Daniel Ho’s Musings

While reading the I Bike T.O. Blog I noticed the introduction of the Toronto 311 system. Supposedly, by simply pulling over and calling 311 in Toronto, the city will fix giant pothole that you nearly rolled into within 4 days of being reported. Really? Cool…

The service launched on September 24, 2009, the City of Toronto’s 311 service operates 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

According to the City of Toronto 311 website:

311 is the largest, most exciting customer service improvement undertaken by the City of Toronto since amalgamation. 311 improves accessibility to non-emergency City services and information, and will increase the City’s effectiveness in responding to public inquiries.

Not sure how to report a pothole? Need to request pick-up of an old appliance? Looking for a program at your local community centre? Simply call 311. Our customer service representatives are available to assist you 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

More than just a phone number, 311 Toronto provides access to a wide range of online services, and in the coming months will expand with online service requests and online tracking. Information counters are also available at City Hall and most Civic Centres during regular business hours, offering in-person assistance and free telephone access to 311. You can also contact 311 by e-mail or fax.

Check it out! We’re already paying for it… heh

I was just talking to a young friend about making choices in life and thought of this video from a few years back.

“You’re time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s’ life and don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”

Nike + Sports Kit

I’m happily logging my running kilometers on my Apple iPod Nano using the Nike+ iPod Sports Kit. You can use it to play your Playlists, or all your songs in shuffle mode while working out. You can even store a “power song” (which I’m guessing is Eye of the Tiger on most iPods) to perk you up when your energy is waning during the workout BUT, for some reason, podcasts isn’t on the list of sources when you go to start a Nike+ workout.

What gives with that? Yes, I like my tunes, but what’s wrong with listening to a podcast while running?

Here’s the workaround:
You can start playing your podcast BEFORE clicking on Nike+iPod.
From the Nike+iPod menu, choose the workout you wish to do as usual.
Then, choose “Now Playing” as your music source.

Irritating, but at least it works. Hopefully, Apple will work on this in a future release of the iPod firmware.

This video from Lonely Planet basically has most of my travel packing tips in one place. Take a look. It is worth your time if you travel more than once a year.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comment section. Enjoy!