Still in shock

I'm still completely stunned that there is no more Daily News. Totally, utterly shocked. I cannot imagine what someone like David Rodenhiser is going through. 18 years at one place, going to work on Monday morning - and then - boom, you're done. I want to wish everyone who lost their jobs the best and I know it's not okay, but I hope it is soon. What a shame. I loved the paper, I miss it already. I agree, I love Peter Duffy (he had a great column today about Gary Martin), but other than that I found the Daily News columnists far superior. Blair claims he didn't like them, but I enjoyed hearing what "real people" thought, not these pompous stuffed shirts like at the Chronicle-Herald. Jim Meek slammed Hotline listeners before, don't you forget it! I'm going to miss the regular things I read, Rodenhiser, Martello Tower, some columns in the Sunday paper, HFX including Valerie Mansour's column on restaurants, Peter Rockwell's wine column (even though I definitely have some issues with how he works for the L-C, so is obviously going to push stock that they have too much of!!!) It's so incredibly sad, to think about the livelihood of so many people, the fact the C-H has no more competition and my own personal reading enjoyment. We'll chat about this more tomorrow with former editor Jack Romanelli and former columnist Stephen Kimber.

One other word about the Daily News and some of the fallout today: revelling in other people's misery is a recipe for karmic disaster. Remember that.

Speaking of Valerie, she was on today for an hour talking about restaurants. It's an hour that succeeds in making me feeling absolutely starving!!! As people were talking and between answering calls, I was making my own list of awesome places to eat.

These are in no particular order:

1. Rogi Orazio - Italian restaurant in the Hydrostone. Haven't been there for dinner, but the lunch is so delicious. Lots of delicious bread to eat beforehand with olive oil and balsamic vinegar....so tasty!

2. Keg. You cannot go wrong at the Keg! So delicious, I was just there on Friday night, have the twice baked potato - you'll be glad you did!

3. Rogue's Roost. My favourite pub. It's a craft brewery and they have cheap, tasty food. Great for people watching too - it's right on Spring Garden Rd. above the Second Cup.

4. Old Triangle. It's my second favourite pub. The Curry and Chips is amazing comfort food, and the sweet potato fries and dip are to die for.

5. Henry House. I love this place. Valerie mentioned it - they have the best fries in the city. Food/beer is delicious, and you can't beat the atmosphere. Plus, you can play darts! Servers are phenomenal, it's awesome.

6. Onyx. Very expensive, but soooo worth it for the food/service/ambience/wine. It's like one of those places you would only go once every couple of years.

7. Jane's on the Common. Great neighbourhood restaurant, high quality food, great atmosphere.

8. Hamachi House. My favourite place for sushi and all things Japanese.

9. Morris East. Great pizza, if you like thin crusts with gourmet toppings. The only issue is that it's borderline impossible to get a table.

10. Curry Village. I can't believe Valerie dissed CV. Never had a bad experience there, love the food, plus, it's cheap!! Can't beat it if you love Indian food.

I guess that's about it...I could go on!! A really affordable place in the neighbourhood that I tried for the first time the other day was Cousins. I had my doubts, but I had the most delicious lunch and it was a massive plate for 10 bucks. Totally awesome.

Okay, now I'm officially starving.

Is anyone else totally put off by this new run for cancer research being organized by the QE2 and the IWK? Someone called off the air and suggested it was taking away from the many other activities like Run for the Cure, Relay for Life, Terry Fox etc. As Rick mentioned, I went on the Terry Fox website and 87 per cent of funds raised go directly to cancer research, 3 per cent go to administration and 10 per cent to fundraising endeavors. This 50 per cent administration cost is, to me, scandalous.

God, I nearly lost it today listening to Moosehead Mike. How patronizing can you get? Gloria McCluskey is doing amazing things considering her age? What? No one would say that about Ron Russell, John McCain or someone like John Buchanan! How patronizing to say, wow, John Buchanan can still formulate a sentence at his age!! That just really bugged me, because it doesn't matter what age Gloria is, she's amazing!

I can't believe Rick hadn't heard the term "sea whistles" before. "Sea balloons" is another term that was introduced to me when I arrived in Halifax and was horrified that they dumped raw sewage directly into the Harbour. That's great that the "floatables" are few and far between and that the smell is improving. It's certainly a great achievement for which Mayor Kelly can base his re-election campaign, isn't it?

Well, lunchtime for me. Take care, be grateful for what you have and DON'T GLOAT.

Cheers,

Amber