Cameron was a worthy opponent. I confess that with only a 3x multiplier handicap I might not have made it. Reading week also helped me, and perhaps Cameron's ill health in the last two days.
Blog-off
Cameron: 42
Neil: 50
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Live blog: Blog-off 10 (It's over)
A last minute, well-handicapped victory is mine. Although the live blogging isn't necessarily over. There could be appeals and time stamp disputes.
Live blog: Blog-off 9
Well it seems that Neil made it back from his meal at a much earlier hour than I expected. Not surprisingly, he managed to crank out another post without too much effort. This gap in our point totals might be insurmountable for me at this stage. I really don't think that I can dedicate the next thirty minutes to almost constant posting, particularly when one or two more from Neil would blow me out of the water.
We may have to re-work the rules a little next year now that we know that Neil is able to post on a semi-regular basis, even if he choses not to most of the time.
Blog-off
Cameron: 42
Neil: 45
We may have to re-work the rules a little next year now that we know that Neil is able to post on a semi-regular basis, even if he choses not to most of the time.
Blog-off
Cameron: 42
Neil: 45
Book Report: Word Freak by Stefan Fatsis
What I suspect is my final reading week triumph is Word Freak. Word Freak is all about Scrabble. Cameron gave it to me for Christmas in 2007, but the copy that was shipped had the first 22 or so pages upside down, backwards and off-center; it was sent back. As a replacement copy would have been sent to our parents' house and I wanted the book in Halifax, it was processed as a refund. The book was not available in local bookstores, so I waited until I had the required dollar amount for an online order with free shipping. I don't recall when I actually got the book.
I started reading the book this week after finally finishing Golden Ratio. Word Freak was a much quicker read. I'd been wanting to read Word Freak since autumn 2007, when I started playing Scrabulous (almost identically like Scrabble). Scrabulous, the Facebook application, was gone and is now back with the new name Lexulous (and different rules and tiles). Reading the book has given me more desire to play Scrabble and associated games, but I'm confident I won't ever become (or even try to become) an expert Scrabble player.
I learned a lot about Scrabble from the book. Previously I had seen two documentary films, Scrabylon and Word Wars, that covered lots of the same people and tournaments as were mentioned in the book. As one might guess, the book was much more detailed. The book also took a very different approach, the author was documenting his journey of becoming an expert Scrabble player. The films were just outside looking in. I retained lots of the images of some of the top Scrabble players and I think that helped me retain information from the book.
Unlike watching a movie based on a novel and then reading the novel, I do not feel that the movies tainted the book.
Most recent Lexulous game
Neil: 449
His Mother: 354
Blog-off
Cameron: 41
Neil: 45
Live blog: Blog-off 8
It seems that I am leading in the blog-off once again. It is quite a nice feeling to be back in the lead, though the danger that Neil could post a single additional entry for the win is still present.
We are now down to less than two hours of blog-off time remaining, though by no means should the competition be considered over. It is quite possible that we will see a last minute flurry of posts and a change in the lead (though I hope that this isn't the case).
Blog-off
Cameron: 41
Neil: 40
We are now down to less than two hours of blog-off time remaining, though by no means should the competition be considered over. It is quite possible that we will see a last minute flurry of posts and a change in the lead (though I hope that this isn't the case).
Blog-off
Cameron: 41
Neil: 40
Live blog: Blog-off 7
The intensity just doesn't let up in this blog-off. Just when I was almost ready to write myself off I managed to bring my score to even with Neil's. With another post I will be able to take the lead back from Neil (the pretender). I imagine that you are all breathing a sigh of relief now that you know that this is likely to continue for some number of hours.
I guess I should try to get some work done, though I may have to come back to the blog to let you know that I have re-taken the lead (I know you would want the play-by-play directly from me and not from a third party trying interpret the significance of the events, which would be impossible given the immense complexity of the situation).
Blog-off
Cameron: 40
Neil: 40
I guess I should try to get some work done, though I may have to come back to the blog to let you know that I have re-taken the lead (I know you would want the play-by-play directly from me and not from a third party trying interpret the significance of the events, which would be impossible given the immense complexity of the situation).
Blog-off
Cameron: 40
Neil: 40
Live blog: Blog-off 6
Well, this is an interesting position for me to be in. I am now in second place in the blog-off after almost a month of holding the lead. I am completely shocked that this is how things have turned out. I never would have guessed that Neil would manage to pull this many posts out on the last day.
Now that he has gone out for a late meal with Rebecca I might have a chance to regain the lead, though at this point, a single additional post from him would be hard to overcome. Though it is likely to be tough to win, I haven't completely given up hope yet.
With a little perseverance I might still be able to win.
Blog-off
Cameron: 39
Neil: 40
Now that he has gone out for a late meal with Rebecca I might have a chance to regain the lead, though at this point, a single additional post from him would be hard to overcome. Though it is likely to be tough to win, I haven't completely given up hope yet.
With a little perseverance I might still be able to win.
Blog-off
Cameron: 39
Neil: 40
Live blog: Blog-off 5 (Neil takes the lead)
I think the title here gives a good overview of the recent happenings on the blog. I'm heading out now for a little bit. I expect to at best be tied for the lead when I get back. In crazy land I might even not be back until after midnight, and have lost. I hope that doesn't happen.
On a related note, I want to point out that all you readers are experiencing something like meta-competitive-blogging. I need to think more about what that really is though.
Blog-off
Cameron: 38
Neil: 40
Live blog: Blog-off
Cameron: 3
Neil: 2
Ultimate update
That's ultimate as in ultimate frisbee, not as in last post of the evening. I've returned from the game Cameron was unable to attend. As our captain's email wasn't working today, the team had only the minimum three people show up to play. The other team had 6 guys ready to play, so we decided to pick up a player from the last game, a 7 point penalty. However, a guy on their team saw what we were doing and protested that the player we were picking up was above the skill level of the players we were missing. He justified his protest based on the fact that it was playoffs. So it looked like we were not going to pick him up. As our team grumbled the protester said we could have him for 10 points, and we agreed, although we did declare that it was a cheap move. Game time came around and the other team was a little slow getting to the line. We mostly jokingly called delay of game and claimed three points (10 minus 7, that is). Normally, the pick-up penalty is given to the opposing team at the beginning of the game. However, their team declined to do this, saying they would add the points at the end. Our team played well and the final real score was 43-34. I took off to catch a bus and therefore do not know who won, because I do not know how many points will be claimed for our pick-up. I hope to find out in the next couple of days what the result is. It will have a great effect on the playoff schedules for both teams.
Ultimate games missed
Cameron: 3
Neil: 1
Blog-off
Cameron: 38
Neil: 35
Live blog: Blog-off 4
It seems that shortly after Neil left for Ultimate things really cooled down on the blog front, explaining why our live-blogging slowed down a little. Still, the blog-off is quickly coming to a close, we now have fewer than 5 hours left to slip in any final posts, so I imagine that as soon as he returns things will start to heat up and my heart rate will once again spike.
Just a while ago I realized that we didn't really plan the end of the competition well. Neither of us purchased champagne (or sparking white wine) with which the winner could pose and spray the loser. I guess when we run our next blog-off we will have a better sense of how to run things (I might not be so inclined to handicap myself so aggressively).
If anything exciting happens on the blog-off front I am sure hear about it here first, so check back frequently.
Blog-off
Cameron: 38
Neil: 30
Just a while ago I realized that we didn't really plan the end of the competition well. Neither of us purchased champagne (or sparking white wine) with which the winner could pose and spray the loser. I guess when we run our next blog-off we will have a better sense of how to run things (I might not be so inclined to handicap myself so aggressively).
If anything exciting happens on the blog-off front I am sure hear about it here first, so check back frequently.
Blog-off
Cameron: 38
Neil: 30
Live blog: Blog-off 3
Things have now gotten pretty dirty in the blog-off. Neil is presently trying to get me away from my computer by offering to prepare some soup for me (which he tells me is now ready). Though I am going to fall for this trick, it won't happen before I let the world know that I know what is going on in his competitive mind.
This has reached a new level of dirty, clearly tricks are now in.
Definitely stay tuned to see how dirty the tricks get (I get the sense a desert might be on the way for Neil).
Blog-off
Cameron: 37
Neil: 30
This has reached a new level of dirty, clearly tricks are now in.
Definitely stay tuned to see how dirty the tricks get (I get the sense a desert might be on the way for Neil).
Blog-off
Cameron: 37
Neil: 30
Live blog: Blog-off 2
Holy crap, my heart rate is definitely creeping up as things are really starting to heat up in the blog-off. Though I should have known that Neil would really turn it on at the last minute, I kind of half-expected him to just sit back and take the loss. Anyway, he has come on much stronger than I would have expected, and now I am going to have to really pick up my game if I want to win (which is going to be hard because as soon as he passes me I will need a pretty good number of posts to regain the lead).
Now that he has started the live-blogging of the event I am sure international interest will pick up, driving our readership through the roof (as everyone like a good down to the wire blog-off, or maybe it is the web 2.0 version of a sibling rivalry that they really like).
I guess you should stay tuned to see how this plays out as the night progresses and the competition winds to a close.
Blog-off
Cameron: 36
Neil: 30
Now that he has started the live-blogging of the event I am sure international interest will pick up, driving our readership through the roof (as everyone like a good down to the wire blog-off, or maybe it is the web 2.0 version of a sibling rivalry that they really like).
I guess you should stay tuned to see how this plays out as the night progresses and the competition winds to a close.
Blog-off
Cameron: 36
Neil: 30
Live blog: Blog-off 1
At this point I think we need to open the live blog on the blog-off. It is getting intense now and with Cameron staying home from ultimate to focus on posting (and being under the weather) there could be some serious action. I have a couple more posts up my sleeve, but with the live blog going, Cameron could easily get another 15 posts in. Is the live blog compatible with the 30 word minimum? Only time will tell.
Live blog: Blog-off
Neil: 1
Cameron: 0
Blog-off
Time: 7h35m
Neil-Cameron: -5
Book report: With Every Mistake by Gwynne Dyer
For the first time in my life I've actually done a fair amount of reading during reading week. Last week I finished reading With Every Mistake, which I had started reading more than a year ago. The book is a collection of newspaper columns written by Dyer from 2001 to 2005, compiled and commented on a couple years later. The book was published in 2005 (2006 for the paperback version I read). Reading the book years after the hindsight comments written by Dyer gave me a great chance to see where he was off even on the second try. For example, the US in still in Iraq and we're long past the 2008 presidential elections.
The book talked about issues from regions all over the world, a lot of which I know very little about. Each article was given sufficient background so that I didn't have to use Wikipedia to follow along. Also, Dyer tells the story of why it is his columns are largely not published in Canadian newspaper, which is part of the justification for his publication of the book.
Blog-off
Time: 7h49m
Neil-Cameron: -10
Shock and awe
I am continually shocked and awed with the speed at which my scarlet runner beans continue to grow. It seems that each morning when I come out to check on them they have grown by several inches and more leaves have become visible. Actually, they have now grown so much that I don't really know where I should be directing the shoots. I really hadn't imagined that they would reach the ceiling so quickly.
As you might be able to see, I have now tried to get the shoots to grow sideways, across the top of the window, though this clearly isn't a natural growing pattern. I presume that I will have to keep wrapping them around the string if I want them to grow in this direction. The problem I am likely to face what I am going to do with them once they reach the end of the window.
Anyways, this first photo is of the plants on February 25, 2009, just a few days ago.
This photo is of the plants as they are today, February 28, 2009. As you can see, the beans are much more developed than they were just a few days ago. Also, as previously mentioned, some of the shoots have reached the top of window. Several were touching the ceiling until I wrapped them around the guide strings.
This photo might provide a slightly better perspective of some of the bean growth as it relates to them climbing the guide strings. Unfortunately, the location of the window and the resulting light has made it hard for me to take a good photo of the situation (presumably a better photographer than myself wouldn't have such problems).
