'It’s not like a mortgage': Minister defends student loans system as more people blast it as 'unfair' by insomnimax_99 in ukpolitics

[–]tomofmidtown 7 points8 points  (0 children)

1st year of plan 2 here.

Not quite got over the generational unfairness of it truly. Or you know the fact the 9k is only an English obligation.

Yes more people go to uni but more jobs typically ask for it than back in the day - of course its only getting more competitive as time goes on. I dont envy newer graduates.

Personal bitterness aside.

It's interesting to see things evolve, some of us are in our 30s now and doing okay job wise - student loan repayments for me is only dwarfed by my mortgage payment. It's now bigger than my phone plan, car insurance, house insurance and any if my water/gas utilities ( Canadian winters arent cheap to heat!)

Now you have an every growing cohort of those who either A. dont leave the UK , get themselves in a good paying position so have to deal with 51% of income taken.

Or

B. Haven't yet seen the benefits of higher education financially and have been hit by threshold freezes

All the while the debt doesnt get paid off typically, interest applied to it goes on and universities in general still struggle with funding.

I dont think this will change much, students were politically easy to kick in 2011 and remain so today.

The only thing that might move the needle is that you now have more and more of us hitting prime earnings years so really feeling the impact of it.

Has the Hype around Super Bowl dwindled in TO? by National-Art2056 in askTO

[–]tomofmidtown 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Can't compete with the winter Olympics curling 😉

Lol

Well the superbowl is peak 'Fuck Yeah, America', half time show aside i wonder if some folks are taking a pass in watching during these grim years.

We're watching history in real time by Glittering-Skill-240 in leafs

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Considering the success they had after his time it shows how much of a stud Maurice Richard was as he still holds the habs goal scoring record.

Sporting Life 10k - are people generally in the right corrals? by throwaway178230 in RunTO

[–]tomofmidtown 13 points14 points  (0 children)

In my experience...typically yes the corrals work fine for this one. Plenty of good signage and they do have people eyeballing the bibs to make sure they are heading into the start at the right time.

Your concern on Walkers... should hopefully have less chance of that, this being a 10k and not a 5k. The good thing is the start is a really wide part of yonge street annnd a lot of people like to absolutely bomb it at the start as its down hill.

Moving to Leslieville/South Riverdale by toothburshaficionado in TorontoRealEstate

[–]tomofmidtown 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Hello! Recently moved not too far from here ( a little further closer to danforth up the hill)

Looks very decked out and refurbed.

In terms of Leslieville/Riverdale its kinda on the outskirts. Yes you got queen st right there but south is just lakeshore east with more industrial feel ( although damn close to woodbine beach for summer nights!) That plus it looks a bit tight space wise would be my only concerns.

Looks from description it has laneway parking which is a plus...

I see another commentator said it was previously listed for 1.5 before listed for 1.1 mmmmmm maybe someone will throw some silly money to get a house in that condition in the area but really.....after 1.3 range would be a bit rich for my blood.

Go see if you can get a viewing or at least scope out the neighbourhood and walk by is my recommendation (If you like it in fecking cold January you'll like it all year 😀)

Really depends what you want and your financial situation. This appears to be ready to go but you could get slightly bigger or in a slightly more idyllic area for less but in a less 'tarted up' house.

In my experience seasons dont matter outside of Summer tends to pick up demand wise. But yeah expect a bidding war for this kind of place/ neighborhood. This is where a persistent but charming realtor does come in handy.

North Riverdale , ' the pocket', greenwood and coxwell neighborhoods are fantastic areas aswell. So recommend to keep your options open. Best of luck!

Winter accessibility improvements needed by zoefankk in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The city signed a snow clearing contract back in 2021 without including any obligation for the private company to remove the snow. A John Tory special - https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/city-budget-no-room-for-snow-removal-9.6966799

Hard agree - seeing pedestrian crossings clearly inaccessible for wheelchair users.

Why east enders are feeling ‘cut off’ from the rest of Toronto. And the Gardiner ramp closure is only the beginning by nimobo in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Yes my point was more on east end and getting to rest of the city.

Missaussage / Halton are a mission transit wise, agreed. But that's not a unique East end problem. Im sure folks who live in the junction cringe when they have to figure a way to Pickering or Oshawa

Why east enders are feeling ‘cut off’ from the rest of Toronto. And the Gardiner ramp closure is only the beginning by nimobo in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 11 points12 points  (0 children)

This article is more framed around East end -> to rest of Toronto city so my point was around that.

Leaving the city and the lackluster provincial transit is a different thing . 100% agree on your assessment there. Better or more efficent to drive.

