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Personal Opinions and Reviews

My experiences, reviews and opinions on products, services and everyday things I've actually used what worked, what didn't and whether I'd use them again.

Personal Opinions and Reviews
From the blog

Latest Personal Opinions and Reviews Posts

Everything I've written about Personal Opinions and Reviews in one place. Pick a post and disappear down another rabbit hole.

Rustic Canadian lakeside deck at sunset with a smartphone, notebook, and mug reading “Boring one person at a time!” on a wooden table.
Personal Opinions and Reviews

I think we've forgotten how to be bored...

And I'm starting to think that's a problem. We used to be really good at being bored When I was growing up, being bored was just part of life, you'd sit there, you'd stare out the window, you'd go outside,

Canadian investment portfolio displayed on a laptop beside a calculator and Canadian maple leaf
Money & Investing

My new Canadian heavy investment portfolio and letting WealthSimple do the boring stuff

I finally settled on an investment portfolio that feels right for me: 56% Canadian, 28% international and 16% U.S. Using WealthSimple's Automated Investing, I can choose the companies and ETFs I want while letting the automation handle much of the boring portfolio maintenance.

Canadian smartphone displaying a navigation map beside a maple leaf sign on a scenic Canadian mountain highway.
Technology

Maple Maps, a Canadian alternative to the others

Maple Maps is a new Canadian navigation app built specifically for Canada, with Canadian business identification, bilingual support, live traffic and Canadian hosted data.

Remembering 9/11, and the power of friendship
Life & Music

Remembering 9/11, and the power of friendship

Twenty-five years ago, I was starting my final co-op term in Ottawa when September 11 changed the world and changed my life. Today, I reflect on Canada's and Newfoundland's extraordinary response, the friendships that grew from tragedy, and 25 years of working to protect Canadians.

Taking back my digital life: Building my own Canadian home cloud
Self-Hosting & Homelab

Taking back my digital life: Building my own Canadian home cloud

Background I've spent a ridiculous amount of my life handing my digital life over to somebody else as most people have done over the years. Google has my photos and devices. Someone else has my files. Someone else has my movies. Someone else knows what websites I'

Buying individual stocks vs Wealthsimple's Automated Investing Account
Money & Investing

Buying individual stocks vs Wealthsimple's Automated Investing Account

Ditch the spreadsheet trap. Discover how Wealthsimple's Automated Investing Account handles manual stock buying, rebalancing, and portfolio math for you.

Fix your financial leaks
Money & Investing

Fix your financial leaks

In this time of increasing costs, falling markets and ever growing global financial instability, people are looking inward to reduce their household costs to make their hard earned dollar work the hardest for them. Here are six clear and easy steps/changes to make to help you save hundreds if

Why Reolink PoE Cameras are a Smarter Security Choice in Cameras
Smart Home

Why Reolink PoE Cameras are a Smarter Security Choice in Cameras

I should mention, while all these cameras I have connected via POE, they are all also available via wifi, so no need to be scared away due to the POE talk. In the world of home security, you often face a choice: the easy, subscription-heavy path of consumer tech

Why I Switched to Wealthsimple — and Why I Think You Should Too
Money & Investing

Why I Switched to Wealthsimple — and Why I Think You Should Too

Over the years, I’ve tried just about every “traditional” banking and investing setup you can imagine. Big banks. Monthly fees. Complicated investment platforms. Random charges that somehow always showed up after the fact. Eventually, I got tired of feeling like my money was working harder for the bank than

Why EBOX is the Smart Choice for Home Internet
Personal Opinions and Reviews

Why EBOX is the Smart Choice for Home Internet

Tired of the endless price hikes, expiring promos, and confusing contracts from the big Canadian internet providers? EBOX, a prominent player in the independent ISP landscape, is offering a refreshing alternative, especially with their Fibre to the Home (FTTH) internet. If you live in Quebec or Ontario where their fibre