So i'm sitting here waiting for my friend Darcy to come pick me up and take me to some soccer dome or other where we are to begin our 15.5 hour frisbee marathon. I WAS texting with Heather, but I must have taken too long in the shower, because she seems to have given up on me. So I thought - why not fill this awkward chunk of time I have before me by writing for all the people I don't know who read Heather's blog!
Actually I DO know some of you now - hello. I will be back in your grid-shaped city sometime soon, so please do everything in your power to keep the crazy chinook weather I've been hearing about. Waterloo is full of snow and I think it would be hilarious to go to Calgary to get out of the cold. Random aside: FULL of snow. I was walking home today, just strolling along, humming some catchy tune, when all of a sudden I realized that the giant alien-shaped snow mound that seemed to be right in my way was NOT as I had assumed, a Friday-afternoon-exhaustion hallucination. Not only was it real, it was the height of three men. Three full-grown Shaqs. I had to climb it. If anyone from the Waterloo snow removal crew is reading this and having a good chuckle at my expense, I invite you to explain to me why you never fail to throw all my neighbour's snow, from the sidewalk I have never once seen him shovel, onto MY lawn. Now there is a mountain of snow impeding my view from the driveway, and one of these days I'm going to hit someone and THEN whose fault will it be?
I didn't really intend for this to be about snow... What I was GOING to talk about was some hip social psychology research I was reading about the other day, when I discovered I have to give a lecture on a topic I know nothing about next Monday. If you had to pick, would you prefer that your boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse/whatever you call that person, you know who I'm talking about a) have sex with someone else but not become emotionally involved with that other person, or b) fall in love with someone else but not do anything physical this person? Obviously neither of these prospects is all that appealing, but according to this research, the answer you pick will depend on whether you're a guy or a girl. Dudes in general prefer that their significant other fall in love with someone but not engage in any kind of nooky, but ladies tend to prefer to be cheated on in the physical, but non-emotional, kind of way. Something to keep in mind when you're contemplating your extramarrital options.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Fairmont
Today was a pretty sweet day. I had a conference at the Palliser. There was couple of pretty cool talks. The most interesting one was about the reclamation of a shooting range just south of Edmonton. There were lead issues, but they cleaned up and are turning the property into a sports complex. Very cool.
The lunch at the Palliser was pretty amazing. It was a steak with grilled veggies and mashed potatoes. Wow, yum. Desert was seriously amazing too. I can't remember what it was called. I could have called it "amazing chocolate desert with more chocolate in it that looks like a giant toblerone piece". DELICIOUS.
Any here is the highlight:
There is a door prize at the end of the conference, AND I WON!!!!! The reason I'm stoked about that is the prize is a $250 gift certificate at any Fairmont Hotel. How much does that KICK ASS?
The funny thing was that I actually didn't bring a business card to put in the draw. I decided to leave my bag at home today, and just bring my wallet. So I didn't have one on me. When they announced the prize, I figured I had to enter somehow. So I was going to write my name and company on a piece of paper (if I could find one). Then I remember when I showed up, that was exactly what they had given me - in the form of a name tag. So I ended that. ;)
I felt a bit like an idiot on a game show, because I made no attempt to conceal how STOKED I was to win. WOOHOO.
The lunch at the Palliser was pretty amazing. It was a steak with grilled veggies and mashed potatoes. Wow, yum. Desert was seriously amazing too. I can't remember what it was called. I could have called it "amazing chocolate desert with more chocolate in it that looks like a giant toblerone piece". DELICIOUS.
Any here is the highlight:
There is a door prize at the end of the conference, AND I WON!!!!! The reason I'm stoked about that is the prize is a $250 gift certificate at any Fairmont Hotel. How much does that KICK ASS?
