-It has been quite warm today, and is expected to be warmer tomorrow. So much for these harsh Montreal winters.
-Because I was delayed in getting to the gym today I was unable to pick up my free copy of the Gazette. I had expected this and I intended to just go to the depanneur. It seems that I am a creature of habit and was almost all the way to the gym before I remembered that I didn’t want to go there today. In the end I then had to head back to the store to pick up my copy.
-I recently learned that the band of the son of my former driver’s ed. instructor has made the Grammy long list in the Reggae category. Several years ago our family received a cassette of their music, I believe that I was the only one that ever listened to it. If you are interested, their site is www.theprocessonline.com.
-Writing, writing, writing, my non-writing based assignments seem to have a fair bit of writing.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Leaving Banff
I'm here in the "Professional Development Centre" waiting for a CS prof from Dal to show up to give myself and Mahdi a ride to the Calgary airport (YYC). It's pretty nice just waiting, the couch is nice and the fire is too.
I might have to go any second, so this could be brief, so finished later. I'm flying on a Embraer (sp?) today. I believe I will have my own tv screen in the seat in front of me. I have a lot of work to do though, so I don't know what will happen.
My flight is at 12:10 local time arriving in Halifax around 9:30 pm local time. There is a brief stop in Montreal, but I don't think I'll be getting off the plane. If something crazy happens though, Cameron can expect a call.
The winterschool was good. I enjoyed it very much, and I learned a thing or two as well. The facilities here are amazing though, and I recommend anyone with the opportunity come to the Banff Centre. In total I think I saw about 9 deer, all of which were within 30 feet of me.
I think the average temperature during my stay was at most -25 degrees celsius, so for that reason especially it will be good to be back in Halifax. On the other hand the high here tomorrow is -7 degrees, which is very tolerable. Either way I'm looking forward to my return. The only problem is the work I'm going back to. I'm going to be going non-stop until I come home on the 15th. Then maybe I can sleep for a couple days.
I might have to go any second, so this could be brief, so finished later. I'm flying on a Embraer (sp?) today. I believe I will have my own tv screen in the seat in front of me. I have a lot of work to do though, so I don't know what will happen.
My flight is at 12:10 local time arriving in Halifax around 9:30 pm local time. There is a brief stop in Montreal, but I don't think I'll be getting off the plane. If something crazy happens though, Cameron can expect a call.
The winterschool was good. I enjoyed it very much, and I learned a thing or two as well. The facilities here are amazing though, and I recommend anyone with the opportunity come to the Banff Centre. In total I think I saw about 9 deer, all of which were within 30 feet of me.
I think the average temperature during my stay was at most -25 degrees celsius, so for that reason especially it will be good to be back in Halifax. On the other hand the high here tomorrow is -7 degrees, which is very tolerable. Either way I'm looking forward to my return. The only problem is the work I'm going back to. I'm going to be going non-stop until I come home on the 15th. Then maybe I can sleep for a couple days.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
What is it about this place?
Again we have been given an ambiguous project and then received clarification at the last minute. Today I learned that a project that I believed I had almost completed was in fact just at the beginning. I am starting to believe that they work on ambiguous project writing skills in my program.
Park Avenue will have its name changed
The vote, held over to this morning, ended up being a rout. CBC is reporting that the vote was 40-22, or something close to that. It sounds as though some people went back on their commitments to maintain the Park tradition.
A Few Quick Notes 26
-Yesterday I went to the grocery store and found that they were out of refried beans, not just the kind I like, but all of them. This was somewhat surprising as I wasn’t aware that these were a popular food stuff in Montreal.
-As I was walking back from class today I heard the fire alarm as I approached the building. As usual I continued past the building and went up to the gym to pick up my free paper. By the time I returned the alarm had stopped, though I did not see any evidence of the fire department.
When I entered the building the alarm system was making a semi-regular beeping sound. While clearly the alarm had been tripped it seemed that things were safe. Since I returned several minutes ago the alarm has briefly gone off several times for only a second or two each time. Hopefully this problem will not persist throughout the day.
-For the past few days the construction project has been a bit quieter, so I have decided to jinx myself and let you all know this.
-I was totally smoked by yesterday’s New York Times Monday Crossword, it was embarrassing.
-As I was walking back from class today I heard the fire alarm as I approached the building. As usual I continued past the building and went up to the gym to pick up my free paper. By the time I returned the alarm had stopped, though I did not see any evidence of the fire department.
When I entered the building the alarm system was making a semi-regular beeping sound. While clearly the alarm had been tripped it seemed that things were safe. Since I returned several minutes ago the alarm has briefly gone off several times for only a second or two each time. Hopefully this problem will not persist throughout the day.
-For the past few days the construction project has been a bit quieter, so I have decided to jinx myself and let you all know this.
-I was totally smoked by yesterday’s New York Times Monday Crossword, it was embarrassing.
Monday, November 27, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 25
-Today is the big day for Park Avenue. The issue will be coming up at tonight’s city council meeting. When I last heard the pro-Park side still needed a few votes to prevent the change, hopefully this count has changed since I last heard.
-In class today I learned that the Gazette began as a bilingual paper, something that is rather surprising to its current day readers.
-Last night while reading the McGill Daily I was somewhat surprised by a few comments in an interview. The interviewee, a budding anarchist, seemed to believe that instead of Buy Nothing Day we should have Steal Something Day, that this would be more actively more concretely affect change. Aside from some problems with her other comments this one rather struck me. I am not really sure how stealing something on one particular day, say a bag of chips, is going to send a decipherable message.
-The overcast weather has continued today, though it is not raining.
-Since the new sales begin at the grocery stores today I should probably head out and see if there are any discounted items that would fit into my dietary needs.
-It would seem that both the subscription and hit counter associated with the FeedBurner service are a touch inaccurate, to say the least. At one place it indicates that we have 3 subscribers, 2 of which are by email. It then provides 3 email addresses as the subscriber list. I know that the number of Yahoo subscribers is also off.
