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thebestintoronto · 4 years

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48 hours in. . . Toronto, an insider guide to Canada's spirited first city

Canada's multicultural fusion

Canada's biggest city, the 4th biggest in North America, is regularly rated among the most effective areas to live in the world. Investing also a few days here makes it very easy to see why. Cosmopolitan and also cultured, fun as well as fun-loving, with an icing of unpredictability simply to make points fascinating, Toronto takes pride in being the dynamic, innovative and also risk-free amount of all its components.

The city's roots show in myriad ways, with greater than 200 cultures stood for on the streets. (The truth that there are 3 Chinatowns as well as 2 Little Italys speaks volumes.) This is among the reasons the cooking scene is such a big deal-- there are much more ingredients in the pantry to pull from. With four first-rate sporting activities teams, a spirited arts scene and a vibrant beachfront with its very own flight terminal, Toronto makes both a gratifying end destination and an excellent pitstop.

Warm right now ...

Doug Wallace, our citizen specialist, supplies his top tips on the best things to do and also puts to eat and drink this period.

Consume

Canada's initial Eataly (55 Bloor St. W.; 00 1 437 374 0250) has opened up in the ManuLife Centre to much excitement and also more than a couple of crowds. Spanning 50,000 square feet over 3 levels, the Italian marketplace brings the preference of Italy home to Yorkville's Mink Mile. Locate takeaway counters, dining establishments, regional as well as Italian components, food preparation courses as well as more. - The best dining establishments in Toronto

Not just does Resort X Toronto (111 Princes' Blvd., 4th flooring; 00 1 647 943 9300) have a gigantic 90,000-square-foot gym with 4 interior tennis courts and also 9 squash courts, but it now likewise has Canada's first Guerlain Day spa. Get pampered via customised body therapies and facials in 10 areas, plus pre- and post-stay lounges with views of the lake. - The very best things to do in Toronto

Drink

Don't let the false front of Vatican Gift Store (1047 Gerrard St. E.; 00 1 416 462 2682) mislead you: the makeshift gift store opens speakeasy-style to expose a low-lit Gothic secluded administering European and regional brews, clever (as well as solid) mixed drinks as well as thin-crust, hand-tossed Neopolitan pizzas. Stock up on votive candles on your way out. - The most effective night life in Toronto

48 hours in ... Toronto

The first day

MORNING

Even if you're not staying at the Delta Resort Toronto, begin your day with a vibrant coffee and also a morning meal sandwich at SOCO to Go (75 Lower Simcoe St; 00 1 416 637 5465), the hotel's 24-hour grab-and-go counter and also café in the southeast corner of the structure.

Your 2nd quit of the day is nearby: Ripley's Fish tank of Canada (288 Bremner Blvd; 00 1 647 351 3474) opens at 9am, which is when the displays will be the least crowded. After having a look at the jellyfish wall surface and seeing stingrays skyrocket over your head in the undersea gallery, function your means over to the Hockey Hall of Popularity (30 Yonge St; 00 1 416 360 7765) to look into the interactive video games as well as well-known souvenirs.

MID-DAY

There's absolutely nothing even more Canadian than a peameal bacon sandwich (a kind of unsmoked back bacon). Discover one for lunch at Carousel Bakery, right near the front door in the St. Lawrence Market (93 Front St. E.; 00 1 416 392 7219). If bacon is not your thing, head to the reduced level to consider greater than a dozen hot-food stalls. The marketplace has been a culinary hub of the city given that 1803, which in Canada-years resembles 2 centuries.

After that, a 10-minute stroll south to the water's side will land your toes in the sand at the synthetic Sugar Coastline (Lower Jarvis St. and Queen's Quay E). Sit under the cotton-candy pink umbrellas and also enjoy the tankers get here in the harbour prior to continuing to the historic Distillery Area (55 Mill St.). Take a great, slow-moving poke regarding this pedestrian-only cultural territory of shops, present stores, clothes stores and also galleries. SOMA is the most effective bean-to-bar chocolatier in the area.

LATE

Pre-cocktails, take a little stroll via Yorkville Area (Cumberland Ave. at Bellair St.), in search of stars shopping or ordering cappucinos in their baseball caps and sunglasses. Duck into either The Oxley (121 Yorkville Ave.; 00 1 647 348 1300) for pints on the (much quieter) 2nd flooring or opt for martinis at d|bar in the Four Seasons (60 Yorkville Ave.; 00 1 416 964 0411).

Supper reservations tonight are at Constantine (15 Charles. St. E.; 00 1 647 475 4436), a little piece of Italian-Mediterranean paradise in the back of Anndore Home. Just move up front to the cocktail bar for a nightcap or stroll a brief block east to the Gay Town for a drag show at Woody's (467 Church St.; 00 1 416 972 0887).

- The most effective dining establishments in Toronto

Day 2

MORNING

The most effective time to get your photo taken in the "O" of the Toronto indicator at City Hall (100 Queen St. W. at Bay St.) remains in the morning prior to any individual else is around. Get a quick chai latte initially at Bannock (401 Bay St.; 00 1 416 861 6996).

Post photoshoot, it's a 15-minute walk to a healthy breakfast at Karine's (109 McCaul St.; 00 1 416 591 0863), a little food court serving morning meal staples with a side of Center Eastern, along with vegan and gluten-free, treats. Satisfied, you can then do a deep-dive right into the long-term collection (or exploring exhibits) nearby at the age-old Art Gallery of Ontario (317 Dundas St. W.; 00 1 416 979 6648).

AFTERNOON

On via Chinatown currently to the bohemian neighbourhood of Kensington Market (Kensington Ave. as well as Dundas. St. W.) to take a look at its indie society, vintage garments shops as well as art rooms. While you're there, put into a piled-high hamburger at Ozzy's Hamburgers (66 1/2 Nassau St.; 00 1 416 862 7983)-- have the Mustang Sally.

Stroll it off by heading back down to Queen St. W. and also shopping your means westward-- both sides of the street, mind you-- completely to Trinity Bellwoods Park (790 Queen St. W. at Strachan Ave.). Must-stops in the process must consist of: Frank as well as Oak for men's and also ladies's clothing and also possibly a quick haircut (735 Queen St. W.; 00 1 647 930 8711), Zane for the developer jewelry and desirable bags (753 Queen St. W.; 00 1 647 352 9263) and the shoe heaven that is Heel Kid (773 Queen St. W.; 00 1 416 362 4335).

LATE

Supper is also westward this evening, but first, choose of fresh margaritas or tequila shots at Reposado (136 Ossington St.; 00 1 416 532 6474) or a couple of Rust and also Bone cocktails at The Drake Hotel (1150 Queen St. W.; 00 1 416 531 5042), whose bartenders virtually created the craft mixed drink scene in Toronto

Then for a little taste of Argentina at Tanto (74 Ossington Ave.; 00 1 416 546 3022). Fill out on the innovative little plates-- such as the spicy beef empanada with paprika aioli or smoked squid covered with pancetta as well as scorched almond salsa-- then just share one primary.

