December 2011

DECEMBER 2011 VAUGHAN ToDAY 1

VaughanToday.caDecember 2011

DEARSANTA our wish list for Vaughan

SPECIAL HoLIDAY GIFT GUIDE ISSUE

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DECEMBER 2011 VAUGHAN ToDAY �

There wasn’t exactly a rush to the barricades — or to the tents — after our stirring call for an Occupy Vaughan movement last month. Then again, I suppose it wasn’t quite stir-ring. Some would say it was tongue-in-cheek. I think our publisher called it “whimsical” in her message in this space.

We were using the risings and beddings elsewhere as an excuse to look at Vaughan-style activism — of which we have some very serious practitioners.

In this issue, writer-broadcaster Sandie Benitah, at her own instiga-tion, has included Occupy Vaughan on her Christmas wish list. She has both heavier and lighter items on her list, as she too is using a lively tone to make more serious points.

However, at the risk of diluting her efforts, I would like to add one more wish to her list. Vaughan used call itself the “City Above Toronto,” which, after the first round of titters, everyone agreed was a terrible slo-gan. Recently it has been supplanted

by “The Place to Be.” (I’m not clear how official this is.)

This new slogan is not only ridic-ulously vague but it’s shared with several other North American munic-ipalities. Are they all the places to be? More to the point is the question: the place to be what?

Santa, can you bring us a better, more stirring slogan?

ContentsLori Abittan Publisher

Joe Mastrogiacomo Vice President of

finance

Doreen Iannuzzi Vice President of

new Media

editorial

Eric McMillan editor-in-chief

Rodger Burnside ManaGinG editor

Shadi Raoufi editorial

art director

Gordon Cameron Karolyn Coorsh

Shawn Star associate editors

Production serVices

Tony Lomuto suPerVisor

adVertisinG & sales

Jennifer Gardiner director,

corPorate sales

Kathy Kerluke business ManaGer

101 wingold avenue, toronto, ontario,

M6b 1P8 tel: 416 785-4300 fax: 416 785-7350

MulticomMedia is a wholly owned

subsidiary of Multimedia noVa

corporation, an integrated communications company publicly traded on the tsX Venture exchange under

the symbol Mnc.a

Another MulticomMedia PublicationDiversity Publishers & Printers

Printed and distributed by

105 wingold avenue, toronto, on M6b 1P8

for all your printing and distribution needs call:416 785 4311 ext. 614

Tony Baron director of Print

& distribution

James Arscott PrePress ManaGer

Anna Maria Arcuri GrouP circulation

ManaGer

26COLOURING CONTEST:

Kids up to 12, put your paints, pencils or crayons to work and win prizes

4HOT LOOKS FOR COLD MONTHSYou can look fashionable even in a parka

16FUN IN TOYLANDGreat gifts for kids and the young at heart

20UH, THANKS FOR THE, UM...Handling those it’s-the-thought-that-counts gifts

24TASTY HOLIDAY DELIGHTSRecipes for the eating and socializing season

33BIG SOCCER SHOES TO FILLWoodbridge teen follows in his father’s steps

Plus lots more...

Advent of a new cover: What treats are behind the closed doors for Vaughan?

Photo illustration by Eric McMillan/Vaughan Today

Silly and serious thoughts at year-end

Name

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Diversity Publishers & Printers

How to participate(1) To enter, complete the entry form and include on this page your guess of the number of ‘ELVES’ located throughout the Town Crier 2011 Holiday Gift Guide. Mail the coupon to: Multicom Media Services Ltd., ‘ELVES’ Contest, 101 Wingold Avenue, Toronto, ON M6B 1P8 or e-mail your guess to: [email protected]. To be valid the image of ‘ELVES’ must match the image pictured above. (2) The Contest begins December 1 2011 and ends December 16, 2011. All entries must be postmarked on or before December 16, 2011. Limit one (1) entry per postage stamped envelope. No mechanical reproduction will be accepted. (3) No purchase is necessary. Prize may not be exchanged and has no cash value.

How You Could Win - The contest draw date is 12 noon, Friday, December 19, 2011. One entry will be randomly selected from a draw box containing only correct answers to how many ‘ELVES’ are found in the 2011 Town Crier Holiday Gift Guide. One entrant drawn will win a voucher to Zafferano Ristorante, retail value $150. The winner will be notified by telephone that day. The winner may be asked to pose for a photograph to be used in any subsequent editions of any Multicom Media Services Ltd. newspaper. The odds of winning depend on the total number of entries received.

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Operation of this contest is Sole Responsibility of Vaughan Today under the control of Multicom Media Services Ltd.

How to participate1) To enter, complete the Entry Form and include your completed colouring of the image attached to the form and mail it to Multicom Media Services Holiday Colouring Contest 2011, 101 Wingold Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, M6B 1P8.2) The contest begins Friday, November 29th, 2011 and ends Monday, December 12th, 2011. All entries must be postmarked on or before December 12th, 2011. Limit one (1) entry per postage stamped envelope. Entry limited to children 12 years old and under. No mechanical reproduction will be accepted. 3) No purchase is necessary. 4) To print additional copies of the contest drawing, please visit www.mytowncrier.ca and click on the 20101Holiday Colouring Contest link.

How you Could winThe contest draw is 12 noon, wednesday, December 14th, 2011. Eight (8) entries will be randomly selected for a total of eight (8) prizes. All winners will be notified via telephone that day. Winners may be asked to pose for a photograph to be used in any subsequent editions of any Multicom Media Services Ltd. newspaper. The odds of winning depend on the total number of entries received.

� VAUGHAN ToDAY DECEMBER 2011

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Living in Vaughan may be a blessing, but any good city always knows where improvements need to be made. For example, some have said our city lacks personal-ity. Others say those who lead our city have too much personality.

One thing is clear though: Santa will have his hands full once he receives our list.

We asked around for some help on this one and it seems everyone had something to say. But here are the top items on our wish list.

Now all we can do is hope we’re on Santa’s nice list.

A unique identityStart with the biggest and per-

haps difficult one.

Right now, Vaughan is known for its big homes, quiet neigh-bourhoods and sprawling shop-ping malls but the city needs something to distinguish it from the rest of the 905.

So far our claim to fame is we are the fastest growing city in Canada. But instead of let-ting traffic congestion become our legacy, we should ask Santa for something worth bragging about. How about making it a hot spot for fine dining? With Mezza Notte and Grazie’s moving north, we’re already well on our way.

Another idea? Broadway North. The idea worked well in North York but now it’s time we brought some of that entertain-ment above the border.

Student tech training“I’d like to see more funding

for technology in our schools. I would love seeing a smartboard in every classroom and laptops to lend out to students who don’t have access to a computer. I’m in an area where our parent coun-cil does not have the resources to supplement whatever amount the ministry allocates per school/school board for technology.”

— Elisa Krinsky, teacher, York Region Board of Education

DEAR SANTABy SANDIE BENITAH


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More subway routes“As someone who has lived north

of Toronto my whole life, I’ve found-getting into the city and back home has always been a challenge. Vaughan is a fantastic place to live but in order to get home

we need better links to major GTA transit routes.

“For me that means more subway links.

