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The AIH Transcript for January 22, 2025

For more episodes of this podcast, please click this link.

NIL KÖKSAL: Hello, I'm Nil Köksal.

CHRIS HOWDEN: Good evening, I'm Chris Howden. This is As It Happens.

[Music: Theme]

CH: Tonight:

NK: Destination unknown. Thousands of refugees, many of them Afghans who risked their lives working alongside the Americans during the war were cleared to move to the U.S. but they are stranded now because of one decision by President Trump.

CH: Appetite for disruption. Kingston becomes the third city in Ontario to declare food insecurity an emergency. The city councilor says it's time for Canada to take aggressive action to prevent a bad situation from getting worse.

NK: Failure to deliver. Amazon says it is closing its facilities in Quebec and that the decision has nothing to do with those employees having unionized. A union leader there suspects otherwise.

CH: Her art is in the right place. A California artist offers to paint free watercolor portraits of homes lost in the L.A. fires and says helping other people is helping her.

NK: A tailless fish tale. Fisherman in New Zealand caught a huge bluefin tuna that was smaller by the time they got it in their boat, thanks to the shark that had its eye on it and then its teeth in it.

CH: And number one for all and all for number one. Researchers in Japan discover a phenomenon among chimps that I believe and hope is limited to chimps: contagious urination. As It Happens, the Wednesday edition. Radio that knows certain things just go together.

[Music: Theme]

Part 1: Afghan Resettlements Cancelled, Amazon Quebec Layoffs, N.Z. Tuna Fishers, Chimp Urination

Afghan Resettlements Cancelled

Guest: Shawn VanDiver

CH: Since Monday, Shawn VanDiver's phone has been blowing up. Panic set in after the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, after which he signed a slew of executive orders, including one that suspends the U.S. Refugee Admissions program that puts the futures of thousands of Afghan refugees in limbo. Hundreds had already been cleared to resettle in the U.S. Many of them worked alongside American agencies during the war. Shawn VanDiver is the founder of AfghanEvac, a coalition helping to resettle Afghan refugees. He's also a U.S. Navy veteran who served off the coast of Iraq. We reached him in San Diego, California.

NK: Shawn, those phone calls, those texts you've been getting over the last little bit, the last 48 hours, what have they been like? What are people telling you?

SHAWN VANDIVER: Well, listen, they're very reminiscent of August of 2021 when the withdrawal was happening. Right. I got into this work because my buddy Lucky texted me from a mountain eight hours outside of Kabul and he said, Brother, I'm stuck on this mountain [inaudible] We're surrounded by the Taliban. We're running out of ammunition. I think I'm going to die. Will you grant my last wish and help get my family back to San Diego? And I, like thousands of others, answered the call, and we did what we could. Since then, we've built this whole big ecosystem and built the infrastructure so that the government could do this, could relocate people, including these refugees. And now refugees are freaking out.

NK: And so what do you tell them in the midst of their panic and that chaos? What are you saying to them in response via text or when you're talking to them?

SVD: One, we're leading with empathy and saying, hey, we understand how scary this is. Two, we're trying to find out what it means. Here's what it seems like it means, but we're going to get clarification. And three, President Trump values negotiation. So we're going to try to make sure that we can move the ball forward with him. But, you know, last night they stopped all refugee movement and all refugee processing. So that's not a great start.

NK: Folks were scheduled to be on flights over the next three months, as we understand it. What do you know at this point about what is going to happen to those flights? I mean, were people supposed to be flying even today?

SVD: Yeah, I mean, look, people are you know, refugees fly every, every day all over the world. And unfortunately, those flights are going to move now. People are going to lose their tickets. They're going to lose their seats. You know, we haven't gotten the reports yet, but we will start getting them very soon. And resettlement agencies have started to get the reports that people aren't coming. And it's just absolutely heartbreaking. I want you to think about what it would be like. This Friday, I got to be with a family as they were reunified in Newark Airport. This gentleman had not seen his little boy who is three years old for three and a half years. He was zero years old when they separated. And the way he clung to that baby is exactly the way that I would have clung to my baby. I have a four year old, right. I can't imagine not being here for her.

NK: And how many people are we talking about here, Shawn?

SVD: So 16 hundred was how many we thought would travel in about four months’ time, just normal operations. There's about 40 to 50 thousand in the pipeline writ large. People who, for one reason or another are associated with the United States government and at risk because of their association. We're talking family of U.S. service members, judges and prosecutors that put away the Taliban, partner forces, including women pilots from the Afghan military, all of whom trained alongside us, fought alongside us, bled alongside us. It's unconscionable. And we hope that was a mistake.

NK: Your organization was warning Trump's transition team about what this order would mean for the work you do and the people you work with. You sent a letter a head of the inauguration. What response did you get?

SVD: We didn't really get a response. We got a thank you for the letter. I dropped it off with all of the congressional leadership offices. I sat next to a member of Congress on a plane recently, and we talked about it and we talked about how important it was to [inaudible] that member of Congress is on the Homeland Security Committee and on the Border subcommittee. And I know I've gotten positive confirmation from the national security advisers for both, of their teams, for both President Trump and Vice President Vance. But it didn't seem like they moved on it.

NK: You know well, and our listeners will recall that the withdrawal from Afghanistan during the Biden administration was criticized widely, and it was described at that time as chaotic as well. Trump's national security adviser, Mike Waltz, has said that administration, quote, "abandoned its allies in Afghanistan". Given what Waltz has said in the past, but what you're hearing now or the inaction you're seeing, how do those comments sit with you?

SVD: Well, I'd say that we have a few days to make sure that they don't share something in common. The abandoning of our allies. Right. It's so important. And I know that Mike Waltz cares about this. He and I did have a conversation in Sedona, Arizona, one time. And I know, I know how much he cares about this. You know, our letter has at this point over 800 signatures, well over half of which are veterans and front line civilians. And it is just so important that we get this right. So we're looking forward to working with the administration to get it right. And, you know, people think that Americans don't care about Afghanistan. Well, if that were true, then President Trump wouldn't have campaigned on it, right? He didn't. He cares about this. We know that. He in every debate, brought it up, in every single day of the RNC Afghanistan came up from the stage.

NK: So how do you explain the fact that you didn't get a response and that you're in this position?

SVD: You know, I, I don't have an explanation for it, but it's not like, they don't have to respond to me. Right. We just need them to make the policy right.

NK: You mentioned Lucky, your friend at the start of our conversation. Can you tell me about Lucky's situation and what they're doing now?

SVD: Sure. Well, good news. Lucky made it. He went through sort of in August, early August or mid-August of 2021, made it to the United States. We picked him up from the airport. And today he is a small business owner in Fort Worth, Texas. He owns two restaurants and three shops that are all Afghan Halal markets. And Afghan Halal restaurants. But his mother and father-in-law are still stuck there. They didn't get up right. And like one thing that was really important to AfghanEvac was that the folks who are trying to get their families that are, like know what to expect, right? So even Lucky who's connected to us and we were connected to the last administration very tightly even he didn't get his family out. And it's really, really frustrating.

NK: Shawn, I appreciate your time. I'm glad we could speak. Please take care.

SVD: Thank you so much. And I really appreciate you talking to us today.

