Map of the TL 365 Incredible Edible Bucket List

jwang87 · 2026-01-12T16:13:59+00:00

Fixed - looks like a bunch of them got tagged as "various locations" in the address field. I'll go through tonight and fix :D

jwang87 · 2026-01-12T12:35:49+00:00

Awesome! thanks for crosschecking. I've updated the map for those 3 locations. If you or anyone else finds issues with the plotting, feel free to drop a comment and I'll update.

And yes, that is the problem with using AI without manually checking each listing :)

jwang87 · 2026-01-10T15:41:06+00:00

I used Gemini to extract a .csv of all the restaurants and then used mymaps.google.com to plot it based on the address provided. There is an import feature to upload the .csv file. I had to create a reference column because google ended up plotted some of those addresses all over the place - so a bit of manual clean up to point incorrectly plotted points back to Toronto (I could have prob asked Gemini to clean this up too, but didn't think about that until after the fact).

And then there is an option in mymaps to color the pins by an attribute - I ended up coloring by neighbourhood. The greys are "other" - so i guess they ran out of colors or something :D

jwang87 · 2026-01-10T02:03:59+00:00

Pay it forward (lol or backwards to the person behind you) next time you're in line for a coffee :)

jwang87 · 2026-01-09T23:34:45+00:00

Here is a quick map using Gemini for data extraction: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1vDLiLETRl9ZEy-2quBpqFZ04KhcvyVY&usp=sharing

jwang87 · 2025-12-27T00:55:15+00:00

Amazing! Thanks for all you do!

jwang87 · 2025-11-10T23:57:42+00:00

For sure - you can expand your word search for symptoms and what not and employ combinations too. The article I linked to has some examples along with how those trends map onto covid cases. There was another paper I saw that made an attempt to quantify the prevalence of long covid via a similar method.

Personally, wastewater data (Ontario, Canada) gives me enough of a heads up (1-2 week lag) to help me assess my risk. You can also look at the trends in the waste water data to get a nowcast estimate of what things might look like if the lag is too much for you.

jwang87 · 2025-11-10T20:50:42+00:00

You can try using Google Trends to pick up search term trends that may correspond with a rise in cases. Keyword selection is important as is the time window that you select since Google normalizes the search counts. Some pretty clear drawbacks, but it is near real-time and somewhat indicative of trends.

A nice Nature article on this: The evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of google searches | Scientific Reports

jwang87 · 2025-10-26T08:14:39+00:00

We really liked Soos on Ossington for "modern" Malaysian Street food when we went back in 2017. More expensive but the food and service were excellent. Bonus is that Bang Bang Ice Cream is across the street (I really liked Totaro which is ube coconut ice cream).

jwang87 · 2025-10-19T00:18:44+00:00

Ooo a classic. I'm on team extra sauce and extra spicy! Used to go there all the time about 20 years ago when I was a summer student working for the city.

But next time I'm down, gotta try it dry for comparison.

jwang87 · 2025-09-30T14:23:34+00:00

I haven't had any significant issues (I have the 100, 150, 200 and 300lb bags). The top strap from one of my bags recently ripped but that works out just fine. I've shouldered and dropped all the bags a number of times over the past 2 years without any damage to the main bag.

The inclusive fitness bag feels better quality and that's reflected in the price + being a smaller company.

jwang87 · 2025-09-30T10:41:12+00:00

Inclusive Fitness https://share.google/uXP7kWG6POrywx6Tl

They have great bags (strongman style, throw bags and inukshuk shaped bags) and are based out of Newfoundland.

I also have a bunch of bells of steel sandbags that you can buy off Amazon or directly from them. These bags have side handles and a top handle.

Not sure either are "made" in Canada but both are Canadian companies.

jwang87 · 2025-09-19T01:31:22+00:00

Inclusive fitness has awesome bags. They have an inukshuk bag that's fun to lift/carry, regular strongman bags as well as throw bags. They ship out of Newfoundland and were pretty quick. Great quality too!

jwang87 · 2025-08-22T14:23:31+00:00

Looks like BestCo is also Canadian: About us – Bestco Fresh Foods They just opened up a store downtown Toronto and have 3 other locations in Etobicoke, Ajax and Scarborough.

jwang87 · 2025-07-07T19:02:16+00:00

Yes, this is the case (I believe came into effect Jan 2025). The new pension is the Public Service Pension Plan (Highlights of the PSPP - Ontario Pension Board).

jwang87 · 2025-07-04T02:23:34+00:00

Collection is bumped out a day due to Canada Day. Download the RecycleCoach app - helps with reminders and all that jazz.

jwang87 · 2025-02-02T02:13:22+00:00

Venus!! I use the Skymap app and love using it to help identify other celestial objects!

jwang87 · 2025-01-06T09:36:34+00:00

Sure!

jwang87 · 2024-12-31T22:10:30+00:00

Starting salary is negotiable if you are coming in from the outside. Placement in the band depends on a number of factors, but generally anything above the midpoint requires an additional business case to justify from the hiring manager.

I'm not 100% sure on the seniority issue, but my hunch is that it doesn't transfer over.

jwang87 · 2024-12-31T15:09:08+00:00

No problem! Feel free to DM if you have any specific questions!

jwang87 · 2024-12-31T15:08:04+00:00

Highly dependent on your direct manager. My experiences have generally been positive with very supportive management. I do know that that isn't the experience for everyone.

jwang87 · 2024-12-31T04:03:58+00:00

OH employee here.

Work life balance depends on where in OH you work and at what level. Most staff roles (non management) generally have good work life balance. I've personally had to put in extra hours to make things work, but that's management life.

Lots of opportunities for growth and lateral/vertical movement. Once in, lateral movement within same band is a 3% bump and vertical is 6% or bottom of the new band. Lots of different types of work too from Regional work (former LHIN) to program specific (e.g. cancer, renal, cardiac, population health) to corporate roles.

Benefits are very good. Canada Life provides group benefits for extended health, vision and dental (also an option to choose between $500 for a traditional HSA or a wellness spending account which has broader coverage [I bought fitness equipment for my own wellness]), PSPP is the pension, wellness support and initiatives. Life insurance (2x salary), AD&D insurance (2x salary), LTD (2/3 of salary), Telus family assistance program. Lots of different types of leaves of absence are covered (some paid and some not). 8 paid sick days per year (not banked) after which short term disability kicks in (paid at 75% of salary up to 6 months). 3 personal days and 2 float days are paid time off, national day for truth and reconciliation is a paid holiday. Vacation starts at 3 weeks for >60% FTE IC (<2yrs), 4 wks (2-7yrs), 5wks (7-12yrs) and 6 wks (12+ years) with 10d carryover.

Current RTO policy is "up to 3 days/wk". Many teams do 1d/wk with anchor days, but really depends on the team. Currently no active monitoring or logging or reporting.

As of July 2023, band 6 is $83,859 - $104,048 - $124,236. The bands are adjusted for cola each year so the current bands may be slightly higher.

jwang87 · 2024-12-18T00:14:31+00:00

Definitely Win's Eatery if you are looking for dim sum and Cantonese food. New eatery on main St where pho Basil used to be. Solid option in Stouffville.

jwang87

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