iCrazy

Why, oh why is the iPod Nano so aesthetically pleasing?

I've secretly wanted one for so long, but I just can't rationalize buying one. It's just a piece of shiny that looks so pretty that I want to have one.

"You should just get it... isn't it good? And it's so small. People say it's fragile, but that's because people are so stupid. They don't know how to take care of it. They drop it everywhere."
- my sister.

If I get one, then I'll have to get myself a fabrix case.

It doesn't end there. I'll have to buy a radio transmitter too, so I can use it in my car. And, of course, I can't be satisfied with stock accessories. I'll have to get new headphones... it never ends.

Am I ready for this? Nah. Let's focus on my camera and computer for now. I'll just borrow my sis' iPod. Next up for the camera: external flash, bigger CF card, battery grip, second battery. Next up for the comp: quad cpu and gpu, and I suppose I'll be making the transition to HD-DVD / Blu-ray. Of course, I'll have to get a bigger, faster hard drive, and I'm considering getting a new sound card too. We'll see.



So my sister's flexing her new Lulu gym bag.

J: "Should I wear it using the handles or the shoulder strap?"
D: "Shoulder strap."
J: "Why?"
D: "Because it looks more functional. If you sling it by the handles, you look like one of those prissy little bitches."
J: "So I should use the handles, because I WANT to look like a prissy little bitch."
D: "Yeah, I guess so, then."
J: "Don't I look like one of those rich bitches at Bayview Village? Like one of those Jewish girls? I gotta show this off."

Yeah. Lulu makes some HOT gym stuff. Never really took notice until I noticed someone wearing the pants... oh lordy.

-d

HDTV

HDTV is beautiful.

My dad just bought a 52" Sharp HDTV last week. It was quite the task mounting it to our existing wall unit. We had to cut 1/8" steel strips to anchor the mounting arm to the wall unit safely. In total, the tv and mounting equipment weighs over 160 lbs, so we had to make damn sure that it stays put.

After that, I hooked up our Dolby 5.1 surround sound system. It sounds very weird - we're missing rear speakers. My dad went out a couple of days ago and bought some new speakers. Pickup tomorrow. Mounting on thursday probably.

And then, instead of studying for exams and stuff, I alphabetized the family's DVD collection and inputted it all into an excel spreadsheet. We have 158 movies. My dad wants to systematically watch all the movies to see which ones are worth keeping and which ones to throw out.

So, I've been using my in-between study session break-time to watch some HD programming from Rogers. It's gorgeous... I actually watched hockey for the first time in a long time - it was that good. It's too bad I don't watch House or any of those other shows that other people like - they come in HD too.

Anyway, after exams, say maybe on monday or tuesday, I'm going to move my computer down to the family room and hook it up to the new TV. We managed to get an HDMI-DVI cable (got a deal - $50 - didn't realize how expensive until I saw it on the Dell website for $160), so I can spend a little more time with the newest member of the family.

I can't even imagine how I was at all satisfied with regular TV before HD. It's one of those things that you can't backpedal on. If I ever move out, one of my first purchases will be an HDTV. Before I even get a bed. or kitchen stuff. HDTV.

My grandma (the shanghainese one) is arriving this weekend. Those who would like to learn how to cook...

-d

Consolidation

I hate having so many different accounts, usernames, and passwords; so, I always jump at the opportunity to consolidate. May I submit, for your consideration, the new Eucatastrophe, under the umbrella of my gmail account.

I started my first gmail account in September and registered for google talk. With this new Blogger addition, my G-sphere is expanding. In terms of functionality, it hasn't eclipsed my MS-sphere - hotmail is still my primary email.

In other news, my sister and I built a gingerbread house yesterday.

Take a good look. What you see there is over 5,000 calories. I bet most of that is in the icing. I don't get to eat any of it though - it's for my sister's kids. It also came with two gingerbread men, not pictured here. Those are about as tall as the house, also decorated. Definitely a must for festive get-togethers.

-d

Comment for Herb.

What it feels like to throw a grenade.

Take a baseball.

Throw it.

Duck and cover.

That's how it feels like to throw a grenade. Really. They're designed to be easy to use like that.

-d

VO2 Max

My average VO2 Max is about 45 mL/kg/min. Kinda sucks... I'm gonna aim for 50 by January, and maybe beyond as the multisport season progresses.

Basically, I ran the Cooper's test, and got a score of around 50 mL/kg/min, and then I ran the Beep test (multistage something or other), and got about 45 mL/kg/min. I'll use the conservative estimate and use that as my baseline.

Gonna try and get super fit for the new year. We'll see how that goes.

same old, same old

Not much has happened lately... not much to report.

Lots of work at school. Lots of due dates far in advance to keep me busy doing that time management thing.

Sorta bored actually.

Watched two chick flicks today...

Just Like Heaven, and The Devil Wears Prada.

Thoroughly enjoyed both. Should have been studying for my midterm tomorrow. Oh well.

-d

Happy Birthday Mike, and Tim.

Wow. Best binge drinking I've ever seen. Last night's goal was for the two birthday boys to drink their own ages.

Mike (24) ended the night with 29 drinks, and Tim (21) ended the night with 24. Nobody puked, either. I'm not exaggerating. I watched that gerpanese guy do 12 in a 20 minute span as soon as we hit the club... Just shot after shot of vodka, liquid cocaine, crispy crunch, and god knows what else. Granted, I wasn't there for the 7 beers he had over dinner, but I'm confident he made his number last night.

And kudos to Jess for downing 9 or 10 (I lost count after #7), without puking or getting mean-drunk. You've improved since High School. ha. How are your feet holding up?

For those who "entertained the idea, but decided not to go"(you know who you are), you missed out on a great night. Got home at 4:30am - and if you gotta make it for morning service after a night of debauchery and binge drinking, I can certainly understand why you decided not to go.

I feel like a kid again.

-d

Wanted: Leather Jacket

I've been shopping around for a leather jacket lately. I've pretty much narrowed down what I'm looking for. I've decided to go with cowhide, rather than lambskin or shearling or sheepskin. The reason is because I want a rougher look and a more durable material and a near-nonexistant liner. Lambskin is too delicate, and sheepskin and shearling is too warm, and thick. Cowhide is also relatively cheap, though i'm not averse to paying twice the price for calf-skin.

In terms of colours, I'd prefer a darker brown. Cream is too light and gets dirty easily, and I want to stay away from black. The image I'm looking for is more rugged and natural. Black brings a level of refinement that I don't think fits into what I want out of this jacket. I've been leaning towards the 'worn' or 'vintage' look, but that's not really important. I could wear it down just from plain use.