The funny thing was that I actually didn't bring a business card to put in the draw. I decided to leave my bag at home today, and just bring my wallet. So I didn't have one on me. When they announced the prize, I figured I had to enter somehow. So I was going to write my name and company on a piece of paper (if I could find one). Then I remember when I showed up, that was exactly what they had given me - in the form of a name tag. So I ended that. ;)
I felt a bit like an idiot on a game show, because I made no attempt to conceal how STOKED I was to win. WOOHOO.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Have You Seen Petra?
Oh dear. Petra is missing. Please keep an eye out for her.
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,603832,00.html
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,603832,00.html
Monday, January 26, 2009
ISEEE lecture
“Agriculture and Energy Use: Moral and Technological Challenges” by John M. Staudemaier
I went to a really interesting lecture on Thursday night. It was kind of perfect timing, because I have a sore knee that is bugging me – bugging me enough to need two nights off in a row. I might have been grumpy about this, but having a cool lecture to go to smoothed things over nicely.
Aside: is ‘kind of perfect’ an oxy moron? No, I suppose not. Just a poor choice of words.
When I read the lecture title, I guessed that the talk would be on either the food for fuel debate, or possibly something to do with world hunger. I was very wrong.
He started of talking about the debate between whether (wo)man is separate from nature through his/her ability to control it through science and technology, versus (wo)man being unseparatable of nature. The rest of the talk focused on modern mechanized farming vs. smaller localized farming. He talked about the environmental impacts, energy inputs and economics.
The lecturer was a history prof, so he has some interesting things to say about the history of farming in North America. Actually the entire talk was focused on North America, which as I mentioned before, I was a bit surprised by.
The details on small farming practices vs. large farming practices were not new to me. None the less, it was really interesting, and a good refreshing. I was most familiar with the environmental issues involved with large farming practices (there’s loads, really: petroleum inputs, from gas to pesticides and fertilizers, erosion, water use, and extra energy to ship the foods to far off markets, just to name a few).
He touched on a few examples of unsustainable farming that were interesting. For the most part, the examples were farms that require huge energy and/or water inputs. The example I remember most clearly is an area in the desert in Arizona that grows cotton, which requires massive amounts of water. I enjoyed when the prof explained the difficulty and amount of energy involved with moving water by saying if you weren’t sure if it was easy, just carry a 4 L bucket of water with you for an hour a day.
The lecture also had a lot of parallels with the book Fast Food Nation
by Eric Schlosser. It’s a really good book, if a little disturbing. Fast Food Nation talks about many other aspects of the fast food industry in the States. Both the book and the prof touch on the really gross things that happen in slaughterhouses. While I’d already heard about it (I won’t go into details), it was still a little disturbing to hear again. He described it in a way that made my vision narrow. This section of the talk was also about how in general, North Americans are very removed from the production of our food. He got us to think about this by asking how many people have ever milked a cow (I have, but I was 6, and it was mostly just a photo op.), canned vegetables (I have not). What is he talking about, I know where food comes from: the Superstore. No? It made me want to grow tomatoes on my deck!
All this made me thing about the game that I got from Christmas, Bohnanza (bohn is German for bean). It’s really fun. It’s a card game where you plant different bean crops and convert them for money. The next time we play, I’m going to see if I can eat any of the beans myself, or sell them to my neighbour for some manure. ;) Ps. my favorite bean in the game is green bean. Green bean is a cute little cartoon that had just barfed. Funny.
Finally, he touched on the current economic situation (large farms involve huge loans) and rising fuel prices, and how may drive us back to more localized, smaller farming practices. It could be a bad thing is we don’t adapt, or maybe it will lead farming practices down a more sustainable path.
Ps. This post seems a little like dropped bowl of pasta…..long, scattered, a waste….and cheesy.
I went to a really interesting lecture on Thursday night. It was kind of perfect timing, because I have a sore knee that is bugging me – bugging me enough to need two nights off in a row. I might have been grumpy about this, but having a cool lecture to go to smoothed things over nicely.
Aside: is ‘kind of perfect’ an oxy moron? No, I suppose not. Just a poor choice of words.
