Rich, spicy hot chocolate a decadent treat

Imagine your daughter says her first word later than her friends do. You wait, hoping she will catch up. By age three, she still is not putting words together the way other kids her age are. Your doctor refers you to a speech-language pathologist. You expect a call within a few weeks.

Instead, you wait. Six months. A year. Two years.

By the time your daughter is finally seen, she is heading into kindergarten. She still struggles to tell her teacher she needs the bathroom. She still cannot explain when something hurts. She still cannot join in the games her classmates play, because those games need more words than she has.

As a parent, your anxiety grows, the frustration leading to sleepless nights worrying about how your child’s life will be impacted by this lack of support. The rest of your family and circle of friends is deeply affected by this potential crisis, they can see you struggling, you feel the stain of stigma attaching itself to your precious daughter. Where can you turn to help your child?

EVEN before the COVID-19 pandemic, another threat to business continuity was looming — the “silver tsunami.” Canada’s 1.2 million small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) community has been bracing for the departure of nearly three-quarters of its owners, who plan to retire within the next decade.

Often, the intent is for owners to transfer the company to relatives or sell to a third-party purchaser. The reality is that either way, many entrepreneurs have yet to draft a formal succession plan or are unable to execute it due to various factors, heightened by the COVID-19 reality.

There’s a lesser-known, but proven, third option that rarely gets the attention it deserves.

SMEs could also consider selling the business to employees or community stakeholders who have formed co-operatives. Such transitions, known as Business Conversions to Co-operatives (BCC), are a tried-and-true solution for rescuing businesses or for succession planning in numerous jurisdictions around the world.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: I work in a high rise downtown and every day I come to work at the same time. I often ride the elevator up with this new guy working a few floors under me. I always feel a little disappointed when he has to get off, and I continue up into the sky.

I’ve worked my way up to speaking pleasantries about the weather, and he responds with cute remarks about the clouds. The good news? He’s not wearing a ring. I also found out his first name from hearing other people say hello to him. Now what?

— Feeling Frustrated! Downtown

Dear Frustrated: Next time you’re on the elevator ride together, say “Hi! My name is such-and-such and I work at such-and-such. Where do you work up here in the clouds?” That should make him smile and break the ice. Then you could consider asking if he might like to join you for a coffee on a work break, if you can co-ordinate it.

Old-fashioned news

I scrolled through the comment section of the online news story, my eyes darting through differing opinions until I landed on one that caught my attention. I felt my shoulders tense and my breath quicken as I read the fiery thoughts of a stranger.

Surely, there must be a better way to read the news?

I thought back to the ’90s. Every morning, my mother would open the front door to retrieve the Winnipeg Free Press. I would jump at the Arts section until I found the comics and giggle while I ate my cereal. My parents absorbed the news while getting ready for their day, and eventually the newspaper found its way to the top of the paper pile in the garage. The next morning, the cycle would repeat itself.