CH: Shawn VanDiver is the founder of AfghanEvac. We reached him in San Diego, California.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Amazon Quebec Layoffs

Guest: Félix Trudeau

CH: Just a few months ago, workers in Laval, Quebec, celebrated, becoming the first Amazon warehouse in Canada to unionize. And in the weeks since, they've been busy negotiating their first collective agreement. And then today, Amazon announced that it would be closing all its Quebec facilities and will start outsourcing deliveries there to smaller contractors. More than 17 hundred people will lose their jobs, including Félix Trudeau. He's a warehouse clerk at the Laval Warehouse and the president of their union. He was supposed to be in a negotiation session with Amazon today. Instead, he's looking for a new job. We reached Félix Trudeau in Montreal.

NK: Félix, today was supposed to be about negotiations with Amazon. Did you see what happened coming?

FÉLIX TRUDEAU: No, no. For sure we expect Amazon to fight against the union, too, and, you know, try and negotiate harsh terms. And, you know, contest the legality of the union. But a reaction this intense, an attack on Quebec's working class. This bad? No, we did not see it coming.

NK: How did you find out?

FT: I found out this morning. I woke up ready to go to the negotiation meeting, and instead I saw that Amazon had sent us an email announcing that they were closing their two big warehouses.

NK: What did you say when you when you saw that announcement to yourself or to those around you?

FT: I heard a lot of Quebec swear. I swore, I was outraged. My initial reaction was, you know, anger and, you know, the necessity to get up and do something about it.

NK: Since then, have you received any further information from your immediate bosses or the company itself? Do you know when you're officially off the job, anything like that?

FT: Well, I wasn't at the warehouse this morning because of the negotiation, and we have not received as employees any official letter or any official written communication. But my coworkers who were at the warehouse this morning have told me that we are going to end... our last day is going to be on the eighth of February.

NK: So not too, too long from now. In a statement to our Radio-Canada colleagues, an Amazon spokesperson insists this decision was tied to cost savings and not the recent unionization at your warehouse. What is your response to that explanation?

FT: It's an obvious lie. It's no coincidence that this decision is made as we were nearing arbitration for the collective agreement bargaining, because given the situation of the labor code in Quebec, we would have had through arbitration, a contract with reasonable gains, reasonable working conditions. And instead of letting that happen, Amazon decided to retaliate completely disproportionately against their workers and attack our right to unionize.

NK: You've been working at the warehouse since 2023, I believe. What kind of working conditions have you experienced that led you to want to unionize?

FT: Well, the working conditions at Amazon, as soon as you're punched in you, you know, you work. You don't have a second to rest. It's, efficiency is the name of the game as well as the high paced, high risk environments.

NK: One of your colleagues, Nedim Sab, a supervisor at the warehouse, spoke to our CBC News colleagues in their coverage of these developments, and he blames the union or the unionization effort for what is happening. He said, quote, "I don't think this job needs to get unionized", unquote. And he said that, you know, he was doing well and he and others are crying about the situation. What would you say to Nedim Sab and others who agree with him?

FT: You know, I would say that it really is, it's Amazon's decision to close down the warehouses. What the union is about is about workers coming together to address problems collectively and, you know, work to, struggle to improve our working conditions. No, there's nothing in a union project itself that calls for such a dramatic and intense response to workers simply asking for a decent working condition. And I would really condemn that the drivers, their conditions were and still will be when their job is taken over by the subcontractors. But their jobs are hard. Their wage, compared to the amount of effort they put in, is not up to par. You know, there's... I understand the difficult situation everyone will be in and the union will do its best to support its members. But of course, it was, nothing could have been further from our intention.

NK: And what are the discussions you're having now with your fellow union members about what, if anything, you can do at this point?

FT: Well, first, the union will not abandon its members. We are going to come up like, we are working to come up with a plan on supporting the workers with, you know, everything from unemployment insurance to finding a new job. We're also considering the various legal options we have for recourse. What, of course, we have to understand to this is an attack on Quebec working class. And as such, we are considering options for how we want to mobilize and have a political response to this, because I think it's completely unacceptable that an American multinational monopoly can come to Quebec and come to Canada and impose its law, impose its way of doing things and try and, you know, like go against the law and try and, you know, ignore all of its obligations to its workers.

NK: Félix, thank you for your time.

FT: Thank you.

CH: Félix Trudeau is an Amazon warehouse clerk and the president of the Amazon Laval CSN Workers Union. We reached him in Montreal. In a statement today, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne said he spoke with the head of Amazon Canada and expressed his dismay and frustration. He said, quote, "This is not the way business is done in Canada", unquote.

[Music: Upbeat instrumental]

N.Z. Tuna Fishers

Guest: Clayton Summerville

CH: Over the weekend Clayton Summerville and his buddies spent the day out on the water fishing. It sounds like a dream of a day, especially since they live in New Zealand where it is summer. But soon that day would turn into something out of one of my nightmares because they ended up catching a gigantic 280 kilogram bluefin tuna. And then they ended up battling a shark for it. We reached Clayton Summerville in Auckland, New Zealand.

NK: So Clayton, take us back to this past weekend. It's Sunday. You're out on the water. How was it going at the start of that day?

CLAYTON SUMMERVILLE: Pretty boring, to be honest. Not what we were expecting at all. Got smashed around because of the wind, was quite, quite high. So we decided to come in quite a bit shallower.

NK: Yeah. Well, fishing, I mean, fishing is, is a slow moving process. Generally contemplative, no?

CS: Yes. Yes, you're dead right. And yeah, always expect the unexpected. Very true in this, in this case, the... As we started coming back in, I had to be back in early to do some work. So we decided to come back in. And rather than getting smashed around, we came quite a bit shallower. We don't really catch a lot of fish in the shallow water, so we weren't expecting much at all. But lo and behold, we had a double strike of yellowfin tuna. That's pretty exciting.

NK: Yeah that's, that would have been a good day if it ended there. Right?

CS: Oh excellent day. We couldn't believe it. And we were ready to go home. I said, let's put the lows back out again. We'll just trawl back down the coast on the way home.

NK: Why did you say that? Did you have a hunch that this water was particularly active or this part?

CS: Very, very much so. Very much so. There was a lot of gannets diving around us. There were a lot of bate polls around us. If you were going to catch a fish, this is, that was the kind of scenario that you're going to catch a fish in.

NK: And so when did you realize that you'd caught something else and that it was not small?

CS: Yeah. Yeah. Well, yeah, we had the lures in for about 10 minutes and we were catching these bait fish on the on the [inaudible] lures, which was very odd and one of the lures, one of the rods flicked the outrigger and then went for it. And we thought, that's bigger than a, that's bigger than a bait fish. Just to be clear, I didn't catch it, Jake Hurley, who was on the boat, he caught it. [cross talk]

NK: Credit where credit is due absolutely, yeah.

CS: Yeah, yeah. It was, it was all very, very chaotic. We still had the yellowfin sitting on the deck. There was, you know, blood everywhere. It was all, it was all very, very, very rushed. Yeah. About 30 minutes into it, this, this fish, very stubborn fish, just didn't want to go anywhere. We didn't really want to say what it was. We didn't want to... Northern or Atlantic bluefin tuna, you know, they're unheard of. You don't really catch them.