When I read the lecture title, I guessed that the talk would be on either the food for fuel debate, or possibly something to do with world hunger. I was very wrong.
He started of talking about the debate between whether (wo)man is separate from nature through his/her ability to control it through science and technology, versus (wo)man being unseparatable of nature. The rest of the talk focused on modern mechanized farming vs. smaller localized farming. He talked about the environmental impacts, energy inputs and economics.
The lecturer was a history prof, so he has some interesting things to say about the history of farming in North America. Actually the entire talk was focused on North America, which as I mentioned before, I was a bit surprised by.
The details on small farming practices vs. large farming practices were not new to me. None the less, it was really interesting, and a good refreshing. I was most familiar with the environmental issues involved with large farming practices (there’s loads, really: petroleum inputs, from gas to pesticides and fertilizers, erosion, water use, and extra energy to ship the foods to far off markets, just to name a few).
He touched on a few examples of unsustainable farming that were interesting. For the most part, the examples were farms that require huge energy and/or water inputs. The example I remember most clearly is an area in the desert in Arizona that grows cotton, which requires massive amounts of water. I enjoyed when the prof explained the difficulty and amount of energy involved with moving water by saying if you weren’t sure if it was easy, just carry a 4 L bucket of water with you for an hour a day.
The lecture also had a lot of parallels with the book Fast Food Nation
by Eric Schlosser. It’s a really good book, if a little disturbing. Fast Food Nation talks about many other aspects of the fast food industry in the States. Both the book and the prof touch on the really gross things that happen in slaughterhouses. While I’d already heard about it (I won’t go into details), it was still a little disturbing to hear again. He described it in a way that made my vision narrow. This section of the talk was also about how in general, North Americans are very removed from the production of our food. He got us to think about this by asking how many people have ever milked a cow (I have, but I was 6, and it was mostly just a photo op.), canned vegetables (I have not). What is he talking about, I know where food comes from: the Superstore. No? It made me want to grow tomatoes on my deck!
All this made me thing about the game that I got from Christmas, Bohnanza (bohn is German for bean). It’s really fun. It’s a card game where you plant different bean crops and convert them for money. The next time we play, I’m going to see if I can eat any of the beans myself, or sell them to my neighbour for some manure. ;) Ps. my favorite bean in the game is green bean. Green bean is a cute little cartoon that had just barfed. Funny.
Finally, he touched on the current economic situation (large farms involve huge loans) and rising fuel prices, and how may drive us back to more localized, smaller farming practices. It could be a bad thing is we don’t adapt, or maybe it will lead farming practices down a more sustainable path.
Ps. This post seems a little like dropped bowl of pasta…..long, scattered, a waste….and cheesy.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Inspected with Pride
I had a shower on Friday. (Are you drawn into the post yet? No?). Okay, so that might not be news in itself. Here's why it's a blogpost. I noticed in the mirror that there was a little round sticker on my back. It was right between my shoulder blades, right where I had to seriously stretch to reach it. It seemed like it would have been impossible to put it there myself. The sticker said:
"Inspected with Pride".
Hehehe. Okay, so it also says QC 42 in the middle, and I had a new shirt on that day, so it's not that much a mystery. But I'm not going to lie, I laughed pretty hard.
"Inspected with Pride".
Hehehe. Okay, so it also says QC 42 in the middle, and I had a new shirt on that day, so it's not that much a mystery. But I'm not going to lie, I laughed pretty hard.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Two Good Books to Read
Oopsa, I just had a big delay in blogging for no real reason. Now I have a backlog of topics that I want to talk about. I'll start simple, and work back into it. It being blogging, closer to daily that weekly.
Moving on. The two books that I enjoyed recently, and would recommend are The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
by Barack Obama (you might have heard of him) and The White Tiger
by Aravind Adiga.
