# The CanaDoper Café, 2013 edition. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 1, 2013, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736 "2013-01-01T03:29:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 147
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2921 "2013-12-10T23:39:32Z")
I’m getting fed up with this weather (snow seemingly every day, bone-chilling temps), so I was extra-pleased, when I went out to perform the Daily Shovel, to find that the neighbour’s son was out too; and having finished the city sidewalk for about four houses plus his driveway, was starting in on mine. Of course, I joined in, and between the two of us, we were done in maybe five minutes. By myself, it takes about fifteen. I thanked him profusely, but I just have to say it again: Thanks, Neighbour! ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2922 "2013-12-10T23:45:42Z")
I hear they’re going to have the Hundred-Metre Driveway Shovel as a demonstration event in the next Winter Olympics. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2923 "2013-12-10T23:50:55Z")
That’s great, **Spoons**! I’ve been wondering about my neighbours (a young couple) - they usually clean their walks right away, but they haven’t cleaned them for days now. I thought about doing it for them - maybe I will tomorrow. Once again I’m singing my version of [LMFAO’s song - “Every day, I’m shovelling, shovelling…”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ6zr6kCPj8) 😃 **Sunspace** , that would be one more winter event for Canadians to dominate. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2924 "2013-12-11T01:30:55Z")
[WestJet performs an awesome, heartwarming bit of Christmas gift-giving](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIEIvi2MuEk) for people flying from Toronto and Hamilton to Calgary. I may have sniffled a bit watching it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2925 "2013-12-11T02:01:07Z")
Yeah, I guess. But the cynic in me knows that this is just a cheap advertising campaign. WestJet doesn’t give a shit really, and the gifts were undoubtedly donated by Samsung, et al. It’s a feel-good story that will get a lot of attention on Youtube and Facebook and probably cost a lot less that putting together a traditional advertisement. I don’t see WestJet doing this because they’re such a caring company. No, I see them doing this as an inexpensive advertising campaign that they hope will go viral through social media and provide them with a lot of unfounded good will. Yeah, I mean, good for the people involved, they got some free shit. But don’t underestimate the motives of WestJet; they’re not doing this for any particular altruistic reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2926 "2013-12-11T03:16:10Z")
I know WestJet is in it to make money, but even though they’re getting a ton of free publicity for this, I still think it’s a nice story. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2927 "2013-12-11T04:18:31Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Chip wagon at Canadian Tire in Kanata. There’s one in the parking lot of a grocery store on Carling. That’s my go-to wagon. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2928 "2013-12-11T16:08:53Z")
[Canada post to end urban home delivery](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canada-post-delivery/article15868531/). > [@](#): > > Canada Post is phasing out urban home delivery and raising rates to cope with dwindling volume and mounting losses. Can’t say I’m surprised, nor upset since I haven’t had home delivery in decades. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2929 "2013-12-11T16:14:12Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > [Canada post to end urban home delivery](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canada-post-delivery/article15868531/). > > Can’t say I’m surprised, nor upset since I haven’t had home delivery in decades. It will probably drive my mother up the wall because she won’t know when the mail comes anymore. Of course if Grandma can adapt (her community has had the row of boxes since it was built and they moved in) I’m sure she will too. I hardly get actual mail anyway, I kinda miss it but I still do silly things like send hand written thank you notes (then followed the last one up with an email so they knew I was thankful and wasn’t ignoring them in case the mail took a bit getting across the country). ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2930 "2013-12-11T18:14:48Z")
No, I’m not terribly surprised, either. I don’t mind a community mailbox - I’m always out walking in my neighbourhood anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2931 "2013-12-11T18:43:16Z")
I actually have home delivery here for a change but it’s not a hardship to lose it. I prefer that we have a cost effective delivery service for everyone rather than provide special service for some based on history. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2932 "2013-12-11T19:59:20Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I don’t see WestJet doing this because they’re such a caring company. No, I see them doing this as an inexpensive advertising campaign that they hope will go viral through social media and provide them with a lot of unfounded good will. No kidding. Thank you Mr. Scrooge. Of course Westjet does it for the publicity. But the great part is that they did it. And how they did it. And if you see the video, you’ll see that they went shopping at several stores, who were credited at the end. So the stores probably gave them a break on price. good for them. “unfounded” good will? No sir. The good will is earned through clever marketing, and doing a nice thing. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2933 "2013-12-12T00:47:49Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > No kidding. > > Thank you Mr. Scrooge. Of course Westjet does it for the publicity. But the great part is that they did it. And how they did it. > > And if you see the video, you’ll see that they went shopping at several stores, who were credited at the end. So the stores probably gave them a break on price. good for them. > > “unfounded” good will? No sir. The good will is earned through clever marketing, and doing a nice thing. Humbug. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2934 "2013-12-12T01:10:32Z")
On a brighter note, the wild birds in my back yard have food again. Since the big storm ten days ago, I’ve been able to see that the backyard feeder needs filling. But large snowdrifts have kept me from getting into the garage, where I keep the bird seed for the feeder. The birds have been around, wondering where their food is. But today, while at the supermarket, I thought “Why not?” and got some more bird seed. I filled the feeder, put this new sack of food in the house; and within an hour, the birds were back. It’s nice to hear them, and they provide hours of entertainment for my cats, who watch them from the window. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2935 "2013-12-12T01:48:48Z")
I’ve been throwing some stale cat kibble out in the backyard for the magpies and squirrels - it’s amazing how quickly they’ll gobble up some kibble! I’m a little concerned about encouraging magpies to hang out in my backyard, though, with the noise they make (and their fantastic memories). 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2936 "2013-12-12T02:02:53Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’ve been throwing some stale cat kibble out in the backyard for the magpies and squirrels - it’s amazing how quickly they’ll gobble up some kibble! I’m a little concerned about encouraging magpies to hang out in my backyard, though, with the noise they make (and their fantastic memories). 🙂 Magpies, or crows? Crows are as intelligent as dogs fer Christ’s sake. Not sure we get magpies here. What’s a magpie in Calgary? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2937 "2013-12-12T02:06:14Z")
[Pretty white and black birds,](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Magpie_arp.jpg) that like to make a huge racket and are smart enough to remember individual people’s faces. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Raygun99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Raygun99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raygun99)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2938 "2013-12-12T02:10:59Z")
aka the Western Canadian rooster, waking you up at the crack of 5. Devil’s Spawn birds, they are. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2939 "2013-12-12T04:55:45Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Magpies, or crows? Crows are as intelligent as dogs fer Christ’s sake. Not sure we get magpies here. What’s a magpie in Calgary? As **Cat Whisperer** said. They’re pretty common out here. I can understand your confusion, though, **Leaffan** ; as I never encountered them in all my years of living in Ontario. And they are _loud!_ ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736/2940 "2013-12-12T07:53:22Z")
Interesting. I think [this](http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://eraptors.org/Maps/MagpieMP.gif&imgrefurl=http://eraptors.org/rr_magpie.htm&h=367&w=432&sz=55&tbnid=G2D2KKQbSGoAOM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=106&zoom=1&usg=__32k215fz-wVTlGwVkIPa2x4Y3LQ=&docid=uTOL47BKpl4lxM&sa=X&ei=8WqpUtWJAuaMyAGWioGwBQ&sqi=2&ved=0CDoQ9QEwAg) is their habitat… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736.md?page=146) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-canadoper-cafe-2013-edition/645736.md?page=148)