In some cities, like Vancouver, British Columbia and Jerusalem, Israel, we have noticed that a significant percentage of apartments and condos in many buildings are vacant most of the year. In the former example, they tend to be owned by Chinese investors as an ’emergency refuge.’ In the latter case, they tend to be owned …
The younger children in our family occasionally went on “run-aways”. Their second oldest sister, Rena, would take them out, one at a time for a few hours, boarding a bus for our small city’s four-block downtown area. There, they would wander around carefree, leaving chores and schoolwork behind. Each journey included a stop at the...
It is possible that that some people do not consider a pyramid of bright yellow sulfur to be an attractive sight. But for our family, that view always evokes nostalgic smiles and wistful sighs. You see, along with heavy seaplane traffic and the striking architecture of the Vancouver Convention Centre, the miniature mountain of...
