Weekly News Recap: September 29, 2023

Weekly News Recap: September 29, 2023

Filmmaker Omar Mouallem at Burger Baron in Edmonton. His documentary, The Lebanese Burger Mafia, is playing at CIFF this week. (Amber Bracken)

Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart. -- Gibran Khalil Gibran

SOME GOOD NEWS

  • Taylor Swift is a Travis Kelce fan and suddenly, so is everyone else as NFL player's jersey sales skyrocket (CBC) The Netflix series also helped. "Taylor Swift's trip to watch the Kansas City's Travis Kelce play football on Sunday didn't just have the internet talking nonstop. Following the 12-time Grammy Award winner's appearance at Arrowhead Stadium, jersey sales for the All-Pro tight end seemingly skyrocketed. According to sportswear and fan merchandise company Fanatics, Kelce was one of the top five selling NFL players Sunday."

  • VIDEO: Blissful black bear blows bubbles in backyard pond (CBC) Bears are surprisingly playful. "Susan Gray says this backyard visitor spent over an hour playing with a water feature made for birds in Prince George, B.C."

  • 5 Indigenous artists on their designs for Orange Shirt Day 2023 (CBC) Wishing everyone a day of reflection and personal reconciliation. "This coming Sept. 30 marks the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, when many people will wear orange to both recognize and raise awareness about the tragic history of residential schools and their ongoing harms to Indigenous people. It will also be the 10th anniversary of Orange Shirt Day, which was created in 2013 to spread the message that every child matters. It was inspired by Phyllis (Jack) Webstad, a Stswecem'c Xgat'tem First Nation elder in Williams Lake, B.C., who, at the age of six, had her orange shirt taken away when she attended a residential school."

  • VIDEO: South African firefighters say farewell to Canada with traditional dance (CBC) Thank you all so much! "South African firefighters say farewell to Canada with traditional dance."

  • Tiny bobcat kitten named Lee rescued in last weekend's post-tropical storm (CBC) Looks almost like a housecat...almost. "Several soaking wet and windblown animals were taken to the Atlantic Wildlife Institute in southeastern New Brunswick when tropical storm Lee blew through the region. Among those rescued were a few squirrels, a chipmunk and a hummingbird, according to Pam Novak, the director of wildlife at the rehabilitation centre near Sackvlle. But there was one clear standout — a tiny bobcat kitten — who Novak estimates is only about one month old. Weighing in at just 759 grams, or 1.6 pounds, the kitten won't be ready for release until spring."

  • VIDEO: Bear cubs play tag around backyard pool (CBC) #Ha "A trio of bear cubs engaged in a game of chase under their mother's watchful eye in this backyard video captured by Sharon Dawes in Prince George, B.C."

  • VIDEO: Some Canadians are using AI simulations to reconnect with their deceased loved ones (CBC) Amazing! "Chris Zuger struggled to cope with his father's sudden death in 2022. He missed their phone calls and text message conversations, and the jokes and opinions they shared together. So when the absence became too much to bear, Zuger turned to the artificial intelligence (AI) program ChatGPT to try, in some ways, to recreate those interactions. 'I had a trove of his texts, his speech patterns,' he told The Current's Matt Galloway, from Ottawa. 'Then I said, 'When I say hello, you respond back as this pattern' — and it did.' Zuger said the text conversation was brief, but it helped him appreciate his relationship with his father."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

  1. Learn AI now or risk losing your job, experts warn (CBC) We are using it in fundraising. "It's smart, efficient and gaining speed. In fact, you might be surprised to hear how much of the workload artificial intelligence can already handle at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. 'In our hospital, we have a saying that AI is not going to replace clinicians, but clinicians who use AI are going to replace clinicians who don't use AI,' said Dr. Muhammad Mamdani, vice-president of data science and advanced analytics at Unity Health Toronto. In a rapidly changing world surrounded by technology, this is a warning that workers in many industries may now need to take seriously. Artificial intelligence is here and experts say workers across most sectors — from finance to law to coding — now need to learn how to use AI themselves or risk being replaced."

  2. Nearly 7M Canadians struggling to put food on the table: report (Yahoo Sports) 😞 "With the cost of food, housing, and nearly all essentials on the rise, food banks are becoming increasingly vital for families struggling to make ends meet. Food Banks Canada has graded each Canadian province and territory on efforts to reduce poverty."

  3. Ground search finds 15 'potential' grave sites at former Yukon residential school site (CBC) My heart aches. "A search done this summer involving ground-penetrating radar at a former residential school site in Carcross, Yukon, found 15 'anomalies' that researchers say are 'potential' grave sites. The group leading the project also says that historical research found more children died at the Chooutla Indian Residential School than was previously estimated."

  4. Pandemic floods 12 big food banks with $168M in reserves (CBC) "Some of Canada's largest food banks built up record reserves during the pandemic that are only now beginning to shrink, giving them tens of millions of dollars of financial cushion to feed people through an affordability crisis. Twelve large food banks across the country collectively held about $168 million in cash and investments last year, roughly quadrupling their reserve balances since 2019. During that time, expenses roughly doubled. National and provincial food bank associations had an additional $70 million in reserves."

