Good morning — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: With U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Ottawa, all eyes turned to the intense geopolitical ramifications that could arise from... what the Canadian government would serve the dignitaries to eat. Food critics were unenthused by the "Cancon" menu, with basically every item being an aggressive nod to local cuisine — save for a much-derided "white bean hummus." HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this newsletterright...| Narcity
Seriously... TGIF — Andrew from Narcity here, limping across the finish line. ☕ Off The Top: No, this isn't a sneaky marketing campaign for The Last of Us; a deadly fungus called Candida auris is literally spreading across the U.S. right now. While 28 states have reported cases, only six states boast triple-digit cases: Nevada, California, Florida, New York, Illinois and Texas. The contagious fungus causes infections, bringing fevers and chills. We might want to shepherd a fungus-immune t...| Narcity
Happy Hump Day — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A pair of travellers received a funny surprise when double-checking their itinerary in the lead-up to the start of their adventure: Instead of buying tickets to Budapest, Hungary, they had inadvertently booked flights to Bucharest, Romania — and it was too late to cancel. The two ultimately followed through despite the mix-up, taking in some of the sights and sounds of Transylvania — which pretty much sounds like the setup for ...| Narcity
Somehow, we did it yet again; TGIF (and happy St. Patrick's Day) — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: B.C.-born actor Seth Rogen recently regaled late-night host Jimmy Kimmel with a memorable story from early in his career: While working on a never-filmed script, Rogen attended the 2003 AVN Awards — basically the porn Oscars — where he noted that every time performers were noted by the presenters, they typically reacted in an extremely not-safe-for-work fashion. Anyway, sorry fo...| Narcity
Happy "Friday Jr." — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: Truckers, drifters and road-tripping families were treated to an odd sight at The Big Texan Steak Ranch off the highway in Amarillo, Texas, this weekend: Comedy legend Will Ferrell, decked out in full Sherlock Holmes regalia, plowing through a 72-ounce steak. The appearance is rumoured to be part of a documentary project, but the stunt does beg the question: If Ferrell ever had a complete psychological breakdown, how would anyo...| Narcity
Happy Hump Day — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A new Montreal summer music festival unveiled a blockbuster lineup featuring headliners like Harry Styles, SZA and Doja Cat. The one big complication? A spokesperson for the supposed festival site tells Narcity that there's no record of "Aurora Festival" actually existing. It's, uh, pretty much a scam. In unrelated news, early-bird tickets for the inaugural Potter Talks series — where I'll be moderating a who's-who discussion bet...| Narcity
Good morning — Andrew from Narcity here. Where else would I be? ☕ Off The Top: Last night's Juno Awards in Edmonton were a tad, uh, Complicated; while pop-punk darling Avril Lavigne was introducing a performer, a woman dressed in a pink bandana, pink pants, boots and... literally nothing else hopped on stage to reveal "Save the Greenbelt" and other pro-environmental slogans on her bare back. Fairly nonchalant about the whole episode, Avril simply told the stage-crasher to "get the f*** of...| Narcity
Welcome back — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Lots to unpack today so let's dive right into it. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this newsletterright here. It's better than this version. Trust me. In Case You Missed It What Were The Highlights From The 2023 Academy Awards? Well, the biggest night in showbiz has come and gone. After months of campaigning, genre-bending sci-fi kung-fu family drama Everything Everywhere All at Once pretty much swept the evening, taking home ...| Narcity
We did it; TGIF — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A Florida woman revealed how much she makes as a "topless maid" — $300 an hour. The job is exactly what it sounds like, so... nice work if you can get it, I guess! The even better gig, however? The topless tidier pays out 35% of her hourly wage to her security tagalong, who waits outside the location of the cleaning job to make sure there's no funny business. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this newsletterri...| Narcity
TGIF — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A group of university students in China have unveiled a, um, creative way to solve the loneliness plaguing long-distance couples: A silicon mouth that allows a user to remotely kiss their partner through their cell phone. Not creepy whatsoever! And definitely not something that will immediately be used for, well, not kissing lips, right? Right?! What's more, there's a function built into the accompanying app that allows users to be paired wi...| Narcity
Happy "Friday Jr." — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: I've previously joked about tipping landlords — which never fails to induce panicked emails from readers concerned for my mental well-being. Well, it turns out not everyone thinks that concept is without merit. A TikTok duo posted a viral skit in which they perplexingly suggest that it's ridiculous to tip restaurant servers but "not the guy who's on call 24/7 to make sure you have a safe home." To the extent that the clip is ...| Narcity
Happy "Hump Day" and first day of March — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: The RCMP recently took to Twitter to remind Canadians not to tie up emergency services with minor inconveniences — like the Manitoba woman who recently called to complain about the length of the drive-thru line at her town's new Burger King. In fairness, the whole town of Steinbach should probably be arrested for willingly going to a Burger King. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this n...| Narcity
We made it; TGIF — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A Teen Week contestant on Wheel of Fortune experienced what some have called the worst choke in the show's history. With "FRE_H TROPICAL FRUIT" on the board, the Grade 10 student asked host Pat Sajak if the missing letter was "G," triggering a loud audible groan from the in-studio audience. Look, some of you clearly never enjoyed a succulent piece of fregh fruit growing up and it shows. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email v...| Narcity
It's "Friday Jr." — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A huge Jurassic World experience is coming to Mississauga, Ontario, this April and the exhibition is billed as feeling like actually being in the famous dino blockbusters. This is exciting news — especially if you've literally never seen what happens in any of those movies about family entertainment gone awry. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this newsletterright here. It's better than this version. Trust m...| Narcity
Happy "Friday Jr." — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕ Off The Top: A picture of Anita Anand has splashed all over CNN earlier this week ahead of Canada's Minister of Defence appearing in a segment. The issue? The cable news broadcaster included a photo of the wrong Anita Anand, instead featuring a headshot of a British journalist — much to the chagrin of the oft-confused non-Canadian Anand. HEY YOU! You should sign up for the email version of this newsletterright here. It's better than this ...| Narcity
9 things you need to know for Wednesday, February 15.| Narcity
9 things you need to know for Tuesday, February 14.| Narcity