thanks to @philmoscovitch.bsky.social and @halifaxexaminer.ca for bringing attention to this travesty www.halifaxexaminer.ca/arts-and-cul...

It's been a very busy 24 hours at the @halifaxexaminer.ca. You can catch up on the stories my colleagues and I have been working on in today's Morning File. Budget cuts are a big part of it, but there are many other interesting stories too. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

I wrote a story somewhat similar to this one maybe a decade ago, so while I think there are some great ideas here, let's just say I'm not holding my breath.

a reminder that the deadline for the Poet Laureate Mental Health Poem Project is coming up Saturday February 28, 2026! If you'd like the invitation letter and consent form to submit with your poem emailed to you, please contact me at [email protected].

Logged into Facebook and saw a notification that someone had poked me. What decade is this?

"“I want them to tell us how they are going to protect children and Canadians,” Mr. Solomon told reporters in Ottawa." YOU REPRESENT THE GOVERNMENT, YOU SIMPERING TECHNO-STAN, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TELL THEM! Man, this guy sucks. Absolutely useless when it comes to rising to the needs of the moment.

I think my biggest takeaway from ABS so far is that people really, really, really do not give umpires enough credit for how great they are at a truly difficult job

Serge Savard: A lifetime of anglos being incapable of pronouncing his name.

My @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File today links to crucial municipal and provincial stories by Examiner writers. Also, we debut a new monthly column written by me and SMU prof Matthew Boland, and I look at stupidity from Meta AI and elsewhere. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

btw the whole "well if you think AI sucks what technology DO you like??" shit? The answer is 3D printing. Being able to fabricate shit yourself at home is a game changer in a way AI bullshit wishes it was.

Uh-oh. (Olympic hockey)

Even if you already know the police budgets keep going up, it is still eye-opening to see it all laid out here.

I interviewed Chris Jackman about stepping into the lead role in Hedwig & the Angry Inch, and about moving from Toronto to reopen an old theatre in rural NS. Plus @suzannerent.bsky.social & @madiha.bsky.social on the latest in municipal & provincial politics. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

Non-Greeks only: do you know what this is?

See also: Nobody uses the library.

Delighted to have written one of these, and to be in such good company.

My favourite Olympic-related story: I nearly backed our car into a river, and a bunch of very fit, strong young guys came to the rescue. But one of them dropped out of helping when his grandmother arrived and told him not to, because he couldn't afford to get hurt before the Olympic trials next week

The countdown’s on to the Ellis on Guard launch at @woozlesbooks.bsky.social! Super excited to have dear friends Vanessa Furlong (host) and Veronica Post (Q&A) joining me. Come and celebrate with us, #halisky! All are welcome. #booksky #sel #librarysky

Reading this by @suzannerent.bsky.social reminded me of the one-term councilor I met, from another city, who said he didn't reoffer because he was tired of being corralled wherever he went: "Do you have to come yell at me now? I'm just trying to buy some lettuce."

Read an article that said an actor had "little knowledge of the Star Wars universe" when he auditioned for a role -- in the original Star Wars film.

If you are in Nova Scotia and are over 50, the health authority mails you a free test every two years. But fewer than half the people who receive the kits return them. It's a great program. Just do the test and mail it back.

I interviewed filmmaker Sylvia Mok, whose parents owned Star Anise, about her upcoming short doc Restaurant Kids. Plus a bunch of other stuff in my @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File today. (How about those council goings-on covered by @suzannerent.bsky.social?) www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

For my first story in @breachmedia.ca, I wanted to know what Canada was doing about a scathing UN disability report that criticized the disability benefit and the expansion of assisted suicide. I'll be writing a longer thread soon. breachmedia.ca/canada-sides...

No idea what this is about, but it is evergreen.

it's been a long time coming but we can finally sell ebooks through the shop, please help us spread the word! choose us as your favorite bookstore and then purchases you make support us! books are DRM free epub files www.booksellers.ca/catalogue?bo...

Please enjoy my @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File from today. These humanoid robots to represent LLMs are kind of goofy, but what are we going to go, screenshot a chatbot? www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

A little late posting this, but here is my @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File from today. Nova Scotia Power, French launch for African Heritage Month, AI foolishness, 2SLGBTQIA+ refugees, and more. Plus a couple of timely quotes from Bob Dylan. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

Judging by the timeline, this may be a good moment to re-up my Kid Rock essay. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

This is something the "just fill potholes and fix traffic" crowd misses: What makes a city truly enjoyable to live in? What are the things we love? What makes our lives better?

Couldn't find my copy of the first anthology my work appeared in, and had a hard time finding even an image of the cover online. Tracked one down in the McGill rare books collection (!), and then days later saw a copy in the home of someone I know in a very tiny NS community. She gave it to me.

“Ricky Gervais says…” I already stopped reading I am not clicking fuck you

I’ll be on CBC News’s “The National” tonight at 9pm talking about the Grammys and protest music. I must be on some sort of list, or perhaps considered handsome for Canada — I get interviewed a lot about protest music on Canadian television!

In this book the Shark Tank guy teaches kids to earn money by violating copyright law. I am not making this up.

#HRM #HalifaxRegionalMunicipality #poetry #poetlaureate #Mentalhealth #mentalillness #mentalhealthcare #Madness Me again! with the Poet Laureate Mental Health Poem Project! If you live or work in HRM, contact [email protected] for more information and for the consent form. Deadline: Feb 28

Phillip here touching on something I struggled with coming into being an indie NS author, which was the capacity for Canadian book reviews was so barebones that I could barely find anyone to forward my book to for discussion and reviews. Even less so because my work is purely SFF.

Cyclopedia Exotica, by Aminder Dhaliwal.

Today's Morning File. Unrelated: The Catherine O'Hara news is terrible. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

Zoom's AI feature can't even manage basic tasks

I can't tell if I am rationally or irrationally annoyed by this.

Looking south of the border got me thinking about civil wars in general, and the Greek Civil War, during which my mother grew up, in particular. In the @halifaxexaminer.ca today. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

Hey #halisky if you're wondering about the snow consistency, a neighbour is using a leaf blower to clear off his car.

My @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File today includes thoughts on the accusation that Lisa Banfield wrote a book for money (ha!) and, even worse, is promoting it; plus 2 MSVU profs on Bill 12, Jennifer Henderson on the return of NOFRAC, and more. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

Today in my @halifaxexaminer.ca Morning File: Carney's speech has me reaching for 1969 policy papers, @dartjenhen.bsky.social on a new power charge and hydrogen, Rob Csernyik on the Dartmouth Crossing casino, shuttering the historic places database, and more. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

I appreciate bluesky on a Saturday night because it’s a bunch of people who are like president of major scholarly societies in their cups posting “fuck these refs”

things I hate as an editor/journalist/word professional: organizations changing their name to their acronym and vowing that it doesn't stand for anything (AARP, YMCA, others)

By me. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

What I learned by listening to every Kid Rock album. Plus, why the local police claim that they need to stay on X because of all their followers is BS, and more. www.halifaxexaminer.ca/morning-file...

New to nonfiction writing? This upcoming workshop series is for you! Foundations of Nonfiction with Tina Capalbo, Andrea Currie, & Darryl Whetter Sundays, Jan 18 to Mar 15 (1-3pm AST) Open to both WFNS members and nonmembers 😀 writers.ns.ca/workshops-events/foundations-of-nonfiction-winter-2026

Rest assured, when I am prime minister, all official communication will be conducted through ICQ.

Jacob Tierney says he feels old. Meanwhile, I know someone who babysat him once.