Top Ten Canadian Christmas Gifts

Whether you are buying a gift for a resident Canadian or an expat, here's a list of suggestions sure to please any Canuck.

10.  Toque. It's get cold here in winter and you need to keep your head warm.  If you are sending your present south, it can always start a fashion trend.

9.  Maple syrup.  What else do you put on pancakes on a cold winter morning but 100% pure Canadian maple syrup.

8.  Skates.  From 2 to 100, everyone needs a pair of skates for their backyard rink.

Migrate, adapt or hibernate? How to deal with Canadian Winters

Well with the first of December came our first snow of the season.  The Weather Channel has begun their updates on ski resorts and sports stores are busy with Christmas shoppers purchasing skis, sleds, snowboards and skates.  When I was young, I loved the snow and wintertime.  There's nothing like building a snowman or having a snowball fight on a snow day.  I remember having no problem getting up early on a school day to listen to the radio, fingers crossed, waiting for my school to be named as a closure.  But alas, as a grown-up, there are no more snow days for me.  So how do we get through the next four(hopefully), or five(more likely) months.   Our choices

Merry Christmas! Am I allowed to say that?

Black Friday begins the Season of Shopping.  As shoppers rush around looking for the great deals available this weekend, I am at home decorating my house for Christmas and pondering the political correctness that has clouded over the Season of Peace and Giving.
Our city has changed the "Merry Christmas" lights that have lit up our city my entire life to "Seasons Greetings".  There was even talk a few years back to

If our World is so mobile, why am I still here?

When the temperature starts to drop below 0 (32 for you Americans), the question always enters my mind.  Why do I still live here?  In an age when moving is so easily facilitated by air planes and moving companies,  and corporations have head offices all around the world, why do I choose to stay in Canada?  The idea of transporting myself to somewhere warmer permanently is so attractive and exciting.  And yet here I still am, in the same city, for 40 something years.  My kids are grown and don't need me (just my bank card) and I now have the freedom to go where I want to.  So out comes the notepad to compile my list of pros and cons.

The Canadian Melting Pot

As we cheer on Canada in the Olympics, we are drawn to watching and proudly exposing our roots.  Flags fly from homes and cars displaying our heritage.  One of the wonderful things about Canada is being able to enjoy everything this nation has to offer and be able to build communities that represent the culture of our parents.  Both of my parents are from

Canadians dodging the Tax Man in Retirement

When making plans to retire, Canadians are not just thinking about when to retire but also where to retire. The strong Canadian dollar and the distressed housing market in the United States has Canadians looking south to retire. The National Association of Realtors in America says that Canadians make up 23% of foreign home purchases. That's up 114% and Canadians are now the largest foreign investors in real estate. And they don't see that trend ending any time soon.  But do your research before you buy. Find a realtor where you plan to purchase that specializes in Canadian investment in real estate.  Depending on where you purchase, you could be hit by higher mortgage rates, larger down payments and higher property taxes.

Taxes are another lure for Canadian retirees.

What makes Canada so attractive?

Many Americans are now making the move north to the new "land of opportunity".   Record high unemployment rates in the United States has the number of Americans applying for visas soaring. Conversely, Canadians moving south has decreased significantly.  It seems that the "brain drain" of the eighties is reversing itself.  Ottawa approved approximately 35,000 visas to American citizens for each of the past two years.  All must have employment secured in an approved field to fast track through the approval system.  For the fourth consecutive month, Canada has added jobs and seen an increase in wages.  The unemployment rate has fallen to 7.2% for the month of June.  Many IT companies are taking advantage of the express Visas to fill positions in the tech field when unable to fill them at home.  Ontario GDP grew in the first quarter of 2012 and also had an increase in consumer spending, residential construction, exports and imports.   Canadian expats ,because of job loss and/or the housing recession in the United States, are also moving back.   Post Secondary students are also coming to study in Canada.  Students take advantage of our lower tuition and high education standards.  If your a resident Canadian, stop your whining, we look pretty darn good compared to a lot of other countries.

How to make your visit back home memorable

This is the time of year when many expat Canadians head home for a visit. If you have to use up all of your vacation time from work, you want to get the most out of your time, as well as meet up with all of your family and friends. Try something different on this trip and go or do something you haven't done before. Treat this trip just like you would any other vacation and research where you would want to go or what you would like to see. If you have seen the Falls a million times, why would you do that again? Check out the following links I have found to get you started:

Unusual places to stay:
http://gocanada.about.com/od/wheretostay/tp/unusual_places_to_stay.htm

Unusual things to do:
http://www.yougodo.com/en/Unusual-things-to-do-in-Canada/Search.aspx?cc=CA&c=114

Treat this trip back home like a vacation and have more to talk about than your aunt's new bunions when you get back to work.  Explore your homeland, take lots of pictures, make new memories and welcome home, we missed you!

How to save money on your cellphone bill when travelling

It's vacation time but before you cross the border, think about how you will keep in contact with home. Too many times I have come home to a huge cellphone bill because I under estimated how much I would use my phone when I was away. First check if your current cellphone plan can be adjusted to suit your needs for the location you will be vacationing in. If it does, your good to go! Don't forget if you have an iPhone/iPad/iPod, you can use skype as well as wireless connections for free!  If none of those options work for you, plan on your first day to go to a local cellphone store or large department store, like Target or Walmart, where you are vacationing. Make sure they carry a variety of cellphone providers so that you can make the best choice for you. Purchase a pay as you go phone. You should have no trouble finding a phone for around $10 if you choose a basic phone. Next, you purchase a phone card. These come in many denominations. The higher the amount, the longer your new phone and number will be active and able to be topped up. For example,

Does getting rid of the penny make sense?