The "live hit" count has been off since we signed up. The first few times I visited after creating the account were clearly marked, but since then none of my visits have been recorded, or properly recorded.
-During the last few days of last week I saw McGill crews putting up lights on the Arts building. The columns in the front of the building had a very fancy set up with each perpendicular ridge having a string of lights. As of today they are all gone, no explanation, just gone. One wonders why they would have guys putting those lights up for three days just to take them down one work day after the job had been finished.
-I bought some toiletries today and was quickly reminded how these things quickly add up. A few vitamins, toothbrushes, bottles of shampoo and sticks of anti-perspirant later and I was up over $50. I guess some of this is due to the fact that I always buy personal grooming supplies in sets of at least 3.
-In class today I learned that the Gazette began as a bilingual paper, something that is rather surprising to its current day readers.
-Last night while reading the McGill Daily I was somewhat surprised by a few comments in an interview. The interviewee, a budding anarchist, seemed to believe that instead of Buy Nothing Day we should have Steal Something Day, that this would be more actively more concretely affect change. Aside from some problems with her other comments this one rather struck me. I am not really sure how stealing something on one particular day, say a bag of chips, is going to send a decipherable message.
-The overcast weather has continued today, though it is not raining.
-Since the new sales begin at the grocery stores today I should probably head out and see if there are any discounted items that would fit into my dietary needs.
-It would seem that both the subscription and hit counter associated with the FeedBurner service are a touch inaccurate, to say the least. At one place it indicates that we have 3 subscribers, 2 of which are by email. It then provides 3 email addresses as the subscriber list. I know that the number of Yahoo subscribers is also off.
The "live hit" count has been off since we signed up. The first few times I visited after creating the account were clearly marked, but since then none of my visits have been recorded, or properly recorded.
-During the last few days of last week I saw McGill crews putting up lights on the Arts building. The columns in the front of the building had a very fancy set up with each perpendicular ridge having a string of lights. As of today they are all gone, no explanation, just gone. One wonders why they would have guys putting those lights up for three days just to take them down one work day after the job had been finished.
-I bought some toiletries today and was quickly reminded how these things quickly add up. A few vitamins, toothbrushes, bottles of shampoo and sticks of anti-perspirant later and I was up over $50. I guess some of this is due to the fact that I always buy personal grooming supplies in sets of at least 3.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 24
-The dinner Nithum and I attended was quite pleasant. Instead of being the only American present I was surprised to learn that there were at least three more, at least two of whom the host had never meet before. From the library perspective, there was a librarian, a library director (not a librarian), a library student, and a few library users.
-Unfortunately today is rather overcast. According to the forecast we are not supposed to receive rain until this evening or early tonight. I guess this means that I won’t need to bring my coat when I go to the library shortly.
-A few days ago during a cataloging lab some of my female classmates were telling me about a film that they had watched in which one of the main characters had to learn the Dewey Decimal Classification system in a night. They watched this film at a “girls night” event. As I realized later, this was rather odd. The entire program is a “girls night” of sorts, at least 75% of the class is female.
-On my way to the library today I saw a dead squirrel in yard on the corner of Lorne and Prince Arthur. What is odd about this squirrel is that it looked like most live squirrels, its tail was fluffy, its paws outstretched. As a matter of fact it looked as though someone had frozen it mid-leap and placed in on the ground. The only odd characteristic was that its mouth seemed to have some kinds of dark material surrounding it. I couldn’t quite tell if this was dried blood or if the squirrel had been eating something akin to motor oil.
-Unfortunately today is rather overcast. According to the forecast we are not supposed to receive rain until this evening or early tonight. I guess this means that I won’t need to bring my coat when I go to the library shortly.
-A few days ago during a cataloging lab some of my female classmates were telling me about a film that they had watched in which one of the main characters had to learn the Dewey Decimal Classification system in a night. They watched this film at a “girls night” event. As I realized later, this was rather odd. The entire program is a “girls night” of sorts, at least 75% of the class is female.
-On my way to the library today I saw a dead squirrel in yard on the corner of Lorne and Prince Arthur. What is odd about this squirrel is that it looked like most live squirrels, its tail was fluffy, its paws outstretched. As a matter of fact it looked as though someone had frozen it mid-leap and placed in on the ground. The only odd characteristic was that its mouth seemed to have some kinds of dark material surrounding it. I couldn’t quite tell if this was dried blood or if the squirrel had been eating something akin to motor oil.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Pigeon Back Ride
Several times since I moved into my apartment I have been sitting at my desk, which is directly in front of my window, and observed pairs of pigeons behaving as though they weren’t being watched.
The roof of the building opposite seems to be a popular pigeon hangout. What I have observed is that two pigeons will arrive and start to get to know each other. You know, walk around each other and that kind of thing. The relationship then moves onto the “kissing” or more aptly “beaking” phase. The two birds will lock beaks and bob their heads up and down. This may occur a few times, after each beaking session a bit more of the getting to know each other goes on.
Finally, the climax, the pigeon piggy back ride. One of the pigeons will bend down and the other climbs up. This lasts for a few seconds. The upper pigeon then climbs down and they both walk around for a while and then take off.
When I saw this occur for the first time I thought it was pretty strange. Now that I have seen it a few times it is slowly becoming slightly more normal, or at least predictable because the birds have been following similar patterns each time.
A Few Quick Notes 23
-Tonight Nithum and I have a dinner engagement at a neighbour’s apartment. Moments ago I returned from buying the wine that I am to bring. I have a slight sense that I was hosed.
My initial goal was to buy a reasonably priced wine of good quality. I had hoped not to buy a wine with a screw-top, something that is becoming more difficult, or a wine from the US. In the end I purchased a wine with both of these characteristics, and I a touch worried about the quality. The reason for this somewhat questionable purchase is that for the first time I decided to rely entirely upon the recommendations of the liquor store staff, possibly an unwise decision.