Later, take your pick of the area's live songs areas: a burlesque program at the saucy Painted Lady (218 Ossington Ave.), classic blues or people at The Dakota Pub (249 Ossington Ave.; 00 1 416 850 4579) or an indie band at The Fort (1197 Dundas St. W.; 00 1 416 519 9439).

- The very best night life in Toronto.

When to go ...

Might to October is the best time to visit Toronto, while the sun is out, the dining establishment patio areas are jumping, as well as everyone gets on the street after a lengthy winter season cooped inside. June, July and also August are usually hot and humid, 30 levels seems like 40 levels. On summertime weekend breaks, residents go out of community to their homes, leaving the city streets (and dining establishment chairs) to you. Summer season is additionally when most of the city's festivals are slated, focusing on food as well as beverage, arts and also theater, multiculturalism, songs as well as movie. The excellent climate just doesn't just transform itself off come August 31, either: In September, kids go back to college, grownups return to organisation as well as you have the sidewalks, stores and destinations to on your own.

Know prior to you go ...

Necessary information

Vacationer board info: 00 1 416 203 2500; seetorontonow.com Emergency situation fire and ambulance: 911 Emergency police: 911 British Consular Office: 777 Bay St., Collection 2800; 00 1 416 593 1290.

The essentials.

Flight time: Fly from London to Toronto in 7 hours. Currency: Canadian dollar. International dialling code: +1.

Local laws and etiquette.

- Canadians are notoriously courteous, conscientious as well as unstuffy, normally expecting the very same of others.

- Like elsewhere in North America, it is customary to tip 15-20 per cent for service in restaurants and bars. Ditto the cab driver, massage specialist, tourist guide and hairstylist. For hotel housekeeping team, budget plan CAD$ 3-$ 5 (₤ 1.80- ₤ 3) per day.

- The Toronto Transit System of trains, streetcars and buses-- while flawed-- is safe and also simple. The train trains stop at 1:30 am. Some streetcar and buses run overnight. Visit ttc.ca.

- Taxis abound and you can flag them down on the street or call one of the dozen business. Fares are approximately CAD$ 4 (₤ 2) per mile. Uber and Lyft vehicle drivers, while a lot more numerous as well as additionally less costly, are normally much less aware of the midtown streets, so cross your fingers.

- If you're driving yourself, know that you can make a right turn on a traffic signal and you can make a U-turn in the middle of the street, unless there are signs mentioning or else.

- Toronto is a two-kiss sort of location, however that is booked for people you know. A firm handshake is fine for brand-new associates.

- You can get cannabis legally. You have to smoke or vape it outside or in somebody's private residence. Check out ontario.ca/ cannabis for more details.

The post “ 48 hours in. . . Toronto, an insider guide to Canada's spirited first city “ was seen first on The Telegraph

Naturopathic Toronto Doctor - Dr. Amauri Caversan, ND

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dailynewswebsite · 3 years

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Capping food delivery app fees could save restaurants this COVID-19 winter

An Uber Eats courier decide ups an order for supply from a restaurant in Toronto. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

The COVID-19 pandemic has been extraordinarily troublesome on eating places, and it’s not over but.

An infection numbers proceed to rise and the climate is getting worse. Patios are now not an choice. Which means that takeout and supply have develop into a lifeline for eating places.

However supply apps cost important charges for orders, that means that eating places already challenged by lowered volumes and excessive prices are squeezed, usually into detrimental margins, in an effort to entry clients.

There have been requires a discount within the charges charged by supply apps in order that eating places can no less than keep a supply choice throughout the pandemic restrictions — and survive.

Supply corporations like Uber Eats, Skip the Dishes, Door Sprint and others present not solely the supply service, however a platform for ordering. Given the comparatively small variety of apps and the big variety of eating places, this implies supply apps have important market energy. That’s why there’s such competitors for eating places among the many apps.

Eating places really feel a must be on the app

The larger the share of customers, the larger the draw for eating places to hitch the app, and the extra energy the app has over demand. Many purchasers go to the app earlier than deciding what to order, which can develop into an much more widespread prevalence if there are extra eating places to select from on the app.

If eating places aren’t on the app, they lose the chance to promote to that buyer.

Nearly all of supply apps aren’t being profitable but, however are combating for share to get to a degree the place they’re worthwhile.

Some apps cost as a lot as a 30 per cent fee on meals orders. Most eating places work on tight margins, and these hefty supply app charges usually imply there’s no revenue left for them after they pay the supply firm. This implies they get caught between a rock and a tough place in making the selection to entry an app — promote nothing or promote via the app and lose cash.

Uber Eats and different meals supply apps cost as much as 30 per cent on a meals order. (Charles Deluvio/Unsplash)

A part of the issue is that the supply corporations aren’t being profitable both. Foodora really pulled out of Canada earlier this 12 months. Uber Eats is an even bigger enterprise than Uber Rides however will not be but worthwhile. Asking Uber Eats to low cost charges could be asking them to lose more cash with a purpose to assist the eating places.

It’s additionally value noting {that a} portion of the supply payment goes to an impartial driver, who’s additionally a low-wage earner. It’s estimated that drivers earn roughly US$eight to $12 an hour, after automotive bills, delivering for Uber Eats relying in the marketplace and time of day.

Learn extra: California’s gig employee battle reveals the abuses of precarious work in Canada too

Meaning decreasing supply app charges would take cash from somebody who’s already in a low-income scenario.

The actual subject is that the enterprise mannequin doesn’t work.

The pricing mannequin doesn’t cowl the prices related to delivering. Supply apps try to construct the supply market, so greater pricing slows progress. It’s, nevertheless, extraordinarily troublesome to boost costs later as soon as individuals develop an expectation of low supply prices.

Now could be the time to boost costs

Nonetheless it is likely to be worthwhile now to start constructing a sustainable pricing mannequin in increments. The worth related to supply has by no means been greater, given the reticence to eat in eating places throughout the pandemic. It is smart to start out shifting costs up slowly to mirror the true price of those providers.

There’s additionally advantage to the concept of app corporations and supply drivers sharing among the pandemic ache with eating places. The supply app mannequin requires eating places to succeed, in any case — with out them there may be nothing to ship.

Supply demand has been growing, so attracting extra clients and eating places needs to be a strategic precedence for these corporations. Decreasing supply charges for eating places is a technique to take action.

There have been initiatives by supply corporations to reply to issues raised by eating places.

Skip the Dishes instituted a rebate program on each takeout and supply to scale back charges throughout the pandemic. This helps eating places in instances of disaster, helps Skip the Dishes keep and develop its buyer base and retains a bigger number of eating places on the app.

Uber Eats has launched a delivery-only perform at a lowered service cost. On this case, eating places take the orders themselves and simply use Uber Eats to ship the meals.

This is smart for eating places with loyal clients who immediately contact them. It permits eating places to make use of supply providers with out utilizing the app’s ordering infrastructure whereas supply corporations can proceed to make use of drivers.