“The Spadina subway extension is a great start but we need to keep

building the network. I think the subway needs to contin-ue to come north, making it easier for all of us who live here to get to where we need to go.

“Spending less time in gridlock and traffic and more time with our families is my wish.”

— Naomi Parness, Reporter, CTV Toronto

The items that should be at the top of Vaughan’s

Christmas wish list

Continued on Page 6

� VAUGHAN ToDAY DECEMBER 2011

Busi

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Please write to our experts:if you would like to take advantage of their years of experience, send your questions to “ask the experts” and they will be happy to reply to you in this space. by e-mail: [email protected], by fax: 416-488-3671 or write: ask the experts, c/o town crier, 101 wingold ave., toronto, on, M6b 1P8.

Ask the experts

Q: I was a patron at a restaurant last month. I went to use the rest room which is located down a flight of stairs. It was

hard to see the steps which were quite steep and there was no handrail. I slipped off the edge of one step and fell to the bottom of the stairwell. I fractured my ankle so badly that I needed sur-gery. I also have other injuries. I can’t work right now and I can’t look after my house or my family. Is the restaurant responsible for my losses?

A: Under Ontario’s Occupier’s Liability Act, the restaurant may be liable to you if it was negligent in the construction,

maintenance or repair of the stairway where you fell. It must be in compliance with minimum standards established by local by-laws. These usually include the requirement for a handrail which you say was not in place and will establish maximum step heights. It also sounds as though the lighting was inadequate and created a danger for restaurant patrons. You may be entitled to recover dam-ages for your pain and suffering, loss of income and housekeeping and childcare expenses. Your family members may also have a claim for your loss of care, guidance and companionship.

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Personal Injury Lawyers1867 Yonge St., Suite 1004, Toronto

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Bigger emphasis on high school sports

“Vaughan definitely needs to put more money into sports. For example, high school students shouldn’t have to pay so much for our own teams and games. Some people can’t afford it and don’t join teams.

“Our wrestling team needs more singlets (wres-tling uniforms) because there are not enough for the whole team! And our other teams don’t get their names on their jerseys and have to give them back to the school at the end of the season. Having our own uniform would help us have pride in our sports teams.”

— Jesse Levy, high school student

Bike lanes...The war between cyclists and motorists knows

no boundaries and it’s time Vaughan entered the battle.

Bike lanes are of course a contentious topic in every city and we wonder how they’d be accepted in a car-centred community like Vaughan.

Traffic congestion is a major problem in our city but maybe creating bike lanes would help encour-age drivers to leave their SUVs behind in exchange for their two-wheelers.

Granted, winters in Vaughan are tough for cyclists in any city so Santa, maybe along with some bike lanes, you can bring us some warm weather year round.

...and...You know what more bike lanes mean: we’ll

need more bike riders to use them.You may think this is putting it backwards, social

engineering at its worst. But seriously, people, you know you should be getting more exercise and using a bicycle is part of that — whether we have dedicated lanes on our roads or not. Vaughanites are way too car oriented with very few cyclists on its roads. That can’t be good for us.

There are also some tremendous off-road areas for recreational cycling here as well.

So this wish on our list is one for better health.

Please, Santa, give our residents bicycles, but, even more importantly, give them the drive and energy to ride them.

Helmets and lessons for safe cycling might also be good ideas.

Support services“Vaughan is the most booming community in

the Toronto area and in every dense population we see more people suffering from a variety of mental health disorders. Mental health is still in a large part a taboo subject that isn’t discussed and the closest support services are either in Markham or Toronto.

“If I were to have something on Vaughan’s wish list, it would be to have services that are closer to home — dedicated services — to help improve the

quality of life of its residents.” — Bryce Wylde, Host,

Wylde on Health

Winter WonderlandWe’ve got Canada’s Wonderland

but how are Vaughan families keeping busy in the winter?

We propose a Winter Wonderland — an amusement park complete with rides on snow-capped mountains, a skating rink, igloo exhibit and sled races.

We could even have a special sec-tion dedicated to Olympic winter sports and the local athletes who have made a difference

This is an expensive venture for sure, but also something that would make

Vaughan stand out among other municipalities as an ideal destination to live and play in.

An Occupy movementVaughan is getting a subway and attracting some

big businesses to its downtown core. But what will it take for this city to be recognized as a major player in the GTA?

An Occupy Vaughan movement. Okay, maybe not.But in all seriousness, Vaughan should ask Santa

for some activism spirit. We have a few people

in Vaughan who regularly speak out (some whom were covered here last month in our feature on local grassroots activism).

But, by and large, Vaughanians need a move-ment to get themselves engaged and politically charged.

NOVEMBER 2011 VAUGHAN ToDAY 1

VaughanToday.ca

November 2011

the new city’SAnniVeRSARy

Council’s first year

SoARING ABoVEVaughan’s basketball star

Looking for

#occupyVaughanis a grassroots activist movement

even possible here?

What’s on your list?

DECEMBER 2011 VAUGHAN ToDAY �VAUGHAN TODAY

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VaughanToday.ca

November 2011

the new city’SAnniVeRSARy

Council’s first year

SoARING ABoVEVaughan’s basketball star

Looking for

#occupyVaughanis a grassroots activist movement

even possible here?

Its own radio station

No, not an old-fashioned radio, as shown on the cover (though those are kind of cool too). Rather we want somethng worth listening to on what-ever analog or digital audio system we have.

Sure, Toronto stations are plenti-ful and we can even pick up tunes from south of the border but what if Vaughan had its own station that reflected the diversity of its commu-nities? VT’s editor is pressing for a classic rock station to give Toronto’s Q-107 a run, but we’re thinking rather a good mix of music and talk radio.

Just think, instead of 1010 we can be on the 905 dial.

Topics of the day? There’s no shortage in this town. Transparency at council, daycares, healthcare…Now if only we can come up with a host that’s as talked about as John Tory. Hmmm….

Hospital fundingHealthcare is the number one issue

for voters across Ontario and Vaughan is certainly no exception. The only city without a hospital, its politicians have been pushing hard for funding for a health care facility from the pro-vincial government.

We’ve got the land, we’ve got the will and heck, we even have a com-mitment from the government, which we’re very grateful for but we’d like to see the process — and the money — move forward a little bit faster.

A lot faster, actually. Vaughaners have been waiting too long for this vital service.

Us by any other nameWhile we’re at it, notice how we

keep using different words to describe Vaughan residents: Vaughanites, Vaughanians — we’ve even been called Vaughanabees by our neigh-bours. Could Santa please decide the issue for us: give us one goodname we could all live with.

Tell us what Vaughan needs and we’ll run it in

the next issue of VT.

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Just because the weather outside is getting frightful, doesn’t mean your fashion sense can’t be delightful. Wardrobe stylist and image consultant Joan Cordoba from Styled Closets Wardrobe & Image offered tips on how to stay warm yet stylish this winter.

Cordoba, who services Vaughan, Toronto and the GTA, says the key is in layering, whether it’s with clothes or accessories. Her first tip is to utilize blanket scarves, which can be worn numerous ways and not only serve the purpose of keeping you warm but also add a pop of colour to an outfit.

“You can either do it like a wrap or you can have it over your shoulders and it’s hang-ing and then you can belt it or you can put it draping on a diagonal on the side and belt it that way or put a broach or something to fas-ten it,” she says. “There’s just a ton of things you can do with it.”

