Canada Starts New Prepaid Credit Card Rules

New Prepaid Credit Card Rules

First Published Date: May 24, 2014

As prepaid credit cards’ popularity jumped, so did the various fees associated with them. Once credit card companies saw these credit cards were in high demand, they did not waste a moment coming up with innovative ideas to attach various bizarre fees that can be charged when you buy and use prepaid credit cards. Such fees include maintenance fees, activation fees, ATM fees, and possibly more.

As consumer complaints start piling up, the federal government had no option but to start restricting some of these fees. These new rules have come into effect starting in May. Let’s look at some of these rules.

– A ban on maintenance fees for at least one year once you start using it.

– No more expiration date.

– All the required info related to the fees and using cards will have to be clearly visible and simple enough so consumers can see, read, and understand them before buying.

– The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) will monitor and enforce these rules.

– All federally regulated institutions will fall under these rules.

Prepaid cards are similar to credit cards, except that you will have to pre-load funds before you start transactions like credit cards such as making purchases and buying online. Although prepaid cards are a relatively new concept, their popularity recently skyrocketed. According to an estimate, the prepaid card industry is worth $850 million.

These new rules imposed by the federal government are definitely steps in the right direction to protect consumers. However, these could have been done some time ago and there was no need to wait for consumer complaints to start piling up.

Great Fears Expressed In One Day Global Warming Summit

China has The Most Impressive Carbon Emissions Reduction

First Published Date: Dec 6, 2009

It may appear that finally leaders of the world’s strongest nations are waking up to the reality that something needs to be done if we are to save the planet that we all call home. The days of lone ranger tactics are now gone and we must pull together as the human family of destroy the planet through our bad practices. The 1997 Kyoto protocol has come back to haunt us and there efforts to strengthen it or may be replace it with a better alternative. At a recent summit it emerged that countries such as US and China are gearing up towards drawing some ambitious programs that may be forerunners of what to expect in the climate summit to take place in Copenhagen in December 2009

The American president, who was also in attendance, took note that his country is leaving no stone unturned as it looks for an internal solution through the congress, which is battling to pass a new energy and climate bill which will go a long way in working out measures that could see a drastic reduction of the emission of green house gases. It may appear that finally the chickens have come home to roost and everyone is determined to play their honest role in this great undertaking.

During the one day conference it emerged that the greatest contributors to the problem are actually fast developing countries with the highest economic rate, chief of which are the two Asian giants of China and India, who jointly need to pull up their socks and encourage some green development because they seem to be catching up fast with the developed nations in contributing to the problem of global warming. The good news is that the Chinese president himself assured the participants of his county’s determination to work out their own domestic solution to the global problem, especially in trying to reduce the carbon intensity produced by his country’s economic activity.

China has emerged to be one of the countries with the most impressive records in reduction of carbon emissions in the last five years, having reduced her intensity by a whole 20% and things look like they are going to be much better. This is according to the vice president for climate and energy at the UN foundation in Washington, Reid Detchon. The US president now wants focus to be directed towards least developed nations who suffer the greatest consequences of global warming and yet are least prepared to face the challenges that obviously facing them. He believes a lot more financial help is in order so that these nations at least get equipped.

As nations prepare to go to Copenhagen at the end of the year it is the desire of the UN secretary general to see fresh ideas brought into the up coming summit because this summit taking place in Paris in June this year did not go as far as it would have been possible. One would hope that all the other forums that will be taking place in preparation for the Copenhagen meet will do substantial groundwork so that every country does its share in order to save our planet.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Dec 6, 2009.

The Great Pyramids of Giza | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 2 (Part 18) 01D19

The Sakkara Complex: The Pyramid of King Titi

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

The Pyramid of Titi (or Teti) is a smooth-sided pyramid located in central Saqqara. It was one of the earliest pyramids containing pyramid texts. Dated 2300 BC, King Titi was the ruler of the 6th dynasty.

The Titi Pyramid doesn’t look extraordinary on the outside. This is the only pyramid in which I went inside.

The entrance tunnel was not pleasant, and the tour guide asked people with heart or other conditions not to enter. You have to kind of crawl in a half-sitting position for a few minutes through the long descent of 1800 meters of narrow tunnel to enter the chambers.

Once inside, it shockingly transports you to another world. The ceiling is covered with lots of stars and the walls are covered with spells in hieroglyphs. 

There are several passages and chambers inside such as a funeral serdab, an antechamber, and King Titi’s burial chamber. Moving from one to another, you need to bend over as the doorlike entrances and short tunnels are made of stone and can’t support most people standing at full height.