I really like the way that the beans have of wrapping themselves around the things they are growing along. Originally the beans were wrapping themselves around the string, though as more plants grew, they started wrapping themselves around other been plants. In a few instances there are quite a number of bean stems wrapped together, with a small piece of string at the core of the agglomeration.
Blog-off
Cameron: 35
Neil: 20
As you might be able to see, I have now tried to get the shoots to grow sideways, across the top of the window, though this clearly isn't a natural growing pattern. I presume that I will have to keep wrapping them around the string if I want them to grow in this direction. The problem I am likely to face what I am going to do with them once they reach the end of the window.
Anyways, this first photo is of the plants on February 25, 2009, just a few days ago.
This photo is of the plants as they are today, February 28, 2009. As you can see, the beans are much more developed than they were just a few days ago. Also, as previously mentioned, some of the shoots have reached the top of window. Several were touching the ceiling until I wrapped them around the guide strings.
This photo might provide a slightly better perspective of some of the bean growth as it relates to them climbing the guide strings. Unfortunately, the location of the window and the resulting light has made it hard for me to take a good photo of the situation (presumably a better photographer than myself wouldn't have such problems).
I really like the way that the beans have of wrapping themselves around the things they are growing along. Originally the beans were wrapping themselves around the string, though as more plants grew, they started wrapping themselves around other been plants. In a few instances there are quite a number of bean stems wrapped together, with a small piece of string at the core of the agglomeration.
Blog-off
Cameron: 35
Neil: 20
A Few Quick Notes 278
-We have had temperatures above zero for more than 24 hours as this afternoon. Noticeable results of such conditions include significantly diminished snowbanks and ice sheets. With a few more hours of such weather it seems possible that we could lose most of the snow that we have been accumulating since the new year. On the other hand, Environment Canada is predicting that it will drop to -13 tonight, so much of this melting will likely be halted in the relatively near future. Aside from the above freezing temperatures, things have been pretty gray for most of the day, and at times a little drizzly.
-Neil has shocked me with two more blog posts. Maybe he will manage to creep up on me and still win the blog-off. At this point I have to concede that it is within his reach.
-I may have mentioned yesterday that I am feeling a little under the weather, a condition which has carried over to today. The two most significant consequences of this condition are an inability to concentrate on school work as much as I might like, and that I won't be able to play in this evening's Ultimate game. A third notable consequence is that I have been sleeping much more than usual. Yesterday I ended up taking three naps and going to bed early (of course, then I spent a while tossing and turning).
-A few days ago we had a several hour power outage. Though I didn't realize it at the time, Neil has since informed me that this even messed up our phones so that one of the cordless phones is no longer functional and a wall unit doesn't function at full capacity. Neil is hoping to get some new phones on his way to Ultimate, which will hopefully solve our phone problem.
Blog-off
Cameron: 34
Neil: 20
-Neil has shocked me with two more blog posts. Maybe he will manage to creep up on me and still win the blog-off. At this point I have to concede that it is within his reach.
-I may have mentioned yesterday that I am feeling a little under the weather, a condition which has carried over to today. The two most significant consequences of this condition are an inability to concentrate on school work as much as I might like, and that I won't be able to play in this evening's Ultimate game. A third notable consequence is that I have been sleeping much more than usual. Yesterday I ended up taking three naps and going to bed early (of course, then I spent a while tossing and turning).
-A few days ago we had a several hour power outage. Though I didn't realize it at the time, Neil has since informed me that this even messed up our phones so that one of the cordless phones is no longer functional and a wall unit doesn't function at full capacity. Neil is hoping to get some new phones on his way to Ultimate, which will hopefully solve our phone problem.
Blog-off
Cameron: 34
Neil: 20
Movie Review: Slumdog Millionaire
On Wednesday night Rebecca and I went to see Slumdog Millionaire at the theatre. Cameron was tempted to come, and even cooked indian food for dinner that night (pappadums included).
The theatre we went to has only one screen and a very small concessions and waiting area. We arrived early, at least partially to get good seats, but the previous screening had finished so after we bought our tickets we went for a little walk. When we came back there were lots of people buying tickets and concessions. In an effort to salvage what seats we could, Rebecca went in while I waited for concessions. As it turned out, Rebecca managed to get exactly the seats we wanted.
Many of the previews we saw looked good. We were enjoying the preview of Gran Torino when the film stopped. After a minute or two it started up again only to stop again before the preview
finished. This time it took a little longer, closer to five minutes. I was definitely hoping for a refund and a coupon for a free movie. Unfortunately, everything worked from then on.
As for the movie, I won't spoil the plot like Cameron tells me the Globe and Mail did for some people. I enjoyed the movie. If anything I was assuming there would be more 'disturbing' scenes. I was happy with the amount of english used in the film. There wasn't so much english that it felt unauthentic, but there weren't so many subtitles that I thought it was foreign. I expect the movie to be rented for Cameron at some point and I'll happily watch it again.
2009 Oscar winners seen
Cameron: 0
Neil: 4
Book Report: Golden Ratio by Mario Livio
I recall first seeing Golden Ratio by Mario Livio at a bookstore in high school. I had recently read The Man Who Loved Only Numbers (a book about Paul Erdos), by Paul Hoffman, and quite enjoyed it. So when I was given a gift card I found myself at the mathematics section of the bookstore. The books I was looking at included Gödel, Escher, Bach (GEB) and Golden Ratio. I cannot recall any other titles I was looking at, nor can I recall what I purchased other than that I did purchase GEB and did not purchase Golden Ratio. Over the next few months I heard good things about GEB and nothing about Golden Ratio, so I assumed I had made a good decision. I'll guess that about a year later I was in a similar position and I was tempted again by Golden Ratio, but decided against it. I didn't encounter Golden Ratio for a number of years after that.
About eight months ago I was at my friend Matt's apartment and I saw he had a copy of Golden Ratio, which he then lent to me upon my asking. I started reading the book slowly. Within a few
weeks another friend was ridding herself of books and gave Rebecca a copy of the book. Rebecca soon passed me and then proceeded to finish reading the book with a couple weeks. I returned my borrowed copy, as I could now borrow Rebecca's.
Last week, I finally finished the book. I'm happy to have finished. The book was aimless and full of tangents. I learned about painters I had not heard of and more about some that I had, but I hardly needed to read pages of material on an artist who did NOT use the golden ratio in his art. I am glad however, to have learned more about Johannes Kepler and how he was a little weird. Also, I learned that it is not a coincidence that 1/89=0.011235..., which I'm quite happy about (note that 89 is a Fibonaci number, as are 1,2,3 and 5).
Blog-off (given as sums of Fibonaci numbers)
Cameron: 21 + 8 + 3 + 1
Neil: 13 + 2
Friday, February 27, 2009
Its starting to heat up a little
Wow, with just over a day left things are starting to heat up in the blog-off. Not only has Neil managed to make his second post in the competition, but the trash talking has also picked up in the comments section of Neil's most recent post.
Anyway, the good aspect of this most recent post is that it has made me realize that I have been miss-reporting the score for much of the month. As we had agreed to a 5 to 1 scoring system for Neil, he has had 5 points for much of the month, not the 1 that I had been suggesting he had. Now that he has made a second post he is up to 10. I had been making this calculation in my head, but for some reason forgetting to include it in the score updates I have been providing.
I guess we will see how things shape up, and if Neil can manage to find the energy for another 6 or 7 posts in the next 32 hours.
Blog-off
Cameron: 33
Neil: 10
Anyway, the good aspect of this most recent post is that it has made me realize that I have been miss-reporting the score for much of the month. As we had agreed to a 5 to 1 scoring system for Neil, he has had 5 points for much of the month, not the 1 that I had been suggesting he had. Now that he has made a second post he is up to 10. I had been making this calculation in my head, but for some reason forgetting to include it in the score updates I have been providing.
I guess we will see how things shape up, and if Neil can manage to find the energy for another 6 or 7 posts in the next 32 hours.
Blog-off
Cameron: 33
Neil: 10
Scotties Update: Not so Strong
This year's Scotties Tournament of Hearts started on Saturday, February 21st. I was rooting for Heather Strong from NL. Her team started poorly. She played well on Tuesday and on Wednesday she beat two of the better teams to give her a 5-4 record. She was set up to play two of the worst teams on Thursday and if she won both she was guaranteed to at least be in a tie-breaker, and I think she had a chance to finish as high as second, because she had beaten most of the teams she could have tied with. However, on Thursday she failed to follow my advice and instead choked. She finished 5-6, having lost to all the teams with the same or worse record.
Jennifer Jones is in a tie-breaker with PEI today. Last year Heather Strong and Jennifer Jones played in the equivalent tie-breaker, with Jennifer Jones winning and then going on to win the whole thing. I'm curious to see if that will happen again.
Curling
Team Strong: 1
Other losing teams: 5
A Few Quick Notes 277
-Today seemed pretty nice, though I didn't have chance to make it outside to experience it in person until after 11:00 PM tonight.
-While doing some research earlier this evening I happened to come across a blog called Lords of the Blog. It seems that the contributors to this blog are Peers and that it is updated on a relatively regular basis. I was somewhat surprised to find such a blog, I know I would have a hard time imagining that Canadian or American Senators participating in such a venture.
The blog links to a number of blogs of other British politicians, including the mayor of London, and former Conservative MP, Boris Johnson. I am much less surprised to see that Boris Johnson has a blog, though I was surprised to see how frequently he posts. I would have imagined that being the Mayor of a major European city would have slowed his blogging down to nothing more than a trickle, though this doesn't seem to be the case.
-Several moments prior to coming upon the previously mentioned blogs, I happened to be looking through the House of Lords Hansard from March 22, 2004 when I came across the following quote from Lord Peston
"in the committees that I have chaired or been a member of, that we proceed by consensus. I have never chaired a committee in which I have allowed a vote. Of course, I do not believe in votes anyway, I believe in reason."
I was a little surprised to learn that Lord Peston was a Labour peer, and that he is a life peer rather than a hereditary peer.
-A few minutes ago I had to make a late night trip to the grocery store to pick up some Fisherman's Friend throat lozenges. Based on the degree that this first was has given me I am starting to wonder why I didn't make the the trip earlier today. Unfortunately, I am not really starting to feel out of it. I guess I should probably try to get some sleep soon.
-A few days ago I started reading Alligator by Lisa Moore (I found this author profile by an acquaintance of mine). So far, which is about 100 pages, I am quite impressed. It has kind of put me in the mood to read more Newfoundland fiction. As I have Percy Janes' House of Hate and Michael Winter's The Big Why I should be set for some time, if this the reading path I chose to take. An alternate path would be to acquire the third book in Evenlyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy, Unconditional Surrender, and finish that set of books off.
Blog-off
Cameron: 32
Neil: 1
-While doing some research earlier this evening I happened to come across a blog called Lords of the Blog. It seems that the contributors to this blog are Peers and that it is updated on a relatively regular basis. I was somewhat surprised to find such a blog, I know I would have a hard time imagining that Canadian or American Senators participating in such a venture.
The blog links to a number of blogs of other British politicians, including the mayor of London, and former Conservative MP, Boris Johnson. I am much less surprised to see that Boris Johnson has a blog, though I was surprised to see how frequently he posts. I would have imagined that being the Mayor of a major European city would have slowed his blogging down to nothing more than a trickle, though this doesn't seem to be the case.
-Several moments prior to coming upon the previously mentioned blogs, I happened to be looking through the House of Lords Hansard from March 22, 2004 when I came across the following quote from Lord Peston
"in the committees that I have chaired or been a member of, that we proceed by consensus. I have never chaired a committee in which I have allowed a vote. Of course, I do not believe in votes anyway, I believe in reason."
I was a little surprised to learn that Lord Peston was a Labour peer, and that he is a life peer rather than a hereditary peer.
