Rain, Pain and Gain

This week's word: exacerbate. Try to spell it, use it AND pronounce it properly!

Nov 9 - It's in the blood...

No good news in sight for H1N1: no signs that things have peaked yet. So we're still in the running for one of the more difficult flu seasons yet.

While I was at my doctor's today for a general check-up( all is well internally, by the by, though we're still working on the nausea thing )we also talked about my Thalassemia Minor. As I've yet to have any of my doctors give me a solid rundown on do's and don'ts, I have hopes that my current doctor is made of better mettle. I've done a lot of research over the years, and I have to say that the internet has allowed sufferers of all sorts of maladies the ability to connect and share their experiences far more easily. I've stumbled across quite a few forums in the last few years dedicated to Thalassemia, and I've learned a few things I'd not known before from browsing the posts. Interestingly, I discovered that people with the disorder are immune to malaria, which is perhaps a by-product of it being a Mediterranean-based disease. Neat, and more to learn as I go along.

Nov 10 - Toon Progress!

What the heck is Duncebucket, you ask? It's a show on TeleToon, one that my friends Brian and Mike put together – how cool is that? Go have a look, and if you can figure out how to vote on TeleToon.com drop me a line – I just keep going in circles.

The Grey Season is well underway here in B.C. with large grey cloudbanks playing tag across the sky night and day. Unlike in ON, the clouds here in the West come and go, with the sun making an almost daily appearance most weeks – sometimes for hours at a time! The rain is gentle, generally falling from above as though reluctantly parting from the great wide open. It rarely pours or pounds it's way down, which is remarkable; I've yet to be caught in a rainstorm here that the flick of an umbrella won't solve in a steady hand – rare is the gusty day here to whisk said umbrella away.

It's been hard to focus at work this week, as my back's been knotting up – from stress, I believe. Once I dig up the benefits booklet I'll be able to confirm that massage therapy is covered, and then I'll be a happier camper. For now my back massager is letting me sleep at night, but it's a daily thing. I'm sure a few of you can relate.

Oh, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 came out at midnight tonight. Lots of people went out to get it, mine's in the mail... so I get a good night's sleep( -ish )whilst others play. 

Nov 11 - 60 Seconds

Remembrance Day – one minute of your year to remember, is it too much to ask? I've hear comments from people that they are "sick of seeing WWII specials" and other such drek. I'll also not repeat my own rebuttals, save that if WWII had gone the other way, we'd all be in a much different world. One minute: not too much to ask. Not at all.

On a lighter point, here's a different flash from the( more recent )past: Clash of the Titans is being remade! Check out the trailer here – lots of boom, but where is Bubo the Owl?

One reason I've never bothered with a wireless connection for the Xbox is the cost, with Microsoft never budging an inch on the $129.99 pricetag. Now, news has come that the new 'N' speed adaptor is here, which has finally lowered the price on the old adaptors. Who's going to want them though, as most people HAVE the 'N' routers by now? Thanks for nothing, Microsoft.

Today I watched other people play MW2 online all day, and wasn't bothered much. I didn't feel the burning need to be among the first to get the game, as that feeling passes soon enough once you begin playing. 

Nov 12 - Fry who?

Ah, Futurama: the show with a fan following that won't die. Which is good, as it got the show renewed recently! Message boards like this one show how intelligent, chatty and fun fans can be.

Ever since seeing Ferris Bueller's Day Off, I've always felt the urge to stay until the movie's final post credits are run – just in case there's something 'after' tucked in there! Much like the often lively end credits of The Simpsons TV series, more and more shows and movies these days have extras tucked in. Plus with the advent of the DVD, 'extras' take on the form of easter eggs beyond the regular trappings usually packed onto the disc. Even games are part and parcel of the fold now, including MW2. A good place to check out if your fave media has anything hidden in it is WhatsAfterTheCredits.com.

Not much else going on here. Work, sleep, eat and repeat seems the order of the day of late. I'm keeping the lights on and the bills paid, so aside from that it's status quo for the most part. I am worried about the new owners of the place, as we've had little contact and it's only a few weeks until the end of the month. Who gets paid the rent, and when, still have yet to be revealed...

Nov 13 - Lucky

Has anyone seen The Navigator? It came out in 1988, and is rated rather highly over at RottenTomatoes.com.

Today was lucky Friday the 13^th for me, as my copy of MW2 arrived in the mail. I wasted no time when getting home from work in unpacking it and popping it into the Xbox. There went the evening, revelling in the glorious gameplay... which seems to be geared to dying a LOT faster than in the COD4. More later – have to play now.

Unlucky for Microsoft today: an article on C|net today broke the news that hackers have managed to bypass the Windows7 activation system. This should come as no surprise to people these days, as it seems the pirates and hackers have the upper hand compared to business. Bummer.

Thank goodness I don't suffer from Paraskevidekatriaphobia! Maybe Bruce Springsteen suffers from this malady? He had a rather oops-worthy slip today...

Nov 14 - Bravo, Kim!

A friend of mine was featured on Bravo! tonight: Kim Van Stygeren Medland, whose artwork is becoming known worldwide. Plus she also has a few videos on YouTube, which I hadn't known about until Lucas told me about her Bravo debut. Kim's website is well worth checking out too – lots of great art and articles there!

What the heck is this? A Guide to Appearing More Attractive? Where do people come up with these things? I like the Roomba Pac-Man video on the same site though!

Today was split between games: MW2 and Borderlands. That about covers things for the day, timewise – great for stress relief. Also happily I managed to reconnect with a few of my online NWN friends, whom I had not managed to talk to for some weeks( and in one case, months )due to all of us being busy. Tonight the stars were aligned, or something, for everyone kept popping in and out of MSN. It was great to catch up in real-time, something that email just can't manage to capture.

Nov 15 - MW2, pretty much.

The hours spent playing MW2 today were amazingly fun, even though our team struggled to make even a few wins. The maps in MW2 are huge and varied, so much so that just finding the other team can be a challenge, and sticking close while supporting your teammates just as difficult. There is a larger variety of maps and environments, as well as a greater degree of game types. And the massive number of perks, weapons and other unlockables shows that the design team put a lot of effort into the playability and flexibility of the game. From what I can see, the long-term prospects of MW2 will hold it in good stead... as long as the patches for the little technical glitches keep coming down the pipe quickly.

