Just a few weeks to go!
July 5th - Travel
As above: in less than a month as of today, I will be in Niagara - I board my flight early the morning of July 31st from BC, and stay until the afternoon of August 8th; over a week! Thanks again to Martin's massive generosity, I shall be able to visit the place of my birth once again, see many of my friends and do Lots Of Relaxing. I'll be bringing my laptop of course, as I also hope to get some writing done whilst said Relaxing is in progress. There's a few spots I recall as being most excellently suited to such activities, with the minor addition of some ice cream and / or soft music, both of which are readily( and cheaply )available thereabouts. *grin*
For those of you with more means or wider-ranging travel dreams than I, may I humbly suggest bookmarking LonelyPlanet.com. The site is packed with travel tips and information, as well as inspiring ideas of places to travel to on this huge spinning blue marble we all share. Heck, they even have a section where you can debate( or discover? )what the Best Beer in the World is! I do also miss my 1,000 Places to See Before You Die calendar from last year, which is why I was pleased to see this recent article from Yahoo Travel on the same topic - now all I need is to figure what one of the many How To Get Rich Quick ideas to use.
Nah. I'll just take the financial advice in this article instead - much great chance of success, though over a longer period of time.
July 6th - Old Made New Again
You knew I was going to mention it: United Breaks Guitars. Watching that hit counter grow every day from thousands, to hundreds of thousands, to millions - wow. That's viral marketing at work, folks - the power behind such shows as Britain's Got Talent and all those. Media magnification© at it's finest!
Video games have always been near and dear to my heart, though I am the first to admit I enjoy the actual playing of them more than finishing them; more of a 'journey rather than the destination matters' thing, I suppose. I have a LOT of games on the shelves, more than I realized... far more than I ever collected compared to the few numbers of CD's, so I guess that's where my money went in those days, rather than into the vast music collections some of you hopefully still retain. As I look over my collection, there are quite a few gems there... so I was pleased as anything to discover that quite a few of those great games have been updated and collected for sale at GoG.com.
Good Old Games, as they call themselves, has updated dozens of older PC game titles for download and use on Windows XP and Vista( even 64-bit like mine! )at incredibly low prices - most of the games are $10.00 or less, with titles like MDK2, Descent( which made me ill the 1st time I played! )and the original Fallout. It made me smile to see so many, and I think I will have to get a few of my favourites to play again on my new laptop, along with a few I missed the first time around. Outdated as most of them are, the gameplay is where they shine, not the graphics which have marched solidly onwards over the years.
Yet there is a lot to be said for new technology... when it can bring you images like these. That's right, robot fans - Mechwarrior is back after being on hiatus since 2002. Bring on the battle tech! Best of all: MechWarrior 4 is going to be released for download soon, free!
July 7th - Coral and Contests
Scary news today: what with the current global economic crisis, Korean tensions, H1N1 and the loss of Michael Jackson, do we need more bad news? Sorry but yes... it's a big one. Despite warnings about Global Warming and the ozone layer, most people are not too worried about the environment crashing, thinking that films like The Day After Tomorrow are overdoing things in the usual Hollywood style.
But what it the world ended with a whimper, not a bang? That's just what scientists studying the world's coral reefs told reporters today, warning that this critical food-chain link is in jeopardy and may die out completely within the century. Think about it: dead oceans... dead planet. I'm scared all over again, now.
For those of you who enjoy entering contests, but are wisely wary of scam-sites that will sell your contact info to phone marketers like the scum at Imperial Majesty Cruise Lines, who pestered me some months back until I simply told them I was not planning to take any vacations in the next decade due to a total lack of money as a perpetual student in school. They stopped calling, amazingly. After much searching, I located LookContests.com, which is a wonderful free site that compiles ONLY legitimate contests from companies such as those from Ford, Skittles, etc - no chance of fraudsters taking your info here. A neat feature of the site is that it sorts the contests into categories such as daily, weekly or unlimited entries and lets you keep track of the ones you have already entered - great for those contests that will disqualify anyone attempting more than one entry in a certain time period. So far, I've not won anything... but as the saying goes: nothing ventured nothing gained. Better yet: no noticeable increase in my junk mail, even after a few months.