-A few minutes ago I had to make a late night trip to the grocery store to pick up some Fisherman's Friend throat lozenges. Based on the degree that this first was has given me I am starting to wonder why I didn't make the the trip earlier today. Unfortunately, I am not really starting to feel out of it. I guess I should probably try to get some sleep soon.
-A few days ago I started reading Alligator by Lisa Moore (I found this author profile by an acquaintance of mine). So far, which is about 100 pages, I am quite impressed. It has kind of put me in the mood to read more Newfoundland fiction. As I have Percy Janes' House of Hate and Michael Winter's The Big Why I should be set for some time, if this the reading path I chose to take. An alternate path would be to acquire the third book in Evenlyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy, Unconditional Surrender, and finish that set of books off.
Blog-off
Cameron: 32
Neil: 1
Thursday, February 26, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 276
-From what I recall, today was a pretty nice day. Actually, not only was it just above zero, I seem to have some memories of it being on the sunny side of things. Hopefully things are as nice tomorrow, though as I don't plan on leaving the apartment it won't be a huge problem for me if things aren't perfect.
-I did some laundry today. Because one of the residents of the building left their laundry in the machines the process took much longer than I had hoped. While it was a bit of an inconvenience, I am glad to have it out of the way.
-I am quickly approaching the end of reading week. While I have been able to do some reading, I haven't accomplished as much as I might have liked.
-Whoa, what a night. I put in a few intense hours on some school related things and now I am about ready to drop, but also hyped up about how much work I have. Hopefully I will be able to get to sleep in a reasonable amount of time (though I fear that I will keep myself awake).
Blog-off
Cameron: 31
Neil: 1
-I did some laundry today. Because one of the residents of the building left their laundry in the machines the process took much longer than I had hoped. While it was a bit of an inconvenience, I am glad to have it out of the way.
-I am quickly approaching the end of reading week. While I have been able to do some reading, I haven't accomplished as much as I might have liked.
-Whoa, what a night. I put in a few intense hours on some school related things and now I am about ready to drop, but also hyped up about how much work I have. Hopefully I will be able to get to sleep in a reasonable amount of time (though I fear that I will keep myself awake).
Blog-off
Cameron: 31
Neil: 1
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Grasping at straws
Yesterday Rebecca suggested that some of my recent blog posts might be a touch on the weak side, and that I was "grasping at straws" to obtain content to keep my posts up to beat Neil in our ongoing blog-off (I am presently leading). I do largely agree with Rebecca, in some cases I have likely divided things into multiple posts that would otherwise been contained in a single post, and most importantly, have posted things that I otherwise would not have posted. Notably, I have posted some video content that I likely wouldn't have otherwise created.
So, to try and prove that Rebecca is correct, I give you the following video. Nothing but quality nonsense content.
[Embedded Video]
Also, I was reminded of this photo earlier today. I took this shot this past summer while on my way to Mistaken Point with my parents. I found this disembodied seagull wing while we were examining a peat bog next to a beach.
Blog-off
Cameron: 30
Neil: 1
So, to try and prove that Rebecca is correct, I give you the following video. Nothing but quality nonsense content.
[Embedded Video]
Also, I was reminded of this photo earlier today. I took this shot this past summer while on my way to Mistaken Point with my parents. I found this disembodied seagull wing while we were examining a peat bog next to a beach.
Blog-off
Cameron: 30
Neil: 1
Monday, February 23, 2009
More exciting time-lapse video content
Yesterday I happened to be making my way through YouTube's vast collection of videos and happened to stumble on a few time-lapse videos of things like snow storms or clouds moving during a thunderstorm. As you might have already guessed, I was quite taken with the concept , and as I have the equipment and software necessary to make such a clip I thought I might give the same thing a try myself. Of course, I didn't wait for any particularly interesting weather, or even for a day with clear skies or good clouds so the result is less than superb, but if you have 2 minutes you are willing to part with you can get a sense of how much cloud movement was going on today in Halifax.
[Embedded Video]
On a related note, I also happened to find a pretty neat video created by a photographer named Noah Kalina (included below). It seems that Noah has been taking and posting photos of himself every day since 2000. In 2006 the first six years worth of photos were turned into a video clip. While the subsequent photos are available online, they have not yet been added to the clip. It seems that he plan is to update the video every few years and continue the project indefinitely.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 29
Neil: 1
[Embedded Video]
On a related note, I also happened to find a pretty neat video created by a photographer named Noah Kalina (included below). It seems that Noah has been taking and posting photos of himself every day since 2000. In 2006 the first six years worth of photos were turned into a video clip. While the subsequent photos are available online, they have not yet been added to the clip. It seems that he plan is to update the video every few years and continue the project indefinitely.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 29
Neil: 1
A Few Quick Notes 275
-Though we were lead to believe that we were in for a significant rainfall and storm late last night and this morning it didn't really materialize. Aside from a few hours of rain in the middle of the night (according to Environment Canada), we only had a small amount of precipitation during the day. Though we didn't get the promised storm, the day was pretty poor. The skies were overcast and the wind was up for most of the day, though on occasion the sun managed to break through for a few minutes at a time.
-A few weeks ago I mentioned that I had started using Google Reader to check the blogs that I regularly read. I am now just over a month in and am definitely quite impressed with the service. I definitely read a larger number of blogs than I did just a month ago, but I feel as though I spend less time doing it. I get the time saving by checking one location multiple times a day instead of checking a multiple of sites multiple times a day.
A feature that I particularly like, though it doesn't really have to do much with content is the Trends section of Google Reader. Not only can I ascertain how many posts I have read, but I can get a sense of at which time of day the most posts are made, when I read the most posts, and how many people subscribe to particular blogs. I am sure that I blow some of my time savings browsing through this feature each day.
-On a related topic, the blog-off seems to have boosted our readership, or at least made it more consistent. On the other hand, it may have nothing to do with the competitive element of the blog-off, but simply that we are posting more than we have in months. In many instances our posts also contain some form of audio-visual content, a perennial favourite with the childrens.
-Given my recent success with beans and legumes in the pressure cooker I decided to see if I could extend my streak tonight with a lentil and pork stew. Though I didn't really hear much from Rebecca and Neil, I know that I was quite pleased with the outcome. I was also pleased with the corn bread that I made to accompany the meal.
For some reason it seems that I had forgotten about corn bread for a few months until about two weeks ago. Since then I have made it on a number of occasions. Aside from the flavour, one of the things I like about it is that it is both quick to prepare and bake. Additionally, it seems to go well with these moderately spiced stew type things that I have been preparing.
-Neil and da missus is gettin' on da sauce now in a few minutes. Seems one a da b'ys from up to da school' got his missus in town and wants her to meet a few a da b'ys and get on da G.O. da same time. B'y, sounds half good to me, but if dem two comes back sauced der 'ill be werds. B'y, I don't want none a dat behaviour in dis apartment, we lives good and clean around here. Dat being said, I wouldn't half mind going on a tear wit da b'ys meself one a dese days, jayz, b'y, maybe I gets 'er done tomarrah.
Blog-off
Cameron: 28
Neil: 1
-A few weeks ago I mentioned that I had started using Google Reader to check the blogs that I regularly read. I am now just over a month in and am definitely quite impressed with the service. I definitely read a larger number of blogs than I did just a month ago, but I feel as though I spend less time doing it. I get the time saving by checking one location multiple times a day instead of checking a multiple of sites multiple times a day.
A feature that I particularly like, though it doesn't really have to do much with content is the Trends section of Google Reader. Not only can I ascertain how many posts I have read, but I can get a sense of at which time of day the most posts are made, when I read the most posts, and how many people subscribe to particular blogs. I am sure that I blow some of my time savings browsing through this feature each day.
-On a related topic, the blog-off seems to have boosted our readership, or at least made it more consistent. On the other hand, it may have nothing to do with the competitive element of the blog-off, but simply that we are posting more than we have in months. In many instances our posts also contain some form of audio-visual content, a perennial favourite with the childrens.
-Given my recent success with beans and legumes in the pressure cooker I decided to see if I could extend my streak tonight with a lentil and pork stew. Though I didn't really hear much from Rebecca and Neil, I know that I was quite pleased with the outcome. I was also pleased with the corn bread that I made to accompany the meal.
For some reason it seems that I had forgotten about corn bread for a few months until about two weeks ago. Since then I have made it on a number of occasions. Aside from the flavour, one of the things I like about it is that it is both quick to prepare and bake. Additionally, it seems to go well with these moderately spiced stew type things that I have been preparing.
-Neil and da missus is gettin' on da sauce now in a few minutes. Seems one a da b'ys from up to da school' got his missus in town and wants her to meet a few a da b'ys and get on da G.O. da same time. B'y, sounds half good to me, but if dem two comes back sauced der 'ill be werds. B'y, I don't want none a dat behaviour in dis apartment, we lives good and clean around here. Dat being said, I wouldn't half mind going on a tear wit da b'ys meself one a dese days, jayz, b'y, maybe I gets 'er done tomarrah.
Blog-off
Cameron: 28
Neil: 1
Sunday, February 22, 2009
The difference a few days can make
A few days ago I posted a few photos of progress that was being made by some of the plants that I have had for a while, as well as of the early development of a few other seeds that I planted recently. It seems that in the nine days since I posted those photos growth has continued at a relatively rapid rate, at least in most instances.
Though it isn't particularly apparent in this photo, the banana plant has actually been growing relatively rapidly. As each leaf grows from the centre and unfurls has already started the process. Though it may just be me, it seems that the rate of new leave growth is increasing, and that new leaves are at a more advanced stage of development when they are exposed by the previous leaf.
The aloe droplets are also somewhat visible in this photo. While they haven't been exhibiting an extraordinary rate of growth they do keep plugging along in a relatively consistent manner. I am particularly disappointed that I didn't start them in a much larger pot as I am not really looking forward to the prospect of trying to repot them from such an awkward position. I guess the good thing about their present rate of growth is that I shouldn't have to worry about repotting anytime soon.
I am continually shocked and impressed with this corn plant. As you should be able to see, the ear is getting much larger, and as of yesterday the stereotypical tassels are becoming visible at the top of the ear. I guess this downside of this development might be that the plant is signaling that the ear is nearing full development, which means it won't make for much of a meal.
The two new corn plants are continuing to grow quickly. Everyday growth is apparent. I hope that the increased daylight will help them to grow larger than the other corn plant, though the relatively small pot may limit their growth even if they have access to better sunlight.
While the thyme plant that I have continues to grow at a relatively rapid rate, my attempts grow additional plants in the same pot have proved fruitless. Since the last time I posted photos of this plant two such plants managed to die overnight, though until their death had appeared to be thriving. For some time I have been convinced that he problem with new plants failing has to do with the soil. Unlike the soil I used in many of the other pots, this soil doesn't seem to hold water and seems to be a bit more granular. As I have a little bit of space in the top of the pot I am thinking that I might be able to add some of the better soil to the pot, plant seeds in the new soil. My hope is that by the time the roots reach the old soil they will be well enough established to deal with the poor quality soil. On the other hand, as the one plant is doing so well it seems somewhat foolish to mess with success.
Since the bud on the top of the bay tree opened a few days ago a number of leaves have become visible and the plant has grown about an inch and a half. The new sprout/off-shoot at the bottom is also becoming a little more apparent, with at least two distinct leaves now visible. I now wonder if I have seed most of the new height this plant will put on for the season, or if as the summer progresses it will continue to grow a the rate. If this latter option is the case, it should be quite substantial by the end of the summer.
When shopping with Neil on Friday I purchased a new pot for this plant. While the pot won't be as large as I might have like, I think that new pot will have better drainage and allow for the plant to expand to some degree. Actually, I think the pot is basically the same as the one I have the banana in.
Though I don't spend as many hours a day looking at them, we do also have a number of similar plants on a rack in our living room. It seems that with each margarine container we finish I try to add a new set of seeds of one kind or another.
Within the past few days many of these plants have really come to life, some literally, and other figuratively (meaning that they have come out of their winter slump).
