I know a lot of people here never did, but I still can't believe how stuffed the American stores are at the malls and how people are still patronizing places like Starbucks and Subway. I get it when there's no non-American substitute, but that's not a problem in Calgary! It's actually really easy to avoid American stuff here and still have all your needs and most wants fulfilled. Do people just not care? Anyone out there still trying?

EDIT: Wow, didn't expect this to be so popular! Thanks so much everyone for answering my question. I'm happy to know I'm not alone in this effort!

To be clear, I'm not trying to tell anyone what to do. I also don't believe in "all or nothing." Obviously we each have to make decisions that are best for our well-being, but my point is that there are a lot of low-effort changes we can make which do have a big effect. Boycotts work - this is documented and easily verifiable information. And over the last year, I've noticed so many more Canadian products popping up and companies expanding their product lines. It shows that when we support local, we enable ourselves to prosper.

At the moment I can't think of a single windblasted reason. Help me out. Why do people choose to live here?!

Silly answers encouraged, we could all use a laugh today

Oil is above $100/barrel. Why isn't Calgary booming like 2013? Do you think it will boom again in the next 3 years? What's the trajectory of Calgary's economy in the next 3 years.

It seems like property prices are very low in Calgary and lower than they were in 2013 (adjusted for inflation, in particularly condos)

Also downtown office vacancy is about 27% now vs 5% in 2013.

(Btw, for those saying it's not the same $100 today, USD100 = CAD100 in 2013 when the Canadian dollar was on par. So with inflation it's about CAD142 today. Pretty close to USD 100 = CAD 139 today.)

Hello Calgary,

Is anyone else getting bombarded by gambling ads on all platforms as of the last couple months?

I have never been a gambler so am curious why I am being targeted and if it is a city wide thing as the ads end with "Only in Alberta. Call 211 if you need help with gambling addiction"

UPDATE: Got a couch to sleep on, stayed dry. Leaving this up, as there were so many well wishes and positive feedback from everyone! Thank You, Calgary!

Hey Calgary! 🫡

My name is Christian, I'm from Latvia, and I'm currently on a world record attempt for the fastest walk around the world under the World Runners Association rules (26,232 km across 4 continents).
I’ve already crossed Australia 🇦🇺 and New Zealand 🇳🇿 (5,000+ km down!), and now I’m in the middle of walking 5,300 km from Vancouver to NYC.

I’m knocking out roughly 50 km today and aiming to set up camp around the Inglewood area tonight (Aug 11th–12th) before pushing another 50 km toward Strathmore tomorrow.

If anyone in or around Inglewood happens to have a small patch of grass, a yard, or a recommended safe spot where I could pitch my tent for the night, I’d be endlessly grateful!
Either way, have a great day, Calgary! 🙌

Am I the only one who thinks that festivities like decorating for Halloween/Christmas, trick or treating, ect. Has significantly declined?

I'm 20 right now so I'd imagine some of it is just bias (I'm not in elementary school forever) but I recently started to get so nostalgic for the Halloween decor I'd see in my area, and buying candy for kids and traditions like that

The last few years I think trick or treating has been super quiet in my area, and if I walk outside right now I don't see any decor. Is it just my area?

I'm planning a little shopping trip next week to find some fun stuff to put outside. But obviously it's Calgary so it's gotta be snow proof too lol

Hey Reddit, I want to create an updated video that kinda shows the things that foreigners find abnormal in Calgary that everyday folks find normal.

For example, people visiting always ask why our mayor is always so joyful and jolly 🤣

Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks for your help and ideas, Calgary <3

I’ve noticed a big increase over the last few years of adults riding regular bicycles on city sidewalks (not multi-use pathways, not signed dual-use sidewalks — actual sidewalks meant for pedestrians).
Most of the time they have no bell, come up from behind with zero warning, pass within inches, or ride straight at you and expect you to jump out of the way. Basic courtesy seems to have disappeared.

Just a reminder: according to City of Calgary bylaws, only children younger than 14 are allowed to ride bikes on sidewalks. Adults are required to use the road, bike lanes, or designated pathways. Riding in a way that interferes with pedestrians is also prohibited.

Is enforcement non-existent now, or has something changed that I’m missing? It’s getting unsafe and frankly inconsiderate.