Supply-only choices are actually obtainable by way of Uber Eats. (Norma Mortenson/Pexels)

Uber Eats has additionally launched a zero fee for pickup orders. On this case, clients order on the app and choose to select up their meal themselves. This helps eating places and drives site visitors via the app (at a really low marginal price) whereas additionally holding a wider vary of eating places on the app that won’t have in any other case been capable of afford the supply charges.

The restaurant trade wants a long-term, sustainable enterprise mannequin for supply. However fastidiously structured and carried out short-term rules might degree the enjoying subject and assist eating places survive this essential interval. Flexibility is in everybody’s finest curiosity.

Caps proposed

Ontario has proposed caps of 15 per cent on supply (supposed to take care of the incomes of the drivers). New York Metropolis and different jurisdictions have already achieved so. This may assist eating places.

However — pardon the pun — there is no such thing as a free lunch, and caps will price supply corporations cash. They could be compelled to drop eating places that aren’t producing volumes and are costing an excessive amount of. There’s additionally a danger that supply corporations will depart unprofitable or extra restrictive markets. That helps nobody. Regulation is complicated, and the outcomes don’t all the time mirror what the target was.

A greater strategy could also be launching delivery-only corporations or supply co-operatives.

For many eating places, the quantity of supply and the related price doesn’t justify a devoted supply individual. The co-ordination of supply with out the ordering platform might give eating places a extra reasonably priced selection and permit them to take care of the client relationship.

Revolutionary pondering alongside these traces might ends in reasonably priced lifelines for some eating places.

Michael von Massow receives funding from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Meals to analysis points in meals waste and diet labeling for restaurant menus. He has obtained cash from the Tim Hortons Sustainable Meals Administration Fund to discover client attitudes to antibiotic use and animal welfare.

from Growth News https://growthnews.in/capping-food-delivery-app-fees-could-save-restaurants-this-covid-19-winter/ via https://growthnews.in

#Growth News

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saucylittlesmile · 3 years

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Hi Saucey, on an Uber drive stuck in traffic and heard on Xfm sports podcast about rumours of Rielly/Hyman/Kerfoot trade talks. The question was will the Leafs pay Rielly more than what he’s getting paid now to keep him and or even if he was worth it. Tbh, I couldn’t hear the whole thing because my driver was too busy yapping. As per my boss who loves the Leafs, he’s all good if they let Rielly walk, but not to Hyman. Why ? Listening to my boss talk Hockey at the shop, seems that the rest of the guys are ok with losing Rielly as well. I work at a Auto repair/detailing shop in Toronto. Do you think he’s worth more than 7+ mil, like many are suggesting that he’s going to be asking for.

I had a long answer, so it's a read-more.

I think Rielly is one of those players that really divides people. He is classified as a defensive player, but he's known to be an offensive defense player. As such, he takes a lot of risks - if the play goes well, he generates goals, assists, or chances, and the fans love that. But if it goes badly, then the rest of the team has to try and cover for him, and there's a strong possibility that the opposing team will get the upper hand. And of course, the fans hate that.

Getting Brodie on the team was brilliant; he was so solid, so consistent in the defensive zone, that he made an excellent partner for someone who pinches; but it also showed what that kind of defensive player could mean on the whole - his statistics were incredible.

In terms of then comparing him then to Rielly, it then really pushed the train of thought: are the risks that Rielly takes, worth it? And there isn't so much a right or wrong answer, as just what you value in him as a player (or not) and how his style fits in with the rest of the team. Dubas made it a goal for the team overall to become better defensive players - I was reading an interesting article in how Tavares was really pushing himself on that side this year, to the initial detriment of his offensive side - because it was such an obvious weakness of the team in previous years (and perhaps no more obvious than in the 2020 season). Overall, they certainly had better results with a more defensive play, and perhaps it has also shifted some of the minds of the Leafs fans as well.

He still seems to be a player that gets a lot of good attention from what I read - Leafs fans are particularly hard on their players. Still, I think it's not so much about Rielly's past and potential for the Leafs that have people suggesting a trade, so much as it is a timing issue. With $40 million tied up in only four players (and yet, not really having a good incentive to try and trade one of those players, due to a lot reasons), and the salary cap flat again next year, the Leafs are going to have to do some major juggling to get what they need, vs what they want. There are a lot of players who are needing to be signed this year, or move on - Spezza and Hyman being the two people mostly talk about, but there's a whole list of players that are on the tipping point. To pay them out, right now they'd have to account for Rielly's money too - but next year, he'll also be in the position of re-signing, or moving on, and if he does/can demand more money, then the Leafs might not be able to afford him. So if they're thinking that far ahead - then there is something to be said for trading him this year, instead, and getting a great trade because Rielly just had an admirable playoffs that will make him seem even more attractive to prospective teams. By the end of next year, they just either re-sign (at whatever cost) or they lose him flat, with nothing coming back. And meanwhile, if they trade him, they free up more space to sign people who are perhaps not as expensive as Rielly. It's a gamble, but in sport, it always is.

And as seen from the press, and some of the decisions from the coaching team, Sandin is waiting in the wings for his turn - he's young, inexpensive, and can be an offensive defense player - basically, the new Rielly, once he grows more comfortable with his position. There will naturally be some growing pains there, but there are plenty of people who are looking at Sandin as the future, and have no problem watching Rielly move on.

Meanwhile, Hyman - and I am on team sign-Hyman myself - has also been with the Leafs for a long time, and has proven himself to be an excellent player. He may not have the... star-power of the core players, but can play on any line, and usually impressively so, and people also speak of him highly with regards to his work ethic. So, yeah, he's the kind of player who can and should be asking for more than what he's getting - and again, it may come down to if the Leafs can afford him, when they're on a tighter budget because of that core, and have many other depth players to sign. But while there is a Sandin for Rielly, there isn't really a Sandin for Hyman at this point - making the prospect of losing him even less appealing.

I honestly don't have much... grasp on the idea of how much money players 'can and should' be asking for. (Mostly, I just think in general it's a ridiculous amount anyway LOL.) But at this point, I think that both Hyman and Rielly are on enough of a 'high' that they can ask for more, and if they settle for less, it's for other reasons, rather than it not being offered.

#saucy hockey #Spezza deserves more I have to say #he's on a basic contract #and his return value was so good #just as a little... reward #or like #not to take advantage of him wanting to keep being a Leaf #anyway #sorry for the long post

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nancygduarteus · 5 years

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How To Sell a $50 Water Bottle

The potential judgement of students can lead a teacher to do strange things. For Monique Mongeon, an arts educator in Toronto, her first job teaching adults sparked a small crisis of confidence. “I was in my mid-20s, and I was looking at things I could do to make myself feel like a person who had authority to stand in front of a bunch of other 20-somethings,” she says. After ruling out fancy bags and shoes for being too extravagant, Mongeon settled on a sleek, $45 water bottle. “I was scrolling through websites thinking, which of these S’well bottles looks like the kind of person I want to be?”

