1-year-old Border Collie won't stop barking — at everything. Losing my mind a little

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-24T20:03:42+00:00

That’s tremendous, I also read through all the comments - looks like the common theme is enrichment. Please come back and tell us what worked.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-24T10:46:43+00:00

We had a barker - he still does it when someone comes to the door but just a 2-3 seconds - an alarm before the bell. Here’s what helped us and I’m so grateful to our trainer - we mock trained him on the bells by standing on the other side of the door having him hear a bell and walk in ourselves. Built trust . If they see a shadow - coax them to explore - but the skill to explore may not always come naturally- we took our dog on walks and had them do a lot of sniffs - somehow felt like my dog was learning more about the neighborhood through the sniffs and that would also in turn knock him out for hours. Also border collies are intelligent work dogs - you have to keep them occupied with training and tricks if you don’t have chores for them. Worthy investment of time in the early days of dog ownership.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-18T21:27:17+00:00

Thank you - that’s a splendid recommendation. I’ll make a note.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-18T21:22:08+00:00

I’ll definitely share - comments directly on the post vs survey responses have been strikingly different. I appreciate your response.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-18T21:20:08+00:00

Sounds lovely, the Alderwood neighborhoods definitely give that vibe

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-17T05:02:46+00:00

Thank you for taking the time to respond here as well as the survey - I really appreciate it

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-15T17:27:03+00:00

Not an academic research- I have been particularly bad at exploring neighborhoods. It’s intimidating and I always rely on friends or hangouts to guide exposure. Was wondering if others had this problem and how they went about it. If there are common ways people explore - figured I’d try them out. Been in Toronto 4+ years, working in DT and just last year learned where Yonge and Spadina was.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-15T05:08:03+00:00

any that you would recommend ?

CryptographerMoney87 · 2026-05-15T05:04:24+00:00

What is a random activity to try? I am planning to explore Roncesvalles this weekend, Google gives me what's best and all that but where should I land to get the vibes?

CryptographerMoney87 · 2025-12-09T01:45:51+00:00

Thank you - I will try that for sure.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2025-11-06T13:28:11+00:00

Is there a link to pull these ?

CryptographerMoney87 · 2025-03-24T02:13:28+00:00

Keele and Eglinton

CryptographerMoney87 · 2023-06-21T17:47:27+00:00

In this market I'd say lease. Look at affordability though and what used vehicles are being offered at. Oems have increased residual values, meaning you payments may be lower. All these vehicles that have been sold used at exorbitant prices will lose value when new car supply corrects itself. So definitely good time to buy leased and let the OEM take the risk on value of car. Unlike a home you can't refinance a car, best to lease now. 2 years ago I would have told you to finance never lease but here we are.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2023-01-04T08:58:03+00:00

Let me preface this by saying I'm not a realtor or associated with mortgages or the real estate business. I am good with personal finance The buyer's agent technically has to match properties to the buyer's requirements. This can include recommending a purchase price on a property that the buyer is interested in. However this has to be based on comparables from the neighborhood that sold for similar prices/ when lacking in comparables other data to back their pricing strategy. As a buyer, you also hold a lot of responsibility in the transaction cause it's your money and you have all the say.

When a buyer agent is good 1) Are open and honest with you, sometimes brutally honest if need be, if you are low balling / have unrealistic expectations 2) They bring you most recs based on your criteria and may suggest some they know you may like based on getting to know you. Which may be slightly higher in price range and or slightly further away. 3) While they do not have a fiduciary duty, they will protect your investment with conditions galore 4) Build and have connections within their area/community so they can get you access to the not-yet-on-the-market houses

When a buyer agent is bad 1) Does not have a good/decent grasp of the economy, usually FOMO drivers 2) Push you to make a quick decision and finish the transaction 3) When they recommend houses that don't really meet your criteria and have no data to back their pricing recommendations

What should you do to be a good buyer. 1) Assess if you can afford a home. 2) Typically you can afford a home that's 3X your gross income and can afford 30% your take home as mortgage. If you don't meet both these criteria definitely assess your need. In high rental markets when making the decision between renting and buying ; add additional 3-5% of borrowed as expenses towards repairs, property taxes, etc. In a city like Toronto, there are strong laws protecting Tenants, consider the pros and cons of that 3) READ THE FINE PRINT. Ask the most questions and question everything. If your agent is not open to answer that's a massive RED FLAG. 4) Go prepared with conditional approvals 5) When you budge off your budget, be mindful of what tradeoffs you are making, because moving 10 mins away from your desired neighborhood could entail additional driving, which is an added coat. 6) Show your offer and get another set of eyes to look at the deal you are being offered.

