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The Room Full of Tricks and Turns

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This was the biggest craze when it first came out in Toronto but now the fad has died down. Everyone feels like when you’ve done one you’ve done them all. I’m talking about the escape rooms. These rooms are lots of fun with friends and family. It really tests you about how everyone has gone through the fad and feel like it isn’t worth the time. Well these are some Escape rooms you should check out if you haven’t.

The First Escape Room

Sometimes a bad escape experience with poor puzzles and decor really make escape rooms off putting. To everyone who has had a very bad escape room experience you should check out “Real Escape Game”. Located in downtown Toronto, it is a very popular Escape Room spot. They were actually one of the first few escape rooms to start out in Toronto and the crowd they still draw can tell you how well their rooms are made. Their room called “The Trial of the Mad Fox Society” is boasting how difficult that room is. Out of everyone who has attempted to escape this only 15% of participants were able to escape. If you want a fun night out and prove your wit give this escape room a look. They are located on Spadina and Dundas or Stafford and Adelaide.

Questionable Mysteries

If that is too far out of the way, and you can’t justify going downtown to try an escape room then go for the “Mystery Room”. This is also a popular chain of escape rooms and there are more locations for you to choose from. There are some in downtown Toronto, the Downsview area and Richmond Hill area. Test your ability to get out of the room before time runs out. There are lots of rooms to try out with a range of difficulties so if you want to have a more relaxed adventure or you really want to tackle a challenging room.

Escaping Feels too Real

If you’Antique-Room-Old-Creepy-Eerie-Gift-Baskets-in-Toronto-Dim-Puzzle-Escapere really looking to be immersed in an escape room “Captive Escape Rooms” is taking the cake. With rooms filled with incredible detail that will make you forget you are playing a game. Their rooms like to create an atmosphere of terror, fear, and uneasiness. One of their popular rooms is Charlotte, a room focused on you trying to discover what happened to Charlotte and her little sister. The owners are very enthusiastic and are always excited to see new faces in their rooms. The rooms present enough puzzles and challenges to test you but not enough to detract you from the immersion of the room. Try to find your way out into one of their four rooms they currently offer in either Toronto, Mississauga, Vaughan or even Niagara Falls if you are in the area.

Never know what’s Next

These are one of the many top contenders of escape rooms all about Toronto. These rooms are great for team building and just taking you into a more fantasy world. Get in to one of these rooms and try to get out before you run out of time. Using only skill and logic you’ll feel like the next MacGyver.

Mobile Games that will Entertain Everyone

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It is always a nightmare when you’re on a long road trip or just commuting and time feels like it’s standing still. Well, here are some popular mobile games that you’ll want to have with you. You’ll wonder where all the time went with any one of these games.

A Simple Mobile Game

I know with new technology everyone wants all their games to look immaculate and stunning every time. Well this one may not look super fancy but it definitely is very fun and a great way to pass the time. Take a look at “Don’t Screw Up!”, this game may be simple but it definitely makes you want to continually play. You follow the game instructions until you well, screw up. It’s a fast paced game so you’ll need to have some quick reflexes. A bonus for this addicting little mobile game is that you do not need to be connect to WiFi or your data to play. It is a free game and is available for iOS and Android devices.

A Game Full of Puzzles

If you prefer games that test your mental ability rather than your reflexes have a look at this puzzle game. “Block! Hexa” is a puzzle game that gives you assorted shapes that you will need to fit together into one, all you need to do is figure out how. It’s a fun and addicting mobile game, it looks easy but there are times where you will be fooled. The game adds extra pieces so you will need to use your brain and figure out which piece doesn’t belong. It has bright and vibrant colours and does not need to be connected to WiFi or your data to run. It is free to download on both iOS and Android devices.

Kittens of Mass Destruction!

This game rose in popularity first as a board game. Now, the ingenious creators Elan Lee, Matthew Inman and Shane Small who brought you “Exploding Kittens”Phone-Apple-Gift-Baskets-in-Toronto-Mobile-Games-Fun-Entertaining-Portable have moved their brilliant game to your mobile devices. This game broke records when it was first pitched on Kickstarter and now has lots of players on their edge of their seat. The game is simple pick up cards but not the exploding kitten. Each card will either do nothing or can be an action to avoid the exploding kitten. What’s great is that you can play locally with your friends or with complete strangers. You will however need to use your blue tooth and have a WiFi connection to play this game. This is so you can join to a game room or the one you created. On the plus side though you will have a portable board game with you all the time. It is currently $1.99 USD for both iOS and Android. It is much cheaper than buying the actual board game so it is a great deal.