As the time of our departure nears I am wondering what the proper etiquette for approaching a neighbour’s apartment is, do we go down to the first floor and then walk up the normal staircase at the front of the building or do we just cut across the fire escpate catwalk and arrive in about 2 seconds?
-Last night was pretty busy at work. Much of the reason for this business was because of a Salsa dance session that was held in the ballroom. This drew a fair number of individuals.
For some reason last night also seemed to have a strong focus on game playing. Throughout the night I saw 3 groups of people playing cards, a group play Scrabble, a group play Trivial Pursuit, and one of the card playing groups playing Monopoly.
-Rex Murphy’s opinion piece in today’s Globe pretty clearly sums up how I think about the Quebec/Nation issue. As stated earlier, much of this seems rush without an appropriate amount of thought having been given to the consequences of these actions.
-It is a beautiful day today, and getting warmer by the hour. When I went out for my paper this morning, a sweater was needed and just barely enough to ward of the cold. Now a very light sweater or an open light jacket would certainly be enough. On top of all of this the sun is shining and the wind not blowing.
My initial goal was to buy a reasonably priced wine of good quality. I had hoped not to buy a wine with a screw-top, something that is becoming more difficult, or a wine from the US. In the end I purchased a wine with both of these characteristics, and I a touch worried about the quality. The reason for this somewhat questionable purchase is that for the first time I decided to rely entirely upon the recommendations of the liquor store staff, possibly an unwise decision.
As the time of our departure nears I am wondering what the proper etiquette for approaching a neighbour’s apartment is, do we go down to the first floor and then walk up the normal staircase at the front of the building or do we just cut across the fire escpate catwalk and arrive in about 2 seconds?
-Last night was pretty busy at work. Much of the reason for this business was because of a Salsa dance session that was held in the ballroom. This drew a fair number of individuals.
For some reason last night also seemed to have a strong focus on game playing. Throughout the night I saw 3 groups of people playing cards, a group play Scrabble, a group play Trivial Pursuit, and one of the card playing groups playing Monopoly.
-Rex Murphy’s opinion piece in today’s Globe pretty clearly sums up how I think about the Quebec/Nation issue. As stated earlier, much of this seems rush without an appropriate amount of thought having been given to the consequences of these actions.
-It is a beautiful day today, and getting warmer by the hour. When I went out for my paper this morning, a sweater was needed and just barely enough to ward of the cold. Now a very light sweater or an open light jacket would certainly be enough. On top of all of this the sun is shining and the wind not blowing.
Friday, November 24, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 22
-Today, while picking up my paper at the gym, I happened to come across two guys getting a talking to from an administrator type. The administrator was telling them that they would be kicked out and that they had jeopardized their friend’s membership, for which he had paid a lot of money. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to figure out what it was that these guys had done that was so bad. I guess I will never know.
-I am getting used to my new nationality, though it may take me a few days to fully understand what it means to be a member of the nation of Quebec.
-It has been quite nice here during the past few days. The weather has been what would likely be called “crisp.” It sounds as though we might be in for some snow in a few days, though I would not be surprised if we don’t get a major snowfall before I leave for Christmas.
-Once again it is Friday, which means that I will be heading to work shortly. Tonight there will be some kind of Salsa dance in the ballroom, and of course it is Pizza Night.
-One of these days my Meatzza should be one of the options on the menu, even if only for a laugh. On a more serious note, there must be more people that can’t eat cheese or tomatoes.
-It turns out that one of my classmates is from Chicago. When I learned this I mentioned that my favourite radio show, This American Life, is from the same town. She was familiar with the show, actually a fan, and pleased to find someone else familiar with the show. I was able to tell her about some similar shows in Canada. On the plus side for me she has offered to lend me one of the show’s CDs.
-I am getting used to my new nationality, though it may take me a few days to fully understand what it means to be a member of the nation of Quebec.
-It has been quite nice here during the past few days. The weather has been what would likely be called “crisp.” It sounds as though we might be in for some snow in a few days, though I would not be surprised if we don’t get a major snowfall before I leave for Christmas.
-Once again it is Friday, which means that I will be heading to work shortly. Tonight there will be some kind of Salsa dance in the ballroom, and of course it is Pizza Night.
-One of these days my Meatzza should be one of the options on the menu, even if only for a laugh. On a more serious note, there must be more people that can’t eat cheese or tomatoes.
-It turns out that one of my classmates is from Chicago. When I learned this I mentioned that my favourite radio show, This American Life, is from the same town. She was familiar with the show, actually a fan, and pleased to find someone else familiar with the show. I was able to tell her about some similar shows in Canada. On the plus side for me she has offered to lend me one of the show’s CDs.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Montifax Subscriptions Now Available
To lazy to check Montifax every 8 minutes?
That’s ok, now one can have all new posts emailed to themselves by subscribing to Montifax.
All one has to do is enter their email address in the appropriate location in the box on the right and then acknowledge a confirmation email. Before you know it all kinds of Montifax posts will be showing up in your inbox for easy access.
That’s ok, now one can have all new posts emailed to themselves by subscribing to Montifax.
All one has to do is enter their email address in the appropriate location in the box on the right and then acknowledge a confirmation email. Before you know it all kinds of Montifax posts will be showing up in your inbox for easy access.
Packing for Banff
Right now I'm starting to pack for my trip to Banff. My plane leaves Saturday at 7 am. I have to leave the apartment at about 3:40 am to catch the 3:55 shuttle; it should be fun. I come back on Wednesday evening. Two of my profs are on trips at the same time, so over 3 class days with 3 courses I'm only missing two classes.