Bomber cut, but not the traditional bomber cut. I'm looking for that slimmer, younger cut. Most leather jackets are cut for the pot-bellied male in mind. I don't have a pot-belly and I'd like to flaunt that fact. Besides, it's less bulk to deal with, especially if there's only a thin liner.

So far, what I've found out there is a black worn-looking cowhide bomber at Danier Leather. Retails for $300, but any given sale will likely knock $50 off of that. The only thing stopping me from buying is the black colour. There's another worn-looking bomber at one of the stores in Bayview Village. That one is calfskin, $700. The price is negotiable, but unfortunately there's a fairly thick liner. I've gone to some leather outlets, but in general, the quality does not even compare to the higher end retailers. Most of the cheaper leather jackets have that pot-bellied cut that I'd like to stay away from. I hit up Harry Rosen, but that place doesn't have sales. They do have a clearance outlet though, but I doubt there's anything in my size. I'm in that average range that sells out fast.

Next stop: Holt Renfrew. If I can get 50% off of a leather jacket at Holt, it'll be worth my time to take a look there, and maybe even pay a premium for shopping there. Failing Holt Renfrew, I'll look to getting the jacket custom-made by some poor-ass chinese leatherworker. At least then I can control the specifications and get it cut exactly the way I want it.

Felix and Jeff in Ottawa

Good weekend. Lots of sightseeing. Gonna make it short.

We visited the War Museum, the Museum of Civilization, the War Memorial, as well as Parliament Hill.

Shawarma for lunch (typical), and the Fish Market for dinner on Saturday; the Works for lunch on Sunday. I was so damn full that I barely had enough room for that Brazilian Grill stuff. Came anyway, Happy birthday Ryan.

Some more pictures from Ottawa.

Scugog

Thursday is my day off from school.

Went cycling with Mr. Goodman yesterday - and I got a chance to use my new cycling gloves. Bought them at MEC just the day before. We met up at about 8am and drove out to Utica, about 10km West of Port Perry (er... or 20km North of Whitby). We cycled through the island in Lake Scugog, and ended up in Port Perry for lunch.

For lunch, we settled on this place called the Jester's soemthing-or-other. We each ordered a beer, about 2 lbs of mussels in some kind of seafood white wine garlic sauce, and a side of fries. The food was excellent, although the mussels weren't the freshest. I'd imagine that with some quality ingredients, that meal would have been fantastic. Anyway, despite the scrubbing in the bathroom after the meal, I coudn't get that shellfish stink off my fingers.

Took a different route back to Utica, and managed to go through the highest point on the map. It's called Marsh Hill. Brutal, brutal climb, especially with a belly full of food and cramping, tired legs. We got back to Toronto at about 4pm.

All in all, we covered maybe 50km at an easy-going pace. It was just that hill at the end that wiped us out. Just when we crested the visible peak of the hill, we realize that it goes flat and then even higher, and still higher after that. If that's not demoralizing, I don't know what is. On the upside, what goes up must invariably come down.

While we were out there, we bought some sweet corn off some farmers. That corn was so damn sweet... it was like eating honey. So much better than that stuff you get a loblaws. Possibly the sweetest corn I've ever eaten.

So, after a full day of cycling, what do I do when I get home? Rollerblades on, hit the road with Jess. Good thing you suck at rollerblading, or else I really would have been hurting.

6:30 - Ultimate frisbee at Bayview Park. Can't believe I can still run. Couldn't catch a disc if my life depended on it, though. We were so utterly and thoroughly defeated that we started coming up with some desperate, creative plays. Most of them didn't work out as planned, but it was still good fun.

Biryani rice for dinner. Isn't the way that stuff is prepared similar to paella? My dad used a wok. I like the crispy bits that stick to the wok. Reminded me of curry flavoured rice crackers. I don't like biting into bits of pungent spices though. Reminds me of how I used to discover cilantro in my noodles or congee as a child - unpleasant surprise.

Met up with Felix at night for one of his exercises in futility. Watched Saving Private Ryan with Jane, while Felix nailed away at the computer, wasting his time and efforts. Talked to Jane about her misconceptions about the military, while Felix tried to twist our words into novel (but ultimately false) metaphysical or maybe psychoanalytical interpretions. No, Felix, it's just a cigar.

Went to bed at 3am.

The way yesterday played out is exactly why I came back to Toronto almost every weekend this summer.

-d

Canine hammer

Right, so while lying in bed, listening to the Doc and Woody show on CHEZ 106.1, like I do every morning at 6:30 am, I hear this funny little news tidbit about all sorts of little old ladies getting riled up over the new '07 Ikea Catalogue. Apparently, on the inside foldout of the cover, there's a picture of a family louging on a couch. The family dog appears to have his big erect hammer poking out.

Fortunately for me, I had just received the new '07 catalogue the previous day. True enough, it's there, and it's big.

It seems like more than just a few people took offense to exposed doggy dong, and demanded that Ikea recall the catalogue. I guess a recall would be reasonable if the '07 catalogue were a drug, and if people used it, they might choke on a large-ish piece of dogmeat. Besides, it's really just the dog's leg caught at a weird angle in weird lighting.

People need to chill out.

Oh, and if you haven't picked up the new '07 Ikea catalogue, I suggest you do it soon. I heard that they've been in high demand since the story broke, and I doubt future reprints will have the same ad on the inside flap of the cover.

-d

Thanks, guys.

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon in a park, as part of a workplace retreat run by my Unit at Health Canada. We threw the frisbee around, had tons of catered Lebanese food (that we couldn't finish), and spent maybe 2 hrs discussing some of our more relevant regulations as the 'work' part of our retreat.

Nice, cool weather, getting paid to take a break, catered food... and you - you paid for it all. Thanks. I really appreciate it.

On another note, I just finished reading R. Heinlein's Starship Troopers (nothing like the movie, which was based on the novel, and not the other way around). Really good piece of fiction, lots of discourse on right-wing politics (remember the fascist themes in the movie?). A lot of it makes sense, especially for one raised by the army - more specifically, the infantry. I can really relate to a lot of the militaristic thoughts and ways of thinking expressed by the main character, himself a product of the infantry. The author must also have had a military background of some sort. I doubt there's any other way he could so clearly describe the thoughts and feelings of an FNG in boot camp. I'm not sure if non-military readers would appreciate some of the finer points in the novel. I highly recommended it to military pers, though.

-d

Links updated

Changed the link to Ivan's blog. Welcome to blogger.

