BLOGS at durhamregion.com

Reka Szekely is a reporter with Metroland's Durham Region Media Group. She covers Durham Regional Council and blogs about local politics and beyond. She loves getting feedback and news tips from her readers. E-mail her or message her on Twitter @rszekely. Follow Reka's blog

Rich Helms - Webmaster In Residence

The only constant about the Internet is change. Rich Helms will explore new metaphors and developments in the web. A Sunderland resident and owner of a computer R&D firm in Uxbridge, Rich draws on his 30+ years of software development experience to offer web-related workshops and classes. He is the webmaster and a board member of The Writers’ Circle of Durham Region. Follow Rich's blog

Blushing Bride

Stefanie Swinson is an online reporter for Metroland Durham Region Media Group and newsdurhamregion.com, and also a blushing bride getting ready for the big day. Follow the adventures of planning a wedding right here

Neil Crone - Enter Laughing

Neil is a longtime Sunderland resident and an accomplished Canadian comedian and actor with a lengthy list of television, movie and stage credits on his resume. Follow Neil's blog.

Scene and Heard with Will McGuirk

Will McGuirk has Scene and Heard it all when it comes to music. Follow along as he keeps an ear to the local music scene. Read Will's blog.

Explore Durham

Explore Durham is your guide to the best of what Durham Region has to offer.  You'll see the nature, get tips on dining, shopping and local accommodations, experience the sports, find out about local history, and get a feel for life on the farm.  Your tour guide is award-winning travel writer Betty Zyvatkauskas.

Read the Explore Durham blog

Past, Present & Future

Laurence feels that the genres of alternative history, sci-fi and fantasy have been ignored for too long. It’s time to lift the stones and rotting wood and let the sun shine in. This will be an adventure in time and space that we all can share. From Asimov to Turtledove and Rowling to Tolkien, this will be one heck of a ride. Strap yourselves in and start your rocket boosters. We are going to meet characters, both old and new, with, I hope, some surprises. Remember to also dodge the bullets; the odd military adventure will also come barreling along. Read Laurence's Blog

Emergency Planning with Pamela Kullo-Egelton

Pamela Kullo-Egelton, a Whitby Shores resident, retired from the City of Toronto in 2006 where she was employed as an Emergency Planning Coordinator. She has been an instructor in the Emergency Management Program at Durham College. She is also a private consultant involved in emergency management training. Follow her blog.

People, Places and Things

Between corporate and technical writing gigs, Pickering resident Valerie Bean writes magazines features, news, profiles, and general-interest articles. She is a published book author and an internationally published poet. Check it out!

Sustainable Living in Durham

Duane Cook, born and raised in Durham Region has been gardening organicaly for about 20 years. He began blogging in this space about gardening naturally and is now sharing his insights on living sustainably.  When not working at his "real" job with a local manufacturing company, Duane can often be found roaming around his two acres in Kendal with his wife of 18 years and their four sons. Visit Duane for his tips on Sustainable Living in Durham.

Pressing Buttons

Tyler Ohlew, currently a journalism student at Durham College, has never spent a day where he hasn’t at least touched a video game controller. While just touching a controller does seem odd, it at least shows his commitment to the hobby. Read of his adventures of playing video games into the early hours of the morning, and learn of his frustrations as he tries to beat Kid Icarus for the first time of his life. Pressing Buttons

Technically Speaking

Laurence Cutner moved from England to Canada 20 years ago and has lived in Durham Region for 11 years. He has been so long in the IT industry that he has a Tandy Portable, a Compaq ‘luggable’, a Commodore 64 and 4 PCs at home. Beyond that he is an avid reader of sci-fi and his current obsession, alternative history. He has, in the past, backpacked through Europe and traveled to the Middle East and South America. His real boast is that he has been married for 26 years and has a son who is possibly even more ‘techie’ than him. Read Laurence's Blog

Word's Worth with Christy Chase

Christy Chase is a copy editor with the Metroland Durham Group of newspapers. A lover of words since she learned to read, she knew in high school that her future involved working with them in one way or another. She's been a reporter/editor for more than 30 years, churning out thousands of words daily during that period. She's delighted to share some of her favourites through her blog. Check out  Word's Worth.

Comment guidelines

Joanne Burghardt, Editor-in-Chief

Hello, we hope you're enjoying reading and participating in blogs at durhamregion.com, the website for the Metroland Durham Region Media Group* (MDRMG).

The goal of our blogs is to provide staff and public members who have an area of expertise an opportunity to share their insights with you in a fun and interactive format.  We stress fun...we're not here to facilitate personal attacks, nor accusations spewed by those who scurry about behind a cloak of anonymity.

Comments are moderated by the editors of the MDRMG and those selected for publication will:

• Be tightly written and on the topic of the post
• Present a fresh thought and not a repeat of a point previously made
• Get bonus points for proper spelling and grammar

Healthy debate of the issues is what we're here for, but you won’t get past the starting gate if you ignore our guidelines. That means:

• No statements that are potentially libelous  (calling someone a liar is a definite no-no).
• No statements of fact that can not be readily proven. If you're going to say something is so, please back that statement up with the data you used to arrive at that statement - we don't have time to track it down for you.
• No obscene or racist comments or inappropriate language (no, you can't call someone a dumb ass nor make sweeping derogatory statements about any group of people.)
• No personal attacks or comments that in tone or substance cross the boundary of good taste.
• No fake names, no witty pseudonyms, no anonymous comments. Please include your full first and last name. We feel strongly about this one - we put our names on the blogs and expect you to do the same. Anyone found to be lying about their identity will be permanently banned from participating.
• No using multiple identities from one IP address.

If you ignore these guidelines you run the risk of being banned.

*The MDRMG publishes a wide variety of newspapers, magazines and special products and is the single largest distributor of advertising content in Durham Region.  Our newspaper titles include Oshawa This Week, Whitby This Week, Clarington This Week, the Canadian Statesman, Ajax & Pickering News Advertiser, the Uxbridge Times-Journal, Brooklin Citizen and the Port Perry Star.