11 days to go until I am Niagara-bound! Whooo-hoooo!!
July 13th - What do you mean, she's not there???
Today was my day off... or so I thought. After a meeting this morning with a few folks, I received a call on my work phone that my staffer had not shown up to work on time. After some frantic phone calls per procedure, she was located... at home, having forgotten she was working and was in no shape to do so today. Which meant that as of 12pm, I was at work and getting the store open. On my day off. Needless to say, I was NOT impressed. Not in the least.
To change the topic: are you a transumer? I'd not heard of it until today, but I can relate to some things in the article... renting, really. Having moved literally a ton of stuff across the country a few years ago, I can see the benefits of just renting what you need, when you need it. Much like Brewster's Millions, where Richard Pryor had to get rid of thirty million dollars in thirty days, You can read more about the trend here... just rent the time and read. I also suggest reading The Cheapskate Guide's 50 Tips for Frugal Living, which is a great way to examine if you are being too materialistic in your life. In particular, I like the article that goes in-depth comparing the merits of Renting Vs. Owning your home - something I have always said needs to be examined for each person, and that I personally feel leans more towards renting than owning, given the experiences I have had myself in that department.
Speaking of the Eighties, loyal readers may recall I am a fan of most things Ghostbuster, so when I came across this short interview with Harold Ramis where he talks on That Topic, I was thrilled. Especially as I have yet to pick up the recent game release - so many things to play, so little budget / time. Maybe when I retire... in the meantime, I'll be re-watching my copy of Buckaroo Banzai, one of those films that you won't admit you own but can't stop watching - cult status, really. Rewind...
Oh, and a month ago: it was the World Naked Bike Ride in Victoria, which I commented on last year. Missed it again this year...
July 14th - Fallout
Today I worked again, instead of taking the day off to compensate for yesterday - I can't leave my trainee off for an extra day, as it will throw off her training schedule and we have to get her ready ASAP. The more trained staff we have, the better it will be in the next few months. Did I mention I wasn't impressed with what happened yesterday? I'm less so today.
As yet I have not picked up a copy of Fallout3, which I may hold off on until later in the year; even the used copies are more than $60.00 for the Xbox360. I may grab the PC version if it drops further in price, though I am tempted to get a copy of Fallout2 from GoG.com for $10.00 - how can you beat that? In the meantime, some Russian Fallout fans put together an incredible photo collage that seems to be lifted straight from in-game scenes - but in real life. Check it out!
So does that make me sound cheap? Well... I DO like things for free. Or close to it. So when I found ALL 7 seasons of Family Guy available to watch online for free, I bookmarked the site so fast I sprained my fingers. See for yourself here - I still can't believe it.
Inflation is one of those things that confuses people almost as much as programming their VCR's used to, before we all got PVR's that did most everything for us. Unfortunately, inflation will be with us for far longer and still be as difficult to get your head around. I did come across this excellent article that explains the basics, and why in some countries they've printed billion-dollar bills, just like in The Simpsons. Can you imagine that in loose change? Yikes!
July 15th - Moving Friends
What the heck? After dancing a jig a few months ago upon hearing that Futurama is being brought back to life, this bit of awful news surfaced - what the heck is Fox thinking? I mean, really... if you have a Good Thing Going, don't MESS with it. Now I'm going to stew for a bit and hope it works out properly while searching for an online petition to sign...
On a happier note, I received an email when I finally got home( late )from 2 of my former neighbours over on May St. in Victoria. It seems they recently decided to jump on the condo bandwagon and purchase one right here in Langford! So now I have 2 people I actually know here in town, which is great - while I'm great company, it gets a little wearing being with myself all the time. Gah... next I'll be comparing myself to some form of social butterflies!
Things are pretty stressful here right now, and have been for a while. I have to say I am really looking forward to my trip to Niagara at the end of the month, to symbolically get away from it all, though as we all know your problems usually don't diminish with just a simple thing like distance. However, going to a familiar setting, being among friends and not having to work... I hope all that adds up to loosen some of these knots in my shoulders, not to mention the mental ones.