Added a link. VG cats - a web comic. I've been following for a while, but not as closely as I do for Penny Arcade. Simply put, PA updates more often than VG cats.

-d

Hot and Bothered

Last week, the air conditioning and ventilation units in our building at work failed. They sent us home at about noon - the air quality was below the standard specified in our workplace health and safety policy.

Anyway, they set up these massive portable air con units, which are about 3ft by 3ft, and about 4 ft high, on each floor and giant airplane engine-looking fans. The diameter of these fans are about 4 ft, and I swear it when I say that these fans put out about 100 dB of noise. It's necessary though, to create wind tunnels to move the air around the floor and through the building via the staircases.

Despite the industrial sized cooling units, we got sent home yesterday at about 1pm, due to poor air quality, and just today, we got the message again about 15 min ago.

Incidentally, air quality is the measured temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide levels, against the standards set by workplace health and safety people.

I'd like to go home too, but my sense of duty compels me to stay and do work. Heh. So gullible. I'm only here to brag about going home and getting paid for it.

-d

Please come again.

Click on the pictures to get the full-size image.


The bunch of us.


Sorta looks like the Sphinx or something. Luckily, he's not like Pipi in that he doesn't take a crap everywhere and anywhere.


Victor getting a massage Thai-style from some little asian girl. You can just make out Vera in this picture too.

The food was amazing. AMAZING! Thanks for visiting guys.

-d

Captain Black

It's been brutal getting out of bed these last couple of days. I guess I 'slept in' to 8am on the long weekend, and now I have to phase advance back to the 6:30/7 start that I need to get to work early. According to my circadian course, I should be okay tomorrow morning. We'll see.

Watched La Femme Nikita (thanks Cam) last night. I chose to view it in French, to preserve the director's intent and actors' deliveries. English subs, of course. All these years of watching chinese movies and reading the subs when we don't 'get' something has trained us to both read and simultaneously interpret tone and pitch of language. It's a talent that a lot of white people haven't been able to pick up until maybe an anime obsession forced them to learn. Anyway, I chuckled when Victor le nettoyeur showed up. I knew Jean Reno was in the movie, and when I didn't see him, as soon as they mentioned a nettoyeur, I sorta knew what was coming next. He and director Luc Besson went on to do The Professional, where he plays Leon the Cleaner.

Lately, I've been spending my free time reading. It seems that I ike to start books without finishing other books. I'm currently alternating between Milton's Paradise Lost, (which is going very slowly), Salinger's Nine Stories, and Paolini's Eragon. I read the acknowledgements on the jacket of Eragon, and apparently the author was 15 years old when he first published the story. Thats so wrong. Anyway, it's a fun novel to read - Lord of the Rings for kids. There's a nicely engrossing plot, but I can't help but feel that the elements aren't woven together as tightly or smoothly as LOtR. Then again, Tolkein was an english professor, and Paolini is just a high school grad. I'd still recommend it to anyone, especially those who couldn't get thought LOtR.

*edit*
Right, the title of the post. I've been smoking Captain Black pipe tobacco that my dad bought for me from Nashville. The looser stringier tobacco is so much easier to smoke than the premium stuff tobacconists normally carry. It looks almost like really long, moist strips of cigarette tobacco, but smells vaguely like plums and figs. It burns cool, but fast.
*/edit*

For those who're visiting me this weekend: bring a plate and a mug each. I don't have enough to go around. I've got enough cutlery, though.

-d

Terrible beauty.

On my way home from work yesterday, I spotted a huge monarch butterfly sitting on the grass beside the sidewalk, so I stooped down low and picked it up. The wings, spread out, made the butterfly bigger than the palm of my hand (excluding fingers). I put it on my hand, on my middle finger, actually. Impressed some little kiddies. Unfortunately, the thing was already dead, but properly positioned, it looked so alive. Then, while i was contemplating sticking a pin and thread (dental floss) through this baby, and hanging it in my window, out of nowhere, an image of a fly laying eggs on a dead butterfly popped into my head. I then envisioned this beautiful work of nature crackling with maggots, hanging in my window. I put the dead butterfly down on a concrete railing, for someone else to enjoy. I'm not jumping around my apartment with a flyswatter, chasing flies.

Closer to my apartment, I spotted a sparrow's egg on the ground. It had fallen from the nest, and was still intact. I thought about how good sparrow's eggs taste in my instant noodles, but then another disturbing image popped into my head. I envisioned cracking open this egg in my soup base, and watching a wet unborn sparrow-fetus falling into my noodles - downy feathers and all. Wonderful. Tastes like chicken, right? No, I think I'll leave this egg where I found it.

At about 1 am, I was awoken by the loudest thunder I'd ever heard in my life. It was terrifying - not that I'm afraid of thunder - just that it's not pleasant to be awoken in such a fashion. It was like waking from a nightmare. My apartment was actually shaking, trembling, from the intensity of the thunder. At one point, the storm was directly overhead and lightning coincided with thunder. My building got hit, and I could hear the ambient hum of everything electronic whine and die. In that brief moment of silence, I realized how noisy electronic stuff is - my fridge, my A/C, my alarm clock radio, the ventilation system of the next building, the lights in the parking lot... it all has a cumulative hum that we just tune out. Anyway, as the storm passed, the thunder took on a curious quality that I can only compare with the sound of high velocity shells flying overhead - anti tank rounds, artillery rounds, and the such. Of course, I realized, the lightning isn't just what we see, the part the connects earth and cloud, but can also travel through the 30,000 ft high or so mass of clouds, that we can't see. You can hear lightning travel. Needless to say, I was forced to stay awake and watch that storm pass, because I couldn't risk the power going out again after I'd fallen asleep. I need my alarm clock to work, right?

-d

See the Signs

Battle of the Faxes

Today, I was defeated at the fax machine. I had just blasted off 5 faxes to Australia, which take a little longer to process, owing to the distance of the destination. One of the girls came in, as I left, to fax her papers off. When I sat at my desk, the other girl got up and headed off, empty handed. My spidey sense goes bezerk.

They return together, and one of them has a confirmation report for me. It reads 'stopped,' and I'm thinking, "those bitches, they fragged my fax." They explained that some guy came in, and was faxing something, but his paper jammed and he kept hitting the cancel key, canceling my fax. Now, now, I thought, I shouldn't just jump to conclusions like that. I needed a plan. I needed to figure out how to expose them.