I actually thought Obama's book was a biography, which it is not. I suppose I should have guessed it from the title. I put the book on hold at the library when he got elected, because I thought he would be an interesting dude to learn more about. As it turns out, the Audacity of Hope is actually his second book. I've put his first book on my eventual list of things to read. Obama is still an Illinois Senator when we wrote this book, and hasn't yet started his campaign to be President. While it's not a biography, it still has a fair amount on his history and background. He talks about lots of other topics as well, from religion to health care to foreign policy. It's interesting! Give it a read if you get the chance.
The White Tiger is the debut novel of an author from India. It's pretty new, just published in 2008. It got a really good review in a newspaper I read a while back, so I mental-noted to give it a try. For some reason I thought the author had a Canadian connection, but I think I might be wrong on that. I try to read Canadian authors, although I can't remember what the last one I read is. Maybe it's time to grab an Atwood or a Findley. Anyway, back the the White Tiger. I googled it just now, and I see that the book one a Man Booker Prize, which I'm not going to lie, I have never heard of. Is there a Woman Booker Prize? I'm sure this award is why I heard of the book to read it in the first place. I think I read that the real prize in winning something like that is the publicity. Anyway, apparently I don't have that much to say about the story itself, because I seem to be talking about everything else. I don't feel like I need to summarize the plot for you or anything. It's easy enough to read a preview by someone who really writes these things. That said, it gets my thumbs up Hezzobloggo approval, so check it out if you get the chance. I'll return it to the library Monday so that you can. ;)
Moving on. The two books that I enjoyed recently, and would recommend are The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
by Barack Obama (you might have heard of him) and The White Tiger
by Aravind Adiga.
I actually thought Obama's book was a biography, which it is not. I suppose I should have guessed it from the title. I put the book on hold at the library when he got elected, because I thought he would be an interesting dude to learn more about. As it turns out, the Audacity of Hope is actually his second book. I've put his first book on my eventual list of things to read. Obama is still an Illinois Senator when we wrote this book, and hasn't yet started his campaign to be President. While it's not a biography, it still has a fair amount on his history and background. He talks about lots of other topics as well, from religion to health care to foreign policy. It's interesting! Give it a read if you get the chance.
The White Tiger is the debut novel of an author from India. It's pretty new, just published in 2008. It got a really good review in a newspaper I read a while back, so I mental-noted to give it a try. For some reason I thought the author had a Canadian connection, but I think I might be wrong on that. I try to read Canadian authors, although I can't remember what the last one I read is. Maybe it's time to grab an Atwood or a Findley. Anyway, back the the White Tiger. I googled it just now, and I see that the book one a Man Booker Prize, which I'm not going to lie, I have never heard of. Is there a Woman Booker Prize? I'm sure this award is why I heard of the book to read it in the first place. I think I read that the real prize in winning something like that is the publicity. Anyway, apparently I don't have that much to say about the story itself, because I seem to be talking about everything else. I don't feel like I need to summarize the plot for you or anything. It's easy enough to read a preview by someone who really writes these things. That said, it gets my thumbs up Hezzobloggo approval, so check it out if you get the chance. I'll return it to the library Monday so that you can. ;)
Sunday, January 18, 2009
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I wanted to warn you not to go see it. It's actually not a bad movie. But if you know what's good for you, wait for DVD. I don't mean to imply that I think the movie is worth paying $5 for but not $11. It's not a monetary thing. Its 3 HOURS l o n g. Rent it so you can pause it half way through, go pee, make a fuckin' sandwich, whatever. 3 hours. Too long Brad, too long.
I think I really would have liked this movie if it were an hour and a half long. They spend a lot of screen time on back story and build up, and I really think it takes away. The story itself is interesting. The basic premise is that Brad Pitt's character ages backwards. A friend of mine had someone ask her if it was based on a true story! Um....I'm going to have to go with no. Anyway, the special effects are pretty cool, so it might be worth it just for that. Neither main character is especially likeable, and I did not find their flaws of the endearing variety. More of the kind that make me want to shout "no, you're a moron!" at the screen. Maybe it's just me.