NK: So you were worried you were going to jinx it or you couldn't believe it even.

CS: Yeah. Correct, correct. So, yeah, that then, there's a bit of a tug of war for the next two hours. Pretty uneventful. Back and forth, back and forth. We had the fish, in the last hour the fish was about, I don't know, 30 metres away from the boat it would, it would charge the boat and then it would they would go for a run and then would charge the boat and go underneath the boat. And it was pretty chaotic. It was very, very chaotic.

NK: And as if this day was not eventful enough, then more activity in the water let's say.

CS: We did have competition. The fish started doing funny things. And when they sort of do funny, funny things, that usually means it's being followed by a shark. So, yeah, so to say that the shark decided to have a bit of a bite, took its tail off and the guy that was on the rod, he could feel that feel it happening the whole time. And then the fish just popped up from underneath the boat. And then you're greeted with this massive hit and everyone's looked at each other like in complete disbelief, like, what have we done here? Like this is massive. Like, this is, it's half the size of the boat. You know, like from a width perspective, I was still slightly kicking. And I said, oh just be careful, the shark will be by. And sure enough, this 300 to 400 kilo mako just popped up right behind it.

NK: And on to, I mean, it's attacking your boat at this point, trying to get that tuna. What are you doing?

CS: Running around like idiots trying to find. How are we going to bring this boat on, fish on to the boat. We were very unprepared. So we got a little cleaning broom on the boat and the shark came up to take the tail of the tuna. So I grabbed the cleaning broom and started to try and you know shoo, the shark, away from the, from eating the end of the tuna.

NK: Just hitting it on its head with the broom.

CS: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

NK: And your friend.

CS: So, at this stage...

NK: Sorry. Your friend who was trying to reel in the tuna initially, Jay, if I heard correctly. I mean, what condition is Jay in at that point?

CS: He's knackered, absolutely knackered. [NK: What?] So he's Knackered, Michael, Michael Baird, who's driving his neck is knackered because you're looking around. You're just, you're just concentrating pure concentration for 3 hours.

NK: To be clear you said knackered. So he's tired?

CS: Knackered. Tired. Yeah. Yeah. Sorry. Very, very tired. Tired and sore, yeah, tired and sore. Jay had put his hand down the fish's mouth and put a rope around a steel plate to try and secure it. So we drove away from the shark. You know, I assume it followed us, but we don't really know. And then we managed to, we managed to pull it back in on the other side of the boat over the ladder. And that's when the realization sort of hit, of what we had in the back of the boat there.

NK: I think this would have been, it would have set a record as the heaviest catch in these waters if its tail were still attached. Do you even care?

CS: Yes. No, I, we don't think we would have, we wouldn't have boated that fish if the shark hadn't taken the tail off. It would just keep, we would still be out there trying to fight it, I think. The shark, you know, almost did us a favour. I had no idea. We all think.

NK: The other incredible thing about this is you've been in this situation before. You battled the shark for a fish.

CS: Yeah, not to this extent, but we definitely, every now and then, when you [inaudible] game fish, it's not unlikely for sharks to take the tail, to take the fish tail off to demobilize them. But yeah don't get me wrong I've, I've never fought a shark off of the bone before. [laughter] Not one that size as well.

NK: And have you tasted it yet?

CS: Ah taste it straight away. It's beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. Stunning.

NK: Tuna lovers are jealous, myself included. But I think anyone who fishes or who has fished, even once, they're salivating for more than or maybe they're relieved that they haven't had this experience. But I'm so glad, Clayton, that we could speak. Congratulations.

CS: Thank you.

NK: Take care.

CS: You to, see you.

CH: We reached Clayton Summerville in Auckland, New Zealand.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Chimp Urination

CH: [Chris gives a big yawn] I'm so sorry for yawning. I was up late watching an important documentary. It was "Love Island: All-Stars". But now I've yawned, which is rude and also disruptive because there's a good chance that now you're yawning. As we know, yawning is contagious. But there are worse contagious behaviors, and at least one of them requires a mop. A study published this week in the journal "Current Biology" identifies what scientists have termed "contagious urination" among the chimpanzees living in a sanctuary in Kyoto, Japan. A doctoral student first noticed that the chimps were putting the pee in group thera-pee [laughs, what] when she was observing them for another project, she noticed that once one chimp urinated, others seemed to follow suit. And now, after hundreds of hours of urination observation, she and her fellow researchers have determined that the activity was a going concern. They found that the closer a chimp is to the initiating urinator, the more likely they were to go with the flow. That was also true of chimps of lower social power. So synchronized peeing might play some kind of social role in chimp society. And so far, they don't yet know the true function of their group functions. But researchers surmise that it may boost social cohesion like a form of uri-nation-building, if you will, or possibly just good old fashioned pee-er pressure.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Part 2: Kingston Food Insecurity, Halifax Veteran RV, Snowbirds Selling, L.A. Fires: Watercolour Artist

Kingston Food Insecurity

Guest: Brandon Tozzo

CH: Kingston, Ontario, is the latest municipality in Canada to declare a food insecurity emergency. And it's not hard to figure out why. Public health officials there say roughly 1 in 3 households in the city struggled to afford meals in 2023. The crisis led Kingston City Council to follow the example of Mississauga and Toronto, two cities that declared food insecurity a state of emergency last year. And for Brandon Tozzo, it's personal. He's the Kingston City councilor who led the charge and he's demanding action from the provincial and federal governments. We reached him in Kingston.

NK: Councilor Tozzo, what did you hear and see in your community that suggested to you that this was not just a serious problem, that it was, in your view and Council's view, an emergency?

BRANDON TOZZO: So I volunteer in my community regularly in food distribution programs, whether it's through the food bank or through the Real Heights Community center. And the YMCA's, Work Hard, Eat Well where we feed children or just through school meal programs. I've been doing that since being elected in 2022. But this year I noticed that the need was greater than I'd ever seen by a large magnitude. More people were showing up. It was a more diverse crowd. It was a lot of children who were showing up. And what I heard time and again was that food insecurity was in a dire crisis. It was like nothing they'd ever experienced before. And a lot of families were having to choose between paying rent and feeding their kids. And that really made me, you know, scared for my community.

NK: Can you illustrate, you know, what an average income might be for a family of four and what they're up against? What is the personal deficit they're facing in their finances?

BT: This does largely affect families on social assistance programs. So, for example, a family of four on Ontario Works after food and rent will have a five hundred dollar a month deficit when it comes to food or when it comes to their family finances. So they're in the hole every single month. But what I also realized anecdotally is that even families that are middle class and have a fairly decent income of, say, 60 thousand dollars a year are still struggling because the price of everything has gone up and the price of food has gone up. And they're feeling the pinch as well. And they're having to cut back on meals and they're having to at some point stretch meals or choose less healthy option.

NK: What is your municipality doing in its capacity, Councilor? And what does declaring food insecurity an emergency change, practically speaking?