July 8th - Pedal Power
Today was a hot day, which means power use was up as people ran their A/C more to keep cool. In the future, as we all know, demand for electricity is going to outstrip supply, which is why it is important we develop things like the Smart Grid all the sooner. C|Net has an excellent article on the topic, which reveals many exciting possibilities, one of which I touched on previously concerning electric cars that may be used in their millions to assist the Grid at peak demand times. A sure sign that this is going to be the wave of the future are the various power-generation kits now available at places like Canadian Tire, hopefully just the start of simpler ways for people to reduce their demand for electricity. I know that such a unit here would easily generate energy most evenings, when the wind is high from the north over the lake; setting up a battery system to store that free juice would take a little doing, but it excites me that such things are now a semi-realistic option without huge expense or training involved. Even Vancouver is getting on board, with news that they are going to require all new development to accommodate electric cars, with plugs installed for charging. Progress!
Though it was rather sweaty today on the road, I'm back to riding my bike to work most days. At less than 2km( with a large cardio-improving hill smack in the middle )the ride there and back is a good workout but not such a drain that I arrive winded, or can't do it after a long, wearing day... I am glad to say that I am feeling very much recovered from my surgery, though I am going easy on the exercise - slow and steady are the increases, says the doctor. The same with my diet; I have had few nausea attacks since the operation, which I accredit to my system getting rid of the last of the poisons my malfunctioning gall bladder had splashed around during its overextended stay. I hope by the end of the summer to be back on track to proper health, while avoiding any temptation to fall into bad food habits - McDonald's has not seen me for the last ten years of my life, nor shall they ever again. Bleh!
July 9th - And I thought they smelled bad...
Some amusing news: if you want to travel into the future, apparently all it takes is to move to northern B.C. where the clocks are running fast... for over 65,000 people, that is.
A bit of a letdown today, regarding one of my more-liked shows on HGTV. It seems that Restaurant Makeover is not as highly thought of as I had surmised, though I admit it is somewhat formulaic and contrived at times. Still, I like seeing places go from blah to rah! so to speak, and it's an entertaining hour of non-violent TV which is fairly rare these days. Everyone needs a break from explosions, people screaming at each other and stress, wouldn't you agree?
Thus, the question runs to purchasing one of these - word is that they'll be available soon, though not in what sizes. Oh, the uncertainty - just like surviving a night outside on the ice planet Hoth!
And for those who may have thought I've left bacon out of this week's blog - think again.
July 10th - Debating About Working
Today was a Development Day at work, where another manager and I were walked though the Golden Path of Enlightenment, as envisaged by MMart. I was surprised by the depth of some of the material, and pleased that though it was challenging, I could see myself getting my head around it - albeit with the requisite hard work. It looks like my time at work for the next while is going to be even busier, what with managing the store, training a new hire and getting myself on track with new expectations and responsibilities. While I fully realize that I am not making as much as some managers in other businesses, I do not think I would have received even half the wide-ranging training I have been getting now at this company. What annoys the $%#@! out of me though, is all those earlier wasted years at CCCorp in ON, where I steered myself out of management for several good reasons, not the least among them their haphazard, half-assed promotion and training practices.
One of the topics covered was assisting employees in reaching their goals, be it at work or at home, including helping them save for things like vacations without breaking the bank. A possibility for them would be to work from home, for a few months to help supplement their income, without necessitating them taking a second job and so making their primary job( ie. MMart )suffer from the overload. A good site to help in finding reputable home employment is Monster.Ca, which has some tips on the topic, as well as WhyDoWork.com - I love the name!
Darn it, why can't we all just toss off the shackles of capitalism, to embrace something better? I recommend that you sidle on over to CreatedDebate.com to see what thousands of people have said about the mishaps and merits of the capitalist system designed to make the rich richer, and the poor, um... unemployed. Having seen myself some of the consequences of failing social systems firsthand in Mexico, I have to say that many of the socialist aspects of Canada are heartily endorsed by yours truly. Though I also feel that indeed, the rich get richer while the middle class goes in circles, and the poor get turned into mailboxes.
July 11th - Sad in Sunshine
I was definitely glad to be off today, as I was feeling rather sad... odd, given the sunny weather; not sure why, maybe events are catching up to me - hard to say. I think my annoyance of the afternoon gave way to melancholy, as I tried yet again to enjoy the deck out the back but was defeated by the idiots at the park next door. John Q. Public, take note: if you are in a huge park for the day, where the houses are mere specks in the distance, enjoy yourself and let your kids romp.