By the time the story built to the bits that the whole story revolves around, my attention was long gone. There kept being these lines that I related too a little more than I would have liked. for example, Cate Blanchett's character says: "I have to pee" (me too!), "what is taking so long?" (I don't know!) and "I don't know what I'm doing here" (me neither), all of which just seemed like taunts.
I admit, part of my frustration was that I was supposed to phone Kristin, and I thought I would be home at a reasonable hour. The movie started at 7:30 and it's a 15 minutes walk home from the theatre. How wrong I was.
The other good thing: I was able to take a large break on my popcorn, and then start again fresh two hours later. So good deal on the popcorn. :)
So consider yourself warned, and get an eisle seat if you decide to see it anyway!
ps. this is my 200th post.
I think I really would have liked this movie if it were an hour and a half long. They spend a lot of screen time on back story and build up, and I really think it takes away. The story itself is interesting. The basic premise is that Brad Pitt's character ages backwards. A friend of mine had someone ask her if it was based on a true story! Um....I'm going to have to go with no. Anyway, the special effects are pretty cool, so it might be worth it just for that. Neither main character is especially likeable, and I did not find their flaws of the endearing variety. More of the kind that make me want to shout "no, you're a moron!" at the screen. Maybe it's just me.
By the time the story built to the bits that the whole story revolves around, my attention was long gone. There kept being these lines that I related too a little more than I would have liked. for example, Cate Blanchett's character says: "I have to pee" (me too!), "what is taking so long?" (I don't know!) and "I don't know what I'm doing here" (me neither), all of which just seemed like taunts.
I admit, part of my frustration was that I was supposed to phone Kristin, and I thought I would be home at a reasonable hour. The movie started at 7:30 and it's a 15 minutes walk home from the theatre. How wrong I was.
The other good thing: I was able to take a large break on my popcorn, and then start again fresh two hours later. So good deal on the popcorn. :)
So consider yourself warned, and get an eisle seat if you decide to see it anyway!
ps. this is my 200th post.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Drug Testing Left Something to be Desired
And that something is 10 mL of urine.
My drug test was at 830 am, somewhere in the SE. I was all proud of myself for getting up at my usual time, so I could actually get a couple of things done before going. Plus, I know that I always pee pretty much as soon as I roll out of bed, unless I'm super dehydrated. I left enough time to pee when I woke up, and still have a big mug of tea. I was warned that the facility sometimes makes you wait, so "don't go bursting".
I did not go bursting. Instead, I went with exactly 50 mL of pee. Balls. You need 60 mL. If I could have just waited until I had 10 more mL's, it would have been easy. But no, there is a 3 minute time limit, so they poured it out, and I was forced to start at zero. And I mean ZERO. I e m p t i e d.
So there I was, stuck in a drafty warehouse in the SE, drinking as much water as possible, and being asked if I had to be now about every 10 minutes. Did I mention the cab was waiting for me? No pressure. Also, not only did I need to guess when I could pee, I had to make sure that I could pee 60 mL. Otherwise I would have to start all over AGAIN. Now, I'm fairly good at being able to tell when I can pee, but a kept having to ask myself, "do you feel like you have to pee 60 mL much?".
It worked out in the end, and then I peed about another 8 times by noon. It might have been 9. Seriously.
My drug test was at 830 am, somewhere in the SE. I was all proud of myself for getting up at my usual time, so I could actually get a couple of things done before going. Plus, I know that I always pee pretty much as soon as I roll out of bed, unless I'm super dehydrated. I left enough time to pee when I woke up, and still have a big mug of tea. I was warned that the facility sometimes makes you wait, so "don't go bursting".
I did not go bursting. Instead, I went with exactly 50 mL of pee. Balls. You need 60 mL. If I could have just waited until I had 10 more mL's, it would have been easy. But no, there is a 3 minute time limit, so they poured it out, and I was forced to start at zero. And I mean ZERO. I e m p t i e d.