I'm going to Banff for the cold weather (low of -32 on Sunday!). Well it's really the cold weather AND a "winterschool", which is essentially a series of lectures. The topic of the school is Algorithms and models for the Web. The will be many big names from the field there, most notably Fan Chung Graham (also known for being the wife of Ron Graham, both of whom were good friends of Paul Erdős.)
The trip should be fun, but I'm going to be very busy when I come back.
I'm going to Banff for the cold weather (low of -32 on Sunday!). Well it's really the cold weather AND a "winterschool", which is essentially a series of lectures. The topic of the school is Algorithms and models for the Web. The will be many big names from the field there, most notably Fan Chung Graham (also known for being the wife of Ron Graham, both of whom were good friends of Paul Erdős.)
The trip should be fun, but I'm going to be very busy when I come back.
I lack photo-blogging skills
Let's try again. Here the current view from my window thanks to the Fenwick Place Web Cam. I'm pretty sure this isn't working, but you can click on the empty photo to see what I mean.
Fire in Dartmouth
I'm at my desk in my apartment (see ME on the map), and I just happened to look out my window. Normally across the harbour in Dartmouth there is a small flame similar to that of the Come-by-Chance oil refinery (I think); this comparison might be good for those of you that have driven across Nfld. However, today the flame is huge and black smoke is filling the sky above Dartmouth. In fact, the light of the fire is reflecting off the water so much I can plainly see it from here (being 11 floors up helps though). The other tip-off that something is wrong is the collection of flashing lights near the base of the fire. Oh, and now the sirens. The fire doesn't seem to be spreading, but there are lots of oil tanks in the vicinity. If this turns out to be as big or bigger than the Halifax explosion, I'll let you know.
P.S. I don't own a camera, and FIRE! is where the fire is on the map (approximately 3.5 kilometers away).
Library Thing
Since my post yesterday I have been playing around with Library Thing. Some of you may have even noticed that I have added a “widget” to the blog so that you can see new additions to “my library.” One can view the complete collection by clicking on the “my library” link.
While this service is not perfect, it is a neat idea. Over the coming few days, especially as I add more books, I will try and keep you updated on what I think.
If any of you are opposed to the thing in the side bar let me know, if there a groundswell of popular support it can be removed.
While this service is not perfect, it is a neat idea. Over the coming few days, especially as I add more books, I will try and keep you updated on what I think.
If any of you are opposed to the thing in the side bar let me know, if there a groundswell of popular support it can be removed.
What is a Nation?
This seems to be a question very few of us have asked ourselves, though many of us have been quite willing to discuss whether or not Quebec is one. Very few of us have even discussed what we mean by Quebec, are we defining it geographically, or by its inhabitants, or any number of possible ways?
In the few short weeks since Mr. Ignatieff brought the idea of Quebec being a nation to the national agenda (I consider this to have previously been a relatively dormant issue), we have had a great number of people weigh in on the issue. Just recently Mr. Harper said his piece, and indicated that he believed Quebec to be a nation. Mr. Harper went further, he tabled a motion that, if passed, would give the House of Commons’ support to this assertion.
In this mess of rhetoric I have not heard one person try to define “nation” and what it might mean in this context. Maybe to some it just seems obvious, but I believe that we might all be better off if we clarified the definition and how Quebec, or is it French Canadians, meet this definition. Once we have established this definition should we attempt to see how it fits with other groups in Canada and pass similar motions?
I guess my main concern is that choices are being made before we have fully evaluated what is being decided. Without groundwork, in this case a definition of the contentious term, we cannot have an informed or even truly useful discussion. What we are getting is just raw emotion and political posturing; something reminiscent of the now criticized post-September 11 anti-terrorism laws. Taking our time and making sure that the correct, as opposed to politically expedient, decision is made is important, as it is quite likely that this issue won’t just go away after this vote.
In the few short weeks since Mr. Ignatieff brought the idea of Quebec being a nation to the national agenda (I consider this to have previously been a relatively dormant issue), we have had a great number of people weigh in on the issue. Just recently Mr. Harper said his piece, and indicated that he believed Quebec to be a nation. Mr. Harper went further, he tabled a motion that, if passed, would give the House of Commons’ support to this assertion.
In this mess of rhetoric I have not heard one person try to define “nation” and what it might mean in this context. Maybe to some it just seems obvious, but I believe that we might all be better off if we clarified the definition and how Quebec, or is it French Canadians, meet this definition. Once we have established this definition should we attempt to see how it fits with other groups in Canada and pass similar motions?
I guess my main concern is that choices are being made before we have fully evaluated what is being decided. Without groundwork, in this case a definition of the contentious term, we cannot have an informed or even truly useful discussion. What we are getting is just raw emotion and political posturing; something reminiscent of the now criticized post-September 11 anti-terrorism laws. Taking our time and making sure that the correct, as opposed to politically expedient, decision is made is important, as it is quite likely that this issue won’t just go away after this vote.
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 21
-Back to work again today. During my extra shift last night I was able to trade away a shift on the 30th and pick up tonight. On this whole this should be good, though having only one work shirt will be a bit of a problem this week seeing as laundry day was Monday.
-A few moments ago I started to play with the www.librarything.com website, a utility that allows one to catalog their books online using Library of Congress or Amazon.com records. This sounds like a neat idea but needs a bit of work. For one their search function is a bit limited, for some reason I could not find a way to search for standard numbers (ISBN or ISSN, etc.). Downloaded records didn’t seem to be fully editable, though some of this might just be me. I will let you know what I think a bit more once I have given it a full assessment. (A little poking around later and I have found that it is a bit more adaptable than I thought, some of the problems I had originally identified are beatable)
-I am falling behind on my newspaper reading this week. I still have some of Monday’s paper to skim through, as well as all of Tuesday’s and much of today’s left to read.
-It seems that the deconstruction project next door has now turned into a construction project. This is a big improvement. While there is still some noise it is not as much or as persistent as it has been over the past few days. If things continue like this I will be fine, if they revert to the destruction level I will be quite upset.