Some of the most noticeable growth has come from the scarlet runner beans that I planted a few days ago. In the few short days since they were planted some of them have grown several feet and have started to climb some strings that I attached to the nearby window. If all goes according to plan, a number of these plants should make it up these strings and around the rack on which they are growing.
Some dill that I planted in the white planter is also continuing to develop, though not at a rate that is particularly impressive. In many ways, the beets I planted in an old ice cream container are impressing me more, though I expect that their rate of growth will slow as they begin to take up more space in the pot.
As you can see, with little prompting on my part the scarlet runner beans are able to wrap themselves around things (plants, string, racks, etc.) and use the previously existing entity as a guide to grow higher. Hopefully that the plants are growing around each other won't be too much of a problem, as a number of them seem to be doing it.
Though in many ways these plants are completely unrelated, they do have one key feature in common, which is that the both were started in the small pot on the left. The zebra aloe, now in a larger pot, has grown a fair bit since we acquired it in the fall. Though I only relatively recently repotted it, I am starting to think that I could have tried putting in a much larger pot.
The chives, which are just a few days old, also seem to be doing well. Another pot of chives on the same rack is showing similarly positive growth trends (and as the plant is a few months older it means that the shoots are much bigger). I am starting to think that in a few days I might be able to harvest my first chives.
As some of you may recall, I posted a video of these watermelon plants a few days ago. Since then I have moved them a little and now placed them on the second to highest shelf of my plant rack. My idea, as foolhardy as it is, is that with the plants in this position I will be able to grow the plants so that the watermelons grow resting on the top of the rack. Once the watermelons fail to develop we will get to see how over ambitious a plan this is.
I really can't wait for thins to warm up a little so that I can start growing things on our balcony, which will allow me to expand my home farming operation rather dramatically. Hell, maybe by the end of the summer I might have actually produced something that I can eat, instead of a number of banzai version of plants that produce inedible fruit. Either way, I am sure that such activities will keep me relatively entertained for the better part of the summer.
Blog-off
Cameron: 27
Neil: 1
Though it isn't particularly apparent in this photo, the banana plant has actually been growing relatively rapidly. As each leaf grows from the centre and unfurls has already started the process. Though it may just be me, it seems that the rate of new leave growth is increasing, and that new leaves are at a more advanced stage of development when they are exposed by the previous leaf.
The aloe droplets are also somewhat visible in this photo. While they haven't been exhibiting an extraordinary rate of growth they do keep plugging along in a relatively consistent manner. I am particularly disappointed that I didn't start them in a much larger pot as I am not really looking forward to the prospect of trying to repot them from such an awkward position. I guess the good thing about their present rate of growth is that I shouldn't have to worry about repotting anytime soon.
I am continually shocked and impressed with this corn plant. As you should be able to see, the ear is getting much larger, and as of yesterday the stereotypical tassels are becoming visible at the top of the ear. I guess this downside of this development might be that the plant is signaling that the ear is nearing full development, which means it won't make for much of a meal.
The two new corn plants are continuing to grow quickly. Everyday growth is apparent. I hope that the increased daylight will help them to grow larger than the other corn plant, though the relatively small pot may limit their growth even if they have access to better sunlight.
While the thyme plant that I have continues to grow at a relatively rapid rate, my attempts grow additional plants in the same pot have proved fruitless. Since the last time I posted photos of this plant two such plants managed to die overnight, though until their death had appeared to be thriving. For some time I have been convinced that he problem with new plants failing has to do with the soil. Unlike the soil I used in many of the other pots, this soil doesn't seem to hold water and seems to be a bit more granular. As I have a little bit of space in the top of the pot I am thinking that I might be able to add some of the better soil to the pot, plant seeds in the new soil. My hope is that by the time the roots reach the old soil they will be well enough established to deal with the poor quality soil. On the other hand, as the one plant is doing so well it seems somewhat foolish to mess with success.
Since the bud on the top of the bay tree opened a few days ago a number of leaves have become visible and the plant has grown about an inch and a half. The new sprout/off-shoot at the bottom is also becoming a little more apparent, with at least two distinct leaves now visible. I now wonder if I have seed most of the new height this plant will put on for the season, or if as the summer progresses it will continue to grow a the rate. If this latter option is the case, it should be quite substantial by the end of the summer.
When shopping with Neil on Friday I purchased a new pot for this plant. While the pot won't be as large as I might have like, I think that new pot will have better drainage and allow for the plant to expand to some degree. Actually, I think the pot is basically the same as the one I have the banana in.
Though I don't spend as many hours a day looking at them, we do also have a number of similar plants on a rack in our living room. It seems that with each margarine container we finish I try to add a new set of seeds of one kind or another.
Within the past few days many of these plants have really come to life, some literally, and other figuratively (meaning that they have come out of their winter slump).
Some of the most noticeable growth has come from the scarlet runner beans that I planted a few days ago. In the few short days since they were planted some of them have grown several feet and have started to climb some strings that I attached to the nearby window. If all goes according to plan, a number of these plants should make it up these strings and around the rack on which they are growing.
Some dill that I planted in the white planter is also continuing to develop, though not at a rate that is particularly impressive. In many ways, the beets I planted in an old ice cream container are impressing me more, though I expect that their rate of growth will slow as they begin to take up more space in the pot.
As you can see, with little prompting on my part the scarlet runner beans are able to wrap themselves around things (plants, string, racks, etc.) and use the previously existing entity as a guide to grow higher. Hopefully that the plants are growing around each other won't be too much of a problem, as a number of them seem to be doing it.
Though in many ways these plants are completely unrelated, they do have one key feature in common, which is that the both were started in the small pot on the left. The zebra aloe, now in a larger pot, has grown a fair bit since we acquired it in the fall. Though I only relatively recently repotted it, I am starting to think that I could have tried putting in a much larger pot.
The chives, which are just a few days old, also seem to be doing well. Another pot of chives on the same rack is showing similarly positive growth trends (and as the plant is a few months older it means that the shoots are much bigger). I am starting to think that in a few days I might be able to harvest my first chives.
As some of you may recall, I posted a video of these watermelon plants a few days ago. Since then I have moved them a little and now placed them on the second to highest shelf of my plant rack. My idea, as foolhardy as it is, is that with the plants in this position I will be able to grow the plants so that the watermelons grow resting on the top of the rack. Once the watermelons fail to develop we will get to see how over ambitious a plan this is.
I really can't wait for thins to warm up a little so that I can start growing things on our balcony, which will allow me to expand my home farming operation rather dramatically. Hell, maybe by the end of the summer I might have actually produced something that I can eat, instead of a number of banzai version of plants that produce inedible fruit. Either way, I am sure that such activities will keep me relatively entertained for the better part of the summer.
Blog-off
Cameron: 27
Neil: 1
A Few Quick Notes 274
-We seem to be in the midst of another relatively passable day. Again, I haven't really had the pleasure of experiencing much of it directly, most of my experiences have been mediated through my bedroom window. Unfortunately, the forecast is suggesting that we are in for a fair amount of rain tonight and tomorrow. Fortunately I don't have any obligations that will force me to venture out in less than ideal weather.
-As I should have suspected, we managed to lose our final Ultimate game of the regular season by over 20 points. Unfortunately, I can't say that I helped the cause all that much as a number of my throws were blocked and I was even slower than usual.
That I am pretty slow is really starting to get to me. It seems that there are only a handful of individuals in this league that are slower than me, the rest of much faster. Given the size of the court, this speed differential makes a huge difference and makes much less valuable as a player.
Apparently there will be some kind of play-off structure, though as of yet no one on our team knows how it is to work.
-A few days ago I Neil and I had some black beans that I prepared in my pressure cooker. My plan for dinner tonight is to repeat my bean based success of last week, though with a few modifications to the recipe. I think that the most substantial change will be to use less liquid, as not all that much is needed in the pressure cooker. Also, I think that I may be more generous with a few of the spices.
-If I get my act together later this afternoon maybe I will be able to go for a walk, though the way things are going right now it seems that I will probably manage to just continue wasting my time until I need to start preparing dinner.
-Earlier today I spent a few minutes reading yesterday's Globe and Mail and came across a story about high-end dog services in Toronto and the impact that the recession is having on these businesses. I was moderately surprised that most of the business owners interviewed seemed to suggest that things were still going well and that they weren't really all that worried about the recession. Given the number of stories that I have seen about people abandoning their pets because of financial problem I found this story rather surprising. This story seems to suggest the opposite of the previously reported trend and suggests that people are unwilling to sacrifice the comfort of their pets, and if anything, willing to allow their own quality of life to drop so that their pet's can remain the same.
One comment in the story that I found particularly strange related to pet daycare. The owner of such a facility suggested that she wouldn't really be impacted by a recession because people really didn't have a choice, they would still need to send their pets to daycare. I found this shocking for a number of reasons, most notably because the concept of pet daycare is relatively recent, so people in Toronto would have had to survive without it only a handful of years ago. Furthermore, there are many places in Canada and the rest of the world that don't have access to pet daycare facilities, though this doesn't seem to impede pet ownership to any noticeable extent. I guess I found the idea of pet daycare being necessary laughable. I imagine that this business owner, as well as the other providers of high-end dog products, will be in for a big surprise if this recession gets worse or goes for any period of time. These business owners will find that such expenses are considered luxuries by most pet owners.
Blog-off
Cameron: 26
Neil: 1
-As I should have suspected, we managed to lose our final Ultimate game of the regular season by over 20 points. Unfortunately, I can't say that I helped the cause all that much as a number of my throws were blocked and I was even slower than usual.
That I am pretty slow is really starting to get to me. It seems that there are only a handful of individuals in this league that are slower than me, the rest of much faster. Given the size of the court, this speed differential makes a huge difference and makes much less valuable as a player.
Apparently there will be some kind of play-off structure, though as of yet no one on our team knows how it is to work.
-A few days ago I Neil and I had some black beans that I prepared in my pressure cooker. My plan for dinner tonight is to repeat my bean based success of last week, though with a few modifications to the recipe. I think that the most substantial change will be to use less liquid, as not all that much is needed in the pressure cooker. Also, I think that I may be more generous with a few of the spices.
-If I get my act together later this afternoon maybe I will be able to go for a walk, though the way things are going right now it seems that I will probably manage to just continue wasting my time until I need to start preparing dinner.
-Earlier today I spent a few minutes reading yesterday's Globe and Mail and came across a story about high-end dog services in Toronto and the impact that the recession is having on these businesses. I was moderately surprised that most of the business owners interviewed seemed to suggest that things were still going well and that they weren't really all that worried about the recession. Given the number of stories that I have seen about people abandoning their pets because of financial problem I found this story rather surprising. This story seems to suggest the opposite of the previously reported trend and suggests that people are unwilling to sacrifice the comfort of their pets, and if anything, willing to allow their own quality of life to drop so that their pet's can remain the same.
One comment in the story that I found particularly strange related to pet daycare. The owner of such a facility suggested that she wouldn't really be impacted by a recession because people really didn't have a choice, they would still need to send their pets to daycare. I found this shocking for a number of reasons, most notably because the concept of pet daycare is relatively recent, so people in Toronto would have had to survive without it only a handful of years ago. Furthermore, there are many places in Canada and the rest of the world that don't have access to pet daycare facilities, though this doesn't seem to impede pet ownership to any noticeable extent. I guess I found the idea of pet daycare being necessary laughable. I imagine that this business owner, as well as the other providers of high-end dog products, will be in for a big surprise if this recession gets worse or goes for any period of time. These business owners will find that such expenses are considered luxuries by most pet owners.
Blog-off
Cameron: 26
Neil: 1
Saturday, February 21, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 273
-Today seems to be a pretty nice day, though I can't say that I have actually gone outside to experience it. Fortunately, the skies seem to be clear and the temperature hovering around zero. Though it seems that the forecast is suggesting that we might get some snow tonight.
-I presume that if we do get snow it will start either just before Neil and I head out for our Ultimate game this evening, or at some point during our game so that we have to make the trip back in the snow.