Anyway, I went back to the fax machine to re-fax the stopped fax, and watched as the machine spat out a confirmation, 'ok,' for another aussi fax. This is good, I thought. Now, I can watch the progression of confirmation reports, and see if they're lying or not. I re-fax my stopped fax, and used that as an excuse to wait around and check the confirmations.

Low and behold, there isn't a fax report for my mysterious fax stopper. It's circumstantial, at best, but I have a pretty good idea of who's fucking with my work. Luckily for me, they're none too bright, but they wasted 5 minutes of my time, and I'll pay them back ten-fold, I promise.

-d

Smug little victory.

Y'know that feeling you get when you win by taking the high road? That smug rightous feeling of making someone feel guilty for being underhanded? Thats me. Right now.

So a new opportunity came up at the meeting today to expand our roles and responsabilities. "Come see me if you're interested," the boss said to us. So, the girls decide to cut me out and go to the boss without me, to go grab such an opportunity. So sorry, the boss is in another meeting, check after lunch.

The only problem with this little scheme is that I'm always aware and suspicious of my peers, simply because they do stupid things like this. I know what's going on because I'm in the next aisle of cubicles evesdropping, and chatting with the boss's right-hand. No particular reason to talk to the second in command, just needed to listen in and know what was going on with my girls.

So, I have lunch with the girls, and when we head back to our building, I head straight for the boss, and tell her that everyone's interested in this new opportunity, and propose that all the co-ops get trained simply to make our experience here more diverse. Boss agrees, "consider it done."

Anyway, I go up and ask the girls if they're interested in this new opportunity. "Maybe..." "I don't know yet..." "I have too much work already..." So I say, "Oh damn, I lied to the boss. I told her that you guys were all interested... I guess I should go down and set her straight." Haha. I have never seen someone change their minds so fast. +1 for me bitchas!

Offices spaces

THe hate is building again. This last week hasn't been too bad, because one of the girls who sits next to me took a day off to do some ethics course. She's actually my classmate, and I have to deal with her next term. With her gone, the office space seemed so much better. I know now that she's the petty little bitch who's been plotting against me. Really, she hasn't pulled anything off intelligent so far, and all of her actions against me (perceived or real) have been overt and petty thus far. She's 26, and still acts like a high school kid.

Yesterday, I received a puro-letter from an applicant, and I went to work, separating the waybill from the envelope. It's in our SOP and we were trained to do it. She watches me do it, waits for me to finish doing it, and then with a smug look, tells me that the waybill is no longer a requirement in the file. I activate my primary defense mechanism, and just shrug my shoulders and say, "until I've heard otherwise..." She laughs at me and says, "ha, ha, you just wasted your time." Yeah. I got it already. She sits on my right, and I was so tempted to just backhand her in the mouth.

Just today, she wrote a note to the other girl and then tore it up into little pieces to throw away in my garbage can. I mean, what IS that? It's only the three of us in our cubicle, so if it couldn't be communicated in a whisper, it was clearly not meant for me to know. Making a big act of ripping it up and throwing it away was clearly meant for me to see. If it were me, and I needed to communicate without letting a third party know, I would have used the internal email system. She hasn't thought of that, and thank GOD. So long as she doesn't figure out to send through email, I can at least be forewarned that something is amiss.

That brings us to why I need to be forewarned. She doesn't pass along information (as described above) that I might need to know to do my job, until the very last minute. Luckily, a lot of that information I can survive without. I only wonder what will happen that one time where I miss out on the info that I absolutely DO need.

I'm out of my element right now, I've got no moral support in my immediate environment. I'll wait until we're back in Toronto, and then I can humiliate her properly.

-d

I remember, when I was naught but a teenager, I could hear my dad get up at 6am in the morning to go to work. I always thought to myself, "Oh god! I have no idea how he can drag his ass outta bed that early, especially after going to bed so late!" And now I know. My radio is set for 6:30am every weekday morning, tuned to CHEZ 106.1 Classic Rock. I always catch one song before the weather report comes on, followed by "the Dish," which is a daily report on Hollywood gossip, and the right wing radio hosts making fun of the stars. Right after "the Dish" is when I get out of bed to do my morning routine, right around 6:45.

I guess being able to get up this early with no adverse reaction is a sign that I'm getting old. Older, rather. I'm not old, yet.

-d

VG '06

Oh, for Pete's sake!

The Army's Vigilant Guardian Website

Seriously now... Why can't we just use that IT money to buy more night-vision-goggles and infra-red laser sights, or even personal role radios?

How to visit me in Ottawa.

By Car:

Take Hwy 401 Eastbound (that's EASTbound, haha)until you reach Belleville.
Take exit 544 to Hwy 37 North.
Take Hwy 37 North to Hwy 7 (~50km @ limit 80kph)
Turn right onto Hwy 7 Eastbound
Take Hwy 7 to the Hwy-417E/Rte-417E ramp to Ottawa (~137 km @ limit 80 kph)
Travel East on Hwy 417 to the "Ch. Pinecrest/Greenbanks Rd." exit(~16km @ limit 100kph)
Travel South on Greenbanks (a major road) and prepare to make a left turn at the next set of lights "Lisa Avenue"
From Lisa Ave., turn right at the stop-sign onto Pinecrest Road.
From Pinecrest Road, turn right into the lot for the two massive buildings.
Call my cellphone or buzz V. Chan, who was the previous tenant, and hasn't had his name removed yet.


By Greyhound:

Take the TTC to Dundas Station, and take the underground path to the Metro Toronto Bus Terminal, located at Bay and Dundas, just a little bit north of the intersection, on the west side. There's an underground connection between the TTC and Bus Terminal. Buy bus fare to Ottawa, present your student card, if applicable, or your military ID, also if applicable. The discounts don't stack, and student fare (~$98)is cheaper than military fare (~$125). There are no discounts during holidays(~$140). By far, the best deal is buying tickets 14 days in advance (~$87), if not 7 days in advance (~$94). The tickets you buy are valid for travel anytime during the following three months.

Seating on the greyhound bus is first-come first-serve. Be sure to arrive an hour to 45 min early to secure your preferred seat. 30 min before the scheduled trip, the driver will perform a headcount of passengers in line. If necessary, another bus may be ordered. Rest assured, they will not leave without you. If you arrive after the headcount, you don't count, and if there isnt' room for you, there isn't room for you.

For the trip, bring headphones in case there's a movie or two. Greyhound Customer Service charges $3 for a pair of cheap headphones that you may or may not decide to keep.