Many countries have already removed some of their lowest denominations from circulation and in the fall, the Canadian Government will follow suit and stop producing the penny.   It will then gradually begin to remove them from circulation.  It cost more to produce the penny than its face value. This will save $11 million dollars. What does this mean to consumers?   If you pay by plastic (interac or credit), you will still pay to the penny. If you pay by cash, the transaction will be rounded to the nearest denomination. If you work in retail like I do, you know that over 80% of all transactions are now completed using plastic, so how much will this really affect us? Probably not much and if it saves us money than I am for it. There are certainly a lot of other programs funded by the government that could use it. If you are a coin collector, start hoarding your pennies because once they are all gone I am sure their value will go up. Ironic isn't it?

Update:  Circulation of the penny has been extended to February 4, 2013.

How is buying a home in Canada changing?

If you are planning to buy a home or re-finance your home in Canada, you have two more days before the new mortgage rules take effect. Canadians debt to income ratio sky rocketed to over 150% in the last quarter of 2011. In an effort to reduce that number, the Canadian Government has made several changes to mortgage lending rules. As of July 9th, the maximum amortization period for mortgages will be lowered to 25 years from 30. This will increase homeowners monthly payment, but reduce the overall interest paid on the life of the mortgage. The Gross Debt Ration (housing costs) will also be capped at 39% of household income. There has not been any change to the first time home buyer down payment of 5% but the amortization and ratio cap will certainly reduce the mortgage amount first time home buyers will be able to secure. And if your looking to refinance your home, the maximum amount has been lowered to 80% of your home's value, down from 85%.  Certainly these new rules will benefit both banks and homeowners and when I look to the devastation the housing market has gone through in the States, maybe we do need someone to save us from biting off more than we can chew.

Blackberry made us proud to be Canadian

Original post dated Thursday, July 5, 2012.

What was the one thing that President Obama said he would miss the most when he took office? His Blackberry! For a long time if you owned a Blackberry, you had the best and you were cool. Now the whole world watches the news for any tidbit of information about our little company from Waterloo that took over and changed the cellphone market. No one can turn away from looking at the train wreck. I believe it is not over till the fat lady sings. I loved my Blackberry Pearl and I am hoping that the BB10 will surprise everyone. Don't give up RIM, you can do it! Make us proud to be Canadian and show the world that they should never under estimate us.

Update:  Today RIM has launched the BB10 and changed its name to reflect its icon of smartphone technology, Blackberry.  The all touchscreen Blackberry will be available starting in March in North America and the qwerty keyboard version will be available in April.  Analysts have debated now for months the future of RIM and it seems they are split in their  predictions.  I believe they will not only survive but regain a comfortable percentage of the smartphone market.  If it were not for their cash reserve they would not have made it this far and I applaud their fiscal responsibility.  We could all learn from this.  Even when hit by hard times, they survived.  I am also impressed that they were not pushed into bringing a product to market that they felt was not ready.  All of us have dealt with technology rushed to shelves with too many bugs. (Windows 2000 anyone?). There's a lull right now in new smartphones and they could woo back their customers.  And consumers are getting tired of Apple launching product after product.  If I buy something new, let me be secure in the fact that I have the latest technology at least for a year!  And lastly, we need this.  North America has become a market of consumers and an ecomony can not survive without manufacturing.  We should throw our support behind home grown technology.  It creates jobs and boosts the GDP.  I have a Blackberry and I love it!  Go Canuck!

Free wi-fi at Timmies!

Tim Horton's announced today that they will be bringing free wi-fi to 90% of their stores by Septmenber. That means over 2,000 locations country wide. I live in Hamilton, Ontario, where store number one still serves. I never will forget when my now husband came to Hamilton for the first time. He thought I was exaggerating when I said we have a Timmies on every block. I can name several intersections that have Timmies on 3 of the 4 corners. Needless to say, if you live in Hamilton, you will not have to pay for Internet access ever again. So if you plan a vacation this year to the Great Hot North (it's going to be 123 Fahrenheit tomorrow with the humidex) remember to bring your laptop, order a double double and get connected for free.

Target's Move into Canada

Target is moving into Canada like a shot (bully's eye). Target, after acquiring more than 220 Zellers locations, will be opening in 2013 across the country. The big red balls outside their stores are not unfamiliar to us as many of us have crossed the border and shopped there. I actually prefer shopping in their clothes department as opposed to their competition. According to Target they will be employing 50% more employees than their predecessor, Zellers. What does this mean to Canadians? Jobs for all of their locations are beginning to show up on job boards. Many in the retail industry might be thinking of applying or have been solicited. I would love to hear from current Target employees in the U.S. What is your work experience with Target? What should we expect?

Your Latte Factor-Make your own Ice Cap/Coffee

You don't have to give up your little indulgences. Save money and make your own ice coffee at home for pennies a glass.

Don't throw out that left over coffee in the pot. Simply pour the excess into ice cube trays and freeze.

To make an individual size ice coffee, place 7 to 8 iced coffee cubes into a blender. Pour in cream (or use milk for low fat) till it covers approximately 3/4 of the iced coffee cubes. Add 4 tablespoons of your favourite chocolate powder or chocolate sauce. Blend until smooth.