As a backup, she says it can also be worn as an impromptu hood if you are stranded without a hat.

Next, she says leg warmers or at least knee-high socks provide the benefit of keep-ing your legs toasty, especially when you’re only wearing a dress and tights, and also add visual interest by peeping out above a pair of boots.

“I’ve always been a big leg warmer fan,” she adds. “As ’80s as it sounds, it works.”

While it’s fashionable to pair black leggings with almost every-thing, Cordoba says they also come in a warmer material than the skimpier version many women sport.

“The thicker ones are probably your best bet because you can wear them as pants or you can wear them with dresses,” she says. “So those are a good staple because if you put your sock extender or your leg warmers on and your boots, you’re pretty warm.”

Chunky knit sweaters, which can be paired with tall boots and skinny pants are another popular look this season. However, since the material isn’t snug, cold air can seep in and make you feel chilly, so Cordoba suggests wearing something cozy underneath.

“If you have something hugging your body and it’s fairly fitted in a nice knit — I like cashmere because it’s not itchy — then you have something keeping the heat in,” she says.

Chunky sweaters can also be worn on top of dresses with tights and boots, particularly ones with a fur lining, to take the look from summer to winter, she adds.

Like maxi skirts, which are trendy and provide warmth when made from knit or wool, maxi cardigans add an extra layer of armour to an outfit and are also in this season. Along with other accessories

By ANN RUPPENSTEIN

“Every Canadian

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Dress warm and look hot this winter

Some tips for staying fashionable while bundled

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like hats, knit scarves and gloves, she says fur is also always fashionable.

“Faux or real, a stole or a jacket, it will never go out of style, it is a super warm and stylish accessory for winter to wear from jeans to evening dresses,” she says.

Finally, her last piece of advice for braving the weather, especially in the thick of winter, is in the

outerwear. “When we’re talking winter, I’m talking a 3/4-

length parka because really when it’s that cold, when we’re in the dead thick of it, you don’t want just a light coat that you’re layering, you need a parka,” she says. “Every Canadian should have a parka and that’s just the reality of living in Canada.”

www.VaughanToday.caLoCALNEWS

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WARM WINTER WEAR: Joan Cordoba from Styled Closets Wardrobe & Image has some sound advice for ensuring you not only keep from freezing this winter, but also keep away from fashion faux pas.

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When people ask Nina Maslej where she’s from, she says High Park. That answer is usually met with a look of skepticism, bewilderment or laugh-

ter, but the unspoken words are always the same: ‘Yeah, but where are you really from?’

Maslej has lived in Canada for nearly 30 years. She works as a librarian at Pierre Berton Resource Library in Woodbridge, has a master’s degree from the University of Toronto, takes the Gardiner Expressway to work, and once regu-larly enjoyed Starbucks coffee until it became too expensive for her.

In many ways, Maslej is your average Canadian — except for one differ-ence.

She speaks with an accent. “An accent is my hijab,” Maslej says bluntly while seated at Maple Public

Library. Originally from Poland, her accent is not overly pronounced.“An accent is definitely something that is a barrier to feeling like Canada is my

home,” she said. “Even after 30 years, people still ask me where I’m from.”The forthright librarian recently had a chance to tell her story as one of

Vaughan Public Libaries’ human “books”. The Human Library consisted of 10 Canadians, mostly newcomers, who were rented out by curious readers who would engage in a 30-minute one-on-one conversation with the human book.

Maslej attended to show that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover — or its accent.

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A REAL PAGE-TURNER: Nina Maslej is just one of many human stories that can be heard at Vaughan Public Library.

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“Many people here are talking about the same thing, their experience of belonging,” she said. “And an accent prevents you from that.”

Maslej moved to Canada with her family in her late teens for economic rea-sons. She studied art history at the University of Toronto to improve her English, and later worked in a private lab as a microbiologist.

Nearly three decades later, Maslej says Canada is her home. On the same page, she acknowledges her accent will always affect how others perceive her.

She especially notices it in social settings.“Situations remind you that you’re different,” she said. “People can be nice

and polite, but the chemistry is not happening ... Beyond weather, there’s nothing we can talk about.”

Maslej has not always been an open book. There was a point when Maslej would grow upset if people asked her where she’s originally from.

“I don’t understand why people have to remind me of that,” she said. “Why do we have to concentrate on the otherness? The concept bothers me.”

That otherness has played a major role in shaping Maslej’s identity over the last 30 years.

Despite this, there are still days when she is caught off guard. “The weirdest thing is that people who also could be considered outsiders, like

from a smaller town with a different accent, when they ask me where I’m from, I’m just surprised, because you’re also a bit different,” she says incredulously. “So why would you ask me that?”

Maslej has come to accept that to many people, she will always be an out-sider.

But it took a trip to Italy in 1998 for her to realize how accustomed she had become to North American culture.

“What hit me the most was that I needed so much space between people, if somebody came too close, I was freaking out,” she recalls. “I was so surprised how Canadian I acted ... Only then did I realize how Canadian I am.”

A Canadian, but a Canadian immigrant nonetheless, Maslej has never been comfortable with the title. She compares the Canadian perception of immigrants to how people view those who struggle to adapt to technology.

She believes immigrants are seen as uneducated, uninformed and in need of help.

“I just don’t like the word immigrant, because the best way to describe how Continued on Page 14

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We came for the free food and cheep drinks. We stayed for the tweets. The City of Vaughan was all in a Twitter at the 1st annual #VaughanTweetup.

If you don’t know what that is, have no fear. You’re not alone. As I walked into Alice Fazooli’s, thumbs and eyeballs appropriately glued

to my mobile device, I overheard a conversation from some of the non-Twit-tezens.

“What’s going on in there,” asked one curious Vaughanian, presumably not on Twitter.

“It’s a Tweetup,” the other lady responded.She received a blank stare for her efforts. The #VaughanTweetup was a community event organized by Kim Champion

of the Vaughan Citizen and Patricia Curto of Vaughan Mompreneuers. It was hosted by Alice Fazooli’s Woodbridge. The event was aimed toward those who work, live, or just tweet in Vaughan, and provided a chance for people who fol-low each other on Twitter to meet face-to-face.

It’s safe to say it was a success. Upon entering what can only be described as the Twitter room, the feeling

in the air was decidedly different. Most people in the crowd of roughly 50 were busy tweeting, with the occasional pause to sip a beverage or nibble on a complementary slice of pizza.

Moments after announcing my arrival — via Twitter — I was urged to head over and say hello to some of my digital friends, Elliot Silverstein and Carl Minicucci, otherwise known as @esilverstein and @vaughanagent.

It was nice to tweet them.

By OMAR MOSLEH

All a-Twitter#socialmedia users meet @VaughanTweetup


VAUGHAN TODAY

Over the course of the night, I got to meet several twits who I had communicated with online, and some whom I hadn’t had a chance to tweet. Many were wear-ing shirts proclaiming “I’m on Twitter @(Twit-ter handle)”. I opted out, if only to go against the grain.

Since my inter-ests tend to be media-inclined, I particularly enjoyed meeting a local photographer, as well as a Humber journalism grad who pointed out two people had already recommended she enter public relations due to the state of the newspa-per industry.