So there I was, stuck in a drafty warehouse in the SE, drinking as much water as possible, and being asked if I had to be now about every 10 minutes. Did I mention the cab was waiting for me? No pressure. Also, not only did I need to guess when I could pee, I had to make sure that I could pee 60 mL. Otherwise I would have to start all over AGAIN. Now, I'm fairly good at being able to tell when I can pee, but a kept having to ask myself, "do you feel like you have to pee 60 mL much?".
It worked out in the end, and then I peed about another 8 times by noon. It might have been 9. Seriously.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Smokey Has a Sore Bum
I'm back from Waterloo. Poop.
Last night I headed for groceries after work, since I was pretty low on food. As in I had beans and rice for dinner. I was pretty much set up until then, because Rookie made me food for the plane and my Mom made me lunch for the day. Oh yes. :) Shopping during the week made me wonder why I don't do it more often. I know the reason, I suppose. It's hard to fit that and a workout into a weeknight. Having this trainer in my living room sure helps. The advantage of the weekday grocery shopping is that it took me about half the time that it normally does. I shop at Superstore. It's nice and new, it has great selection and unbeatable prices. It's also an f-ing zoo on the weekend. Shopping there was much more relaxing last night....at least until I got rear-ended a few blocks after leaving. Smokey has a sore ass, but other than that there was no damage. I did get asked today if I got hit hard enough for the airbag to go off. Hahaha. Oh, in case I haven't told you, Smokey is the name of my car.
Last night I headed for groceries after work, since I was pretty low on food. As in I had beans and rice for dinner. I was pretty much set up until then, because Rookie made me food for the plane and my Mom made me lunch for the day. Oh yes. :) Shopping during the week made me wonder why I don't do it more often. I know the reason, I suppose. It's hard to fit that and a workout into a weeknight. Having this trainer in my living room sure helps. The advantage of the weekday grocery shopping is that it took me about half the time that it normally does. I shop at Superstore. It's nice and new, it has great selection and unbeatable prices. It's also an f-ing zoo on the weekend. Shopping there was much more relaxing last night....at least until I got rear-ended a few blocks after leaving. Smokey has a sore ass, but other than that there was no damage. I did get asked today if I got hit hard enough for the airbag to go off. Hahaha. Oh, in case I haven't told you, Smokey is the name of my car.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Waterloo
I had a big gap in posting because I am in Waterloo right now. That’s right, a BIG gap. Think about what this means to you, Toby and Bridget in Germany, Powell's Pursuits and Rob and Amanda. Okay, just kidding. Anyway, I’m in Waterloo visiting Kristin, which so far has been loads of fun. Kristin has to write a little paper for tomorrow, so I had a chance to get online for a few minutes.
Yesterday we were in Toronto visiting Mere, and we hung out and enjoyed New Year’s. Yes, you read correctly. Since Mere and her other buddy missed partying in New Year’s because they were both sick, the plan for Saturday night was to celebrate belated New Year’s. We went to Fresh for some yummy vegetarian food (Mere and Kristin are both veggies, and I’m actually not sure if Dee is or not. I am not a veggies but I enjoy and eat a lot of veggie). After dinner, we hung out until latish, drinking wine and playing boardgames. A couple of other friends came over, although Mere’s original New Year’s buddy missed out again. We capped off the night (for Kristin and I, about half and hour) by meeting up with some frisbee folks at the bar. This morning we went for SERIOUSLY good breakfast. It kind of put Nellies and the Country Kitchen to shame, although they both continue to hold special places in my heart. We then headed back to Waterloo for Kristin’s hockey game. (btw she is ridiculously good. I’m a little afraid for when she sees a Nellie game.) I still had a noise-maker in my pocket from the night before, so I honked it every time her team had a goal. It wasn’t quite as cool as the Sills cowbell, but I tried.
