2.7 million Canadians struggle to get enough to eat each year, 37% of which are children.   Hunger has become a reality for too many Canadians. No Canadian should go hungry. Come out to support this year’s Kamel Cup Charity event, with Suresh Joachim, to help fight hunger in our local community.

The wheels are now in motion for Suresh Joachim – film, actor, producer and

1.         The car must be pushed, and the pusher must be in direct contact with the Vehicle while pushing.

2.        Pulling the vehicle using a harness and/or rope is not permitted.

3.        The total weight of the vehicle used should be at least 730 kg (excluding driver).

4.        The car must contain a driver at all times to steer it. The engine may be running if necessary to power the brakes and steering, but the vehicle should not be put in gear during the attempt. No driver can drive for more than four hours during the attempt.

David Gold of Standard Auto Wreckers will join Suresh Joachim, where the event is taking place to mark this world record breaking feat!

The Details of the Attempt are:

VENUE:    Richmond Hill Golf & Country Club - 8905 Bathurst Street, Richmond Hill, Ontario (Golf parking lot)
START:     Friday September 23^rd at 2:00pm
FINISH:     Saturday September 24^th at 2:00pm

The event will also feature Exclusive raffles and prizes, including the chance to win $1,000,000 in “The Million Dollar Shot” sponsored by Pink Elephant Marketing & $10,000 in cash prizes in the Total Health Pharmacy Putting Content. 

I had lots of fun and got a chance to chat cars with dozens of really knowledgeable folks!   This years importexpo (www.importexpo.ca) was the best ever!!  The weather cooperated and there was a bunch of great exhibitors.

Our friends from Standard Auto Wreckers were there and they had a really important message to share with everyone.  Don’t text and drive!  Take a look below at the car wreck (caused by texting and driving) they had people signing to pledge their support for NOT texting and driving.

I had a chance to check-out youth day celebrations yesterday and what a blast!  103 performers helped pump along the fun for the fifth annual Youth Day festival at Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas Square..“It’s all about youth” said Bricks, who’s been rapping since his teens and says the display of talent at Youth Day is an example of how many young people have used music, dance and art to stay out of trouble.

“How can you rap if you’re (in jail)? It’s about other ways of (using) your time, as opposed to hanging out on the streets.”

Youth need to be seen in a positive light, says Tylaine Duggan, who started Youth Day following a much-reported spate of fatal, gun-related violence in Toronto during the summer of 2005 — dubbed The Summer of the Gun.

It was the same year teenager Jane Creba was gunned down — an innocent bystander caught in an exchange of gunfire while Boxing Day shopping on Yonge St. just steps from where Sunday’s performances took place.

“We were sensationalizing a lot of the (bad) stuff and this is a celebration of positive youth engagement,” said Duggan, 50. “This is a showcase of their art, their achievements.”

Performers, including rappers, hip-hop dancers, choirs, full-piece rock and R&B bands and motivational speakers, were each given several minutes on one of two stages.

The event, which attracted thousands to the bustling intersection, closed Yonge St. between Shuter and Elizabeth Sts.

I swear, every time I open my email I find our friends over at Standard Auto Wreckers doing something new and GREEN!  It is not enough that their entire business model is green but whenever the opportunity arises they always jump in to help.  Well congratulations again on supporting another worthwhile cause!

Keep up the green work!

We got a chance to swing by Standard Auto Wreckers in Scarborough on Sat. afternoon and drop off a couple of old tires that have been on the cottage porch for the last decade!!  A big thanks to David and Ken for taking them off my hands and I even feel good about it because the usual fee is being donated to a great cause.

Here are some cool fact that came along with the media package for this even!

Ontario Tire Stewardship and the Used Tires Program

Fact Sheet

Did you know that…

• Over 12 million tires are sold every year in Ontario
• Over 90 percent of all tires contain non-biodegradable materials such as synthetic rubber, oil, polyester and steel, which could be a burden on our environment if improperly managed
• Recycling  four tires can save the energy equivalent of 18 gallons of gasoline and reduces greenhouse emissions by 146 kg (323 lbs) of CO2 equivalent (Source: Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) )
• Up to four tires can be recycled for free at registered collectors
• Your old, used tires can be turned into new, green products

Love this promo!

Bring your old tires down to 1216 Sewells Road in Scarborough on May 27 & 28 to help those less fortunate in your community.  If you have any questions or need more details please call Standard Auto Wreckers directly at 416-286-8686 or visit their website to learn more about this charity event.

I had a chance to attend the Urban Hero Awards last night in Scarborough and it was a lot of fun!

Below you can see David Gold of Standard Auto Wreckers presenting the award for Environment which is quite suitable considering the auto recycling business is one of the oldest original ‘green’ businesses.