I told her not to get discouraged.

City staff were not out in full force, but corporate communica-tions maven Madeline Zito and history teach-er-turned city councillor Tony Carella did make appearances. Zito’s Twitter feed still con-

sisted of one tweet from Apr. 9, 2010, but Carella Tweeted his arrival.

Things got more interesting as the #VaughanTweetup con-test kicked off. Serendip-itously, I won a prize by tweeting a headline for a story I wrote when I was an intern at the Vaughan Citizen. Shameless, but effective. The story was about a local guitarist who had been signed to Gene Simmons’ label,

and the headline was “Woodbridge guitarist’s fate sealed with a kiss.”

The prize? A $250 spa package at Body-Bare Laser, Skin and Wellness Clinic. I’m not sure how this happened, but it did.

I’ll be sure to put my professional eyebrow wax therapy vouch-er to use for the next #VaughanTweetup.

Until then, Twitter-ites.

shawn star/vaughan today

GET @ ME: Vaughan Today reporter Omar Mosleh checks his Twitter feed at the Tweetup.

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society thinks of immigrants, is that you’re always perceived that you don’t know something,” she said. “In this comparison, it tells me exactly how the word immigrant is understood ... And I think it’s wrong.”

As an immigrant in what many see as a city of immigrants, Maslej has tried to challenge people’s concept of who and what immigrants are.

“This business of ethnicity and national identi-ties is very artificial,” she said. “This is not how people should connect with each other ... it just so happens that we have countries.”

Maslej, born in Poland but originally from a Ukrainian ethnic group called Lemko, sees a gradual shift in how we perceive ourselves, and says we are coming to a point where ethnic back-ground, nationality and how one speaks are less and less central to our identities.

“In the scope of Facebook and the Internet, why do we even talk about nations?” she ponders. “I think we’re in the beginning of seeing people group themselves differently.”

The irresolute concept of our identity has also beckoned Maslej to question Canada’s multicul-turalism and how Canadians define it.

She believes the current model of multicul-turalism is shallow and in a sense, a misnomer, because while one can walk the streets of Toronto or Vaughan and partake in any number of ethnic cuisines, you’d be hard pressed to find the same level of diversity in the city’s board rooms or council chambers.

“I’m very happy to eat different food, but if this is what multiculturalism is all about, then I don’t like it,” she said. “There has to be power sharing and decision-making sharing, for all of us, accented or non-accented people.”

Amidst the talk of how immigration, her accent, and the concept of “outsider” have shaped her identity, one can’t help but ask this human book: Does she feel Canadian?

Maslej says yes: “I pay taxes, so this is my country too. It’s very dry and clinical maybe ... but that’s the way it is.”

Now that’s a novel idea.

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By Shawn Star

Fun, fun, funToys, games and gadgets for every kid on your list

Kids love to play. And if you’re not careful, it could be that origi-nal da Vinci piece flying off the wall when your kids fly off the handle. In order to avoid touching up a 15th-century painting, here are 15 gifts that should help keep your kids occupied — and ensure you don’t serve them their last supper.

3. Snow Goggle Camera Take high-definition stills or

movies on the skihill without any extra gear. The snow goggle cam-era provides double duty with 100 percent UV protection and a 5.0 mega-pixel wide-angle camera lens so kids can record while they board. Each set includes video goggle, USB cable, RCA cable, rechargeable lithium battery, 4GB Micro SD card, additional amber snow lens and a micro bag. Ages 12 and up. PBteen, www.pbteen.com, $310.

1. Maplelea Girls new Saila Doll Recently winning the 2012 Children’s Choice

Award from The Canadian Toy Testing Council for ages six and up, this line of high quality, Canadian-themed, 45 cm vinyl dolls aimed at teaching girls about Canadian culture has introduced its newest addi-tion, Saila Qilavvaq from Iqaluit, Nunavut. Reflecting Inuit culture, Saila also has various accessories avail-able including traditional Inuit clothing and her pet dogs Nukilik and Nanuq. Ages 6–12. maplelea.com, $99.99.

4. Zoomy handheld digital microscope Let your little Einstein get a closer look

with Zoomy, a powerful, handheld digital microscope that super-magnifies whatever you’re looking at. The camera is easy to use and able to be hooked up to any Mac or PC. You can also upload high-quality videos or pictures and add special effects after. Ages 4 and up. Mastermind Toys, $59.95.

2. Full-sized foldaway air hockey table

After taking them out to the skating rink, why not let the fun continue at home with this full-sized air hockey table, which also folds up at the end of the third period, for easy storage. When folded, it can stand on one set of legs, allowing it to be tucked away into closets or other small spaces. Ages 8 and up. Mastermind Toys, $99.95.


5. Laser pegs con-struction toy

This construction toy lets your kids illuminate their creations with laser pegs. Each piece has a tiny LED light inside that illuminates up when it’s connected to the power base. Ages 7 and up. Mastermind Toys, $99.95.

6. Smart labs weird and wacky contraption lab

This easy-to-construct system lets your kids build and test courses of their own design. With 60 weird and wacky components available to mix and match, the contraptions are almost unlimited. Ages 8 and up. Mastermind Toys, $49.95.

7. Silver keepsake collection with pearls

This sterling silver jewel-lery collection can be mono-grammed to create a person-alized holiday present. The hand strung freshwater pearl necklace is 41 cm long and the bracelet measures 18 cm. PBteen, www.pbteen.com, $48.24 to $110.

Continued Page 18

8. The Snow MX ‘Snow Bike’

Part snowboard part BMX bike, The Snow MX ‘Snow Bike’ can be used on the slopes or on toboggan hills. Designed for kids up to 150 lbs., the Canadian-designed Outer Edge products are meant for tricks, slid-ing or carving big turns in snow. Also available in the shape of a mini snowmobile or a combi-nation snowboard-sled, which can be used for sitting, surfing or lying down. Ages 8 and up. Tech 4 Kids at Canadian Tire, $49.99 to $149.99.

9. Gross-abulary game This is a word and trivia game wrapped into one — but with a healthy mix of

“gross” to give it a twist. Picture and word cards can be mixed and matched create crazy sentences and answer gross trivia questions. The whole family can have a gross — er, great — time. Ages 6 and up. Mastermind Toys, $24.95.

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10. Creativity for kids shadowbox scrapbook kit It’s never too early to start creating memories, and this kit helps your kids get

a head start by making their own scrapbooks. It comes with everything, includ-ing markers, stickers and other accessories, so your kids can fill each of the box’s cubbies with pictures, mementos and more. Ages 7 and up. Mastermind Toys, $24.95.

Cont. from Page 17

15. Fastrack wooden game

This two-sided game board has elastics on both ends and a small hole in the middle where you try to launch your wooden pucks into by using your elastic — while your opponent does the same. Ages 5 and up. Mastermind Toys, $19.95.

11. Button-making kitThe button factory includes

everything kids need to create their very own buttons. The do-it-yourself kit comes with colour-ful cotton fabric, metal pin backs and fronts and a one step but-ton-covering tool to create 25 personalized pins. Ages 8 and up. urbanoutfitters.com, $22.

