Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2025 i Zoomer Magazine

Move over, metformin, there’s a new longevity hack making the rounds. As the life-extending properties of the common diabetes drug are being investigated in the U.S., a small but growing chorus is touting smaller-than-normal doses of GLP-1 receptor agonists like Ozempic and Wegovy to put some pep in your step, give your skin an inner glow, improve mental alertness and alleviate the aches and pains of arthritis. It’s called microdosing, and the chattering classes on TikTok, Reddit and Instagram are debating the merits of using tiny injections of the weight-loss drugs initially approved to treat diabetes. At the University of Toronto, GLP-1s are being studied by Dr. David Drucker for their anti-inflammatory properties, especially in the brain, and other research has looked at their role in mitigating aging-related afflictions…

DASH OF FEMININE The first tender, delicate pink-and-green shoots of rhubarb are the inspiration for Prada Infusion de Rhubarbe. The fragrance harnesses the vegetable’s tart qualities with top notes of green mandarin, as well as its sweetness with traces of rose and white musk. For a more boho vibe, Jo Malone Beach Blossom is an embrace of the hazy, lazy, sun-filled days to come with coconut water, lime mint and tonka bean. Aerin Lauder, heir to the famed Estée Lauder beauty empire, invites you to escape to a garden somewhere with AERIN Mediterranean Honeysuckle Figue. Its notes of sun-ripened figs, citrusy Italian bergamot and softly sweet honeysuckle capture the season in a bottle. MASCULINE ENERGY Storied British perfumery Penhaligon’s – bestowed with four Royal Warrants – wittily creates tales…

People often say how brave I am to be so open about the three cancers I’ve been diagnosed with. Nonsense. I write and talk about my experiences – on air and elsewhere – because I want to. But there was one aspect of the sharing – actually, the oversharing – where I surprised myself: I can’t believe I agreed to be photographed and followed by cameras while looking my absolute worst. It started with the photo shoot to launch Zoomer Beauty cosmetics in April 2023. It was before steroids had given me the telltale swollen jowls, but my reaction to that round of treatment had been so bad that I was in bed with side-effects for nearly a week. I joked that if the shoot had been scheduled even…

Margaret Rudolf expertly shifts gears on her 16-year-old Mini Cooper convertible as she navigates West Vancouver’s steep, twisty roads on her way home for lunch. Since she retired from the federal civil service in 2008 and moved to B.C., the 71-year-old took up skiing again, qualified as an instructor and is now a member at Whistler Blackcomb snow school. In 2016, the fluent Slovenian speaker accepted the role as honorary consul in B.C. for the Republic of Slovenia, where her parents were born. Rudolf is not your stereotypical older adult, so, when she was diagnosed with stage three ovarian cancer three years ago, she was shocked to learn she had two tumours the size of oranges. “I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding,’” she recalls. “My husband used to…

A PASSPORT TO TRAVEL INSPIRATION AND UNEXPECTED EXPERIENCES It’s 10 p.m. in Venice, and my shipmates and I are alone in the 1000-year-old St. Mark’s Basilica. “Come around here,” says our guide, “and sit down. I want to show you something truly special.” With that, she unveils an altarpiece that’s around the size of a grade school chalkboard, but gleams like a thousand stars. We let out a collective gasp. The Pala d’Oro is a Byzantine masterpiece studded with thousands of pearls, 300 emeralds, 300 sapphires, 400 garnets, 100 amethysts and a sprinkling of rubies and topazes. And it’s not even the most impressive thing I’ve seen today. I originally came on this luxury river cruise to play the part of “tortured artist” while finishing the edits on my…

A CURATED COLLECTION OF NOSTALGIA AND THE LATEST POP CULTURE BUZZ ANGELA BASSETT WAS NEVER AN INGENUE. She landed on our screens in the late ’80s with the strength and elegance that came to define her performances and persona, and spoke to the complex, multifaceted experiences of seasoned women navigating their own journeys of reinvention and sexual awakening. In roles like What’s Love Got to Do With It, Waiting To Exhale, How Stella Got Her Groove Back and Black Panther, she elevated the standard of how Black women love and lead. As Bassett enters the golden age of her career, with more than 100 roles to her credit, she remains unapologetically bold and effortlessly regal and is a living testament to the notion that the best is yet to…

Deeply inspired by the wave of true patriot love sweeping Canada, our next issue will be a special collector’s edition dedicated to the best of who and what we are as a nation.—Suzanne Boyd, Editor-in-Chief & Publisher “Canadians are reasonable and we are polite, but we will not back down from a fight – not when our country and the well-being of everyone in it is at stake.”—Justin Trudeau, 23rd prime minister “CANADA IS THE MOST UNDERRATED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD.”—DRAKE, MUSICIAN “No one can say ‘sorry’ quite like a Canadian and make it mean many, many things.”—Sandra Oh, actor “I’m so proud to be Canadian. I’ve been to 58 countries, and they’re wonderful countries, but Canada is the best.”—Paul Henderson, hockey player “Canadians are shaped by the land,…