July 13th - What do you mean, she's not there???
Today was my day off... or so I thought. After a meeting this morning with a few folks, I received a call on my work phone that my staffer had not shown up to work on time. After some frantic phone calls per procedure, she was located... at home, having forgotten she was working and was in no shape to do so today. Which meant that as of 12pm, I was at work and getting the store open. On my day off. Needless to say, I was NOT impressed. Not in the least.
To change the topic: are you a transumer? I'd not heard of it until today, but I can relate to some things in the article... renting, really. Having moved literally a ton of stuff across the country a few years ago, I can see the benefits of just renting what you need, when you need it. Much like Brewster's Millions, where Richard Pryor had to get rid of thirty million dollars in thirty days, You can read more about the trend here... just rent the time and read. I also suggest reading The Cheapskate Guide's 50 Tips for Frugal Living, which is a great way to examine if you are being too materialistic in your life. In particular, I like the article that goes in-depth comparing the merits of Renting Vs. Owning your home - something I have always said needs to be examined for each person, and that I personally feel leans more towards renting than owning, given the experiences I have had myself in that department.
Speaking of the Eighties, loyal readers may recall I am a fan of most things Ghostbuster, so when I came across this short interview with Harold Ramis where he talks on That Topic, I was thrilled. Especially as I have yet to pick up the recent game release - so many things to play, so little budget / time. Maybe when I retire... in the meantime, I'll be re-watching my copy of Buckaroo Banzai, one of those films that you won't admit you own but can't stop watching - cult status, really. Rewind...
Oh, and a month ago: it was the World Naked Bike Ride in Victoria, which I commented on last year. Missed it again this year...
July 14th - Fallout
Today I worked again, instead of taking the day off to compensate for yesterday - I can't leave my trainee off for an extra day, as it will throw off her training schedule and we have to get her ready ASAP. The more trained staff we have, the better it will be in the next few months. Did I mention I wasn't impressed with what happened yesterday? I'm less so today.
As yet I have not picked up a copy of Fallout3, which I may hold off on until later in the year; even the used copies are more than $60.00 for the Xbox360. I may grab the PC version if it drops further in price, though I am tempted to get a copy of Fallout2 from GoG.com for $10.00 - how can you beat that? In the meantime, some Russian Fallout fans put together an incredible photo collage that seems to be lifted straight from in-game scenes - but in real life. Check it out!
So does that make me sound cheap? Well... I DO like things for free. Or close to it. So when I found ALL 7 seasons of Family Guy available to watch online for free, I bookmarked the site so fast I sprained my fingers. See for yourself here - I still can't believe it.
Inflation is one of those things that confuses people almost as much as programming their VCR's used to, before we all got PVR's that did most everything for us. Unfortunately, inflation will be with us for far longer and still be as difficult to get your head around. I did come across this excellent article that explains the basics, and why in some countries they've printed billion-dollar bills, just like in The Simpsons. Can you imagine that in loose change? Yikes!
July 15th - Moving Friends
What the heck? After dancing a jig a few months ago upon hearing that Futurama is being brought back to life, this bit of awful news surfaced - what the heck is Fox thinking? I mean, really... if you have a Good Thing Going, don't MESS with it. Now I'm going to stew for a bit and hope it works out properly while searching for an online petition to sign...
On a happier note, I received an email when I finally got home( late )from 2 of my former neighbours over on May St. in Victoria. It seems they recently decided to jump on the condo bandwagon and purchase one right here in Langford! So now I have 2 people I actually know here in town, which is great - while I'm great company, it gets a little wearing being with myself all the time. Gah... next I'll be comparing myself to some form of social butterflies!
Things are pretty stressful here right now, and have been for a while. I have to say I am really looking forward to my trip to Niagara at the end of the month, to symbolically get away from it all, though as we all know your problems usually don't diminish with just a simple thing like distance. However, going to a familiar setting, being among friends and not having to work... I hope all that adds up to loosen some of these knots in my shoulders, not to mention the mental ones.
