Edmonton

The real reason the Oilers suck

It’s not the coach, our defense, offense, youthfulness nor the fact that we don’t have a A-lister goalie. It’s not because it is a “building” year, or because we don’t check enough, lack locker room leadership, or [insert any theory here]. Every year for the past 6 years we hear all of these excuses as reasons for our team’s lackluster performance. The Oilers themselves know they suck. They have fired coaches and GMs, traded, benched and publicly berated players. Yet nothing changes. We continue to lose. We continue to live in the league’s basement. Why? What’s the real reason the […]

Look forward and back

Every so often opportunities come along where you step back and realize life has been preparing you for that exact moment in time. Before these moments happen, you catch yourself in challenging, everyday experiences and think, “Why am I doing this?”, “What’s the point?”, or most appropriately, “Is this actually happening?” 🙂  You wonder if your efforts, toil and stress are taking you towards something hard-earned and great, or if you will be left with only bruises and (hopefully) lessons learned. Lately, I’ve been lucky enough to have a few of these a-ha moments, both personally and professionally. Extreme moments of […]

Significance

On October 2, 2012, Edmonton will step up once again with the opening of Valour Place. Valour Place is like Ronald McDonald House, but for injured soldiers as it provides “hope away from home” for Canadian Forces and RCMP members, veterans and their families when they are in Edmonton for medical treatment and rehabilitation. Valour Place is significant on so many levels. It’s the first home of its kind in Canada and it’s right here in Edmonton. It’s an initiative led by the community, for Canada’s military community. A team of hard working and connected Edmontonians took an idea conceived […]

In extraordinary company

Humbled. Flattered. Honoured. Touched. Thrilled. Inspired.  I am running out of past participles in response to Avenue Magazine Edmonton selecting me as one of the Top 40 Under 40 for 2011. As was the case in the previous two years, the list of Edmontonians they have recognized in 2011 is an impressive one.  Professors. Media celebrities. PhDs. Creative gurus. Presidents. Artists. Technology leaders. Educators. And one rockstar chef. I like to think I work hard, and give back whenever I can. And while we all love to be appreciated, I think many of us just live our lives always choosing […]

Single and the City

If it was only a Carrie Bradshaw kinda life. Late thirties, early forties and single in Edmonton is a challenge. Maybe it is a challenge in other cities too. Logic says that no matter where you live, as you get older it gets harder to meet people. The pool gets smaller as people marry off and have small litters of little ones. But I only know late-30’s and single in Edmonton. And I have many friends that fall in the same category who also feel the pinch of Edmonton single life. So even though I am typically private about these […]

We are a city in denial

It is usually warmer than this. This cold is not typical. The Oilers are poised for greatness. Our murder rate is an unfortunate anomaly. Edmonton is safe. The snow and ruts have never been this bad. All this road construction is a sign of progress. We never get this much snow. We never get this much rain. They say the mosquitoes aren’t as bad as in the past. Compared to the average (snow fall, rain fall, mosquito count, crime rate – take your pick), we are doing pretty good. Our summers are always really nice. I love having four seasons. […]

What are Edmonton’s best food experiences?

You can’t deny it. Edmonton’s restaurant scene has heated up in the last two years and garners all of the attention when you want to indulge your inner-foodie. But what about all of those non-restaurant places, accessible by the average person, that deliver some of Edmonton’s best and most memorable food experiences?  The places where you get to dive into the culture and atmosphere, in addition to the food, and it keeps you coming back for more.  Here’s my list of my favourite Edmonton food experiences:  1.  Italian Centre Shop From the friendly young staff, to the wise Italian Nonnas,  […]

What makes a city great?

For years, there has been much debate in Edmonton about how we make our city well-known and world class. Better slogans, new tag lines, shiny new arenas and buildings, and hosting international events are what many think will make this city better in the eyes of those who don’t live here (and, in the eyes of those who do). It was refreshing to see this ad, run during Super Bowl 2011, that was technically about a vehicle but was really a candid take on the perceptions of the city of Detroit. Now I haven’t been to Detroit, I have only seen […]