Later in the evening, I had a soak in the hottub which had been heating all day. It did my back some good, relaxing in the steamy waters. Unfortunately it looks like a valve has cracked, and the landlord has stated that since our use of the tub was 'optional' in the lease, she's not going to fix it. Which only confirms that she's a rotten human being, and that quite a few nasty euphamisms I have thought up apply quite aptly to her. Dealing with people whose moral and personal goals are so divergent from my own makes me see red, in only that for the most part these same people end up with a disproportionate amount of the wealth and power in society. How does one live a 'good life' knowing that the rewards are few and intangible?

Oh, that's right – become a monk. How could I have forgotten from my D&D days...

That's it - I'm feeling tired, grumpy and stressed this week so I've been hard-pressed to do naught but talk about such in the blog. Next week I'll have had more time under my sunlamp...

Gunpowder, Google and Godzilla

The clocks are back, the sun is less apparent and the winter blahs begin...

Nov 2 – Flu Terminations

Here’s a good opener: it seems the Terminator franchise is in trouble... and Joss Whedon is offering to save it! How wow would that be? Terminators... Buffy... Serenity... all in one mind. Mind you, since the owner Halcyon Entertainment wants $60-million for it, Whedon’s $11K offer is a little... low.

Now this is a scary thought: the internet we all know and love, brought down by the flu bug? I'm serious. The internet, which was designed to survive even a limited nuclear exchange( if there can ever be such a thing )intact, may be humbled by massive numbers of flu victims. Weird!

Why do banks need assets? Have a look at that link, there are some very interesting points. Especially in the light of the recent upswing of the gold market, which has led some to speculate that economies may swing back towards a gold standard. Which would be the wrong thing to do in today's world. There’s an interesting video over at IOUSAtheMovie.com, which is 30 minutes of great insight and hard questions about the current economic crisis. Well worth watching!

Nov 3 - Zombies vs Godzilla

At last! Someone at Forbes.com, of all places, has hit the nail on the head: Zombies are (North)America's Godzilla! Incredibly, we may share a social bug with the Japanese, who are crazed about all things to do with the giant atomic lizard. Really cool, and it explains a lot.

Is anyone out there even a little excited about the upcoming MMO Star Trek: Online? I’m not a fan, though I do like some aspects of Trek, but we’ll see how long the franchise can keep going after the Feb 2010 launch date for ST:O – monthly subscriptions are what it’s all about, and I’m not sure that one can keep up an ‘authentic’ Star Trek experience online for very long. I mean, how often can you chase down Tribbles or phaser a few Klingons before it gets old?

With MMO’s, you’re also lacking physical human contact – much like those who play WOW too much and never leave their house, or in years past they played ‘EverCrack’ too much. Now along comes ‘Funktionide’ to take care of that missing human contact... with a computerized huggable white blob. Shades of The Prisoner, anyone? Creepy!

Nov 4 - Character

I’ve discovered the BBC remake series Survivors on BBCCA channel here, with mixed feelings. On the one hand, it’s a series about a post-apocalyptic world where a virus kills millions, leaving survivors scattered around the world. Nice idea for human drama. On the other hand, it’s your typical low-budget BBC drama, with shiny-clean homes and vehicles looking out of place in a world gone crazy. At least there’s been a few good TV series and movies on the topic – this list showcases some of the better ones, including The Stand from a few years ago – the literal Hand Of God notwithstanding. I much prefer to browse this massive list of movies dealing with the end of the world – it has reviews attached, always a good thing! I just wish I could recall the name of the miniseries from the 80’s that BBC had, it had the most depressing ending I’ve ever seen, and that’s all that stuck with me. More on that next week, if I can find it!

As a writer, designing characters can be a task sometimes, especially making them both memorable and unique. When working with just the written word, you have to keep every aspect of a character in mind, especially the way they speak. With dialogue being a weak part of my portfolio, I was thrilled to find this article on io9.com about how to give your characters unique voices.

I had my usual 6-month dental appointment this morning, with a new hygienist... who was old-school, and never stopped talking during the entire 45-minute checkup. Which wasn’t so bad, as I learned a few things that hadn’t been brought to my attention in all the past years of visits. She also gave me some cool dental floss( yes, I just said that... )which is made out of GoreTex, allowing it to be a flat, tape-like strip that fits better for people with tight teeth like myself.

Nov 5 – Gunpowder and Google

“Remember, remember, the 5^th of November...” begins the famous rhyme, which saw Guy Fawkes and his treason immortalized in infamy on this day, for over 3400 years now – a remarkable thing to celebrate for such a long period of time. I meant to watch my HD copy of V for Vendetta today, but I was too busy in the evening playing Borderlands to remember, it arrived today in the mail. Oops...

For almost 8 years now, I have been using Mozilla Thunderbird as my email client. I mention this because I've used quite a few email programs as they came onto the scene, but once I had Thunderbird in my hands I never looked back. This month should see the release of Thunderbird 3, which has a few features I am excited to use, including an improved search function. I don’t like entrusting my email to servers outside of my control, hence my great attachment( heh )to Thunderbird.

On that same topic of software, C|Net has a great article today: 7 Great Freeware Utilities. They have a few of my faves in there, like CCleaner, as well as 7zip - who needs WinZip any more? I’m all about the freeware, as most of you will know by now... my experience with buggy, PAID software has somewhat soured me on utilities in general. Games are another matter... patches for those are inevitable, but they won’t usually kill your PC if they muck up.

Big Brother is out there.... and it's name is Google. But he's friendly! Google today announced public access to the Google Dashboard, where you can look at all the information that the massive info conglomerate has gathered on you. Scary?

Nov 6 – Aim for the sky!

Whoa... how big is the biggest picture of the sky that’s out there, do you think? 100 megapixels? 500? Nope – try a 648 megapixel one on for size! The work of years, this thing is amazing... which means that any current video monitor cannot do it justice. Still, nice to be able to see the entire sky at once, as well as have the data for use by various scientific projects the world over. And it’d make a killer t-shirt!

How about a spot of afternoon tea on a lovely Saturday? Why not serve it in a really cool-looking teapot? My fave is the Sorapot, it's rather chic. Though I wonder: does anyone have a list of teapots that don't dribble when you pour? Anyone?