But when things get too stressful, just... have some bacon ice cream. Mmmm.
July 16th - Happy B-day To Moi
Up early-ish today for a doctor's appointment in Victoria, which went very well: he said I was looking healthy & fit, which was gratifying. Looks like it's just a good diet & exercise for me, now that the faulty gall bladder's gone for good. Though I'm still getting nausea, it's only after some meals so I'm working to track down a food-related source for that. After that, it was a pause for a few minutes at Clover Point, to take in the magnificent view of the Olympic Mountains to the south from the parkway along Dallas Road - I also found a really interesting rock that resembles a flattened moon( yes, it's odd... but that's what I like! ).
Work was great; along with a few birthday wishes, I was given CAKE! Not just ANY cake, but some confectionery ambrosia that combined ice cream, coffee cake, caramel and a hard chocolate shell into something that was stunningly tasty down to the last tiny morsel. Thanks for that!
Back at home, I settled back and typed quite a few thank-you's to everyone for the many birthday wishes; it means a lot to me being way out here that people are still thinking about me. Thanks, everyone. I finished off the evening with a solitary( and long-saved )Guinness while watching Two Week's Notice, which stars two of my more favourite actresses: Sandra Bullock and Alicia Witt. Hugh Grant was in there too, doing his usual bumbling-but-charming British Fine Fellow act - he had some great lines, surprisingly.
And I went to bed dreaming of one of these - only available at the San Diego Comic Con, darn it! The Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies showing at the Con is listed here courtesy of Spike.com - Megan Fox is in there, Transformers fans... a neat tie-in to the above dream-toy. Mmm-hmmm.
July 17th - SciFi Supreme
When writing, there are a myriad of things to consider, not the least of which is the audience. This is even more critical in TV-land, where audiences can be fickle and finicky beasts. Some of the best writers out there have figured out how to write AS the audience, at least when it's necessary if the story has more holes than the US Military Budget. So, io9.com has put together a list of favourite characters who speak what the audience is thinking, which is really worth a look - many of my favourite shows are mentioned.
Though it may not matter - io9.com also posted this article, about a 15-mile-long biological ooze just spotted drifting south from Alaska. It's The Blob - run!
Which brings me neatly back to this: some really, really cool concept art for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, one of my all-time favourite stories. Superb artwork, along the lines of Steampunk but with an edge I've not seen anywhere else before... I hope, I hope, that any reboot of 20K Under gets this artist on board!
I really hope that someone remembers that R.A. Salvatore is a writer also brimming with talent untapped for other media( though Stephen King seems to be getting The Dark Tower up and running in movieland ). I just finished reading Salvatore's book The Highwayman, which was written around a rather original idea for the protagonist hero. Given that originality is something sorely lacking, according to people in the book business, I've always enjoyed following amazing authors like Salvatore or Ed Greenwood. Nothing like having high standards to live up to!
July 18th - Signs of Life
For the more artistically inclined amongst you, I present: the Wacom Guitar. That's right, a USB-enabled guitar mated with a genuine Wacom touch tablet. Will music ever be the same again? Watch the video on the page and judge for yourself. What's next? A hydrogen-powered bass guitar? Hopefully something better than this glow-cube Gmail notifier - something almost totally useless but hideously complicated to construct. Why, I ask? Why?
Work was somewhat wearing today: a busy Friday with a trainee is no time to be trying to solve problems that crop up continuously all day long. All part of the job, but for the next few months it's going to be very, very busy for me - more responsibility for the same pay, really. But I'd rather that than otherwise, I think, despite the grey hairs I can feel curling their way finally into my rakish mop.
Though I wouldn't want to be the person held responsible for solving this one - despite it being pretty funny. Vandals: 1 - City: 0. Rematch? Maybe someone should submit the picture to FunnySigns.com for posterity's sake...
