http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton en-gb Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:46:22 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/The-Brewtinerie-dream-is--delayed-211834301.html Sad news from the desk of City Hall this week. As you will have read on the front page of Monday's Brandon Sun, a report from city administration is recommending that city council decline to accept a proposal to turn the old downtown firehall into a brewpub. The idea, which grew out of a... Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:33:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Put-your-trash-into-Orbit-209934201.html I never thought that I would say I loved watching a documentary about litter receptacles, but this 15-minute look back at Manitoba's "Orbit" highwayside bins was a real joy. It tickled my nostalgia bone a lot. As a child, I didn't really realize that the "Orbits" were Manitoba-specific. My Mon, 3 Jun 2013 10:21:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Kudos-to-city-for-open-data-208542521.html I'm a little late on this, but better late than never. Earlier this month, with little fanfare, the city of Brandon opened up its vaults a little bit. Their new Open Government Initiative builds on a smaller set of open data sets that they had previously made available on their website, and are Wed, 22 May 2013 14:33:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/So-how-bad-a-May-Long-is-this-207604841.html I have been hearing a lot of griping lately, that the forecast for May Long weekend calls for too much rain. On the other hand, I'm hearing a lot of Crankshaft-level cynicism from people who throw up their hands and say, "It ALWAYS rains on May Long." It couldn't always rain on May Long, right? Wed, 15 May 2013 15:40:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Crunching-some-WestJet-numbers-207547531.html Now that I'm officially booked into the very first WestJet Encore flight from YBR > YYC (that's airline talk for Brandon to Calgary), I've been soliciting ideas on what to do for the 18 hours that my girlfriend and I are in the city. We've had plenty — including some great ones from the Wed, 15 May 2013 09:51:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Im-going-to-Calgary-207428521.html On Monday, WestJet announced that they would add Brandon to their list of Encore destinations — flying here once a day from Calgary in the morning and returning in the early afternoon. On Tuesday, I bought a ticket. In fact, two tickets. My girlfriend and I will be among the first in line Tue, 14 May 2013 14:43:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Photo-from-the-past-shows-how-little-has-changed-206946281.html Twenty-three years ago today, I was a strapping young lad, about to head out on my Brandon Sun paper route, when I was taken aside for a quick photo. The photographer posed me in front of the newspaper offices, had me extend that day's edition towards the camera, and took my portrait. I don't Fri, 10 May 2013 11:29:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Target-Opening-Day-review-206429511.html Will Target make a difference in the Brandon retail scene? Judging from the opening hours on Tuesday morning, the answer is yes. A lineup halfway down the building was waiting to get in when the doors opened precisely at 8 a.m. Staff — including security guards — efficiently herded Tue, 7 May 2013 10:25:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/Your-weekend-patio-roundup-204911181.html So, it's finally warm(ish) and sunny out there. You're itching to get outside and enjoy some of this long-delayed spring. You want to enjoy a cool beverage in the warm sun. You want a patio! Although Facebook friends tell me that there are plenty of patios open in Winnipeg, it's been like Fri, 26 Apr 2013 15:22:00 CDT http://www.brandonsun.com/opinion/blogs/grant-hamilton/A-paucity-of-patios-204850081.html Whatever happened to the power of the press? Earlier this week, I put out a plea to local restauranteurs. "Hey," I said. "They are calling for sunny skies and a high of 15 C on Friday. That's my payday … I want to sit outside on a patio after work." I said it would be easy enough to Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:02:00 CDT