Enjoy your Commutes

With these fun games ready at hand any road trip will be exciting with exploding cats roaming about or honing your reflexes. There are still lots of games for you to look for and add to your collection of great mobile games. Go on and explore those games and make sure time has nothing on you.

Generally Knowledgeable on Everything General

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I’m sure everyone has at least played some kind of board game in their life. Ever play the games that ask lots of odd questions that they expect you to know? Those general knowledge questions stump everyone. Well here are some interesting general knowledge questions you can add to your bucket of knowledge. The next board game night you’ll come out on top.

Familiar General Information

I’m sure you’ve heard that Tuesday is considered the most productive day of the week or that Bill Gate’s house was designed using a Macintosh computer. Well here are some more simple general knowledge facts that should refresh your brain. Did you know that the human stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks to preventing it from digesting itself? The body works in mysterious ways. Or you’ve experimented with the fact that only hard boiled eggs will spin but a soft boiled or uncooked egg won’t. Or that chocolate will kill a dog.

Quirky Facts

Hopefully those few general pieces of information got your gears turning and ready to absorb some new facts that people do not know. If you ever plan to visit Lake Nicaragua you need to be careful because even though that body of water is filled with only fresh water. It is the only lake in the world have sharks living in the fresh water body. Or that elephants are one of the few animals that can’t jump like sloths and hippos. If you’re an avid jogger or a fitness nut you should be aware that your right lung takes in more air than the left. So you may feel half winded during your workouts, pun intended.

Time to be the Guru of Generality

Scorpion-Glowing-Interesting-Facts-General-Knowledge-Gift-Baskets-in-Toronto-Quirky

A glowing scorpion under a black light.

Now it’s time to get into those “oh really” facts that will make you come out on top in your board game nights. For example, a mushroom in Oregon is known as the great mushroom for the fact that it is 2,400 years old (just an approximate it could be older). It dwells in the Malheur National Forest and you can find it by looking for the clusters of dead trees. The mushroom however grows underground so you may see small honey mushrooms growing up on the surface the the giant mushroom lives below ground. If that wasn’t interesting enough then you may want to move to Thailand because you can start a career as a professional kite flyer. In Thailand flying a kite is considered a professional sport. They have rules and regulations that they must follow, it is not about who can fly their kite the highest. Finally, the topper of general knowledge facts, that involves a black light and a scorpions. If you ever are walking in the dead of night and are in scorpion territory bring a small black light flashlight with you. If you shine it on the ground you will be able to see hidden scorpions. Their exoskeleton glows when the black light hits them so you can avoid them and get home safely.

Time to Expand your General Knowledge

With all these small random patches of quirky and interesting facts you are prepared for the next game night! Show off all the knowledge you have and lead your team or yourself to victory! And if you have the time now why not continue your exploration in general knowledge facts, I promise they are never boring and will spark more research.

A Beginners Guide to Gym Equipment

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Is it your first time going to a gym or you just want to know what some of the machines do so you don’t look too lost at a gym? Well here’s a guide to what some of the basic machines are and what they do. You’ll be a gym superstar in no time!

Don’t Be Intimidated by the Gym

It is overwhelming going to the gym for the first time and only knowing what the treadmill and the elliptical bikes do. Well don’t fret most of the machines in the gym include pictures to show you what you are working out and your starting pose and finishing pose on each machine. Rule of thumb is that you should never be locking any of your joints using the machines. Always keep soft knees and elbows otherwise you may hurt yourself. When you’re at the gym don’t be intimidated and just take everything slow, make sure the machines are set to an appropriate weight limit for yourself so you don’t hurt yourself. Rule of thumb always start light and then move up.

Equipment for the Lower Body

Besides the treadmill and the elliptical you may not notice the Leg Press machine. This machine will mostLeg-Press-Machine-Gym-Workout-Fit-Healthy-Gift-Baskets-in-Toronto-Training likely be in your gym. It is a seat that slides back when you press your feet against the board in front of the seat. To use this machine properly you’ll need to sit in the chair with your butt and back flat against the back of the seat. Adjust the seat so that when you lift your feet to the board your legs are at a 90 degree angle. Control your pushes, push with your heels and don’t just drop your legs. With 6 to 8 reps and repeating it 3 times it will definitely help you feel the burn.