When scheduling your trip, go to the Greyhound website and use the online ticket booking to check prices and schedule of busses. Pick an express bus (~4hr 55min), and click on the trip #. Pick a bus that stops at Pinecrest/Greenbank at hwy. 417. That's your 'special service stop.' When boarding the bus, tell the bus driver that you want to get off at that special service stop. Ensure you have only carry-on luggage, and that it is with you, and not stowed in the baggage containers under the bus.

Call me when you arrive. I'll meet you at the stop.

Hot XXX Girls Girls Girls!

Tour East Ricerockets


Vince Chan. Up close and personal.

Paddler's Anonymous


Look at that rocket... She's SLEEPING on the job! No, seriously though. She looks like she might have a heart condition or something. Hey Dave. Sup.

New College New Dragonz


Pornstar high-five, Mike and Tim.

There's a video of New Dragonz at the University Cup Final from the Cox's perspective. Check it out at the ND website or on Youtube.
http://www.newdragons.ca/downloads/2006_University_Cup_Final.mpg

The view of the University Cup final from the shore.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o459abLxE6k

The Faculty of Medicine Pacemakers


See Ivan scream

Dragonboat groupies.

Can't wait can't wait can't wait can't wait can't wait

Y'know all those questions and comments that run through your head all the time? Well, I've started to ponder aloud at home. This is bad. I'll sing along with music, ask myself questions, answer my own questions, berate myself, laugh at myself, laugh with myself, and in general, just let my inside voice out.

I can't wait until this weekend... I'll have people to play with!

-d

Life at work.

I've figured out the reason why I don't like Ottawa so much. It's because I have no friends here! Most of the time, when you start a new job, you quickly develop some co-worker friends. However, in this place, I've managed to pretty much antagonize most of my fellow co-op students that I work with. I simply can not get along with them.

Just today, I got into an argument, seemingly out of nowhere at lunch. The conversation was flowing through theories of how the world would end, when I suggested that Human beings would not evolve due to our health care systems. I said that the increased infant survival rate translates to many more people surviving with genetic defects and diseases, which they then pass on to their children. I gave the example of the bubble boy in France who got a new immune system through the wonders of gene therapy. One of the girls I work with just shot back that that was impossible since Gene Therapy doesn't work. What? We went back and forth like that for a little while, I could just not believe how closed minded she was. She was hung up on the idea that gene therapy involved inserting DNA into the genome. She just wasn't open to the idea that introducing any genetic material (regardless of what kind, vector or purpose) to achieve a local or systemic effect is considered to be gene therapy. And to go further over the top, she argues that she's more qualified than me because of some course she took at McMaster.

I figured this argument was purely semantic because it all rested on our definitions of Gene Therapy. I decided not to break it to her that I already have my degree (unlike her) and beyond that, I have some basic regulatory training in Biologics. In the end, I told her to go to the BGTD's (Biologic and Genetic Therapies Directorate of Health Canada) to look up the definition, and then watched her backpedal. Stupid bitch. I'm still worked up, and I need to vent. I hate these other students.

Spent saturday on the range in Meaford, firing a fixed machine gun. It was pretty fun shooting, but like any other time in the army, fun has a price. after lunch on saturday, we spent about 2 hours under the blazing hot sun stripping tracer rounds from belts of ammunition, because the fire index was high, and the army was afraid we'd start a fire, not unlike the one in Christian's little brother's course. That one covered 7 square kilometres. See, the tracer round is mostly composed of phosphorus which burns a bright red as it flies through the air. It helps us aim.

Anyway, maybe you don't get how tedious this task is. Allow me to clarify for you. We had a total of 40,000 rounds (39,820 actually, by Christian's count). The rounds are linked together in belts of 220. Every fifth round is a tracer. Essentially, we have to break the belt into 44x 4-round belts and 44x tracers, and then reassemble the belt, sans tracers. A little off topic, but y'know when you watch those army movies and you see the streaks of bullets flying by? Those would be the tracers. What you don't see are the 4 other rounds following right behind it.

So now we have 181 belts of 176 rounds. Each person got 8 belts of ammunition to fire off. tons of fun. 31,856 rounds fired. Anybody who has ever fired on the army's ranges before knows what's next. We pick up 31,856 empty casings and 31,856 link, and then proceed to hand-sort through it, separating the casings and link into separate bags, free of grass, dirt, and the occasional stray unfired live round. And of course, we clean the guns, which are so dirty and oily that my cuticles and fingernails are still black. I'll just keep my hands buried in my pockets for the next few days, I guess.

Pics from Ottawa

This is a South-South-East view from my balcony in Nepean during the late afternoon.

This is almost the same view during the lightning storm.

Click to enlarge

Catching lightning in your hands.

I spent most of last night trying to photograph lightning. I got a handful of okay shots, but nothing spectacular. I was going on the law of large numbers, taking a 5 second exposure every 10 seconds. Basically, I was hoping to catch 33% of the lightning in a small section of the sky from my balcony. Unfortunatly, I missed the more spectaular strikes, but caught a few small ones. The storm was ideal. No rain, so the sky was clear, but lots of lightning.

I have a bbq lunch tomorrow and red lobster dinner with the coworkers tomorrow night. I hope red lobster has improved since the last time I went 10 years ago. It always struck me as the McDonalds of seafood restaurants. Well, maybe not as bad as McDonalds, maybe closer to Swiss Chalet.

*Update*
added ejessica's xanga site to the links

Working the lightning rod

Last night for dinner, I had home-made beef stew, with leeks, carrots, celery, onions, and mushrooms, poured over garlic mashed potatoes.

So... there's a severe thunderstorm warning with tornado watch in Ottawa. I figured it's a good time for me to bring the umbrella to work. Anyway, I decided to test out the umbrella before leaving the house, so I remove the strap and push up on that sliding thingie, and the umbrella opens, but unfortunately, I can't get it to lock in the open position. I'm staring at the little pole thingie that the ring thingie slides on, and I can't see that little metal thingie that holds the whole thing open. What the hell, right? So, then I realize that the umbrella is really short, and I mean like the pole is a foot long. I'm cursing and swearing, and then I see... the button. Yeah. I totally didn't realize that you gotta push the button to deploy the umbrella. Thats how long it's been since I've used an umbrella. I know, I know... why haven't I used an umbrella all this time? Because I'm not a pussy. Yeah, you heard me, you wuss. I'm allowed to use an umbrella today because there's a severe thunderstorm warning with a tornado watch.