Nine years ago, there was only one S’well, and it was blue. Now you can get the curvy, steel-capped bottles in more than 200 different size and color combinations, including some that look like marble or teakwood. Many are customizable with your initials. The big ones will hold an entire bottle of wine, and smaller versions are made for cocktails or coffee. Teens offer S’well bottles to propose to prospective prom dates. They’re a common sight in Instagram photos of artfully stuffed vacation carry-ons and aesthetically pleasing desk tableaus.

S’well’s success is impressive, but the brand has a host of competitors nipping at its heels in what has become an enormous market for high-end, reusable beverage containers. If nothing in S’well’s inventory calls out to you, maybe you’ll like a Yeti, Sigg, Hydro Flask, Contigo, or bkr. A limited-edition Soma bottle, created in collaboration with the Louis Vuitton designer Virgil Abloh and Evian (itself a legend of designer water), was recently feted at New York Fashion Week. VitaJuwel bottles, which can cost more than $100, promise to “restructure” your tap water using the power of interchangeable crystal pods.

On the surface, water bottles as totems of consumer aspiration sound absurd: If you have access to water, you can drink it out of so many things that already exist in your home. But if you dig a little deeper, you find that these bottles sit at a crossroads of cultural and economic forces that shape Americans’ lives far beyond beverage choices. If you can understand why so many people would spend 50 bucks on a water bottle, then you can understand a lot about America in 2019.

The first time I coveted a water bottle was in 2004. When I arrived as a freshman at the University of Georgia, I found that I was somehow the last person alive who didn’t own a Nalgene. The brand’s distinctive, lightweight plastic bottles had long been a cult-favorite camping accessory, but in the mid-2000s, they exploded in popularity beyond just outdoorsmen. A version with the school’s logo on it cost $16 in the bookstore, which was a little steep for me, an unemployed 18-year-old, but I bought one anyway. I wanted to be the kind of person all my new peers apparently were. Plus, it’s hot in Georgia. A nice water bottle seemed like a justifiable extravagance.

Around the same time, I remember noticing the first flares of another trend intimately related to the marketability of water bottles: athleisure. All around me, stylish young women wore colorful Nike running shorts and carried bright plastic Nalgenes to class. “With millennials, fitness and health are themselves signals,” says Tülin Erdem, a marketing professor at New York University. “They drink more water and carry it with them, so it’s an item that becomes part of them and their self-expression.”

Now, across Instagram, you can find high-end water bottles lurking around the edges of stylized gym photos posted by exercisers and fitness instructors. Usually, these people aren’t being rewarded for the placement by anything but likes. Sarah Kauss, S’well’s founder and CEO, says people have been photographing her water bottles since the company began in 2010. “I’d receive hundreds of pictures a week from customers,” she says. “I wasn’t giving them anything for it. There wasn’t a free bottle or a coupon code or anything other than customers just wanting to show their own experience.”

Kauss says she always knew the bottle’s appearance would be important, even though positioning something as simple as a water bottle as a luxury product was a bit of a gamble. “As I moved up in my career, I was upgrading my wardrobe, and the bottle that looked like a camping accessory really didn’t serve my purpose anymore,” she says. When she noticed fashionable New Yorkers were carrying upscale disposable plastic bottles from brands like Evian and Fiji, she realized reusable bottles could use a makeover, too

Kauss and her contemporaries struck at the right time. The importance of fitness and wellness were starting to gain a foothold in fashionable crowds, and concerns over consumer waste and plastic’s potential to leach chemicals into food and water were gaining wider attention. People wanted cute workout gear, and they wanted to drink water out of materials other than plastic. Researchers have found that the chance to be conspicuously sustainability-conscious motivates consumers, especially when the product being purchased costs more than its less-green counterparts.

Nearly a decade on, the water-bottle trend shows no signs of slowing, and people just seem to like their fancy bottles a lot. The insulated metal variety, which is the most popular, does a far better job than plastic at keeping beverages at ideal temperatures. They’re durable and useful. When I put out a call for opinions on Twitter, I heard from hundreds of people about how much they loved theirs. Rebecca Thomas, a 28-year-old in Atlanta who owns three S’wells, says she once paid a ransom to an Uber driver after she left one behind in the car. (“That’s when I decided I’d never put wine in one again,” she says.) Others were similarly dedicated. “I will be buried with all of my different sizes of Hydro Flask,” says Emily Sile, a travel editor in New York City. “Maybe by then Hydro Flask will come out with a coffin, so I can be buried in that, too.”

The trend’s Instagram visibility might make it seem like high-end water bottles are the sole province of women. Indeed, brands like bkr, whose bottles are pastel glass and can come with a special top meant to hold lip gloss, are explicitly marketed as products of feminine beauty. (Drinking water, after all, is often lauded as the ultimate skincare product.) But the category’s origins in camping gear mean that it started out with a strong foothold among male millennials as well, and brands like Yeti and Hydro Flask have continued to court a more masculine audience. Mike Ferguson, a 37-year-old in Los Angeles, has four Yetis of various sizes that he usually uses for iced coffee and water. “I have very few vices, but this is one,” he says. “Am I a brand loyalist? I don’t think so, but the evidence suggests otherwise.”

Ferguson, like many people I spoke with, got his first Yeti as a gift. Kauss says that’s a popular trend she sees with S’well’s customers, too: People will buy one or two, presumably for themselves, and then come back to the website around the holidays and buy six. Most brands also customize orders for large corporate clients, meaning your employer might hand you a logo bottle at the end of the year. Even if spending 40 or 50 bucks on a water bottle sounds bad, getting one for free can turn reluctant consumers into evangelists.

When those factors are taken together, it’s hard to be surprised that so many $50 water bottles exist, or that people have snapped them up in droves. On a certain level, a nice water bottle fulfils its promise in the way few things do. They hold water. They stay cold. They look nice on your desk. They don’t leave an unsightly sweat ring on your nightstand. For people like Mongeon, the art teacher, they look like things that are owned by people who know what they’re doing. For a lot of people, they spark a little bit of joy in the otherwise mundane routine of work, exercise, and personal hygiene. For a generation with less expendable income than its parents’, a nice bottle pays for itself with a month of consistent use and lets you feel like you’re being proactive about your health and the environment.

A container of any kind, whether it’s a rented storage unit or a decorative basket, promises order and control. Marie Kondo’s Netflix show about organizing American homes in disarray was a hit for a reason: There’s a small amount serenity in finding the right vessel and filling it with the right thing. Consumer choices might not be an effective solution to structural problems like pollution, but it’s nice to feel like you’re making ethical choices. If nothing else, millennials can buy the best water bottle they can afford and try their best to stay hydrated.

from Health News And Updates https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/02/luxury-water-bottles/582595/?utm_source=feed

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ionecoffman · 5 years

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How To Sell a $50 Water Bottle

Article source here:The Atlantic

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topdiyhub · 5 years

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Tech companies have always branded themselves as the good guys. But 2018 was the year that the long-held belief that Silicon Valley is on the right side of progress and all things good was called into question by a critical mass.

As startups grow bigger and richer, amassing more power and influence outside of the Valley, a reckoning has played out in government and business. Mission statements like “connecting the world” and “don’t be evil” no longer hold water.