I was waiting for a family member in that area of YYC and a Middle Eastern descent couple approached me in a car and waved me to come to them. I approached them and they introduced themselves. They’re a couple from Dubai and needed money as soon as possible. The guy handed me his gold ring and told me how much I would give him for his ring because he needed money fast. He said he needed to pay for gas and other stuff and showed me his gas tank on his car and it says 11km remaining on the dash. I said I don’t have cash with me right now and I’m just waiting for my family to text me so I can pick them up at the arrivals soon, and the lady keep begging and saying “please” with a pity face. They eventually said “okay thank you” and left.

Is this a new scam I don’t know about that’s happening in YYC or did they just genuinely need money?

Noticed this today, anyone know what’s up?

That’s it basically. i turned mine on! curious if others did

I've noticed since the provincial gas tax was cut a few days back, gas prices are kind of wild. Going around NW and NE some stations are 140-150 (which is a normal range) but some are still over 170 in the same area. Normally in these area I see they can sometimes be very different (like 10-15 cents) for a day when the price jumps overnight, but this has been like this for a few days and the difference is like almost 30 cents in some cases, that's nuts!

I'm very curious how does this make sense? Does anyone know?

Is there something that's going on that I'm not aware off?

Just curious if any ladies have had the same thing happen to them.

A few years ago, I was walking back to my car after going to the Winners in West Hills and this guy was driving slow beside me. He pulled right up, rolled down his window and said “hey I was just driving by and you caught my eye, I was wondering you wanted to get a coffee sometime”. I just said no, and didn’t think much more about it.

That was until today, when it happened again. I had gotten in my car and was sitting there with the windows down, letting my car cool off, and a guy pulls up beside me in his car, rolls down his window, and asks me the exact same thing, word for word. I can’t be sure but it appeared it be the same guy. I said no and he looked very confused that I would turn him down. He just sat there staring at me, until I said “my boyfriend wouldn’t like that” and then he drove off.

Again, nothing too scary it’s just a bit unsettling it happened twice.

I don’t go to Westhills often, has this happened to anyone else? Is there a guy that drives around the parking lot, following women to their cars and asking them out, or am I really just his type lol.

Went to a theatre to watch a movie tonight and I can't help but notice the number of people that sit there to surf their phones or talk to their friends/spouse/significant other. When did the social contract of being quiet and focusing on the movie they paid for suddenly no longer apply to them? Are people this tone deaf or did I simply have bad luck?

To the lady and her boyfriend sitting beside me watching Avatar - you need to learn to STFU. You truly are an inconsiderate a-hole and completely unaware I gave you a nice long death stare and you not once took notice.

genuinely asking because i called in sick once but kept working thru it thinking it’d eventually get better (plot twist: i was wrong) 😭 wtf is going on? or am i just weak- I’m anemic so I’d believe it

EDIT: thank you guys so much for your overwhelming response to my post! I actually did end up calling in again, which I probably should have done yesterday with the way I was feeling. I still feel extremely dizzy when I bend down for short periods of time, I still have an appetite, and because I took daytime Tylenol cold medicine I don’t have a headache. Still have body aches. The cough took my voice away completely, as I was coughing thru the night. I’ve actually never lost my voice before in my whole 19 years on earth 😭 well… eating lots of mandarins and staying warm for now. I hope we all get better very soon and whatever this is can leave us alone for good! praying for everyone and their loved ones in the comments- colds hit different lately :/ these new colds are diabolical LMFAO

I am tired of drivers who keep driving after clearly seeing me attempting to walk. It doesn’t feel safe being a pedestrian anymore, especially on the Centre Street road. At least once a week there is a driver that does this, and cars go too fast for me to take a photo of.

Anybody knows what’s going on?

Located in Altadore- internet and tv both down. Based on the screen on my tv it’s potentially been down since 3 AM. No listed outages on their website and currently 15 minutes in to waiting to talk to someone from their support team. Wondering how widespread this is. Stellar start to a work week.

Is it kosher to toss a bag of dog poop into a random alley black bin? Have always wondered how people in Calgary feel about this. The bins are technically City property but do people feel this is violating somehow, if a stranger puts dog poop in your black bin? Or is it good and welcome because it means dog poop is going in the garbage, where it belongs? Discuss.

EDIT: Okay, okay, green bin, not black! But the etiquette question still stands. OK in a random alley green bin?

Been a hell of a day. How is everyone planning to spend the rest of their day with no internet?

Saw this posted on other Canadian cities subreddits so wanted to ask Calgary.

What this intersection needed was 100% another sign. I don’t think they’re any other way you can communicate this. I feel at this point the city should just make a “No Right on Red” and be done with it lol.