Bachelor Cuisine

1 pack of instant noodles
2 eggs
green onion
dried chili peppers
1-2 cups of water
random veggies
a small pot
chopsticks
a spoon
a magazine

boil 1-2 cups of water in a small pot, depending on how much soup you want. Cut random veggies into bite sized chunks, and place in pot. When water boils, drop the instant noodles in. Crack the eggs into the pot, and carefully peel the eggwhite away from the yolk as it cooks. The idea is to separate the white from the yolk. Mix in soup-base, green onion and dried chili peppers to taste. Remove the yolks (unless you're a fan of eggyolk). Eat out of the pot to reduce dishwashing, and use the magazine to protect your tabletop (or chair or lap) from the heat of the pot.

The concept here is a more balanced and healthier instant noodle meal for long-term consumption. Basically, to decrease the MSG, and increase the fibre and protein.

Last night for dinner, I had...

... Asparagus, lightly sauteed with green onions, served in a lobster bisque sauce, with a side of freshly baked corn bread. For my meat serving, I had spam, fried, and for dessert, I had a portugese-style tart. Had I gone to the grocery store, I might have had steak instead of spam. oh well, maybe next time.

I've bought a corner table and a coffee table. Now, I actually have an eating surface. Before, I was sitting on my concrete balcony floor, eating off a folding chair. Nice, huh?

Coming home this weekend. What's the plan? I'll bring home my movie passes, and I'll take someone out to see MI3.

I've been in a news-blackout since May 1st. If something happened in the last 3 weeks, I don't know about it.

Thanks for the pen guys and girl. Hopefully, someone sees it and tries to mug me on the street, so that I can take it and stab them in the neck with a one-liner like, "You want it? Here, TAKE it... Bwahaha. The pen IS mightier."

BorrrRRRrrred

Yep, I have a dependence on coffee. If I don't have coffee in the morning, I can't think straight - I'll make tons of mistakes by noon-time. It's almost like I can read something, and I won't understand a word of it. In fact, I won't even remember reading it. After coffee, I'm a good worker though.

I'm thinking it might be psychosomatic though, because when I take that first sip, it's like my whole day brightens up, and I know there's no way in hell the stuff works that fast.

I think I like this job a lot. Mostly, I think I like this job because I hate natural health products, and this job puts me in a position to do the most damage to this particular industry. MMMMaybe I don't hate all natural health products. Maybe I only hate homeopathic medicines.

Ugh. This has got to be my worst allergy season ever. I guess if I only look at the upside, I can say that I get tired easily and sleep well.

8am... time to do some real work.

Submission Coordinator

Yes. I am now a Submission Coordinator (SC) in the group affectionately known as "the Q-Team," In the Submission Coordination Unit, which falls under the Product Submission Coordination Unit, of the Submission Management Division, ya di-da, Natural Health Products Directorate, Health Canada. Whew.

Anyway, Q-Team are all Co-op students, three from U Waterloo, two from Seneca (including me), and three that haven't arrived yet. Well, the last three, I'm not sure are Q-Team. They might be working for a different unit. Our immediate supervisor works 3 floors down, in the basement. So, pretty much, everything is done via email. It's sorta "sink or swim" here. "Have a question? Read the SOPs and the FAQs to see if that answers it. If not, then come down and ask us."

We have some pretty sweet equipment here. Our rolley chairs are the new ergonomic ones that cost hundreds of dollars each (the one that you have, Jeff). They're pretty comfortable, and even after 8 hrs of sitting, my ass isn't getting fat. The keyboard trays are a little lacking, though. There are only 2 settings: in my way, or under my desk. What with all the paperwork we have, there's barely enough deskspace, and what little there is, is too far away because the damn keyboard sticks out so much. Then, there's about 4" x 8" of mouse space. It's just enough space that at my sensitivity setting, I can get the pointer from one end of the screen to another in just one sweep. God help the fool who has a low sensitivity setting.

Where are all the fine pens? The government seems to use 0.7 mm exclusively. Thanks, Jane for those 0.38 superfine pens. They'll come in handy making my bosses squint. Oh, and I opened the "for emergency use only" package, not that I had an emergency. I just needed to know what my limits of self care are. Wouldn't want to be bleeding profusely, tearing open the package with 9.5 fingers, hoping in vain that you've packaged some polysporin in there. It also helps to know what other sort of supplies I need to buy.

On my first night in Ottawa, I had leftover fried rice from lunch, an apple and penut butter from the jar. Yesterday night, I had Beef Shawarma. Tonight, I will have instant noodles, spam, and a piece of fruit. Maybe some canned soup too. I need to go grocery shopping, but for now, my priority is mass cleaning. Once I've got this place up to a high level of cleanliness, it won't take much to maintain, and my allergies should go down (they already have significantly).

I'm not getting an internet connection or a phone line in Ottawa. I have access at work, and I'll do any emailing and chatting there. If anyone needs to reach me, you can email me or call my cellphone, the latter being reserved for urgent business.

Things that need to get done by next week:
1. Buy a pump to inflate my air mattress. I'm currently sleeping on the floor. It is very hard.
2. One more cleaning cycle.
3. Buy groceries.
4. Laundry

Crash, Bang!

Y'know the black civic with the gold rims? Pieces of it got left behind on the ramp from Hwy 400 Southbound to 401 Eastbound. Yesterday was so so busy.

Earlier that day...
After my final exam, my Dad picked me up from school and we picked up my Mom from work to go get lunch - Pho. Anyway, at lunch, the bowl was really full, and when I moved it a little bit, the soup sloshed back and forth, and spilled out of the bowl, and into my crotch. So now I look like I peed my pants, and if I happen to cross paths with a dog, it'll be mighty interested in my salty crotchstain.

Anyway, after lunch, we went for our customary post-meal coffee. We dropped off my mom at work again, and on the way out, my dad hit a bump, and I spilled coffee on my white shirt. Just a little drip, but enough to really stand out. Minutes later, on the ramp to Hwy 401 from 400, we get stuck in a traffic jam, and come to a dead stop. I'll admit, it was was a pretty sudden stop, and we broke hard. I was watching the side-view mirrors, and saw the guy behind us brake hard too, but he managed to stop in time. My dad, who had a better view with the rear-view mirror could see two cars behind us. The second guy behind us wasn't gonna make it. The car behind us tried to steer out of the way, but with nowhere to go, the last guy hit the car behind us, the car behind us took out our right rear bumper, driving us straight into the car in front of us. Meanwhile, in our car, I've now got coffee all over the sleeve of my white shirt, coffee on my jeans, more specifically on my crotch, coffee on the dashboard, coffee on the windshield... just, coffee everywhere.