Maybe take that spot of tea... in space? It was announced today that the first space hotel is on track to open in 2012. For only $200K US a pop, you can spend a few days in a cramped rocket and a cramped, no-frills pod in orbit. Thanks, but I’ll wait for the first Super8 to open up there before I book my ticket – right after my lottery win, that is.

In the evening, I watched Bender’s Game, the Futurama movie about RPG’s that has a lot of Gary Gygax references alluded to in the movie. Seems the creators of Futurama are long-time D&D players, which makes me like them all the more. Smart folks, they be – verily!

Nov 7 - Scatterday

Ah, the Seventh Day.... actually, over a week now since I’ve been using Windows 7. So far, it’s been a fun experience, though some things aren’t working perfectly – hence my need to get the ‘XP Mode’ up and running in the new year. Hopefully, the new processor won’t strain my laptop with too much heat – the FX is designed to be a gaming laptop, so with proper cooling it should be able to keep things within tolerances.

Boy, did it rain here today. When it rains in BC, it really rains – a lot like Florida in that regard, but more frequent and with better breaks. Unlike rain in Ontario which can last for a week or longer before the sun shines, BC can go from rain, to sun, to rain again here on Vancouver Island several times an hour. Which is hell on drivers, as the sun is blinding on wet roads.

Better that than snow, though. We’ll see how much we get here in Langford in the West Shore; we’re not in Victoria itself, where snow is very rare and magically disappears the next day. Here, it may stay a while, but that’s still fine in small quantities – I don’t plan on any snow days outside.

So I’m happy I didn’t have to work today – I needed the decompression time, and thankfully I had a brand-spanking-new copy of Borderlands to play with. I spent a good part of the day checking the game out, taking breaks to get a few things done around the house. It was a good day to relax, and I even managed to fit in the rare afternoon nap, despite the noise of the rain as it waxed and waned. It was... nice.

Nov 8 – Not-so-Sun-day

After a few unsuccessful auction attempts on Swoopo, I gave up and made myself a pancake breakfast before diving into playing Borderlands. The rich visuals are lovely to watch, the gameplay is simple and there is a ton to do and see. I actually had to tear myself away from it in the early afternoon to take a break. It’s odd too, in that three great games are all coming out within the space of the last few weeks: Borderlands first, then Dragon Age last week and COD: MW2 on Nov. 10^th – this Tuesday!

A few hours of COD4 showed that my successes in Borderlands had not translated to online play, where the human opponents don’t stay in the same spot... or shoot you from across the map with a pistol. Or knife you from behind. Or get you with a randomly-tossed grenade... you get the picture. While AI opponents may make you grind your teeth sometimes with the “That’s not fair!” caught in your throat, it will always be the human opponent who makes you really howl and throw things. Some things never change, really.


I've edited this week's blog post with MS Word 2007, as I've managed to get the blog posting function working. The text seems a little large and the spacing's off, but I'll work on that for next week. Ta'!

Paper, Plagues and Puns

And the word of the week is: jackass. Glad I could help educate! ;-)

Oct 26 - Monday Madness

Ah, boardgames - they're becoming a somewhat lost pasttime, what with the advent of home video game systems. Remember the classics you played as a kid, and perhaps still do? Well, here's a twist on some of those games: the original box art, with the titles changed to perfectly sum up the game in only a few words. I think the one at the end for the game of 'Diplomacy' is totally apt...

Ye gods! What are people thinking when it comes to custom collectables these days? I like a good sci-fi spaceship model as much as the next person, even moreso when it is one of Serenity.... but this takes the cake! Who out there can even afford one of those things?

Work today saw us launch a new payday loan product, which has been a pain to prepare for. Overall, I think it's a good thing for the business as it levels the playing field for everyone in the business, but the transition is going to be a bumpy one for a little while. Which means longer hours and more stress at work - what else is new? I don't find it depressing though: I'm too tired.

Oct 27 - Windows 7 arrives!

Guess what arrived in the mail today? Windows 7! Considering I was expecting it by Friday at the earliest, I was thrilled - as today was my day off, I spent most of the afternoon and evening getting it installed on my laptop. It went really, really smoothly - the most time spent was copying files and re-installing programs after Win7 was done. Which highlights the need for a fast file system not hampered by slow wireless speeds or sluggish USB cords - next on my upgrade list is an eSATA drive and connector card, both of which I should be able to get on the cheap nowadays from various sources, being fairly common current tech out there. I hate waiting... for... things... to... copy!

So far, it's been a joy to use. My laptop performs like it should have back when I first bought it with Vista on it: fast, responsive and zippy! My 'Windows Experience' scores have all gone up by a point each, which means that the new Win7 OS is a LOT faster than Vista ever was - it's what Vista should have been, instead of ending up as a bloated design made by committee.

And: what would be a blog post without some mention of Neil Gaiman? How about this for a change: an audiobook of Good Omens by Mr. Gaiman and Terry Pratchett - for free! Go have a listen, and try not to let the narrator's voice pull you under, never to return....

Which brings me to some JMS( J. Michael Straczynski )news: the creator of Babylon 5 is currently involved in adapting a video game about a future civil war in the United States - how cool is that? Shattered Union sounds like it will be quite the commentary about life in the near future, probably with a healthy dose of commentary on the human condition and politics tossed in, if JMS is true to form. Can't wait to find out more about this update to an old classic game!

Oct 28 - Paper and People

Now THIS is just incredible: an entire miniature city... made out of paper! Turns out it is the work of an art student in Tokyo, which is just incredible - it has electric lights and even a working train built-in!

I picked up a book called Plague Year a while back, which was a good yarn about what might happen should nanotech get loose in the world and wreak it's sub-micronic havoc on people and living things. Jeff Carlson, he author of the book, posted a great article on io9.com on why he likes to write about things apocalyptic, which I found really good reading - it's all about the human condition and what we make of it. Which brings Tolkien to mind: he recently made the Forbes List of Richest Dead Celebs - though if you're dead, it's probably no biggie as you're beyond caring. But if it's nice to be remembered, is it even better to be rich on paper too?

What's with Stoked on iTunes? I've been waiting... and waiting... and waiting for the newer episodes to come out( hurry up, Apple! )as I've purchased the entire first season - nada. Two episodes, then nothing since. What gives?

Oct 29 - How DID I get so punny?