After a final, long day at work, I cycled home... then caught a ride into Victoria to visit with some of my friends there, who had sent me a last-minute invite to a backyard BBQ. I arrived too late for anything more than a Mike's Hard Lime, but we did spend a few fun hours traipsing about the neighbourhood discoursing on various topics, winding up back at their house to discuss other things while a few folk showed off their musical guitar talents. Also brought up for some reason: Flappers. Don't ask.
July 19th - Flower Power
After adjusting my room to include some solid blackout blinds, I've been sleeping better this last week. So much so that I managed to wake myself today, instead of jumping up to the blare of the clock radio. I was awake enough to put in a few solid hours of COD4 with my friends, which I had a decent run with before having to head out for the day - after one helluva nice turkey dinner which was held over from my birthday a few days past.
Where did I go? Off to Butchart Gardens, to try and relax for the day to forget about my worries. It was the perfect day for it: sunny blue skies without a single cloud, hot but not uncomfortably so. Which meant that the place was crowded nut not unbearably so - everyone who was there had made the trip to enjoy the natural beauty, so apart from the occasional small child it was quite a pleasant crowd moving along the paths. I took some great pictures, though most of them were simply closeups of blooms whose colours looked almost surreal in the perfect sunshine. Too bad the ice cream prices were surreal as well: $6.50 for a double-scoop? C'mon... that's closing in on Canada's Wonderland prices, where two pizzas can set you back over $50.00 - and we're not talking party trays from Domino's here, either. I came back by way of UVic, where I finally managed to see firsthand some of the many feral rabbits that blanket the campus, which is huge - it makes BrockU look like someone's backyard patio in comparison. However cute the rabbits may be, they have become quite a problem because... well, they breed like rabbits.
In the evening, I played another hour of single-player COD4 just to get in some practice so I wouldn't stink so badly next time around. Then, work on my blog for an hour or two, while listening to songs via the Musiic player I recently installed - another Freebie. Nothing like using YouTube to stream music legally through the 'net - another gain for Tech, another loss for the media barons.
No closing comments... just Save and Quit early on the blog for a change; going to bed to ease my aching head.
July 16th - Happy B-day To Moi
Up early-ish today for a doctor's appointment in Victoria, which went very well: he said I was looking healthy & fit, which was gratifying. Looks like it's just a good diet & exercise for me, now that the faulty gall bladder's gone for good. Though I'm still getting nausea, it's only after some meals so I'm working to track down a food-related source for that. After that, it was a pause for a few minutes at Clover Point, to take in the magnificent view of the Olympic Mountains to the south from the parkway along Dallas Road - I also found a really interesting rock that resembles a flattened moon( yes, it's odd... but that's what I like! ).
Work was great; along with a few birthday wishes, I was given CAKE! Not just ANY cake, but some confectionery ambrosia that combined ice cream, coffee cake, caramel and a hard chocolate shell into something that was stunningly tasty down to the last tiny morsel. Thanks for that!
Back at home, I settled back and typed quite a few thank-you's to everyone for the many birthday wishes; it means a lot to me being way out here that people are still thinking about me. Thanks, everyone. I finished off the evening with a solitary( and long-saved )Guinness while watching Two Week's Notice, which stars two of my more favourite actresses: Sandra Bullock and Alicia Witt. Hugh Grant was in there too, doing his usual bumbling-but-charming British Fine Fellow act - he had some great lines, surprisingly.
And I went to bed dreaming of one of these - only available at the San Diego Comic Con, darn it! The Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies showing at the Con is listed here courtesy of Spike.com - Megan Fox is in there, Transformers fans... a neat tie-in to the above dream-toy. Mmm-hmmm.
July 17th - SciFi Supreme
When writing, there are a myriad of things to consider, not the least of which is the audience. This is even more critical in TV-land, where audiences can be fickle and finicky beasts. Some of the best writers out there have figured out how to write AS the audience, at least when it's necessary if the story has more holes than the US Military Budget. So, io9.com has put together a list of favourite characters who speak what the audience is thinking, which is really worth a look - many of my favourite shows are mentioned.
