Have They Lived Here? Like, in February?

So, The Economist recently proclaimed my humble little burg the best city in the world to live in.

I say it's Toronto's weather that puts us over the top. Why, as I write it's -10 with a -20 wind chill and we're under a winter storm warning, with 15 cm of snow on the way, probably double that in the western suburbs. The long-range says more snow on Wednesday, and at no time this week does the mercury even approach the freezing mark. Fast-forward six months and you're looking at 30 to 35 with humidex readings in the mid 40s, thunderstorms, and likely any combination of a tornado warning, heat advisory or smog alert.

I've spent my whole life here in paradise, so trust me when I tell you that for at least three months (January, February and mid-July to mid-August) the place is unfit for human habitation. Late October, November, December, March and all of April are iffy at best. That leaves May and June—which can be lovely, I admit—early July, late August, September and early October. That's four and a half decent months out of twelve.

Perhaps my perspective is skewed because I don't drive. Hopping from heated (or air-conditioned) home to heated car to heated office, one observes but is barely exposed to the elements. For these folks—one of whom must have written this article—I suppose it's not bad at all. Maybe this is paradise and I just don't get it. Though I'm quite sure there are far worse places to call home even in affluent North America, I fail to see what makes stuffy, complacent, frigid-or-sweltering Toronto much more than a junior-league New York.

I mean, seriously: Berlin, London, Melbourne, New York, Paris, Tokyo, San Francisco—to name a few actual world-class cities—pale in comparison to the T-Dot? Count me as one Torontonian who'd gladly live in any of them for a year to find out.

Museum and Arts Pass

I've been known to grumble now and then about this charming little burg, but here's something to sing about: the Toronto Public Library's Museum and Arts Pass.

For the small price of having to haul my ass to the library at 9 a.m. this Saturday morning, I can now visit the Art Gallery of Ontario free of charge. In subsequent weeks I'll be checking out passes for the ROM, Science Centre, the Zoo, Casa Loma ... and the list goes on.

Conditions vary by venue, but most offer admission for up to two adults and two to four children on the same pass. Even better, passes can be borrowed again and again; the only limitation is one pass per person per week. And the pass needn't be returned to the library—it's surrendered at the venue.

What with general admission at major museums routinely eclipsing $20, this is a fabulous deal.

Toronto Mayoral Race: Vote ABBG

Anybody But the Bald Guys. And Rob Ford's rapidly receding hairline qualifies him as substantively bald. Now, don't get me wrong; it's not their baldness I object to but their policies (or what few leanings I've been able to discern amidst the mudslinging).

Sadly, if current polls hold true we'll be electing a hothead for mayor, one way or the other—bald or substantively bald, should you care about that sort of thing.