31 May 2026

Why I want Doug Ford Gone

 A "comprehensive" list of every political misstep, policy reversal, and broken promise by Ontario Premier Doug Ford is difficult to definitively compile due to the sheer volume of his administration's actions since taking office in 2018. 

However, his major controversies, policy reversals, and significant political "screw-ups" cluster around several key areas:
1. Ethical Scandals & "Cronyism" Allegations
  • The Greenbelt Scandal: The Ford government attempted to open thousands of acres of protected Greenbelt land for housing development. After the Auditor General and Integrity Commissioner released scathing reports detailing how select developers were tipped off—increasing the land's value by billions—Ford cancelled the plan and apologized. 
  • Ontario Place Redevelopment: The government committed billions in taxpayer subsidies to build a private European spa (Therme Canada) at Ontario Place. The Auditor General found the bidding process "not fair, transparent, or accountable". 
  • Skills Development Fund: Auditor General reports raised alarms that the Minister of Labor and partisan staff interfered in grant rankings, funneling millions of dollars to lobbyists and consultants tied to the Progressive Conservative party. 
2. Labor & Wage Disputes
  • Bill 124: The Ford government passed legislation limiting public sector wage increases (including nurses and teachers) to \(1\%\) per year. This legislation was eventually ruled unconstitutional and struck down by the courts for violating Charter rights. 
  • Minimum Wage & Labor Laws: Ford cancelled a scheduled \(\$1\) minimum wage increase, repealed legislation requiring equal pay for part-time workers, and cut guaranteed paid sick days early in his tenure. 
3. Healthcare Management
  • COVID-19 Long-Term Care Response: The government faced severe backlash over its handling of for-profit long-term care homes during the early days of the pandemic, where thousands of residents died and the military was eventually called in to assist. 
  • Hospital Capacity & Hallway Medicine: Despite promises to end "hallway medicine," emergency room wait times have remained exceptionally high, and Ontario spends less per capita on hospitals than any other province. 
4. Democratic Norms & Transparency
  • Freedom of Information (FOI) Changes: The government introduced sweeping changes that restricted access to internal government records and exempted cabinet ministers' offices from standard FOI requests, leading to widespread accusations of trying to hide public records. 
  • Notwithstanding Clause: Ford has utilized the notwithstanding clause multiple times to override court rulings, including attempting to arbitrarily cap spending by interest groups during election years. 
  • Strong Mayor Powers: The government expanded mayoral powers across numerous municipalities, overriding city council decisions to force through development plans and zoning overrides. 
5. High-Profile Policy Reversals
Due to massive public outcry, the government was forced to entirely reverse a number of major decisions: 
  • The Greenbelt: Fully walked back after attempting to excise lands for development.
  • Class Sizes & E-Learning: Abandoned plans to increase high school class sizes and mandate mandatory online courses.
  • Municipal Boundaries & Peel Dissolution: Reversed plans to arbitrarily alter municipal urban boundaries and abandoned the controversial dissolution of the Peel Region. 
For more daily tracking of the current administration's missteps, visit the Ontario Federation of Labour cuts tracker or the Democracy Watch ethical actions registry

Morning Reflections

 


30 May 2026

AI

 


 






Somewhere Espresso Cafe

 Linking up with Marg at The Intrepid Reader

29 May 2026

Last week's post.

SATURDAY

It was a dark and rainy day, we had really wanted to go to Doors Open. It turned out to be a 100% rainy day with many activities being cancelled, including the Bruno Mars concert.

John crushed all the boxes and brought them to the loading dock. And picked up yet another Amazon package which included new cushion covers, a cheap and cheerful way of redecorating.


It was a good day for poking about. John went to the locker and found a travelling golf bag he had forgotten about. He also brought up a portable safe (trash) and my old camera bag (can be gotten rid of with other camera stuff).
John's new golf bag arrived and he switched his old one out for Wednesday.

I changed around the living room cushions. I get antsy and like to change things up, just like my mother. 


I worked on some upcoming blogs. I created May's blogger header.
We started gathering things for our sojourn to PEI on Thursday. Golf clubs are packed.

