Tag: Canada

Bell Fibe 50 Home Installation: Toronto, Canada

Bell Fibe 50, wired connection to the Home Hub 3000, gave me 52mbps download and 52mbps upload using the the Ookla speed test. Toronto, Canada

Bell Fibe 50, wired connection to the Home Hub 3000, gave me 52mbps download and 52mbps upload using the the Ookla speed test. Toronto, Canada

Two months ago Bell called me up and set up an install date for my Bell Fibe 50 installation, Bell fiber optic to my house. I have waited to do a review to ensure that the install was stable and reliable. In summary, Bell was correct in that their Bell Fibe 50 is much more reliable than their twisted pair copper wire, and a whole lot faster. We are getting speeds of 51mbps download as well as upload. This compares to our Bell Fibe 15/10, which was twisted pair copper wire to the Bell node (~1km away), and from there it was fiber optic, which gave us 15mbps dwonload and .7mbps, or 700bps upload.

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Chinese Lawyer Xie Yang Tortured for Confession

Xie Yang, a Chinese Lawyer, tortured in Changsha, China, Jul 2015, is still in jail in the Changsha City Public Security No. 2 Detention Center. He has not been released.

Xie Yang, a Chinese Lawyer, tortured in Changsha, China, Jul 2015, is still in jail in the Changsha City Public Security No. 2 Detention Center. He has not been released.

Here I am, in Toronto, Canada, reading this translation about the torture of a Chinese lawyer, a human rights lawyer, Xie Yang 谢阳, in Changsha, China. I’m just not used to this kind of abuse on another human being. Yes, I’m soft. Under Canada’s legal system, torture in order to get a conviction would lead to the exclusion of all documents and evidence gained while under torture. This is just and fair. Evidence gained while using torture cannot be considered credible nor truthful. When someone fears for their life or the lives of their family and friends, they will admit to anything if pushed sufficiently hard. Truth is more important than just getting a conviction, as you may be convicting the wrong person.

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China vs Democratic Countries: Attitude Differences

Lai Jeng-jer, a gay rights activist from Taiwan, at his Beijing cafe, Two Cities, 2012

Lai Jeng-jer, a gay rights activist from Taiwan, at his Beijing cafe, Two Cities, 2012

Yes, I have lived in China for a number of years. There are quite a number of situations that completely shocked me, coming from Toronto, Canada, a democratic country. While people in China and Canada are people, people who eat, who work, who play, there are subtle differences in society that only hit home when you are in China, experience it, and think to yourself “What just happened”?

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Burnbrae Farms 30 Eggs: Inferior Packaging

Burnbrae 30 large egg flatpack does not provide support for the top of the egg, resulting in breakage. The flimsy outer cardboard shell is not thick or sturdy enough for sufficient protection. Toronto, Canada. Photo4 by Don Tai

Burnbrae 30 large egg flatpack does not provide support for the top of the egg, resulting in breakage. The flimsy outer cardboard shell is not thick or sturdy enough for sufficient protection. Toronto, Canada. Photo4 by Don Tai

Eat we do, eggs, all the time, especially Little Weed. He likes the one a day first thing. Eggs are a really concentrated burst of energy that I gladly provide him. Thusly, we go through a lot of eggs each week. NoFrills had a 30 flat pack on sale, but after checking the eggs for damage found that most of them had at least 1 cracked egg. The packaging is not a good design. I prefer the old style. Who wishes to buy cracked or crushed eggs? Not I.

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Bell Canada Fibe to the Side of My House = No Service Upgrade

I have Bell Fibe 15/10 on twisted pair into my house, Toronto, Ontario, but the upload speed is .67mbps of the advertised 10mbps. This summer Bell trenched my street to install fiber optic cable. They left the fiber optic cable zip tied to the side of my house. After 2 months wait I am trying to find out when Bell will install fiber optic into my house so I can get 10mbps upload, but they cannot give me an answer. photo by Don Tai

I have Bell Fibe 15/10 on twisted pair into my house, Toronto, Ontario, but the upload speed is .67mbps of the advertised 10mbps. This summer Bell trenched my street to install fiber optic cable. They left the fiber optic cable zip tied to the side of my house. After 2 months wait I am trying to find out when Bell will install fiber optic into my house so I can get 10mbps upload, but they cannot give me an answer. photo by Don Tai

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First Snowfall 2016-2017 Winter: Toronto, Canada

There is always the first snowfall that is somewhat startling. For us non-believers this is the irrefutable evidence that winter is on its way. Oh, no, as we lament the passing of summer and warmer temperatures. Today is -2C, 60-70kph winds. Cold.

First snowfall for winter 2016-2017, Toronto, Canada. Photo by Don Tai

First snowfall for winter 2016-2017, Toronto, Canada. Photo by Don Tai

First snowfall for winter 2016-2017, Toronto, Canada. Photo2 by Don Tai

First snowfall for winter 2016-2017, Toronto, Canada. Photo2 by Don Tai

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Why Chinese Profits Love Canada

Love Canada, I do. The people are generally very nice, though there are exceptions. In general we treat everyone equally. The air is generally very clean and the streets similarly. We have lots of green space and the kids love playing in our parks. Crime is low and we generally do not have a violence or gun problem. Our political system is very stable. Our legal system is fair and impartial.

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Bell Internet Bandwidth Gauge Not Accurate

Our home internet service provider here in Toronto, Canada, is Bell Canada. I received an email from Bell at 10:01 telling me we are at 90% of our limit, and have 8.2G left. This email is not uncommon and I expect it on heavy months. Usually 8.2G should last us at least 2 days. At 12:30 I receive another email stating that we are now 350M over our limit.

What the hell!?! During that time I was having lunch and not even on the computer, and there is no one else in the house. This sounds fraudulent.

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Birch Tree in Autumn, Leaves Turning Yellow

My Birch tree has turned its leaves yellow already. We have had a couple of nights of near zero degree temperatures, signaling to the birch that it is time to go dormant. The cycle of life continues.

秋天桦树的叶子变成黄。

Birch Tree in Autumn, leaves turned yellow. Toronto, Canada 秋天桦树的叶子变成黄。

Birch Tree in Autumn, leaves turned yellow. Toronto, Canada

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