BT: So the city is really putting a lot of resources into our food related strategy. So we are having food pantries in the city of Kingston. We have a program where if you get a fine for a parking ticket that goes to a local food bank or for prepared foods. We're also including food as part of our municipal fee assistance programs. People can apply as part of a city and get reduced prices for food. So we're doing all we can as a city. This, these are Band-Aids that we're throwing at a much larger problem of income, of a lack of increase in social assistance. The tragedy is, is that this is affecting children. So we need upper levels of government to put more money and resources to actually help people pay for groceries because this is a real national and provincial crisis.

NK: So you're saying you hope puts more pressure on higher levels of government to do some of the things you're asking for. Your motion calls for funding school meal programs and a guaranteed basic income, a livable basic income. How likely is it, do you think, that that you will get what you're calling for?

BT: What I really want to see is food insecurity become a part of every party's platform during the elections coming up. I'm going to be honest. I don't really care what the solution is as long as every party has a solution. I think our political system can come up with new and innovative ideas on how to solve this crisis.

NK: In a statement to our CBC News colleagues in Kingston, the province said it has increased disability support rates and the minimum wage tying them to inflation. How do you respond to that? They're saying they've done these things. Are they not helping?

BT: Now, according to the data, according to public health, even people on ODSP and on social assistance are not capable, are not having enough money in order to meet their basic needs, in order to meet the rising costs of food. Keep in mind, for many years, these social assistance programs were stagnant. They were kept constant and it is nice to see that they are increasing and tied to inflation. And certainly it's good to see that minimum wage has gone up. That does help a great deal. It is not keeping up with the pace of the cost of living. So I you know, I applaud any measure that tries to solve it, but it's just not meeting the needs of the community.

NK: It's not going far enough for where things are out there. There's also, of course, the deal that Ontario signed with the federal government to expand the school food program in Ontario. It's expected to offer 10 million meals each year over the next three years. How does that program sit with you? How will that help or will it?

BT: Yes, absolutely. That program will do a great deal of work. I've done previous lobbying both at the federal and provincial level on school nutrition programs. I think that's part of a solution. And I'd like to see that money get translated down to actual providers because they're still experiencing some challenges of getting that funding. It's not quite there yet. My only worry is when kids go home, the cupboards will be bare. And that's the tragedy, is that it's an issue of household income. So it's nice to see kids getting fed at school. That's one part, you know, one piece of the puzzle and one solution. But we do need to solve the issues of income and the lack of ability of people to pay for groceries, that has not been addressed.

NK: This can feel, for a lot of people like an insurmountable problem, an expensive problem to solve. Can it be solved in your view and quickly?

BT: Yes, absolutely. So we have a terrific country. We're not perfect, but we have solved great problems in the past. You know, take a look at the child tax benefit that we got from the federal government, it actually started under Stephen Harper. And it was enhanced by the Liberals and it has done a great job of reducing child poverty. Take a look at national health care that we had, you know, that started with the NDP in Saskatchewan. It was matched dollar for dollar by John Diefenbaker, a Conservative and then made law of the land by a Liberal, Lester Pearson. We can do great things as a country if we put our heart to it and if we put our minds to it. So food insecurity is a great crisis today. I have no doubt that Canada, if this is our priority, we can solve this. It's so heartbreaking. Sorry. It's this, this is such a heartbreaking issue. Seeing kids and their only meal of a day is in school. It just. It broke my heart.

NK: It's emotional for you and your colleagues.

BT: Yeah. It's food, right? Like, you kind of wonder if we can't feed kids, what are we doing as a country?

NK: Councilor Tozzo, thank you.

BT: You're welcome. Thank you for having me.

CH: Brendan Tozzo is the city councilor who brought forward the motion to declare food insecurity an emergency in Kingston, Ontario. That's where we reached him.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Halifax Veteran RV

CH: Mattieu Tetreault finally felt like he had a good setup, at least for the time being. He'd retrofitted an old RV with a wood stove built to the proper codes and parked it on his mother's property just outside Halifax. It was stable housing that was affordable, and his dog Harper, could stay with him. He's been living there since the summer. But recently someone complained to the city. And now he's been served a letter saying his set up contravenes the local land use bylaw and he has to leave by February 2nd.

SOUNDCLIP

MATTIEU TETREAULT: Being able to find a place to actually, that you can afford is nearly impossible on 40 hours a week. Even like I don't make minimum wage, but it's still not enough. And I have a dog. So to find one that's, even a bachelor, that's pet friendly. You're looking at 16, 18 hundred to two thousand or more.

HALEY RYAN: What did it feel like to get that notice from the city that says you’re, you know, you're breaking a bylaw? You've got to leave this.

MATTIEU TETREAULT: It was a little overwhelming and stressful for sure for the first week or two. And then it's like, okay, well, you got to look at the other aspect. There's other people in RV's right now, like the park in Dartmouth, Shubenacadie, I believe they opened up for people to stay in over the winters in RV's. That's public property. Why can't I be on private property and not have an issue. This is obviously not permanent. Just with the economy it's a little more difficult to save up to be able to purchase land and move forward. So I built all this in panel so I can move it. So I mean, temporary could be a year, Temporary could be two years. I mean, with the way the economy is going, it's leaning on the latter, unfortunately. But it is what it is at this point.

HALEY RYAN: And what has it been like, you know, you're kind of chatting with the city. What have they been saying to you? Is there any, are you hoping for some leeway?

MATTIEU TETREAULT: I really am hoping for some sort of leeway, absolutely. Considering the situation I've been put in, like I was a veteran. I did nine years. I knew I couldn't afford my mortgage when I was leaving, so I sold it, bought this, paid off a lot of debt, moved away for about a year and that didn't pan out. So I come back and now I'm back looking to start over and trying to find a piece of land and build from there.

HALEY RYAN: And just how does it feel, though, to see I mean, your son kind of having to do this in this situation with the housing...

MICHELLE MCCLUNG: Horrible. Sorry. I've already had two sons, move home, in the house. And it's hard when they all have to come home, you know, because the circumstance and the economy.

HALEY RYAN: What was it like to see just a city notice on top of everything else?

MICHELLE MCCLUNG: Well, when Trevor came out and I've dealt with them before, just foolish things. Right. And he always says, just keep doing what you're doing. And if something happens, I'll come out, we'll talk. That's the end of it.

HALEY RYAN: And this is the by law enforcement person? Okay.

MICHELLE MCCLUNG: Yeah. So he came out and I said to him I said, what is he supposed to do, live in a tent? You know, it's private property. And, you know, he said he would talk to other guys that he works with. And then the supervisor and I hadn't heard anything at all. And then he sent me an email with the letter saying, you know, to comply, you know, get off the property you have till February 2nd. And it's like and go where?

CH: That was Michelle McClung and before her, Mattieu Tetreault speaking with the CBC's Haley Ryan. A city spokesperson told the CBC that staff are reviewing the situation but did not offer any more details.

[Music: Calm instrumental]

Snowbirds Selling

CH: Canadian snowbirds migrate south for the winter to warm weather destinations like Florida, California and Arizona. But this year, a lot of those seniors and retirees could be returning home early. A weak Canadian dollar and rising ownership costs are just two of the reasons people are choosing to sell their properties. Quebec snowbird Jasmin Gosselin is putting his condo in Boynton Beach, Florida, on the market. Mr. Gosselin talked to the CBC's Sean Henry about that decision.

