Quick, quick
Re “To fix Canada’s crumbling health care system, we need better tools than duct tape” (Jan. 23): I have been a patient of a family medicine group for decades, a 10-minute drive from home. The clinic’s staff comprises several doctors, nurse practitioners, nurses and other health professionals.
Recently, I cut a finger while slicing a bagel. It was superficial, but bled profusely (I’m on blood thinners and was booked for a cardiac procedure). I needed a pressure dressing to hold the flap in place, which was difficult with one hand.
I phoned the clinic and was passed on to a nurse familiar with my medical history. She told me to come right over. It was lunch hour, but she’d see me before her afternoon appointments.
I was soon there. Within 15 minutes, the nurse was applying an appropriate dressing.
The total time between injury and arriving home again was about an hour and a half. That is what primary care ought to be.
Lyn Robinson Burlington, Ont.
Look away
Re “We must not leave beauty out of the housing discussion” (Opinion, Jan. 20): Kudos for the articulate discussion on the poor state of aesthetics blossoming throughout large cities. Unfortunately, small-town Ontario is suffering the same fate.
Razed homes are replaced with “new builds” devoid of historic aesthetics, upon which these areas were fashioned over the past 150 years. This sparks the question: Where did their approval come from?
The citizenry? I think not.
Brent Myles Milton, Ont.
Alta Vista is an example of 1950s and 1960s suburban housing in Ottawa, where homes range from 1,200 to 1,800 square feet. Mid-century modern design prevails.
As a 46-year resident of an original house in the neighbourhood, it is clear to me that most replacement housing involves tearing down a perfectly viable structure, then building a flat-roofed box that fills the lot as bylaws allow, with no resemblance to the community at large.
In a time of housing and environmental crises, municipalities should disallow the destruction of viable structures, mandate maximum house sizes (2,500 sq. ft. should be more than ample) and regulate designs.
Where lots are large or houses are condemned, semi-detached houses would increase housing stock. The same parameters should apply to infill housing.
I would like my runs through the neighbourhood to envelop me like a hug, but the monster houses are discordant eyesores along the way.
Janet MacPhee Ottawa
Our mature neighbourhood in Ottawa has some appalling examples of oversized and thoughtlessly designed houses over several decades.
The shame of it is that these sore thumbs do take away from what was essentially a common look and feel for the whole area. There has often been little consideration of adjacent homes or the streetscape, filling small lots with large structures, removing mature trees, applying hard landscaping (and the resultant heat islands – so much for sustainability).
City officials have said that “we can’t regulate good taste.” Add to this a local contractor pontificating to me about older houses being “teardowns” and established neighbourhoods having “no style.”
Maybe it would be useful for this article to be absorbed by planners and builders, as well as architects.
Ian Naish Ottawa
Day made
Re “Lifting the curse: On the historical, pervasive shaming of menstruation” (Opinion, Jan. 20): Last winter I visited relatives in Katikati, New Zealand, where I joined a volunteer group called Days for Girls.
We made sanitary pads for girls who have no access to them. “Periods” mean school absenteeism and valuable missed education time, considering menstruation is a monthly occurrence.
These pads are made of soft flannel with a waterproof lining, and domed under the panty to secure it. Washable, too. The flannel is paid for by local Rotarians. A template ensures that sizing is uniform for easier sewing and assembly.
Days for Girls kits include two pads, two pairs of panties, a washcloth and a small bar of soap. Kits are distributed through schools, where female teachers give recipients a crash course in how to use them.
We received photos of smiling girls with their kits.
Nancy Sorensen Burlington, Ont.
The kids are…
Re “Baby boomers are adjusting to a new retirement normal: No grandchildren” (Jan. 20): Being in my early 60s and looking at the long road ahead, potentially without grandkids, admittedly I feel some dread.
My caretaking instinct is still very much an itch that needs scratching. At the same time, immigration is at record highs.
Here’s an idea: Let’s match wannabe grandparents with new immigrant families who desperately miss their own extended families. It may not be what we thought retirement would look like, but it could be just as rewarding. Look up Canada Connects to find local settlement services.
We don’t have control over our children’s choices, nor should we. Let’s find ways to channel that attention where it’s needed. A win-win.
Sarah Uffelmann Interim executive director, Ethnic Mosaic Alliance; Barrie, Ont.
We have a great relationship with our two adult daughters.
Neither of them have children, nor am I fretting about their providing me with grandchildren. Too young to remember my own grandparents, I suppose the role is not something I miss.
That said, last year I relished being a pseudo-granddad for a young Ukrainian couple needing temporary help getting their children to daycare. And with the assistance of dollar-store purchases, my wife and I made sure this young family was properly attired for their first Canada Day.
Missing grandchildren? There is always meaningful volunteer work.
Michael Lalonde Courtenay, B.C.
I’m 76 and have no grandchildren, because I had no children. No regrets there.
I suggest that seniors who pine for grandchildren consider intergenerational living. International students need places to live. They can help seniors in exchange for affordable rents in comfortable homes.
I’ve been living with two international students from South Korea, a sister and brother, for several years. I give them affordable rent downtown and they help me with housework and computer skills. They are great company.
Now one of them has graduated, has a job and offered to pay more rent. How’s that for a great tenant?
Toronto HomeShare is a program that connects seniors and international students. This helps solve housing problems while providing company, extra help and income for seniors.
Brooke Lydbrooke Toronto
There comes a time when grandparenting effectively ends. The grandkids are great, but they grow up.
We are at that stage in our lives. After our daughter had four kids in rapid succession, we had many years when we spent a fair amount of time with them.
But now we rarely see them. It is wonderful when we do, but it is often just for a few hectic minutes on a weekend, fit into their busy teenage schedules.
I think that it is a similar feeling to having no grandkids at all. We can watch from afar as they grow up and accomplish more things, but we don’t have nearly the same role. So we are learning, just like grandkid-less boomers.
We have to find more meaning in our own lives. We are getting there.
Perhaps there will be great-grandchildren. We are tempered in our expectations, though.
Patrick Tighe Petawawa, Ont.
You need to calm down
Re “Taylor Swift’s crime? Daring to become a football fan” (Jan. 24): I’m no Swiftie – at 70-plus years, I don’t fit the demographic. But I don’t mind television shots of Taylor Swift attending National Football League games to cheer on her boyfriend Travis Kelce.
A professional game is 60 minutes long and can take more than three hours to be completed. On average, the ball is in play for about 12 minutes.
For the remaining 48 minutes, viewers are treated to shots of tackled players untangling themselves from human mountains and walking to the huddle. In fairness, this is interspersed with copious replays of the action that just happened, and referees madly blowing whistles and waving their arms.
An alternative to the objectionable shots of Ms. Swift is to tape the game, then scroll to the few minutes of actual play. But then one misses the commercials.
Ken Myron Hamilton
She scores
Re “Ottawa finally wins PWHL game at home, beats Toronto 3-1″ (Sports, Jan. 24): As I watched these teams battle it out until the final minute, I was reminded of just how great this game of hockey is. Speed, finesse and a bit of controlled violence all come together, especially now that the Professional Women’s Hockey League has loosened rules on applied physicality.
The only problem for me, as a hockey “purist,” is the commerciality. I’m not there for the commercial fluff and hype. Frequent mid-game “media delays” break the spell and attractiveness of the game.
The only way for a purist to avoid this is to watch university teams go at it: high speed, frequent five-man changes on the fly and great skill, which is the essence of hockey anyway. And zero commerciality.
Brian Tansey Ottawa
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