Chewy Bars Loblaws new weapon of choice

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The chocolate chip phase of Loblaws offensive against Longo’s is over. Where last week the supermarket giant was offering President’s Choice Decadent Chocolate Chip Cookies as an incentive to stay loyal, it has now moved on to free boxes of PC Dipped and Chewy Bars instead. And the ante has been upped. Where you could get the cookies for a purchase of $50 or more, the granola like bars require a minimum transaction of $75. 

Aristocrat weds in Lady Gaga cutaway gown

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We just could not — could not — resist showing you the shall we say eye-catching wedding dress of 24-year-old  Lady Mary Charteris for her marriage to boyfriend rock musician Robbie Furze. He is front man for The Big Pink Bow. You see Mary here with her father. She wore the cut-away dress complete with tulle skirt, floral headpiece and vertiginous heels. The aristocratic model chose a dress designed by Pam Hogg — who just so happens to have dressed Lady Gaga. The MailOnline was a little rude, observing this is what you get when you use Lady Gaga’s designer. It added however that: .”The blond star certainly had the figure for the creation which featured cutaway detail and sheer sleeves”. Some comments were cruel however: “Yowser! What a frocky horror. It’s so bad, I think I’ve seared my retinas. Best dressed award goes to baby Ethel. (If I’d worn something like that for my wedding, my Dad would have either refused to walk me down the aisle, or insisted I change into an ordinary frock instead!)” MailOnline

Who really won Toronto Ward 27 in 2010?

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It’s a cheeky question perhaps because Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam (left) finished a clear 462 votes ahead of second place candidate Ken  Chan (centre) on election night. Of course, it probably needs to be said that Ms Wong-Tam’s plurality of 7,527 was just a sliver of the 26,619 ballots cast in the populous City district. Ward 27 has the boundaries of the federal constituency of Toronto Centre. There were a stunning 15 candidates in this field and some of them, like Simon  Wookey (right) with 2,128 ballots were probably more like-minded with Mr. Chan. There was also Chris Tindall with 3,447 votes, Joe Dick with 1,667 votes and Robert Maynell with 1,223.  Ward 27 is the best example anyone might put forward for why Toronto should adopt the Ranked Ballot  (or instant runoff) mechanism in municipal general elections. Ranked Balloting provides  electors with a chance to pick a second and third choice from among the candidates. If there are 15 candidates, the voter can theoretically make 15 ranked choices. It then requires the local electoral officer and scrutineers (or election machines) to examine all the ballots for the voter’s run off choices In the end, it  establishes a winner who can claim a clear majority. Ranked Ballots is a reform being discussed at City Hall for the 2018 election. It is in the mix with other reforms to the electoral process proposed by Mayor Ford. It should be adopted.  Previous post.

Advanced sailboat sets record in San Francisco

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Advanced multihull sailboat DCNS Hydroptere set the fastest certified one nautical mile speed record on Friday afternoon in San Francisco Bay.The Yacht Racing Association of San Francisco Bay and the San Francisco Bay Area Multihull Association were in attendance to certify that the Hydroptere set a record by sailing for one nautical mile (one mile 265 yds) at a speed of 37.5 knots (43.2 mph) using a precise GPS (Global Positioning System) timing system. The DCNS Hydroptere, which rises up out of the water on hydrofoils as it gains speed, is crewed by an entirely French team captained by Alain Thebault. The one nautical mile record was attempted in preparation for an upcoming chance at setting a new sailing speed record between Los Angeles, California and Honolulu, Hawaii. The Telegraph

Loblaws fights Longo’s with decadent cookies

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In supermarket war, anything goes. With the new Longo’s store all the rage in the media, the Loblaws at 321 Moore Ave has been giving away free bags of the President’s Choice Decadent Chocolate Chip Cookies on transactions over $50. Just to be clear, this promotion was going on a couple of days ago and may be over now. Longo’s has done a laudable and smart thing getting placed in the Leaside Village Centre at 85 Laird Drive (at Esandar Drive). Nonetheless, Loblaws continues to be sitting pretty for location at the Moore and Bayview store. Time will tell how competition changes things. No doubt Sobey’s in the SmartCentre is cooking up something. The largest question mark, in some peoples minds, hangs over the Loblaws Super Centre store on Redway Drive.