A look at a few of this year’s most impactful news themes underscore why; we’ve racked up too many examples to the contrary.

Android co-creator Andy Rubin’s $90 million payout and sexual misconduct revealed

Since the #MeToo movement opened the floodgates on the importance of fighting for gender equality and fair treatment of women and underrepresented minorities at a large scale, the tech industry was rightfully singled out as a microcosm for rampant misconduct.

In October, a New York Times investigation detailed how Android co-creator Andy Rubin was paid out a $90 million exit package when he left Google in 2014. At the time, Google concealed that the executive had multiple relationships with Google staffers and that credible accounts of sexual misconduct had been filed against him during his time at the company. It was an all-too-familiar story recounting how women in tech aren’t safe at work and misbehaved executives are immune from penalty. Google employees didn’t stand for it.

At a rally in San Francisco, Google staffers read off their list of demands, which included an end to forced arbitration in cases of harassment and discrimination, a commitment to end pay and opportunity inequity and a clear, inclusive process for reporting sexual misconduct safely and anonymously, reported Kate Clark.

Rubin has since taken leave from his smartphone company, Essential.

The first self-driving car fatality occurred when an Uber SUV struck and killed a woman in Arizona

Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive officer of Uber, arrives for a morning session at the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., on Wednesday, July 10. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg via Getty Images

In March, the first self-driving car fatality occurred in Tempe, Arizona when 49-year-old pedestrian Elaine Herzberg was struck by an Uber autonomous test SUV. The car was in self-driving mode, and there was a safety driver behind the wheel who failed to intervene.

Investigators determined the driver had looked down at a phone 204 times during a 43-minute test drive, and that the driver was streaming “The Voice” on Hulu, according to a police report released by the Tempe Police Department. Law enforcement determined her eyes were off the road for 3.67 miles of the 11.8 total miles driven, or about 31 percent of the time.

Uber paused all of its AV testing operations in Pittsburgh, Toronto, San Francisco and Phoenix as a result, and released a safety report detailing how it will add precautions to its testing of self-driving cars. Two employees will be required to sit in the front seat at all times, and an automatic braking system will be enabled.

The incident immediately raised questions about insurance and liability, along with the investigation from the National Transportation Safety Board. As mobility companies charge full speed ahead in developing solutions that will shape the future of urban transportation, tragedies like this remind us that while AVs and humans share the roads, these programs are rife with risk. Has Uber learned a lesson? We’ll find out soon, as the company received permission by the state of Pennsylvania to resume autonomous vehicle testing.

Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated by Saudi agents, prompting Silicon Valley to think about how it got so rich

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Silicon Valley companies are used to getting away with a lot. Larger orgs like Uber, Tesla and Facebook rotate in and out of the hot seat as security breaches wreak havoc and sexual harassment scandals are exposed, only to be washed out of the news cycle by a viral image of Elon Musk sampling marijuana the next day.

But one story shocked the public for weeks, after agents of the Saudi government assassinated Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul as he was trying to obtain marriage license papers.

The tech industry was collectively upset by its proximity to a government and funding source that blatantly misused its power. Silicon Valley gets most of its money through SoftBank’s Vision Fund and by proxy the Saudi kingdom. About half of SoftBank’s massive $93 billion tech-focused fund is powered by a $45 billion commitment from the Saudi kingdom. This means the total invested by the kingdom alone into U.S. startups is far greater than the total raised by any single VC fund. Did we see a single example of a startup that refused to work with SoftBank in the aftermath? No. Will we? Probably not. Because Silicon Valley players are mostly only political and activist when it’s convenient for them.

Silicon Valley companies that have accepted money from this source have a vested interest in keeping the peace with Saudi Arabia and its Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — the leader known for getting friendly with tech CEOs in the past. But where does this leave us now as Saudi Arabian money continues to distort American venture? SoftBank has sustained countless startups with round after round of funding as it plunges into debt.

With SoftBank money inflating round sizes and therefore valuations, tech founders and CEOs are faced with the age-old question of whether or not it’s okay to use dirty money to do “good things.” SoftBank’s 2018 culminated in a record IPO that saw a 15 percent drop in value on its debut. Regardless, the aftermath of the Khashoggi assassination could signify the end of an era in American venture if founders begin to think critically about the source of their funding — and act on it.

Facebook’s struggle

UNITED STATES – APRIL 11: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies before a House Energy and Commerce Committee in Rayburn Building on the protection of user data on April 11, 2018. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Facebook’s 2018 kicked off with Zuckerberg’s wishful, vague post about his personal challenge to “fix Facebook.” The social network bowed out of 2017 with critics saying Zuckerberg hadn’t done enough to combat the proliferation of fake news on Facebook or block Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. Online abuse had never been so bad. All of this was happening just as people started to realize that mindlessly browsing the newsfeed — Facebook’s core product — is a total waste of time.

What better timing for not one, but two massive security scandals?

Zuckerberg answered to Congress after Facebook was infiltrated by Cambridge Analytica, a data organization with ties to the Trump administration. In the beginning of 2014, the organization obtained data on 50 million Facebook users in a way that deceived both the users and Facebook itself.

If that weren’t enough, just months later Facebook revealed at least 30 million users’ data were confirmed to be at risk after attackers exploited a vulnerability allowing them access to users’ personal data. Zuckerberg said that the attackers were using Facebook developer APIs to obtain information, like “name, gender, and hometowns” linked to a user’s profile page. Queue #deletefacebook.

A Pew report detailed how Facebook users are becoming more cautious and critical, but they still can’t quit. News and social networking are like oil and water — they can’t blend into coexistence on the same news feed. In 2018, Facebook was caught in a perfect storm. Users started to understand Facebook for what it actually is: powered by algorithms that coalesce fact, opinion and malicious fake content on a platform designed to financially profit off the addictive tendencies of its users. The silver lining is that as people become more cautious and critical of Facebook, the market is readying itself for a new, better social network to be designed off the pioneering mistakes of its predecessors.

Apple hits a $1 trillion market cap and celebrates the anniversary of the iPhone with design changes

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – OCTOBER 22: Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during an Apple announcement. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

This was a hardware-heavy year for Apple. The MacBook Air got Retina Display. The Apple Watch got a big redesign. The iPad Pro said farewell to the home button. We met the new mac Mini and an updated Apple Pencil. In September, Apple held its annual hardware event in Cupertino to announce three new iPhone models, the XS (the normal one), XR (the cheap one) and the XS Max (the big one). We also learned that the company went back to the drawing board on the Mac Pro.

In August, Apple won the race to $1 trillion in market cap. It wasn’t the frayed cords or crappy keyboards that boosted the company past this milestone, but rather price hikes in its already high-margin iPhone sales. But while Apple remains wildly profitable, growth is slowing notably.

Tech stocks took a beating toward the end of the year, and although Apple seems to have weathered the storm better than most companies, it may have reached a threshold for how much it can innovate on its high-end hardware. It may be wise for the company to focus on other methods of bringing in revenue like Apple Music and iCloud if it wants to shoot for the $2 trillion market cap.