WHEN NEWLYWED YOKO ONO ARRIVED IN CANADA FOR A BED-IN WITH HUSBAND JOHN LENNON IN 1969, SHE HAD NOT YET BEEN SADDLED WITH THE MISOGYNIST SCAPEGOAT TITLE OF THE WOMAN WHO BROKE UP THE BEATLES. AT THAT POINT, A YEAR BEFORE THE FAB FOUR SPLIT, SHE WAS MERELY ENDURING THE LABEL OF HOME WRECKER FOR HAVING “STOLEN” A PILLAR OF ROCK ROYALTY AWAY FROM HIS FIRST WIFE, CYNTHIA, AND SON, JULIAN. Back home in England, Ono faced a daily barrage of racist taunts from the media and even people on the street. And yet, she held her head high, as a woman in love and an artist with a purpose. In Montreal, she and Lennon staged their protest to end the war in Vietnam. And lying supine in white…

August 2022. My husband and I are driving along Highway 401 near Kingston, Ont., the rain coming down in sheets on the windshield. With just 29 kilometres of charge remaining in our electric vehicle battery, Drew pulls up at a charging station. Whew, made it. He jumps out of the car, connects the cable, inserts the charging card, and … nada. He calls the support centre, waits a few minutes while they reboot the charging station and gives me a thumbs-up. Forty minutes later we’re on our way. All told, it takes us nine hours – double the expected time – to drive from Toronto to Ottawa, where we manage to catch the last two hours of a family reunion. To be fair, the electric vehicle (EV) landscape has…

1 THE ULTIMATE URBAN SWIM The Serpentine Lido (the term comes from the Latin for “shore”) is a study in contrasts. It’s the ultimate wild swim – yet it’s in the heart of central London. Queen Caroline (wife of George II) established the ornamental lake in Hyde Park in the 1730s, when it was still countryside. The city has since filled in around it. The effect of a serene expanse of nature amid the thrum of one of the world’s busiest cities is spectacular. Recreational swimmers have braved the Serpentine since at least 1864, when the Serpentine Swimming Club formed. And now I’m part of the pack. The opportunity arose in early September, while I was staying at a South Kensington hotel, The Gore, mere steps from Hyde Park.…

VIVA ISABELLA I really enjoyed your article on Isabella Rossellini (“Freedom to Rome,” February/March 2025). As a woman in my late 60s, I enjoyed reading about an actor who is content to accept aging naturally. It’s always refreshing to see someone who, despite having the means to erase all evidence of being an older woman, is aging intentionally. Kudos to Isabella! —Catherine Kiernan THE GEOPOLITICS OF DINING I am writing to express my disappointment with the article regarding restaurants in Hong Kong (“In the Mood for Hong Kong,” February/March 2025). It gives the impression that it’s business as usual. I enjoyed Hong Kong on a past visit, and would like to again. But I do not condone the present political climate and so, I will not. —Elfrieda Trigg ZOOMER…

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST STYLING CLAIM TO FAME? I have been fortunate to work in a variety of different areas of the fashion industry – from runway to reality, literally! I was the style expert for all 13 seasons on The Marilyn Denis Show, so I like to think of myself as the people’s stylist. DO YOU HAVE A FASHION FORMULA? I have created a wardrobe equation for my own style that I tell everyone to follow: Ideally, you should have 50 per cent foundation pieces. Think impeccably fitting jeans, classic trousers, crisp white shirts, deconstructed blazers, a trench coat, cool sneakers and a chic scarf. These classic pieces act as a blank canvas, allowing you to seamlessly incorporate seasonal trends. Then, you need 25 per cent statement toppers:…

Deep into Alberta’s vast territory, 120 kilometres northeast of Edmonton on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, lies Métis Crossing. Built on the original river lots of Métis settlers along one of Canada’s most important fur-trading routes, the cultural interpretive centre and sleek, modern lodge has eight sky-watching domes. Their transparent ceilings are perfectly positioned for lying in your king-sized bed and gazing at the heavens. Choose your dome based on the part of the sky you’d like to see – north for the aurora borealis or south for the Perseid meteor shower. Deepen your understanding of the night sky with an interpretative talk from a Métis knowledge holder, who will explain how they used the stars to time hunts, harvest plants and track changes in the weather.…

IT HAS THE MAKINGS OF A POWERFUL PHOTO OP: five of Hollywood’s heavy hitters are landing in New York City for a Broadway run in 2025. How great would it be to have them all in one room? Book them a table at Joe Allen’s, get them courtside seats at a Knicks game, send them all letters asking to meet at the top of the Empire State Building. At the very least, let’s hope that Keanu, George and Kieran show up on the same night to marvel at Denzel and Jake treading the boards in Othello. CAST OF CHARACTERS STORIES FROM THE STAGE This will be Clooney’s Broadway debut, but he credits a role in a small Los Angeles theatre production in 1986 for giving him his big break.…