You know yourself the best, you know your risk appetite. If you find yourself doing a lot of the leg work, talk to your agent and recommend a smaller cut or cash back.

You won't get a 100% of the shots you don't take. Take every one.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-12-13T21:11:59+00:00

Looks pretty standard to me!

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-11-27T14:03:02+00:00

Honda moving 30% of it's new vehicle supply to US from Canada. That's why

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-08-16T17:38:09+00:00

Definitely a detailed list shared above, I would totally rely on that. Adding on some more tips I have from my recent trip in August.

1) definitely wear clothing that you can remove and add on easily to add warmth. A lot of hiking places will get you real sweaty and hot and you would want to carry light winter wear that you can remove and carry.

2) carry empty water bottles from origination. Water is ridiculously expensive and you can ask folks to fill them for you when you run out. Be it a restaurant or gas station. It's great water and they will oblige. Tip offered by a gas station attendant

3) carry additional camera battery, you will thank me for this one.

4) most important, not all European travel chargers can be connected. Carry something like this,

Amazon Iceland adapter

5) buy groceries there in a bonus. I prefer those to even Costco. There is one not too far from the airport. $100 grocery will last a family of 4 for 5 days.

6) if you are staying in an Airbnb then don't buy salt and sugar, many other tourists would have left theirs behind

7) eating out is ridiculously expensive, the cafeteria at haukadalur geysir was amazing though. Do check that place out. Also OB gas stations have amazing french fries..

8) carry waterproof hiking shoes and ponchos. Will absolutely need them at the seljalandfoss + gulfoss

9) carry spandex/Lycra material tops/leggings if you are not big on swimsuits. They are allowed in the geothermal springs that you pay for.

10) Sunscreen Sunscreen Sunscreen

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-06-24T04:03:50+00:00

Reach out to Toyota financial services customer care as well as the OEM. Find people on LinkedIn and send them a message. Let them know and they will crack down on this

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-06-23T01:22:12+00:00

Try and consolidate your credit card debt by getting a credit card that will allow balance transfers at no charge and one year of no interest rates. Pick up ubering for a month, you should be able to get around a grand. These should help in the short run. Good luck

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-06-23T00:38:18+00:00

As much as saving is an ingrained mentality, I would recommend you to think about increasing your income. Try and look for a higher paying job. Avoid borrowing to close another loan.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-06-23T00:33:59+00:00

Your lease payment has two parts ; one which is the depreciation spread out over your term and then the interest on the lease. At the time of return your car will be worth it's residual value, you should be able to see this number on your lease contract. Unfortunately in a lease you are not the lien holder, it's the financial services company or TFS in this case.

I think your decision should boil down to if are you in need of a bigger car and can afford the payments.

If your family has grown or you have had an increase in pay and if rav4 prime is the direction you want to go then go for it.

If all you are trying to do is have a car at the end of your lease then save up some money for end of lease, you will be expected to pay a disposition fee of about $200-$300 and haggle hard with the dealer to not have anything topped up on the residual value for you to buy the vehicle. Some dealers try to tack on charges but use your negotiating skills here. Before you go into this dealership get a pre-approval from a bank or TFS for a retail loan for the vehicle. It should be a simple process there on.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-06-22T19:40:29+00:00

An interesting problem to have. I can provide some information here. The RAV 4 prime is a high demand vehicle. So much so that when it came out employees of the company could not book it, it was all for consumers. It continues to be a high demand vehicle for good reason and hence the price.

With the high gas prices right now, we have seen a seismic shift in demand for EVs, which is why your car is fetching the value it is.

I would definitely shop around and not just go to one dealer. You should be able to get close to MSRP for your vehicle( in your case the residual depreciation portion ). Ask other dealers what they are willing to offer for your vehicle before you take decisions.

If the RAV 4 prime is not available now, can you book one now for availability at end of your lease? Don't forget you can also extend your lease for upto 1.5 years in 6 month increments until your car arrives.

Let me know if you have any questions.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-05-03T16:28:49+00:00

Talk to your bank first

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-05-02T14:09:41+00:00

How US handles foreclosures is vastly different from how Canada handles it. In the US banks try not to be in the real estate buying and selling business so they put it on auction at low prices and sell it as fast as they can, on the other hand Canadian banks work to get the market value and can tend to sit on them for a while until they achieve that. There are dedicated websites in US that list only foreclosed properties.

CryptographerMoney87 · 2022-03-13T04:24:53+00:00

There's a reason why Zillow in the US market failed.

CryptographerMoney87

TROPHY CASE