As the biggest, richest companies get bigger and richer, questions about antitrust and regulation rise to ensure they don’t hold too much economic power. Tim Cook has more authority than many political leaders. Let’s hope he uses it for good.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sued by the SEC for securities fraud

CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 14: Engineer and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk of The Boring Company listens as Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel talks about constructing a high speed transit tunnel at Block 37 during a news conference on June 14, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Musk said he could create a 16-passenger vehicle to operate on a high-speed rail system that could get travelers to and from downtown Chicago and O’Hare International Airport under twenty minutes, at speeds of over 100 miles per hour. (Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images)

In August, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced in a tweet heard around the internet that he was considering taking Tesla private for $420 per share and that he’d secured funding to do so. The questioning started. Was it legit? Was it a marijuana joke? The tweet caused Tesla’s stock price to jump by more than 6 percent on August 7. Musk also complained that being a public company “subjects Tesla to constant defamatory attacks by the short-selling community, resulting in great harm to our valuable brand.”

Turns out, Musk had indeed met with representatives from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, and that the fund’s lead rep told Musk that they’d bought about 5 percent of Tesla’s stock at a stake worth $2 billion, were interested in taking the company private and confirmed that this rep had the power to make these kinds of investment decisions for the fund. However, nothing was written on paper, and Musk did not notify the Nasdaq — an important requirement.

At the end of September, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Musk for securities fraud in regards to his “false and misleading” tweets, seeking to remove him from Tesla. Musk settled with the SEC two days after being charged, resigning from his chairman position but remaining CEO. Musk and Tesla were also ordered to pay separate $20 million fines to “be distributed to harmed investors under a court-approved process,” according to the SEC.

Public companies are supposed to value the interests of their shareholders. Pulling the trigger on an impulsive tweet breaks that trust — and in Musk’s case, cost $40 million and a board seat. This is why we should never put too much fear or faith in our leaders. Musk is brilliant and his inventions are changing the world. But he is human and humans are flawed and the Tesla board should have done more to balance power at the top.

The great Amazon HQ2 swindle

Chief Executive Officer of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, tours the facility at the grand opening of the Amazon Spheres, in Seattle, Washington on January 29, 2018. Amazon opened its new Seattle office space which looks more like a rainforest. The company created the Spheres Complex to help spark employee creativity. (Photo: JASON REDMOND/AFP/Getty Images)

Tech jobs bring new wealth to cities. Amazon set out on a roadshow across America in what the company described as a search for its second headquarters, or “HQ2.” The physical presence of Amazon’s massive retail and cloud businesses would undoubtedly bring wealth, innovation, jobs and investment into a region.

There was initial hope that the retail giant would choose a city in the American heartland, serving as a catalyst for job growth in a burgeoning tech hub like Columbus, Ohio, Detroit, Mich., or Birmingham, Ala. But in the end, Amazon split the decision between two locations: New York (Long Island City) and Arlington, Virginia, as the sites for its new offices. The response? Outrage.

Jon Shieber noted that cities opened their books to the company to prove their viability as a second home for the retailing giant. In return, Amazon reaped data on urban and exurban centers that it could use to develop the next wave of its white-collar office space, and more than $2 billion worth of tax breaks from the cities that it will eventually call home for its new offices.

Danny Crichton argued that Amazon did exactly what it should have with its HQ2 process. Crichton wrote that Amazon is its own entity and therefore has ownership of its decisions. It allowed cities to apply and provide information on why they might be the best location for its new headquarters. Maybe the company ignored all of the applications. Maybe it was a ploy to collect data. Maybe it wanted publicity. Regardless, it allowed input into a decision it has complete and exclusive control over.

Let’s hope that in 2019, Silicon Valley will hold on to some of its ethos as a venture-funded sandbox for brilliant entrepreneurs who want to upend antiquated industries with proprietary tech inventions. But let it be known that sleeping at the wheel while your company gets breached, turning a blind eye to the evil doings of your largest funding sources and executive immunity from sexual misconduct violations no longer have their place here.

from Apple – TechCrunch https://tcrn.ch/2EIXQki via apple

#IFTTT #Blogger

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williamsjoan · 5 years

Text

Silicon Valley’s year of reckoning

A look at a few of this year’s most impactful news themes underscore why; we’ve racked up too many examples to the contrary.

Android co-creator Andy Rubin’s $90 million payout and sexual misconduct revealed

Rubin has since taken leave from his smartphone company, Essential.

The first self-driving car fatality occurred when an Uber SUV struck and killed a woman in Arizona

Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated by Saudi agents, prompting Silicon Valley to think about how it got so rich

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Facebook’s struggle

What better timing for not one, but two massive security scandals?

Apple hits a $1 trillion market cap and celebrates the anniversary of the iPhone with design changes

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – OCTOBER 22: Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during an Apple announcement. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sued by the SEC for securities fraud

The great Amazon HQ2 swindle

Silicon Valley’s year of reckoning published first on https://timloewe.tumblr.com/

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theinvinciblenoob · 5 years

Link

A look at a few of this year’s most impactful news themes underscore why; we’ve racked up too many examples to the contrary.

Android co-creator Andy Rubin’s $90 million payout and sexual misconduct revealed

Rubin has since taken leave from his smartphone company, Essential.

The first self-driving car fatality occurred when an Uber SUV struck and killed a woman in Arizona

Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated by Saudi agents, prompting Silicon Valley to think about how it got so rich

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Facebook’s struggle

What better timing for not one, but two massive security scandals?

Apple hits a $1 trillion market cap and celebrates the anniversary of the iPhone with design changes

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – OCTOBER 22: Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during an Apple announcement. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sued by the SEC for securities fraud

The great Amazon HQ2 swindle

via TechCrunch

#IFTTT #TechCrunch

0 notes

fmservers · 5 years

Text

Silicon Valley’s year of reckoning

A look at a few of this year’s most impactful news themes underscore why; we’ve racked up too many examples to the contrary.

Android co-creator Andy Rubin’s $90 million payout and sexual misconduct revealed

At a rally in San Francisco, Google staffers read off their list of demands, which included an end to forced arbitration in cases of harassment and discrimination, a commitment to end pay and opportunity inequity, and a clear, inclusive process for reporting sexual misconduct safely and anonymously, reported Kate Clark.

Rubin has since taken leave from his smartphone company, Essential.

The first self-driving car fatality occurred when an Uber SUV struck and killed a woman in Arizona

Investigators determined the driver had looked down at a phone 204 times during a 43-minute test drive, and that the driver was streaming “The Voice”on Hulu, according to a police report released by the Tempe Police Department. Law enforcement determined her eyes were off the road for 3.67 miles of the 11.8 total miles driven, or about 31 percent of the time.

The incident immediately raised questions about about insurance and liability, along with the investigation from the National Transportation Safety Board. As mobility companies charge full speed ahead in developing solutions that will shape the future of urban transportation, tragedies like this remind us that while AVs and humans share the roads, these programs are rife with risk. Has Uber learned a lesson? We’ll find out soon, as the company received permission by the state of Pennsylvania to resume autonomous vehicle testing.

Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated by Saudi agents, prompting Silicon Valley to think about how it got so rich

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Silicon Valley companies who’ve accepted money from this source have a vested interest in keeping the peace with Saudi Arabia and its Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – the leader known for getting friendly with tech CEOs in the past. But where does this leave us now as Saudi Arabian money continues to distort American venture? SoftBank has sustained countless startups with round after round of funding as it plunges into debt.

Facebook’s struggle

Facebook’s 2018 kicked off with Zuckerberg’s wishful, vague post about his personal challenge to “fix Facebook.” The social network bowed out of 2017 with critics saying Zuckerberg hadn’t done enough to combat the proliferation of fake news on Facebook or block Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. Online abuse had never been so bad. All of this was happening just as people started to realize that mindlessly browsing the newsfeed – Facebook’s core product – is a total waste of time.

What better timing for not one, but two massive security scandals?

Apple hits a $1 trillion market cap and celebrates the anniversary of the iPhone with design changes

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – OCTOBER 22: Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during an Apple announcement. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sued by the SEC for securities fraud

CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 14: Engineer and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk of The Boring Company listens as Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel talks about constructing a high speed transit tunnel at Block 37 during a news conference on June 14, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Musk said he could create a 16-passenger vehicle to operate on a high-speed rail system that could get travelers to and from downtown Chicago and O’hare International Airport under twenty minutes, at speeds of over 100 miles per hour. (Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images)

Turns out, Musk had indeed met with representatives from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, and that the fund’s lead rep told Musk that they’d bought about 5 percent of Tesla’s stock at a stake worth $2 billion, were interested in taking the company private and confirmed that this rep had the power to make these kinds of investment decisions for the fund. However nothing was written on paper, and Musk did not notify the Nasdaq – an important requirement.

Public companies are supposed to value the interests of their shareholders. Pulling the trigger on an impulsive tweet breaks that trust – and in Musk’s case, cost $40 million and a board seat. This is why we should never put too much fear or faith in our leaders. Musk is brilliant and his inventions are changing the world. But he is human and humans are flawed and the Tesla board should have done more to balance power at the top.

The great Amazon HQ2 swindle

Let’s hope that in 2019, Silicon Valley will hold on to some of its ethos as a venture funded sandbox for brilliant entrepreneurs who want to upend antiquated industries with proprietary tech inventions. But let it be known that sleeping at the wheel while your company gets breached, turning a blind eye to the evildoings of your largest funding sources and executive immunity from sexual misconduct violations no longer have their place here.

Via Anna Escher https://techcrunch.com

#TechCrunch

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takenews-blog1 · 6 years

Text

MLS Cup crown caps Toronto FC's transformation from joke to juggernaut

New Post has been published on https://takenews.net/mls-cup-crown-caps-toronto-fcs-transformation-from-joke-to-juggernaut/

MLS Cup crown caps Toronto FC's transformation from joke to juggernaut

TORONTO — When Toronto FC lore seems again upon the 2017 MLS Cup remaining, a chapter shall be dedicated to Jozy Altidore and the end that introduced the treble to BMO Area. Greg Vanney’s tactical masterclass has to make an look, as properly. A redemption arc looms giant after Sebastian Giovinco and Co. dethroned a Seattle Sounders crew that celebrated right here a 12 months in the past.

After which there’s the Uber driver who inadvertently put destiny in Michael Bradley’s again pocket.

It was in 2014 that Bradley kick-started TFC’s transformation from joke to juggernaut, becoming a member of Jermain Defoe within the twin signing famously pegged as a “Bloody Massive Deal.” As Bradley touched down in Toronto for the primary time, the driving force steered him to BMO Area through the Gardiner Expressway alongside Lake Ontario.

Within the practically 4 years since, Bradley by no means once more took the path to his dwelling subject — till his driver went that method Friday for the ultimate coaching session earlier than the MLS Cup remaining.

“I am not essentially an enormous believer in destiny and issues like that,” Bradley mentioned. “However to form of have it come full circle, to complete issues off this 12 months on this method … it was indescribable.”

Watch MLS stay and On-Demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial)

Whereas Defoe spent only a single season in Toronto, these signings modified the notion of a TFC crew that had completed ninth within the Japanese Convention in 2013 — marking seven straight campaigns with out a journey to the playoffs.

The market’s potential was at all times evident. An obsessive supporters’ tradition took root within the membership’s inaugural 2007 season, with the entire elements seemingly in place for a flagship MLS franchise. However a collection of personnel misfires adopted, as European journeymen — usually getting old, costly and ineffective — arrived one after the opposite. A once-intense environment gave strategy to empty seats and followers with paper luggage over their heads.

“I have been on this league since TFC’s been round, and it is a company that looks like it is at all times tried to do the appropriate issues,” Toronto defender Drew Moor mentioned. “They’d a little bit of studying curve.”

A 12 months after the “Bloody Massive Deal,” TFC took a second crack at splashing the money on a core of stars: Defoe returned to England, with Giovinco and Altidore becoming a member of Bradley at BMO Area.

Giovinco has been a sensation from day one, to the tune of 59 objectives and 42 assists since he arrived from Juventus. The bodily Altidore has been the best complement up high, recording a double-digit aim haul the previous three seasons. Bradley has set the tone on and off the sphere, commanding the midfield with a mix of tenacity and soccer IQ.

“We went via including simply the appropriate individuals firstly, and guys who’re capable of focus and capable of give all the pieces they’ll to a challenge and do that each single day,” mentioned Vanney, who took over late within the 2014 season. “The second half is creating an atmosphere the place all people seems like they’re purchased in they usually’re part of one thing particular and what they’re doing goes to make a distinction, and goes to be a purpose why, on the finish of the day, they are going to raise trophies.”

Toronto lastly ended that postseason drought in 2015, however the run lasted only one sport — an emphatic loss in Montreal. But there was sufficient progress to persuade a veteran free agent like Moor that this crew was on the cusp of a title. A BMO Area enlargement that pushed the capability previous 30,000 gave TFC much more gravitas. By the point Toronto dropped the 2016 MLS Cup remaining to the Sounders, there was no doubting the membership’s powerhouse credentials.

When Altidore linked with that Giovinco via ball Saturday, lifting his shot over the onrushing Stefan Frei and into the again of the online, BMO Area erupted. That aim was a 12 months within the making, as a pinned-back Seattle facet managed to carry TFC scoreless via 187 minutes spanning two MLS Cup finals. However the followers’ euphoria additionally stemmed from a decade of distress and heartbreak that unfolded earlier than the second arrived.

“It is particular as a result of the town waited for a very long time for this win,” Giovinco mentioned. “That is what I got here for — to win. I am very completely satisfied, for the crew particularly, for the town and the followers.”

Altidore added: “The way in which [the fans] have a good time our objectives, it is like they’re residing and dying with us. I do know it is like that with numerous fan bases, however these individuals have suffered for a very long time. They’ve needed to come watch video games the place their crew is getting dominated, and individuals who actually did not care concerning the metropolis, about what’s being constructed right here, would have left the crew.”

