Thank you so much for providing the source! I LOVE THIS.
Totally! I checked and over half the stuff that I forward is posted by @ickplant - posting content is a lot harder than lurking - but giving credit adds so much depth.
I LOVE that they just posted the source because I get to TRULY enjoy the post now.
I love the sentiment - but does anyone know if it's real? Or who the original poster is? @ickplant posts a lot of... borrowed content... I mean it's great content - but I sure don't trust the veracity. Fact checking and due credit matters - even on 'feel good' stuff.
A bunch o' ridings were gearing up for recall campaigns before the federal election got called. A whole lot of folks were distributing literature and rallying volunteers until folks refocused on the federal election.
Once the election is done, I'm pretty confident that'll ramp up again - the UCP ain't getting less corrupt. Check out abresistance.ca for info.
I was at a farmer's market here in Calgary remarking at a) how amazing the quality of local greenhouse veggies are and b) sad how quickly everyone forgot about the price gouging of the major grocery chains.
Now, being able to pay a few extra bucks for local farmers market stuff requires having the disposable cash to afford it and a lot of folks are more worried about feeding their kids than shopping as a statement - so no judgment - but it's a shame we've been distracted by Trump as to the way corporations have been killing competition through monopolistic practices.
CNIB Pup Crawl 2025
Hey everyone — let me know if this feels too promotional and I’ll happily take it down.
My partner and I are currently raising and training a future guide dog puppy named Stetson for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). These dogs are provided at no cost to people who need them — but demand far outpaces supply.
It takes 18–24 months to train a guide dog, and even then, only about half make it through the full program. Once placed, a guide dog works for only 6–8 years before retiring. That means one person might rely on up to ten guide dogs throughout their life.
These dogs are brilliant and unbelievably disciplined. Stetson will only go to the bathroom on command (so his future human knows it's safe and appropriate). When he's wearing his vest, he’s all business — you can drop kibble right in front of him and he won’t flinch. And when we say “head in”, he puts on his vest himself (we just do the buckle).
A really crazy concept is 'intelligent disobedience' - these
Looks like a knock-off of the 1UP bike rack. The 1UP racks slap as long as you are okay with Made-in-USA. They are mostly aluminum construction so none of the corrosion issues you see in less expensive racks.
Personally, I'm planning on a Khyber (made in Canada) for my new car.
The provided link is to a directory site and the link dead ends. There seems to be a ton of low effort copy-paste spam from this directory site.
I can understand providing a link to the directory site in one post - but a post about a specific business should provide direct links to the Canadian business in question - not to this directory.
Vagabond Pet Supplies
Just got a crate bed from Vagabond Pet Supply - made right here in Alberta.
Stetson, our CNIB guide pup in training hugely approves of the his thick new bed and they even sent along a knotted chew toy made from scraps of material.
I haven't tried it yet, but they also sell enzymatic cleaner in large containers. We have three cats, and a rotating cast of foster cats in addition to our training pup, so we go through the stuff like crazy. I ordered a gallon.
I kinda like pet-chem if we're going to do more upgrading - and sure enough we're seeing activity in the space.
Refineries produce gasoline (for old cars), diesel (for old trucks), and oils (there's alternatives). Refineries are for antiquated tech that were trying to phase out IMO.
Upgrading light ends (methane, ethane, propane, etc) are what I'd be investing in if I was looking at fossil fuels investment. We have LOTS of gas plants sweetening and fractionating that stuff so the product streams are there and the emissions intensity of that end is WAY better than liquids.
Dow is building a huge ethane cracker to produce polyethylene. IPL has the Heartland petrochemical complex that's going to be soaking up immense amounts of propane to produce polypropylene pellets. I haven't checked what Nova is up to lately, but I can promise you they're looking to grow in the space.
I don't love polymers, but we COULD recycle it if we were smart and unlike combustion where everything ends up in the atmosphere, a landfill full of plastic is actually carbon sequestration when you think about it.
Methane (natural gas) is worth approximately nothing at the moment, but coastal LNG exports will help China et al. ween off coal while they continue to build out renewables and Europe needs LNG for similar reasons and timescales.
Source - random internet person
I live and work downtown Calgary in an O&G related field (emissions reduction analysis - it's a frustrating job). I listen to a LOT of anti-Smith diatribes. The UCP mostly gets elected by rural ridings. They have about half of Calgary, and I don't know why they even bother running candidates in Edmonton.
There's a lot similarities to BC actually - BC votes conservative (whatever they call themselves) most places outside of Vancouver and Victoria.