Of late, I have been giving thought as to where my... eclectic... sense of humour arose from. After extensive thought, familial interviews and some lengthly research, I believe I have come to a conclusive origin: Asterix. 

Filled with puns, satire and running gags along with stereotypes and allusions, the books are a joy to read for someone like myself... which begs the question of the chicken and the egg, really.

Seeing as today also happens to be the 50th anniversary of Asterix & Obelix, there's got to be some conspiracy or collusion at work here. The tales of the indomitable Gauls holding out against the Roman invaders captivated me as a child, especially as the stories unfolded with each new book purchased from trips to the Big City of Toronto. Classic Bookshop( now long gone )at the Eaton Centre was the source for many of my still-immaculate copies of Asterix & Obelix. As shown by the Google banner above, there are many millions of people out there who have come to love the characters created a half century ago, myself among them. Without Asterix, I don't think my sense of humour would have been nearly as sharp, and I recommend to anyone that they read a few of the Asterix books - you'll laugh out loud and always find something new that you didn't notice before. They're that good.

Also make sure you check out the November Guide to SciFi, courtesy of our friends at io9.com - lots of good things to check out.

Oct 30 - Torches and Borderlands

This morning was a busy one: I was in Victoria early today, down by the Parliment buildings to watch the lighting of the Olympic Torch... as well as hand out freebies from work in the crowd, which was as good an excuse as any to be there. The rain held off, which was great for the crowd that had gathered - you can get a sense of it all in this video here, except for the ten minutes it took to actually light the torch. Seems the flame burns continually, but not hot enough to ignite a stubborn transfer cauldron. Go figure... plus, the extreme low-altitude flight of 3 CF-18 Hornets woke up the entire city - I've never seen an entire street full of people clap their hands to their ears so fast in unison!

And YAY ME! In the interim from returning from Victoria and heading to work, I managed to win a Swoopo auction, in only 4 bids! Instead of paying $69.99 for the hot Xbox game Borderlands( which is sold out everywhere here ), I got it for... $3.24. Yep... total of just $10.22 with taxes and shipping. I'll be checking the mail all next week for it! Huzzah! Too bad it takes far more effort( and deep pockets )to win auctions most of the time on that site - when people start to bid-fight, I sit back and usually just walk away, not worth the pain to my wallet. Timing is everything!

Have you ever had the feeling when watching a TV show or movie, that you've seen someone from it before, somewhere else? IMDB.com is a great place to search for links between shows for actors, and this week I came up with a find linking The Fifth Element and new new Star Trek reboot: Sonita Henry. I suppose if you watch something often enough, eventually your subconscious brain starts to put things together and you notice details, like noticing a particular model of car that you like and suddenly picking it out of the background of vehicles passing you by in a day. In Sonita's case, her exotic looks apparently lent themselves to making her look particularly alien in Star Trek...

Has it really been 30 years since Mad Max first hit the big screen in a blast of blaring horns and burning rubber? For those fans who still watch Max take on post-apocolyptic punks, some good news: Max Max 4 is in production! 

Oct 31 - Tricky Treats!

Costumes... there's something about dressing up as What You Aren't that is key to the appeal of Halloween, I think. Much like the rise of Cosplay in recent years, being able to go out on the town in a skin other than your own is very liberating. Plus, it's just plain fun - especially when you see all the creativity that's gone into people's costumes! This year however, I did not go out, as all my plans fell through... and I didn't feel like being a lone barfly all dressed up with nobody to talk to.

One costume meme that I hope never dies out is from Return of the Jedi: what else but the Slave Leia outfit? It's been twenty years, but every year there are still a bountiful number of Leia's out here in bikinis, searching for their Jabba to deal with. What's not to like?

And what the heck? I had no idea that the economic crisis had hit Iceland so hard - apparently today was the last day to get a Big Mac there, as every McDonald's in the country is closing up shop! Whoulda thunkit? Not that I mourn the loss, as I've not eaten at a McD's in over a decade now... makes my stomach turn just to think about it, really.

Nov 1 - Two Years already? Wow...

Oh, the humanity! It seems half the Island was in my lobby today as I worked at our Colwood branch. I spent the entire 7 hours we were open standing at the counter, serving people as fast as I could... because MORE were piling through the door. By the end of the insanity, I had averaged one customer every 3.5 minutes, with no break, no lunch and no energy - I was totally knacked by day's end and had to spend even more time putting things in order. I can honestly say that it was the hardest shift since I started working here, especially since it was just me there -even the SA days were more bearable with a few co-workers to allow breaks every few hours. But I don't think anyone else there could have handled it, so that's a feather in my cap... but I do NOT want to do that again ANY time soon! Gawds...

Today marks two years that I've been living in Victoria. No pithy words today, not fond reminisences about Niagara shall you find in today's entry: I'm here to stay, barring lottery wins - even then I may simply get a nice cozy place here on the Island. As I wrote on this day last year, it's been different and though I am currently not in a place of my own, I don't see that situation lasting longer than the current economic crisis - when things start moving again, I will too. For now, I have my hands more than full dealing with incredible work stress, family stress and financial stress... I'm finding new depths of willpower to deal with such, but it's wearing. Having friends around to relax with would be fantastic, but right now the closest I get to that are COD4 days online... shooter games are VERY good for stress relief!

I do get this a lot: "Move back to Niagara..." people say to me. Right now, that's not in the cards, though from what I'm reading apartments are getting bigger, while houses are getting smaller - check it out here. Smaller IS better!

Overall, I think the choice to move to Victoria has been the right one for me despite some unforseen bumps along the way - which is almost always the case anyway. 

Well, it's actually Tuesday AM now, but the blog's done and I'm a-bed. Cyas!

And now...

Totally exhausted - blog update will be late Monday night. Welcome to November: Xmas Shopping Season.

Costumes, Collectables and Close Calls

What is a famous split infinitive?

Oct 19 - Neverwhere, not Never-When!

Can you juggle? If you can, your brain may have been.... rewired. Take a look here to find out more... cool stuff.

Today I had a bit of 'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' while watching TV... leading me from Heath Ledger's A Knight's Tale all the way to Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere! As it turns out, the blacksmith 'Kate' in the film on TV tonight is one Laura Fraser, whom I always liked in the film. Checking things on IMDB.com, I discovered that she had also starred in the BBC production of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere way back in 1996, which I've since discovered on YouTube.com ... amazing!