Though it may not matter - io9.com also posted this article, about a 15-mile-long biological ooze just spotted drifting south from Alaska. It's The Blob - run!
Which brings me neatly back to this: some really, really cool concept art for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, one of my all-time favourite stories. Superb artwork, along the lines of Steampunk but with an edge I've not seen anywhere else before... I hope, I hope, that any reboot of 20K Under gets this artist on board!
I really hope that someone remembers that R.A. Salvatore is a writer also brimming with talent untapped for other media( though Stephen King seems to be getting The Dark Tower up and running in movieland ). I just finished reading Salvatore's book The Highwayman, which was written around a rather original idea for the protagonist hero. Given that originality is something sorely lacking, according to people in the book business, I've always enjoyed following amazing authors like Salvatore or Ed Greenwood. Nothing like having high standards to live up to!
July 18th - Signs of Life
For the more artistically inclined amongst you, I present: the Wacom Guitar. That's right, a USB-enabled guitar mated with a genuine Wacom touch tablet. Will music ever be the same again? Watch the video on the page and judge for yourself. What's next? A hydrogen-powered bass guitar? Hopefully something better than this glow-cube Gmail notifier - something almost totally useless but hideously complicated to construct. Why, I ask? Why?
Work was somewhat wearing today: a busy Friday with a trainee is no time to be trying to solve problems that crop up continuously all day long. All part of the job, but for the next few months it's going to be very, very busy for me - more responsibility for the same pay, really. But I'd rather that than otherwise, I think, despite the grey hairs I can feel curling their way finally into my rakish mop.
Though I wouldn't want to be the person held responsible for solving this one - despite it being pretty funny. Vandals: 1 - City: 0. Rematch? Maybe someone should submit the picture to FunnySigns.com for posterity's sake...
After a final, long day at work, I cycled home... then caught a ride into Victoria to visit with some of my friends there, who had sent me a last-minute invite to a backyard BBQ. I arrived too late for anything more than a Mike's Hard Lime, but we did spend a few fun hours traipsing about the neighbourhood discoursing on various topics, winding up back at their house to discuss other things while a few folk showed off their musical guitar talents. Also brought up for some reason: Flappers. Don't ask.
July 19th - Flower Power
After adjusting my room to include some solid blackout blinds, I've been sleeping better this last week. So much so that I managed to wake myself today, instead of jumping up to the blare of the clock radio. I was awake enough to put in a few solid hours of COD4 with my friends, which I had a decent run with before having to head out for the day - after one helluva nice turkey dinner which was held over from my birthday a few days past.
Where did I go? Off to Butchart Gardens, to try and relax for the day to forget about my worries. It was the perfect day for it: sunny blue skies without a single cloud, hot but not uncomfortably so. Which meant that the place was crowded nut not unbearably so - everyone who was there had made the trip to enjoy the natural beauty, so apart from the occasional small child it was quite a pleasant crowd moving along the paths. I took some great pictures, though most of them were simply closeups of blooms whose colours looked almost surreal in the perfect sunshine. Too bad the ice cream prices were surreal as well: $6.50 for a double-scoop? C'mon... that's closing in on Canada's Wonderland prices, where two pizzas can set you back over $50.00 - and we're not talking party trays from Domino's here, either. I came back by way of UVic, where I finally managed to see firsthand some of the many feral rabbits that blanket the campus, which is huge - it makes BrockU look like someone's backyard patio in comparison. However cute the rabbits may be, they have become quite a problem because... well, they breed like rabbits.
In the evening, I played another hour of single-player COD4 just to get in some practice so I wouldn't stink so badly next time around. Then, work on my blog for an hour or two, while listening to songs via the Musiic player I recently installed - another Freebie. Nothing like using YouTube to stream music legally through the 'net - another gain for Tech, another loss for the media barons.
No closing comments... just Save and Quit early on the blog for a change; going to bed to ease my aching head.
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