July 5th - Travel
As above: in less than a month as of today, I will be in Niagara - I board my flight early the morning of July 31st from BC, and stay until the afternoon of August 8th; over a week! Thanks again to Martin's massive generosity, I shall be able to visit the place of my birth once again, see many of my friends and do Lots Of Relaxing. I'll be bringing my laptop of course, as I also hope to get some writing done whilst said Relaxing is in progress. There's a few spots I recall as being most excellently suited to such activities, with the minor addition of some ice cream and / or soft music, both of which are readily( and cheaply )available thereabouts. *grin*
For those of you with more means or wider-ranging travel dreams than I, may I humbly suggest bookmarking LonelyPlanet.com. The site is packed with travel tips and information, as well as inspiring ideas of places to travel to on this huge spinning blue marble we all share. Heck, they even have a section where you can debate( or discover? )what the Best Beer in the World is! I do also miss my 1,000 Places to See Before You Die calendar from last year, which is why I was pleased to see this recent article from Yahoo Travel on the same topic - now all I need is to figure what one of the many How To Get Rich Quick ideas to use.
Nah. I'll just take the financial advice in this article instead - much great chance of success, though over a longer period of time.
July 6th - Old Made New Again
You knew I was going to mention it: United Breaks Guitars. Watching that hit counter grow every day from thousands, to hundreds of thousands, to millions - wow. That's viral marketing at work, folks - the power behind such shows as Britain's Got Talent and all those. Media magnification© at it's finest!
Video games have always been near and dear to my heart, though I am the first to admit I enjoy the actual playing of them more than finishing them; more of a 'journey rather than the destination matters' thing, I suppose. I have a LOT of games on the shelves, more than I realized... far more than I ever collected compared to the few numbers of CD's, so I guess that's where my money went in those days, rather than into the vast music collections some of you hopefully still retain. As I look over my collection, there are quite a few gems there... so I was pleased as anything to discover that quite a few of those great games have been updated and collected for sale at GoG.com.
Good Old Games, as they call themselves, has updated dozens of older PC game titles for download and use on Windows XP and Vista( even 64-bit like mine! )at incredibly low prices - most of the games are $10.00 or less, with titles like MDK2, Descent( which made me ill the 1st time I played! )and the original Fallout. It made me smile to see so many, and I think I will have to get a few of my favourites to play again on my new laptop, along with a few I missed the first time around. Outdated as most of them are, the gameplay is where they shine, not the graphics which have marched solidly onwards over the years.
Yet there is a lot to be said for new technology... when it can bring you images like these. That's right, robot fans - Mechwarrior is back after being on hiatus since 2002. Bring on the battle tech! Best of all: MechWarrior 4 is going to be released for download soon, free!
July 7th - Coral and Contests
Scary news today: what with the current global economic crisis, Korean tensions, H1N1 and the loss of Michael Jackson, do we need more bad news? Sorry but yes... it's a big one. Despite warnings about Global Warming and the ozone layer, most people are not too worried about the environment crashing, thinking that films like The Day After Tomorrow are overdoing things in the usual Hollywood style.
But what it the world ended with a whimper, not a bang? That's just what scientists studying the world's coral reefs told reporters today, warning that this critical food-chain link is in jeopardy and may die out completely within the century. Think about it: dead oceans... dead planet. I'm scared all over again, now.
For those of you who enjoy entering contests, but are wisely wary of scam-sites that will sell your contact info to phone marketers like the scum at Imperial Majesty Cruise Lines, who pestered me some months back until I simply told them I was not planning to take any vacations in the next decade due to a total lack of money as a perpetual student in school. They stopped calling, amazingly. After much searching, I located LookContests.com, which is a wonderful free site that compiles ONLY legitimate contests from companies such as those from Ford, Skittles, etc - no chance of fraudsters taking your info here. A neat feature of the site is that it sorts the contests into categories such as daily, weekly or unlimited entries and lets you keep track of the ones you have already entered - great for those contests that will disqualify anyone attempting more than one entry in a certain time period. So far, I've not won anything... but as the saying goes: nothing ventured nothing gained. Better yet: no noticeable increase in my junk mail, even after a few months.
