Don Tai (Canada) Blog

My local grocery store Chung Hing at Kennedy Road and Finch Avenue in Scarborough/Toronto, Canada was held up by gunpoint yesterday, Saturday February 20, 2011 at around 16:10 in the afternoon. Five black guys, faces hidden behind bandanas and guns drawn, marched into the store and demanded cash. The cash registers were locked. While these thieves would rather steal for a living, they also risk the lives of those that shop and work at this store. For me, my wife and two kids had just checked out. They were petrified. A single police car with one officer arrived just as my wife left the store. An hour later a neighbour reported that there were 12 police cars at the store, now long closed for the day.

Fender Mustang I guitar amp is a modeling amp with 24 presets. Installing the Fender Fuse software is difficult but worthwhile because it allows you to change your preset amps

Growing pains, I say. It will get better, surely. This review will cover the Fender Fuse software package (v2.1.0.8) that is used with Fender Mustang and G-Dec guitar amplifiers. I have installed the Fender Fuse on my PC in order to configure a family friend’s Fender Mustang I. The Mustang is a versatile amp, but came too heavily rock for her tastes. She wanted some acoustic. The Good: After considerable toil I was able to install the software, download different amps to my PC and then store them on the Mustang. The bad: The software install process is overly onerous, required me to download a couple of other Microsoft packages, and is prone to crash. Summary: A very versatile software package and amp, but needs more stability.

Sometimes you meet a person that you feel is so out of touch with the world, you wonder how they live. This is what I feel about Tommy, whom I met yesterday. Tommy advertised a guitar and an amp on Kijiji in Toronto, Canada, so I went to take a look. When I got to his door, he wanted to hand me the guitar and amp and take my money, transaction completed. His Dad seemed to not want to let me into his house to test the guitar and amp. The guitar was severely damaged in multiple ways, not disclosed in the ad. The amp he handed me was not remotely close to the brand name amp shown in his Kijiji ad photo. On top of that he cussed off his Mom when I was there, and his Dad was swearing like a drunken sailor in a nearby room. Misrepresentation of the ad shows you are a real douchbag, Tommy.

GUM Red-cote disclosing tablets tint plaque bright red, showing your kids where they missed brushing. I want to buy some.

My little weed, when it comes to brushing his teeth, is really lazy. Other more interesting pastimes attract his attention, such as watching tv, fighting with his older sister, playing with whatever, anything is more interesting than properly brushing his teeth. Our dentist can attest to his lack of vigilance, which also reflects on the parent’s vigilance. That would be me. Disclosing tablets are chewed and use a red dye to colour plaque a brilliant red, showing my little weed where he was hasty. Recommended both by my family dentist as well as orthodontist, I cannot seem to find GUM Red-cote disclosing tablets here in Toronto, Canada.

Zhao Lianhai's 3 year old son was hurt by tainted milk, was jailed for 2.5 years for protesting

Confused, I am, when China has a scandal that hurts a lot of Chinese people, there is a government investigation, and those that protest and asked for the investigation, and their lawyers, are given long jail sentences. A world of hurt landed on the shoulders of Zhao Lianhai, the father of a 3 year old boy sickened by China’s tainted milk scandal in 2008, who just received a 2.5 year sentence for “inciting social disorder”. As a strong supporter of the People’s Republic of China, I question why they need to use a sledgehammer to kill a gnat. Zhao Linhai‘s sentence is unjust and casts China’s government as a bunch of thugs.

Hallowed Eve, or Halloween is an interesting tradition in North America, where kids of all ages dress up in scary costumes, and knock on neighbour’s doors for candy and treats. The kids will exclaim “Trick or Treat” and will expect some kind of treat. Halloween is a North American farming tradition where ghosts and other scary monsters call on your house. They will leave you in peace and allow you a good harvest season if you give them a treat. Here are some guidelines to follow for Toronto, Canada for parents of Chinese kids.

Newby I am, when it comes to diabolo, and so is my Little Weed. This is in no way an insult. In fact being called a newby should be taken as a badge of honour, because you are trying something completely different and are in the process of learning. Learning means personal growth, which is always a good thing. In this case our quest is to learn tricks with a diabolo. I have had a 5″ diabolo for many years but really did not do much with it because I could not figure out how to spin the thing fast enough to do tricks. The Little Weed seemed to take to diabolos. In a fit of deceit I ordered two 4″ diabolos, one for the Little Weed and one for myself. The 4″ diabolos are lighter and spin up faster. More importantly, there was so much information on the Internet, including videos and graphics that helped me learn how to spin up quickly. It still takes practice and lots of it.

Crime, especially juvenile crime, is widespread throughout Toronto, Canada. A swarming, while somewhat uncommon in my area of Toronto, does occur. This morning while at the local park for preschool kids, I talked to a ~70 year old Grandmother who was looking after her five year old grandson. She told me that yesterday September 18 2010 at around 7:30pm she was at the local park for older kids, some 50 meters away and was swarmed by a group of 6 Black kids, ranging from 6 to 14 years old. The incident left her feeling vulnerable, afraid and unsafe in her Glendower neighbourhood, where she has lived for the last 20 years. When I explained to her that I was also a victim of swarming by local Black kids, she was also surprised. Her reaction and remorse did not surprise me because I had the same feelings after my swarming.