A professional sexual health educator with an alarming lack of tact, Nadine Thornhill is used to airing out other people’s unmentionables. Her new sex column, Dirty Laundry, will run the last Friday of each month on Apt613 starting this week. To ask your questions, or to say hello to Nadine, contact her at  dirtylaundry613@gmail.com. For the full smorgasboard of Nadine’s musings check out her blog, Adorkable Thespian. _________________________ Dear Dirty Laundress, I hate sexual identity labels. Only for myself; I don’t mind what other people call themselves. I find the... | Continue reading article

Friday will be a special day for Apt613… the incomparable Nadine Thornhill is joining our team of writers and will contribute a monthly sex/relationship advice column – Dirty Laundry. All those questions you had about that third nipple or how to properly introduce your pie throwing fetish to your partner, Nadine’s there to answer them! A professional sexual health educator with an alarming lack of tact, Nadine is used to speaking openly about the wonders of masturbation – even within earshot of your conservative relatives. When she’s not making you... | Continue reading article

Post by Veronica Michelle – blogger at The View from Veronica’s Closet, well-known Ottawa writer and occasional Apt613 columnist. This is the first post in a short series on Ottawa, why she left and why there’s no place like home. Ottawa never felt like home to me until I left. I was born in Halifax. My family relocated to Ottawa well before I was old enough to have any memories of my home town, but I grew up knowing where I was from. I’ve never considered myself an Ottawa native,... | Continue reading article

Senior and disabled persons advisory groups have been pushing city council for more priority seating at the front of the bus, complaining that parents and their strollers were taking too much space. The advisory groups wanted: Wheelchair users, people with disabilities and seniors to be officially given higher priority than parents with strollers for seats at the front of the bus. Strict limits on the size of strollers allowed on buses. Parents to be “strongly encouraged” fold their strollers as a “default policy.” But it appears they won’t be getting... | Continue reading article

The Ottawa Citizen reports that Councillor Rick Chiarelli hopes that city council will revisit a decision to reject expanding Ottawa’s suburban boundary into new areas where developers wanted to build subdivisions. Some say doing this is a political move that could potentially gratify owners while Chiarelli contends that with a number of landowners that have filed appeals to the Ontario Municipal Board (which can overturn city planning decisions), the city’s legal bills to defend its decision may be hefty. According to a report by Hill Strategies, Ottawa has the 5th... | Continue reading article

Shakespeare is always good for a laugh. But to be able to pull off Shakespeare’s cutting wit – and do it well – can be a bit of a challenge. Just ask Greg and Peter from my English 12 class – their rendition of the banter between Dromio and Antipholus of Syracuse was more error than comedy. Thankfully, those at Third Wall Theatre Company have graduated far beyond any painful high school performances. In fact, their current performance, As You Like It, is a modern interpretation that pulls off the... | Continue reading article

An early morning fire has destroyed a large part of the CTV Ottawa offices on Merivale Rd on Sunday, causing more than $2.5 million in damage. The entire newsroom was gutted, and the first floor, which includes the television studio, sustained extensive water damage. No deaths or injures were reported and the cause of the fire is still unknown. With Jake Gyllenhaal coming to town shortly, Ottawa’s got a big Hollywood production coming to town. According to Radio-Canada, this bodes well for the upcoming year in terms of cinema and... | Continue reading article

End Hits, a record store located at 407 Dalhousie St., will be closing its doors on March 13, 2010 after four years of providing Ottawans with a great selection of punk, indie, metal and alternative records. The store topped the Xpress’ best of list in the “best record store” category every year of its existence. Last week, Shawn Scallen, one of End Hits’ co-owners, left the following message on Punk Ottawa that summed up his reasons for closing up shop: End Hits opened its doors March 11, 2006 after the... | Continue reading article

Post by Dominic Maggiolo, Ottawa food philosopher and blogger on vegetarian food and culture. Check out some of his other writings on his blog, Le Jeune Gourmand. Disclosure: Aunty Loo’s Bakery will be participating in a fundraiser for Apartment613 this Valentine’s Day. No eggs, no milk, no butter or cream: Amanda Lunan of Aunty Loo’s Bakery creates wonderfully crafted baked goods for a small yet discerning niche of individuals with dietary restrictions or ethical concerns. Though this is not an easy task, especially considering the competitive nature of small businesses,... | Continue reading article

Good afternoon transit fans! We love talking about public transit. We actually launched Apartment613 in the midst of the transit strike last year – so complaining about public transit is really part of our blogging DNA. If you’re interested in a more smarty pants an actually intelligent discussion on the transit issues facing Ottawa you can now download the Journal of Public Transit in Ottawa online here. The Journal of Public Transit is a community reviewed publication offering independent analysis from interested writers, researchers and members of the informed public.... | Continue reading article