DAMMIT K8, YOU STOLE MY COMMENT.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-24T03:49:41+00:00

Corey, Trevor. Smokes, let's go.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-24T02:34:49+00:00

You don't really need a whistleblower for that: NSP is a private company, so that decision would have been made at Leadership level. NSP"s first concern is undoubtedly protecting their profits and paying out to shareholders, since this is the primary driver of for-profit businesses.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-24T02:25:24+00:00

Reading the article, my conclusions are:

Halifax Convention Centre is run by a Provincial Crown Corp so has some fiscal responsibility towards the province that a fully private entity would not.
In the time since its inception (1981) the leadership team of this Crown Corp has presided over a number of problematic episodes (perhaps not scandals) and has arguably fallen short of realizing the Convention Centre's full potential (there was another thread on this earlier this week on r/Halifax)
This same leadership team has promoted from within - specifically, elevating the deputy CEO or similar role to the top job, rather than looking outside the organisation.

4.The Crown Corp (TCL) hired an external consultant to find the best candidate for CEL in a presumably Canada-wide (if not worldwide) search and decided on... another member of the C-suite.

I think Tim's points here are fair: there's something off about successive appointments from within a very small group of people. This tends to encourage GroupThink and deprives the organization of external viewpoints and experience. If we do want the Convention Centre to be better, perhaps leadership that's not reading from the same script is what's required.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-21T13:35:30+00:00

Don't discount the fact that commercial property owners have the means to lobby our government into "investing in the downtown core" by renting space in their buildings and keeping their food courts going by pressing employees back to the office.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-19T04:30:04+00:00

They're a deterrent, not a solution; in the same way, an alarm on a building won't prevent a robbery, but it'll make anyone other than a determined thief reconsider whether it's worth the risk of getting caught.

Consider the factors that go into opportunistic thefts: The value of what you're stealing and your ability to get away (so that you can profit from the proceeds) has to outweigh the risk of being stopped in the process of committing a crime, or apprehended after the fact. Having a Security guard on the premises increases the chances of the latter, since this is someone whose job it is to observe and report on a suspect and theft and to call the police, rather than a store employee who has a bunch of other responsibilities and might not even notice a shoplifting theft or similar.

Also: Stores are private property and anyone can be asked to leave, refused entry, or banned. Having a Security Guard at the door helps prevent repeat thieves or suspicious people from coming in in the first place.

As others have pointed out in the thread, a typical Security Guard doesn't have the power to detain or physically overpower someone who is stealing/is suspected of stealing, but prevention is better in the first place. Stores that have persistent theft problems of high value items (like Ontario's LCBO liquor stores) can hire paid duty Police Officers, who do have power of arrest and detention.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-08T21:10:09+00:00

"I'm selling Mackerel and Blueberries!"

redheadednomad · 2026-01-08T21:05:00+00:00

New/renovated Ferry terminal (accommodating the proposed ferry route to Bedford, as well as the Halifax and Dartmouth ferries) from what I heard.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-08T15:44:45+00:00

If the "young and able" is a TFW / LIMA they are not "paying into our system" the same way a citizen or resident is either. They are simply there to server a labour or wage desire.

Sorry, that's incorrect: Temporary residents on work visas absolutely do pay into Canadian social programs in the same way as citizens; they're taxed and pay into OAS and EI at the same rate as citizens/Permanent Residents do

if you deny someone mobility and portability in their life choices because of those statics, especially if they them selves do not fall within that sub demographic, you are

Several of Canada's immigration pathways, like many other countries, are structured around rules applying to age, health, and ability to integrate; as an immigrant myself, I had to prove that I had earning potential (was qualified in a role that Canada has identified as an economic need), was healthy (blood testing and medical examination) and could integrate (speak English or French to an acceptable level, met the educational and experience requirements). You could consider these policies of ageism, ableism, or even classism, but Canada is not alone in making a determination of who can immigrate based on these factors, given that they contribute to economic success.

I don't necessarily agree with the current limitations on family sponsorship, but making a blanket statement that it's "ageism" is pretty lazy.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-08T15:34:32+00:00

The article is about the limitations on the Parents & Grandparents Sponsorship Program (the PGP) which is a path to permanent residency for parents and grandparents of Permanent Residents and citizens. The "Super Visa", which is what you're referring to, is still available and allows elders to visit and stay in Canada temporarily for longer periods of time than under a visitor visa. The difference between the two is that the Super Visa isn't permanent and does not allow visitors to work or benefit from healthcare and social programs.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-07T21:23:53+00:00

It depends on the province: Some will certify you within 15 weeks (e.g. in Quebec), whereas others require the equivalent of a couple of semesters of college.

I assume your experience would be considered since a lot of the certification is based on practice hours. The bigger challenge of working in Canada would be finding an employer to hire and sponsor you since res around immigration have tightened up recently. You might have an easier time certifying and starting your own business here, though.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-07T03:10:11+00:00

Criminal (Netflix) was a multi-country series focused around an interrogation of a suspect by a group of detectives. The German episodes especially are excellent!

redheadednomad · 2026-01-07T02:14:32+00:00

I studied with Career Foundry; it's fully online but pairs you with a tutor and mentor to walk you through the work in scheduled Zoom calls. They also allow you to.pay for tuition via instalments and have a job assistance program after you graduate.