12. Star Wars Lego character encyclopedia

This product can help your kids take their Star Wars or Lego collections into hyperdrive. Or, it can just be a cool book to leaf through, as it lists every permu-tation of the classic Lego mini-figure into over 200 Star Wars characters. It even comes with an exclusive Han Solo minifig-ure. Ages 6 and up. Mastermind Toys, $20.99.

13. DreamlightThe dreamlight replicates the warm glow of fireflies year-round. Containing

six solar-powered LEDs, which pulse on and off, the soothing light can be used as décor or as a nightlight. All ages. urbanoutfitters.com, $40.

14. 3D Colour and Glo and Magna Colour

Give your kids the chance to transform their artwork into 3D. Colour and Glo and Magna Colour, which come with 3D ultra vision glasses, allows kids to enjoy every-thing from a double-sided game of tic-tac-toe to the ability to see their drawings come to life — or at least to 3D. Ages 4 and up. Toys “R” Us, $19.99 to $29.99.


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By triStan Carter

Surprise!How to handle gifts that didn’t do it for you

ou and your partner have just finished a romantic holiday dinner when he reaches under the table and pulls out a wrapped gift.

Could it be that beautiful necklace you’ve been telling him about for months? The one in the magazine ads you subtly scattered about the house? The one you took him to see and to try on?

You slowly open the present only to find…Tube socks?You put on a brave face, hoping this is some sort of joke only to realize

he’s not kidding. So what now? You don’t want to hurt his feelings, but you haven’t

worn tube socks since gym class in high school. Should you say some-thing? Should you even accept this lemon of a gift in the first place?

“Always,” says Leanne Pepper, manager of the University of Toron-to’s Faculty Club where she teaches classes on etiquette. “Whenever a gift is given to you, you accept it graciously.

“There’s so many people that don’t receive anything this time of year so be aware of that and be grateful when somebody has taken the time to get you something.”

Once you have said thank you for the present, returning or exchanging it is an option if it came with a receipt. However, this may not always go over well with the gift-giver.

“Well, you don’t do it in front of them,” Pepper said.Unwanted gifts can also be donated to charity and doing so may

soften the blow if the gift-giver discovers that you gave away their pres-

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ent. Initiatives such as the United Way’s gifts-in-kind program accept donations of unwanted gifts or excess stock and send them to various charitable organizations across the city.

For those who want to see their unwanted items enjoyed by others, the practise of regifting may have some appeal. It’s also convenient if you are short on cash or have missed someone on your gift list — just be careful who you’re giving it to.

“Regifting can be very dangerous,” Pepper said. “It’s embarrassing if you go and regift something and you’re giving it back to the person that gave it to you.”

Regifting is not taboo for Crystal Gibson, editor of Bite Daily and manager of GlassBOX Television. In fact, she realizes one person’s trash is another’s treasure.

Gibson organizes RegiftTO, an annual event advertised on Twitter inviting people to mingle with fellow tweeters and swap their disappointing present for one more appealing to them.

“We’ve done it two years in a row and last year was obviously bigger than the year before,” Gibson said. “Nobody got their own gift so that worked out.”

She said she is in talks to plan a third event this January and will post any new information on Twitter @crystalgibson.

In order to make sure the present you give someone is not regifted, Gibson has a couple of tips. First, stay away from clothing unless you really know the person. If you’re still at a loss, consider buying them a gift card.

“Gift cards are always a good thing,” Gibson said. “I personally love to get things like that because I can spend it on whatever.”

Some gift cards apply to entire malls while others are redeemable only at specific stores. Cardswap.ca allows people to sell unwanted gift cards to the site at less than the face value. Others can then log on the site and purchase the cards, typically for 90 percent of its value.

Pepper though, warned gift cards can sometimes be considered impersonal and recommended items showing you have invested thought and effort into a person’s present.

“I think it’s nice if you can make something homemade,” she said. Pepper recommended people be sensitive to the tough economic times this year

and suggested gifts with no financial cost, such as shovelling snow.“What’s most important in this day and age is just spending time with one another,

helping one another out,” she said. “I think that’s one of the greatest gifts of all.”

tristan Carter/town Crier

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icture this: It’s 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve and your family and friends are en route to your house for dinner when the phone rings. You get distracted and manage to burn the turkey and overcook the pie you were baking for dessert.

The doorbell rings and — surprise — your cousin also brought her new boyfriend and his roommate tagged along since he had nowhere to spend the holidays. Not only do you have to improvise seating arrange-ments, but you also didn’t prepare enough food to feed the extra guests — not to mention the bird is already burned to a crisp. Now what?

It’s safe to say the holidays can be a recipe for disaster filled with endless potential pitfalls. But fear not, we gathered some expert advice so you know how to handle even the worst-case scenarios.

Disaster # 1

Uncle Marc gives your 13-year-old daughter money to buy whatever she wants for Christmas and she wants a tattoo.

Parenting expert and psychotherapist Alyson Schafer, who also penned Honey, I Wrecked the Kids and Breaking The Good Mom Myth, says although the money your kids get over the holidays is their own, they still have to abide by the rules.

If tattoos and video games have been outlawed in your household then no amount of money should cause the existing rules to change.

“If they go buy Call of Duty and they’re eight, just because their grandparents gave them money you can still say ‘I’m sorry we still live by the house rules that you can’t have this, it’s age inappropriate.’ ”

Schafer reminds parents to talk with their kids in advance about what happens when they receive cash and whether they are allowed to spend it frivolously or have to put some aside into savings or their education fund.

emergency tips

damage controlWhat to do when nightmares come true

P

ann ruppenstein/town Crier

JUST A LITTLE DRY? In the event you scorch the bird, or find any other holiday disaster looming, there are ways to save yourself. Herein, how to help from hampering the holidays.

By ann ruppenStein

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Disaster # 2

Is that the fire alarm going off? Overcooked is putting it mildly — your turkey is so dark it gives new meaning to the word blackened.

Nota Bene restaurant’s executive chef David Lee says your chances of a dreaded overdone bird decrease significantly if you start with fresh as opposed to frozen turkey. Another important component, he says, is to let the turkey rest before it goes under the knife.

“What that means is at least two hours before you’re going to eat, the turkey has to sit alone just so the juices stay inside because if you cut it while it’s hot it’s just going to bleed,” he says.

Toronto Cooking founder Alison Verge says although meat is somewhat unsal-vageable if it is dried out or burned, there are a few things you can do to help the situation.

“When guests are not looking, fill a spray bottle with warm chicken stock and spray it over the meat as you carve it,” she says. “This does not cause the meat to be moister but the spray will prevent further drying.”

Another last minute suggestion, since you can’t exactly prepare another turkey in time, is to strive for a blackened flavour by rubbing cajun spices onto the skin or by adding a sauce or spice that complements a smoked flavour like chipotle.

Disaster # 3

Uncle Vinnie has hit the vino a little too hard and still wants to drive home.

Arrive Alive Drive Sober’s executive director Anne Leonard says while hosting a holiday party can be a lot of fun it also comes with a lot of responsibility.

Although many people feel awkward taking keys away from family members, she says hosts can be assertive and tell guests they took the initiative to arrange rides because they wanted to make sure everyone had as much fun as possible.

She says arranging for a sober driver is a good way to ensure your guests make it home safely, whether it’s with a designated driver or a taxi.