I could go on, that was just one story, but I’m not going to. Kristin is pretty much done, so further blogging is going to have to wait. Also, the internet connection is dodgy right now, so I'm going to post what I have now instead of risking trying to get more and getting nothing. Bye for now.
Yesterday we were in Toronto visiting Mere, and we hung out and enjoyed New Year’s. Yes, you read correctly. Since Mere and her other buddy missed partying in New Year’s because they were both sick, the plan for Saturday night was to celebrate belated New Year’s. We went to Fresh for some yummy vegetarian food (Mere and Kristin are both veggies, and I’m actually not sure if Dee is or not. I am not a veggies but I enjoy and eat a lot of veggie). After dinner, we hung out until latish, drinking wine and playing boardgames. A couple of other friends came over, although Mere’s original New Year’s buddy missed out again. We capped off the night (for Kristin and I, about half and hour) by meeting up with some frisbee folks at the bar. This morning we went for SERIOUSLY good breakfast. It kind of put Nellies and the Country Kitchen to shame, although they both continue to hold special places in my heart. We then headed back to Waterloo for Kristin’s hockey game. (btw she is ridiculously good. I’m a little afraid for when she sees a Nellie game.) I still had a noise-maker in my pocket from the night before, so I honked it every time her team had a goal. It wasn’t quite as cool as the Sills cowbell, but I tried.
I could go on, that was just one story, but I’m not going to. Kristin is pretty much done, so further blogging is going to have to wait. Also, the internet connection is dodgy right now, so I'm going to post what I have now instead of risking trying to get more and getting nothing. Bye for now.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Bohnanza and Musical Chairs Dance Off
This weekend was a lot of fun. It was the 'last weekend of Christmas holidays', which is a funny thing to say, because I worked last week except for New Year's Day. Still, that's absolutely what it felt like. Tomorrow (gasp!) is the first 'real' day of work. Not that the other days weren't work, but I got to where jeans, it was pretty dead at the office, and you know, the whole....er, 9-5 thing ;)
So anyway, I do have to go back to work tomorrow "for serious", but only for 3.5 days. Then I'm off out east, and I couldn't be more stoked.
Yesterday, I went over to Toby and Bridget's place for dinner (thanks guys!). Jayanti + Tracy & Tyler were there, and I think everyone had a great time. I know I did. After dinner, we got to see the 'best of' album of Toby and Bridget's Germany trip. They had some sweet shots, and it was lots of fun to reminisce. (Toby & Bridget and Jayanti were the people that I was visiting in Germany, in Karlsruhe and Munich respectively).
On to games:
We (okay, mostly me) were talking about Musical Chairs Dance Off at dinner. Technically it was an idea that I had on New Years, but it popped into mind again last night because Toby and Bridget have a nice big table. Musical Chairs Dance Off is very similar to garden variety musical chairs, with a couple of small differences. One: you don't just walk around the table when the music is going, you DANCE. Yes, drinking or drugs might make this game a lot more fun. Two: you alternate who plays/stops the music. This 'it' person gets to control when the music starts and stops, based on the dancing. Like what you see? Reward the dancer. Lack of effort? Stop the music when they aren't need a chair to get them out. Also, you could have fun with the music. I'm thinking Thriller (MJ) and Walk Like an Egyptian (the Bangles) would be two obvious choices to see what people could do with. Thoughts? Let's get drunk and play, no?
A 'real' fun game that I got to play this weekend is Bohnanza (thanks Terri!). It's German (score one point already, in my world....bohn = bean), and has cute little cartoon beans. My favorite is Green Bean, who is clearly drunk and has just barfed (in his cartoon). Anyway, we (being Lindsay, Terri and myself) played today, and it's super fun. We hung out in Tim Hortons for some time! We should PLAY some time. I won't try to explain the rules - it would be better if we just play. Maybe we can START with Bohnanza and go for Musical Chairs Dance Off later in the night. Who's in?