-A few moments ago I started to play with the www.librarything.com website, a utility that allows one to catalog their books online using Library of Congress or Amazon.com records. This sounds like a neat idea but needs a bit of work. For one their search function is a bit limited, for some reason I could not find a way to search for standard numbers (ISBN or ISSN, etc.). Downloaded records didn’t seem to be fully editable, though some of this might just be me. I will let you know what I think a bit more once I have given it a full assessment. (A little poking around later and I have found that it is a bit more adaptable than I thought, some of the problems I had originally identified are beatable)
-I am falling behind on my newspaper reading this week. I still have some of Monday’s paper to skim through, as well as all of Tuesday’s and much of today’s left to read.
-It seems that the deconstruction project next door has now turned into a construction project. This is a big improvement. While there is still some noise it is not as much or as persistent as it has been over the past few days. If things continue like this I will be fine, if they revert to the destruction level I will be quite upset.
Monday, November 20, 2006
nithum wishes he had a left leg
I saw Nithum's gmail chat name today, just as you have done if you read the title of this post. Thinking that it might have been like the "Neil needs" google search trick I decided to try it out. As it turns out, I wish I was Daft Punk. On the other hand, Cameron wishes he was there (http://www.cherwell.org/news/news_in_brief/cameron_wishes_he_was_there). Nithum is apparently better than all of us though, because he doesn't need or wish for anything.
A Few Quick Notes 20
-The destruction project is going strong next door. This morning I was somewhat disturbed to hear, what sounded like, glass being shattered by hammers. In addition to this tinkling we had the normal array of destruction related sounds. The only good news is that it seems that they have gutted the top floor, which is just outside my window, and have moved down a floor.
-Last night’s lack of car horns and burning trash bins can be explained by the loss suffered by the Als in their attempt for Grey Cup glory. Once again, it is only the Gazette that seems to really care.
-The temperature has finally started to drop in Montreal. I am not exactly sure what it is but it is now on the chilly side. The scarves, mitts, gloves, and hats that the McGillites have been wearing for the past several weeks are finally justified, though oddly not that many more people are now wearing them.
-This new temperature is perfect for walking. Two times yesterday I took very pleasant walks around my neighbourhood. Hopefully over the coming days I will be able to explore the surrounding area a bit more.
-I did a quick count yesterday and we seemed to have posted many more words in October than we are on track to post in November. This difference will likely be a few thousand, though maybe we can make it up in the dying days of this month.
-Because of our discussion about the ability of the IMDB top 250 to be influenced by the movie industry I have started to think about other user-community influenced sources. The one that came to my mind first was Wikipedia. How much are entries on corporations edited by corporations to ensure that the views and opinions presented are in line with the official stance. Are unflattering comments deleted? Are flattering or explanatory comments added? I guess we could check some of this out by looking at the page history. Once again, I have a hard time believing that at least an element of this does not occur. Wiki is even easier to manipulate than IMDB and we know that millions rest on the public opinion of major corporations. It might be worth looking into. My other thought is that even it is not happening now, give it time, it will eventually start.
-Last night’s lack of car horns and burning trash bins can be explained by the loss suffered by the Als in their attempt for Grey Cup glory. Once again, it is only the Gazette that seems to really care.
-The temperature has finally started to drop in Montreal. I am not exactly sure what it is but it is now on the chilly side. The scarves, mitts, gloves, and hats that the McGillites have been wearing for the past several weeks are finally justified, though oddly not that many more people are now wearing them.
-This new temperature is perfect for walking. Two times yesterday I took very pleasant walks around my neighbourhood. Hopefully over the coming days I will be able to explore the surrounding area a bit more.
-I did a quick count yesterday and we seemed to have posted many more words in October than we are on track to post in November. This difference will likely be a few thousand, though maybe we can make it up in the dying days of this month.
-Because of our discussion about the ability of the IMDB top 250 to be influenced by the movie industry I have started to think about other user-community influenced sources. The one that came to my mind first was Wikipedia. How much are entries on corporations edited by corporations to ensure that the views and opinions presented are in line with the official stance. Are unflattering comments deleted? Are flattering or explanatory comments added? I guess we could check some of this out by looking at the page history. Once again, I have a hard time believing that at least an element of this does not occur. Wiki is even easier to manipulate than IMDB and we know that millions rest on the public opinion of major corporations. It might be worth looking into. My other thought is that even it is not happening now, give it time, it will eventually start.
Get on with it, spite them already
For the past few days Mr. Dumas, from a distance of a few hundred years, has been stealing my time just like Danglars, Villefort, and Fernand stole that of Edmond Dantes.
What is frustrating about this books is its complete unwillingness to resolve itself. Within a relatively short number of pages Edmond is shown to be a great guy, wrongly sent to jail, and then escapes. Revenge is then this man’s mission in life.
Most of the book takes in place in Paris while Edmond is the Count of Monte Cristo, an unknown and unfathomably rich Italian gentleman. The reader is there as Edmond slowly sets up the downfall of all of the individuals that caused his imprisonment. The detail is painful, but as the reader one wants to see how the whole thing will resolve itself.
It is now making sense why many copies of the book, including mine, are abridged. This guy just goes on and on, though as indicated, I am still reading (unfortunately because I have school work that I could otherwise be focusing on).
What is frustrating about this books is its complete unwillingness to resolve itself. Within a relatively short number of pages Edmond is shown to be a great guy, wrongly sent to jail, and then escapes. Revenge is then this man’s mission in life.
Most of the book takes in place in Paris while Edmond is the Count of Monte Cristo, an unknown and unfathomably rich Italian gentleman. The reader is there as Edmond slowly sets up the downfall of all of the individuals that caused his imprisonment. The detail is painful, but as the reader one wants to see how the whole thing will resolve itself.
