Time after time

Just when it felt like your Casio was beginning to lose its flair, along came Swatch. Launched in ‘83, these iconic timepieces were so much more than a “second watch”. Vibrant and varied, they were an expression of you. 

Because of Swatch’s simple and affordable approach, you could have one for every occasion, but that’s not how everyone rolls. Vacheron Constantin has unveiled their latest, and it’s being hailed as the world’s most complicated watch! 

Talk about the time of your life ;)

(Love nostalgia? Play today’s trivia below for a chance to win a $25 Tim Hortons eGift Card!)

IN THE NEWS

United States deals biggest self-blow in recent memory

U.S. president Donald Trump’s “liberation day” reciprocal tariffs exceeded the worst expectations of economists, leading to an immediate 1,000+ point drop in after-hours trading of stocks on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Dow and other indexes continued their freefall yesterday.

Trump slapped at least 10% tariffs on nearly every country in the world, and went higher on several major partners, including 34% on China and 20% on Europe.

“In the next hours and day, the world’s reaction, likely retaliation and how much effort and money countries will deploy to fight the U.S. back will matter,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. “For now, everyone’s sinking, but the U.S. is going under first.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to the auto tariffs imposed on Canadian automobiles yesterday with a 25% tariff imposed on American cars that aren’t compliant with the United States Mexico Canada Agreement.

Carney said yesterday that if America isn’t up to the task of global leadership, Canada will have to do its part to step up.

"We must do extraordinary things for ourselves, we must do things previously thought impossible at speeds we haven't seen in generations," he said. "We are living in a new world now. It will be hard on Canadians but I have no doubt we will rise to the challenge.”

HOUSING

GTA sales plummet

Home sales in Canada’s biggest and second-most expensive housing market cratered in March as pervasive economic uncertainty continued flooding the market.

According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB), sales were down 23.1% compared to the same month last year, while inventory rose and prices fell in response.

TRREB said 5,011 homes were sold in the GTA in March, compared to 6,519 last year, and 17,263 properties hit the market, up a staggering 28.6% compared to March of 2024.

Tariffs and the threat of stagflation are surfacing as new challenges to consumer confidence, but they’re only adding to the existing predicament many homeowners are finding themselves in this year as their low-rate mortgages are set to renew at considerably higher rates.

A perfect storm appears to be brewing with thousands looking to unload unsustainable loans by selling their homes, but buyers are remaining on the sidelines, waiting for clarity on economic headwinds, and watching as prices continue to fall.

HEALTH

Study shows shingles vaccine reduces dementia risk

A study published recently in the journal Nature found a single dose of a shingles vaccine improves brain health, leading to a 20% reduction in the likelihood of developing dementia.

“It’s a very robust finding,” said lead researcher Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer of Stanford University. “[And] women seem to benefit more.”

Shingles itself “is a risk for dementia and now we have an intervention that can decrease the risk,” said Dr. Maria Nagel of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, an expert on viruses that impact the nervous system.

Experts still aren’t clear about how dementia and Alzheimer’s are caused, but they do know diseases like shingles—caused by the chickenpox virus—and others that tend to infect the nervous system can impact brain health over time, even if they’re dormant for years.

The chickenpox virus can cause organ and blood vessel inflammation, and also spur the growth of amyloid beta protein, which is almost always present in Alzheimer’s patients.

The American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend taking Shringrix’s shingles vaccine starting at age 50, particularly those who have weak immune systems or have contracted the virus before.

FEASTING FRIDAYS

Reese’s goes full nostalgia

It’s hard to think of a more nostalgic lunch than a good ol’ PB&J sandwich, and Reese’s understands the assignment.

At this very moment, the beloved confectionary giant is rolling out two new flavours of Peanut Butter Cups: PB&J Grape and PB&J Strawberry.

According to Reese’s senior staff who‘ve had a taste of the company’s latest release, both hit you right in the palette and right in the feels.

“People love peanut butter and chocolate together, and sometimes it’s just about finding that extra element that enhances it,” says Reese’s senior brand manager Melissa Blette. “That’s what we were doing with this project—how we’re continuing to make this a variant of Reese’s that people would love to try, in addition to the original that they already love.”