SOUNDCLIP

JASMIN GOSSELIN: Many reasons but on top of them, Trump. Trump doesn't respect Canada, doesn't respect Canadians, doesn't respect snowbirds who spend their money during 4 or 5 months in Florida. We feed their economy, and he doesn't respect us. Also, we can talk about HOA fees. My HOA fees were around 500 a month five years ago. Now it's 900 a month this year. So the insurance cost the health issues. I, we, my wife and I, we, we just turned 70 last year. And as we getting older it's more costly to come in the U.S.

SEAN HENRY: Let's talk about some of the other reasons you decided to sell your condo, the Canadian dollars low it could fall lower compared to the U.S. dollar. I'm wondering, will this be a profitable sale for you?

JASMIN GOSSELIN: Obviously, yes. When I bought the place 11 years ago, I bought it with a much lower. U.S. dollars. So I will obviously, I will make a capital gain on that. So it's not a big deal. And it won't be a fire sale, if I sell it, that's fine. If I don't, it's going to be next year, but it won't be a fire sale on my side.

SEAN HENRY: Your real estate agent visited you yesterday. What did they tell you about the prospects for selling? Because we just heard from one who said that there's a lot of people who are selling right now.

JASMIN GOSSELIN: Yeah, but I took I took a U.S. agent compared to... I would say a lot of French-Canadian or Canadian are using a French-Canadian agent working in the U.S. But obviously I will, I don't think I will sell the place to a French-Canadian. So that's a reason why I, I took a U.S. agent and probably if I'm lucky. I will sell it to a snowbird coming from New Jersey, New York or around this area. So we'll see.

CH: That was Quebec Snowbird Jasmin Gosselin telling Sean Henry, host of Daybreak in Montreal, about his decision to put his Florida condo up for sale.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

L.A. Fires: Watercolour Artist

CH: As of now, at least 28 people have died in the Los Angeles wildfires. And the two biggest fires in Pacific Palisades and near Pasadena are still burning today. In addition, new fires have broken out in San Diego and Los Angeles counties. And the National Weather Service is warning of strong winds picking up through Thursday. To make matters worse, some 150 thousand Angelenos have been displaced by the fires and many of them have lost their homes. It's a heartbreaking time for so many people. And Jordan Heber wanted to do something about it. So earlier this month, she took to social media and said that if you'd lost your home, she would make a watercolor painting of it for free. We reached Jordan Heber in Santa Monica.

NK: Jordan. You've done three of these paintings so far, if I'm not mistaken. Can you describe what they look like for us?

JORDAN HEBER: Sure. The paintings are watercolor, and they're approximately five by seven, and they use a mix of ink pen as well. They are of people who live in Los Angeles's homes, who lost them during the fires from two weeks ago.

NK: I was looking at a few of them. I asked so that our listeners, if they hadn't seen them, could visualize them. They're lovely illustrations, even if you don't know the stories behind them, but obviously that makes them more meaningful. Was there a moment when you felt this idea come to you? You know, a lot of people felt helpless, certainly. But what was the moment for you that you thought, okay, this is something I can do?

JH: So I guess two Sundays ago, I was sitting on my couch and feeling that helplessness and had been scrolling and seeing different people that I know, volunteering and posting different ways to donate. And I was looking into those. But I'm, just they didn't feel as personal. I'm like, I really want to help someone now or directly. How can I make an impact? And I actually had a friend forward me another artist who I wasn't familiar with at the time, sketching homes. I'm like this, this is it. Home it's in so many ways very personal to me and this is so personal to the moment. And I was like, this is what I have to do. So, I posted something then.

NK: Yeah. And how long does it take you? How long do you spend on the pieces you've done so far?

JH: So far. You know, I kind of do them over a course of different pieces throughout the day, but it took me like two and a half days to do three paintings kind of scattered throughout.

NK: Yeah. You know, the first person that took you up on your offer? What did they say?

JH: The first person who took me up was actually for a school, which I just couldn't believe it. I love the story and I've since posted about... I usually paint my process of painting and posted that. And so many people have reached out who either teach or know someone that has kids that go there or whatnot. And just the outpouring of love and kindness in seeing this painting has been tremendous. They reached out and said, I'm a teacher here and we lost the school. And it's just devastating. Like and these kids don't have anywhere to go to school. I've been a teacher here for X amount of years and it was just so touching to hear and I wanted to help and that's the first one that I did. And she said that she was led to tears basically. Was so happy and it brought a glimmer of light.

NK: We do want to hear about the kinds of stories you've been hearing. But it really is when everything has become ash to have something tangible. I can imagine is something that moves people.

JH: A hundred per cent. It's immortalizing something that they lost, you know, they thought they had completely lost. And it's almost you know, you can't give it back to them, but it's almost, in a way trying to.

NK: And for you personally in Santa Monica, you know, how close did the fires get? What were you seeing and feeling?

JH: I was about two miles away from the nearest evacuation zone and then a couple of miles further from the actual fires. It was a really stressful time. I think I speak for myself and everyone, we were glued to our phones watching the app update. I didn't sleep because I didn't know if I'd have to evacuate in the middle of the night. My bags were packed, ready to go. If it wasn't stressful for me and my dog, it was. Are my friends okay? Are their friends okay? Is the city okay? So it was just it was a lot.

NK: How are you feeling now?

JH: I'm feeling a sense of relief that we are on the other side. I guess of felt everything, but then just a really deep sadness. I really feel for all of the people that are having to be on the other side without a lot of what was on the other side before and having to start from scratch. And it's just devastating.

NK: How many of these paintings, how much interest is there now? How many people are in line?

JH: There's a lot of interest. I was actually so, so shocked. I put the post up thinking, maybe some of my friends', friends who have lost their homes may find value in this. And that would feel really good if like three people reached out and then it just took off. It went viral and I was stunned. So there have been an influx of messages. And so I've tried to prioritize by saying I'm trying to focus on those directly impacted, and then I'll get back to those reaching out on behalf of others if and when I can.

NK: Because you have a, you have a full time job.

JH: I have a full time job. Yes.

NK: Is there a point you think you'll have to stop or you're ready to keep going? You're prepared to keep going?

JH: I think I'm going to put like for now, I just need a, something to get me to a point I don't know. Right now, I'm working towards like 25, 30, and I'm going to reassess how I feel at that point. But just reminding myself I can take my time to get there too, because I think I was like, my gosh, I need to do all these right now. But I want to do as many as I'm able to do to help people.

NK: You talked about the initial reaction and how moving that is when people tell you and then when they see the finished product. But when you think even further ahead, when someone who's lost their homes is in their new home and puts up one of your paintings, how will that hit you? What will that mean to you?

JH: Oh well, just you talking about it there kind of brought a smile to my face. I [sigh] it's you know, we're obsessed with instant gratification these days. And that to me, is the opposite. It's like a sense of warmth every time you pass it. And the fact that I'm able to bring that to somebody new home, I'm very grateful to have the opportunity to do it.

NK: I'm glad we could speak. Jordan, Thank you.

JH: Yes, Thank you. I appreciate it.

