1,000
A susbcriber milestone
This past week I surpassed 1,000 daily subscribers to this newsletter. The impetus seems to have been the Tuesday Airbnb post making its way to the Prince George subreddit where it was dicussed and shared further. Honestly, I’m always a little surprised at this point when I get a raft of new susbcribers because I sort of feel like anyone who might be interested in this newsletter would have heard of it by now but I guess this is how word-of-mouth works.
One thing I try to be cognizant of is the concept of Eternal September — that is, the idea that on the internet it’s always somebody’s first day. With the recent spike of new folks receiving this email, it feels like a good time to reintroduce what it is all about (which you can also find, appropriately enough, on the “about” page.)
One key point I really want to highlight is that this is a hobby. I have a day job and this newsletter ain’t it. I created it because I like sharing and talking about things going on in Prince George and after a decade+ of doing so on Facebook and Twitter I just kind of got tired of the way those platforms worked. Instead of sending a bunch of links and thoughts into the algorithm, I decided to see what would happen if I posted those same links and maybe slightly more strung together thoughts into one daily missive and, well, so far it has stuck. People like it, I like it, and so I’ll keep doing it as long as those two things remain true.
Related to that: I have no plans to monetize this thing. It is and will remain free. What that could mean for you is that if you appreciate getting a daily roundup of news, and you think it’s something you would be willing to pay for, consider putting that money toward one of the local outlets that I heavily rely on to write this. I wrote about how you can do so here.
I cannot emphasize this enough: It is much, much easier for me to log onto the internet every night and grab a bunch of links to interesting stories than it is to be the person writing those stories. I say this from experience. Whatever insights or analysis I may add, it is built on the backbone of reporters sitting through school board meetings or going out and talking to people.
Beyond that, feel free to share and recommend to others. I am perfectly happy about writing for one thousand of you, just as I was when it was about twenty, but it’s nice to know that people are enjoying the output. You can comment on posts (this is a website, too, by the way) or email me directly by hitting reply when it comes into your inbox. I am not always the best at responding but I do read it all. Thanks for coming along!
News roundup:
You know who’s worried about the minimum wage increase? People who pay minimum wage.
City council is supportive of a proposed new carbon capture facility in the city.
The CN Centre has put out a call to action for people to come out and support the Cougars. “The excuse I’ve always heard is, ‘I’m not going to come out until there’s a winning team,” manager Glen Mikkelsen says in the ‘fireside chat.’ “Well, I’m here to tell you today that we have a winning team.” Related: “Why are so few people in Prince George coming out to PG Cougars games?”
A documentary about stand-up comedians in Prince George is screening on March 7.
One of and possibly the oldest Indigenous storytelling festival in Canada — 'Ut'loo Noye Khunni ~ Weaving Words Celebration — is kicking off next week at UNBC. Features Garry Gottfriedson and Helen Knott.
New snow in Prince George leaves ski trails in great shape for world championships.
Simpcw First Nation celebrates new family services office in Prince George.
58 lane kilometres of road rehabilitated in Prince George in 2023.
Today’s song:
Northern Capital News is a free, daily newsletter about life in Prince George. Please consider subscribing or, if you have, sharing with someone else.
Send feedback by replying to this email. Find me online at akurjata.ca.
*psssst* Your minimum wage link goes to a "PG as mountain biking mecca" story. Which instantly made me feel old because there's no way I'd fly down the cutbanks on my bike. 😉
I think this is the link you want on minimum wage?
https://www.myprincegeorgenow.com/192860/news/minimum-wage-increase-draws-mixed-reaction-from-pg-chamber-of-commerce-president/
PS: thank you for this newsletter/ bloggy thing. I had the best of intentions to just start using my Substack for some kind of personal therapeutic writing but as you and I can see, *crickets*. It definitely takes a real A-type with a lot of energy and passion to pile on more (unpaid) work into an already busy work and personal life. Maybe one day I'll post something random....
P.P.S.: any idea if the Citizen, now that it's owned by Stolz, will still need my donation? I was wondering how that works with the new boss...