Equipment for the Upper Body

There are lots of machines in the gym to help you work out your upper body. One great machine is the Lat Pulldown Machine. Depending on the way you hold the bar will vary what muscles you work out. If you place your hands further away from the middle of the bar you will work mainly your lats. If you grip your hands closer together you’ll work your triceps. When you pull down on the bar make sure to keep your elbows pointed down for this pull. Finally if you grip close but reverse your grip on the bar you will work the biceps, again keep the elbows pointed down for this one. Keeping a good form here is very important, make sure to adjust the weight on the machine. Sit with a straight back and chest slightly up and pull the bar towards your chest. Don’t slouch otherwise you won’t feel it working your body.

The Gym is Simple and Great

These are two machines you can get yourself started in the gym. If you want to try other machines just remember there are images on how to use the machine on every piece of equipment so feel free to try but just be careful. Also, proper gym ettiquette is that you clean up after yourself. No one wants to use a machine covered in someone elses’ sweat so use your towel to clean up the machine if it needs a good wipe.

What Ingredient are You Eating?

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Beaver-Castoreum-Castor-Oil-Castor-Sacs-Gift-Baskets-in-Toronto-Ingredient-Gross-Ice-Cream

I find that we always think very little of the ingredients and groceries we use and what goes in to them, honestly I just grab and go and that’s as focused as I get about my food But, have you ever looked at the ingredients in some of our foods? There are always those weird ingredient names that we have no idea what they are. The only thing I remember learning was that ingredients that you struggle to read are generally not the best ingredients to be consuming. But, here are some ingredients to look out for in your food.

An Additive that We Grow

I was a little shocked to find out that a lot of our foods, but usually processed foods contain this amino-acid called L-Cysteine. Now when we hear amino-acid there generally isn’t a red flag but when this amino acid comes from human hair well…that kinda starts raising lots of questions. L-Cysteine can be found in chicken and duck feathers but a majority of it comes from us, or well the hair from our barber shops. This amino-acid is and ingredient used to prolong shelf life of products in our grocery store and they are generally found in bread so if you don’t want to eat bread with hair it’s best to buy your bread from a local baker where they make the bread fresh. It is also a safe assumption to assume our fast food products will contain this unplesant ingredient.

An Ice Cream Flavour You Don’t Want

No matter what time of day we will always scream for ice cream, we’ll probably look at ice cream differently when you find out what interesting ingredient is lurking in that delicious tub of ice cream. The ingredient is called castoreum and it is found in male and female beavers, it is their castor sacs. This sac generally adds scents to urine and anal secretions, yes, you read that right. Any artificial flavour of vanilla, raspberry or strawberry you may find castoreum. However, if I never told you this you’d be none the wiser and there are wildlife ecologist that say that the beaver’s behind smells good and not what we would imagine it to be. We’ve been using castoreum as flavouring since the 1850s but as we progress in this world so does our food and nowadays very little of our artificial flavours contain castoreum.

Not Going to Pop About this Ingredient

If you’re an avid soda drinker I am here to help cut down on your sugar intake. Some of our favourite pops or flavoured drinks will have the ingredient, Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO). Now sure it sounds like it’s a normal healthy ingredient but it’s not. BVO is actually a toxic flame retardant and it’s used in our favourite drinks because it prevents artificial flavours from seperating from each other. Might want to start drinking less flavoured drinks and move to water.

Ingredients You Can’t Avoid Eating

It’s good to know that the ingredients listed above we can avoid but the scariest ingredient are the ones we don’t see and aren’t informed about. Our fresh produce, you’d think that’s a safe bet but unfortunately not. Sometimes our produce is covered in Phthalates. Our veggies and fruits could come into contact with either sewage sludge or pesticides from touching containers or just being exposed to the dust or air of Phthalates but we are none the wiser. Our grocery stores are not required to list possible contaminats in the produce aisle. Phthalates can cause lots of problems including eczema, asthma, allergies and more. Just some food for thought, may be it’s time to look into what you’re really eating.

Do you Like Jujubes or Jujyfruits?

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AccordinJujubes-Jujyfruits-Toronto-Gift-Baskets-Candy-Sweets-Chewy-Candyg to the Food Network show Unwrapped, the difference between Jujubes and Jujyfruits is really only that Jujubes use Potato Starch instead of Corn Starch as their primary thickener. Add to that, Jujubes are “cured” longer, so they’re firmer.

When I was a kid, Jujubes were always hard as rocks and only a fool would try to chew them. (We were all fools back then. Of course, the cool part about Jujubes was that the only way to soften them up enough to chomp down was to glue your teeth together … what fun!)