CH: Jordan Heber is painting watercolors of the homes people lost in the Los Angeles fires. We reached her in Santa Monica.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Part 3: Canadian Cyclist Of The Year, Cecile Richards Obit., FOA: Goodnight Moon Stamps, Commanders Fan, N.L. Crane, Sydney Corpse Flower

Canadian Cyclist Of The Year

CH: Victoria's Mel Pemble has added yet another accolade to her collection. Readers of the website "Canadian Cyclist" have picked her, along with Nathan Clement, as the Para-cyclists of 2024. Last year, Ms. Pemble competed in her first summer Paralympic Games. She just missed the podium, but she did set a world record in the women's C3 500 meter time trial. She has also competed at the Winter Games in para alpine skiing. In an interview with the CBC, she said she was surprised to learn she'd be receiving this recognition for the third time, and she looked back on her achievements in 2024.

SOUNDCLIP

MEL PEMBLE: Getting to my first summer Paralympics was definitely the highlight. And on top of that, like you mentioned, I managed to get the world records for my class. Doing so at the Paralympics was, yeah, my top highlight for sure. I've never quite heard such an atmosphere like that to hear everyone cheer regardless of country. It was a very special feeling, especially with my family in the stands and I was able to pick them out just after breaking the record. So that would definitely be the standout. And following that, or it was previous to that was the World Championships where I won the silver medal. That was the event that solidified my spot on to the Paralympic team. So that also holds a special place in my heart.

GREGOR CRAIGIE: Now, what about that moment when you set the world record for the 500 meter time trial? Now, that was actually in the qualifying round, is that right?

MEL PEMBLE: That's correct, yep.

GREGOR CRAIGIE: And what was that like to, you know, to break a record when you were simply trying to qualify?

MEL PEMBLE: Yeah, I had it in the back of my mind, but kind of as soon as I came around, and I saw that it was on the screen that I'd broken the world record. And not only that, it was a personal best for me by a second. So in a sport where everything is down to the hundreds and tens of seconds, it was by a massive margin and, you know, kind of all the crowd kind of came back into view and into it, back into my sound after managing to see that on the screen. So it definitely gave me a huge confidence for the final and kind of took away all those nerves that I was feeling in the morning prior to the qualifier. So yeah, it was a definitely cool feeling to know that I was racing again in two hours, but I just done something special there. And yeah, my phone was blowing up even before the final, so.

GREGOR CRAIGIE: I bet.

MEL PEMBLE: Yeah, yeah, it definitely gave me energy for it.

GREGOR CRAIGIE: And as you mentioned, your family traveled to Paris. What did it mean to you to have them out there in the stands?

MEL PEMBLE: It was amazing. I actually had a lot more family that could make it over than my previous Winter Games. So I had a lot of family from England to where I'm originally from, as well as my dad that came over. So I had a huge group and to know that they were following and they were able to come to a world championship... I guess it was 2023 now not last year. So to have them repeatedly come and support me and I was able to see them afterwards was really, really nice.

CH: Cyclist Mel Pemble speaking with Gregor Craigie, host of On the Island.

[Music: Guitar instrumental]

Cecile Richards Obit.

Guest: Margaret Justus

CH: Cecile Richards was a major force in Texas and in U.S. politics. In fact, she seemed like a major force in any context. For over a decade, she was the president of Planned Parenthood, leading the organization through some of its most difficult periods. She was the daughter of former Texas Governor Anne Richards. But she carved out her own legacy, becoming a fierce advocate not just for reproductive health care, but also for a living wage, affordable child care and immigrant rights. Because, as she often said, "these fights are connected". Cecile Richards died on Monday at the age of 67, just months after giving a rousing speech at August's Democratic National Convention.

SOUNDCLIP

CECILE RICHARDS: Last year I became a grandmother. [applause] And during my daughter's pregnancy, nothing mattered more to me than her health. Politics should never stand in the way of anyone's health care or prevent any family from experiencing the joy. My grandson Teddy has brought to my life. One day, our children and grandchildren may ask us when it was all on the line. What did you do? And the only acceptable answer is everything we could. [cheers and applause].

CH: Former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards, speaking at the DNC last year. Ms. Richards died on Monday of brain cancer. Margaret Justus is a family friend of Cecile Richards and was her mother's deputy press secretary. We reached Ms. Justus in Austin, Texas.

NK: Margaret, that was, as I understand it, one of, if not the last speech your friend Cecile Richards was able to make. What do you hear when you listen back to that now?

MARGARET JUSTUS: Well, I'm trying not to break up because we were you know, we had been in touch. And shortly after that, actually, you know, which I wish I could have been there in Chicago. And you know, what it tells me is somebody who fought to the end, not just for all great causes and certainly women's reproductive rights and, you know, family, sorry, family planning rights. But she also was a mother, incredible mother and wife and devoted grandma. And those are all things that happened to Cecile. And as part of this past year, she was just so proud to be a grandmother. Teddy is her first grandchild. And so it was really, really an emotional time. Obviously, she knew that she had a malignant brain tumor and was, had come back. They'd successfully removed the first one when she was diagnosed. Then she went on a, you know, some chemo and a couple of trials as I understand it, but sadly, it did not, did not keep it from growing back. And that's what cancer does. It's chronic. And in this case, it's it was a fail.

NK: Beyond her, her work fighting for reproductive rights. She also worked on fighting for the separation of church and state, voter mobilization as well. You worked for Cecile Richards mother, Anne Richards, when she was governor of Texas. Her father was a Democratic activist. How was she able to carve out her own path and have so much impact growing up in that kind of family?

MJ: You know, that's a really good point to make, that it's one thing to be born, you know, remarkable, to a remarkable mother and father because you mentioned her father, who is a is actually a civil rights attorney who fought early on to beat back the poll tax in Dallas, Texas, of all places. And it was really in her DNA to be an activist and someone who was going to just fight for what was right. It's another thing to become actually recognized and blaze her own trail and go on to receive the Medal of Freedom for her outstanding public service work. But, you know, that's just who she was. Cecile didn't want to give up. She was she was born into it. She was, you know, sent to this principal's office in middle school for wearing a black armband to protest the Vietnam War. So it's definitely it was in her DNA. She continued it through college and then on to her early work organizing for labor unions in the South and New Orleans, particularly where she met her husband, Kirk Adams. And they work together to, for better pay and better working conditions for hotel workers. And then from then on, she moved to Austin to help her mother get elected governor in 1989. And that's where we met. We were all in the early days campaigning for Anne Richards.

NK: Did you see her as a force in that first meeting?

MJ: Absolutely. But Cecile had this incredible sort of subtle way, not so much for her mother, who was more of a barnstorming campaigner and hilarious. Cecile was also funny. She had a great sense of humor, pretty dry, but very great sense of humor. But I knew that she had the skill set already to be organizer, and that's who she was. She also had sort of this. And I'm reading all the obituaries myself. I think there's one word that a friend of mine pointed out that they've left out when they describe Cecile. She really had this gracious, sort of elegant aura about her. She had really lovely manners. And even though she could probably cuss up a storm with anybody, but she really had this elegant sense about her. And, you know, could tell a great joke, but also at the same time, debate someone on MSNBC and, you know, politely eviscerate them, you know, on television. So she was, she just had a really sharp mind and great wit. And but, you know, I think that evolved, too, from 1989 to where she was today. I think she; she grew that and she worked on actually honed it. And this is what she would tell young people like, you know, learn from mistakes, come back stronger and smarter and don't give up. Don't ever give up. And that's who Cecile was. And as to how she should be remembered.