July 8th - Pedal Power
Today was a hot day, which means power use was up as people ran their A/C more to keep cool. In the future, as we all know, demand for electricity is going to outstrip supply, which is why it is important we develop things like the Smart Grid all the sooner. C|Net has an excellent article on the topic, which reveals many exciting possibilities, one of which I touched on previously concerning electric cars that may be used in their millions to assist the Grid at peak demand times. A sure sign that this is going to be the wave of the future are the various power-generation kits now available at places like Canadian Tire, hopefully just the start of simpler ways for people to reduce their demand for electricity. I know that such a unit here would easily generate energy most evenings, when the wind is high from the north over the lake; setting up a battery system to store that free juice would take a little doing, but it excites me that such things are now a semi-realistic option without huge expense or training involved. Even Vancouver is getting on board, with news that they are going to require all new development to accommodate electric cars, with plugs installed for charging. Progress!
Though it was rather sweaty today on the road, I'm back to riding my bike to work most days. At less than 2km( with a large cardio-improving hill smack in the middle )the ride there and back is a good workout but not such a drain that I arrive winded, or can't do it after a long, wearing day... I am glad to say that I am feeling very much recovered from my surgery, though I am going easy on the exercise - slow and steady are the increases, says the doctor. The same with my diet; I have had few nausea attacks since the operation, which I accredit to my system getting rid of the last of the poisons my malfunctioning gall bladder had splashed around during its overextended stay. I hope by the end of the summer to be back on track to proper health, while avoiding any temptation to fall into bad food habits - McDonald's has not seen me for the last ten years of my life, nor shall they ever again. Bleh!
July 9th - And I thought they smelled bad...
Some amusing news: if you want to travel into the future, apparently all it takes is to move to northern B.C. where the clocks are running fast... for over 65,000 people, that is.
A bit of a letdown today, regarding one of my more-liked shows on HGTV. It seems that Restaurant Makeover is not as highly thought of as I had surmised, though I admit it is somewhat formulaic and contrived at times. Still, I like seeing places go from blah to rah! so to speak, and it's an entertaining hour of non-violent TV which is fairly rare these days. Everyone needs a break from explosions, people screaming at each other and stress, wouldn't you agree?
Thus, the question runs to purchasing one of these - word is that they'll be available soon, though not in what sizes. Oh, the uncertainty - just like surviving a night outside on the ice planet Hoth!
And for those who may have thought I've left bacon out of this week's blog - think again.
July 10th - Debating About Working
Today was a Development Day at work, where another manager and I were walked though the Golden Path of Enlightenment, as envisaged by MMart. I was surprised by the depth of some of the material, and pleased that though it was challenging, I could see myself getting my head around it - albeit with the requisite hard work. It looks like my time at work for the next while is going to be even busier, what with managing the store, training a new hire and getting myself on track with new expectations and responsibilities. While I fully realize that I am not making as much as some managers in other businesses, I do not think I would have received even half the wide-ranging training I have been getting now at this company. What annoys the $%#@! out of me though, is all those earlier wasted years at CCCorp in ON, where I steered myself out of management for several good reasons, not the least among them their haphazard, half-assed promotion and training practices.
One of the topics covered was assisting employees in reaching their goals, be it at work or at home, including helping them save for things like vacations without breaking the bank. A possibility for them would be to work from home, for a few months to help supplement their income, without necessitating them taking a second job and so making their primary job( ie. MMart )suffer from the overload. A good site to help in finding reputable home employment is Monster.Ca, which has some tips on the topic, as well as WhyDoWork.com - I love the name!
Darn it, why can't we all just toss off the shackles of capitalism, to embrace something better? I recommend that you sidle on over to CreatedDebate.com to see what thousands of people have said about the mishaps and merits of the capitalist system designed to make the rich richer, and the poor, um... unemployed. Having seen myself some of the consequences of failing social systems firsthand in Mexico, I have to say that many of the socialist aspects of Canada are heartily endorsed by yours truly. Though I also feel that indeed, the rich get richer while the middle class goes in circles, and the poor get turned into mailboxes.
July 11th - Sad in Sunshine
I was definitely glad to be off today, as I was feeling rather sad... odd, given the sunny weather; not sure why, maybe events are catching up to me - hard to say. I think my annoyance of the afternoon gave way to melancholy, as I tried yet again to enjoy the deck out the back but was defeated by the idiots at the park next door. John Q. Public, take note: if you are in a huge park for the day, where the houses are mere specks in the distance, enjoy yourself and let your kids romp.
