December 2016 – SQM Pick

Monthly Archives: December 2016

Losing the Pillow Fight!

December 28, 2016David Lipton Comment

This week’s blog is a little different than the normal ones I write about, as I’m going to vent about a new pillow trend that is getting on my nerves… and resulted in me losing my last pillow fight!

Over the last year and a half, I have spent a fair bit of time traveling across Canada and the United States. To my surprise, the motels and inns I have been staying at have updated (or should I say, downgraded) their traditional rectangular pillows with the small square accent pillows you would typically find on a couch (as the decor).

I personally find this somewhat frustrating, if not ridiculous, as these “new” pillows are very uncomfortable and make it impossible to get a good night’s sleep. And if that’s not enough, these pillows create an added dilemma, as one square pillow on its own is too flat and two layered on top of each other are way too high.

How am I supposed to sleep?

I know, I know….perhaps I can travel with my own pillow like Linus who went everywhere with his blanket… but my wife always encourages me to pack light…. so what is a man to do??

While I am not going anywhere over the holiday season, I warn those of you who are to beware of these fluffy, little troublemakers.

Have you experienced this at any hotels over the last year? Is this a new trend? Am I going crazy and just imagining this? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

On that note, to all of SQM’s readers and followers, have a safe enjoyable holiday season and a happy and healthy new year.

Sleep well!

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Flexing my Blogging and Retail Muscles…..Cheryl is Taking Over the Blog to Tell you About Arc’teryx

December 21, 2016Cheryl Krangle Comment

When I joined SQM and heard about David’s blog, I asked if I could write about some of the amazing experiences I have had. As a Yelp Elite Blogger, I thought this was a no-brainer, so the verdict is in and I am taking over the blog for the week.

As a deal hunting, fashionista, I love to shop and flex my retail muscles during a great session of retail therapy. I’m always on the lookout for the next best thing, including those hidden treasures that all of your friends ask you about.

Recently I struck gold at the Grand Opening of Arc’teryx at Yorkdale Mall. Arc’teryx is a premium clothing and sporting goods company that provides customers with gear to perform in extreme weather conditions.

Traditionally, when you line up for a grand opening, the store makes you stand in line like cattle, until the very last minute, when they officially open their doors, but Arc’teryx’s event was done in a much better way. My friends and I arrived at 4:30 am for this well promoted event, yes you read that correctly….4:30 am! Upon arrival, we added our names to the list being held by the Arc’teryx organizer.

Around 6:00 am we were brought into the mall where we were given water bottles, cupcakes, cookies, custom Nespresso beverages, and gluten / dairy free granola bars. The fun didn’t stop here, though, with the promoters throwing Arc’teryx t-shirts into the line to excite us while we waited. About an hour later Breakfast Television began filming their segment on the new stores within Yorkdale Mall and they gave us all $50.00 gift cards for being the first people in the new section of the mall.

Finally, Arc’teryx had gifts for everyone who attended their grand opening. Everyone went home with an orange goretex lunch box and the first 50 people in line received even more. The first ten people in line received an $800 shell jacket, while the next ten guests received a $300 insulated jacket (I was in this group) and the remaining thirty guests received backpacks filled with gifts like hats, trail mix, flasks and note books.

Arc’teryx knows the keys to retail success! I highly recommend Arc’teryx and can vouch for their high quality product, and amazing customer service.

Arc’teryx
1-866-458-2473
www.arcteryx.com

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Leaside Volleyball Serves Up the Best League in the City

December 14, 2016David Lipton Comment

Last year my daughter started playing volleyball at the Leaside Volleyball Club. The league was recommended to me by the Ontario Volleyball Association, so I figured it had to be a good place to start learning about the game. I was so impressed by the league that I wrote a blog about my experience and wanted to share an update with all of you today.

As my daughter continues to progress in the sport, I realize what a great team of coaches she has access to! John Child, who played in three Olympic games and won an Olympic bronze medal in 2006, founded Leaside in 2010. Since then, John has put together a great team of coaches composed of professional volleyball players such as Olympic, Pan Am, and varsity athletes. In fact, one such Olympian who frequents the club is Heather Bansley, who competed in the 2016 Olympics in the women’s beach volleyball category.

Over the last year my daughter has improved significantly! Today she is much better at serving, passing the ball, communicating with her team, and bumping the ball over the net to score a point for the team. I believe my daughter and her teammates’ successes are due to the extraordinary coaches working at Leaside. Without the extraordinary coaches, my daughter’s skills level would not be where it is today.

At Leaside, the winter season is less busy since some members pick up winter activities like skiing. This makes it the perfect time of year for beginners to join in on the fun so they can get a little more instruction time and improve their skills before the spring season. The winter session begins January 8^th and I believe the league has already opened online registration. In addition, they also have a New Years Skill Development clinic from January 2-5, 2017.

For anyone who’s son or daughter has expressed an interest in learning how to play volleyball, or for those that want to take their game to the next level, I highly recommend looking into Leaside Volleyball.

Leaside Volleyball Club
leasidevbc@gmail.com
www.Leasidevolleyball.com

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Samsung Just Pulled Me Into the 21st Century

December 7, 2016David Lipton Comment

Some people might have read in my previous blog posts that I am a big fan of Blackberry. Up to last spring, I was using a very old Blackberry device, and for the most part, while I was with Blackberry, they took really good care of me both with tech support and overall customer service. Unfortunately, Blackberry has changed over the last few years, and it more recent times it became evident that it was time to consider other devices.

During the last few years, I have also put up with a growing list of friends and family who were constantly making fun of my older Blackberry. In fact, my sister-in-law would even make fun of me for using my device because I still called it a phone and didn’t understand the power of what I could do with modern day technology.

A few months ago, after hemming, hawing and researching the subject to death, I finally took the plunge and moved to an android device. In particular, I ended up buying a Samsung Galaxy S7. I know Samsung has been having issues with their Galaxy Note 7 but my research showed me the Galaxy S7 would be a good investment. Within minutes of setting up my device (with the help of my sister-in-law), I realized she was absolutely right! Boy, was I missing out big time… there was a whole new world out there! Whether it’s getting news and sports updates, being able to quickly check the weather, making free long distance phone calls (using Skype and WhatsApp), navigating our congested roads, price matching or finding deals, there is an app for everything!

If my calculations are correct, the amount of money I have saved through price matching and free long distance calls has already more than aid for the phone. In addition to these benefits, the phone is constructed extremely well. It has an amazing camera that creates beautiful photos (who needs a $1000 camera anymore?), is great on speaker phone, looks nice and has an amazing charger that charges my phone quickly so I don’t have to sit there for hours to get my phone up to a 100% charge.

Despite the recent issues surrounding the Galaxy Note 7, I recommend a Samsung product if you are looking to update your phone. For full disclosure, I have done business with Samsung in the past but this had no impact on my decision to purchase the device, or share my experience.

Samsung
1-855-254-4747
www.samsung.com

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