NK: Is that the advice that stands out to you? Because a lot of the coverage of her passing also talks about how she had this knack for motivating people. And this is certainly a time, you know, under this new administration that is openly hostile towards many of the causes. Cecile Richards stood for and fought for. So is there a piece of advice that you will hold close given the time you're living in?

MJ: Absolutely. I think just looking through her book the other day, which was titled "Make Trouble", she had this quote where she said, you know, if you fall off your horse, you get back up. But you also don't sit around and wait for the perfect opportunity. Find something and make it an opportunity. And I think that's what she would tell everyone today. Progressives in particular, young people who want to still make a difference. Don't give up. Find the opportunity, regroup, learn from your mistakes, come back harder and smarter and never, ever, ever give up.

NK: Margaret, I know this is a personally very difficult time for you, so I very much appreciate your time. Thank you.

MJ: You bet. Thank you.

CH: Margaret Justus is a family friend of the late Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood. We reached Ms. Justus in Austin, Texas.

[Music: Guitar instrumental]

FOA: Goodnight Moon Stamps

CH: A young mouse, a pair of mittens, a toy house, and crucially, but mysteriously, a bowlful of mush. All items famously featured in Margaret Wise Brown's classic children's book, "Goodnight Moon". And now on a new series of U.S. Postal Service stamps honoring the 1947 classic. The USPS unveiled the designs on Monday, and they'll go into circulation later this year, along with a SpongeBob SquarePants collection. Now, that pairing speaks to the profound range of content that can appeal to kids and their families. Although in the case of "Goodnight Moon", not everyone always saw the appeal. When the New York Public Library celebrated its 125th anniversary back in 2020, it unveiled a list of its 10 most checked out books of all time. And Margaret Wise Brown's now beloved bedtime story, was conspicuously absent. As the library's former youth materials specialist, Betsy Bird told then As It Happens, host Carol Off. That had everything to do with the personal preferences of one Anne Carroll Moore, who ran the children's department at the library starting in the early 1900s.

SOUNDCLIP

BETSY BIRD: She wasn't a huge fan of the style of book that Margaret Wise Brown sort of excelled in. Margaret Wise Brown was from the Bank Street College of Education. She believed very much in getting down on a child's level and making books in that way. And so we don't know specifically what Anne Carroll Moore disliked about that book. What we do know is that it was one of the books she chose not to buy for the library system.

CO: But it was hugely popular — at least it has been over the years. So did she ever say anything about why she didn't want it at the New York Public Library?

BB: As far as I know, she never said anything specifically about why she wanted. But if you look at the kinds of books that she loved; it definitely did not fit the mold. She was a huge fan of Beatrix Potter. She liked a very classic style of children's literature. And when you look at “Goodnight Moon,” it's very glaring. You know, you've got these bright greens, and these bright reds, and these bright yellows. There's no story to it. It's very rhythmic. It's very soothing. But it's very strange. You've got a grandmother who appears and then suddenly disappears. You've got “Goodnight, Nobody” is one of the lines. It's a very peculiar little book.

CO: Was it just the New York Public Library that didn't carry the book, or was it, go beyond that?

BB: It probably went beyond that. Remember when Anne Carroll Moore was working, she was hugely influential. So what she didn't buy, many other libraries around the country were looking at her selections, and they would buy the same things that she would buy. If she didn't buy something, they didn't buy it.

CO: But it was at that same time in that same era — this is talking about the 1940s and ‘50s — [chuckling] was it being bought at the rate that now that “Goodnight Moon” is bought and sold in this country and in yours?

BB: Oh, no, no, no, it certainly did not go out pretty much at all. It was only I believe post-World War Two. There was a magazine article that was published, and this article comes out saying hey, by the way, here are some books that you may wish to read with your kids. And one of them was “Goodnight Moon” — which was still in print. And suddenly, it becomes this massive hit. Where before, it had never really been noticed much.

CH: Betsy Bird is the former youth material specialist for the New York Public Library. She spoke with our former host, Carol Off in February 2020. This week, the US Postal Service unveiled a new collection of "Goodnight Moon" stamps celebrating the 1947 book.

[Music: Jazzy instrumental]

Commanders Fan

Guest: Marcus Ellis

CH: For the first time in 33 years, the Washington Commanders are going to the NFC championship. This Sunday, the Commanders will take on the Philadelphia Eagles, and if they win, they'll go to the Super Bowl. This season has been the kind of season you see in an inspiring sports movie. Over and over, the Commanders have won against teams with better odds and more experience. And Marcus Ellis has been on the edge of his seat the entire time. He's been a fan of the Washington Commanders his whole life. When we reached him in Washington, D.C.

NK: First things first, Marcus, you're speaking directly to the Philadelphia Eagles, let's say. What would you say? Remember, it's radio family show.

MARCUS ELLIS: Well, what would I say to some Eagles fans right about now? One, we're coming. We're coming. And we plan on leaving with the W. Two, it's our time. Why not us? You had your time, a little while ago. Right now is all about the Commanders. And so we're coming to get that W and we're looking forward to winning.

NK: I can hear you smiling as you say that even with the trash talk. You're smiling. You're excited, You know well, the Eagles have home field advantage this Sunday. From what I was reading. Ticket prices, as they often do, are going up and going up fast. Are you going to be there in person to support your team?

ME: So I'm about a 50/50 at this point. The reality is, you know, and the truth is, I'm so about my team and not so much about trash talking, but I will say this in the Eagles and the city of Philly did this to themselves. Philly is known as a place where if you're a visitor, you don't really want to go to their sporting events. They are, they're not very nice. And I'm not talking about like trash talk. I'm talking about like have booed Santa Claus, You know, they throw items during the games that the opposing fans. And so part of me is saying my basement might be a more safe place. I have a basement with a big TV and it's going to have on my wings and is going to have all my whiskey and everything else I need. Something about it just sounds like a better environment for me.

NK: Yeah. At this point, I'm rooting for you and your friends to stay in your basement. We talked about the decades you've been waiting and all the other fans as well. I was reading that you were with your dad in 1982 on his shoulders, if I'm not mistaken. What do you, what do you remember about that?

ME: I remember it so well. And it's probably the reason why I've been able to withstand such a drought. I mean, it's again, it's 1982, we're in Washington, D.C., if you picture like, you know, just for comparison any Stanley Cup championship parade when you just got everybody out there. I mean that's what American football is here in D.C. and in the United States. And so, you know, I'm on my dad's shoulders, you know, all the players out there, it's thousands of people. If you're familiar with the Kool & The Gang, the song Celebration is playing.

NK: Of course.

ME: It is just, it's the vibe, right? And we weren't even saying vibe back then, I was 6 years old in 1982. But it was a memorable moment that I share with my dad, who was a die-hard fan as well. And so for me, it's been fairly easy to be loyal because I had that instilled in me. But it's not been, easy isn't the right term. It's been hard. But I've weather that storm as well. And then I know what it can do for our city. Right? People are letting you over when you're driving now, they're saying hi at the gas station. People are just, it's a much more friendly city, quite frankly. We got some unfriendly things happening in D.C. right now with the inauguration of the president that I did not vote for. And so we need all of this joy. We need all the joy we can get in Washington, D.C. right now. So it's welcome. Just to see everybody smile.