In addition to having extra cab fare available for anyone who needs it, she says hosts should also be prepared for guests to spend the night.

However, Leonard warns many people need to be aware they may still be over the legal limit the next morning depending on how much they drank and how much time has elapsed.

Another tip Leonard has for party hosts is to have a “meet, greet and repeat” system in place to find out if their guests plan on driving when they arrive, if they’ve already knocked back some drinks prior to getting there and checking sobriety levels throughout the night.

Disaster # 4

You show up to your office holiday party and low and behold Suzy from accounting is wearing the same dress as you.

Since going home to change isn’t a realistic option, she suggests making light of the situation by taking a picture with your dress double or joking about it rather than hiding in the opposite corner of the room all night.

“Unless you are purchasing a couture dress there are no guarantees of originality,” says fashion expert Erin Nadler, the founder of Better Styled. “The only way to keep things original is to take your outfit and make it originally you — add accessories, change up the shoes and keep things interesting with texture and colours.”

Equally horrific for many women is when they are getting ready for a festive soiree only to discover the outfit they were planning to wear no longer fits, leaving them with nothing to wear.

When this happens Nadler suggests taking a look at your closet to find pieces you can mix and match together.

“If you are attending a casual party why not take your favourite dark denim jean and pair it back to a white blouse and fur vest or wear a black dress and add a thick zipper belt and red pumps,” she says.

When all else fails

When all else fails Schafer says she wants people to focus on what’s really impor-tant, like just spending the holidays with loved ones.

Although people may not be able to change their situation, she says, they can always change their attitude.

“We should be thankful we’re alive, thankful our cousins are here, thankful we’ve got this messy house full of a bunch of people who all do things differently and in a sense celebrate the craziness that is our family life rather than once again being reminded that we wish it was different.”

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good eats

dining delightsShake things up this holiday with these tasty recipes

rish Magwood, chef and host of the Food Network’s Party Dish, says even she gets stressed out during the holi-days.

Her rule of thumb is to double a recipe if she’s unsure whether she has enough food to feed her guests and family, especially if she’s going through the trouble of making a dish like potato au gratin or a fancy des-sert.

“It doesn’t take you that much more time and it doesn’t cost that much more,” she says. “I think it will always put you in good stead — and pick things that aren’t delicate and will be just as good or even better for leftovers the next day.”

One of her favourite desserts this time of year, largely because her mom makes it most of the time, is the aptly named Mom’s Christmas Chocolate Roll.

“It’s our family’s classic holiday dessert,” she says. “The good thing about it is it’s made ahead and I think that’s a big thing for holidays. There’s a lot of last minute components and always surprises with holiday dinners and so if you can have some nibbles or a dessert that you’ve got done ahead

of time, then that’s always a good thing.”

Her newest cookbook, In My Moth-er’s Kitchen, which contains family recipes going back three generations, also outlines how to cook a turkey dinner from start to finish and brings up the heated debate of fresh versus frozen birds.

“It you’re looking for steps on how to prepare your first turkey dinner for your in-laws or as a newly married couple it steps you through it as well as a whole bunch of accompanying sides,” she says.

Magwood believes homemade goods also make great gifts for teach-ers or party hostesses, adding she has many friends who are teachers and say they get a lot of unnecessary stuff.

“We do gifts from the kitchen and so one of the things I love to make is a couple of big batches of granola and I make a granola that never lasts more than a week in our house because it’s demolished,” says the mother of three young kids. “It’s just a really nice gesture and it’s a consumable that you know most people love.”

For finishing touches, she recom-mends placing the baked goods in a mason jar or a neat old glass, tying some twine around it and adding a

customized sign reading along the lines of “from the kitchen of Trish and the kids.”

Mom’s Christmas Chocolate Roll

This is my mom’s version of a Yuletide log, a Christmas tradition at the Magwood table. It’s far more casual than the usual fancy version, and so delicious. Now that our fam-ily numbers 10 adults and 10 kids, mom may need to make three. The chocolate sauce comes from a cook-book of my great-grandmother’s.

Roll6 tbsp sifted cake and pastry flour6 tbsp sifted cocoa powder1/2 tsp baking powder1/4 tsp salt4 large eggs, separated1 tsp vanilla3/4 cup sugar, sifted

Filling1 cup 35% cream2 tsp sugar

Chocolate Sauce1 1/2 cups sugar6 tbsp cocoa powder4 tsp cornstarch

1 1/2 cups boiling water2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Grease a 43 x 28 cm jellyroll pan and line with parchment paper or greased waxed paper.

2. Sift together flour, cocoa pow-der, baking powder and salt. Sift three more times.

3. Lightly beat egg yolks with vanilla.

4. In a large bowl with clean beaters, beat egg whites until they hold stiff peaks. Gently but thor-oughly fold in sugar. Fold in egg yolks. Fold in dry ingredients until no flour is visible. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

Tphoto Courtesy trish magwood

JUST LIKE MOM: Food Network host Trish Magwood has just released a new book of recipes.


5. Bake for 11–13 min-utes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.

6. Turn cake out right away onto a damp tea towel and roll up with the tea towel. (This keeps the cake moist while it awaits filling.) Cover with a second damp towel and set aside to cool.

7. To make the filling, whip cream to soft peaks. Just before it’s done, add sugar and continue whipping to incor-porate.

8. Half an hour before serv-ing, unroll cake. Cover with two-thirds of the whipped cream. Roll back up (with-out towel) Put on a platter. Top with remaining whipped cream. Refrigerate.

9. Just before serving, make the chocolate sauce: In a small saucepan, stir together sugar, cocoa powder and cornstarch. Stir in boiling water and sim-mer, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 15 minutes. Add more boiling water if sauce gets too thick. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

10. Pour warm chocolate sauce over the chocolate roll. Cut roll into thick slices and serve with remaining choco-late sauce.

Serves: 6

Kitchen notes: The cake can be made the morning of. Whip cream up to one hour before. Assemble 30 minutes before serving.

It’s important to sift the cake and pastry flour and the cocoa before you measure them, and then again together with the baking powder and salt.

This amount of chocolate sauce is generous and intend-ed to yield leftovers. Enjoy over ice cream. It keeps in the

fridge for days. The chocolate sauce can be made ahead.

Family Granola

When I held a competition for the best granola, so many people contributed great recipes that I just couldn’t make up my mind. This recipe com-bines the best of my age-old granola and my friends Kara’s and Ebie’s versions. My sea-soned recipe tester Chef Elena Embrioni stepped in with her final tweaks.

4 cups quick-cooking rolled oats 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut 2 cups slivered almonds, chopped 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup maple syrup 1/4 cup honey 1 cup dried cranberries 1 cup golden raisins or dried cherries 1 cup chopped dried apples or mangoes 1 cup chopped dried apricots 1/2 cup sunflower seeds 1/2 cup chopped cashews 1/4 cup flax seeds

Makes 12 cups

1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Line a large baking sheet with foil; lightly oil the foil.

2. In a large bowl, com-bine oats, coconut, almonds and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, combine oil, maple syrup and honey; gently fold into dry mixture until coated, allowing clumps to form. Spread mixture evenly onto baking sheet.