I've started to turn on a sunlamp that I bought a few years ago, to better keep my energy levels up in the darker winter months. I'm only using it during 'regular' daylight hours, and I hope that after a few weeks I'll be less tired early in the evenings than I am. According to my doctor and a few sources, a few hours of light therapy a day should do the trick.

Oct 20 - Audio Books

Brian sent me a link today to an audio novel of note: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I enjoyed it immensely, for quite a few reasons - not the least of which is that it has given me ideas about how to release my own work into the wide world. It is similar to the author's current work-in-progress, a novel based on pledges from the world at large - you can check it out here. Looks like it may be the wave of the future for publishing: find someone you like as a writer, and pay them to write a book for you. Nice idea, eh? There's a lot more to discover at Audible.com... thanks again, Brian!

Though my skill resides more towards the written art forms, I have to say I really, really wish I could carve pumpkins like these guys. Wow!!!

Today was frustrating in some ways, annoying in others and only occasionally relaxing. I spent the morning trying to win a few things on Swoopo, but apparently a lot of other people with today off were also interested in the items I wanted, so nothing jelled - but I didn't lose more than a few dollars, as it was so very crowded. The afternoon was spent trying to get my Xbox Live account to work properly: the Xbox360 just doesn't want to connect in less than ten tries on a good day. I've discovered that if I 'Test Connection' then go back to the login screen, it sometimes works more quickly. Posts on the 'net indicate this may be a function of my 'Lite' internet connection, so come the new year I'm thinking I'll have to go back to the 'Standard' monthly rate, despite the extra cost.

Oct 21 - 12 hours of stress

I was late for an early start today, thanks to forgetting to charge my organizer battery - the downside of tech. Fortunately things went very well, and the store was open only 30 minutes late after the audit was complete. I'm certain I didn't impress my district manager while she waited for me in the rain, but live and learn. In the evening I took the bus into Victoria( with some colourful company in the surrounding seats )to attend a business conference, which turned out to be a bust for marketing work. Still, I had some company from the company, so my co-worker and I traded pointers about the finer things of being professional until it was time to leave. Again, live and learn.

So, I'm fairly stressed out about work - moreso this morning than the rest of the day. I found this link where 5 tips for de-stressing at work are given - I liked the one about using company resources, as many of us pay for health services we never use, myself included. I'm still not sure about massage therapy, but since acumpuncture worked well on my leg( and improved my circulation to boot! )then I am willing to give it a try.

At least the night ended well: I received a call from Pierre tonight, who is interested in having me lend my skills to help him with his web business. Huzzah!

Oct 22 - Handy Halloween

For some reason, I can't stop staring at my hands today. A while back, friends of mine( you know who you are )told me that my thumbs are rather on the short side. Looking at my hands, I see them as perfectly proportioned... yet today I found myself sneaking looks at people's hands. It was weird, but I managed to stop by the end of the day, though a few looks were made at TV hands in the evening. That's genetics for you.

Ten days until Halloween, and I still just don't know if I am going out or not. So why not have a look at some of the incredibly cool costumes out there! One great place to go is WTFcostumes.com, which categorizes all the entries - check out the Transformers Bumblebee costume!

Neat! Collectables of various kinds dot my shelves, though few of any real monetary worth( maybe to posterity in future years? )so when something out there catches my eye, I have to mention it. Today, it is the head prop from the short-lived TV series The Tick. Cool, huh? I mean, it's blue!

And: a black hole... in your pocket?

Oct 23 - How I got my sense of humour...

Windows 7 was released today... anyone else out there non-plused by the ads so far? They make me want to take a step back, not to join these people in their purchses... in the meantime, I am backing things up. I'm also going to be trying out a few backup progames, like Macrium Reflect - Free Edition... it's free!

On the subject of Zombies: today was also Zombie Fest in Monroeville USA, site of the film that started it all at the Monroeville Mall: George Romero's Dawn of the Dead. 2,000 walking 'corpses' took to the halls and walkways of the mall to celebrate today - I wonder if deoderant was banned, for a more 'authentic' experience? Maybe there were a few superhero fans in the crowd - surely someone has to be buying copies of this kind of zombie comic lately.

Last but not least: today it was also announced that there will be a live-action version of Ghost in the Shell... huzzah!

Oct 24 - Yikes! Deer me!

Almost a tragedy today: on the way home from work, my dad hit a deer with the car. In actual fact, the deer was hit first by another car and tossed into my dad's path. Fortunately, the only damage was to the car: my dad managed to keep control and move out of traffic to stop safely by the side of the road. The car was able to be driven home, but needs extensive repairs - from what I can tell, only the hood and the front right quarter panel / headlight need replacement, but internal damage has been done to the engine and components. Check out the picture... there's still some fur from the deer in there, sadly. But better it than my dad. One more bullet dodged, of many over the years...

Borderlands seems to be the game-de-jour right now, with an interesting mix of constant combat and co-op online multiplayer mahem. It has some good reviews, and the price is right at Wal-Mart at the moment, though 'Limited Quantities' means they keep selling out... the same at the local Best Buy, unfortunately.

Yet the game lacks a critical component that is among my Top Five for apocalyptic video games: vehicular combat! Thankfully, an old favourite game of mine has bee released once again into the wild: Death Rally. Back in 1996, this was insanely popular... and it's back, but just for the PC, again validating the need for more than just a console in your media arsenal.

Oct 25 - Sunday slips away...

Just your usual Sunday: sleep in, a solid breakfast and then some COD4 until mid-afternoon - yesterday I  managed to get a 15-kill streak for the first time in, what, a year? And I did it solo, no team-mate friends by my side... which made for a lack of conversation and jokes, let me tell you. Maybe that was the ticket? If so, I'd rather talk to my friends.

I've also been assisting the downstairs neighbours, who though nice people keep reminding me why I've chosen never, ever to be a tech support call rep. I may still consider giving lessons, seeing as I don't mind one-on-one teaching, but it's still something I'm thinking about for my ever-rare spare time. Geeks and retirees?

On a Niagara news note, I saw today on Facebook( hi Shawna! )that there was a large fire in NOTL - sad news for the historical buildings now lost, and for the folks who are now homeless, without any insurance to boot. Bummer.

And still no sign that these are shipping soon... one more week until the end of October, and they're still on pre-order.