NK: You know, people who aren't familiar with your team or fans of American football. When I see Dan Snyder, they feel nothing. What do you feel when I say that name?

ME: I feel stay away from us. I feel Dan Snyder was a person who literally almost single handedly drug our fan base and our team to the bottom of the league. And so, you know, it's amazing how one man's impact could have had such a negative view and negative outlook on our team. And one man's impact and a change in ownership has taken us in a completely different direction. So Dan has billions of dollars. He's somewhere on a yacht right now. Stay on your yacht. Somewhere out in Paris, Italy. Whatever it is he's doing, just don't come back to the D.C. area because we got this at this point, everything's under control.

NK: Yeah. No ex-owners specifically that one allowed there. I hear what you're saying. Before I came in to speak with you, Marcus, I was watching some of the videos that people had cut together of people watching the Lions game last weekend, including Lions fans. You know, the reactions and seeing the Commanders fans reacting was quite something. Where were you? How did you react? Tell me about that.

ME: Yeah. So, look, we haven't been good in a long time. And so I keep telling myself, like, again, this is different. You have to be the energy that you want to protect. And so when I go to my bathroom, there's this sign over top of one wall. It says, "Be the energy you want to attract". So I'm literally, I'm talking to myself the whole game and I'm saying, be the energy you want to attract, Right? Like, they could hear me because my team needed to hear me. And at that point, it was all of us said, you know, I just kept saying it. So, I mean, elated, excited, you know, whiskey pouring, you know just everything that was needed to make an amazing day. And so I'll share with you that I won a Social Justice award here in D.C.

NK: Oh congratulations.

ME: Get a clue, includes... Thank you and it's from the NFL, from the Commanders. And it includes two tickets to the Super Bowl. So I'm going to the Super Bowl this year, and I was already ecstatic about that. I couldn't care less who was playing. This is a bucket list for me. [NK: Sure] But now my team is one game away. The team who in '82, I was on my dad's shoulders is one game away from playing. Yeah, I need to just start doing my breathing exercises now for this weekend because if we win, my goodness, I don't even know. I don't even know.

NK: W is for win and whiskey in your basement party, I hear. But honestly, you've made a fan of me, Marcus. I'm so glad we could speak and I hope we speak again about more wins for your team.

ME: I am so excited and thank you. Thank you for the opportunity to share with your audience and I hope to speak with you again. Go Commanders!

NK: I hope so too. Thanks, Marcus.

CH: Marcus Ellis is a lifelong fan of the Washington Commanders. We reached him in Washington, D.C.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

N.L. Crane

CH: The crane is long gone, but at least one person in Sunnyside, Newfoundland and Labrador is still squawking. That person is Grant Recknell, who until 3 or 4 days ago had a rare sandhill crane hanging out in his yard. The birds are 3 or 4 feet tall and have beautiful red heads. They don't show up in Newfoundland very often and a January visit is pretty much unheard of. Also, the species is usually skittish, so you can imagine the excitement of local birders when it turned out that this one was willing to hang out for photos. Maybe it was the food Grant Recknell was feeding it, or maybe it was there for the conversation.

SOUNDCLIP

GRANT RECKNELL: It's been kind of entertaining to have him here because I can get to within about 10 feet of him or five feet of him. [Amazing.] Yeah, and he's cautious. But when, he comes when I feed him and quite often he gives me a little bit of a show when he dances and flaps his wings and twitters away there. [bird sound] Yeah. Yeah. There you go.

KRISSY HOLMES: So he's like, in it. You guys are buds.

GRANT RECKNELL: Yeah, I guess so. I mean, I kind of, I looked it up on Mr. Google there and to see what they actually ate. I mean, I knew the worms and grubs and stuff like that. There's plenty of that in my backyard. But I thought as it gets colder and the ground freezes, he's not going to be able to get in there. So I started throwing out some seeds and he readily eats that.

KRISSY HOLMES: And Grant, I understand you have bridged the language barrier, too. You've got a call. [laughter] I mean, tell us how you're communicating with this crane.

GRANT RECKNELL: You want that call right now?

KRISSY HOLMES: Oh, please.

GRANT RECKNELL: Geez. While I can't do it as good as that one that you got there.

KRISSY HOLMES: That's okay. We're not judging, we don't have, we don't have a benchmark for success on this one. Don't worry about that. You go ahead.

GRANT RECKNELL: [Does a bird call]

KRISSY HOLMES: That's pretty good. That's pretty close.

GRANT RECKNELL: I talk to him, too, just like I'm talking to you, so.

KRISSY HOLMES: What does he say?

GRANT RECKNELL: Well, he'll do that same thing back.

CH: Grant Recknell of Sunnyside, Newfoundland and Labrador, talking to Krissy Holmes, host of On The Go.

[Music: Funky instrumental]

Sydney Corpse Flower

CH: Her scientific name is Amorphophallus titanium, which translates to "giant misshapen phallus". In Indonesian, she's referred to as bunga bankai, which translates to "corpse flower". How can they speak of her this way? Why do they demean her majesty? We know why, because she threatens them. Her beauty is intimidating and her bold fragrance routinely dismissed as an eye watering stench or a sickening mask of putresence is really just her unapologetic way of announcing "It's me world. Putricia!".

SOUNDCLIP

MIKE DALTON: Welcome to the Botanical Festival that could well be called stinkapalooza. The blooming of the corpse flower.

CH: You hear how they talk about her stinkapalooza, indeed. Mike Dalton of 9News Australia was reporting there from the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney, where many are waiting for Putricia to bloom. And when I say many, I mean thousands upon thousands of people, possibly billions, who are watching Putricia via live stream hoping to see her flower. At which point the corpse flower will proudly emit a smell described by Paul Nicholson of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

SOUNDCLIP

PAUL NICHOLSON: You get your teenagers old socks that they've left in the corner of the room after a footy game. Get some cat food been left out in the sun, day old vomit. Whack it all in. Whip it up. Pull the lid off. That's what we're talking about.

CH: In the wild. That rich, full bodied bouquet attracts pollinators. In Sydney, it has attracted devoted fans. One commenter wrote, "I can see she's still taking her time like the queen she is, fair play". Someone wrote "Putricia for president". To which someone else replied, "Putricia is too pure for political shenanigans". And others have been perhaps too devoted commenting in all caps, "BRING HER A CHILD". Look, I understand the sentiment, but Putricia does not need our trivial human sacrifices. She doesn't need us at all when it comes to our approval. She shows fragrant disregard.

[Music: Theme]

CH: You've been listening to As It Happens on the CBC Listen App. Our show can be heard Monday to Friday on CBC Radio One after Your World Tonight.

NK: And you can always read more about the stories and conversations we feature on As It Happens on our website, cbc.ca/aih. I'm Nil Köksal.

CH: And I'm Chris Howden.

[Music: Theme]

The AIH Transcript For January 22, 2025

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