Torontonians are the least happy people in Canada: study

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Elizabeth Haggarty Toronto Star

Oh, Toronto, you are a glum lot — well, at least compared to the rest of Canada.
When it comes to happiness, Torontonians fall at the bottom of the pack, according to a new study.
Does Money Matter?: Determining the Happiness of Canadians examined the life satisfaction and happiness of Canadians according to where they lived.
With a happiness rating of 4.15, the Toronto CMA came last, falling below the Canadian average of 4.24. Sherbrooke, Que., and Brantford tied at the top of the list with a score of 4.36.
Ontario did not fare any better than its largest city, lingering at the bottom of the happy-provinces list along with British Columbia.
So, where are all the happy Canadians? You will find them in P.E.I and Quebec.
Before you crack the pages of Anne of Green Gables in search of an elusive happiness, consider that we are competing amongst a very happy lot: Canada consistently ranks among the five happiest nations in the world, and is the happiest member of the G7.
“You’re not miserable, you are just slightly less happy than other Canadians on average,” Andrew Sharpe, Executive Director of the Centre for the Study of Living Standards points out.
So, why are we less satisfied with life than our provincial counterparts?
“[Lower happiness levels are] linked to the higher levels of stress in Toronto that may be associated with two-hour commutes,” said Sharpe.
We also suffer from “less of a feeling of community because of the large concentration of population and trend towards skyscraper living.”
Toronto’s status as the immigrant capital of Canada also affects our happiness rating.
“Immigrants tend to be less happy than other Canadians because of their employment problems and because when they are employed they tend to earn less than other Canadians,” said Sharpe.
Sharpe points to this as a clear sign that more needs to be done to improve the experience of immigrants in Canada.
The study found that while income did not have a considerable effect on a person’s happiness, overall health and employment statues certainly did.
So, what should you do to boost your statistical chances of happiness? Move to Sherbrooke, Que., complete your post secondary education, and find a life-partner.

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Naked Gun Canadian Actor Leslie Nielsen Passes

Image via WikipediaLeslie Nielsen in "Naked Gun"
On Sunday, November 28, famed actor Leslie William Nielsen, passed away from pneumonia complications at the age of 84 at Fort Lauderdale hospital. He is survived by his wife, Barbaree Earl Nielsen, and two children.
Doug Nielsen, Nielsen’s nephew, stated on radio station CJOB, that “Leslie’s been in the hospital with pneumonia now for a number of days, approximately 12 days and just in this last 48 hours the infection has gotten too much, and today at 5:30 with his friends and his wife Barbaree by his side he just fell asleep and passed away.”
Nielsen was born on February 11, 1926 to Welsh and Danish immigrants. He was born in Canada and enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force after high school. He credited his acting abilities to the persistent lies he often told his strict father to avoid punishments.  After receiving a scholarship to New York’s Neighborhood Playhouse, Nielsen vigorously started to pursue acting.
Nielsen’s early career was that of a dramatic actor, however, after several years in the industry he reinvented himself into a satirical comedian.  His comedic breakthrough was his role in the movie, “Airplane!” In an interview he said, “When I read the [Airplane!] script, I knew exactly what they were after," he said. "It was the greatest break of my life, in a sense, that I ended up working with people who spotted me for being the closet comedian that I was.”
He managed to stay relevant in this industry for about 60 years and appeared in over 200 movies. He is best known for his role as incompetent and accident prone Detective Frank Drebin in the Naked Gun trilogy.
Although he started his career as a dramatic actor, he was often behind the scenes pulling pranks and being a jokester. For him, comedy came naturally. In an interview in January 2010 Nielsen said, “I love doing comedy. I am also happy doing drama but my main baby is comedy!” When asked what his secret for great comedy was, he answered, “I don’t know what the secret is. I don’t wanna be the champion of the great secret. I remember when I was in New York to see a Charlie Chaplin festival, on a dull winter’s day and I came out after seeing a couple of the movies and it was sunshine, bright and cheerful and I came out laughing. That is the secret of great comedy.”

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Canada popular with Irish expats in 2011

Image by wburris via Flickr

Catherine Deshayes

An aging population and low birth rate means that Canada needs expats more than ever with high immigration levels likely in 2011, according to government officials...
The country expects to have between 240,000 and 265,000 new permanent residents in 2011, the same as for 2010, said Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney.
‘Canada's post recession economy demands a high level of legal immigration to keep our workforce strong,' he said. All of the country's labour force growth will come from immigration within the next five years, according to the ministry.
Some 25% of newcomers are destined for provinces other than Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec, compared to 11% in 1997, with the Federal Skilled Worker Programme expected to be the most popular means of entry. It admits a range of workers, including technicians, skilled tradespersons, managers and professionals.
Anecdotal evidence suggest that there will be a significant influx of Irish expats as more and more people search for jobs abroad due to the country's financial crisis and Canada has always been popular with the Irish.
Irishman Eamonn O'Loghlin has set up an online job seekers website with support from the Ireland Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) to help Irish people find jobs and move to Canada. He also publishes a magazine for Irish expats in Canada.
With Canada emerging from the global recession in good shape, it is an increasingly popular destination among young people, says O'Loghlin. The Irish will always receive a good welcome here, he says, making special mention of the Canadian finance minister, Jim Flaherty, who is descended from Irish stock.
He advises young immigrants to be professional, to be prepared and to look the part. ‘Make sure the first two or three sentences in the CV grab the reader because the competition is fierce. You've got to be better than the rest.'
Those looking for jobs in Canada include mechanical engineers, IT system analysts, construction managers (the Irish construction sector has been particularly badly hit in the downturn), accountants and marketing executives.
Irish companies are also increasingly looking to the Canadian market, which has shown a lot of resilience in the face of the global economic crisis. More than 220 Irish companies now sell goods and services into Canada, and over 45 Irish companies operate offices and facilities in Canada, according to the ICCC.
Irish Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan, has just led the largest Irish trade mission in history to Canada, visiting Edmonton, Toronto and Ottowa. The focus of the mission was to increase the profile and highlight the achievements of world-class Irish companies who have successfully broken into the Canadian market.
The trade mission cantered around 35 high tech Irish companies who are doing business in Canada and many of companies have secured high profile deals and partnerships worth over €10 million. Bilateral trade between Ireland and Canada is expected to increase by €80 million this year, and sales into Canada by Irish companies have trebled in the past five years.
Source: www.expatforum.com

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