It is now making sense why many copies of the book, including mine, are abridged. This guy just goes on and on, though as indicated, I am still reading (unfortunately because I have school work that I could otherwise be focusing on).
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Grey Cup Fevah!
What is most noticeable about this weekend in Montreal is the lack of the above mentioned condition.
On a walk I just took I failed to see any signs of this condition, not even a shirt, coat, or hat, worn in support of “our” team. Though the game will be shown on CBC TV this evening, it will not air on Radio One.
For that matter I have seen very few signs that we even have a CFL team playing just behind my apartment. One of the few indications that such a team exists are the occasional articles in the Gazette, apparently the only place that still cares.
On a walk I just took I failed to see any signs of this condition, not even a shirt, coat, or hat, worn in support of “our” team. Though the game will be shown on CBC TV this evening, it will not air on Radio One.
For that matter I have seen very few signs that we even have a CFL team playing just behind my apartment. One of the few indications that such a team exists are the occasional articles in the Gazette, apparently the only place that still cares.
Peggle Bike (Definition and Discussion)
One of readers/commenter recently indicated that he/she was unfamiliar with a peggle bike and would have to look up what one is. Unless one goes through our archives this will not likely be an easy task, because as far as I know the term originated here.
For those of you who have somehow forgotten what a peggle bike is, or started reading this blog after the definition was posted, it might be defined as a normal bike with the noticeable absence of at least one peddle. Instead of a proper pedal the rider uses a metal peg instead to propel the bike, hence the term peggle bike.
My peggle bike has only one peg, implying that there is also one pedal. In my case, I don’t think that I could safely ride the bike without that one peddles. This may be in part due to the diminished capacity of my bakes.
Note: If one searches for “peggle bike” in Google they will find that Montifax leads the way in use of the term (we are actually the only site returned). Any questions in terms of usage of this phrase should be directed to Montifax, we don’t want a good term like this to be miss-used right of the bat.
For those of you who have somehow forgotten what a peggle bike is, or started reading this blog after the definition was posted, it might be defined as a normal bike with the noticeable absence of at least one peddle. Instead of a proper pedal the rider uses a metal peg instead to propel the bike, hence the term peggle bike.
My peggle bike has only one peg, implying that there is also one pedal. In my case, I don’t think that I could safely ride the bike without that one peddles. This may be in part due to the diminished capacity of my bakes.
Note: If one searches for “peggle bike” in Google they will find that Montifax leads the way in use of the term (we are actually the only site returned). Any questions in terms of usage of this phrase should be directed to Montifax, we don’t want a good term like this to be miss-used right of the bat.
A Few Quick Notes 19
-After the staff meeting that I attended today I had a brief introduction to bar tending. During this introduction our boss was able to get up quite agitated by pouring “vodka” down the sink. He eventually allowed those interested in the sample drinks to have them. Oddly no one commented on the fact that they should have tasted a little weak. After a while it was made clear that he had been serving water, those that had consumed the drinks felt cheated.
-Odd night last night at work. While there were many people there they were not on the main floor. All kinds of people were in the restaurant for karaoke and upstairs for an MBA event.
-Finally I had a chance to move on to PC beer. I decided to go with the lager. All things considered, if one bases one’s opinion on the packaging, it looks fine. It is like that I will have to crack into one in a few minutes.
-Odd night last night at work. While there were many people there they were not on the main floor. All kinds of people were in the restaurant for karaoke and upstairs for an MBA event.
-Finally I had a chance to move on to PC beer. I decided to go with the lager. All things considered, if one bases one’s opinion on the packaging, it looks fine. It is like that I will have to crack into one in a few minutes.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 18
-For lunch today I had nachos with refried beans and extra onions. There were so many extra onions that I had to leave a few of them on my plate, which I left in my room when I went to class. I came back to find my room stinking like cheap onions.
-It seems that among many of the trendy McGill female types rain boots are in. This is once again a case of my being ahead of my time. As a child I was convinced that these were the best type of footwear, likely because they did not need tying. For what seems like years I wore nice black rubber boots as much as possible. Unfortunately, now that I am no longer in that habit it has come back and I have once again missed my chance to be cool.
-The Gazette was back at the gym today. I am now pretty certain that I was just a bit late yesterday.
-In this afternoon’s lab a classmate and I were having some fun with a citation index. After completing the assigned question we decided to play around a little more. A mutual field of interest happened to be our current professors. If you have access to an online citation index this can be an amusing way to spend a few minutes.
-After about two years I am finally updating my iPod. I will lose some music that I had on my old computer but gain much more.
-Horse (cheval) meat is on sale this week at one of my local grocery stores. The only format is ground horse meat, which is a bit of a richer red than beef. It is tempting. I think that I may buy some and try a horseburger, or maybe horse-nachos. I will keep you updated.
-I am just finishing off my last Hek 6.2% beer, this means another 24 will have to be picked up tomorrow. I am thinking I will give the PC beers a try, at least they will be cheap.
-It seems that among many of the trendy McGill female types rain boots are in. This is once again a case of my being ahead of my time. As a child I was convinced that these were the best type of footwear, likely because they did not need tying. For what seems like years I wore nice black rubber boots as much as possible. Unfortunately, now that I am no longer in that habit it has come back and I have once again missed my chance to be cool.
-The Gazette was back at the gym today. I am now pretty certain that I was just a bit late yesterday.
-In this afternoon’s lab a classmate and I were having some fun with a citation index. After completing the assigned question we decided to play around a little more. A mutual field of interest happened to be our current professors. If you have access to an online citation index this can be an amusing way to spend a few minutes.
-After about two years I am finally updating my iPod. I will lose some music that I had on my old computer but gain much more.
-Horse (cheval) meat is on sale this week at one of my local grocery stores. The only format is ground horse meat, which is a bit of a richer red than beef. It is tempting. I think that I may buy some and try a horseburger, or maybe horse-nachos. I will keep you updated.
