Christmas Gift from Ottawa
TUNE INTO THE TOWN\n\nIt\u2019s that last gathering of the Tune Into the Town panel before Christmas, and there\u2019s a lot to unpack.\n\nToronto just got a big Christmas gift from Ottawa - $471 million in new housing cash - and we are also getting a new 250-bed respite centre just down the street from Zoomer Radio.\xa0As well, the Chair of Yonge-Dundas Square said he's resigning over last week's city council vote to rename the downtown landmark to Sankofa Square; and Olivia Chow has made some big moves in her short time as Toronto\u2019s new Mayor.\n\nLibby Znaimer is joined by Karen Stintz, CEO of Variety Village; Alex Blumenstein, Co-Founder of The Peak; and David Crombie, a former mayor of Toronto, to discuss these issues, and more.\n\nLET\u2019S TALK ABOUT THE WEATHER\n\nThe word has been getting a lot of use lately, but there is no better way to describe it. Our weather this year has truly been\xa0unprecedented.\n\nLibby Znaimer is joined by Dave Phillips, Senior Climatologist at Environment Canada for a look at the Top Ten weather events in Canada this year, and the scoop on whether we\u2019re getting a white Christmas.\n\nWHAT\u2019S THE DEAL WITH THE FEAST OF THE SEVEN FISHES?\n\nIt\u2019s called the Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian-North American Christmas tradition that is having a broader cultural moment.\n\nIt harks back to the tradition of fasting or abstaining from meat on Fridays and other significant days, but after the arrival of Italian immigrants it morphed into a magnificent multi-course Christmas Eve feast featuring seven different kinds of fish and seafood.\n\nLibby Zniamer is joined by Katie Parla, a Rome-based food and beverage writer, culinary guide, and cookbook author; and Michael Di Giovine, Professor of Anthropology at West Chester University and Director of the Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology in Pennsylvania; and Zoomer Radio's own Jeremy Logan, to explore this Christmas Eve seafood fest that is steeped in tradition.