Re: Anti-Canadian Content (Laughing With Us, Not At Us)
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Re: Anti-Canadian Content (Laughing With Us, Not At Us)
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
Why Toronto is better than U.S. cities for trick or treating
by Lesley Ciarula Taylor, Toronto Star
October 28, 2010
Even while he was ranking the best U.S. cities to trick-or-treat in, Richard Florida was thinking how ?very special? Toronto is, compared with them.
The urban theorist who now makes Toronto his home compiled his list for the online site The Daily Beast, creating rankings based on number of children, ability to walk around safely, level of income (?You get a better haul of candy?) and a ?bohemian? index (?better costumes?).
Top of the U.S. list is the affluent New York suburb from Stamford to Bridgeport in Connecticut.
?That doesn?t surprise me,? Florida told the Star in between meetings and appointments. ?They?re upscale suburbs, fairly walkable, with an artistic population that?s moved out from New York City.?
The big U.S. cities claimed spots on the top-20 list, but Florida was pleased to see the college towns of Ann Arbor, Mich., (despite its proximity to Detroit) and Boulder, Colo., claim some Halloween limelight.
Still, he says, Toronto is the only place that still does Halloween the way it?s supposed to be done.
?What?s happened in the United States is that the kids are protected. That?s why you have the organized mall events (which figure strongly on his Daily Beast list). In one place, they?ve banned teenagers because the tall kids were scaring the residents.?
In contrast, Halloween in Florida?s Toronto neighbourhood is ?toddlers to tweens, with a mosaic of races that make up Toronto.?
From his first Hogtown Halloween in 2007, ?I was really struck by the intensity of kids coming. It?s not like we were a well-known, established Toronto family. Our house was mobbed. So it meant the parents weren?t nervous.?
As well, smaller children might have parents tagging along, but ?other kids were completely unsupervised.?
Florida penned his Daily Beast list for a U.S. audience but remains so fond of the Toronto experience ? ?It?s a very special thing that parents and children feel safe. We should not take for granted? ? that he?d like, next year, to use his demographic tools to rate the best Toronto neighbourhoods for trick-or-treating.
In the meantime, kids knocking at the Floridas? door can expect ?Reese?s Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers and Kit Kats. All hidden from me right now so I don?t eat them.?
by Lesley Ciarula Taylor, Toronto Star
October 28, 2010
Even while he was ranking the best U.S. cities to trick-or-treat in, Richard Florida was thinking how ?very special? Toronto is, compared with them.
The urban theorist who now makes Toronto his home compiled his list for the online site The Daily Beast, creating rankings based on number of children, ability to walk around safely, level of income (?You get a better haul of candy?) and a ?bohemian? index (?better costumes?).
Top of the U.S. list is the affluent New York suburb from Stamford to Bridgeport in Connecticut.
?That doesn?t surprise me,? Florida told the Star in between meetings and appointments. ?They?re upscale suburbs, fairly walkable, with an artistic population that?s moved out from New York City.?
The big U.S. cities claimed spots on the top-20 list, but Florida was pleased to see the college towns of Ann Arbor, Mich., (despite its proximity to Detroit) and Boulder, Colo., claim some Halloween limelight.
Still, he says, Toronto is the only place that still does Halloween the way it?s supposed to be done.
?What?s happened in the United States is that the kids are protected. That?s why you have the organized mall events (which figure strongly on his Daily Beast list). In one place, they?ve banned teenagers because the tall kids were scaring the residents.?
In contrast, Halloween in Florida?s Toronto neighbourhood is ?toddlers to tweens, with a mosaic of races that make up Toronto.?
From his first Hogtown Halloween in 2007, ?I was really struck by the intensity of kids coming. It?s not like we were a well-known, established Toronto family. Our house was mobbed. So it meant the parents weren?t nervous.?
As well, smaller children might have parents tagging along, but ?other kids were completely unsupervised.?
Florida penned his Daily Beast list for a U.S. audience but remains so fond of the Toronto experience ? ?It?s a very special thing that parents and children feel safe. We should not take for granted? ? that he?d like, next year, to use his demographic tools to rate the best Toronto neighbourhoods for trick-or-treating.
In the meantime, kids knocking at the Floridas? door can expect ?Reese?s Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers and Kit Kats. All hidden from me right now so I don?t eat them.?
Glad I don't have that problem
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
In Florida, the median age is about 65. In most areas, the cutoff for trick-or-treating is the same as the cutoff for eligibility for Denny's Discounts. That only leaves about 500 eligible trick-or-treaters for the entire state. 
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
The Canadian-est invention ever
The Canadian-est invention ever
by DaniGirl
March 8, 2007
It?s a reliable sign of the end of the Canadian winter. No, not the lengthening days, the appreciable warmth of the sun on a frosty day, not even the first day you decide you can safely leave the house in shoes rather than fur-lined mukluks. Spring is truly on the way when the already long (but impressively fast-moving) queues at Tim Hortons lengthen appreciably each year with non-regular Timmy?s fans in the first few weeks of March. It is that annual late winter rite, the Roll Up the Rim to Win contest, that brings them out of the woodwork.
