If you have a young one starting school in 2018 you may be thinking, “How did my baby grow up so fast? Feels like yesterday I was just changing diapers, waking up 5 times a night, making baby food, watching those first steps - followed by those first words, and now they’re almost school age!” And you may also be starting to think about JK registration which begins in February.
Making resolutions at the beginning of a new year started about 4,000 years ago when Babylonians resolved to return borrowed items to their neighbour. In later times, Romans made promises to Janus, their god of new beginnings and transitions (and for whom January is so named), and medieval knights reaffirmed chivalry vows to their brotherhood.
For many people, the holidays are a time of traditions, with a lot of them around food. Baking holiday treats, serving family favourites and gathering for special meals. This year, I want to challenge us to think about food in a different way during the holidays. What if we were to include the entire family, or a group of friends, and learn new cooking skills together?
It’s an ugly truth. It’s rarely blatant. It can be hard to prove – just as all forms of discrimination are.
Every day people go to jobs where they are expected to put their best foot forward, yet they feel they’re treated unfairly because of their age.
I like hotdogs – they're tasty.
Poutine? Even better.
Hotdogs and poutine together? Stop. The. Train.
So why on earth would I be part of promoting a canteen menu that takes away two of the classic canteen menu items at the Delaney Arena[1]? This sounds like treachery. Unfair and un-Canadian even. Why would I support this?
Because I want kids in our communities to have real choices.
I'm a public health nurse with the Health Unit's sexual health program. One of my roles is street nursing. Street nurses travel around in a refurbished ambulance visiting different areas of the city to offer sexual health and harm reduction services. We do things like STI testing, (immunizations?), and hand out harm reduction supplies like condoms, pipes, and needles to anyone who comes to see us. I absolutely love this part of my job.
When you think about food, what do you think of? Chances are, you thought about how food fuels our bodies. What is sometimes overlooked is the important connection between food and how we feel. The foods we eat provide nutrients that support energy levels, brain function, and overall well-being. Have you ever felt “hangry” (angry because you are so hungry)? I know I have. That feeling is your body’s way of letting you know it needs food. It can’t be a coincidence that “food” and “mood” are only one letter away from being the same word!
The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks has confirmed the presence of blue-green algae (BGA) in a water sample collected at Hattie Cove on August 11, 2025. Hattie Cove is located within Pukaskwa National Park near Marathon.
Water should be avoided whenever a BGA bloom is present, and for about 2 weeks after it has gone away. It is important to avoid:
The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks has confirmed the presence of blue-green algae (BGA) in a water sample collected on June 24, 2024, at Trout Lake in Gorham Township, which is located about 30km northwest of Thunder Bay.
It is important to remember that water should be avoided whenever a BGA bloom is present, and for about 2 weeks after it has dissipated.
When BGA is present in water, it is important to avoid:
A little COVID-Kindness can go a long way! Canadians have a certain reputation. To the world it seems we’re generally nice people. We’re polite. We help strangers in need. I’d like to think it’s more than a stereotype and that friendly folk are typically the majority.