Choices

Like most working folks, my morning routine involves the consumption of coffee. I was downtown for work last week near Yonge and Church street and as you can see from the picture, I had to make a choice between Starbucks and Tim Hortons. Both places were directly across from one another.

As I walked towards the intersection, I observed the people who had purchased coffee. People in suits or dressy office clothes had Starbucks coffee, while the casually dressed person had Tim Hortons. I concluded this observation with the following thoery: Starbucks is for the social elite and Tim Hortons is for the average worker.

As I finally arrived at the intersection, I made the decision to head towards Starbucks (the line was shorter and the workers are nicer too). Now, I am not even close to looking like a social elite, but if I ever want to become one, a good start would be to look and do the actions of one :)

Crazy about the Raptors

I have been a Toronto Raptors fan since the creation of the franchise, witnessing both highs and lows. From being one shot away from the Eastern conference finals, to my blogging strike and Vince Carter (enough said).

After last years surprise performance, the expectation for the Raptors are high this year. It seems that the casual fan is becoming a hardcore fan. I have already been to two games this year (Raptors are undefeated this year when I attend a game) and the atmosphere is awesome. All my friends are talking about the Raptors and wanting to attend games this year. The actual game and the events around the game are entertaining to see live in-person. The music, contests between the breaks, and free give-aways keep fans enthusiastic throughout the game. For me, the most entertaining part away from the game is "The Raptor" mascot. His stunts and personality are amusing to all fans. He was voted best mascot last year.

Just like Toronto, the Raptors are an international team, featuring players from Argentina, Spain, Italy, and Slovenia. Fans from all parts of the world in Toronto are embracing the team. Toronto will always be a hockey city, but this basketball team is probably more likely to win a championship before the Leafs.

Are you loonie?

One of the biggest stories this year in Canada has been the rise of the Canadian dollar. It is currently trading at $1.06 US. No one would have thought this would be possible when the dollar was trading at above sixty cents US five years ago. The rise in the price of oil (almost $94.45 US a barrel) and strong commodities has helped pushed the loonie above par against the American greenback. However, the biggest reason of this surge is due to the weakness in the US dollar, which has been caused by a slumping housing market.

In recent months, there has been a public outcry from consumers over the lack of adjustment in retail prices in Canada. Many consumers are spending their money across the border in Buffalo, where wait times are about two hours. Financial advisor's are advising people to exchange their money before they cross the border to avoid the "American exchange rate, i.e. one-for-one. You will also find out that when you exchange money at the bank, they will charge you a 2.5% service charge, so you will never get the current rate.

A high loonie is bad news for some people, such as those who are in the manufacturing sector, which is an export-drive business. Importers now found the price of goods in Canada are more expensive and will look at other places to import similar goods. A recent article in the Toronto Star talked about the effect of salaries on European basketball players who are paid in US dollars. The Toronto Raptors center, Rasho Nesterovic signed an 8 million dollar per year contract which was paid in US dollars two years ago. He spends his off-season in Europe, so he converts that money into Euros. That same contract is now worth 1.5 million dollars less after the exchange rate.

The majority of Canadians feel a sense of pride over the rise of the loonie. When Canadians visited the US previously, Americans always felt that their currency was superior to the Canadian dollar. Now, the tables have turned, and it is not clear how long it will lost. However, I will not stay silent and will let our neighbors to the south know the value of their dollar :)

On time

In South Asian cultures, it is quite common to arrive late for events, such as weddings. The arrival time for event invitations are often ignored and padded with a few hours to generate the “real” arrival time. The invitation time is typically the time when you start to get ready for the event.

The real rationale behind why we (South Asians) are always late is because we do not want to be early. If you come early to an event, you may be stuck helping the organizers finish some last minute tasks, or trying to kill time playing games on your cell phone, or deleting people from your phone directory.

The South Asians are not the only ones who suffer from “being late”, it seems the African people are similar.

The government of Ivory Coast created a punctuality contest to challenge people to arrive on time.

Narcisse Aka, a legal adviser aged 40, who has just won the country’s hallowed Punctuality Night competition — and a £30,000 villa — after he consistently turned up for work on time while his compatriots took a more relaxed attitude to punctuality. As the slogan of the competition goes, ‘African time is killing Africa; let’s fight it.’

Arriving on time is so easy yet me make it difficult for us. Think about the last time you arrived late at the airport to catch your flight, you could make your life easier if you had arrived an half hour early. Otherwise, you may end up like Jerry Seinfeld, who quoted:

You see? Never be late for a plane with a girl. Cuz a girl runs like a girl - with the little steps and the arms flailing out... You wanna make this plane, you've gotta run like a man! Get your knees up!

Blogger is back!

It has been a while since I last blogged, a lot has happened during this time, but none of it has been shared on my blog. I contemplated closing my blog as I have found new ways to waste time and unable to find time to post on a consistent basis, but I thought I give it another chance.

Since I am making a blog "comeback", I have re-branded my blogger template. The header is a panoramic picture I took in Whistler, British Columbia. Let me know what ya think.