Here’s a fun fact the Jujyfruits and Jujubes are named after a little tropical berry that really has nothing to do with the candy, it was probably just a romantic sounding name and in the early part of the last century many candies tried to adopt exotic names. Both candies actually used something called Ju-Ju Gum at one time as an ingredient (it’s similar to many of the other vegetable gums like Gum Arabic, Acacia, Agar or Guar).

Today Jujubes are a little softer, kind of like stale Jujyfruits. They also have a bit more range in their flavours which are: Lemon (yellow), Violet (purple), Lilac (orange), Lime (green) and Cherry (red). So they’re basically little floral pastilles that are slightly soft. (Think of them like the Grether or Doolittle pastilles.) I haven’t had them in years and was actually rather pleased with them.

I don’t think I really need a box of 6.5 ounces, a little tin filled with an ounce or two might do me for a week. All of the flavours, even the fruity ones, are rather delicate and floral. I wish they did still make the spearmint ones (but it’s okay if there’s no rose in there, I think two flowers is enough). All flavours are tasty!

 

Geometry Rules!

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The study geometry-1751324_960_720of sacred geometry has its roots in the study of nature, and the mathematical principles at work therein. Many forms observed in nature can be related to geometry; for example, the chambered nautilus grows at a constant rate and so its shell forms a logarithmic spiral to accommodate that growth without changing shape. Also, honeybees construct hexagonal cells to hold their honey. These and other correspondences are sometimes interpreted in terms of sacred geometry and considered to be further proof of the natural significance of geometric forms.

Further information: Mathematics and architecture and Mathematics and art. Geometric ratios, and geometric figures were often employed in the architectural designs of ancient Egyptian, ancient Indian, Greek and Roman. Medieval European cathedrals also incorporated symbolic geometry. Indian and Himalayan spiritual communities often constructed temples and fortifications on design plans of a mandala.

Many of the sacred geometry principles of the human body and of ancient architecture were compiled into the Vitruvian Man drawing by Leonardo da Vinci. The latter drawing was itself based on the much older writings of the Roman architect Vitruvius.

The Agamas are a collection of Sanskrit, Tamil and Grantha scriptures chiefly constituting the methods of temple construction and creation of idols, worship means of deities, philosophical doctrines, meditative practices, attainment of sixfold desires and four kinds of yoga. Elaborate rules are laid out in the Agamas for Shilpa (the art of sculpture) describing the quality requirements of such matters as the places where temples are to be built, the kinds of image to be installed, the materials from which they are to be made, their dimensions, proportions, air circulation, and lighting in the temple complex. The Manasara and Silpasara are works that deal with these rules. The rituals of daily worship at the temple also follow rules laid out in the Agamas.

4 Horror/Thriller Movie Recommendations

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Looking for a night in with some friends and you all are just craving for a scary film but can’t seem to find any that are worth the watch. Well here is a list of four movies that are worth checking out for your movie night marathon.

Hush (2016)

Alright, so if you haven’t heard of this move then definitely check it out. It is a great horror-thriller mix about a masked man who is terrorizing a deaf writer in her very large and isolated home, yes, I know it doesn’t sound like any unique horror film set up but I promise if you can suspend some of your disbelief while watching this film I promise you will be throughly satisfied and rooting for the deaf writer by the end. This is film falls into the genre of the Final Girl horror movies where the female must confront the killer.

Lights Out (2016)

If you’re looking for a more recent film that is much more intense than a thriller have a look at Lights Out. It’s got your jump scares, tension, and uneasiness all in one. The film focuses on a girl named Rebecca who is trying to help her little brother’s discover the causes of his terrifying experiences and discovers that it is an entity attached to their mother. It will keep you on the edge of your seat that you may need to sleep with the lights on. This horror flick falls into the supernatural horror genre.

Orphan (2009)

It’s a little older than the last two films but it doesn’t detract from how well the film was made and executed. It’ll keep the hairs on the back of your neck raised and you’ll really believe in the sentence “children are scary”. This film follows the story of a husband and wife preparing to adopt a 9 year old orphan after they lost their baby. This film will keep you on your toes and after it I’m sure you will be a little more cautious around children.

1408 (2007)

Be prepared for John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson in 1408. It is based off of one of Stephen King’s short stories and just like the writer this film doesn’t disappoint. This film mixes in surprise, horror and psychological twists that will definitely be making you yell at your TV screen as you watch. You follow a writer who writes books debunking supernatural phenomena and wants to debunk the evil room 1408 at the Dolphin Hotel. Be prepared to jump and hide because this movie will make you uneasy.