Bicycles on Jarvis

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Here is one perspective of increasing availability of bicycle lanes in Toronto.

When I think of downtown Toronto, I see a sea of automobiles and remember how long it took me to get there and find a parking place.

Metropolitan Toronto does not have high-flow north/south arteries.

Rather than finding ways to allow more vehicles, Toronto needs to encourage drivers to feel good about alternate means of access.

This may be a bold (i.e. non re-electable) step by David Miller but it is necessary in the survival of the city core.

When I think of Copenhagen and Paris, I see people bike-riding, walking and sitting at outside cafes.

In my lifetime, I would like to envision Toronto in the same way.

Considering a tankless water heater?

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It would be beneficial if tankless water heaters really worked ... but that is not the case.

This article, in the Sun Star May 31, 2009, indicates more improvements need to be made before they should be considered.

The bottom line is it will cost you approx $100 more per year and more water will be used.

Heater rental still appears to be the cost-effective approach.

Perhaps the low-mass tankless approach will prove to be more appropriate.

I would think solar panel water heating would be a good fit here in Canada. More research will be done, as solar roof tiles become more viable in the next few years.

Oil and the Loonie

May 30, 2009.

Here is a site that not only indicates the current oil price but also forecast for one year hence.

The forecast is $77 in one year. This will mean gas prices should continue to move upwards.

Another reason gas will increase in price is oil reserves are being depleted at a rate of about 9% a year.

Another reason gas will increase is Chindia's insatiable desire to store oil.

Good reasons to consider a hybrid as your next car.

The loonie is increasing too quickly due to lack of confidence in the USA dollar (and the fact the USA is printing more money - should automatically deflate the value). This increases cost of our exports to our main trading partner and will probably increase the $50B deficit Flaherty indicated earlier in the week. WE NEED LESS DEPENDENCY ON THIS TRADING PARTNER.

On the other hand, it puts more money in our pockets and will, in the opinion of many, drive prices down ... which is also good for you and me.

It is difficult to sacrifice our benefits for the good of corporate Canada...

Can anyone explain why the price of gas does not come down when the loonie goes up?

CPP problem

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In the Star today Fri May 29, 2009:

It isn't bad enough the mgmt of the CPP funds were responsible for a loss of $24B in 2008 (19.3% of the retirement fund).

It also is disconcerting the conservatives didn't respond to this news immediately.

It is disturbing nothing has happened to the senior mgmt after the disclosure.

It is most distressing Canada acts like the USA and pays senior mgmt bonuses for failure.

"Harper told MPs the Canada Pension Plan, worth about $100B at the end of the fiscal year , is "actually sound," will benefit Canadians for many decades to come and doesn't need politicians sticking their noses into the operation.". This is what we expect from our governing party???

What really bothers me is it takes the NDP to bring the heat onto the governing party. Where were the Liberals? The conservatives use attack ads on Ignatieff and he doesn't jump at the chance to discredit them in a legitimate way.

More to the point, is capitalism and free enterprise structured to pay for failure?

Business senior mgmt get substantial bonuses if their business does well ... and they receive substantial bonuses if their business fails!!

I really can't blame Denison, Wiseman, Raymond and Eadie. I have to blame their employer ... the ones responsible for administering their salary guidelines.

It does seem odd. I know not to gamble with my retirement funds and I made 3% on my investments in 2008. And I don't make quite as much as these four make ...

I guess it is time to Twitter Stephen again ...

good time of year

Ah, spring. Nice to see crabapple trees in bloom. I thought our tree was dying and i was about to cut it down ... but it seems to be coming back.

Compare Cellular Rates

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Best Buy has a site where you can select various service providers and compare their rates.

You need to go to their mobile site -> Ontario -> Toronto & Area -> Small Plans -> and then the size of plan.

Select up to five plans and click on Compare. 

Here is a comparison of the $25-$30 plans. Note the line "First Month Costs".

Nutritional Fallacies - as we age

An article from my Bicycling mag on nutrition indicates we should be changing the way we eat as

as we get older.

fallacy 1: you can eat  the same at age 40 as age 20

As we age, we lose muscle and gain fat. Cycling and strength training help stem the loss. Because of age-related  kidney change, our blood becomes more acidic and we excrete nitrogen faster than we take it in. Nitrogen is an essential component of muscle protein.

Preserve muscle mass by increasing the alkalinity of your blood to neutralize the acidity ... take Acid Zapper supplement and/or enhance alkaline by eating more fruits and veggies. All other foods have an acid increasing effect. If you don't get most of your carbs from fruits and veggies, you are losing muscle mass and calcium from your bones. 

  

fallacy 2: all fat makes you fat

For years the american gov't preached low-fat carb-heavy diets ... and americans got heavier. It appears healthy unsaturated fats are essential for firing up fat-burning metabolism. In fact, starchy foods turn into stored fat more quickly. Fat is slower to digest than carbs which helps you stay hunger-free longer.

As our bodies become more conditioned (cycling, golfing, jogging, etc), fat will help you go longer and burn more calories. However, it is important to choose healthy fats such as almonds, avocado, olive oil and olives.   

cell phone usage -how will it affect us?

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Did you know there are more home with cell phones only than those with home phone only, in the USA?

I suspect it is trending this way in Canada and other countries.

How will this affect telemarketers?

How does it affect our communications techniques? For instance, I am now calling my daughter or my son-in-law, instead of whoever answers the phone at their place.

Why have both a home phone and a cell phone?

TSX rising - premature optimism?

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Things are beginning to look optimistic. 

If I were 30-something, I would get into energy stocks at this time. 

As I am past the risk age, I will wait until things become more stable, as economists are indicating another year before stability in the markets.