-I am just finishing off my last Hek 6.2% beer, this means another 24 will have to be picked up tomorrow. I am thinking I will give the PC beers a try, at least they will be cheap.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 17
-For the first time in months I was unable to get a free weekday Gazette at the gym. I am not sure if they have finally wrapped up the promotion or if I arrived after they had all been distributed. My hope is that I was a bit late. The evidence that I have to back this up is that the distribution stands are still there, just as they have been for the past few months.
-The dark, overcast weather continues in Montreal. Oddly, it is reasonably warm.
-It is always nice to have a little bit of string. Many I have been looking for just a few feet of string and been unable to find it.
-Last night at Thomson House it was wondered if “Chuck-Tony” would be an acceptable Anglicization of Charles-Antoine (a TA of ours). I think one could have a bit of fun with double names in the same form as the one previously mentioned, one could go back and forth between English and several other languages.
-For those of you following the Grey Cup you may be aware that the Allouettes have made the game. Some of you may find this surprising because they had such a dismal record during the regular season. I am one of those individuals. Does every team in the CFL make the playoffs? If it is not every team it must be almost every team.
-After class today I needed to speak to the professor about an upcoming project. As we started to talk I could see that he was looking to at my shirt and trying to figure out what it said. Was the symbol a clover leaf, he asked. No, I said, it is a club. It clicked, he then figured out that my shirt, with the use of pictograms, said “I club baby seals.” He then laughed a hearty laugh.
-Some of you may have heard that a Russian spy was arrested in Montreal on Tuesday. This is rather amazing. We don’t hear about too much spying these days. What is odder is that much of the details read like classic spy novels, things that I had believed were exaggerated to say the least.
-The dark, overcast weather continues in Montreal. Oddly, it is reasonably warm.
-It is always nice to have a little bit of string. Many I have been looking for just a few feet of string and been unable to find it.
-Last night at Thomson House it was wondered if “Chuck-Tony” would be an acceptable Anglicization of Charles-Antoine (a TA of ours). I think one could have a bit of fun with double names in the same form as the one previously mentioned, one could go back and forth between English and several other languages.
-For those of you following the Grey Cup you may be aware that the Allouettes have made the game. Some of you may find this surprising because they had such a dismal record during the regular season. I am one of those individuals. Does every team in the CFL make the playoffs? If it is not every team it must be almost every team.
-After class today I needed to speak to the professor about an upcoming project. As we started to talk I could see that he was looking to at my shirt and trying to figure out what it said. Was the symbol a clover leaf, he asked. No, I said, it is a club. It clicked, he then figured out that my shirt, with the use of pictograms, said “I club baby seals.” He then laughed a hearty laugh.
-Some of you may have heard that a Russian spy was arrested in Montreal on Tuesday. This is rather amazing. We don’t hear about too much spying these days. What is odder is that much of the details read like classic spy novels, things that I had believed were exaggerated to say the least.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 16
-The Gazette reported today that Montreal is well above average this year for the amount of rain it has received. As I have noted over the last few weeks, it did seem to be raining a fair bit.
-Today I attended an EndNote workshop at McGill. This was very informative. It seems that this program, and others like it, are a bit heavy on the start up time but useful in the long run. Fortunately McGill has a site license and I was able to download the program for free. It now seems to be up and running, I only need to start adding references, something that I don’t look forward to doing.
-Today in class we had a guest lecturer talk to use about freedom of expression and limitations of that freedom. Much of the talk focused on obscenity, hate propaganda, and child pornography. While I had hoped the focus would be on access to information and protection of privacy legislation this was thought provoking.
-Just got back from Thomson House. Though I had intended just to go with Val I ended up running into a few of my classmates, actually about 10 of them. It was nice to socialize with them outside the classroom setting. Discussion was a little freer regarding certain subjects.
-Another story in today’s Gazette was on the topic of industrial pollution in California. It turns out that the film production business is one of the largest pollution producers. The stars may come out to show their support for environmental causes but it would seem as though their industry is not as friendly as they are.
-Today I attended an EndNote workshop at McGill. This was very informative. It seems that this program, and others like it, are a bit heavy on the start up time but useful in the long run. Fortunately McGill has a site license and I was able to download the program for free. It now seems to be up and running, I only need to start adding references, something that I don’t look forward to doing.
-Today in class we had a guest lecturer talk to use about freedom of expression and limitations of that freedom. Much of the talk focused on obscenity, hate propaganda, and child pornography. While I had hoped the focus would be on access to information and protection of privacy legislation this was thought provoking.
-Just got back from Thomson House. Though I had intended just to go with Val I ended up running into a few of my classmates, actually about 10 of them. It was nice to socialize with them outside the classroom setting. Discussion was a little freer regarding certain subjects.
-Another story in today’s Gazette was on the topic of industrial pollution in California. It turns out that the film production business is one of the largest pollution producers. The stars may come out to show their support for environmental causes but it would seem as though their industry is not as friendly as they are.
Oh, I see. Then everything is wrapped up in a neat little package.
Only after I typed the title of this post did I realize that I saw the episode of the Simpsons from which it comes yesterday.
Now back to the main story, I got some mail today with my name on it (and also Cameron's, although his was with the return address). In an average week I get about 12 pieces of junk mail and 0.4 pieces of mail with my name on it. Today's package was from Cameron. It was a little bubble wrap Canada Post package. My first guess as to the contents was pieces for Settlers of Catan. When I opened it up and saw string I had no idea what was inside. I looked in further and saw some plastic bags, putting my mind back on Settlers mode.