We both read for a while. 

SUNDAY

Another miserable day!

Considering we slept in until 9!!!!! we had a productive morning.
We did laundry. We hung the new pictures.
So much nicer as canvas than framed.
Mamma's is in Toronto. Jerry's was taken in Gallup NM, Flame is Las Vegas and BBQ is Nashville TN

Japan is on the wall.




MONDAY

Well, after a ghastly weather weekend, the sun was shining in all its glory. It was balmy walking to get pedi-manis.

I saved a hundred dollars today, by returning the pants I had ordered that didn't fit, and I don't really need them.
We then went to FCP for our covid boosters, we had received our government notification, advising persons of a "certain age" to get vaccinated.

FCP (Carol and Eric) didn't have any and offered to run to another pharmacy, which happened to be in Commerce Court, so we simply walked over there and got them from Karen, another great pharmacist.
We grabbed Starbucks as we waited for the bus, Iced Caramel Macchiato for me and Salted Caramel Cream Cold for John.
At Starbucks, showed my BFF the pic and she said she'd love some!



TUESDAY
Tuesday Treasures - Homeless Jesus

I went to Starbucks to grab some of the coffee grounds (it was heavy) for my BFF and also to Longo's for a couple of things, bacon on sale and ground pork. Five chicken quarters for $10, gives us two dinners and a lunch.
John used the simulator.

After lunch we took the streetcar to Kensington Market. it was a lovely day and it was crowded. There are a lot of Americans in town as it was a long weekend for them.




John said it was too hot for coffee!


We strolled back and picked up 3 sub buns ($1!!!) where we had bahn mi last week and custard tarts at a different bakery, we preferred last week's.

Our restaurant is advertising this.



WEDNESDAY

We spent to morning finishing packing and getting organized for a few days away. 
Pt laundry away, watered plants, froze what needed to be.
I checked in online, the weather isn't looking great so far, fingers crossed.
I took the old picture frames down to the dock.
 
John headed out to golf and I went for a haircut. went to the Eaton Centre.



I picked up a Starbucks mango cream matcha, meh, no taste of mango, did taste the matcha, foamy blah.

THURSDAY
We were in PEI in 1990 and 2014.  This time we are flying and are mainly here for John to golf at Crow Bush.
The season doesn't really start until July, so there is no theatre available.
Prince Edward Island (PEI) has been a favourite vacation destination for decades and has often been referred to as “The Gentle Island’.


Prince Edward Island (PEI) is Canada’s smallest province, measuring about 224 km (140 mi) long and 6 to 64 km  (4 to 40 mi)wide. It covers a total area of 5,660 square kilometers (approx. 2,190 sq mi), and because of its unique geography, you are never more than 15 minutes from the beach.

We were up at 5:30 and our Uber arrived around 6:10. Easy check in and security, of course, my laptop had to be swabbed.
We grabbed coffees before boarding, we had great seats, exit row, two aisles, and no one in the middle seats. We were about #) minutes late taking off due to traffic.


Flying time is 2 hours and 20 minutes. Charlottetown is exactly 1 hour ahead of Toronto. When it is 12:00 PM in Toronto, it is 1:00 PM in Charlottetown.
Toronto observes Eastern Time, while Charlottetown observes Atlantic Time.


We landed in pouring rain, and waited for my suitcase, which arrived sopping wet.



We got a cab for the $100 fare to the resort. We are at Crowbush Cove, right on the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It will still be cheaper taking taxis than renting a car. We are here for golf and relaxation.

The Links at Crowbush Cove is located on the scenic north shore of Prince Edward Island. The course is located at 710 Lakeside Rd, Morell, PE C0A 1S0, sitting roughly a 25-minute drive northeast of the capital city of Charlottetown. It is widely celebrated as one of Canada's premier public courses, weaving through coastal sand dunes, spruce woodlands, and interior wetlands with sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean.


The resort is quite nice. They will ferry you around by golf cart to the Crow's Nest restaurant on the 5th hole.
The rain did not let up.


Lunch menu, but we both opted for fish and chips and a beer.