I?ve been lucky so far this year, at least compared to last year when I fruitlessly rolled up more rims than I could count for bupkis. This year, I?m on my third free coffee. And you know I love free. Over the course of the year, I drink hundreds of cups of Tim Horton?s coffee, and they buy my loyalty with three free coffees a year. Not a bad strategy on their part.
But I?ve been thinking about this whole Roll Up the Rim thing. I mean, is that not the least hygenic contest you can possibly think of? I?m going to slobber all over this paper cup, then I?m going to tear off a bit and hand it over to the clerk. I?m surprised the folks at Tim Horton?s aren?t wearing latex gloves while this contest runs.
How do you roll up your rim? I?m a chewer, myself. I work my lower incisors in under the rim and do a back-and-forth kind of mastication to loosen the roll, and then pull it up. It?s not too pretty, so I try to remember to use my thumbnail and the side of my index finger, rather than my teeth, if I?m in polite company.
And then I read about this guy in this morning?s Ottawa Citizen. He invented a Rimroller, ?a plastic device the size of a bottle opener that cleanly slices open and unrolls a rim in one fluid motion.? They?ll be selling it at Lee Valley Tools (one of my favourite stores for gadgets and whimsical indulgences) for the most excellent and affordable price of $1.95. Get yours here!
Canadian ingenuity. Ya gotta love it.
The Canadian-est invention ever
by DaniGirl
March 8, 2007
It?s a reliable sign of the end of the Canadian winter. No, not the lengthening days, the appreciable warmth of the sun on a frosty day, not even the first day you decide you can safely leave the house in shoes rather than fur-lined mukluks. Spring is truly on the way when the already long (but impressively fast-moving) queues at Tim Hortons lengthen appreciably each year with non-regular Timmy?s fans in the first few weeks of March. It is that annual late winter rite, the Roll Up the Rim to Win contest, that brings them out of the woodwork.
I?ve been lucky so far this year, at least compared to last year when I fruitlessly rolled up more rims than I could count for bupkis. This year, I?m on my third free coffee. And you know I love free. Over the course of the year, I drink hundreds of cups of Tim Horton?s coffee, and they buy my loyalty with three free coffees a year. Not a bad strategy on their part.
But I?ve been thinking about this whole Roll Up the Rim thing. I mean, is that not the least hygenic contest you can possibly think of? I?m going to slobber all over this paper cup, then I?m going to tear off a bit and hand it over to the clerk. I?m surprised the folks at Tim Horton?s aren?t wearing latex gloves while this contest runs.
How do you roll up your rim? I?m a chewer, myself. I work my lower incisors in under the rim and do a back-and-forth kind of mastication to loosen the roll, and then pull it up. It?s not too pretty, so I try to remember to use my thumbnail and the side of my index finger, rather than my teeth, if I?m in polite company.
And then I read about this guy in this morning?s Ottawa Citizen. He invented a Rimroller, ?a plastic device the size of a bottle opener that cleanly slices open and unrolls a rim in one fluid motion.? They?ll be selling it at Lee Valley Tools (one of my favourite stores for gadgets and whimsical indulgences) for the most excellent and affordable price of $1.95. Get yours here!
Canadian ingenuity. Ya gotta love it.
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
RimRoller makes me think of this:
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
Now that is a real time saver. I'm surprised that Tim Horton's doesn't give them out with the coffee, or at least offer them as a "biggie size" option.
They make it look so easy!
Because it is easy
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
One word: eBay.
Of course, the perfect gift to give someone is the Tim Hortons Coffee Lover Gift Basket at only $180. So, this Christmas, you could add the keychain to that along with the limited-edition Tim Hortons hat.
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
Rebuttal
1. Tim Hortons coffee is terrible!
I wouldn't say terrible - it's no worse than McDonald's coffee and many restaurants but I would agree it's mediocre at best. It's only real claim to fame is that it's (usually) fresh since they have standing orders to throw out a pot after 20 minutes. But they're not unique in thaty respect.
2. Their food is hardly “always fresh”
Not true. Whether it's prepared from frozen dough or not is irrlelevant. Their donuts are great and their muffins, bagels, sandwiches, and other food offerings are not bad at all.
4. Inefficient Service
Not a fair criticism. Compared to other fast food drive-through "restaurants", Horton's is no worse than the others. Any drive-through is going to be poor for a number of reasons and it's usually faster to park and walk in to pick up your "food".
3. Tim Hortons is not Canadian owned
Really, who cares?
5. Cups Are Not Recyclable
Nonsense. It's a paper product.
1. Tim Hortons coffee is terrible!
I wouldn't say terrible - it's no worse than McDonald's coffee and many restaurants but I would agree it's mediocre at best. It's only real claim to fame is that it's (usually) fresh since they have standing orders to throw out a pot after 20 minutes. But they're not unique in thaty respect.
2. Their food is hardly “always fresh”
Not true. Whether it's prepared from frozen dough or not is irrlelevant. Their donuts are great and their muffins, bagels, sandwiches, and other food offerings are not bad at all.
4. Inefficient Service
Not a fair criticism. Compared to other fast food drive-through "restaurants", Horton's is no worse than the others. Any drive-through is going to be poor for a number of reasons and it's usually faster to park and walk in to pick up your "food".
3. Tim Hortons is not Canadian owned
Really, who cares?
5. Cups Are Not Recyclable
Nonsense. It's a paper product.
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