As many of you likely guessed, we were trounced in last week's game. Though the team we will be playing tonight has a similar record to ours at least two of our more experienced players won't be there so we may be able to manage a rather convincing loss (though I hope that that isn't what happens). Apparently this will be the last game of the 'regular season,' suggesting that there may be some kind of play-off component. It seems a bit odd to me that we haven't yet been told anything about possible play-offs.
-Neil and I spent much of yesterday afternoon running errands. We must have visited about five or six stores and businesses. One of the important stops was at Phat's Barbershop where Neil went to get one of the "best lousy haircuts in Halifax." I am not quite sure why the guy calls his work lousy, I though the results were pretty good.
We also managed to make it to an Indian grocery store. We picked up three packs of pappadums, some spice, and samosas. Now that we know what they sell, I am pretty sure that we will make efforts to go back if we need beans or lentils (though they didn't appear to sell black beans).
-In the evening I had a few classmates over for some drinks and socializing. While the turnout was on the low side, I can't say that I was surprised. So far it seems that my Masters cohort doesn't do a very good job of socializing outside of class. (Though I should probably be a bit more forgiving in this instance as most people had no notice, and it is the beginning of mid-term break, so some people may have been out of town).
-I was really shocked to see that Neil actually contributed to the blog-off earlier this week. I thought that he was just going to do nothing. While I don't think that he will end up really contributing all that many more posts during the period of the competition, I think that that he contributed at least once makes the blog-off a success.
Blog-off
Cameron: 25
Neil: 1
-I presume that if we do get snow it will start either just before Neil and I head out for our Ultimate game this evening, or at some point during our game so that we have to make the trip back in the snow.
As many of you likely guessed, we were trounced in last week's game. Though the team we will be playing tonight has a similar record to ours at least two of our more experienced players won't be there so we may be able to manage a rather convincing loss (though I hope that that isn't what happens). Apparently this will be the last game of the 'regular season,' suggesting that there may be some kind of play-off component. It seems a bit odd to me that we haven't yet been told anything about possible play-offs.
-Neil and I spent much of yesterday afternoon running errands. We must have visited about five or six stores and businesses. One of the important stops was at Phat's Barbershop where Neil went to get one of the "best lousy haircuts in Halifax." I am not quite sure why the guy calls his work lousy, I though the results were pretty good.
We also managed to make it to an Indian grocery store. We picked up three packs of pappadums, some spice, and samosas. Now that we know what they sell, I am pretty sure that we will make efforts to go back if we need beans or lentils (though they didn't appear to sell black beans).
-In the evening I had a few classmates over for some drinks and socializing. While the turnout was on the low side, I can't say that I was surprised. So far it seems that my Masters cohort doesn't do a very good job of socializing outside of class. (Though I should probably be a bit more forgiving in this instance as most people had no notice, and it is the beginning of mid-term break, so some people may have been out of town).
-I was really shocked to see that Neil actually contributed to the blog-off earlier this week. I thought that he was just going to do nothing. While I don't think that he will end up really contributing all that many more posts during the period of the competition, I think that that he contributed at least once makes the blog-off a success.
Blog-off
Cameron: 25
Neil: 1
Thursday, February 19, 2009
I think we can call it a wrap
It seems that things have calmed down here weather-wise.
Fortunately Neil and I took advantage of the storm long enough to justify some beer, snacks, and a movie. So far this is making for a relatively relaxing evening.
Blog-off
Cameron: 24
Neil: 1
Storm blog-off
Cameron: 3
Neil: 1
Fortunately Neil and I took advantage of the storm long enough to justify some beer, snacks, and a movie. So far this is making for a relatively relaxing evening.
Blog-off
Cameron: 24
Neil: 1
Storm blog-off
Cameron: 3
Neil: 1
I think it might be safe to call it a storm
I think it is safe to say that the storm has arrived, though a few hours later than was originally predicted.
I managed to make it to class, through a three hour seminar, and part way through another seminar before the snow started to fall. By the time the second seminar took a break and I went out for a coffee it was snowing pretty heavily. Just walking across the street was a sufficient period of time to get oneself covered in a layer of snow.
The walk back from school was rather unpleasant at times as I was being pelted with small ice pellets. Fortunately, things seemed to have clammed down by the end of my walk.
Almost as soon as I made it back to the apartment I suggested to Neil that we head out on a beer run and maybe swing by the grocery store. Amazingly, by the time we made it back out, just a few minutes after I returned, it had really calmed down. We managed to make it to the local micro-brewery and grocery store with few problems.
In other exciting news, Neil has actually posted as part of the blog-off, something that really shocked me. I had kind of expected him to just give me the win (though I should have known better). Anyway, I hope he can step up to the plate and give me a good run for my money.
Blog-off
Cameron: 23
Neil: 5
Storm Blog-off
Cameron: 2
Neil:1
(The count in Neil's post was clearly a little off, so it has been corrected here. Also, as you will see, when it comes to the sub-competition of the storm blog-off we are competing on even terms).
I managed to make it to class, through a three hour seminar, and part way through another seminar before the snow started to fall. By the time the second seminar took a break and I went out for a coffee it was snowing pretty heavily. Just walking across the street was a sufficient period of time to get oneself covered in a layer of snow.
The walk back from school was rather unpleasant at times as I was being pelted with small ice pellets. Fortunately, things seemed to have clammed down by the end of my walk.
Almost as soon as I made it back to the apartment I suggested to Neil that we head out on a beer run and maybe swing by the grocery store. Amazingly, by the time we made it back out, just a few minutes after I returned, it had really calmed down. We managed to make it to the local micro-brewery and grocery store with few problems.
In other exciting news, Neil has actually posted as part of the blog-off, something that really shocked me. I had kind of expected him to just give me the win (though I should have known better). Anyway, I hope he can step up to the plate and give me a good run for my money.
Blog-off
Cameron: 23
Neil: 5
Storm Blog-off
Cameron: 2
Neil:1
(The count in Neil's post was clearly a little off, so it has been corrected here. Also, as you will see, when it comes to the sub-competition of the storm blog-off we are competing on even terms).
Live blog: Storm
I can confirm that it is indeed a real storm at the time Cameron is coming home. It has been a real storm for about 3 hours now, so the roads should be good and messy for his walk home. In other storm related news, my class actually was cancelled. With my spare 3 hours I'm catching up to Cameron a little bit in this here blog-off.
Storm
Cameron: 0
Neil: 1
What passes for a snow day in Halifax these days
As of sometime yesterday I became aware of a storm warning in the region. Relatively late last night I looked at some satellite and radar imagery and didn't really feel that there would be much of anything here by morning, which is when the storm was predicted to hit.
It turns out that I was right. It is now almost 8:30 and there is not a snowflake in the sky.
This is pretty disappointing as I really could have used a snow day. Amazingly, even without snow, all of the schools have been closed, as well as a number of other things.
The best part is that things will probably start to get a little nasty at just about the time I will be heading home from school.
As you can tell, it really isn't that bad right now.
Blog-off
Cameron: 22
Neil: 0
It turns out that I was right. It is now almost 8:30 and there is not a snowflake in the sky.
This is pretty disappointing as I really could have used a snow day. Amazingly, even without snow, all of the schools have been closed, as well as a number of other things.
The best part is that things will probably start to get a little nasty at just about the time I will be heading home from school.
As you can tell, it really isn't that bad right now.
Blog-off
Cameron: 22
Neil: 0
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
The only thing better than watching corn grow is a dancing watermelon plant
In an attempt to be a little more original, I decided to try to film my watermelon plants last night, rathe than the corn. As you can see, these plants were a little more active than the corn. I have absolutely no idea why they keep going back and forth, though I presume that it has something to do with light.
Also, I should mention that this clip has a few effects that I did not mean for it to have, but don't have the time to change at the moment. Hopefully the damaged film effect won't be too bothersome.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 21
Neil: 0
Also, I should mention that this clip has a few effects that I did not mean for it to have, but don't have the time to change at the moment. Hopefully the damaged film effect won't be too bothersome.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 21
Neil: 0
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
More more watching corn grow
It seems that I am not particularly imaginative these days when it comes to blog posts. A few days ago I kept posting tables with population statistics, and now it seems to be time-lapse videos of corn growing.
Anyway, original or not, here is another short time-lapse clip of my corn. Again, while not particularly dramatic, it is possible to observe a little movement and growth through the duration of the clip. Actually, one of the neat things about this one is that you can now see the second plant, though its growth is much slower than the original plant.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 20
Neil: 0
Anyway, original or not, here is another short time-lapse clip of my corn. Again, while not particularly dramatic, it is possible to observe a little movement and growth through the duration of the clip. Actually, one of the neat things about this one is that you can now see the second plant, though its growth is much slower than the original plant.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 20
Neil: 0
Monday, February 16, 2009
More watching corn grow
After yesterday's relatively underwhelming attempt to capture the speed at which my corn is growing I decided to try again overnight, allowing me to observe the plant for a longer period of time, and thus observe more change.
As you can see, this time around the change is definitely a little more visible, even if the most noticeable part is the corn going from side to side, rather growing in the more traditional upwards fashion.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 19
Neil: 0
As you can see, this time around the change is definitely a little more visible, even if the most noticeable part is the corn going from side to side, rather growing in the more traditional upwards fashion.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 19
Neil: 0
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Pineapple Juice
A few days ago Neil and I remembered that canned pineapple juice used to exist, and were wondering if it still did exist. When we discussed the topic we both wondered whether it tasted like we remembered it tasted, or whether time had given it a more favourable place in our memories than it deserved.
Shortly after our conversation Neil happened to be at the store and find that canned pineapple juice was on sale, so he picked up a can.
Yesterday we tapped into the can, as you can see below, and were pleasantly surprised with what we found. Both of us think that it may actually be better than we remembered. We ended up killing off the entire can by the end of the night.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 18
Neil: 0
Shortly after our conversation Neil happened to be at the store and find that canned pineapple juice was on sale, so he picked up a can.
Yesterday we tapped into the can, as you can see below, and were pleasantly surprised with what we found. Both of us think that it may actually be better than we remembered. We ended up killing off the entire can by the end of the night.
[Embedded Video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 18
Neil: 0
Watching corn grow
Given that the corn I planted a few days ago recently sprouted, I thought it might be kind of neat to use my recently acquired time-lapse video software to try to capture the new plant's impressive rate of growth. Obviously, this should be qualified somewhat, I consider it impressive given the context of the plants in my window. Also, that I can see a change over the space of a few hours makes it seem pretty impressive.
If you simply watch the following video you probably won't really notice much happening, so I recommend that you go from end to end to see the difference. While the difference isn't extreme it is noticeable. I would have liked to document more of the growth but I wasn't able to sacrifice my computer for the entire day, so I ended up only capturing about two hours of growth. Maybe I will try again tomorrow and see if I can get something a little more dramatic.
[Embedded video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 17
Neil:0
If you simply watch the following video you probably won't really notice much happening, so I recommend that you go from end to end to see the difference. While the difference isn't extreme it is noticeable. I would have liked to document more of the growth but I wasn't able to sacrifice my computer for the entire day, so I ended up only capturing about two hours of growth. Maybe I will try again tomorrow and see if I can get something a little more dramatic.
[Embedded video]
Blog-off
Cameron: 17
Neil:0
The end of the one pagers
For one of my courses this term I have to prepare short papers for each of the first six weeks. Normally we have two topics per week and are supposed to write a page on each. While this doesn't seem like much, and it really isn't, it does take a few hours a week of reading to get through 6-7 assigned readings, which need to take place before I can begin with the writing. Actually, the writing is the fastest part of the process.
A trend that I have noticed as we have progressed through the term is that our papers' margins seem to be getting narrower and narrower. For the paper that I finished tonight the margins are almost non-existent. The result is that I have been able to meet the one page restriction and while being able to include more content. My most recent, and final, paper has really pushed this to the extreme. By manipulating the margin sizes I have managed to fit over 800 words on a single page, a personal best (without resorting to font size changes, or modifications of character spacing).
