Don Tai (Canada) Blog

Al Jazeera covers news on China. Nice!

The year 2009 was marked by significant news coverage of Al Qaeda attacks, soldiers and civilians getting blown up in Iraq and Afghanistan, much stricter airport security and, here in Canada, increased wariness of those from the Middle East. In the middle of this morass was the news agency Al Jazeera. Most people here in Canada actually did not recognize the agency until tapes from Osama Bin Laden were released only to Al Jazeera.

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.

Robert Dziekanski holds a small table at the Vancouver Airport in this image from video. He was then killed by the RCMP.

It comes as no surprise that the four RCMP officers that repeatedly tasered Polish visitor Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver Airport, Canada over two years ago were deemed negligent in oh so many ways. Unprepared, uncoordinated, tried to cover up and lied to a Canadian Royal Commission. At least the Commission came to the same conclusion of most other people who watched the video: The RCMP was clearly out of control.

Three Five brand v-belt should fit my snowblower, and surprise, Canadian made!

My Canadian Tire snowblower was getting tired, so late last winter I decided to see if I could spruce her up. The v-belt that connects the 2T engine to the auger was worn, but still connected and therefore workable. Today I tried to find a replacement v-belt. It turns out that my belt is 1/2″ x 35″ and found a machine v-belt replacement for $6.

There are two quality standards for Tastee patties. You choose with your wallet.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been buying and eating George’s Tastee Jamaican beef patties from Toronto, Canada. It’s become a family tradition. The patties are of reasonably high quality and are not as flaky as Allan’s. This week I inadvertently found out that Tastee offers two tier quality for their patties, readily evident when one bites into a patty.

Craigslist is much better than competitor Kijiji. Craigslist.org CEO Jim Buckmaster, left, and founder Craig Newmark

Shopping for used items instead of paying for the same new item can save you a lot of money. Two popular online resources here in Toronto, Ontario, Canada are Craigslist and Kijiji. Though I peruse specific sections of both I prefer Craigslist. Both Craigslist and Kijiji allow sellers to advertise goods and for buyers to contact sellers. I have bought goods from both sites. I find that Craigslist is so much more aligned with social media, and Kijiji is more traditional seller pushed want ads. The difference might be subtle but enough to add its own flavour.

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.

President's Choice (Loblaws) Concentrated Orange Juice, Canada Grade A, tastes great!

For the life of me I could not find the definitions for the various grades of frozen orange juice for Canada. Personal experience has shown me that Canada Grade A frozen orange juice tastes better than Canada Grade C. I searched Google and came up empty. I then got onto the Canada Food Inspection Agency website and sent them a question. Here is their answer as a followup to yesterday’s blog, thanks to Jean-Claude Jura, Ontario Region Manufactured Food, Food Labelling Line: Processed Products Regulations, Schedule I, Table II, Section 27.2.

The inevitable demise of a Mary's Good Eats apple pie. Delicious.

Quirky and a little remote, the pies from Mary’s Good Eats, Toronto (Scarborough), Canada, are certainly great. The place is on the Pickering Town Line, north of Old Finch Avenue, and south of Steeles Avenue East. They have cherry, blueberry, apple, and I bought a blueberry peach yesterday. $8 per pie. If you need change you go up to the house and knock on the door.

I found this place from a chance conversation with Dale Reesor, owner of the Sweet Ridge Farms, who sells delicious corn. Thanks again, Dale!

The skies erupted in Toronto and tornadoes appeared just north of the city.

I am proudly Canadian. Canadians really like to talk about the weather, and I am no exception, In fact, many Canadians are quite knowledgeable about weather in general and can read weather maps with aplomb. While we usually respect weather forecasters, I am finding that this year’s summer weather here in Toronto is really not very accurate. More pointedly displayed by today’s freak tornado warning, they are getting really off base. Get a grip, you weather people, forecast better.