So that's that. When we got towed off the highway, I swear that our tow truck drivers were bikers. There were three guys in the tow truck (why the hell do you need 3 guys in a tow?), and they were all big rough looking white guys. I'm pretty sure they weren't Bandidos, though. Hah.

Our rental replacement is a Chevrolet Impala. Brand new one, only 200kms on it. What a piece of shit. The gaspedal and steering are both sluggish, nothing compared to the light responsiveness of the Acura TL. You so much as touch the gaspedal on the TL, and you'll go. The Impala has this delay, just a fraction of a second, but enough to make you think that you should press harder on the gas. End result, too much gas, and an uncomfortable jump. It really pisses me off when I try to change lanes because the responsiveness is so sluggish. With the civic or the acura, I so much as think about changing lanes, and it's done. With this brick of shit Impala, I actually have to consider that my car won't pick up fast enough to properly cut off the guy behind me. Moreover, the fucker is massive. It's longer than our TL. Visibility is shit, because Americans like big booty, and the Impala has a huge ass. The side view mirrors are tiny little angular things, more decorative than functional, and the headlights stick out like bug-eyes almost to the same level as the bumper. I can see it already, anytime you nick the front bumper, you're going to break a headlight. Leave it to Americans to design a useless car like the Impala.

Whoa whoa whoa... wait a sec there.

So, all this talk about girlfriends and boyfriends and engagements has got me thinking that I should really hook up. So, I started to think about all the prospects out there, and man! The pool is small.

College girls: Remember that movie 13 going on 30? Yeah, well think high school girl stuck in the body of a twenty-something. Most of my classmates are taken, so... yeah.

Cammie: She sings (+2), she dances (+2), she sews (+2). Oh my god, what a gold mine of potential - she's even hobbled so she can't run away (+1). Steady job (+1) and not one with too much prestige (0). Whoa whoa whoa... wait a sec there, cowboy. Groupcest (-2). I mean, she's dated Ivan and Simon before. If I go out with Cammie, will she dump me and try to go out with Brian to complete her collection?

*Edit* Apparently, Cam can bake, but cannot full-out cook (+1). After talking with simon, he has convinced me that being gimped is not entirely a good thing. While I associated gimpiness with that ancient chinese practice of binding womens' feet, I realized that in modern terms, this is not a good thing. Not only will Cam be unable to wait on me hand-and-foot, I will have to wait on HER hand-and-foot. This will not do (-2).

*Edit* Apparently, Cam cannot bake at all (-1). I'll assume she can cook basic basic stuff though. After some thought, I've decided that cooking food means a lot to me. I'm going to have to account for that (-1). On the topic of food, I've also noticed that she likes to order far more than she can eat. That never really sat well with me because I, on the other hand, feel a need to eat everything I order. I suppose it could work out if I ordered less, and she ordered more (+1), but then I wouldn't really be eating the things that I want(-1).

Total: 2 points.

Irene: She sings (+2), but not as well as Cam (-1), gimpy (+1), and has an affinity for good cooking (+2) and photography (+1). Unfortunately, she's also a Christian (-1), more specifically, a Catholic (-1). She's going to be a doctor (-1), which is more than I'll ever be (-1). It must be tough being a smart girl.

*Edit* Same thing as above re: gimped (-2). Simon also pointed out that Irene can bake too (+1)

Total: 0 points.

Jess: Taken, seriously. This fish has jumped out of my pool.

Jane: Bakes (+1), Artisitic (+2), can sing (+1), really nice (+1). Christian, specifically the psychotic presbytarian kind (-3). I'd be jealous that she loves Jesus more than me. No sense of style (-1) or care for appearance (-1). Really good wife/mother material, but I just can't stand the thought of my kids growing up in a Christian household. Speaking of wife/motherhood, perverted sense of dating conventions (-1).
Total: -1 points

Elsa: Don't know much about this one. Incredible body (+2), Seems nice (+1), and is a shutterbug (+1) to boot. Unfortunately, she's also a churchgoing Christian (-2).

*Edit* Simon seems to know her. They go to the same church. He expressed great discomfort in my description of her body as 'incredible.' Is she tainted? What's going on?

Total: 2 points



Which other single girls can I rate?

I'm a good person, really.

I know that a human being ought to be an end in itself, and not merely a means to an end. But that knowledge is wasted on me.

I look at a homeless person, and I just don't care. I understand that most have a mental condition that causes them to make the decisions they have made. I support only the social programmes designed to attack the cause of homelessness. Treating the problem with charity and hand-outs reminds me too much of parasitism. Bayview and Sheppard is my neighborhood, my home. Take your panhandling somewhere else.

I look at the latest gang-related homicide, and I applaud the culling of the criminal herd. Let the gangbangers kill each other. They do society a service. Only when innocents are harmed should we so much as lift a finger to stop the killing. Look at the photos of the shooters and victims of last year's homicides and tell me again why the police shouldn't profile racially.

I consider the American Dream of loan-sharking on a massive level, and I laugh at the innovative thinking that broke the mold. Loan money to people who have no hope of paying, and then profit by charging interest. Now, do it to entire countries on a global level. Since when is it not your fault that you spend far more than you make? Why, in some countries, you can't get a credit card if you don't have a job. Those countries aren't as powerful as the US for a reason.

I see hypocrisy in the things that are good. Throwing money at a problem won't make it go away. In some cases, it helps reduce the suffering, but in most cases, it merely massages away the pity in your selfish little heart. Your money really won't get to that starving child in Africa. You've only made sure that the flavour of the month in charge can afford more bullets for his soldiers. Plus, you get some taxes back in the process - awsome!

I embrace our way of life, know that I can make a difference, but would rather serve the self before the other. I won't leave the comforts of home. I will not get off my ass to help eradicate poverty. If I slum it, it's because I'm on vacation, and I'm interested in your national dish. I confess. I can fly away and be in Africa in a month, helping the Red Cross in some Godforsaken refugee camp, but I won't. And neither will you. The difference is that I admit that I'm selfish, and when we both get to hell, I'll know why I'm there.

I admire the ones who sell their souls for ridiculous amounts of money, because of the sheer weight of their achievements.




More than that, I admire the one who can give it up and fly away, to make the world a better place.

The more people change, the more they stay the same.

Clearly I'm wrong. Submitted for your consideration:

"Erin! You have done such a great job on this. I love
it! All of it! Sorry i haven't really written to you in
so long, i'm in the middle of dying amidst hundreds of
ISPs now. Again, a great and insightful job on the
webpage/site(?) You're the greatest and sweetest
girl and this page really shows it. luvesK."

