iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Tom Veenstra

Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

To my fellow members of Toronto—St. Paul's: I emailed my MP Leslie Church tonight about her endorsement of Brad Bradford. While I don't expect a reply, here is my email in case you'd like some inspiration for your own. Always tell your representatives how you feel! They work for you!

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Well, my 85 year old mom, a diehard Blue Jays fan and optimist, usually ends her morning message to the family group chat with a string of baseballs and blue hearts. Today, even she seems to be accepting the inevitable…

A string of blue hearts and baseballs, but with weepy and sad emoji faces added in

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Glendon Mellow @flyingtrilobite.com · 03/09/2026

Hi Doug Ford,

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scott daGHOSTtino @scottdagostino.ca · 03/09/2026

A report from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce last year said that every dollar invested by the federal government in arts and culture generates $29 in economic activity. I’m very happy to see rail and transit funding but yes, we treat arts funding as some unnecessary frill and that must change 👇🏼

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Observing The City @observingthecity.ca · 02/09/2026

Brad Bradford says that 50% of roadway cannot be allocated to 1% of users. Good thing it isn't. Only about 1% of all of Toronto's road space is allocated to bike lanes. I showed my work, and used Danforth (the lanes he fought so hard to get added) as an example.

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Jenny Lee Shee @jennyleeshee.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Staples (🇺🇸) is now open for some ON teachers. How do prices stack up against the TDSB supply centre for classroom basics? TDSB: $290.38 Staples: $668.98 Staples Teachers: $584.56 But Paul Calandra took over the TDSB claiming financial mismanagement and Doug Ford wants you to #BuyCanadian. #OntEd

A chart comparing the prices for basic classroom items such as dry erase makers, tissues, and pencils for the TDSB distribution catalogue, the regular Staples website, and the Staples for Teachers website where elementary classroom teachers can spend $750 each from the $60M Doug Ford and Paul Calandra moved out of public education classrooms and programs that support students.

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ℳatt @matttomic.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

The last time the Americans tried to claim Lake Ontario in 1813, we intentionally lured them into Fort York and then blew up our entire gunpowder magazine to kill as many Americans as possible. A foundation part of Toronto history is "blowing our own fort to smithereens rather than being American"

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Andy @rallycap.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

An easy way to remember the Great Lakes (Canada) HOMES Huron Ontario Michigan Erie Superior An easy way to remember them is the US SHAME

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Jenny Lee Shee @jennyleeshee.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Good morning! Would love to see your favourite photos of #LakeOntario for no specific reason whatsoever.

A panoramic photo of sunrise over Lake Ontario near downtown Toronto. The pink and blue sky is reflected in the surface of the lake.

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

No cheating. Share the last photo of the sky from your camera roll (if you feel like it)

A cloudy Toronto skyline, featuring the CN Tower

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Jenny Lee Shee @jennyleeshee.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Thanks to Doug Ford and Paul Calandra, 80,000 elementary educators have to order classroom supplies from Staples this year instead of from their school boards. I decided to do a little comparison shopping for school supplies many of us will have to order over the course of a school year. 🧵 #OntEd

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

This thread is a nice li’l reminder of why history is important. Hope some Americans will stumble across it.

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Kate Armstrong @brainchain.ca · 22/08/2026

One thing I was hoping to find in Kingston was a poetry book by the late Kingstom resident Bronwen Wallace. I did find one. This poem show why I think she’s one of the greatest 20thc poets: ‘Lonely for the Country Sometimes these days you think you are ready to settle down. 1/n

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Passing time outside the Dome, waiting for the giveaway. Reading this little library find - a 1980s baseball murder mystery by former Star sports writer Alison Gordon. The main character? A feisty redhead reporter determined to solve a murder… cast @clareblackwood.bsky.social in an adaptation NOW!