Ah well. It seemed like such a good week on paper to start with... but it ended with me wanting very much for the next 2 months to be over with.

Groo, Games and Grand Openings

This week's word: enervated. It's not what you think.

Oct 12 - Searchables

Ah'm feeling rather beat this week, hence the lack of "This is what I did" info here... to be honest, what I wanted to do most days was take a nap when the day was only half-done. I'm glad I picked up a nice 'sunlamp' before I moved out here, as I think the lack of sunshine is putting me to sleep of late.

While I missed seeing the new Star Trek on the IMAX, I did come across this gag reel from the film... and not a tribble in sight. That's about it; thoughts of Tribble Bacon danced through my head...

Here's a test of your internet search skills: try to find out the name of the brunette model from the latest Special K commercials. With the internet being what it is these days, I'm sure we'll be seeing more of here. Candy commercials gave a big boost to the TicTac girl's career, whose name turned out to be Kate Kelton - though I haven't seen her anywhere around lately, but she does have a nice website. Things have come a long way since 1993, when the Osbourne Complete Internet Reference was selling like hotcakes - now it's available for a penny on Amazon.com. Who knew my copy would be so worthless now?

Oct 13 - Zombie TV

While I was off today, I spent a few hours in Victoria looking around a few places for some bargains... I managed to pick up a small portable B&W TV for $4.99 at the Value Village downtown. It was lacking a power supply, but handily I had a universal one squirreled away for just such occasions. Powered up, it will serve as a 'monitor' for when I'm recording shows while using the big flatscreen for other purposes... because most TV's these day's don't come with Picture in Picture. I miss that feature... so handy, but cost-savings mean that TV's are cheaper to make without it by a few dollars.

What do you get when you combine Lego and Zombies? Why, Zombie Apocafest of course! Check out the massive amounts of work and creativity that has gone into this display of plastic and the living dead. Or, if cakes are your thing, this picture gallery has a ton of great creative cakes, a lot of them are sci-fi!

Tonight I sent around my 6-month update for my NWN Project, which was both upbeat and truthful about the current state of the whole thing. I am hopeful that we will have a working system running by the new year, but with everyone so busy it's going to be a task to keep things on track.

Oct 14 - Sandman

Today I read Neil Gaiman's first Sandman comic Preludes and Nocturnes( collecting issues 1-8 )and it was stellar - of course! Odd as it may seem, I never got around to reading them when they first came out back in early 1989. I'll be checking out the whole series from the local library as time permits; they have a great selection of sci-fi and fantasy there, quite impressive and not too far away - most days. Not as close as the Port Dalhousie branch library was ,but nothing's perfect.

A long while ago, a few of my good friends put together a site for me, called Ctrl-Alt-Pete. It was meant to accompany my articles I was writing at the time for Cyberwalker.com, but that didn't pan out. Neither did Ctrl-Alt-Pete, though I still have hopes of reviving it in the near future. Ironically, C|net.com just posted an article about Five Great Tech sites... popping the thought into my head "Hey, mine could have been on there..." Something to think about, on top of all the other stuff.

New tech still catches my eye, especially if it adds value to some tech I already have. Such seems to be the case with this item, which lets you copy files to and from your Xbox360 drive a lot more easily than you might think. For those folk who use their Xbox360 as their main media player, it makes sense to have all their media files on it, especially as Microsoft doesn't make it too easy to hook up any old drive as a storage device - 'Plug and Pray' all over again.

Oct 15 - Lucky Windows

One week from now and Windows 7 will hit the streets. Considering that the majority of computers out there running windows are still using XP and Vista was a sales flop, there's high hopes that W7 will be a hit. As always, there are misunderstandings when something new for Windows hits the market, and in W7's case one of these is a thing called virtualization - a really neat thing, too. Remember I mentioned XP a moment ago? Well, Windows 7 Business Edition has a feature that allows it to run a perfect copy of XP inside itself, to allow older programs to run flawlessly. All the while, your new laptop / PC / whatever is running Windows 7 on the outside - WinXP is just another program within it. The confusing part? Quite a lot of CPU's, even new ones, don't support virtualization. Fortunately, my laptop is upgradable, and the X9000 CPU that's on my Xmas wishlist does support virtualization, according to this handy site. So that's made me a happy guy today.

On the way home from work I stopped in at Future Shop( as it's just across the street along with an EB Games - how tempting each day! )for my usual game of "What's on sale that I don't need?" Today I found something: a networkable external hard drive case that someone had returned, so it was 1/2 price. I'd seen it before, but didn't spring as the price was more than I thought it was worth. For 50% off though, I decided it was time. I was amazed that the setup went as easily as it did, as my experience with networkable drives is that they generally just... don't... work. For whatever reason, it liked my network layout, and I soon had it copying files willy-nilly - great to have an easy way to back things up without tripping over wires from the laptop. Falling's bad for tech, in general.

More good news today for Star Wars fans: the Tauntaun Sleeping Bag is one step closer to reality! Soon... and hopefully there are both small and adult sizes in the works.

Oct 16 - I'm moving... later.

I got a call at work today with some startling news: the house we're in has been sold. So that means that the not-so-nice landlord is out, and the unknown landlords are taking over by the end of November. This doesn't affect us due to our lease until early 2011, but it also means that my days in this lakeside house are numbered. I have one more summer to take my ease by its gentle shores, then I'll have to pack things up... again. I'm rather tired of moving, and I hope that when the time comes next year I'll be able to find the energy again that got me through the last 2 moves.

Homes as one's castle: I haven't seen more than one episode of Castle, which stars Nathan Fillion of Serenity fame, but from the little I've seen it's quite good. As it's getting rave reviews, I've put it on my 'See Later' list... and not just for the fact that they keep doing cool things like this. Anyone out there have any good shows they're watching right now?

On the topic of space, I'm still debating on buying a beta copy of Gratuitous Space Battles... which would give the developer more cash to finish the game. Seeing as there's just the one guy coding it, I think I may treat myself next paycheque. We'll see if I can find... space... in my budget.

Oct 17 - Mulch!

The arbutus trees in the backyard have shed most of their bark, which has left them looking oddly bare, with a soft olive colour that's in stark contrast to the dark bronze colour that the old bark had. All in all, I like the effect - it's as though Mama Nature decided to go all designer-style with the Arbutus, and I heartily approve.