Though I need to do a little editing before I submit this final paper I already feel as though a weight has been lifted from my chest. The real consequence, instead of meaning a reduction in work, is that I can now devote my energies to working on my term papers and thesis, both of which are likely to be more onerous.
Blog-off
Cameron: 16
Neil: 0
A trend that I have noticed as we have progressed through the term is that our papers' margins seem to be getting narrower and narrower. For the paper that I finished tonight the margins are almost non-existent. The result is that I have been able to meet the one page restriction and while being able to include more content. My most recent, and final, paper has really pushed this to the extreme. By manipulating the margin sizes I have managed to fit over 800 words on a single page, a personal best (without resorting to font size changes, or modifications of character spacing).
Though I need to do a little editing before I submit this final paper I already feel as though a weight has been lifted from my chest. The real consequence, instead of meaning a reduction in work, is that I can now devote my energies to working on my term papers and thesis, both of which are likely to be more onerous.
Blog-off
Cameron: 16
Neil: 0
Friday, February 13, 2009
My life must be pretty dull if this is what I find exciting
The plants in my bedroom window have been growing pretty quickly these past few days. Though I don't know if this is really the case, but I am attributing this newfound energy to the additional sunlight that the plants are getting now what we are heading into spring.
As you can see, I have really tried to maximize the number of plants that I have in my window. The larger range of plants allows me to notice some change just about every day by. The only thing disappointing about the set-up is that my prime space is limited, and I presently seem to be just about at capacity.
The banana plant continues to pop out new leaves every few day. What I find most impressive, aside from its continued growth through the winter, is that it is now several inches taller than it was when I purchased it. I was assuming that the small pot would stunt its growth (which is still possible). Though unlikely, it would be really cool if I eventually managed to get a few bananas on this plant. My present plan is to re-pot this when we are closer to summer and eventually let it stay outside on our porch for most of the summer.
Though I have heard these referred to as 'Aloe Droplets' I don't know how common this name is, or what they are commonly known as. Anyway, though they are growing slowly, the number of them that have continued to grow shocks me. I think that I originally only expected one or two of the eight original droplets to take off. I now wish that I had filled this pot a little fuller, though it seems not to be preventing growth.
Though I know it is foolish, I can't seem to give up on the idea of indoor corn. So almost as soon as I saw that my other corn plant was developing a ear of corn I planted a few more seeds. As of this morning I have been able to see the first sprout. I am really looking forward to watching this over the next few days as these plants can grow several centimeters a day.
Though only one of my original thyme seeds sprouted it seems to be doing quite well. A few days ago I planted a few more seeds, though only two seem to be doing much of anything. I think that the low quality soil may have something to do with this low success rate. I guess if these two new plants are as successful as the first plants I should have much more fresh thyme than I need (though that is already the case).
I am particularly surprised with the recent leaf development on my bay laurel. In just a few days the bud on the top has started to open and make visible about 4 new leaves. Also, there seems to be a new shoot at the bottom of the plant. These developments both surprise me as I didn't really expect to see anything happen with this plant until much later in the year. If this current rate of growth continues I may actually have a plant of reasonable size by the end of the summer.
Blog-off
Cameron: 15
Neil: 0
As you can see, I have really tried to maximize the number of plants that I have in my window. The larger range of plants allows me to notice some change just about every day by. The only thing disappointing about the set-up is that my prime space is limited, and I presently seem to be just about at capacity.
The banana plant continues to pop out new leaves every few day. What I find most impressive, aside from its continued growth through the winter, is that it is now several inches taller than it was when I purchased it. I was assuming that the small pot would stunt its growth (which is still possible). Though unlikely, it would be really cool if I eventually managed to get a few bananas on this plant. My present plan is to re-pot this when we are closer to summer and eventually let it stay outside on our porch for most of the summer.
Though I have heard these referred to as 'Aloe Droplets' I don't know how common this name is, or what they are commonly known as. Anyway, though they are growing slowly, the number of them that have continued to grow shocks me. I think that I originally only expected one or two of the eight original droplets to take off. I now wish that I had filled this pot a little fuller, though it seems not to be preventing growth.
Though I know it is foolish, I can't seem to give up on the idea of indoor corn. So almost as soon as I saw that my other corn plant was developing a ear of corn I planted a few more seeds. As of this morning I have been able to see the first sprout. I am really looking forward to watching this over the next few days as these plants can grow several centimeters a day.
Though only one of my original thyme seeds sprouted it seems to be doing quite well. A few days ago I planted a few more seeds, though only two seem to be doing much of anything. I think that the low quality soil may have something to do with this low success rate. I guess if these two new plants are as successful as the first plants I should have much more fresh thyme than I need (though that is already the case).
I am particularly surprised with the recent leaf development on my bay laurel. In just a few days the bud on the top has started to open and make visible about 4 new leaves. Also, there seems to be a new shoot at the bottom of the plant. These developments both surprise me as I didn't really expect to see anything happen with this plant until much later in the year. If this current rate of growth continues I may actually have a plant of reasonable size by the end of the summer.
Blog-off
Cameron: 15
Neil: 0
Reallocation of powers: Aquaculture style
A few days ago I was listening to CBC Radio One and happened to hear a story about a recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling (there is this one too). It seems that the Court found that fish farms, or aquaculture facilities, should be fall under federal jurisdiction, though for more than 20 years this area had been administered by the provinces. The federal government has been given a year to take over.
As far as I can tell this hasn't received all that much attention, though I don't now why. Firstly, this seems to be one of the biggest division of powers cases in the past few years (at least as far as I can remember). Secondly, neither the provinces nor the federal government were looking for this change, it came about because of third party litigation. Thirdly, this likely means a big shake-up in the various federal and provincial ministries. All of a sudden a number of provinces have capacity in a an area that is no longer in their jurisdiction, and the federal government has to scramble to put in place this capacity.
On top of all of this, there is the issue that started the controversy in the first place, which is the charge that aquaculture poses environmental threats to native fish populations, among other problems. Though not a juicy story in the traditional sense, it might be worth seeing how such a change impacts the aquaculture industry (as there will presumably be newly implemented national standards) and the relationship of provincial governments with the aquaculture sector.
Blog-off
Cameron: 14
Neil: 0
As far as I can tell this hasn't received all that much attention, though I don't now why. Firstly, this seems to be one of the biggest division of powers cases in the past few years (at least as far as I can remember). Secondly, neither the provinces nor the federal government were looking for this change, it came about because of third party litigation. Thirdly, this likely means a big shake-up in the various federal and provincial ministries. All of a sudden a number of provinces have capacity in a an area that is no longer in their jurisdiction, and the federal government has to scramble to put in place this capacity.
On top of all of this, there is the issue that started the controversy in the first place, which is the charge that aquaculture poses environmental threats to native fish populations, among other problems. Though not a juicy story in the traditional sense, it might be worth seeing how such a change impacts the aquaculture industry (as there will presumably be newly implemented national standards) and the relationship of provincial governments with the aquaculture sector.
Blog-off
Cameron: 14
Neil: 0
Thursday, February 12, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 272
-Temperatures hovered around zero for much of the day today. The result was that many of the sidewalks and roads were covered in a rather thin coating of ice, making walking and driving rather treacherous. Unfortunately, we also had a little rain thrown into the mix, just to make things a little less pleasant.
-Though things were a little slippery, as I mentioned previously, I was quite surprised to learn that Halifax schools were closed because of weather today. It seems that it really doesn't take much to close the schools here. I think that they must have closed them about 4 times already this years. I really have no idea how all of the parents deal with this, especially when such closures are completely unexpected, as was the case today.
-At the moment I am in the midst of working on an essay for next week. So far I have over 5000 words worth of notes, yet I can only submit an essay of 2500 words. It seems likely I might be in a position to overshoot my word count target by a fair margin. I guess I probably will find a way to reign things in so that I won't go over the limit by too much.
-The essay is one of the four things that I have to deal with for next week. I also have a very short paper due on Monday, a brief presentation on Tuesday, and an essay proposal for Thursday (which is the same day that the other essay is due). I guess it should be a fun weekend.
Blog-off
Cameron: 13
Neil: 0
-Though things were a little slippery, as I mentioned previously, I was quite surprised to learn that Halifax schools were closed because of weather today. It seems that it really doesn't take much to close the schools here. I think that they must have closed them about 4 times already this years. I really have no idea how all of the parents deal with this, especially when such closures are completely unexpected, as was the case today.
-At the moment I am in the midst of working on an essay for next week. So far I have over 5000 words worth of notes, yet I can only submit an essay of 2500 words. It seems likely I might be in a position to overshoot my word count target by a fair margin. I guess I probably will find a way to reign things in so that I won't go over the limit by too much.
-The essay is one of the four things that I have to deal with for next week. I also have a very short paper due on Monday, a brief presentation on Tuesday, and an essay proposal for Thursday (which is the same day that the other essay is due). I guess it should be a fun weekend.
Blog-off
Cameron: 13
Neil: 0
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Not so hot, apparently
A regular feature of Dalhousie's student newspaper, The Gazette, is something called Hot or Not. Something is labelled as 'hot' and a related idea or thing is labelled 'not' (meaning not hot).
Shortly after starting classes in the fall I learned that one of my fellow grad students was responsible for writing these. So while I don't follow them on a regular basis, whenever I do pick up a copy of The Gazette I make sure to take a look at the Hot or Nots.
While Neil, Rebecca, and I were having dinner on Friday night we noticed that there was a comment about shorts wearing in the Hot or Nots, a comment I take to be directed at me, or at least having originated because of my tendency to wear shorts in the winter. While I don't think I should consider this an honour, it is rather funny recognized in such a context.
Blog-off
Cameron: 12
Neil: 0
Shortly after starting classes in the fall I learned that one of my fellow grad students was responsible for writing these. So while I don't follow them on a regular basis, whenever I do pick up a copy of The Gazette I make sure to take a look at the Hot or Nots.
While Neil, Rebecca, and I were having dinner on Friday night we noticed that there was a comment about shorts wearing in the Hot or Nots, a comment I take to be directed at me, or at least having originated because of my tendency to wear shorts in the winter. While I don't think I should consider this an honour, it is rather funny recognized in such a context.
Blog-off
Cameron: 12
Neil: 0
Monday, February 09, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 271
-After yesterday's above zero temperatures, today's below zero temperatures have had the somewhat unwelcome effect of turning large sections of the city into ice sheets. Unfortunately, it seems that a number of the city's sidewalks seem to be presently located below these ice sheets. Aside from this, and occasional blasts of cold wind, things were pretty nice today.
-On Saturday I finally prepared some beans/legumes in my new pressure cooker. The preparation of such dishes was why I was given the pressure cooker in the first place.
For my first attempt I decided to go with a lentil soup recipe from the cookbook that came with the device. Not only was the soup relatively straightforward, basically just vegetables and lentils, it turned out quite nicely. Even Neil and Rebecca seemed to think that it wouldn't be too bad if we had it again. Hopefully I will be able to try a few more such dishes in the coming days and weeks.
-For those of you who are into comedy podcasts, episode 46 of Mike Schmidt's The 40 Year Old Boy is great. As far as I am concerned, the highlight of the show is the extended story about Mike going to Lake Tahoe with a friend to run a sports gambling system that the friend devised. As one might expect of 20 year-olds try to pull something like this off, it quickly went south and Mike and his friend were soon forced to fend for themselves in a relatively unknown city.
-On Saturday night our Ultimate team was once again smoked, though we did manage to hold things together for the better part of the first half. As usual, we really let things get out of hand as the game wore on.
-A few days ago I noticed that one of the recipes on the same page as a biscuit recipe that I frequent use was a recipe for "Cowboy Coffee Cake." For some reason I found this name rather tempting and have been trying to come up with a reason/time to make a batch.