There's even recall campaign talk in Calgary at the moment because people are hoping to force an early election to try and force the UCP out. (abresistance.ca for any Calgary homies who are interested in getting involved)
I think that the scale of investment involved in oil sands development necessitates MUCH longer range planning than relatively short political cycles.
There's may be something to be said maximizing CAPEX when the commodity pricing sucks. Spending pullback from the more boom/bust centric conventional/frac operators reduces competition for trades and key manufacturers.
I think the differentiator at the moment is the lack of predictability. Normally your financial models only have to factor in modest price uncertainty. Right now the tariffs change so quickly that who knows what things will cost. I don't have a clue how you price a project in this environment. I pitty project managers.
Steel plate and pipe is easy to source domestically - especially when the US buyers aren't tying up Evraz capacity. Big inch valves would start to get tricky I think - but it's been over a decade since I was working in that space. Coatings are Dupont and 3M for buried assets - so lots of risk exposure there.
Personally, if I operated any major facilities (fractionation/refineries) I'd be looking at what turnaround/maintenance work I could be pulling forward right now. When oil's booming, you don't want to shut down your money machine to do repairs.
Huh, I thought it was just me that did that - I just assumed everyone else was so much more disciplined than me...
I've got a 5kW array of panels so yea, piddly stuff like charging USB is nothing - it's more the principal of the thing.
My EV charger is definitely the biggie. The system will dynamically adjust charging current in 1A steps to make use of available excess generation. It works pretty well - 16kWh spinning my meter backwards would earn me a whole $1.50 - instead it added ~20% charge to the car.
I know a number of people who got too much buildup from over applying and decided it was crap. My advice was always - be more lazy.
I damn near bankrupted myself to buy a Bertazzoni induction range. Zero regrets. It ain't Canadian but the EU are homies (mostly) and have some damn nice appliances. We have a Bosch dishwasher that was made in Germany and I didn't realize that dishwashers could actually wash dishes until I got it (ten years old and still works beautifully).
Shit's expensive as hell so there's a lot of privilege that goes into my 'damn the cost' strategy and it definitely isn't for everyone.
Try the dry lube - it changed my life. That said, don't over apply - every complaint I've seen is due to over application.
Okay, I'm curious, I'll see what I can find. I just got a made in Canada Razor, shave bar, and brush so I've been down parallel rabbit holes ;)
Naw, I have a super efficient heat pump and my water heater has been on for about ten minutes today. When high demand stuff kicks in my system kills off discretionary loads until I'm not exceeding my production. And this is in Canada...
I think California has ~80% of the almond market which is absolutely absurd considering the water demand for producing almonds.
I've switched to oat milk in my coffee but am still divesting from almond flour...
The EU is currently pushing for a non-US alternative to the big two credit card processors.
It still uses the same networks, but you should check out Neo Financial - great cashback, they work specifically with small vendors, and their offices are in the same building as me here in Calgary.
Demand side load management - of USB
Thanks to Emporia's excellent tools, I have outlets and usb chargers in my house that only work when I'm generating excess solar. I don't need my power banks every day so they get plugged into those outlets.
Oh, and my car. My car only charges as fast as my solar generation permits. I love Emporia.
What can't you find a Made in Canada version of?
I've been doing the 'buy Canadian' thing for a few years now. I actually enjoy the game of trying to find cool folks making cool stuff and I know that there are others like me just like there are people who lack the time or inclination to do the research.
I also think it can be tricky for people looking at starting a business to be able to identify a need.
So what's a product you don't know of a Canadian alternative to?
Personally, it's cast iron cookware. Meyer makes great stainless stuff, but there isn't a single foundry making cast iron cookware in Canada. I've actually started emailing a few to see if I can find a Canadian foundry that would be willing to batch produce cast iron skillets. Finding a local brand already doing it would be a LOT easier!
First from scratch build
I previously built a Rotate Watches kit but wanted to build something where I wasn't constrained by kits. It would let me chase the look I wanted and ensure that I had figured out how sizing and part compatibility works.
Seagull St3600 movement (about to be replaced with a genuine ETA 6497), sapphire crystals front and back.
I'm currently designing my own case and dial in CAD and am planning on trying to mill my own parts as my next step.
Let me know what you think!
NF Designs - Abandoning Canada
Heads up to cyclists - NF Designs - makers of super nice riding wear is moving production to the US. Their stuff was made in Vancouver until recently - but they just announced that they are moving production. It isn't super clear from their website so I emailed asking if it was EVERYTHING or just select products that would be made in the US and their response sounds like it's everything.
Looks like I need to find a new brand of riding gear!
Send and respond to DM's?
Hi all - I'm a several-times-a-day Thunder user and really enjoy the app. It's steadily evolving and improving which is awesome to see and I really appreciate the efforts of the dev team.