A bearded dude outside the Skydome reading a mystery novel called ‘The Dead Pull Hitter’

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Dylan Reid @dylanreid.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

There's a more eloquent article by Jamie Sharpless making this very point in the new issue of @spacing.bsky.social

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Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

I posted about judging the Dodgers for visiting the White House and a bunch of people responded with, "Why do you care, they're just athletes, ignore it." This shit is why. We ignore the actions of the rich, famous, and influential at our own peril. I don't give a shit if they're just athletes.

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

@clareblackwood.bsky.social, as one of the foremost BlueSkyBlueJayFolks, I need your input after an experience at the Dome today… What is the appropriate response when, whilst the Jays play the ChiSox, you see someone strolling the concourse wearing a DODGERS jersey?!? I was buffaloed, I tell ya…

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Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

I'm not trying to bitch (their words) but the energy here I see being spent on defending centre-centre right politicians would, I posit, be better spent writing to those politicians to ask why they are gutting environmental regulations, defunding climate organizations, and rescinding emissions caps

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Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

Carney calling Lindsey Graham a defender of democracy and freedom when the man made jokes on his official X account about taking over Canada is just the last straw of many last straws for me.

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Lloyd Alter @lloydalter.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

This is the Ford ad that enrages me the most, why do we have encampments? Because he cut back social services and safe zones, and supportive housing. He made this bed.

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Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

I'm so jealous of New Yorkers. Every day I read the news, Doug Ford is announcing 500 million dollars for a conveyor belt to his new corruption spa that can only be accessed via Black Card and Zohran Mamdani is announcing free puppies to anyone who plants a tree in Central Park

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Joshua Hind @joshuahind.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

It seems clear that the Carney government will take the result of this Billy Bishop survey and say, “We’ve heard you and we think we have a plan that will satisfy all concerns.” …and it’ll just be Doug Ford’s plan with a new label but without any changes.

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Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

It's always wild to me that the people who make the biggest deal and the most noise about Pride month are homophobic assholes. All my queer friends just want to live their lives and maybe go to a nice parade or a party or two. It's actually super easy to ignore if you're not a loud jerk about it!

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Diana Chan McNally @dianachanmcnally.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

We have been inundated with multiple scandals from the Toronto Police Service, from Spain to Project South to the sexual assault of a minor. We must have a serious conversation about this extreme breach of trust. www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/arti...

ctvnews.ca

Toronto police officer charged with sexual assault of female youth

A Toronto police officer is facing half a dozen charges in connection with the alleged sexual assault of a girl last year.

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Kimiko Shibata @eslfairy.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Every angry, violent adult was once a scared, sad child. I’m doing my best to help the children in my care learn to deal with their big feelings in ways that don’t harm others. But educators can’t do this work alone. We need free, accessible mental health supports for children.

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Joshua Hind @joshuahind.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

If I'm reading this right, Olivia Chow and Brad Bradford are campaigning on the same things: cost of living, policing, and congestion. Chow's platform is, "I did a good job," while Bradford's position is, "No, you didn't." Inspiring stuff.

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Glendon Mellow @flyingtrilobite.com · 25/05/2026

Reminder, I don't just complain about generative AI, I've also spent the past few years building a space for artists here on Bluesky, free of gen AI slop: 🐡

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🇨🇦 Kari Raymer Bishop @kariraymerbishop.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

I just wrote a Leadnow letter: Demand MPs: Stand up to Big Oil and protect our future. Write one here: leadnow.ca/campaigns/cl...

leadnow.ca

Demand MPs: Stand up to Big Oil - Leadnow

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Diana Chan McNally @dianachanmcnally.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

I’m running for City Council in Parkdale—High Park. I’m running because our neighbours deserve a councillor who has walked alongside them, fought for them, and knows how to turn community demands into real wins at City Hall. Join me at www.dianachanmcnally.ca.

youtube.com

Diana Chan McNally for Parkdale—High Park

YouTube video by Diana Chan McNally

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Not sure I have ever laughed harder at a post, or at the replies to a post. Social media good after all.

