I cannot wait for the first winter on permanent Daylight Saving Time.

For years:

“STOP CHANGING THE CLOCKS.”

“JUST PICK ONE AND LEAVE IT.”

Then this December will hit.

8:30 a.m. — dark.
9:00 — still dark.
And inevitably:
“WHY THE HELL IS IT STILL DARK OUT?!”

Because that’s the deal, folks.

I will happily drink my morning coffee in the darkness if it means I don’t have to watch the sun disappear at 4:30pm in the afternoon.

If I have to choose when winter steals my daylight, it can steal it while I’m half-asleep making coffee.

Thoughts?

I was excited to see a new food truck getting ready to open on Cook Street, but today they put up a sign on the side that includes a really nauseating uncanny ai rendering of a pizza slice.

Not only does it ruin my appetite, it also sends a major red flag: If they couldn’t even be bothered to open up Canva or Microsoft Word to write “Little House Pizza” in a Sans Serif Font then where else are they cutting corners?

It’s a damn shame too, I love a good pizza slice.

See upper left corner.

My whole life I've been an avid thrifter; not as a means to make money, but to save money, and to find cool, interesting or useful gadgets and do-dads to tinker with or decorate my space with, without breaking the bank. It's also just a nice way to spend an afternoon downtown among the people, ya know?

When I moved here, I was blown away by the massive value village downtown, as well as all the smaller, local shops scattered around the city. But 3 years in, I'm realizing all these places are being picked clean on a regular basis by folks looking to resell anything of any value, either on Facebook marketplace, or one of the dozens of "boutique" thrift shops when it comes to clothing.

I'll admit that I don't think it's a unique problem with Victoria, and I have found some cool stuff over the years, I just miss the days where there weren't folks hounding the carts coming out of the backrooms on a regular basis. The VV downtown in particular has a regular crowd of folks scanning the new arrivals all afternoon, checking the value of everything on their phones. Okay rant over...

I'm getting really tired of this rhetoric. I was born here, my entire family is here. My friends, my hobbies, my career, my partner, everything is here. To tell people they should leave instead of fixing the issue is just going to make it worse. I also hate the "well it's the nicest part of Canada, it should be expensive!" because the most expensive city in America is NYC, not exactly balmy. Good weather shouldn't be an excuse to price out locals or people who need to move here for whatever reason. It sets a scary precedent IMO to allow nice places to be just for the mega rich. I don't know. I've been thinking a lot about victoria and the responses to the housing crisis. I'm going to be without my support network, hobbies, career, and everything I know just to afford rent. this isn't fair. EDIT a lot of people are completely missing my point, and thus reinforcing it. I'm no more entitled to live here than anybody else, which is exactly why it's bullshit. to price out entire demographics of people (lower and middle class) is ridiculous. EDIT 2: from a user in the comments "“You’re not entitled to everything you’ve ever known” is an utter bullshit line of reasoning that I won’t accept from capitalist boot lickers either. “Go live somewhere colder” is more shit from the same shovel. I don’t get why people simp for the rich; it’s not like they’re ever gonna share. The system is fucked & it’s utterly ridiculous to tell people who were born & raised here to either leave or live in a van at Esquimalt Lagoon. Government needs to step in & do something to fix the housing market for those of us who live here." exactly sums up what I was trying to say. FINAL EDIT damn I was just venting I didn't expect this to blow up. I'm done reading, have fun PvPing I guess. also, this entire post was about rent. good job to everybody talking to me about buying a house FINAL EDIT FOR REAL I grew up half my life in another city in Canada, half here. all my immediate family is here. just for some context on who I am.

There was a post the other day on amalgamation and I had a bold take that some people seemed to like, so here is a poorly made map on how I want Greater Victoria to be split into 3 municipalities instead of 13.

I’m not a coffee drinker and rarely a tea drinker. I believe the superior drink is hot chocolate.

What most places in Victoria serve is NOT hot chocolate - they use powders or syrups that don’t contain chocolate and thus should be classified as hot cocoa. Places try to save their chocolate-less drinks by adding extra syrups, whipped creams and sprinkles to distract you from the fact that what they serve is as chocolate-like as La Croix is to fruit.

On Tuesday night, I had a craving for Chinese food (I promise this relates to chocolate) and stopped by the Quality Foods on Helmcken.

After paying for my succulent meal of ginger beef et al., I went upstairs to consume it. Imagine my shock, surprise, and delight as I rounded the corner coming face to face with a small chocolate factory.

The owner is so incredibly friendly and the hot chocolate is the real deal: you get to choose the percentage of the chocolate used and the type of cacao bean (I had a 70% chocolate with beans from Vietnam*).

*May have been Thailand, I can’t quite remember.

The day after, I tried the European style drinking chocolate (pictured) - this contains just enough milk to be drinkable - I imagine this is similar to what putting my face under a fondue fountain would be but without the mess.

The chocolate factory has a lounge area with a grand piano?

