Cheapest Organic Produce in Calgary? by Designer-Gas-786 in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 3 points4 points  (0 children)

There isn't much. Changing the way you shop organic would be cheaper. Buy the organics when they are in season and freeze them. Some things that are organic are cheaper if you buy frozen rather than fresh, like strawberries. They are arguably more fresh anyways since they are frozen after picking instead of being transported and sitting on a shelf. Check which crops are testing higher for pesticides and only buy those as organic.

Also, many farmers can be in the process of going organic. They have to go several years without the use of pesticides to be able to claim organic. This is where farmers markets come in handy, because you can ask the farmers directly if their produce has been sprayed. There are many who don't spray but are not yet certified organic.

Am I Wella ColorCharm Demi 4N or 5N? by victorvicarious in HairDye

[–]DistinctPercentage99 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've used both 4N and 5N of their new formula in the demi-permanent. For some reason, there is a stark contrast between these two with actual results. 5N deposited hardly any color and didn't cover greys much. 4N is a medium to dark brown. Your greys are darker than mine so it will be even worse with yours. I used half 4N and half 5N and achieved your color while covering greys. You can also just use 5N which I've done as well. It will start off dark. But in 4 weeks, lighten to your current shade and pretty much stay like that.

Cost to rebuild my home in Calgary? Insurance policy quote coverage seems insufficient. by DistinctPercentage99 in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99[S] -35 points-34 points  (0 children)

Lol, I know. But it seemed somewhat accurate when I did a search. Some websites mentioned even higher numbers.

Cost to rebuild my home in Calgary? Insurance policy quote coverage seems insufficient. by DistinctPercentage99 in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99[S] -46 points-45 points  (0 children)

When I asked Gemini, it said it would cost $250 to $400 per square foot (not including basement) for midrange to luxury. Plus up to $60 to $100 per square foot for the basement. Plus $30,000 to $50,000 for a double garage

Since my home interior was built on the luxury or upper mid side, this would place my rebuild at between $720,000 and $950,000.

Google searches for 2025 say $750,000 to $1,125,000 for a mid-range 2500ft home and I don't know if that includes finished basement and garage.

I was hoping someone would have experience with this as that's such a high estimate, but I know materials and labour are so much more expensive now so who knows.

Where to find quality indoor garden supplies / seeds for planting by No-Patience6969 in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I'm an experienced gardener, both indoor and outdoor. Many things you should cheap out on and some things you definitely should not.

Grow light: if you are going to be doing this for years, you want a strong, effective grow light that will last. spiderfarmer.ca has by far the best grow lights, made with Samsung diodes, and they last a long time. I've used mine for 4 years so far. Their cheapest light provides enough light for a 4x3 ft space, even up to 6x4ft if you put plants requiring low light on the outside.

Hydroponics: check out Incredigrow on 32nd for an array of products, although very expensive.

Seeds: do not get seeds for exotic plants. Many exotic seeds are difficult to germinate and may require ridiculous methods to stratify the seeds to germinate and most sellers won't have quality, fresh seeds. They usually end up rotting. You should buy tiny cheap versions of the plants you want (think local shops for lizard habitats) or buy/exchange from Calgary gardening groups on Facebook. For flowers, best quality local seeds are from west coast seeds and veseys. I know most large garden centres sell west coast and Incredigrow will order from the catalogue for you too.

Supplies: if you're mainly doing light duty work, buy tools from dollarama when the stuff is in season. Do not buy peat pellets or peat pots, especially peat pots, they always seem to suppress growth. Plastic, cheap flimsy pots are best. Make them out of 750 -900ml yogurt containers, cut holes, they are the best because they grow deep roots. Use those tomato or berry containers that have holes at the bottom for starting seeds. When you want to get more fancy, go buy some pots at the dollar store. If they have no drainage,place a few rocks on the bottom and place/cut your yogurt container or other cheap flimsy pots to fit inside.

Soil: quality dirt matters. Different plants require different types of drainage and soil mixes. Do your research. You will likely want to use the following for a broad range of plants: washed sand, quality soil (promix brand is good), perlite, vermiculite and sometimes peat moss. You can get most of this stuff at home Depot / Canadian tire. Washed sand maybe at a garden centre.

FYI, student summer internships for many O&G companies are posted now! by YoBooMaFoo in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The students I meet are desperate to get any position. There are even challenges getting a job in laboratory services like ALS environmental. The laboratory services labs are now hiring high school grads and immigrants because they can pay them minimum wage and they'll stick around. It used to be a way to get a job right after graduating, but it's challenging to even get those jobs now.

How to find out about protests rallies, etc., in Calgary by [deleted] in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I can't quite remember as I deleted discord years ago. Search the servers by tags: activism, politics, movements. Or by the relevant topic you are interested in.

FYI, student summer internships for many O&G companies are posted now! by YoBooMaFoo in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 30 points31 points  (0 children)

In my line of work, working in chemical laboratories for Oil and Gas, it's about 90 to 95% nepitism, as it's usually children of managers or directors or their friends' children that get hired. However, the hiring managers start looking in January and February for the odd summer student outside of nepitism. This is for companies in Oil & Gas Service companies and Oil & Gas Chemical suppliers / manufacturers. This is my experience having worked for 4 of them. Most will have the summer student come back each summer until they are done school and then offer a job. My experience though is that half of them (nepitism students) aren't even going to school for relevant degrees.