And this TFC facet is not any outdated champion. Toronto is the primary MLS crew to finish the treble, having claimed the Canadian Championship and received the Supporters’ Protect in record-breaking style. By no matter metric a membership’s success could be measured — trophies, star energy, ardour — TFC has taken its place atop the MLS crowd.

“Lots of people did not need us to win a treble,” midfielder Jonathan Osorio mentioned. “Do not query me ever once more about that — we’re the very best crew in MLS historical past.”

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jeremyhechtsblog-blog · 7 years

Text

Land of the Washed

I feel like it’s been a while since we’ve talked even though it’s only been a week and a half. This blog has become very therapeutic. Even when I feel like it’s work to start writing, as soon as my fingers hit to keyboard I feel a lot better about everything. So, welcome back to land of the young and washed up.

This week I learned that I am really washed up. How? I couldn’t wait to go home and sleep multiple nights in a row.

I sat down on a chair once this week and just sat there for an hour. Doing nothing. Just sitting there. And I couldn’t have been happier.

One night, I was legitimately excited for bed, only because I was going to trim my beard the next day. That was a “lit” activity for me.

So yeah, I am washed up and proud!

Wednesday Night

My friend Jonny is coming into town later tonight. I am getting kind of anxious because I know his flight is delayed and I also have to wake up at 4 am the next morning for work. Luckily he doesn’t get in too late and we get to bed early. Jonny and I have been friends since we high school and we met Kanye West together in the Toronto airport. We used to go out almost every week and make some regrettable decisions on the Whiskey Dix (a bar in Winnipeg for those of you elsewhere – yes, that is it’s actual name, and yes it’s as gross as it sounds) dance floor the summer we turned 18 so I’m expecting a fun weekend.

Thursday

I have a four hour nap and I am completely irrelevant.

Friday Night

We get cheap seats to the Clippers vs. Spurs game and hop in an Uber on the way to the game. It was actually a Lyft, but Uber just sounds cooler. We are walking up to the Staples Center when Jonny stops.

“I forgot the tickets in the car.”

After a lot of GPS navigation games with our driver, we finally get the tickets and get inside. It’s Chuck’s birthday. Chuck is not a human being – well, I’m sure there are human being’s named Chuck – but Chuck is the Los Angeles Clippers mascot. He is a bird. Why the mascot for the CLIPPERS is a bird I do not know, all I know is they gave out free cake.

“where did you get the cake from?” a little girl taps me on the shoulder and asks.

They are all out of cake and I know this because I got one of the last pieces.

“Here you can have mine.” As I hand her the cake.

She made mistake #1 – taking candy from a stranger. But it looked like good cake, so I would have done the same.

We order a couple of waters and go back to our seats. We had planned on going out for some chicken and waffles on a stick with sriracha maple syrup (I know, a food review is definitely coming) and going out to a couple of bars but we were both feeling really tired.

“I’m ready to crash.”

“Me too.”

We both went to bed before 1 am. Nothing like our 18 year old selves.

Saturday Evening

We just hit the mall quickly. I managed to walk out with a new white t shirt and a jacket (hey, at least there was another item involed). We got a shitty salad and panini from the mall restaurant. The waiter walks by us:

“everything tasting alright?”

“Yeah it was all good!”

Our Uber driver hands me the aux chord and I set it on fire with Chris Brown – Forever. He isn’t from here and he wants to know what rap music sounds like today. I first play “Hotline Bling” sort of as a joke but sort of seriously.

“This is hip-hop?”

“No this is a hip-hop artist with a pop song”

Then I play J. Cole

“who is this?”

“J. Cole”

“J. Kwon?”

“Nope, J. Cole.. but now that you mention it…”

I play J. Kwon “Tipsy” the rest of the way home. Great start.

Saturday Night

Tonight, after three washed nights, we are having a big night. How do I know this? Because we bought a bottle of Hennessy.

My boy Terrance comes over for a pregame drink and we toast to life. We are going out for my friends birthday at this exclusive VIP bar or something like that. We get to the pre-game and after what seemed like an endless amount of tough bounces, we make it out to the bar. The music is phenomenal. It’s almost hard to keep a conversation because I’m really tempted to ignorantly scream rap lyrics at the top of my lungs. We leave because Jonny has been talking about wanting to go to an LA strip club for a long time. We get in line and the bouncer says

“sorry, we’re closed.”

It was probably best for us because I didn’t have any money to spend either, and I don’t like strip clubs very much (at least not in Winnipeg).

“I really could use an In N Out burger”

We had eaten a really small and bad dinner earlier so it was a necessary play.

“I’ll call an Uber there.”

“Bro, look up! There is an In N Out right in front of us!!!!” Jonny taps me on the shoulder and says

As I look up, Jonny is not wrong. The yellow letters almost glow in the dark - like what I imagine the stairway to heaven would look like. We walk inside and we see Terrance!!!!! What are the chances? He drives us home and we munch a good burger and some fries to cap off what turned out to be a pretty good night.

Lessons:

It’s Okay to Grow Up:

Things are not always going to be the same as they were years ago. In fact, they shouldn’t be. That just means you haven’t grown. Your friendships may not consist of the same things or even the same people that they once did, but that doesn’t reflect poorly on you. It’s all about progression and if doing certain things or hanging out with certain people don’t push you forward then you need to cut it out.

Jonny and I didn’t get drunk every night and hit the clubs all weekend like we once would have, but we still had a great time. We talked about life and laughed and I realize this is starting to sound like a Nicholas Sparks movie… but what I’m trying to say is, don’t feel bad about progressing. Or about being washed up. Own yours and live your truth as always, whatever that truth may be.

Bounce Back, Always

There were a couple of tough bounces this weekend, and there was a lot going on. I had a lot of studying to do, we lost some tickets, a couple tough bounces with girls for both of us, but overall what it comes down to is how you bounce back from your L’s. I take it back when I said that you win some, you learn some, and there are no L’s. There are Losses. But only if you don’t learn from them. You can dwell on what goes wrong and you can sit around and complain about how you wish things were different, but the truth is, they aren’t different. Things are how they are and you have to deal with them or get left behind.

In the end it’s all about how you bounce back that defines you. Word to Big Sean. Dwayne Wade has this Converse commercial from back in the day where he gets hit down a bunch of times, but he rises up every single one. And at the end it said,

“Fall down 7 times, stand up 8.”;

#Dwayne Wade #Advice #Blog #Jeremyhecht #Winnipeg #LA

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takenews-blog1 · 6 years

Text

MLS Cup crown caps Toronto FC's transformation from joke to juggernaut

New Post has been published on https://takenews.net/mls-cup-crown-caps-toronto-fcs-transformation-from-joke-to-juggernaut/

MLS Cup crown caps Toronto FC's transformation from joke to juggernaut

After which there’s the Uber driver who inadvertently put destiny in Michael Bradley’s again pocket.

Watch MLS stay and On-Demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial)

“Lots of people did not need us to win a treble,” midfielder Jonathan Osorio mentioned. “Do not query me ever once more about that — we’re the very best crew in MLS historical past.”

0 notes