by tomms, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

With auto insurance rates on the rise, Ontario Minister of Finance Dwight Duncan is making proposals to change insurance policies to allow drivers to get more competitive rates. One such change would be to lower the basic medical coverage limit below the current $100,000. Would you be willing to drop down to a $10,000 basic medical coverage insurance package, to save a few bucks each month, if it were available?

Remember the grand plans for a massive urban park at the former Downsview military base? The plan has morphed over the years, and in order to fund the park concept, residential development had to be incorporated. But now we're left wondering if the park will ever be, and by the time there are enough funds, how much will remain as park when it's complete.

Another year, another discovery of a razor blade and a needle in candy given to kids on Halloween. At least Toronto didn't fall victim to the feared armed mugging purple Teletubby, like London did.

The Sorauren Park Pumpkin Parade was the biggest ever this year, with organizers counting an amazing 1,620 Jack-O-Lanterns.

Every year (see last year's photos) on November 1st, nearby residents come together in the park to get one last glimpse of their carved pumpkins, ahead of their imminent post-Halloween (to the compost!) demise.