Our Learning Coach Newsletter - June, 2015


What Tenants Need to Know About the Law

   
The Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) is the law that sets the rules for rent increases, evictions, repairs, and many other issues that affect tenants. If you rent your apartment or house, the RTA probably affects you.

The RTA applies to most rental housing in Ontario, such as rooms, apartments, houses, mobile home parks, and retirement homes.

But some rental housing is not covered by the RTA. For example, you might not be covered if you live in a place that is supposed to be used for business, share a kitchen or bathroom with the owner or a close family member of the owner, or live in some types of temporary or seasonal housing.

Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) has put together a very useful pamphlet that deals with the major issues faced by tenants and landlords in Ontario. It explains in clear language your rights and responsibilities. The broad topics covered by this pamphlet are listed below. By clicking this link, you can download a copy to your computer for easy reading.

Before you move in 

  • Tenancy agreements
  • Setting the rent when you move in
  • Deposits and other charges
  • Discrimination

While you are living in your place 

  • Paying your rent 
  • Rent increases, decreases, and freezes
  • Rent decreases 
  • Interest on your rent deposit
  • Repairs and maintenance
  • Privacy and Harassment
  • Utilities and vital services

Moving out

 

Eviction

  • Reasons for eviction
  • Amount of notice your landlord has to give you
  • If you do not move out
  • What the hearing is about
  • If there is an eviction order against you

 

Your personal belongings

 

Where to get more information and help


How many calories do I REALLY need?

 

People often ask me: "how do I lose weight?"  


 

The answer to that question is both easy and HARD!  The easy answer is that if you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight and, conversely, if you eat fewer calories than you burn you will lose weight.  Easy, right?

Here is the hard part.  The only way to really know how many calories you eat is to track what you are eating and COUNT THE CALORIES.  Yuck.  It is a miserable job, I agree, but it works.  For you techies with smart phones, there IS an app for that - there are actually several apps for that.  But I'm old fashioned (OK, maybe just old) and I prefer pencil and paper.  You can find the calorie count of just about any food on Google.


 

The other consideration is your BMR (not BMI).  What?  This is your Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the amount of energy you need while you are at rest. In such a state, your energy will be used only to maintain your vital organs, which include the heart, lungs, kidneys, the nervous system, intestines, liver, lungs, sex organs, muscles, and skin.  In other words - it is the energy consumed while you are lying in bed or in a coma!


 
How do you calculate your BMR? Good news - there is an app for that.  Just Google "Basal Metabolic Rate (Not BMI) calculator".  It will ask for your age, gender, height and weight.  For example, my BMR is 1,357 calories.  So, I need to consume 1,357 just to stay alive.  If I consume less than 1,357 calories, my body will go into starvation mode and starts digesting fat and muscle - and it can only do that for so long.  The rest of my calorie consumption depends on my activity.  On a less active day, I aim for about 1,550 - 1,600. On days where I go for a run or a swim, I eat 1,800 - 2,000 calories.


 

By tracking calories (both in and burned) I have lost about 5 pounds in the past month.  Remember, I am a bit older and it gets harder and harder to lose weight as we age.  I hope this helps.  My door is open if you want to talk.

Father's Day - Sunday, June 21st
Nurse Judy's Journey to Joyful Fitness

Something that all "athletes" 
encounter is setbacks due to injury or illness (I do not consider myself an athlete, just someone who wants to stay active). 

During the past two years I have endured plantar fasciitis, a new diagnosis of asthma, out of control allergies and a few nasty viruses.  These events slowed me down and at times, my training activities ground to a halt.  It seemed that I would just get back on my feet and start exercising and something else would hit. 

     I have learned that you ALWAYS 
     have to listen to your body. 

I have also learned that you have to learn the difference between your BODY saying "No, please rest now", and your MIND saying "Ya, I really don't feel like doing this today, why don't you just take a break". 

Finally, I have learned that, once your body has sufficiently recovered, you must FIGHT BACK.  It takes a lot of effort but the rewards are tremendous - more energy, better mood, and a refreshed outlook on life. 





 

GET ACTIVE!  It's worth it.

We're here to help

As an ILC student, if you're struggling with your work, you are not alone.

Learning a new subject, or improving your knowledge in a familiar one, can be very difficult. And when you're trying to make sense of things all by yourself, it can be very frustrating.
That's why we have the Owl's Perch Learning Centre. It's a quiet place reserved for students in the Learning Coach Program.

We have a computer lab, library, and full time staff available to help with all kinds of stuff. English, Math or Hospitality and Tourism, we can help you make sense of your assignments.

Drop by Monday between 1:00-3:00 pm, Tuesday to Thursday 9:30-12:00, or 1:00-3:30, and Friday from 9:30 until 11:30 am.

Remember to keep in touch with us each week.

The Learning Coach - (613) 799-2668 (voice or text)

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