How you can Support this web site

For $50.00 per year, Woodbine-Gerrard.com sponsors get a web page on this site. For more information, see the sponsorship page.

Publish your own web site here

From $5.00 per month, you can have a web site hosted on Woodbine-Gerrard.com. You get your own subdomain and an e-mail address (e.g., http://chris.woodbine-gerrard.com and chris@woodbine-gerrard.com). The various packages are outlined on the site hosting page.

Merchandise

A number of items sporting the Woodbine-Gerrard.com logo, from T-shirts to coffee mugs, are available from CafePress.com. A portion of the purchase price (usually about $3.00 per item) will go to support this web site.

Contribute to the site

Although I have been a professional writer at various times in my life (many newspaper and magazine articles, and one book), I often write very slowly. This is especially true when, as with this web site, I don't have to meet a deadline. There are several articles I have been planning that either haven't got off the ground, or which exist only in rough draughts. Your contributions would be much appreciated.

Write articles

In order to flesh out the site, I invite you to write an article to be posted here. (Or how about a regular column?) Or to submit photographs or drawings. Or to provide information which I can incorporate into one of my articles (when I get around to it).

I am looking for anything relevant to the Woodbine-Gerrard neighbourhood: events, places, people, businesses; anything of interest will be considered.

Suggest improvements

Is there a feature you would like to see added to the web site, or a page that doesn't work well? Could the navigation of the site be improved?

If you have any suggestions, please post them on the feedback pageor send them to me at chris @woodbine-gerrard .com (include '[WG]' in the subject to bypass the spam filter), or post them on the feedback page. .

Support your local businesses

There is a lot more to any neighbourhood, but its businesses are often the most prominent feature, and they often define it to a large extent. Well-supported businesses can encourage people to spend their money locally and draw people into a neighbourhood. A popular store draws traffic, benefitting its neighbours as well.

Please look at what the area has to offer, and try local businesses before going elsewhere. Tell the proprietors that you were encouraged to shop locally by the Woodbine-Gerrard.com web site.

While I prefer to offer something tangible in exchange for money, I do accept donations, which can be made via , or directly to:

Chris Johnson
691 Woodbine Avenue, Apt. 1
Toronto
M4E 2J4

Support the webmaster

I make my living through various types of free-lance work. Even though my rates are lower than most, they are much more than I can make with most temporary or part-time jobs. The more contract work I get, the fewer hours I need to work, and the more time I can spend improving this web site.

Here is a quick look at the services I offer:

Web page design and coding

I have been creating web sites since 1996, for myself and for other people. Over the years, I have learned the value of making sites accessible to all browsers and all shapes and sizes of computer.

The pages I write use as little code as possible, making them easy for you to edit in any text editor; no special software is required.

My services include:

Cryptic crosswords

My cryptic crosswords, which appear every Saturday in the Toronto Sun and monthly in Good Times magazine, are available by e-mail subscription for $25.00 per year. You can see a sample puzzle here as HTML or here in PDF (the format used for subscriptions).

The puzzles are available by syndication for your magazine, newspaper or newsletter.

Puzzles can also be commissioned for your publication, on a regular or one-time basis. I can do thematic puzzles, but they take longer to compose and cost significantly more than regular cryptic puzzles.

Contact me for more information at chris @woodbine-gerrard .com (include '[WG]' in the subject to bypass the spam filter), or post them on the feedback page.

I compose regular crosswords, too, but I use cryptic-style grids (see samples above), rather than the North American style in which every letter is part of two words.

Chess instruction for all ages

I have been teaching chess to children and adults on and off for 35 years, giving classes in public and private schools, chess camps, a community college, and tutoring privately in my own or my student's home.

I teach all ages, from 7 years old and up. My lessons are tailored to the students' individual needs and go from absolute beginner to tournament preparation.

Computer programming and administration

I don't do Windows!