February preview

So what's coming up for February here at the Mind? Well, travel. I'll be out of the country for the month, but will make efforts to keeps up with the news of immigration and Canada as best I can with the distraction of being away. Look forward to March for things to get back to normal. I hope Winter is treating you well!

Permanent Resident Card arrives

Just a note for this milestone. After delays and confusion (see past blog entries), my Permanent Resident Card arrived today. I wish my hair looked better (I'm not as photogenic as Yasmin!)!

Pushing immigration problems across the border

Kim Murphy of the LA Times reports:

Canada for years has had one of the most generous immigration policies in the world, welcoming tens of thousands of asylum applicants who claim to be fleeing persecution in their homelands.

But the Conservative government has begun rolling up the welcome mat, stepping up efforts to track down and deport thousands whose applications have been denied.

The clampdown is likely to be felt not only across Canada but in the United States.


Read the article from the Seattle Times here.

Canadian Immigrant - Government to launch programs to better identify immigrants to Canada

The Canadian government’s introduction of two new programs could involve the sharing of sensitive personal information, such as fingerprints, from government to private-sector companies, and from government to government, which has privacy advocates concerned whether proper safeguards are being used to minimize risk.

Read the rest here

Skating at Harbourfront Centre

The Natrel rink at Harbourfront Centre where I skate

When I knew I would be immigrating to Canada a few years ago, I took the brave step to go to my not-so-local arena in the Seattle area (there are only a handful of places to go) and take some introductory skating lessons. I was terrible. I learned how to swizzle forward and backward, but that was about it. The rink was a half-hour drive from home, and it cost $6 to get on the ice for the open skate (an hour at most), so I didn't go very often. The best thing was that I got over my fear of being a middle-aged beginner.

Once I got to Canada I figured I would get back to my skating. On my last visit to Seattle, I tried my skates on again after a couple years off them and man, did they hurt! So I went online to some hockey sites and found a YouTube video of how to measure for skates. Turns out I had been wearing the wrong size!

Now that I am in Toronto, there are loads of places to skate, including Harbourfront Centre, which is a short walk from home. I have been going out as often as is reasonable and am finally feeling like a kid again, skating on the big sheet right on Lake Ontario. It's inspiring! It's free! And I'm not terrible at it anymore!

I love this city and all the resources the public has here. If you're immigrating to Canada, I encourage you to learn to skate, no matter what your age. If I can do it, anyone can.

Wind chill?

For the benefit of those who might not be familiar with the term, and in keeping with a Winter theme (though the weather here in Toronto has been unseasonably warm all Winter so far), let's talk about "wind chill". When you check the weather in the morning, trying to decide what to wear and all (see previous post), you'll hear something like, "It's currently 3-degrees, minus 2 with the wind chill."

What that means is the actual temperature out is 3C, but what it "feels like" (because of the wind) is -2C.

According to our friends at Wikipedia: "Wind chill (often popularly called the wind chill factor) is the felt air temperature on exposed skin due to wind. The wind chill temperature is always lower than the air temperature, and the windchill is undefined at the higher temps (above 10 °C [50 °F])."

You always want to dress for the wind chill temperature. Even though here in the city there are corridors where you can avoid being exposed to the wind, if you go out, you can't entirely avoid it. And when the chill is below -19C, exposed skin can freeze in 30 minutes.

Take wind chill seriously and remember to dress warm!

What to wear on a cold day in Toronto

Happy New Year! I'ts bitterly cold in Toronto this morning. -13C, but with the wind chill, it's closer to -24C (or -11F). For a guy from temperate Seattle, WA, that's cold.

Luckily, and thanks to my Love, I am prepared. So what do you wear to stay warm on a bitterly cold day? Here are my outer gear choices, from the top down:

• Toque - Mine is just a red Nike woven cotton one. Nothing fancy.
• Neck Warmer - I got this polar fleece one from Mountain Equipment Co-op. It works well because you can pull it up over your face too.
• Scarf - A good scarf can be wrapped any number of ways to keep your neck, face and chest a little more comfortable and takes care of areas a neck warmer can't cover.
• Down Jacket - This is where I got fancy (but my Love says its an "investment"). The jacket is a Canada Goose "Banff" Parka and it's my pride and joy. I won't mention all the features (read them here), but a serious winter jacket is a must and this one keeps me more than comfortable without heating me up and making me sweat. 
• Gloves - While most days I get away with lined leather, on a day like today you need snow gloves that are warm. These are also from Mountain Equipment Co-op
• Impermeable Boots - Toronto is big on salt. They spread it everywhere on cold days to keep cars on the road and people on their feet. Trouble is, it will ruin your shoes. So a pair of impermeable boots are a must, and insulated ones like my Kamik Icebreakers are good to -40C. No frozen toes for me.

What you wear under all this is up to you, but these basics will keep most of you warm and dry. All told, there's around  $1,000 in gear here (blame the jacket). It can be done cheaper of course - but if you want to adventure in -24C temperatures, be sure and take your clothing seriously.

Have a warm start to your New Year!

Wallet-snatching Americans

I read in the Globe and Mail this morning that the IRS has yet been unable to come up with a draft of the regulations they plan to force on Canadian banks in order to track the accounts of US citizens living in Canada. Rumour has it that the cost of the program to the US will far exceed the amount of tax revenue that they could possibly discover. There is also the possibility that Canadian banks will simply refuse to take on customers that are US citizens (there is no right to bank in the Charter, after all) in order to avoid penalties that could include a whopping 30% on a bank's business in the US.

For practical purposes, I won't be establishing any joint accounts for my Love and I anytime soon. Then the US could claim her earning and assets (retirement accounts, etc.) are partially mine and tax us for their value.

All I know is that as soon as I can, I'll be putting this complication behind me by renouncing my US citizenship. It's years in the offing, of course (and who knows - the IRS may never get their act together on this), but who needs these wallet-snatching Americans in their back pocket when all they do with the money is give it to their friends in the large multinationals?

Read the Globe article here.

Is it possible to have a harmonized border with the US?

"Those dark days when the U.S. stretched the bounds of international humanitarian law to the breaking point are hopefully gone forever. Nevertheless, U.S. law and practice still embrace elements that do not conform well to Canadian law, custom and values. This can only pose a daunting challenge to any effort at harmonization in the area of security-related law enforcement."

Read the opinion piece at The Star here.

I am o-so OHIP

You hear a lot of praise for the Canadian healthcare system, as well as a lot of criticism. From what I have learned from my love, both are pretty fair. On the plus side, the provincial healthcare systems cover a lot of basic ground; checkups, flu shots, basic procedures, and even some big ticket healthcare needs (emergencies). On the negative side, it is true that many wait months and months in order to obtain some of the more complex services (related to cancer, surgeries, etc.) and there is a shortage of family doctors. My love just achieved the Holy Grail in Toronto - a family doctor in the city!

I just became eligible for the Ontario Healthcare Insurance Program, or OHIP last month. Let me say that from an American expatriate's point of view - it's a blessing. I was paying $300 per month in the US for a catastrophic healthcare insurance plan - meaning you don't use it unless you have a critical need, and even then, it doesn't cover a lot of situations. It was rising in price by 18% every year over the last three years. Now my taxes pay for my core healthcare needs.

Canada's system isn't perfect, but now I don't have to choose between eating and having health insurance.