So anyway, I do have to go back to work tomorrow "for serious", but only for 3.5 days. Then I'm off out east, and I couldn't be more stoked.
Yesterday, I went over to Toby and Bridget's place for dinner (thanks guys!). Jayanti + Tracy & Tyler were there, and I think everyone had a great time. I know I did. After dinner, we got to see the 'best of' album of Toby and Bridget's Germany trip. They had some sweet shots, and it was lots of fun to reminisce. (Toby & Bridget and Jayanti were the people that I was visiting in Germany, in Karlsruhe and Munich respectively).
On to games:
We (okay, mostly me) were talking about Musical Chairs Dance Off at dinner. Technically it was an idea that I had on New Years, but it popped into mind again last night because Toby and Bridget have a nice big table. Musical Chairs Dance Off is very similar to garden variety musical chairs, with a couple of small differences. One: you don't just walk around the table when the music is going, you DANCE. Yes, drinking or drugs might make this game a lot more fun. Two: you alternate who plays/stops the music. This 'it' person gets to control when the music starts and stops, based on the dancing. Like what you see? Reward the dancer. Lack of effort? Stop the music when they aren't need a chair to get them out. Also, you could have fun with the music. I'm thinking Thriller (MJ) and Walk Like an Egyptian (the Bangles) would be two obvious choices to see what people could do with. Thoughts? Let's get drunk and play, no?
A 'real' fun game that I got to play this weekend is Bohnanza (thanks Terri!). It's German (score one point already, in my world....bohn = bean), and has cute little cartoon beans. My favorite is Green Bean, who is clearly drunk and has just barfed (in his cartoon). Anyway, we (being Lindsay, Terri and myself) played today, and it's super fun. We hung out in Tim Hortons for some time! We should PLAY some time. I won't try to explain the rules - it would be better if we just play. Maybe we can START with Bohnanza and go for Musical Chairs Dance Off later in the night. Who's in?
Friday, January 2, 2009
Run Harder You Lazy Bitch
No! Damn, I thought I had that straight. The other kind of trainer. Check it out: I did get the trainer, and so far I am loving it. Maybe it will turn out like the helicopter (day 1 love it, day 2 love it, day 3 want to barf), but I doubt it. Riding doesn't hurt my hamstring and/or IT band anywhere near as much as running outside does. I wonder if this is because it's 40 degrees warmer, or so.Yesterday, I road through Batman. I thought this was a great idea, until I remembered that Batman (Begins, but I just rented the the Dark Knight!) is the longest movie on the planet. Of course I was too stubborn to stop. Well, that's not entirely true, I had to take breaks. I even took a sandwich break at one point. My legs were pretty good, but my ass was dying. None the less, riding in the dead of winter on an indoor trainer is SWEET.
The company that makes the trainer I bought (Minoura), made me laugh a couple of times. The first one was on the outside of the box that it came in. Check out the size of it compared to my bike. Plus it folds, so the box isn't much more than a foot high. Still, the outside of the box warns "Bike is not supplied". Not to be outdone, the instruction manual says "Tandem bike is not recommended due to worse balance". Another favorite is set-up, step 1. "At this moment, make sure all 4 foot are contacting the floor stably." And, unrelated (off by itself) - NOTE: Do not miss the direction of the shim for safety use. Pardon? I think it's possible that I may have missed the direction. I don't know what a shim is. I'm sure it's not important....right?
Don't get me wrong - all I know how to say in Japanese is Ohio (good morning) and hammosandwichy (ham sandwich). Both are spelled phonetically, and likely wrong. Sills?
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Senile: Sometimes I Try to Answer My Teapot Lid
As you likely already know, I am freaking out just a little bit about turning 30. It's not for a few months, but still. This isn't helping - every so often, my phone will buzz and I will reach for the lid of my teapot. The lid was off on it's own (the teapot was dirty. Yes, so a week, shut up), and the phone was nearby. I mean, I figured it out....but still. Yikes.
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