However, if the park is a tiny postage stamp nestled into a neighbourhood where the homes are RIGHT NEXT TO THE PARK, don't let your pack of little monsters scream their fool heads off ALL DAY LONG while pushing each other off the dock on the nice, QUIET lake. People like myself may come out onto their decks, some fifty feet away or so, and stare at you with their arms crossed, perhaps becoming angered to the point of calling the police to have a chat with you. And that's what the nice, calm neighbours might do, at the very least. Be warned.
In any case, I settled inside for most of the day, where closed windows and earplugs abated the noise and consoled myself with words. I read a good deal of a book I've not looked at in over a decade: The Ring, by Daniel Keys Moran and was loosely based on Wagner's tale Der Ring des Nibelungen. Moran also wrote Emerald Eyes, another novel concerning telepaths. I wonder what he might have been like if tapped to write a few episodes of Babylon 5, where telepaths figured prominently in the major plotlines. Interesting thought, and amusing along the same lines as this never-published article about how he came to write The Ring... which is a warning to authors everywhere.
In case you haven't checked out his site recently, Neil Gaiman's been quite busy in his usual excellent way. Being one of my favourite authors, I find his semi-regular journal a great read, as it shows his writing style at his informal best without adding in the( many )extra passes that editors and himself make on his words. Stellar.
July 12th - Duty Calls Again!
Popping onto xBoxLive! today, I ran across the guys playing COD4 online, just like last summer - so much for COD5, yay! I happily spent a good part of the day gaming with them, enjoying the banter and the basic pleasure of blasting the crap out of the enemy; very cathartic. Damn, I know I've said it before, but it is just awesome to be able to game with some of my good friends from thousands of miles away - great to 'see' you, guys.
The evening saw me working on my NWN project, talking with several of my project comrades and plugging away at my current slice of the pie. I am writing up small 1 or 2 sentence random item descriptions, to be integrated into our own unique item generation code. Simply put, it will randomly generate 'treasure' items based on a number of factors in the game, allowing a vast range of uniquely tradable( and thus valuable )items to be made without needing to hand-create thousands of them one by one. In essence, we will allow players the thrilling possibility of getting some Really Cool Stuff when they adventure, with a little hard work on our part beforehand translating into a fantastic in-game experience. I'm really gobsmacked that I've managed to assemble such a talented and dedicated crew to do all this, so doing my share is as vitally important to me as keeping the whole thing on track.
So, it's back to work... I've items to imagine!
In any case, I settled inside for most of the day, where closed windows and earplugs abated the noise and consoled myself with words. I read a good deal of a book I've not looked at in over a decade: The Ring, by Daniel Keys Moran and was loosely based on Wagner's tale Der Ring des Nibelungen. Moran also wrote Emerald Eyes, another novel concerning telepaths. I wonder what he might have been like if tapped to write a few episodes of Babylon 5, where telepaths figured prominently in the major plotlines. Interesting thought, and amusing along the same lines as this never-published article about how he came to write The Ring... which is a warning to authors everywhere.
In case you haven't checked out his site recently, Neil Gaiman's been quite busy in his usual excellent way. Being one of my favourite authors, I find his semi-regular journal a great read, as it shows his writing style at his informal best without adding in the( many )extra passes that editors and himself make on his words. Stellar.
July 12th - Duty Calls Again!
Popping onto xBoxLive! today, I ran across the guys playing COD4 online, just like last summer - so much for COD5, yay! I happily spent a good part of the day gaming with them, enjoying the banter and the basic pleasure of blasting the crap out of the enemy; very cathartic. Damn, I know I've said it before, but it is just awesome to be able to game with some of my good friends from thousands of miles away - great to 'see' you, guys.
The evening saw me working on my NWN project, talking with several of my project comrades and plugging away at my current slice of the pie. I am writing up small 1 or 2 sentence random item descriptions, to be integrated into our own unique item generation code. Simply put, it will randomly generate 'treasure' items based on a number of factors in the game, allowing a vast range of uniquely tradable( and thus valuable )items to be made without needing to hand-create thousands of them one by one. In essence, we will allow players the thrilling possibility of getting some Really Cool Stuff when they adventure, with a little hard work on our part beforehand translating into a fantastic in-game experience. I'm really gobsmacked that I've managed to assemble such a talented and dedicated crew to do all this, so doing my share is as vitally important to me as keeping the whole thing on track.
So, it's back to work... I've items to imagine!