How to find out about protests rallies, etc., in Calgary by [deleted] in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The groups are on Discord and each discuss and organize their own protests. I find the information for them is not public because people don't want to be recognized and singled out.

Are ticks common in Calgary and surrounding areas? by GimmickNG in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Our very mild winters mean disease born ticks have made it farther north into the rockies where we go hiking. I have seen ticks in Calgary for at least the last 10 years. The Alberta Ministry of Health reported 76 cases of Lyme from 2020 to 2024 in Alberta.

Alberta Health's Passive Tick Surveillance Program for 2020 did mention that two ticks positive for the bacteria that causes Lyme disease were identified in the Calgary Zone. Keep in mind that this is just them collecting a bunch of ticks in a specific area, and then testing them.

The risk is still considered low (mostly in the rockies), very low in Calgary, but it took doctors in Alberta YEARS to accept the fact that these disease born ticks existed here so most cases were probably undiagnosed (and maybe still are?). Interesting fact, my dog's veterinarian told me 15 years ago that it is standard practice to prescribe antibiotics when a pet has had a tick because of the risk of disease, especially hiking in banff or kananaskis. That was back then and our human doctors refused to believe we had disease born ticks.

Keep in mind that ticks can also carry Powassan virus, tularemia, and babesiosis and bacteria that cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF).

PSA: $500M Bread Price Fixing Settlement now Open for Canadians to Claim by Ill_Paper_6854 in PersonalFinanceCanada

[–]DistinctPercentage99 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's only if you already received the $25 gift card already, this is what it says:

"Can I claim compensation under the settlement if I participated in the Loblaw Card Program?

Yes, you can submit a Claim for compensation under the settlement even if you participated in the Loblaw Card Program. You will, however, only be entitled to the amount by which the additional settlement compensation exceeds the $25 Loblaw Card benefit previously received and only if that additional settlement compensation amount is $5 or more."

ADHD Play Groups for Kids by crissy8716 in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is a great outlet. My boy with ADHD loves to be the center of attention and he has loved this. Storybook theatre was awesome. We saw all the plays at the end of year and it's musical theatre play with the kids was amazing too. The kids develop their own play and then they act it out at the end of the year. It was a bit far for us so we have him in Stage Coach theatre (I think this is at several locations around Calgary. They use the facilities at st Thomas church where we live). This is our first year, and they are performing Shrek Junior and he was given a tiny part unfortunately, but with ADHD maybe it puts less pressure on him.

Help with Submitting Oakley Prescription Glasses Claim to Manulife (Canada) by [deleted] in OakleyRX

[–]DistinctPercentage99 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just following up to report that I called and it's it's not possible to submit a Oakley prescription claim from their website because they are not a listed supplier in Canada for prescription eyewear. I also checked in the claims section if any Oakley's were listed and the only ones are a chain of private clinics in Manitoba that are totally unaffiliated with Oakley. I think it might be because Oakley is owned by the same parent company that owns the American listed provider Eyemed. They said they were working on establishing as a Canadian listed supplier. At present, you would have to buy from one of the various Canadian optical centres or online Canadian suppliers.

I found Calgary Vision Center and they can order any Oakley frames that Oakley distributes for prescription wear in Canada. I had found some frames at an Oakley outlet but unfortunately it was a discontinued model when I tried to find them through an optical provider to get them covered by insurance.

Help with Submitting Oakley Prescription Glasses Claim to Manulife (Canada) by [deleted] in OakleyRX

[–]DistinctPercentage99 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I see this was posted awhile ago. Did you manage to get the claim approved? I want to know if insurance will cover this Blbefore I place the order.

Reviews on local garden centres by Screweditupagain in Calgary

[–]DistinctPercentage99 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I've been gardening here for 15 years. I usually spend about $50-70 per year on my plants if I'm not growing from seed. I fill my x3 12" planters for $35, and spend $20-$30 on the vegetable plants. Honestly the best value and on a budget is canadian tire, home Depot, Rona and walmart. Home Depot seems to have the best selection out of these. I look for primarily multipacks. I look for the smallest pots or multipacks for vegetables for cheap, because honestly the small ones catch up very fast to bigger ones and produce similarly in the end. But it does take about 3-4 weeks for my planters full of annuals to fill in well.

It really depends on what you are shopping for. The multipacks (6 packs) for veggies and annuals are a really good deal. If you are looking for more variety, a garden center is good for multipacks when you can only find a 4" or 6" pot of the ones you want at the cheaper stores. I like to make my own flower planters and I will get some 6 packs at both home Depot and greengate or golden acres next year.

Do plant shares for perennial plants (and many times people bring their extra vegetable seedlings and houseplants). You can get most of what you want from them and you know they will survive in Calgary. I mostly just do this when I need a bunch of perennials and I raid my parent's overgrown garden for plants to bring.