As cases of COVID-19 began to spread across Canada in mid-March, governments, at every level, were left with little choice but to initiate a lockdown. While these actions were necessary to curtail the spread and keep the public health care system from being overwhelmed, the decision has carried a massive economic toll.

What was unthinkable only weeks earlier, had come to pass. For the first time in the history of the country, vast sectors of the economy were deliberately shut down. The border with the United States, the largest undefended border in the world, closed to all but commercial traffic — and likely to remain so for weeks or even months to come — school years were cancelled in many jurisdictions, and malls and non-essential retailers told to close their doors. …

As ‘stay-at-home’ orders continue and a full return to normal seems a distant reality, many of us are turning to television to help us cope. While some have been binge-watching the latest ‘must-watch’ selections on streaming services like Netflix or Hulu, others are turning back to their nostalgic favorites as a source of comfort. At a time when we can’t visit our family and friends, spending time with our favorite TV characters is a small consolation.

For me, The Golden Girls is my sentimental favorite. If I’m being honest, long before we were in the midst of a pandemic, spending time with Rose, Sophia, Dorothy, and Blanche was something I did often. If I had a bad day at work, was down in the dumps, or just needed a laugh, I nearly always settled on spending some quality time with the four ladies from Miami. …

Over the last decade, binge-watching TV shows has become the new normal. For many of us, the idea of having to wait a week for the next episode, and sitting through commercials every ten minutes seems archaic. While the ‘traditional’ model of television still exists, it’s been struggling to survive, and the current global situation is unlikely to help.

As many of us are being asked to remain at home, the demand for binge-worthy content is at an all-time high. …

Across the globe, the day-to-day routines of billions of people have come to a halt. With physical distancing measures being enforced in almost every major country on the planet, many of us are spending our days inside our homes unable to be with our loved ones.

Most restaurants, cafes, gyms, and malls are temporarily closed, and keeping yourself occupied and socially active may be a struggle, particularly for those of us who are accustomed to busy lives outside the home. Being stuck inside doesn’t have to be boring, however, and just because we’ve been asked to physically distance ourselves from family and friends, doesn’t mean we have to be bored or socially isolate ourselves. …

For almost seventy-years, television has been something of an extended family member to many of us. The flickering images across its screen have made us laugh, cry, worry, and distracted us from the highs and lows of day-to-day life. For some of us, the television was a babysitter whom our parents would plunk us in front of to keep us occupied for hours on end.

When I was a child in the 1980s and 90s — before TVs in every room or streaming on your laptop was a thing, the TV was the modern hearth of most family homes; it was where most of our quality family time took place. Even to this day, TV occupies a significant part of family time. When we gather as a family, it typically involves watching a show or YouTube clips together, and if we don’t actually sit down to a TV show, our topic of conversation often converge on what we’ve been watching at home. …

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I suppose I should start by apologizing to everyone. I’ve decided to make today’s Top 3 a COVID-19 edition — I know, I know! If you’re anything like me, you’re trying to avoid stories about the current crisis. It’s not that I’m downplaying the seriousness of this crisis, but outside of watching the news once a day, I have to step away. As someone with anxiety, the pandemic has taken a toll on my mental health. …

Exactly one year ago, I moved my cursor up to the green ‘publish’ button and with a nervous exhale, clicked the button. I had finally taken the plunge and published my first article. I was filled with trepidation and excitement, not knowing what awaited me. Looking back at it with twelve months of hindsight, I clearly had no idea what I was doing or fully appreciated what I was getting myself into — to a certain degree, I still don’t.

I had been toying with the idea of publishing my own articles for some time. Several months prior, I had transitioned to a full-time career as a freelance writer. While I was enthralled by the opportunities freelance writing was providing me, I felt slightly muzzled. As a freelance writer, my writing was confined to writing for clients and meeting their needs. My input, desires, and points of view were not required. In effect, I was creating a product for others and often on topics that were occasionally of little interest to me personally. …

It doesn’t matter if it’s your native language or it’s your second, third or even fourth, English can be grammatically challenging. Miss a comma or an apostrophe, and a sentence can take on a whole different meaning, sometimes with unintentionally humorous or even disastrous results.

In 2010, Tails magazine — a publication for pet enthusiasts — featured celebrity chef Rachael Ray on the cover. Two years later, the cover went viral when a reader noticed an awkward grammatical error in tagline promoting Ray’s interview. It read:

“Rachael Ray finds inspiration in cooking her family and her dog.”

Now, in Tails’ defence, it was quickly discovered that someone had photoshopped the commas out of the sentence, and that original publication featured the grammatically correct…