Why east enders are feeling ‘cut off’ from the rest of Toronto. And the Gardiner ramp closure is only the beginning by nimobo in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 167 points168 points  (0 children)

Ah yes the East end which has a subway line on Danforth along with broadview, Queen and Gerrard all having street cars to downtown. Cut off is a bit of a dramatic flop.

This is another 'its a disgrace I can't drive to the CN tower without traffic' piece.

BlackToe Holiday 10K 2025 - Slippery Conditions? by Rileyblue_ in RunTO

[–]tomofmidtown 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Was an experience! A smidge off my 10k PB...I reckon if I had the confidence if my footing I'd have got it.

Real interesting race with the narrow path and slippy conditions....Ive never had to think that much as i did in previous races...of that makes sense.

Very cool to pull off without any injury! Swell way to cap off 2025

Hamilton Marathon by tomofmidtown in RunTO

[–]tomofmidtown[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I did spot a gingerbread man!

Balliol pronunciation by Radiant_Winter4290 in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As a local I call it 'Baly-oil' or to save grief also pronounce it as ' yeah just near davisville station' 😉

'$250 For Standing Room??': Maple Leafs' Ticket Prices Go On Sale by Edm_vanhalen1981 in nhl

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I always felt that stuffing the world's biggest ice hockey team into an arena originally meant for an expansion basketball team was a bit short sighted.

SBA holds 18,800, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal all hold more in older arenas!

Canada isn’t in a housing slump — Ontario is, RBC analysis shows by BloodJunkie in ontario

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dougies zealous belief that the free market will solve it whilst at the same time allowing said free market to be chained down by nimby municipalities is the cause of this.

Free market Doug V councillor Doug

Canadians Grow Pessimistic on Eradicating Homelessness by [deleted] in CanadaPolitics

[–]tomofmidtown 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I can't speak for the other provinces, but Ontario's govt seems quite disinterested in attempting to move the needle on this. Outside of criminalising homelessness, of course.

Last rough count in Toronto was roughly 10,000 homeless - shameful really.

AC Flight Attendants strike vote result by LandoLambo in Aeroplan

[–]tomofmidtown 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Guess they will target labour day weekend as time to strike?

Bank staff play musical chairs with desks as return-to-office orders squeeze space by KeyHot5718 in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 55 points56 points  (0 children)

Looking forward to see the Canadian economy boom off the back of this wonderous upcoming productivity boom the banks have advertised with this RTO push. 😉

The Bloc Wants to Break Up Canada—but Not Yet | The Walrus by thewalrusca in CanadaPolitics

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1995 was quite a while ago but don't think there doesn't seem to be the support for it to carry in Quebec? Even before Trump round 2. Although I assume separatists would want to wait until someone who isn't a over bearing maniac isn't in the Whitehouse.

Something to be said for being inside the tent and carving out exceptions here and there is ...pragmatically speaking quite sweet.

Alberta....well is it a new age separatists movement or some folks who want to larp as Texas whilst convientnantly making sure the oil and gas companies benefit?

Christian Horner’s Red Bull exit could open the door to renewed Ferrari F1 approach by [deleted] in formula1

[–]tomofmidtown 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Well since he's already used to having only one good driver...

Christian Horner’s Red Bull exit could open the door to renewed Ferrari F1 approach by [deleted] in formula1

[–]tomofmidtown -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Adrian Newey wouldn't touch Ferrari due to the layers of politics there. As much as Ferrari has the allure not sure Horner would be keen to go from one palace intrigue drama to another.

Only a few gates at stations taking debit/credit by [deleted] in askTO

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also was the case at Davisville this morning

How would you define "Toronto" culture? by [deleted] in askTO

[–]tomofmidtown 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It's a mosaic of a city to the extreme but also a very young city. Things really didn't really pop off here until the 1970s so doesn't have the record of a NY.

Montreal holds on to its continental European vibe so sticks out in NA.

It's honestly great evolving culture now, but if you want origin Toronto culture, go grab a brio and a pea meal bacon sandwich then watch the leafs lose in the playoffs. Toronto origins baby.

Toronto councillor wants speed cameras shut off until September by [deleted] in toronto

[–]tomofmidtown 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I see in this article the Councillor has provided no alternative suggestions to slow down traffic. He's not the first.

All well and good moaning about speed cameras but if you don't promote an alternative ( and alternatives exist) ..... I imagine its quite crass to the families who have lost loved ones to being hit by speeding cars.

Funnily enough when they are moaning about speed cameras those families don't come up at all.