3. Bake for 30 minutes, stir-ring occasionally, or until light golden brown. Remove from oven, stir again and cool. Stir in dried fruits, nuts and seeds.

4. Store in airtight container. Granola keeps two weeks at room temperature (if you can keep it around that long.)

Kitchen notes: This is the perfect breakfast with fresh ber-ries and your favourite yogurt. It’s also an ideal car or stroller snack. I even sometimes have this as dinner or a late-night snack.

Variations: Add pumpkin seeds or sesame seeds, wheat germ or bran.

Expert from: In My Mother’s Kitchen by Trish Magwood. Published in Canada by Harp-erCollins Publishers Ltd. Copy-right 2011 by Trish Magwood. Photography copyright 2011 by Brandon Barré. All rights reserved.

Alison Verge

While most people read nov-els, Alison Verge says she con-sumed cookbooks and online recipe reviews. Coming from a family of talented cooks, Verge says she has had a passion for food her whole life.

“Great food is what binds

families together during the holidays,” she says. “It’s about those special moments enjoyed with loved ones and dear friends around the table.”

As the founder of Toronto-Cooking.ca, a resource for reci-pes, cooking classes, tools and tips, she believes it’s important for hosts to prepare food in advance so they don’t miss out on the experiences that happen outside of the kitchen.

Among her favourite picks for the holidays is a stuffing rec-ipe with chestnuts and sausage meat, which has been passed through generations and always receives rave reviews in her house.

“We have chosen these time-honoured delicious recipes to relieve stress and focus on the important things during the wonderfully busy holiday sea-son,” says Verge.

Chestnut and Sausage Meat Dressing

1/2 lb sausage meat 1/4 cup chopped onion1 lb chestnuts — whole

2 stalks celery (thinly sliced)1/2 cup chopped dried apricots 12 slices whole grain bread toasted1 tsp each sage & thyme 1 egg beaten Salt and pepper

1. Cook sausage meat and drain off fat. Stir in onion and continue cooking.

2. Stir in chopped chestnuts, celery, and apricots and continue to cook for two minutes.

3. Slice toast into 1/2 inch cubes (about 6 cups) and add to sausage mixture.

4. Stir in egg & seasonings. 5. Stuff in bird or bake

separately (covered at 350ºF for 40 min, then uncovered for 10.

Spicy Cranberry Chutney1/4 cup dried apricots; finely chopped 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar1/2 cup raisins 1 cup water3 cups fresh cranberries 1/2 cup dried cherries 2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and diced 1 tbsp lemon zest 2 tbsp orange peel chopped Juice of 1 orange 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

1. In a medium saucepan, mix dried apricots, dark brown sugar, cherries, raisins and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer five minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Mix in cranberries, apple, lemon and orange zest. Simmer 10 minutes.

3. Mix in lemon and orange juice; crystallized ginger and red pepper flakes. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

photo courtesy Alison verge

YUMMY: Alison Verge says her stuffing has been passed through her family for genera-tions.

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year — or the craziest. Food, gifts, decorations, more food, parties, gifts, visitors, cards and — oh my! — wrap-ping all those gifts.

Except for kids, presentation counts when you’re gift-wrapping. You’ve gone to the trouble of choosing some-thing personal, pricey, clever or even handmade. So wrap it in a way that announces its importance. Be creative and your gift wrap will become a mark of your personal style. How cool is that?

Follow these steps to becoming a superstar wrapper.

Step 1: Set up the space

Set aside a room, or a corner of a room, as your gift-wrapping station. Put all your supplies in this one space:

• Wrapping paper• Boxes of all sizes• Gift bags• Sticky tape• Scissors• Tags and pens• Stickers• Ribbon• Ornaments/tie-ons

Step 2: Boxes and wrap

This is the fun part. You can begin

with standard rolls of gift wrap and pre-printed gift boxes, but don’t stop there. Let your imagination go, and wrapping gifts will become fun, rather than a chore.

In a time crunch? Bright paper gift bags and lots of tissue paper are your best friends. Wrap tissue around the gift, pop it in the bag and tuck loose puffs of tissue paper on top, leaving a little sticking out for show. Most bags come with their own tags, so you’re done in no time.

Cloth gift bags are even better, because you can skip the puffy tissue paper step. Slip a DVD, jewellery box, pen or whatever inside, tie the bag closed and you’re ready to move on. Stitch them up yourself from fabric remnants, with a length of real ribbon tacked on, or have them made to your specifications.

If you’re really into fabric, you can use scarves or big squares of fancy cloth as gift wrapping. No ribbon nec-essary, just tie on a tag.

Sometimes the gift’s box is itself nice enough not to need wrapping. Cover tell-tale store names with colour-ful stickers, if you want. Use stickers or glitter to dress up plain white boxes, too.

Scout around for fancy holiday tins that double as both gift box and wrap-ping. They’re great for food gifts like candies and cookies.

Wrapping aboutBy Mary Fran McQuade

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And if all the holiday colour and commotion gets on your nerves, get back to the pure and simple. Pristine white tis-sue paper wrapped around a box and tied with shiny satin ribbon can become your signature gift wrap.

Step 3: Put a ribbon on it

Skip those bags of ready-made bows. Like anything else that’s one-size-fits-all, they almost never really fit any gift. And forget about mailing them. A squished pointy bow is not festive.

Stock up on real ribbon from a fabric store for a luxurious look. Buy several metres of red, green and blue, and cut them to fit your gifts. Wrap around all four sides, pastry-box style, and tie the ends in a bow. Pretty and practical, real ribbon can be reused for years.

For a more rustic look, get a selection of balls of heavy knitting yarn. Colours and textures are fantastic. Yarn is also flexible enough to wrap just about any package, no matter how many lumps and bumps it has. Tie it the same way as fabric ribbon, making the two loose ends into a bow. Perfect for kids and for gifts to be mailed. Eco-friendly, too, because it’s reusable.

Inexpensive ribbed ribbon on rolls that you cut ‘n’ curl is fun and fast. If making ribbon curls is a mystery to you, here’s how to do it: Pull about 15 cm of ribbon loose from the roll. (Don’t cut it.) Take a dullish knife or scissor blade, press the attached end of the ribbon

between the sharp blade edge and your thumb, and pull the blade outwards with a fast, steady pressure.

With the right combo of speed and pressure, you’ll have great curls that you just bunch up and tie on your package.

Step 4: Tie one on

Tags can be the most fiddly bit of the gift-wrapping process. Buying stick-on “To:/From:” tags is the easy route. But it’s more satisfying, and not at all diffi-cult, to personalize your gift tags.

It’s also a great art project for kids — something to quiet them in the holi-day madness. You’ll need:

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If your kids are feeling creative, encourage them to draw their own holi-day designs on plain tags. The tags can be used as bookmarks after the holidays — you can bet doting grandparents, aunts and uncles will treasure them.

the holidays


GREENING VAUGHAN TIPS

Grape and tomato skins must be placed inside your green bin for collection.

Remember – any one item set out for collection cannot exceed 20.5 kg (45 lbs).

Wooden (grape) crates are considered garbage. To ensure collection, please break down and bundle wooden crates andremove (or hammer down) all nails / staples. Remember, each bundle will count as an item toward Vaughan’s 3-item garbage limit.Any garbage item exceeding the 3-item limit will require a paid garbage tag. Do not stack crates together or fill crates with grape skins.