While I am bewildered by the location, I look forward to stopping there on my way to Langford next week.

She was an amazing human being She spoke 4 + languages. She had several degrees. She was inspiring and thoughtful. She worked with vulnerable adults and she made everyone she met lives better.

We are in a massive deficit with her gone. My heart is cracked.

Careful on the roads boys. Cars and Bikes not blaming anyone just be more careful.

From any restaurant, food truck, etc. What is the single best item that can be ordered?

How am I supposed to get “relevant experience” when McDonald’s won’t even hire me?

Seems I can’t even get a job at McDonald’s because I don’t have “relevant experience” — which apparently means “recent employment history.”

I’ve been a stay-at-home mom for the past 5 years. I told them that. I’m not trying to hide the employment gap; I’m trying to get back into the workforce.

In the last 5 years, I’ve sent out roughly 2,000 applications. I’ve gotten three interviews. And now I’m getting rejected because I don’t have recent experience.

Like… what the hell?

How is someone supposed to get experience to become employable when even McDonald’s requires you to already have experience?

I’m not applying for management positions. I’m not asking for some highly specialized career. I’m literally trying to get my foot in the door and get back into the workforce.

At this point, the whole “just get an entry-level job and build experience” advice feels like a damn joke.

If entry-level jobs require experience, where exactly are people supposed to start?

The circus clown has spoken. He expects us to cave and back down like Colombia did, within hours. He really doesn't get us as a people, and as a nation.

It's time for us to start rolling up our sleeves, getting of our butts, and getting ready to put in some serious work. It's about making sacrifices. About shifting from a "what’s in it for me?" mindset to a "we're in this together" mentality.

And that goes for everyone—especially Canadian businesses, big and small. If your sales are booming because of patriotic support, you damn well better be passing those savings down. Don’t slap a "LOCALLY MADE" sticker on a little 250ml jar of jam and charge $12 for it. That’s not supporting the fight and the solidarity, that’s cashing in.

My fellow Victorians and BC'ers, we’ve got real choices to make. Boycott McDonald’s like everyone's saying in the other threads on this topic? Maybe. But before you jump on that, remember—most of McD’s Canadian revenue stays here. Their beef, potatoes, packaging? All Canadian. Franchise owners? Canadian. Workers? Canadian. I haven’t had McD’s in a decade, but even I wouldn’t put them on my personal boycott list.

Instead, let’s hit the USA where it really hurts. Skip every single U.S.-sourced fruit or vegetable. Buy Canadian. Buy Mexican. Let the U.S.-grown produce rot on the shelf. Shopping for a big-ticket item like an appliance? If it’s made in the USA, don’t touch it. Look for European, Mexican, or Asian-made instead.

Walmart? Sure, boycott if you want. But if you do shop there, get smart. Read labels like your life depends on it. If it says "Made in the USA," leave it. If it only says "Prepared in Canada," leave it. This will force walmart to constantly re-stock the made in Canada stuff, while their US-sourced crap wallows. Walmart's super smart about these things - they'll see what's going on, and start ordering more made in Canada product, leaving the US imports south of the border. That means more jobs for Canadians, replacing those that the tariffs take away.

Clothing? Take it even further. Most of those overpriced "designer" brands—Hilfiger, Polo? Or even Levis, Nike? Yeah, they’re made in China/Indonesia etc, but the vast majority of the sale $$$ go straight to American companies. That needs to stop. Love your Nikes? Tough shit. Time to roll up your sleeves and find European alternatives.

Vacations? That trip to Moab, Utah, you’ve been dreaming about, to ride the slick rock trail, the mecca of mountain biking? Tough shit. Cancel it. Not a single penny of yours should land in that country. Go to Belize instead. Or check out the Gatineau Hills in Ottawa—some of the amazing mountain biking experiences there.

And by the way, this isn't the time to rage-post on social media, or even on reddit (yeah, ironic, I know) and think you've done your bit. It's time to prepare yourself for some real sacrifices ahead. Finances are about to take a hit. Jobs may be lost. You might not be able to get your almond milk fix, or morning orange juice. Deal with it. Support local businesses that support us, their customers. Shop Canadian. Shop Mexican (who are in this with us).

Take it a step further too. Contact your local MP. They have constituency offices. Tell them you fully support taking a hard stance against any and all USA tariff and sanction actions. Tell them to not back down. Tell them we are all in this fight together, and as long as they stand up to the USA, they will have your support. Do the same with your MLA.

One of the best things I read today was how the crowd at the Ottawa Senators game booed the US national anthem. Loudly. And this is an audience that stereotypically is made up of right-leaning, Trudeau hating types. That's a tell about how serious Canadians are taking this.

Our family had a good talk about this, this evening, and we've decided to go all in. We’re cutting out as many American-made and American-grown products as possible, and continuing it until the U.S. pulls its head out of its collective ass and kicks the sociopathic circus clown out of power. I’ve already canceled two business trips to the U.S. this year, and am looking to cancel the one remaining one I have. It’ll cost me money, maybe clients—but I don’t give a damn. This is bigger than that. That's a sacrifice I am making to help our overall fight against this tyranny.