One thing that I think is missing is the ability to send and respond to DM's. Is that accurate (or am I just incompetent) and if so, is there an accepted alternative for handling DM's?
Disability advocates are frustrated by a move from the provincial government that means those on income support won’t see an expected $200 boost. “So not only will this impact me, but it also impacts my friends here,” said Alana Gersky, an AISH beneficiary. At an event to mark World Down Syndrome Da...
The federal government just increased support for individuals with major disabilities by $200/month. Smith and the UCP are clawing it back by reducing AISH by the same amount.
I've volunteered with folks on AISH - they aren't getting by. They have to beg and plead for the basic supports to live life with the hand they were dealt. The UCP thinks they can do this because most of us don't have a close friend or family member who depends on AISH.
We need to prove them wrong.
Alberta’s premier and health minister are both staying tight-lipped on new reporting that alleges their government fired the board of Alberta Health Services the same day it was set to receive an investigator’s report on AHS business deals.
A public inquiry seems pretty justified given the magnitude of the financials involved...
The US may be able to remotely disable F-35 aircraft
According to reports, a software back-door switch will turn the aircraft off if the client state does not follow Washington’s diktat in the use of the F-35.
I haven't done adequate due diligence yet - could be inaccurate
I came across this article alleging that Germany is considering bailing on the F-35 aircraft because the US can remotely disable them.
If the US could do this to German F-35s, presumably they can do it to ours....
Additional reporting alleging concern in Canadian defence circles
Google relabling Canadian parks as 'state parks'
Some Google Maps users in Canada are claiming provincial parks have been labelled as 'state' parks.
Calgary police confirm that the force is facing a $28-million shortfall in its 2025 operating budget and dealing with it will have impacts across the organization.
tl;dr: Police "Insulted" by insinuations photo radar has been used as a cash cow. Also police: Requirement to restrict photo radar to school zones, construction sites, and locations with demonstrably higher collision rates due to speeding has resulted in a $28M funding gap for Calgary ALONE.
Made in Canada boots - solid value
Shoes and boots are one of the few items where you have a ton of made in Canada options.
I've gotten pairs from a few different brands and the stand out value is the WM. Moorby line by Canada West. My set haave been durable, and look as good as boots I've bought at twice the price. They aren't cheap ($300+) but they can be resoled so they should last roughly forever.
Vet thinks my tiny terror has FIP
Got the pretty brutal news that one of our three cats is suspected to have FIP. Luckily, treatments have become available in the last couple of years so I'm trying to not get carried away freaking out - but this poor thing has had a tough go.
She came to us as part of a foster litter of kittens without a mom. She was half the size of her siblings and super malnourished. Long after her siblings were adopted, she stayed with us. She had allergies requiring special food and daily (expensive) meds and no one wanted to adopt a higher needs cat. She then had a reaction to her meds which caused excessive gum growth so the shelter decided she needed all of her incisors pulled. At that point she'd been with us for over a year and was fully integrated with our two cats. We decided that maybe this was her forever home and hoped that we could better manage her care by working directly with our vet instead of coordinating through the shelter.
Wrapping our heads around her now having FIP is rough
Absurdly proud of terrible stitching
I have an absolutely incredible set of moose hide trigger mits by Hides In Hand - a traditional leather crafter in Canada who use locally sourced hides.
I backcountry ski a lot and DESTROY gear. My hides in hand mits are the most durable and comfortable mits I've ever had. The issue is the acrylic fleece liners - I blow through them.
So I decided to make a set of sheepskin liners. I went to Bill Worb Furs - who source pelts from traditional hunters and trappers (read: mostly, but not all indigenous) and scored some hides.
I deconstructed the original liners, made a pattern and made these new liners. Cost me $30CAD and I have material for a couple more.
Totally pointless, could have bought replacements, but it was a super fun project for someone who has never made something like this before.
I built a quick web tool to compare home heating emissions for different heat sources.
I put this together to help me understand how fluctuating emissions from the electrical grid and outdoor temperature impact the environmental performance of a heat pump compared to a natural gas furnace.
Would love feedback!
Officer charged with failing to provide life-saving aid during call | Suspended with pay
A Durham regional police officer has been charged with failing to provide the necessaries of life following an investigation into an incident that took place in March.
Information is limited - and likely to remain that way given the recalcitrance of police when it comes to their own.
Right now all of the news outlets are running the same wire service article, but hopefully a journalist digs in farther.
Officers were looking for a different Black man — wanted in a domestic incident — when Sgt. Rachel Saliba spotted Hasani O’Gilvie on his way to class. The “mistaken identity”
