Author: Richelle Sibolboro

Interview with Christine Elson – elsonstudio: Conflated Views, DesignTO

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Interview with architect Christine Elson about her latest online exhibition Conflated Views for DesignTO

Winnie-the-Pooh: Exploring a Class exhibition at the ROM during COVID

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Before the lockdown, the first one, I was able to see the exhibition Winnie-the-Pooh: Exploring a Classic at the ROM created by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.  If you grew up on Disney, as I did, my favourite character was Winnie-the-Pooh. I had almost everything you could have as it relates to the cute little bear. So, when I heard there was an entire exhibition dedicated to this wonderful character, I couldn’t resist seeing it, despite us being in a pandemic  Because my background is in design, I look at things much differently than your average visitor. I look at the overall design of the exhibition than the content. I know, it’s the content that the curators’ take pride in developing the overall story. But to me, it’s how the content is displayed that really brings those little pieces of content to life. The pros of visiting a world-class museum during a pandemic are that there isn’t really anyone around. I mean, crickets. So you get to experience the museum with a different …

How I bought a house for $50K during COVID

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I’ve started to slowly change my mindset about money. One of the books that made me question money and what it possible in my journey to wealth and abundance is Rich Dad, Poor Dad. One of the most important chapters for me was Lesson 5: The Rich Invent Money. The chapter begins with a quote: Often in the real world, it’s not the smart who get ahead, but the bold. This really stuck out for me because, within the chapter, Robert tells a story about buying a condo for $50,000 cash. He was going to rent it out and within 3 years make his money back and then sell it for a profit. People were telling him that you can’t do that anymore with today’s real estate market. He questioned them saying, you can, you just haven’t figured it out yet. This got me thinking. Can you buy a house for $50K in Ontario? If a house existed in Ontario that was $50K would I have the guts to actually buy it? Robert goes on …

Traveling to the Extreme

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I’ve found my Schitt’s Creek aka Manitouwadge! Last month, I traveled to the extreme North, or 12 hours from where I live, to the other side of Lake Superior. I wanted to know if it was true. Could I buy a house in this town for less than $50K? When I arrived, I learned way more than what you could find on Google. Manitouwadi is an Ojibway word meaning “Cave of Great Spirit”. Legend has it that Manitou, the mighty spiritual father, made camp in the area one night. The following morning he was so filled with a sense of well-being that he created the lakes, hills, iron, lead, and zinc deposits and forests. When finished, he was extremely pleased with his work and so, to commemorate his stay, he names the place Manitouwadge, literally meaning “Lodge of the Great Spirit.” A second legend dating back tot he 1800s suggest that it was a young brave who discovered the hidden lakes. Upon entering the eastern end of the lake, he shouted and was startled to …

Discovering Ontario – Travel tips for going up North

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As a Hamiltonian Native who has explored South Western Ontario pretty extensively, I’ve never traveled North of Lake Superior. What sprung this travel to the North, real estate. It is no longer affordable here and when I Googled “Homes for under 50K” an article by Narcity popped up and listed this little town called Manitouwadge with some cute affordable homes. Manitouwadge is about 4 hours north of The Soo (Sault Saint Marie). It a mining town like many towns up north are. It is currently undergoing a housing boom and some urban revitalization. I saw this as a great opportunity, adventure, and way to experience something new. I’ve never done a long drive in Ontario, so I took some time off, invited some family members to join me and we headed north to look at properties. Now, it was risky traveling during November as snow is inevitable, but I was lucky that we had an uncharacteristic mini-heatwave. I also thought that I could just Google my questions about traveling this route and get clear answers. …