Don Tai (Canada) Blog

What qualities should you look for in winter boots: warm, waterproof and maybe stylish. Also Made in Canada

Winter here in Toronto, Canada is cold and snowy. Take today for example, at a bone chilling -18C, with a light dusting of snow on the ground. Going out of your house is necessary to get food and some fresh air, so the purchase of winter boots is mandatory. Children and adults have the same need for winter boots: They need to be warm, waterproof, rugged, and maybe even stylish. Unlike other Internet posts about consumer products I am not trying to sell you boots, only to point out what to look for in a quality pair. Winter boots that are rated to -40C are available for $70CAD, $35CAD on sale.

Our local Toronto Public Library branch has been closed for renovations for a couple of months but reopened on Wednesday. The main change was the absence of the checkout counters, as well as the people that worked behind them. Like at Home Despot they now have a self-serve touch screen checkout system, which gave me a lot of trouble.

The ritual of Walk to School is an important one, long unappreciated.

Neither difficult nor excessively long, the walk to school has always been an excellent way to start learning for the day. In a way I am thankful I am able to participate and guide. We neither rush nor dally, allocating sufficient time to allow for the mind to wander at will. The environment, grass, trees, the weather and sky are our teaching aids. There is the important skill of safely crossing the street to learn, one which needs to be learned well. Handling vehicular traffic is also covered. There is the final wave. I then return, thinking of how to plan my day.

Steam engine train rides with the Richmond Hill Live Steamers. The smell of coal, steam, oil, the whistle!

Two weekends a year the Richmond Hill Live Steamers, Toronto, Canada, has an open house, where they show off their scale model steam trains. It is a fascinating world of the mechanical and hand built. There are train rides for the kids and adults, while the old timers work and test their engines. The feeling of the club is very relaxed, leaving their work to speak for itself. We had a great time and was glad we went early. Donations to the club are welcome.

Marketing Gimmick: Not From Concentrate (NFC) orange juice does not mean fresher than concentrated OJ

We live in Toronto, Canada, so do not have the luxury of going to our backyard, picking fresh oranges and juicing them. Still we love to drink orange juice, a call which is answered by a trip to the local big box grocery store. Orange Juice can be expensive, so I have done several blind taste tests on the family to see if they can tell the difference between types. In summary, there is no difference in taste between concentrate and “not from concentrate” (NFC) types. Canada Grade “A” No Name brands taste the same as good as the name brands. Added calcium does not change the taste of OJ. Chinese orange juice is discernibly tarter and therefore easy to identify. If you can buy orange juice for $1CAD/litre, this is good economy.

Question: Hi Don, I was trying to find a contact us link on your blog, but I was unsuccessful.

Anyway, I was searching Google Images for a specific Hot Wheels car. I stumbled across your photo on your old blog and saw that you had it. I am really interested in trying to find the name of the car. I am looking to purchase it for a friend.

That’s the image, from the left it is 8th car down, 4th column over. Futuristic orange/red/chrome one. Any help would be greatly greatly appreciated! :-)

Justin

Dollar Store toys are terrible quality that breaks easily, is unrepairable and disappoints your kids

I have never been a fan of Dollar Store* toys for my kids. They return home with plastic toys of very low quality, even by Chinese standards. The recent Toronto city garbage strike brings home the need to reduce our consumption because the city, temporarily, will not pick up our trash. I continue to press my case to both my parents and my kids that Dollar Store quality is false economy.

The tropical pineapple fruit is now famous throughout the world. The leafy top can also be cut and grown as an attractive houseplant.

Freezies are a staple treat for kids, summer or otherwise. Recent use of a newly acquired juicer has allowed us to buy fresh pineapples, cut off the skin, remove the inedible eyes, core them, and juice the fruit. The leftover pulp can be used as freezie material, a great discovery. The freezies come out very fresh, tasty, 100% all natural, and very fiberous, providing excellent nutrition, vitamines, and a good source of fibre.

Skipping rope is obviously fun!

Skipping rope, or jumping rope is both fun and healthy. Making a rope that can be well maintained can reduce the cost and increase the endurance of your rope.

___With these instructions you can make a plastic linked skipping rope that can last you a lifetime. Any plastic polyethylene links that are worn out can be easily and inexpensively replaced. The handles are simple loops of rope that are easily looped round the hand, so the rope cannot be accidentally dropped or “let go” while skipping. A 25′ community skipping rope should cost around $8.50CAD.

Ryan has a great blog called Lost Laowai and writes from China. One of his readers contacted him about a dire situation he faced. The thread is documented here: What to do when your Chinese ex-wife runs away with your child?. Situations such as these seem common enough that they surface from time to time from different countries but always remain under the radar of the international news services. They apply not only to children but to adults as well. If you are living abroad, you start a family and have kids, be aware of these supposedly well known international laws or you might be in for a huge shock when this go badly wrong.