Like many other pyramids or tombs, the Titi Pyramid had been broken into and robbed by tomb robbers.  The lid in the burial chamber was broken, but the basalt sarcophagus is well preserved still today and a first to have had a single band of the Pyramid Texts inscription.

The experience of seeing inside a pyramid was mind blowing. This is something I have been dreaming of all my life and it felt different upon achieving it.

We will be heading to have an Egyptian-style outdoor lunch from here.

Can Grocery Gateway Save You Money?

What Is Grocery Gateway?

First Published Date: July 2, 2014

Grocery Gateway is a an online grocery grocery store servicing the Toronto area. It is a part of premium grocery chain Longo’s. The idea of Grocery Gateway is fairly straight forward. Instead of going to the grocery store, the grocery store comes to you at a time of your choice. And yes, depending on some factors you may be able to save money with Grocery Gateway.

What’s The Minimum Purchase Required?

The minimum amount of purchase required is $45 at Grocery Gateway. During the checkout, you can pick several delivery windows from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM for the next few days. The delivery fee is $9.95, regardless of order size, as long as the $45 minimum is met.

When Grocery Gateway Can Save You Money

If you do not own a car, like many other people who live in big cities, Grocery Gateway is a convenient option to save money and time. For example, if you are getting weekly or monthly groceries, it may not be possible to use public transit and you will end up taking a cab. A taxi ride from my nearest grocery store to my place comes close to about $15 + tips. For some of us, a taxi ride from the nearest grocery would cost a lot more. In situations like these, $9.95 delivery fee is definitely a bargain. Plus you are avoiding the hassle of carrying bulky items by yourself.

When Grocery Gateway Will Not Save You Money

For those of you who have cars, Grocery Gateway may not make sense, as it is easier to just drive and pick up your groceries.

What I Do

I take a mixed approach depending on what I need and when I need it. I have to pass by 3 grocery stores on my way from work to home. For most of my daily necessities, I pick up an item or two as I need them. However, when it comes to bulky or heavy items for which I would have had to take a taxi, I use Grocery Gateway instead and save money. This usually happens once every 2 months or so.

Last Word

Not all big cities have services like Grocery Gateway. If your city has similar online grocery stores like Grocery Gateway, you can save money and time depending on how you utilize it.

How To Have A Green Summer

How To Have An Eco-Friendly  Green Summer

Published Date: April 23, 2009

It may seem premature in the second half of April, but making early plans for how you are going to enjoy the summer can really get you in the mood for the evenings getting longer, the days getting warmer and the decrease in rainy days. Taking green issues into account is something that can happen naturally – after all, if you are going to be spending a lot of time outside, then you are less likely to need to use a lot of energy indoors. Heating will be less of an issue, you won’t need to put lights on as early, and in the kitchen the chances are that salads will take the place of soups, so the hob won’t have to be on so much for a start.

But beyond the saving you will make on energy and the dent you can make in your environmental impact, there are other ways that you can prepare for a green summer. These take many forms. Things that you can do to keep the household green, to make your daily lifestyle more environmentally friendly, and ways that you can change the annual summer routine – some of them very subtle – to make things more green-friendly. You’d be surprised where you can make a difference!

There are few people, for example, who do not enjoy a good barbecue in the summer months. It allows you to enjoy simple, grilled food while not having to be cooped up in the kitchen. So often, people serve up dinner and run into the lounge to watch television while they eat. But eating outdoors allows you to make the best of the natural resources that for so much of the year are either absent or ignored. A barbecue can bring with it environmental difficulties, though – the air can get polluted pretty quickly, so you need to look for a green barbecue. One that uses less gas or coal would be ideal.

At that barbecue, you will of course have some guests who would love a cold beverage – as often as not it will be a beer. You can help the environment while enjoying a beer, which is news that will encourage some of the more skeptical enviroskeptics to give some thought to helping out. You can do this by buying organic beer. It does the same job as your typical beer, and goes just as well with grilled food, but producing it impacts the environment a great deal less.

While outside in the sunshine there is of course the danger of succumbing to the lobster factor. Some of us tan beautifully at just the right speed. Others are not so lucky, and can burn up after less than an hour outdoors. For this reason, it is ideal to have a brand of sunscreen which is non-toxic. Additionally the chances are that with all that food and drink around, you will be visited by bugs. Just as with your sunscreen, a more natural brand can be the winner here. It is better for the environment and better for you.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Apr 29, 2009.