Great job and our best goes out to all the recipients!

I attended this year and have actually been collecting tires from relatives and friends, I will be showing up with 12 tires! This years Tire Take Back Event is quickly approaching and one local auto recycling yard, Standard Auto Wreckers is reving things up in preparation of this amazing charitable event!

Standard Auto Wreckers in Toronto, Ontario in partnership with OARA (Ontario Automotive Recyclers Assosciation) will be participating in the collection of used tires in the greater Toronto area.  All tire fees associated with each tire dropped off will be donated by participating members to The Sunshine Foundation of Canada.  OARA will then match the donation made from all tires collected.

Bring your old tires down to 1216 Sewells Road in Scarborough on May 27 & 28 to help those less fortunate in your community.  If you have any questions or need more details please call Standard Auto Wreckers directly at 416-286-8686 or visit their website to learn more about this charity event.

So Starbucks has tasty coffee right?  But it is kinda expensive right?  But the service is good and it is high quality?  Ok, I admit it, 4 out of 5 days I hit Starbucks for some coffee and I have been pretty pleased with them for a while now.  But my local Starbucks has dropped the ball and I sent in a complaint back on Feb 11, 2010 and never received a reply.  Here is my complaint:

I regularly visit the location on 9th line in Markham, ON - not sure of the exact address but you can see where I go on my Starbucks card 6054 0402 5851 ****

They never have those green cup plugs in stock (they are out of them about 80% of the time) - I am usually in a rush and get an extra hot coffee so I can drink it at work.  I have had the coffee spray out on me about a dozen times (and I ask for no foam) and have had to dry-clean my winter jacket twice already because of coffee stains (it costs $30 plus tax each time) - I have asked them why they seem to be the only Starbucks to never have these in stock and they tell me that it is the corporate office that gives them fewer than they ask for every-time.

I do enjoy your coffee but considering the premium prices you charge I would think you could at least make sure they have those plugs in-stock.

Hoping for a response soon….

I write this post with a heavy heart and a full stomach.  I have been enjoying the food at Mandarin for the past 20 years and have rarely left feeling ripped off.  The food is usually fresh and tasty and the service is very good.  I admit I was a little disappointed when my local Mandarin on Woodbine Ave. stopped taking those instant pictures for birthdays and special occasions but I complained and directed to the local Walmart for Instamatic film (they said their supplier no longer carried it).

I was just at Mandarin last weekend and the $23.99 price tag was quite steep and I did tell the manager they should change over to grilled steak instead of the roast beef because it was very bland.  I also noticed the lunch menu was an affordable $11.99 and figured I should give the lunch menu a try since I have not been there during the daytime in a while.

I pulled in and noticed the sign had a couple of Christmas decorations on it and I thought that was a bit odd but I assumed Mandarin was just getting into the spirit.  When I got inside they had signs posted saying it was the holiday buffet and the price had jumped to $15.99?? Wow, over 40% increase and most places have holiday sales, not holiday gouges….

I asked the hostess what was different for the ‘holiday buffet’ that was priced so much higher and she said she did not know but to look around.  I did just that and did not notice anything special except lamb chops (which I don’t eat) - I was on my lunch break from work and did not really have time to start lunch elsewhere, plus it was minus 8 outside so I figured I would just cough-up (excuse my language) the extra cash.   I saw a manager just then and asked what was so special about the holiday buffet that warranted the extra change and he said,”you will see”, I told him I found the lamb chops and didn’t like them, was there anything else?  He gave me a very cryptic answer to the effect of: “If I did not come here all the time I would not notice”.

I ate and the food/service was pretty good, although the black forest cake was still frozen and chocolate dipped strawberries were replaced by chocolate dipped marshmallows.  On my way out I grabbed a few business cards for the managing partners of that location (Mandarin Box Grove) figuring I would send off an email complaint about the price grab but then lucky for me I saw one of the managing partners at the front, so I asked Jeff Cui why the price was so much higher for the holiday and I didn’t really notice anything different from normal.  He told me it was the equivalent of the weekend buffet and that is why it was more expensive.  When I asked him what was different other than the lamb chops he didn’t reply.  He just said that Mandarin has been raising prices for the holidays for the past twenty years. I then told him that it would be considerate to put a sign outside to notify people so they don’t park and come in out of the freezing cold to find that price has jumped 40% - he told me they put something on the sign to cover it but I told him if they were going to do that why not cover it with the new price or better yet post a new sign.  He asked me quite sarcastically whether I knew the price of a new sign.  I told him to give me a break and I was sure Mandarin could afford it.

In closing I want to say that I think raising your prices at the holiday season is a bit shady and I do understand going out to eat is a luxury I just think a 40% price increase without posting it outside is sneaky and it definitely made me leave with a bad taste in my mouth.