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Canadians love com-pact cars. In fact, about half the new cars bought by us Northerners in 2011 have been of the compact variety, so it

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It would be easy to suggest the 2 is just a tinier, lighter version of the Mazda3, but this B-class (aka subcompact) is a different car alto-gether while retaining Mazda’s underpinnings.

The Mazda2 does one thing really well: it delivers a form of transportation for a really low price. It accomplishes this by offering a base model light on amenities with only two options (auto-matic and air condition-ing) and two upgraded trim models that add cosmetic improvements and some convenience features. But even the base model includes power locks, windows and door mirrors.

The 1.5-litre engine puts out 100 horse-power and 98 ft-lbs of torque. On paper, this isn’t very exciting and behind the wheel it delivers pretty much the same level of exhil-aration, but with a driv-er and passenger there was never the feeling a

steep hill would bring the 2 to a halt.

This is partially thanks to the fact the 2 is quite light. While built on the same plat-form as the Ford Fiesta, the 2 is stripped down in comparison from an equipment perspective. It would be even light-er if not for Canada’s strict safety standards; overseas the 2 is even lighter.

But the lightness advantage came to an end when the 3 was loaded up with a couple of kids and gear for an outing. The additional 400 lbs. (approximate-ly) was significantly reflected in the 2’s per-formance. The engine often whirred loudly in complaint and fuel economy crept up about 1.5 litres per 100 kms from the 6.2 litres/km that had been enjoyed.

The bottom line is the Mazda2 makes for an excellent single person car, second car or a get-around-town vehicle. If you’re buy-ing a car just for one of these uses, you’d be hard pressed to make an argument for one of its direct competitors over the 2.


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Though Father Bressani bailed out of the junior boys soccer playoffs early, there are three reasons to anticipate YRAA titles over the next three years.

Eagles coach Anthony Gorys has three national qualifiers suiting up for his squad: fraternal twins Michael and Luca Uccello as well as Lucas Puntillo.

The trio, who suit up for Kleinburg Nobleton Lions, spent the Canadian under-14 nationals in St. John’s, Newfoundland this year, before joining the student body of Bressani in September. One keeper, a striker and centre-midfielder who can jump up to strike when needed were definitely a welcomed arsenal for Gorys.

“We’ve always had a strong soccer background in the past number of years, so to have this type of talent come through still, is phenomenal,” he said.

Through the regular season, the squad went 4-0 with 20 goals scored, and keeper Michael Uccello only allowed one goal, something his source of inspiration, Gianluigi Buffon, would be pleased with.

“We won a bunch of our games, by a lot obviously, and we went to the semis for the school regional, and then we lost 2-1,” Michael said, adding high school soccer was organized differently from the Ontario Indoor Soccer League he’s used to.

“Challenges were being new to the school and it was hard to communicate with each other on the field and give direction.”

Still, brother Luca — who models his game after Zlatan Ibrahimovic — said the positives far outweighed the negatives.

“It was good, obviously because we’re new to the school and we’re playing with grade 10s,” he said. “We didn’t have much time to train, so we got better and better each game.

“Unfortunately we got beat out in the semis but overall it was a great season.”That game was a 2-1 loss to Bill Crothers in the YRAA semi-finals, and Pun-

tillo, whose favourite player is Lionel Messi, will have the Colts in his crosshairs for 2012.

“I think we just want to get past what we did this year because I think we could have potentially won basically everything,” he said. “We didn’t put as much effort as we could have.”

All three are planning on returning to the pitch for their grade 10 year, and will continue their yen for football in the winter.

As for Gorys, he couldn’t be happier to have three touchstones of soccer domi-nance pass through the Bressani halls during their high school careers.

“They are positive role models, they are very, very good kids, extremely talented and exactly the types of players we look for in the school,” he said. “It should be a good four years of soccer, guaranteed.”

Future considerationsFooty threesome have high hopes

briAn bAker/vAughAn todAy

GOOOOOAL! From left, Lucas Puntillo, Michael Uccello and Luca Uccello look forward to watching their team grow over the next three years.

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When it comes to footy, Luca Bal-dassarre has some big footsteps to follow.

The Woodbridge native hopes to play professional soccer in Europe one day just like his father, Antonio Baldassarre.

“My dad’s my idol because my dad used to play professionally for Milan,” said the grade 12 student. “He kind of got me going. I’ve played since I was three.”

The younger Baldassarre currently co-captains the senior boys soccer team at Holy Cross Catholic Academy and also plays for the Kleinburg Nobleton Soccer Club, part of the Toronto FC academy program.

With the Holy Cross Hawks, Bal-dassarre was named the MVP of last season’s OFSAA tournament despite the fact his team did not make it to the finals. With a win over Father Bressani on Nov. 8, the Hawks qualified for this season’s OFSAA tournament in June.

“Our main goal was to make it to OFSAA because it’s our coach’s last year and so we wanted to do it for him,” Baldassarre said.

Holy Cross’ head soccer coach Nick Delprinchipe has been a teacher at the school for 22 years and in that time has coached basketball, volleyball, bad-minton and boys and girls soccer. He said Baldassarre is among the top stu-dent-athletes he has worked with.

“I’ve been pretty lucky that I’ve had a lot of good athletes come through here in terms of soccer and some of them have gone on to get scholarships and others went on to play profession-al,” Delprinchipe said. “Luca, he’s car-rying on the tradition of Holy Cross.”

The Hawks’ other co-captain, Chris-tian Cavalini, has already received an offer to play professionally in Uru-guay.

“Luca and Christian play well off each other,” said their coach.

As a member of the Kleinburg Lions, Baldassarre and his team take an annual trip overseas to face Europe-an squads. Recently, he returned from a tryout with Valencia FC in Spain.

“My main goal is to play profes-sionally in Europe obviously, but I would still like to play for Toronto FC, my hometown,” he said.

In fact, being the hometown guy he is, Baldassarre said he will likely turn down a soccer scholarship offer to the University of Rochester in New York

in order to take classes in media stud-ies close to home.

“I’m probably going to go to Guelph-Humber because my mom doesn’t want me getting home sick,” he said.

For Baldassarre, the quality of his game matters more than where he works on it.

“In the States there’s more oppor-tunity but in Canada, if you’re good enough, a team will recognize you,” he said. “I think if you have what profes-sional teams want — no matter where you’re from — you’ll get recognized.”

Holy Cross fell to Bill Crothers in the semi-finals of the playoffs after finishing the season with 2 wins and 2 ties. Baldassarre and the rest of the Hawks will have a chance to end Del-princhipe’s coaching career on a win-ning note when they begin practising for the OFSAA tournament in March.

“We had a great season,” Baldas-sarre said. “I’m proud and I can’t wait for OFSAA.”

A-head of the gameTeen takes after soccer pro dad

By triStan Carter

photo courtesy lucA bAldAssAre

LUCA BALDASSARE has already tried out for Valencia FC in Spain.


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ETA VAUGHAN WOMEN’S CENTREYORK REGION

Adopt-a-Family 2012We will be continuing our Adopt-a-Family Program this holiday season. To our sponsors from last year, your

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December 2011