After finishing dinner this evening I felt that the time had come and that I would try to whip up a batch of Cowboy Coffee Cake. Now that it is out of the oven I can't quite understand why they tried to associate with cowboys, it looks like pretty standard coffee cake as far as I can tell. I guess I should try a piece while it is still warm.
-This morning I removed the 'stache (olibama) that I acquired on Friday. I was pretty sure that its presence wouldn't endear me to the class to whom I had to give a lecture this morning.
Blog-off
Cameron: 11
Neil: 0
-On Saturday I finally prepared some beans/legumes in my new pressure cooker. The preparation of such dishes was why I was given the pressure cooker in the first place.
For my first attempt I decided to go with a lentil soup recipe from the cookbook that came with the device. Not only was the soup relatively straightforward, basically just vegetables and lentils, it turned out quite nicely. Even Neil and Rebecca seemed to think that it wouldn't be too bad if we had it again. Hopefully I will be able to try a few more such dishes in the coming days and weeks.
-For those of you who are into comedy podcasts, episode 46 of Mike Schmidt's The 40 Year Old Boy is great. As far as I am concerned, the highlight of the show is the extended story about Mike going to Lake Tahoe with a friend to run a sports gambling system that the friend devised. As one might expect of 20 year-olds try to pull something like this off, it quickly went south and Mike and his friend were soon forced to fend for themselves in a relatively unknown city.
-On Saturday night our Ultimate team was once again smoked, though we did manage to hold things together for the better part of the first half. As usual, we really let things get out of hand as the game wore on.
-A few days ago I noticed that one of the recipes on the same page as a biscuit recipe that I frequent use was a recipe for "Cowboy Coffee Cake." For some reason I found this name rather tempting and have been trying to come up with a reason/time to make a batch.
After finishing dinner this evening I felt that the time had come and that I would try to whip up a batch of Cowboy Coffee Cake. Now that it is out of the oven I can't quite understand why they tried to associate with cowboys, it looks like pretty standard coffee cake as far as I can tell. I guess I should try a piece while it is still warm.
-This morning I removed the 'stache (olibama) that I acquired on Friday. I was pretty sure that its presence wouldn't endear me to the class to whom I had to give a lecture this morning.
Blog-off
Cameron: 11
Neil: 0
Friday night fun
On Friday evening at about 5:40 I decided that it was finally time for my beard to go. I found the beard trimmer, banged it a few times to get the batteries to make contact, and went to work on the beard removal process. About half-way through the process the power went out. Fortunately it was a battery powered trimmer and was thus able to continue the process with the assistance of a flashlight. The downside was that I wasn't really able to tidy things up at all, so I had to call it quits at a rather rough stage in the beard removal process. One result of the early finish was that I was left with a 'stache, which might otherwise have been removed.
Once the beard removal was finished and a few flashlights and candles had been gathered Neil and I settled into a nice debate about how one should go about taping the fridge shut (to prevent the release of cold air) in such a circumstance. After our rather exhaustive debate we moved over to the card table to play some candlelight cribbage. All this time we could see that even across the street a number of buildings did have power.
After not too long all three of us thought that it might be best if we tried to make our way to a restaurant for dinner, as it wasn't likely that we would be able to cook all that much on the tea lights. As we made our way out discovered that the outage was quite spotty. In some instances certain side of a street would have power, or long building on a block might have power. The downside of this inconsistency was that we had no idea whether the restaurant we hoped to patronize would be open until we reached its front door. As it turned out, the restaurant was closed, so we made our way across town to a restaurant we were pretty sure would be open.
We eventually made it to a restaurant on Quinpool and settled in for a very pleasant dinner. Actually, I think the dinner had the positive benefit of teaching me a lesson about Halifax fish and chips, which is that it does not tend to agree with my system. As we were hanging around after the meal killing time I managed to drop my cup of coffee on the table. Fortunately the napkin I had on my lap managed to soak up most of the liquid. This incident reminded me how important proper napkin placement is.
After a quick stop at a great video rental store near the restaurant we made our way back to our part of town. As we were walking down Spring Garden it became clear that power had still not been fully restored. It was suggested that we might try to a movie to kill some time (the movie theatre was on the side of the street with power). Unfortunately, once we made it to the ticketing area it became apparent that we weren't the only ones with this idea. Even at about 9:30 the place was completely packed and there was no way we would have made it into a movie on time.
Once back at the apartment Neil and I re-lit the candles and played some more cribbage while Rebecca read by candlelight. Eventually, at about 10:45, the power came back on and we were able to get on with our evening as planned, though by this time I really didn't have as much time to devote to reading and school work as I had planned on.
Throughout much of the power outage we were somewhat worried about the status of a can of pop that Rebecca had placed in the freezer just minutes before the outage. As we didn't know how long we would be without power we didn't want to open the freezer to take the can out. Fortunately, even though it had been in the freezer for four hours, the can did not rupture, which would have been quite a mess.
Blog-off
Cameron: 10
Neil: 0
Once the beard removal was finished and a few flashlights and candles had been gathered Neil and I settled into a nice debate about how one should go about taping the fridge shut (to prevent the release of cold air) in such a circumstance. After our rather exhaustive debate we moved over to the card table to play some candlelight cribbage. All this time we could see that even across the street a number of buildings did have power.
After not too long all three of us thought that it might be best if we tried to make our way to a restaurant for dinner, as it wasn't likely that we would be able to cook all that much on the tea lights. As we made our way out discovered that the outage was quite spotty. In some instances certain side of a street would have power, or long building on a block might have power. The downside of this inconsistency was that we had no idea whether the restaurant we hoped to patronize would be open until we reached its front door. As it turned out, the restaurant was closed, so we made our way across town to a restaurant we were pretty sure would be open.
We eventually made it to a restaurant on Quinpool and settled in for a very pleasant dinner. Actually, I think the dinner had the positive benefit of teaching me a lesson about Halifax fish and chips, which is that it does not tend to agree with my system. As we were hanging around after the meal killing time I managed to drop my cup of coffee on the table. Fortunately the napkin I had on my lap managed to soak up most of the liquid. This incident reminded me how important proper napkin placement is.
After a quick stop at a great video rental store near the restaurant we made our way back to our part of town. As we were walking down Spring Garden it became clear that power had still not been fully restored. It was suggested that we might try to a movie to kill some time (the movie theatre was on the side of the street with power). Unfortunately, once we made it to the ticketing area it became apparent that we weren't the only ones with this idea. Even at about 9:30 the place was completely packed and there was no way we would have made it into a movie on time.
Once back at the apartment Neil and I re-lit the candles and played some more cribbage while Rebecca read by candlelight. Eventually, at about 10:45, the power came back on and we were able to get on with our evening as planned, though by this time I really didn't have as much time to devote to reading and school work as I had planned on.
Throughout much of the power outage we were somewhat worried about the status of a can of pop that Rebecca had placed in the freezer just minutes before the outage. As we didn't know how long we would be without power we didn't want to open the freezer to take the can out. Fortunately, even though it had been in the freezer for four hours, the can did not rupture, which would have been quite a mess.
Blog-off
Cameron: 10
Neil: 0
Sunday, February 08, 2009
My one-track mind
It seems that since yesterday I haven't been able to get past the idea of comparisons of sizes of population units with one another. My new kick seems to be to compare census metropolitan areas (CMAs) with larger units.
Due to popular demand I have now added a few of Canada's smaller, though still sizable, municipalities and CMAs. Presumably if I come up with more comparisons in the coming days you will be able to find them here soon after I have completed compiling the tables.
Errata: Manitoba, with a population of 1 210 547, should appear between Montreal (V) and Ottawa/Gatineau (CMA).
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 9
Neil: 0
Due to popular demand I have now added a few of Canada's smaller, though still sizable, municipalities and CMAs. Presumably if I come up with more comparisons in the coming days you will be able to find them here soon after I have completed compiling the tables.
Errata: Manitoba, with a population of 1 210 547, should appear between Montreal (V) and Ottawa/Gatineau (CMA).
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 9
Neil: 0
Saturday, February 07, 2009
More population comparisons
A few days ago I posted a table that listed the provinces, metropolitan areas, and municipalities ordered by population. As you might have noticed, this first table is quite similar to the one that was posted a few days ago, the main differences are a change in terminology and a correction in one of the Winnipeg listings.
Errata: The superscript '3' by Hamilton should actually be a superscript '2.'
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
This second table is what seems to me to be the obvious continuation of the first, a representation of size of cities relative to their metropolitan areas. As you can see, Canada's largest cities comprise less than half of their respective metropolitan areas. It seems that it might be worth noting that Calgary, a city that has been experiencing a population boom in recent years, stands apart from some of Canada's older and more established cities in terms of its development patterns. Though it isn't on the table, and it isn't as large, Winnipeg is another city that comprises the vast majority of the metropolitan area.
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 8
Neil: 0
Errata: The superscript '3' by Hamilton should actually be a superscript '2.'
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
This second table is what seems to me to be the obvious continuation of the first, a representation of size of cities relative to their metropolitan areas. As you can see, Canada's largest cities comprise less than half of their respective metropolitan areas. It seems that it might be worth noting that Calgary, a city that has been experiencing a population boom in recent years, stands apart from some of Canada's older and more established cities in terms of its development patterns. Though it isn't on the table, and it isn't as large, Winnipeg is another city that comprises the vast majority of the metropolitan area.
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 8
Neil: 0
Friday, February 06, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 270
-We had another pretty nice Winter's day today. It seems that it was at least a few degrees below zero all day with almost no wind or precipitation to make this unpleasant.
-A few days ago I decided that I would bake a few loaves of bread to day. As usual this was a pretty painless process.
As I have this new time-lapse video software I thought I might try to capture the changes that occur while a loaf of bread is baking. Without too much effort I was able to position my computer in front of the oven and capture the event. Once I reviewed the footage I noticed that the oven window was so dirty that it really obscured the view of the bread. So while I ended up getting pretty poor footage, as you can see below, I did end up cleaning the oven window, which I wouldn't have thought about doing otherwise.
[Embedded video]
-While the bread was rising and baking I took care of a few plant related issues. I removed some soil from some papyrus I am trying to grow and also planted a few seeds. Also, I finally got around to repotting a succulent that had outgrown its pot.
Most of the seeds I planted were scarlet runner beans, with the idea that they will be able to climb the rack on which they are growing. I also planted a few water melon seeds (which might be a bit of a stretch), some corn, and chives. While I realize that I am being somewhat over-ambitious for apartment farming, I do like that I am at least trying a few of these things, even if the plants don't end up producing edible fruit.
On a related note, the dill, thyme, and chives I planted a few days ago seem to have started to sprout. This this point they are at about the same point they were when they died in the fall, so I can't yet tell if these will be successful, or if they too will die for no apparent reason in a few days.
Blog-off
Cameron: 7
Neil:0
-A few days ago I decided that I would bake a few loaves of bread to day. As usual this was a pretty painless process.
As I have this new time-lapse video software I thought I might try to capture the changes that occur while a loaf of bread is baking. Without too much effort I was able to position my computer in front of the oven and capture the event. Once I reviewed the footage I noticed that the oven window was so dirty that it really obscured the view of the bread. So while I ended up getting pretty poor footage, as you can see below, I did end up cleaning the oven window, which I wouldn't have thought about doing otherwise.
[Embedded video]
-While the bread was rising and baking I took care of a few plant related issues. I removed some soil from some papyrus I am trying to grow and also planted a few seeds. Also, I finally got around to repotting a succulent that had outgrown its pot.
Most of the seeds I planted were scarlet runner beans, with the idea that they will be able to climb the rack on which they are growing. I also planted a few water melon seeds (which might be a bit of a stretch), some corn, and chives. While I realize that I am being somewhat over-ambitious for apartment farming, I do like that I am at least trying a few of these things, even if the plants don't end up producing edible fruit.