  5. Stollery Children's Hospital opens new mental health walk-in clinic (Edmonton Journal) "To help combat the pandemic’s impact on child and youth mental health, the Stollery Children’s Hospital has added crucial capacity through the opening of a new outpatient psychiatry clinic and a new mental health walk-in clinic."

  6. Alberta adds $12M to create 2,000 more trade apprenticeship spots (CTV) And it is well-needed. "Alberta is adding an extra $12.4 million this year to create more apprenticeship seats to meet surging demand. Advanced Education Minister Rajan Sawhney says the money will create almost 2,000 new apprenticeship positions. The funding is on top of the $15 million over three years announced earlier this year that added more than 1,000 extra apprenticeship spaces. Alberta’s total funding for apprenticeship training in this budget year now exceeds $54 million."

  7. VIDEO: Dumb Money's director got GameStop story from his son — and his star from Swiss Army Man (CBC) This looks like a great film. "'Again, I'm not looking to do real stories,' said Craig Gillespie, the director of Dumb Money, a fictionalization of the GameStop stock short squeeze, half laughing at himself. 'Somehow, they find me.' The Australian director's joking denial stems from what can only be called a damning track record when it comes to 'based-on-a-true-story' movies. Beginning with the Disney sports biopic Million Dollar Arm, to the coast guard thriller The Finest Hours, on to I, Tonya, Pam & Tommy and the upcoming exotic-dancing true-crime flick Chippendales."

  8. How the son of a Burger Baron turned the chain's history into a 'surprisingly' successful documentary (CBC) #LoveBurgerBaron "Somewhere along Macleod Trail in 1957, an ambitious Irish-American businessman named Jack McDonnell opened one of the first two Burger Baron locations in Calgary. Known for its iconic mushroom burgers, the storied franchise with a cult following is a staple for those who grew up in this province. That loyalty exists despite the fact that there seems to be no consistency among the remaining 25 Burger Baron locations in Alberta. The logos of the different locations are conceptually similar, featuring a cartoon baron brandishing a spike and shield, but some are dressed in red, others in blue, black or lime green. All of them are drawn differently."

  9. Partial settlement approved in lawsuit against Calgary Stampede over abuse of boys (CBC) "A judge has approved a partial settlement in a class-action lawsuit against the Calgary Stampede that alleged the organization allowed a performance school staffer to sexually abuse young boys. Phillip Heerema received a 10-year prison sentence in 2018 after pleading guilty to charges including sexual assault, sexual exploitation, child pornography and luring. Heerema admitted to using his position with the Young Canadians School of Performing Arts, which performs each year in the Calgary Stampede Grandstand Show, to lure and groom six boys into sexual relationships. The school is operated by the Calgary Stampede Foundation."

  10. Oxford drops college renaming after Vietnam billionaire's failed $189 million donation: report (Yahoo News) "A constituent college at Oxford University has scrapped plans to rename itself after a Vietnamese billionaire after her donation failed to see the light of day, according to a report [...] Linacre College, an interdisciplinary graduate college, was poised to receive 155 million pounds ($189.3 million) from Vietnamese investment group SOVICO under a memorandum of understanding signed in 2021. The college, which was named after 15th-century English scholar Thomas Linacre, was to be renamed into Thao College after SOVICO’s chairwoman, Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

  1. 9 bucket list trips in Europe that everyone should do in their lifetime (Condé Naste Traveller) These look amazing!

  2. The 12 Types of Whiskey Every Drinker Should Know (Cool Material) I did not know there were 12 types but I do know that I do like whiskey.

  3. The Most Terrible Poverty Is Loneliness (Personal Growth) I couldn't agree more. Thanks John for another wonderful article.

  4. What you eat could be key to improving your mental health, scientists say (CBC) I am not the least bit surprised. More broccoli, beans, nuts, berries, and whole oats please.

  5. VIDEO: Legendary 86-Year-Old Physical Therapist Dr. Shirley Sahrmann: Key Exercises w/ Instructions (YouTube) A truly spectacular video.

  6. VIDEO: The art of misdirection (TED) So much to learn.

  7. The Fastest Branding Exercise in the World (Steven Gambardella) This is a great exercise. Essence, soul, face, and shadow.

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

  1. Vancouver Art Gallery gets $5 million donation from Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation (Galleries West) "The Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation has donated $5 million to the Vancouver Art Gallery, bringing the gallery to more than 85 per cent of its $400 million fundraising target for a new building to open in 2028. The donation will be used to create the Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation Centre, spanning more than 2,400 square feet for education studios, exhibition space and a surrounding terrace offering panoramic views of the cityscape."

  2. Montana Tech receives $31M donation (Montana Right Now) A gift from alumnus Ryan Lance, CEO of Conoco Philips.

  3. IWK Foundation receives $1 million donation from J.D. Irving (Country 94) "J.D. Irving, Limited has given $1 million to the redevelopment of the IWK Emergency Department. 'We believe in supporting the communities where our employees live and work,' said Robert K. Irving, co-CEO of J.D. Irving, Limited."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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