Ah, Groo. The tales of the Bumbling Barbarian are the antithesis of his peer Conan, whom the character was created to mock. I found the first issue of Groo at an Avondale store( now a drycleaner )on Geneva St. back in May of 1985... I was hooked. For those of you unfamiliar with Groo and his world, have a browse through his Wiki entry here. Groo appeals to me for many reasons: aside from the humour, he knows where his skills are( his swords ), he is honest, has a good heart and he has interesting things happen to him. Crazy, zany, laugh-out-loud things. If you can find a copy of Groo The Wanderer at your local comic shop, pick it up - it's work the read!

It was busy, busy day at work: the sun was fleeting, but it seemed that anytime it stayed out for more than a few minutes, people scrambled to get things done. After I closed up, I had more than a dozen people pull at the door before I left myself - far more than usual, which I attribute to the sun. Strange, but that's people for you.

Oct 18 - Lineups

Up and out the door in the mid-morning today to line up at the local Best Buy for day three of their Grand Opening celebrations, for which the weather co-operated for a pleasantly sunny experience. Once I was in the door, I was disappointed to find out that the two Xbox360 games I had lined up for had sold out... yesterday. Apparently they were one of the items that they didn't 'limit daily quantities' on. Ah well, money saved and only my free time was spent.

News close to home: a ship full of potential refugees sailed into local waters early today. It was escorted into a Victoria berth while the 76 men aboard were offloaded for processing and possible refugee status. Things like that never happen on the Great Lakes back east, eh?

While playing COD4 today, I was impressed all over again by the LG TV I purchased almost 2 years ago now. It's performed almost flawlessly for nearly 24 months straight of daily use. For an LCD TV, it's gone the distance and more... though it and its rival plasma have a new contender on the market now: LED TV's. There's a nice guide on C|net called 10 Things You Need to Know about LED TV's which is worth reading, as the new tech will inevitably show up in stores very soon. Unlike the oft-promised but rarely seen OLED TV, the new LED TV's are cheaper to make and so easier on the wallet - plus they'll be in stores sooner rather than later.

In case anyone's noticed, I try to put at least 3 things in each day's entry. So that's 21 things a week that I come up with that are interesting to me... and hopefully to you. Until next entry then...

Bikes, Blue Bridges and Brains

The word of the week is... parsimony. So there!

Oct 5 - More on Renting

Further on the subject of Renting vs. Owning one's home: there's an excellent article here on the topic, albeit from a US-based viewpoint. The links included at the bottom of the article are also worthwhile checking out, as they include a graphical Rent vs Buy Calculator, courtesy of the NY Times, who are well known for their financial reporting prowess. Or stop by the GetRichSlowly.org site, which has a ton of good advice - for free, similar to CanadianBusiness.com but with less ads. Be sure to stop by DealHunting.ca, where you can browse through various coupons... much like RedFlagDeals.com, which lists all sorts of deals for many Canadian retailers, including a lot of online-only sales and deals, which can save you a fair bit depending on what you're in the market for. Canada's Economic Action Plan doesn't mention anything on the topic, but that doesn't surprise me.

Alternatives to home ownership? There are quite a few ways to go about it, including subsidized programs, ( I like that one). A good place to check out about alternatives to owning a home is at Ezine Articles, which might be a good place to send people from Ireland - apparently they have a home-ownership obsession. Weird, huh?

Like we're obsessed with cell phones in Canada. Three weeks from now, the ban on using cell phones while driving takes effect in Ontario - not including hands-free units or calls made to 911, that is. Having seen so many drivers pulling bonehead moves with only one hand on the wheel and half their mind( or more )taken with yakking on the phone, I'm all for it. Heck, I miss photo radar too, for that matter... though that was rather more unpopular - and it's started up again in Quebec this summer. I imagine there will be a rush on speakerphone accessories in stores in the next few weeks.

Oct 6 - Smoking Gold

It's about time: Quebec announced that it is joining several other provinces in suing tobacco companies to recover health-related costs pegged in the billions. Similar to other suits filed in the USA, it is surprising to me that it has taken this long for Canada to get is act together about taking action against the companies responsible for such a deadly product, which the WHO estimates has killed 100 million people in the 20th century. I hope that Ontario is successful in its suit, which seeks 50 Billion Dollars in damages, atop other suits from BC, NB and now Quebec. There's more about the health effects of tobacco here, but I would hope that most people reading this would already know that it kills you - slowly, or as it is better put "not quickly enough to scare people away."

Nice to see this: trading today made gold hit an all-time high, which is a bright spot in the current floppy-mushy market. Now that we are buying gold at MMart, it should help to drive even more business our way. Cash for gold is proving very popular of late, with people looking for ways to make ends meet - selling old jewelery for a decent price in an easy manner should help more than a few of them.

Privacy these days is a hot topic, given the proliferation of social networking sites right alongside reports of Identity Theft. Now there's a new twist for those of you who use Twitter, Facebook and MySpace: don't use any apps that generate your 'Porn Name.' Seems that ID thieves are using the data to better enable them to crack into people's personal accounts, as pet names and street names( as used by the apps )are prime candidates as passwords for bank accounts and the like.

Oct 7 - Pedal Power

Today is World Bike-To-Work Day... though I was feeling so tired, I got dropped off instead of walking my bike to work. Ironic, eh? Normally I enjoy the commute, but this morning the thought of tacking the hill in the middle was just too much for me. If I lived in Victoria, I could just take a bus( though it'd most likely get stuck in the Colwood Crawl )which is a cheap way of commuting. To solve the traffic woes here on the Island, the last few years have seen various transit proposals made and scrapped, with the current round asking for public input. Me, I'm for the giant-catapult-and-net idea... I never thought I'd come to appreciate the uninterrupted ribbon of asphalt that comprises the QEW and its sundry highways, which never has regular twice-daily traffic jams for its entire length.

If you plan on taking the personal pedal-powered route to work, here's 6 tips for you to follow to make your commute easier. Another great read is this blog article, about the joys that biking to work each day brings... as well as the dangers. A recent bike blitz by police here in Victoria resulted in a score of tickets, mostly for things that I've seen over and over for years: no helmet, no lights, and riding on the sidewalk( something that I've been guilty of on occasion, when traffic's nasty ). It still amazes me that so many cyclists survive with stupid things they pull, in addition to total idiocy like riding at night in dark clothes... yet there's no entry on DarwinAwards.com for anything cycle-related.

