Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Sep 26th 2018, 1:49 pm
#76
Slightly Canadian
Joined: Jul 2005
Location: St. John's, Newfoundland
Posts: 10,129
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
I've rather stumbled into being able to Work from Home. A change in role within my company, the global nature of our business and not needing to be in the office to do my job effectively and managing school age small people, not to mention a wife who is a teacher, means that it's just simpler to work from home most of the time. Today, is, in fact, my first day in the office in 2 weeks.
My colleagues in London (the one in England not Ontario) are rather jealous! It's all rather nice after working in offices/manufacturing plants/warehouses for close on 30 years to be able to do this. The downside of course is less clear delineation between work time and personal time. So far I seem to be able to manage this to my advantage but midnight emails followed by 6.30am emails the next day are not unheard of.
Sep 26th 2018, 4:34 pm
#77
Assimilated Pauper
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2005
Location: Ontario
Posts: 40,018
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Those nice people at Bell laid Fibre to my door a few years back. For the mere price of half an arm and most of a leg every month, I get 150/50Mbps internet. Quicker, in fact than the office!
I've rather stumbled into being able to Work from Home. A change in role within my company, the global nature of our business and not needing to be in the office to do my job effectively and managing school age small people, not to mention a wife who is a teacher, means that it's just simpler to work from home most of the time. Today, is, in fact, my first day in the office in 2 weeks.
My colleagues in London (the one in England not Ontario) are rather jealous! It's all rather nice after working in offices/manufacturing plants/warehouses for close on 30 years to be able to do this. The downside of course is less clear delineation between work time and personal time. So far I seem to be able to manage this to my advantage but midnight emails followed by 6.30am emails the next day are not unheard of.
I've rather stumbled into being able to Work from Home. A change in role within my company, the global nature of our business and not needing to be in the office to do my job effectively and managing school age small people, not to mention a wife who is a teacher, means that it's just simpler to work from home most of the time. Today, is, in fact, my first day in the office in 2 weeks.
My colleagues in London (the one in England not Ontario) are rather jealous! It's all rather nice after working in offices/manufacturing plants/warehouses for close on 30 years to be able to do this. The downside of course is less clear delineation between work time and personal time. So far I seem to be able to manage this to my advantage but midnight emails followed by 6.30am emails the next day are not unheard of.
Sep 26th 2018, 7:29 pm
#78
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2018
Location: priced out of Waterloo
Posts: 105
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Luckily not had to use a VPN for work in a long time. Our support guy does have to use it to access the customer sites.
Sep 26th 2018, 8:31 pm
#79
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
An issue with that is infrastructure. I don't think there are many places in Canada from which a VPN connection can be sustained all day (and yes I'm sure posters here run fiber across the Atlantic to BT and are fine).
In Vancouver I enjoyed dinner here: Aucomptoir – aucomptoir – cafe parisien I also enjoyed the Sea to Sky Gondola. Granted these aren't particularly Vancouver things, it could have been the Select Bistro and the cable car at Niagara but they had nothing to do with snow and nothing to do with sports. I don't think one need be sporty anymore than one need be sporty in Toronto. It is however true that, if you undress someone in Vancouver, then under the sou'wester you will find spandex. The appearance of sportiness is important, actually being sporty is not.
In Vancouver I enjoyed dinner here: Aucomptoir – aucomptoir – cafe parisien I also enjoyed the Sea to Sky Gondola. Granted these aren't particularly Vancouver things, it could have been the Select Bistro and the cable car at Niagara but they had nothing to do with snow and nothing to do with sports. I don't think one need be sporty anymore than one need be sporty in Toronto. It is however true that, if you undress someone in Vancouver, then under the sou'wester you will find spandex. The appearance of sportiness is important, actually being sporty is not.
It is NOT a true statement .
I know about 50 people who do not wear spandex under their sou'wester (or under any other kind of outer clothing).
I would classify your statement as at the best exaggeration and at the worst as fake news!
I admit, however, that unfortunately I know by sight some elderly (75 and older) men and women who should NOT be wearing spandex, but it is de rigueur clothing for cyclists on a Saturday and Sunday morning run that always end up at a coffee shop where they eat some sugary sickening snack! I thank heaven I don't see them walking down the street in their spandex on Monday (or any other day)!
Of course, your statement does beg the question "how many Vancouverites did you undress to verify what you said?"
Sep 26th 2018, 10:32 pm
#80
Tea Drinker
Joined: Nov 2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
Posts: 5,387
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Cycling shorts made a come back over the Summer apparently https://www.bbc.com/news/business-45650099
Sep 29th 2018, 5:48 pm
#81
Dive Bar Drunk
Joined: Nov 2006
Location: Toronto
Posts: 8,649
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
https://www.standrewsfishandchips.co...us-directions/
Sep 29th 2018, 6:45 pm
#82
Account Closed
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 0
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Sep 29th 2018, 11:59 pm
#83
Assimilated Pauper
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2005
Location: Ontario
Posts: 40,018
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
Toronto clothes: "A limited selection of clothes that people wore in Europe 10 years ago that are finally coming into fashion at a premium price with GST still to be added."
This was his reco. Not sure if it's walkable though!
https://www.standrewsfishandchips.co...us-directions/
This was his reco. Not sure if it's walkable though!
https://www.standrewsfishandchips.co...us-directions/
Sep 30th 2018, 5:47 am
#84
.
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 20,185
Re: Vancouver, still not my cup of tea.
I’m in Vancouver again visiting my daughter who loves it here and thinks she’ll stay for the foreseeable. The beauty of the mountains and the fascination of her job are enough for her. I don’t like it at all. If cold and damp was ok with me I’d choose Ireland or Newfoundland and be in a sociable place. I've been here a couple of days and already I've had enough of everyone having a consumptive cough.Things I’ve heard on this trip that I didn’t know and throw out here for debate follow (I’m not going to rehash the points from my earlier Vancouver threads except that it remains the city that diversity forgot).
- Absurdly low property tax rates are a cause of resentment.
- There’s a social polarisation between homeowners and renters and one cannot earn enough here to achieve social mobility from one class to the other.
- As a consequence of the above there’s a reverse snobbery whereby couples who would be affluent in other cities (two lawyers, two doctors, combinations thereof) shun homeowners as they’re deemed to live in another world “people think that because they’re teachers they’re of the people but, if their house is worth eight million dollars, they no longer belong”.
- There’s the reverse tension “at a recent town hall meeting someone said, ‘I’ve rented in Point Grey for 15 years, it’s my neighbourhood too’ and someone shouted ‘you don’t own it’ and there was applause for the shouter.
- The school system allows parents to choose any school, there’s no catchment area arrangement, so one can live next to a school and yet be obliged to have one’s children bussed to a far one. False Creek Elementary is an example of a school populated by children from away at the expense of the local children.
- Unusually for Canada the social divide means that private schooling is a popular option and the public schools are something of a dumping ground dealing with a disproportionate population of ESL and otherwise troublesome students. Essentially the school system is more American than Canadian and one should be prepared to pay for schooling.
Sep 30th 2018, 3:23 pm
#85
Assimilated Pauper
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2005
Location: Ontario
Posts: 40,018
Sep 30th 2018, 5:11 pm
#86
Oscar nominated
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: Moncton, NB, CANADA
Posts: 50,862
Oct 2nd 2018, 12:17 am
#89
Stand-up Philosopher
Joined: Apr 2009
Location: Regina Saskatchewan
Posts: 16,344