Reese’s timed the rollout in a way that basically revealed the treat while still leaving doubt in the consumer’s mind. How did they do this? By announcing it on April Fool’s Day of course—the day before National PB&J Day.

It turned out to indeed be a double-swerve, and Reese’s PB&J is coming to store shelves near you.

“As a brand, Reese’s likes to have fun. It’s confident in what it does but it has a good time,” Blette says. “We’ve never really pulled that lever [on April Fools’ Day] before, and knowing that National PB&J Day is on April 2, it was just so perfect.” 

WELLNESS

Study finds new benefits of cold plunging

Immersing oneself in near-freezing cold water has become a wellness trend in recent years, but a new study out of the University of Ottawa’s Human and Environmental Physiology Research Unit (HEPRU) suggests it may be more than that.

The study looked specifically at how cold water acclimation affects the cell recycling process—called autophagy—and found it can train the body to be more efficient in getting rid of damaged cells.

The researchers looked at the progress of 10 young men who immersed themselves in 14C water for an hour each day for seven days, then took blood samples after each session to track the body’s cellular changes.

“Our findings indicate that repeated cold exposure significantly improves autophagic function, a critical cellular protective mechanism,” said Professor Glen Kenny, Director of HEPRU and faculty member at Ottawa’s School of Human Kinetics. “This enhancement allows cells to better manage stress and could have important implications for health and longevity.”

Though Kenny and his team initially detected autophagic dysfunction, the process stabilized after the seven days, leading to a more efficiency in cellular recycling.

SCIENCE

Helene deadliest hurricane in U.S. since Katrina

The National Hurricane Center published a report last week revealing Hurricane Helene was the deadliest storm to hit the United States since Hurricane Katrina.

249 people died as a result of the storm, with 175 deaths directly caused by it. 94 of direct deaths were caused by flooding and the resulting landslides, while 65 were killed by intense hurricane winds.

While Katrina remains the deadliest storm by far (1,400 deaths, 520 of which were direct), Helene highlights the major need for better hurricane preparedness moving forward, as storms continue to become stronger, more frequent, and more unpredictable.

Just weeks after Helene, Hurricane Milton formed off the southwest coast of Florida, and grew from a Category 1 to a Category 5 hurricane in just seven hours.

The strength and size of the flash floods caused by Helene caught the American Southeast off guard as well, getting as far inland as Tennessee and western North Carolina.

Populated areas in this region will need to make efforts to sandbag homes, levy rivers, board up windows, and ultimately just flee the area if necessary moving forward as tropical storms and hurricanes continue to increasingly pound the region.

SPORTS

Premier League to use automated offside technology

The English Premier League announced the other day that starting on April 12 it will use semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) to make offside calls considerably faster during matches.

SAOT will leverage 30 cameras suspended above the field in each Premier League stadium, which will track the ball’s precise location and 10,000 surface data points for players in motion.

League officials are stressing that this won’t impact the accuracy of offside calls, which it maintains are currently correct. However, it will expedite the process by which the calls are made by an average of 30 seconds.

"[SAOT] provides more efficient placement of the virtual offside line, using optical player tracking, and generates virtual graphics to ensure an enhanced in-stadium and broadcast experience for fans,” said Genesis Sports, the tech firm behind the technology.

The system is intended to curb the frustration fans and teams alike have had with video-assisted replay (VAR), the current system that can take minutes to determine if a play was offside, often resulting in goals being called back well after the play has moved on.

STAKE TRIVIA

This just in…

So much of our lives revolve around the news—including some of our fave TV shows and movies 😏 

From The Mary Tyler Moore Show to Murphy Brown, we’ll be highlighting the news with today’s trivia! Complete the game and you’ll earn a shot at a $25 Tim Hortons eGift Card ;)

Winner will be notified on Monday afternoon. Keep an eye on your inbox!*

Have a great weekend, Staker!

Today’s issue written by Michael Cowan, Joey Cowan, and Maureen Norman.


*SEE FULL STAKE TRIVIA CONTEST RULES HERE.