On the other hand, if you feel safer with a layer of steel and glass between you and the open road, then you should check out the Top Ten Vehicles for Urban Warfare. As one commenter mentioned, it was disappointing that the Marine APC from Aliens didn't make the list, but I thought it was a great selection of vehicles all the same. Perhaps with the exception of the Mazda GTX... and that they actually put a bicycle on there. No contest when it comes to a fight between 2 wheels and four. Though you may still have trouble parking your wheels of carnage... unless you reserve a parking spot online beforehand. Whoda thought?

In a related bit of news, the big blue Johnson Street Lift Bridge here in Victoria is nearing the end of its useful lifetime, and needs to be replaced. When recent government funding fell through, proponents of the bridge were still hopeful that the bridge can be saved. Having grown up near the giant lift bridges of the Welland Canal, I can say that Big Blue is in their class... plus, it's blue. I'd hate to see it scrapped, though all 3 of the now-unfunded design proposals looked pretty cool.

Oct 8 - Windows 7 and Ewe

Have a sweet tooth that you can't easily satisfy? Good news! The world's largest candy store is going to be opening in the Dubai Mall, so apart from the plane ticket, all you'll need to do is find a way to get all those sweets back home... the carry-on and checked luggage limit probably won't do for more than a few month's supply, at best. I myself have a penchant for chocolate chip cookies, which isn't so bad really... my teeth will last that much longer. With moderation, of course... though the thought of Bacon Cookies does set my mouth to watering!

Like candy from babies: Laptop theft happens all the time around the world( the stats are alarming! )ruining people's days as well as their insurance premiums. As a laptop owner, I'm very aware of how easily my machine and I might part ways, apart from the usual dangers such as spilled liquids and deadly drops onto hard surfaces. If a laptop is stolen, there is still hope these days thanks to software like the freebie Adeonia that allows a missing laptop to report its whereabouts to its owners - bad news for thieves, good news for owners.

Perhaps not so sweet, but still drool-inducing to g33ks is the imminent release of Windows 7 two weeks from today. My copy is already on order, so I hope it arrives by  the end of October. I've been busy backing up data, just in case... always a good idea when installing a new OS. Considering all the 'fun' I've had over the years with installing various versions of Windows, perhaps I'd better make TWO backups of everything. Sheepish.

Oct 9 - Niagara, O Roar Again!

Whew, today was one long day... I started in the early morning after 8am, and didn't get home again until after 7, well into the dusk. I was getting things finished from the week so that I wouldn't have to come in on the weekend - with four days off in a row, it was worth spending most of a day ensuring I could enjoy all of them. Mighty tired by the end of it all, having been through my second wind... but it was a good feeling that I'd accomplished everything I needed to by the time I was done.

Today was kind of like a palindrome, in a way... it started off almost like it ended: with me at work. Palindromes are fun to refer to, as they can be hidden almost anywhere at all - even in this sentence. One of my first internet handles was a palindrome, and they've grown on me since - you can find a huge archive of them here, plus a smaller surplus here. I like them because you never know if you're reading one or not...

Today was not a good day for travelers heading out for the long weekend: as I mentioned earlier, we live on an island... and that means ferries. So when one of them catches fire( slightly )and is thus out of service, it has a domino effect on the entire Island traffic scene. Ouch. Glad I don't have to travel this weekend... not that I've been to the mainland yet, but one day soon. Maybe.

Oct 10 - Why bother bidding?

Up way, way too early today at 5am, to try to get some bids in for a nice Belkin network USB-sharing device on Swoopo. Unfortunately, too many other people were of the same mind, and I gave up once bidding went past $35.00 ... at that point, people were out to win, not to save money. In the end, the unit went for close to $50.00 ... ( half of its retail cost )and meaning that all the bidders involved spent over $500.00 in their 'bidding war' ... which is how Swoopo makes their money from the unwise with deep pockets.

Here's a bit of trivia for you: in the first X-men film, several actresses auditioned for the role of Rogue, one of my favourite X-men characters. Perhaps you didn't know it, but one of them was Laura Bertram, who later starred in the 5-year run of the TV series Andromeda where she played Trance Gemini - who was also one of my favourites on TV, developing from a purple-skinned airhead into a very interesting and layered character. Good writing there, a pleasure to watch her character develop from a bit of fluff into someone intriguing, and wonderful that she was given the time and care to develop her as such.

Today was gaming day for me. I downloaded some new Xbox360 demos, and had some good sessions of COD4, CivRev and even played some Hexic. I didn't get too far with Defense Grid though, as I got hooked by Sid Meier's Pirates - the game looks gorgeous on my laptop, and is incredible fun to play. Who wouldn't want to be a pirate in this version of digital reality? Pretty good for a game that originally came out in 1987 and was re-released with updated code in 2005... it's still damn good fun!

Oct 11 - World Zombie Day

Mmmm.... brains. Today is World Zombie Day, where the undead can parade around in public and not get shot in the head for it. Most places in the world, anyway. Things zombie have been becoming more popular and mainstream in the last few years, as WZD shows - the upcoming World War Z movie looks to be particularly interesting, as does this Zombie Warning Sign gallery. Heck, even the University of Florida recently posted a plan to deal with zombie outbreaks - how's that for getting your educational money's worth?

I felt like a zombie today, getting up at 6am to try again for an auction on Swoopo... but again too much action put the kybosh on that idea. I've collected a few month's worth of data on various auctions( for free, on my own )which supported this time of day being the best chance... but a few flies in the ointment and all the best plans go for naught. Since I'm not willing to waste bids doing a throwdown against more than a couple of people, that was it for me - back to bed, then up in the hopes of COD4... but everyone was playing NHL10, so there went that idea.

Instead, I spent the day recording shows off the DVR( and onto DVD )to clear space, while perusing a few more auctions and working on my NWN project. Which is going somewhat slowly now that some members of the Dev Team are back to school( some learning, some teaching )and others are equally busy. We're all in it for the long haul though, so I'm hopeful that we'll see a turnaround early in the new year. As the saying goes: we've come too far to stop now. Though after watching Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer tonight, I wish they hadn't finished it at all...


On that note - good night! Mmm.... braaiiiins...