Column

A homeless person sleeps under a tarp, metres away from Courtenay’s Connect Centre. (Olivier Laurin/Black Press)

WOLF: No one should sleep outside in bone-chilling temperatures

COLUMN: Better solutions needed for unhoused residents

 

Freshly popped popcorn is a familiar and popular smell. (File photo)

WOLF: Popcorn, puppies, herb gardens and the ice cream truck

COLUMN: Readers share own favourite smells, sounds

 

Freshly mown lawn is a favourite smell for many. (Black Press file photo)

WOLF: What do bacon, baseball gloves and hockey card gum have in common?

COLUMN: A list of some of the world’s best smells

 

The crackle of a campfire is a familiar, pleasing sound. (File photo)

WOLF: What are some of the best sounds in the world?

COLUMN: Crunch of skates on ice, crackle of a campfire make the list

The crackle of a campfire is a familiar, pleasing sound. (File photo)
Floating in the pool and listening to music go hand in hand (or foot). (Philip Wolf photo)

WOLF: No floating in the pool or long drives during summer of 2023

COLUMN: Music has a unique way of transporting us through time

Floating in the pool and listening to music go hand in hand (or foot). (Philip Wolf photo)
A quarter that sat for months in the washroom, unclaimed, provides a glimmer of hope that most people are still good. (Jessica Peters/Abbotsford News)

COLUMN: Unclaimed bathroom quarter puts glimmer of hope back in humanity

Everyone came to the same conclusion: ‘It doesn’t belong to me.’

A quarter that sat for months in the washroom, unclaimed, provides a glimmer of hope that most people are still good. (Jessica Peters/Abbotsford News)
As the cost of food continues to rise, grocery chains in Canada are reportedly making record profits. It’s time for the CEOs of these companies to explain themselves, says the federal New Democratic Party. (Unsplash photo)

OFF TOPIC: Bread or cake, the rising cost of food is giving me indigestion

How do grocery chain CEOs square skyrocketing prices with massive profits?

As the cost of food continues to rise, grocery chains in Canada are reportedly making record profits. It’s time for the CEOs of these companies to explain themselves, says the federal New Democratic Party. (Unsplash photo)
Jessica Peters is a reporter at the Abbotsford News.
Jessica Peters is a reporter at the Abbotsford News.
Jessica Peters is a reporter with the Abbotsford News, and an invasive cervical cancer survivor.

OPINION: Cervical cancer awareness didn’t seem important to me, until it was

January is cervical awareness month and a time to understand how devastating the disease really is

Jessica Peters is a reporter with the Abbotsford News, and an invasive cervical cancer survivor.
Jessica Peters is a reporter at the Abbotsford News and a big fan of Father Christmas.

COLUMN: The magic of Christmas isn’t so unbelievable, is it?

A deep adoration of Santa Claus and everything he represents has led to a life of loving Christmas

Jessica Peters is a reporter at the Abbotsford News and a big fan of Father Christmas.
Adam Olsen is the MLA for Saanich North and the Islands. (Black Press Media file photo)

MLA REPORT: Premier Eby needs to get control of chaotic government

Government decision to shorten legislative session erodes democratic debate

  • Nov 30, 2022
Adam Olsen is the MLA for Saanich North and the Islands. (Black Press Media file photo)
Firefighters hose down the PQB News offices on Wednesday, Nov. 9. (Michael Briones photo)

WOLF: Massive Parksville blaze sees ‘The News’ become the news

COLUMN: Despite best efforts of firefighters, 6 businesses razed

Firefighters hose down the PQB News offices on Wednesday, Nov. 9. (Michael Briones photo)
File photo

Barron: Remembering when gun-toting elementary schoolkids said ‘enough’ to the rats

A half-century ago, school pest-control methods were a little bit different

File photo
When taking a road trip to border towns like Osoyoos, don’t travel without your passports or turn off your car’s GPS. (Black Press Media photo)

BUSH: Road trip wrong-turn triggers bungle at the Osoyoos border

Don’t shut off your GPS if you haven’t driven through Osoyoos in 30 years, warns columnist

When taking a road trip to border towns like Osoyoos, don’t travel without your passports or turn off your car’s GPS. (Black Press Media photo)
Nora O’Malley in front of Windsor Castle on Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022. (Tristan McConnell photo)

COLUMN: Much ado about the Queen

Tofino-Ucluelet reporter writes about a chance visit to London days after Her Majesty’s death

Nora O’Malley in front of Windsor Castle on Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022. (Tristan McConnell photo)
Ryan Reynolds sent reporter Jessica Peters a celebratory message on Twitter when she announced the end of her cancer journey.

VIDEO: Message from Ryan Reynolds helps Black Press reporter celebrate end of cancer journey

Reporter Jessica Peters writes how one tweet helped share happiness around the world

Ryan Reynolds sent reporter Jessica Peters a celebratory message on Twitter when she announced the end of her cancer journey.
A health care worker is seen outside the Emergency dept. of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver on March 30, 2020. he B.C. government says temporary pandemic pay that was promised to essential workers in mid-May should be coming in October. The stipend was promised to hundreds of thousands of essential workers for work done between March and July and some workers say they’re frustrated it still hasn’t arrived. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

PETERS: Nurses give far more than just medical care

On National Nurses Week, it’s time to think back to the nurses who have cared for us

A health care worker is seen outside the Emergency dept. of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver on March 30, 2020. he B.C. government says temporary pandemic pay that was promised to essential workers in mid-May should be coming in October. The stipend was promised to hundreds of thousands of essential workers for work done between March and July and some workers say they’re frustrated it still hasn’t arrived. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Robert’s column

Robert Barron column: Fond memories of ‘Paddy’s Day’

By mid afternoon, the party started really taking off

Robert’s column
(Pixabay photo)

With eggnog only: Terrible Christmas movies you’ll want to avoid this season

North Island Gazette editor Tyson Whitney watched these ‘classics’ so you don’t have to

(Pixabay photo)
Murray Rankin is the MLA for Oak Bay - Gordon Head. (Courtesy of Murray Rankin’s office)

MLA REPORT: Stepping up on climate protection

Murray Rankin MLA for Oak Bay-Gordon Head This summer, we saw the…

  • Nov 6, 2021
Murray Rankin is the MLA for Oak Bay - Gordon Head. (Courtesy of Murray Rankin’s office)