On a related note, the dill, thyme, and chives I planted a few days ago seem to have started to sprout. This this point they are at about the same point they were when they died in the fall, so I can't yet tell if these will be successful, or if they too will die for no apparent reason in a few days.
Blog-off
Cameron: 7
Neil:0
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 269
-Today was a pretty standard overcast Winter's day. If I recall correctly, there may have been flurries at various points during the day, but nothing really all that memorable in terms of precipitation (I may write about it on the hinternet, but I certainly wouldn't write home about it).
-Recently I have been noticing that I really haven't been following Nova Scotia affairs all that closely since my move here in the Fall. I attribute most of this to the fact that I don't listen to the local morning news program on CBC (because I don't wake up early enough) and because I don't listen to similar content in the evening, as would be my habit in St. John's. I guess I could also try to do things like read web-based news sources, or the local free daily, but I guess the over-riding point is that I do none of these things, resulting in my ignorance of local affairs.
I mention this not only because such a trend bothers me, but also because tonight, during one of my rare CBC listening experiences, a rumor of a provincial election was discussed briefly. It would be my hope that if an election was called this would force me to finally start following some of the local issues and politics. That being said, I am not really sure how likely an election is as just today I was told by people more familiar with the local political scene that things seem, at least for the time being, relatively stable. On the other hand, it has been a few years since the last election, so maybe we could see one in the near future (obviously I am not in a position to really have any insight on the matter).
-Due to scheduling conflicts it looks as though Neil and I won't manage to get our weekly squash game in this week. Hopefully we will be able to get back on track with the program next week.
-During a brief break from my studies last night I decided to see if I could find a free program that allowed me to take time-lapse videos with my computer's built in camera. After only a few minutes of searching on the Apple site I found a program called Iris that included this option among a variety of camera related features. As you can see below, I have already tried to use the program, though to not particularly great effect. Anyway, though I may not be a proficient user, I am pretty impressed with the programs various features, and the ease with which they can be used.
[Embedded video]
The other feature, aside from the time-lapse feature, that I might try to look into is the webcam feature, though I can't quite imagine why this would be necessary. Though I guess on never knows when it might be nice to be able to have a webcam option available (one might want to broadcast a party they were having so that they could also have virtual guests).
It also seems that they offer a number of ways to modify your standard photo, as seen below. Not sure how necessary these options are, but I guess it can't hurt to have them available to me in case I ever need to be able to generate a distorted black and white image of something.
-Some of the dill, chives, and thyme seeds that I planted a few days ago seem to have started to sprout. In the past I have managed to have good rates of sprouting, but have then been less successful at the next stages of development. Hopefully I will have a little more luck this time around, though I don't know why that would be the case as I haven't really changed all that much with regards to my process or conditions.
Blog-off
Cameron: 6
Neil: 0
-Recently I have been noticing that I really haven't been following Nova Scotia affairs all that closely since my move here in the Fall. I attribute most of this to the fact that I don't listen to the local morning news program on CBC (because I don't wake up early enough) and because I don't listen to similar content in the evening, as would be my habit in St. John's. I guess I could also try to do things like read web-based news sources, or the local free daily, but I guess the over-riding point is that I do none of these things, resulting in my ignorance of local affairs.
I mention this not only because such a trend bothers me, but also because tonight, during one of my rare CBC listening experiences, a rumor of a provincial election was discussed briefly. It would be my hope that if an election was called this would force me to finally start following some of the local issues and politics. That being said, I am not really sure how likely an election is as just today I was told by people more familiar with the local political scene that things seem, at least for the time being, relatively stable. On the other hand, it has been a few years since the last election, so maybe we could see one in the near future (obviously I am not in a position to really have any insight on the matter).
-Due to scheduling conflicts it looks as though Neil and I won't manage to get our weekly squash game in this week. Hopefully we will be able to get back on track with the program next week.
-During a brief break from my studies last night I decided to see if I could find a free program that allowed me to take time-lapse videos with my computer's built in camera. After only a few minutes of searching on the Apple site I found a program called Iris that included this option among a variety of camera related features. As you can see below, I have already tried to use the program, though to not particularly great effect. Anyway, though I may not be a proficient user, I am pretty impressed with the programs various features, and the ease with which they can be used.
[Embedded video]
The other feature, aside from the time-lapse feature, that I might try to look into is the webcam feature, though I can't quite imagine why this would be necessary. Though I guess on never knows when it might be nice to be able to have a webcam option available (one might want to broadcast a party they were having so that they could also have virtual guests).
It also seems that they offer a number of ways to modify your standard photo, as seen below. Not sure how necessary these options are, but I guess it can't hurt to have them available to me in case I ever need to be able to generate a distorted black and white image of something.
-Some of the dill, chives, and thyme seeds that I planted a few days ago seem to have started to sprout. In the past I have managed to have good rates of sprouting, but have then been less successful at the next stages of development. Hopefully I will have a little more luck this time around, though I don't know why that would be the case as I haven't really changed all that much with regards to my process or conditions.
Blog-off
Cameron: 6
Neil: 0
A Few Quick Notes 268
-While a major storm was predicted to hit Halifax yesterday it seems that that isn't quite how things played out. While we did have some snow, and eventually a few ice pellets, things didn't ever really it up to what I would call a storm (though at times it certainly was unpleasant). After a few periods of flurries this morning things seem to have really become quite nice today, which is good.
-I had my second lecture of the term this morning. While I felt it went pretty well I am having a hard time sensing what the students thought about the experience.
-It seems that Neil is now claiming that his continued failure to post in the blog-off is to let me "build up a false sense of security," the suggestion that he will swoop in with a few last minute posts in the dying days or hours or February. I can say that I believe him, but it should also be known that I have expected such behaviour from the beginning, thus the daily posts since the beginning of the blog-off. Though his track record would suggest that he can typically out-strategerize me in competitive settings, I don't think that it will be possible in this instance (not to say that I don't think that it is possible for him to win given that the competition is stacked in his favour).
-Sunday's turkey has left us rather left-over turkey rich. Yesterday we had turkey noodle soup. Today we are having turkey pot-pie. Tomorrow I will probably have a turkey sandwich or two for lunch. I presume that by the time we finish off the turkey I will be ready for at least a week or so off from turkey.
-Much to my surprise, the corn that I planted in my bedroom in September is still alive and kicking. Not only has it managed to live through the winter thus far, it has seemingly thrived.
The thyme and banana plant also seem to be doing relatively well given the growing conditions. The beans, while they have managed to hang on through the winter, really don't look that good. I imagine that in a few days I will have to chop them down and start again (this time with Scarlett Runner beans).
-I realize now that in my last post I should not have used the term 'jurisdiction' as metropolitan areas are not jurisdictions in the traditional sense of the word. Actually, that they are not 'jurisdictions' kind of puts them in the situation they find themselves in, which is not a single municipal or regional government can speak for the region. This division of authority seems to undercut their demands for increased authority as it would likely mean more disparate policies in a small geographic region, potentially reducing efficiency rather than enhancing it (though surely there are arguments against such a position).
Anyway, terminology aside, the issue of the role of municipalities/metropolitan areas in Canada is still on my mind, the creation of the previously posted list didn't really do much to ease the tension.
Blog-off
Cameron: 5
Neil: 0
-I had my second lecture of the term this morning. While I felt it went pretty well I am having a hard time sensing what the students thought about the experience.
-It seems that Neil is now claiming that his continued failure to post in the blog-off is to let me "build up a false sense of security," the suggestion that he will swoop in with a few last minute posts in the dying days or hours or February. I can say that I believe him, but it should also be known that I have expected such behaviour from the beginning, thus the daily posts since the beginning of the blog-off. Though his track record would suggest that he can typically out-strategerize me in competitive settings, I don't think that it will be possible in this instance (not to say that I don't think that it is possible for him to win given that the competition is stacked in his favour).
-Sunday's turkey has left us rather left-over turkey rich. Yesterday we had turkey noodle soup. Today we are having turkey pot-pie. Tomorrow I will probably have a turkey sandwich or two for lunch. I presume that by the time we finish off the turkey I will be ready for at least a week or so off from turkey.
-Much to my surprise, the corn that I planted in my bedroom in September is still alive and kicking. Not only has it managed to live through the winter thus far, it has seemingly thrived.
The thyme and banana plant also seem to be doing relatively well given the growing conditions. The beans, while they have managed to hang on through the winter, really don't look that good. I imagine that in a few days I will have to chop them down and start again (this time with Scarlett Runner beans).
-I realize now that in my last post I should not have used the term 'jurisdiction' as metropolitan areas are not jurisdictions in the traditional sense of the word. Actually, that they are not 'jurisdictions' kind of puts them in the situation they find themselves in, which is not a single municipal or regional government can speak for the region. This division of authority seems to undercut their demands for increased authority as it would likely mean more disparate policies in a small geographic region, potentially reducing efficiency rather than enhancing it (though surely there are arguments against such a position).
Anyway, terminology aside, the issue of the role of municipalities/metropolitan areas in Canada is still on my mind, the creation of the previously posted list didn't really do much to ease the tension.
Blog-off
Cameron: 5
Neil: 0
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
25 Largest Jurisdictions in Canada
A few days ago I as thinking that I really wanted to see the populations of various political jurisdictions in relation to other political jurisdiction. In particular, I was interested in seeing how certain municipalities matched up against provinces, and how much difference there was between the city proper and the metropolitan area.
Anyway, this is a quick version of this list.
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 4
Neil: 0
Anyway, this is a quick version of this list.
Sources:
1. Statistics Canada, Quarterly Demographic Estimates (2008 numbers)
2. Statistics Canada, By census metropolitan area (CMA) or census agglomeration (CA), (2006 numbers)
3. Statistics Canada, All census subdivisions (CSDs), (2006 numbers)
Blog-off
Cameron: 4
Neil: 0
Monday, February 02, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 267
-Today, as predicted, has been a few degrees above zero. Fortunately, I managed to avoid much of the slush by heading in to school early. If the predictions turn out to be right, we could be in for quite a snowfall (and now a storm) here tomorrow, and if things keep going as they have been with closures and such, we could see another round of university and school closures in anticipation of the predicted snowfall.
-To continue the last topic, I think that I would rather not have a snow day tomorrow, though I am sure I could deal with one if it was thrust upon me.
-Just moments ago I learned that one of my favourite This American Life contributors, Scott Carrier, is now an assistant professor at Utah Valley University. Maybe this explains why he has been contributing to This American Life less frequently (though he does seem to still be contributing to Hearing Voices with some regularity).
-I have been doing so much reading about Canadian federalism in the past few weeks that it has started to creep into my dreams. Fortunately, my federalism dreams seem to be much more pleasant that my cataloguing nightmares of library school.
-I managed to get through my first lecture today, though there was a room change that kind of threw me off my game. I guess I now continue my preparations for Wednesday's lecture.
-And for those of you with 30 seconds to kill, feel free to check this out. If you don't have an extra 30 seconds, it probably isn't worth your while (nothing happens, just thought the internet needed some more filler).
Blog-off
Cameron: 3
Neil: 0
-To continue the last topic, I think that I would rather not have a snow day tomorrow, though I am sure I could deal with one if it was thrust upon me.
-Just moments ago I learned that one of my favourite This American Life contributors, Scott Carrier, is now an assistant professor at Utah Valley University. Maybe this explains why he has been contributing to This American Life less frequently (though he does seem to still be contributing to Hearing Voices with some regularity).
-I have been doing so much reading about Canadian federalism in the past few weeks that it has started to creep into my dreams. Fortunately, my federalism dreams seem to be much more pleasant that my cataloguing nightmares of library school.
-I managed to get through my first lecture today, though there was a room change that kind of threw me off my game. I guess I now continue my preparations for Wednesday's lecture.
-And for those of you with 30 seconds to kill, feel free to check this out. If you don't have an extra 30 seconds, it probably isn't worth your while (nothing happens, just thought the internet needed some more filler).
Blog-off
Cameron: 3
Neil: 0
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