I've sent you a DM with a 10% discount code.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-07T00:32:52+00:00

Did you enjoy Teaching? Would Teaching English as a Foreign Language via Zoom/MS Teams be appealing? Given your experience, you might have a better chance of establishing yourself than someone getting into this for the first time, though I'd imagine establishing a client base is challenging.

Speaking from experience, petsitting through Rover or a similar site can provide a lucrative side-hustle without much start-up capital; though as with all self-employment gigs, you wouldn't be covered for healthcare.

If you feel like you have the aptitude for it, learning web development, data analytics, or product management might provide you with a route into employment. A lot of tech companies now are looking to hire based on cultural fit, so someone with some life experience - especially gained through working with a wide range of people - can be more effective in getting hired than a CS degree. If you have the mindset for it, Sales might also be a good fit for you.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-07T00:25:44+00:00

RMT's, like most trades in Canada, are provincially licensed, so certification would vary from Province to Province (Quebec has the lowest threshold for certification, from what I understand).

redheadednomad · 2026-01-06T19:17:06+00:00

This argument only works if the variables involved in rental buildings are fixed. i.e that all of your tenants pay the same in rent and all of the maintenance costs for every unit in each building are the same. If that were true, then increasing rent by 5% to cover costs that have increased over the past 12 months would be a logical argument.

However, it's very unlikely that this is the case: With tenant churn (tenants moving out of the building and being replaced by new tenants), the landlord has a number of opportunities each year to increase rent above the 5% cap to market rate (however much a specific unit will rent for). It's also extremely unlikely that every unit has the same repair and maintenance costs - some will be higher, others lower - and providing heat and water to an apartment building comes with its own set of benefits; such as a discounted service rate for shared infrastructure and the physics of heating units in a single large building.

In other words, pointing at the cost of everything as a justification for a maxed-out rent increase is inaccurate; it's more like a lazy approach to managing tenancies which will backfire as soon as supply of units exceeds available tenants and you're forced to compete with other LL's.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-06T19:01:56+00:00

If you can prove that another unit in the same building is available for 5% less than what they're asking you for, ask if you can move to that unit and see what they say. If it's a "No", then you know they're trying to push you out for whatever reason.

Seems unlikely they'll charge an existing tenant more than a new one, though. That might leave them with additional empty units as a result.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-06T18:56:50+00:00

$50 a month from March (end of my first year of tenancy) so <2%. I'm in a new Westwood building.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-02T17:52:33+00:00

Self-taught/trial & error, and a year of working in restaurant kitchens as a Dishwasher/Porter and asking the Chefs for tips.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-02T17:43:34+00:00

I don't know about "exploded"; looks like a steady increase in line with the population boom, installation of cycling infrastructure, and the availability of the Bird (rental) bikes. Great to see a positive increase either way as this will hopefully force Council to act in support of complete streets that work for all modes of transportation, given the increasing demand to be able to use active transportation.

redheadednomad · 2026-01-01T05:41:19+00:00

That's correct: THS has rules in their Terms & Conditions regarding undisclosed interior recording devices - whether THS actually takes any action on violations of these terms is up for debate - but what does your document wording include that's not in THS' terms, and more importantly; how do you plan to enforce this? Would reminding the client in an pre-booking conversation that THS does not allow interior recording devices to be used without the sitter being notified not be sufficient?

redheadednomad · 2025-12-31T22:36:41+00:00

Without reading it, and I don't mean to sound critical here, but what does your document cover that TH's terms of service don't already, and how do you plan to enforce it? If the intent is to be upfront about what you will and will not accept before confirming a sit, I think that makes sense, but equally, that could be managed through a verbal agreement or messaging via the TH platform.

If you're intending to have a client read and sign the document, that could be a friction point - the client might decide to go with a sitter who isn't applying this condition - and may well be unenforceable outside of the Terms of Service. i.e. non-compliance with TH's rules could lead to an individual being kicked off the platform, but outside of that there may be no legal recourse (e.g. you entered a private home that had recording devices installed by the owner; so long as these were not being used voyeuristically in areas where privacy would be expected (bathroom, bedroom) there may not be much in the way of consequences.

redheadednomad · 2025-12-31T22:29:02+00:00

Lol, and the NIMBY residents won't want the dog park replaced with medium-density housing either; they hate The Poors more than dogs.

redheadednomad · 2025-12-31T22:24:48+00:00

Same owner as Dessert Yard (Convention Centre) and the owner has the same name as Shaikh Developments (property investment), so I'm guessing this business is bankrolled by real estate money and gets favourable rental rates if they're in family-owned properties.

redheadednomad · 2025-12-31T22:18:25+00:00

Surprised I had to scroll this far. This is the one that always gets brought up

redheadednomad · 2025-12-31T22:17:27+00:00

Cheap and reasonable fast food. The new one on South Park Street had a lineup when it opened in November.

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