They should get rid of their Miller advertising.
The Government of Prince Edward Island sells off its remaining inventory of U.S.-made wine and spirits to raise funds for local food banks. American alcohol was originally pulled from provincial shelves in response to tariffs, but the province is selling off the stockpile throughout 2026 before phasing out U.S. products permanently.
I wish Ontario would do the same with its US inventory.



The room is a suite, overlooking the course.


We did some Netflix and then had a nap before dinner.
John HAD to have PEI mussels, he thought the broth was rather bland.
I had salmon.


We were shocked to find out the Claude Lemieux had died at 60. I was more saddened to learn that he had taken his own life.

FRIDAY

I got up at what I thought was my usual 7 AM, then decided to go back to bed. It turned out the clock was wrong (an hour off) and we got up at 9:08!!
Headed down for breakfast, bacon and eggs for John, and smoked salmon, cream cheese and bagel for me. 
If I am in the Maritimes, I will have fish!!




NO RAIN! John headed over to the clubhouse at 10:45.


I did something I don't usually do, I put on some music. We had been commenting that Starbucks always has great music playing. It turns out there are dedicated Starbucks Spotify playlists. I googled coffeehouse pops and found that sound.
I did my usual morning reading and blogging.
John played as a solo and messaged me when he reached the water hole in front of our room.



John took some photos.




He came in frozen to the bone!

We went to the bar for a drink and ordered dinner to go, Caesar salad, steak with fries and caramel cheesecake, to share in our room. Delicious!



COOKING


Click here for more recipes.

MENU

Saturday - chicken curry, peppers, onions. John fell in love with Japanese curry when we were on Harbord St. a couple of weeks ago.
This is my first time making Japanese curry and I used Golden Curry brand. We found it way too salty so I added a potato which helped.
I found an article comparing the various brands and will be looking for some of those.

Sunday - spicy Thai pork with salad. Delicious. Will be added to Recipe Box
Monday - chips and eggs with mushrooms and fried tomatoes (for me)
Tuesday - BBQ chicken quarters and salad
Wednesday - mushroom omelet and salad
Thursday - away
Friday - away



WATCHING
Disclaimer- we watched a lot of foreign films. 

We finished season 2 of the Chestnut Man. 

We finished season 1 of Capitani, a Luxembourgish crime drama series. We started season 2.
Four years after the events of Season 1, Capitani, who had been fired from the police force and convicted as an accessory to the murder of a drug dealer, has been released from prison due to inadequate evidence and is now living in a run-down area of Luxembourg City. He is hired by a sex worker to find a friend who has disappeared. Subsequently, he goes undercover for the prosecutor to investigate, and break up, the drug trade in the city.


READING

Spadina and College Toronto ON


I finished a 7-day loan of The Book Club for Troublesome Women. In Virginia, in the early 60s, four women start a book club where they read a feminist book, The Feminine Mystique, that would change their lives forever. 
These women are only 20 years older than I am, I read that book when I was about 16, I can only imagine the impact it had on them! I smiled at Viv putting on her first pair of pantyhose!!!
I was so annoyed that Margaret couldn't open up her own bank account without her husband's signature!! And so proud when she forged his signature!

I finished Anon Pls  From the creator behind @DeuxMoi, the popular - and infamous - celebrity gossip Instagram account, comes a fun, charming debut novel that's a perfect combination of Devil Wears Prada, Gossip Girl, and Smile and Look Pretty. Anon Pls. is for those looking for a fun escape and anyone who wonders, "What's it really like to be DeuxMoi?"
I wasn't going to read this, but then got hooked. It is a bit of a fluff piece, but it is a world I don't know a lot about.

I couldn't find the book Lists of Note that Jinjer mentioned, but I did find this to flip through.








Morning Reflections

 


29 May 2026

Weekend Roundup

 Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler

1. Starts with "V"
2. A Favorite
3.VIOLET - Chosen by Tom


STARTS WITH V



FAVOURITE
Tucson AZ


VIOLET

Kensington Market Toronto



Signs

   Joining Tom at Signs2 June 2026 - Toronto ON I've been meaning to track down this ghost sign, and happened upon it last week! High ab...