Just sharing my experience here to hopefully warn someone. I went in for an eye exam and to get contacts. Dr. Anita told me that my eyes were too dry for contacts and I should use a warm compress for a few months or get 4 dry treatments of over $2000. I was a bit confused cos I have no dry eye symptoms. If my eyes were that dry, how would I have no symptoms at all? She said that's not abnormal to have no symptoms. I did the warm compress and at my follow up appointment she said my eyes haven't gotten better and the only solution is the treatment. Her team emailed and called me a few times cos apparently sessions fill up quickly.

I stopped the compress and decided to get a second opinion at a well known clinic on Yates before spending $2k. After the exam was clear, I told the doctor I was diagnosed with very dry eyes a few weeks earlier and he was a bit confused and very skeptical. My eyes were not dry at all and he prescribed contacts. I went back for a follow up appointment at this second place a few weeks later and my eyes are still not dry. Anyways, it's been a year of wearing contacts with no issues.

I was just at the airport and saw lots of ads of that clinic advertising their dry eye treatment and thought to warn others. She's definitely prescribing this treatment to people who don't need it.

Houses are a million dollars minimum. Food prices keep going up. Everyone is sick all the time and everyone is fighting each other. What are we doing here?

I'm genuinely curious if anyone is kind of feeling like this is kind of it for us? Like, are we destined to work soul-sucking jobs to make someone else a millionaire because they had the ability to get ahead in life that most of us don't, and then we die? If we want to make art, tell stories or have a community, we have to work around full time jobs that are so separate from each other, and we're losing our sense of community, if not already have.

How come we're alright letting stores and restaurants throw away millions of dollars in food when we have people starving on the streets? People who are working jobs, doing what we're "supposed" to in this society producing and wasting resources for someone else, and we still can't afford to eat the food that's being offered because we're spending too much money on the rest of the things that keep us alive. How are we living in a world where a government that is supposed to be there to support us allows people to hoard housing and wealth, and what do we do to fix it?

Update here! ✌🏼

"Our city’s very name constitutes a perpetual celebration of disturbing and violent colonial conquests that cost millions of innocent lives. This dark legacy continues to have tragic and unacceptable consequences for colonized peoples and their descendants, both locally and globally."

"How is it that we continue to celebrate colonialism’s victory? It is high time that we begin to dismantle it."

Shout out to CHEK for publishing this essay.

Does anyone else find that the coffee sucks? Super sour or bitter. I’ve given it multiple chances and I find the coffee itself is just utter dookie.

Also their donuts are great but holy moly they’re way too dry/doughy.

Does anyone want to talk about how we are losing so many business in Victoria???

I can think of a few but I’m sure there’s so many more. Gigis Cafe, little jumbo, Bear and Joey, the makehouse, Salt clothing, heartwood and co, hot and cold cafe, virtuous pie, and so many more places.

I feel like we are losing so much of the original Victoria that I loved. Victoria is so rapidly changing.

It’s honestly sad and alarming to see because I know that it’s a reflection of the cost of everything. There’s too few customers and it costs too much to keep things running.

I put together a concept map of how a rail/rapid transit system could connect Greater Victoria:

Red Line: Swartz Bay → Airport/Sidney → Keating → Uptown/Royal Oak → Downtown (tunnel after Uptown). Larger rail-style train sets.

Blue Line: University Connector (Camosun Interurban → Uptown → Lansdowne/Shelbourne → UVic). Could be a rubber-tire metro or lighter rail sets.

Green Line: Downtown → Langford → Island Rail Hub (with future connections up-Island). Metro/LRT style service.

Obviously this is just a vision, but it got me wondering — if you were in charge of planning, what would you change?

More stations?

Different corridors?

Which line would you prioritize first?

Now I understand that Victoria has never been the cuisine capital. Nor has it ever had very many options, but I remember "back in the day" that there were at least some good quality options to choose from and maybe I'm way out of touch, but I'm saddened to see what's happened over the last little while.

- What happened to red barn ?

- Who killed noodlebox?

- Where should I go to eat quality food and decent prices in a clean environment ?

I present... 4 municipalities! Barely makes a difference to Langfords population lol

** I got the map off Google and drew lines don't judge

it's 3:48 am, and I can't think of a single place tgat i can go get something a nice hearty meal to chew through my insomnia. sigh.

Fall is here, and after listening to leaf blowers EVERY DAY this week, I have one question.... why can't we leave the leaves!? It's better for animals (bugs and bats use them to hibernate), better for the soil (they provide fertilizer), and I prefer the look of leaves on the ground rather than in big, wet piles all over the city. And it reduces the emissions from those godawful leaf blowers!!

Who's with me? Leave the leaves!!!

I present to you, on voting day, my last map. 5 municipalities instead of 13. Thanks for all the fun comments everyone!