My wife and I stopped at Tim Horton’s today while running some errands, and I noticed that Tim Horton’s had gone and raised the price of my large coffee.  I seem to recall that there was just recently recently a price increase, and was a baffled by this one.

While I understand the price increase (I run a business, and understand that sometimes prices need adjusting, due to competition and costs), but I have two issues with this increase:

1. In these hard times, why would a Canadian institution such as Tim Horton’s raise their prices?  Did they recently increase their employee salaries to help combat the recession? Given the fact that there was a recent price increase already, I really can’t seem to understand why they would need to do it again.
2. Why raise the price to $1.52 with tax – would it have made that much of a difference to round it down to $1.50? This may just be me ranting over nothing, but I really hate have a bunch of pennies laying around in my car, and by making it $1.52, it almost guarantees that I have them, always.

Now, I know that Timmy’s will simply tell everyone that they have the convenience of the Tim Card, and for people like me who complain about the penny thing, it just adds a reason to the list of pros for having one, however I don’t believe that I should HAVE to bring my card with me every time I want a coffee.

What are you thoughts?

I stumbled onto an article on Reuters today, which had me scratching my head in confusion. Basically, the article states that Muslims will not be able to attend the Guiness 250th anniversay concert by the Black Eyed Peas. The reasoning behind this is apparently because a 32-year old woman was caned after consuming alcohol in a hotel room in Kuala Lumpur.

Although I completely understand trying to negate such a punishment as the result of a concert, I can’t fathom how either the Black Eyed Peas or Guiness thought this was a good idea in any way.  Have we become so enthrawled with being politically correct that we would simple ban all Muslims from enjoying a concert by one of the most popular bands at the moment? It just doesn’t seem right to me.

The message this conveys to me is that in the view of Guiness and the band, Muslims are not able to make their own decisions regarding the consumption of alcohol at a concert.  Why would you ban a religious group simply because they punish their followers for consuming alcohol?  Even though the event is sponsored by Guiness, I am sure that there will be other drinks available to attendees besides beer, right?

Could this ban be more about the possibility that Muslims will attend the event in protest of an alcohol company, more than about the ramifications of those who partake in alcohol?  I think it might just be.

It doesn’t stop at the concert, unfortunately.  On the Guiness website for the event, visitors are prompted with a question before entering the site: “Are you a non-Muslim aged 18 years and above?”.  If you answer no, you are not allowed entry to the site.  My question is, why is this here in the first place?  I could see some sort of disclaimer on the site, indicating that it advertises this concert, and the it is sponsored by an alcohol company, but Guiness, what were you thinking in putting this up and actually denying entry to the site, based on religious beliefs?

In my opinion, someone in public relations really dropped the ball on this one.

What are your thoughts?

Cheesy title, I know – but, I just watched “I Survived a Japanese Game Show” (my wife loves it), and was feeling a little cheesy…

I recently applied for a job with a new mobility company called Wind Mobile. They look like the absolute perfect fit for me, and although I will be saddened by the fact that I will not be able to dedicate 100% of my time to my business, I think that working with an emerging company offers a lot of excitement, and new opportunities to grow.

They were looking for a technical support team manager, and I know that I fit the bill perfectly. One of the requirements for the job is that texting, Twitter, Facebook, and the latest and greatest gadgets intrigue you.  I think that intrigue may be too light a word when it comes to technology in my life.  I wouldn’t go as far as obsessed, but I am definitely a tech geek, and love the ever-changing world of technology.

Wind Mobile looks like a fantastic company to work with, and from what I have read, their policies fit well with my own beliefs, and their work environment seems to be perfect for me.  I want to work with a company which values its employees as much as its customers, and I really feel like they do.  Take a look at this company – I think that they will be something to watch over the next few years.

In the meantime, keep your fingers crossed for me!

I have a subscription which allows me to download quite a bit of Microsoft software for free, which is great – sometimes it takes a while to get the software updated, which is not so great. This is especially true when I am looking for that latest and greatest piece of software that I am just itching to try out.  My problem is that I simple cannot install trials on my computer. Call me anal retentive if you wish, but I just don’t like the way they clutter up my system.

I finally had a chance to download the new Expression Studio 3, and I have to say – I absolutely love it so far.  I do plan on writing a formal review, but for now I just wanted to blog something to tell everyone who can afford it to go and get it.  The Sketchflow feature is just fantastic, and although I haven’t been able to play with it as much I had hoped (finding time is difficult these days), I like what I have seen thus far.

Stay tuned for more!