Creepy eh? That even sounds like a totally different person... so cheerful... with that hint of superficiality and that dash of false sincerity. So different from the placid version of today. Apart from the above, a bunch of Nordic results, Mac stuff, and a Green Party petition, there isn't much left of you electronically. I guess that's good to know.

Not all of us are so lucky. If you look hard enough, you can still find an old footprint of fascist Dustin Chang seeking a worldwide programme of genocide... yeah.

-d

Felixese II

Dustin: "Why would you park here, Felix? We're probably going to get mugged on the way to the restaurant and on the way back."

Felix: "Now, who the hell would mug three guys?"

Jeff: "Well... four guys."

Felix: "No mugglers are going to..."

Dustin: "Mugglers?"

Jeff: "Damn those Mugglers."

Dustin: "Damn you dirty Muggler bloods"

Jeff: *Laughs*

Dustin: *Laughs*

Felix: "I don't get it."

Oh Felix. Go watch the Harry Potter movies. I'm sure you'll like them.

In other news, I'm happy to announce that I've landed myself a co-op placement in Ottawa with the Natural Health Products Directorate in the Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada. I'll be gone from the beginning of May to the end of August.

I've got some new material in. Most notably:
Saw II
Lord of War
The Legend of Zorro (2nd movie)
Island, Serenity (I didn't have these in DVD)
Chicken Little
and a few others.
This weekend, after rock-climbing, we can watch a movie and relax. I'm sure we'll be fairly tired after the exercise and food.

Poo update

Why is it so taboo to talk about poo (c.f. Feb 3)? It's a natural bodily function that we must perform relatively frequently. I would dare say that some of us might actually enjoy that meditative weight loss process. Sitting position... Alone... Relaxed... Aromatic environment. Okay, speaking of aroma, do you ever wonder if poo fumes stick to you when you leave the premises? Do you end up walking around smelling like peppy le peu? Personally, I'm not gonna take the chance. I dropped an 'iceberg' just now, and I think a shower will remove any lingering residues or such from my person.

Oh, and by the way, I've added some links and fixed links to Ivan and Simon's blogs

Felixese

Felix (reading) says:
my sister boyfirend just got me whole bunch of good food

Felix (reading) says:
...

.·.meatbag says:
so no yam.

Felix (reading) says:
watermelon juice (large), the tutor chinese thing u ate last time, chicken, ...

Felix (reading) says:
yam is still on

.·.meatbag says:
but you just got food...

Felix (reading) says:
not tutor

Felix (reading) says:
how to spell?

.·.meatbag says:
oh fuck. tortoise

.·.meatbag says:
tortoise/turtle

Yet more proof that my fluency in Felixese is an asset when it comes to editing his essays.

OMG!

Oh My Godiva!

I bought a box of 16 Raspberry Truffles from Godiva last week, and I'm now down to the very last one. At a retail value of more than $2 apiece, you can't help but savour every beautiful thing about Godiva's Chocolates, from shape and design, to the little raspberry seeds that get stuck in your teeth. The dark chocolate shell is actually formed by two thin layers and doesn't just shatter to pieces when broken. The pulpy raspberry filling makes for a treat that's not just a load of tasteless sweetness that describes most mass produced chocolates of today. While Pot of Gold and other brands use raspberry icing as the filler, Godiva opts for a real raspberry pulp, more jam/jelly-like than anything else. Hard little raspberry seeds and that sharp sour tang gives it that much more integrity as a Raspberry candy. The bitterness of the semisweet dark chocolate contrasts the sweet and soft raspberry filling in both texture and taste. As both parts melt together in the mouth, there is a mixture of hard and soft, bitter and sweet. The two distinct tastes of chocolate and raspberry remain separate to the end. Really, I've not tasted a better chocolate confectionary in my world. If you don't know what to get your loved one this Valentine's Day, get her a box of Godiva's Raspberry Truffles. If she has the slightest idea of what good food is, she'll love them for sure.

-d

Time for a Change

1) Idiot
a) Yes, it's time for a change. I'm just so tired of living a good, though boring life. I think I'm going to move out on my own and pave my own way, and try to support myself! Even though I know absolutely nothing about moving out, and living on my own. Doesn't matter, it's time for a change.

b) Yes, it's time for a change. I'm just so tired of a Liberal government. I think I'm going to vote Conservative! Even though I know absolutely nothing about what the Conservatives stand for. Doesn't matter, it's time for a change.

2) Idiot
a) I'm against communism. Nothing else matters, I'm going to join Hitler because he hates communists too.

b) I'm against same-sex marriages. Nothing else matters, I'm voting for the Conservatives based purely on religious beliefs.

Seneca would roll over in his grave...

... if he saw the caliber of students attending the institution of higher learning named after him. Here are some first impressions.

1) First year students look like high school kids. Wait a sec... they ARE high school kids, they're really in their OAC year in my mind.

2) If U of T's computer facilities were a 10 on a scale from 1 to 10, Seneca @ York's computer facilities would rate a 17. Security, conveniance, user friendliness, customizability, aesthetic appeal, and technology are light years ahead of U of T.

3) If universities get the cream of the high school crop, colleges get the sludge at the bottom. In the first-year orientation class, I sat in the middle of the class (4th row). By the time all the first-year Science students took their seats, I was one of 5 or so people who formed the first row... four rows from the actual front of the class. All the kids who sat in the front of the class in high school went to university. All the kids who sat in the back of the class went to college.

4) York has, by far, hotter looking girls than U of T. This confirms the theory that pretty faces do indeed have emptier heads.

5) I now know what Uggs are.

Who's Hoo in the Zoo

Just recieved my new membership for the metro toronto zoo for this year.

Last time I went (Last week), I only made it through Indo/Malayan Rainforest and half of African Savannah. I still have the Canadian and American stuff to go through.

They have these restaurants in each area that are supposed to represent that continent. For example, the Restaurant Africa, Restaurant America, etc. Sounds cool, right? I was so psyched for some African food. I walk in, and it's really just a Harvey's and a Pizza Pizza. What a shitty misleading thing to do. The saddest thing is that the restaurants are better kept than the exhibits.

The zoo needs your support. Go visit the zoo, if not now, then later in the spring or summer. Great photo ops too, eh irene? *nudge *nudge. better bring a tripod though... damn animals move around too much.

-d

Friends don't let friends buy MDG

Do you know anyone who owns hardware from MDG?

If yes, then you've failed them. Try to be a better friend.

Friends don't let friends buy from MDG.