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Reposted by Tom Veenstra

Clare Blackwood @clareblackwood.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Mark Carney is really going on social media and condemning Iran for its "unprovoked attacks on the region" with his whole chest, and I just think we should all mail him pictures of the bombed Iranian children's school until he gets the fucking picture.

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Terra Loire @terraloire.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

There’s a story going around about how Brad Bradford “could lead a tight two way race” against Olivia Chow. Which is the funniest take I could have seen today. A reminder, that he couldn’t even break 10k votes in the last election, and in his OWN ward he couldn’t get 5% of the vote. #TOpoli

Ward 19 Beaches East York 2023 Mayoral results showing Bradford getting 4.66% of the vote in that riding.

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RobbJMacKay @robbjmackay.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

This is an appalling position. And so @mark-carney.bsky.social and the Liberals show #CanadaSky that they are simply our least worst option for governance. @markgerretsen.bsky.social and the rest of the Lib MPs need to know that they’ve lost a lot of us today.

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

I join all Canadians of a certain age in saying ‘It’s about damn time we got a Littlest Hobo reboot! (And, @weratedogs.com, if you’re not familiar with Hobo, time to hit up YouTube… legit a 17/10)

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

I chuckle every time the Olympics Maple Leaf Foods ad comes on that has ‘Home For A Rest’ as the background music - nothing says elite competition like a song about getting blackout drunk on an extended trip across Britain…

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Need a good luck shoutout from @kenjennings.bsky.social for Jeopardy alum Cynthia Appiah as she hits the bobsled track today!

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

So in our family, based on some long ago adorable toddler confusion (from my now 20 year old) we wish each other… Happy Valentimes Day! Hope all of you enjoy the most Valen of times today!

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

@ryannorth.ca may be the ultimate champion of writing posts you can immediately open knowing the replies will be chock full of witty and fun responses.

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Seanan McGuire @seananmcguire.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

This is only related in a sideways manner, but: the story of any small slice of humanity is the story of humanity, just boiled down and distilled. So: In 2020, we had a lot of conversations about harassment at SF/F conventions, and Isaac Asimov came up several times.

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Michelle @michelle-colleen.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

Shaw bike lane at Dupont still impassable and ice-packed with plowed snowbanks. Sidewalks are also mostly snowed over in this neighborhood. Roads are clear. #bikeTO #TOpoli #walkTO

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RobbJMacKay @robbjmackay.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

The most important thing @mark-carney.bsky.social can do for #CanadaSky is election reform so that we never have to worry about a Conservative majority again. Otherwise, his achievements are temporary. #ElectionReform #FairVote @markgerretsen.bsky.social

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Christopher Webb @cwebbonline.com · 10/01/2026

A Black man was killed by ICE (off duty) in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve. And like Renée Good, he was an American citizen. But most people have not heard about Keith Porter. I need y’all to realize this. Black people experience this lack of visibility all the time when it comes to being victims.

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Tom Veenstra @tomveenstra.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Last book I finished? Apprentice Falconer in the court of Mary Queen of Scots. Book I’m part way thru? Murderbot. Either way a pretty interesting change of pace.

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Kimiko Shibata @eslfairy.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

On December 6th, 1989, 14 women were murdered at Polytechnique Montréal. The number of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women continues to grow. Doug Ford has yet to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario. If you need help in KW: wcswr.org

wcswr.org

Women's Crisis Services of Waterloo Region

Shelter, outreach and education to keep women, children and families safe today and prevent domestic violence from happening tomorrow.

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🇨🇦 Kari Raymer Bishop @kariraymerbishop.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

Always like to jump in with this perspective: The provincial standard for EQAO is 70%. Kids aren't failing like you think. In the past, 70 was considered average/median — half your students were likely scoring higher than 70 and the other half scored below 70. That didn't necessarily mean failure. 🤷‍♀️

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The Vampire LesMak @lesleynope.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

It took me a few days to feel ready to read this piece. But I finally felt ready and wow was it worth it. Made my heart ache in the best way. Highly recommend checking it out.

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