To make an unnecessisarily long story slightly shorter, the parcel contained 6 purple 'knights' (for Settlers), 8 plastic bags for Settlers pieces, string, a St. Hubert chicken moist towelette, and a hand-written note dated November 1. The Settlers pieces are to go with the previous purple pieces that my Mom brought me (through my Dad) in October. I believe the plan is that I will eventually own a full set of purple pieces for the full collection of Settlers expansions. According to the letter, the plastic bags were picked up on the cheap, and that string and moist towelettes always come in handy. The letter was of course included to explain why the string and moist toweletter were included. In Cameron's defense, St. Hubert was my favorite chicken joint when the had a location on Kenmount Road in St. John's.
You can thank Cameron for this post too. He told me to post more. Seriously though, I've been pretty busy, but I'm sure all of the readers out there have been too, and I'm glad you take the time to read this (or maybe you only know Cameron and skip my stuff, that's okay).
Maybe I should just post a couple times back-2-back and then have another lull.
Outters.
P.S. I'm sure there are some of you who don't know what Settlers of Catan is. I'm going to work on that and come up with a way for you to learn about Settlers of Catan and what it means to me. I promise results within 2 years.
Now back to the main story, I got some mail today with my name on it (and also Cameron's, although his was with the return address). In an average week I get about 12 pieces of junk mail and 0.4 pieces of mail with my name on it. Today's package was from Cameron. It was a little bubble wrap Canada Post package. My first guess as to the contents was pieces for Settlers of Catan. When I opened it up and saw string I had no idea what was inside. I looked in further and saw some plastic bags, putting my mind back on Settlers mode.
To make an unnecessisarily long story slightly shorter, the parcel contained 6 purple 'knights' (for Settlers), 8 plastic bags for Settlers pieces, string, a St. Hubert chicken moist towelette, and a hand-written note dated November 1. The Settlers pieces are to go with the previous purple pieces that my Mom brought me (through my Dad) in October. I believe the plan is that I will eventually own a full set of purple pieces for the full collection of Settlers expansions. According to the letter, the plastic bags were picked up on the cheap, and that string and moist towelettes always come in handy. The letter was of course included to explain why the string and moist toweletter were included. In Cameron's defense, St. Hubert was my favorite chicken joint when the had a location on Kenmount Road in St. John's.
You can thank Cameron for this post too. He told me to post more. Seriously though, I've been pretty busy, but I'm sure all of the readers out there have been too, and I'm glad you take the time to read this (or maybe you only know Cameron and skip my stuff, that's okay).
Maybe I should just post a couple times back-2-back and then have another lull.
Outters.
P.S. I'm sure there are some of you who don't know what Settlers of Catan is. I'm going to work on that and come up with a way for you to learn about Settlers of Catan and what it means to me. I promise results within 2 years.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 15
-The construction project continued again today. As I was walking past the building today it looked as though it is being gutted, something that does not indicate that the project will end shortly. Something about the whole thing that I found rather odd was that they have covered the front lawn with gravel.
-It seemed that the world was conspiring against my attempts to nap today. After two attempts, and several interruptions I decided to give it up.
-In the past few days our discussion regarding the IMDB top 250 seems to have garnered a bit of action and attention. It has been fun to have a some comments going back and forth.
-In relation to my previous point, at least two individuals commented on their use of the IMDB top 250 list in determining which movies they watch. I suspect that they are not the only two individuals that use the ranking services provided by IMDB to help set their movie agenda. As a matter of fact, I, from time to time, have even done so.
Wide spread use of the top 250 list as well as the rating system, at least to me, would suggest that there would be a motivation for distribution companies to attempt to manipulate the ratings. Why would be believe that this would occur? A huge amount of money is riding on the success of these movies, and this rating system may be able to increase viewership. I should note that this applies to both large and small budget films.
When I have witnessed examples of high ranking officials encouraging individuals to support certain Canadian Idol officials when no cash is involved I am disinclined to believe that the movie business does not in some way attempt to make it look like their product is more popular than it may be. I might also note that VOCM NiteLine and other political call-in shows across North America have disguised partisans call and act as though they are just John Q. Public.
On the other hand, maybe the movie business is much less manipulative that I believe. Maybe they don't take advantage of free advertising opportunities, such as the IMDB top 250. So even if they don't, be sure that it would be pretty easy for them to do so.
A few thousand people voting the same way, as directed by a higher power, would certainly have the ability to sway the rating of a new movie by a fair margin.
-I still have not had a chance to read today's newspaper, nor any of the three student newspapers that I picked up.
-The free book box made its come back today. On its first day pack I was able to pick up about 5 books. I am hoping that this will continue throughout the year.
-It seemed that the world was conspiring against my attempts to nap today. After two attempts, and several interruptions I decided to give it up.
-In the past few days our discussion regarding the IMDB top 250 seems to have garnered a bit of action and attention. It has been fun to have a some comments going back and forth.
-In relation to my previous point, at least two individuals commented on their use of the IMDB top 250 list in determining which movies they watch. I suspect that they are not the only two individuals that use the ranking services provided by IMDB to help set their movie agenda. As a matter of fact, I, from time to time, have even done so.
Wide spread use of the top 250 list as well as the rating system, at least to me, would suggest that there would be a motivation for distribution companies to attempt to manipulate the ratings. Why would be believe that this would occur? A huge amount of money is riding on the success of these movies, and this rating system may be able to increase viewership. I should note that this applies to both large and small budget films.
When I have witnessed examples of high ranking officials encouraging individuals to support certain Canadian Idol officials when no cash is involved I am disinclined to believe that the movie business does not in some way attempt to make it look like their product is more popular than it may be. I might also note that VOCM NiteLine and other political call-in shows across North America have disguised partisans call and act as though they are just John Q. Public.
On the other hand, maybe the movie business is much less manipulative that I believe. Maybe they don't take advantage of free advertising opportunities, such as the IMDB top 250. So even if they don't, be sure that it would be pretty easy for them to do so.
A few thousand people voting the same way, as directed by a higher power, would certainly have the ability to sway the rating of a new movie by a fair margin.
-I still have not had a chance to read today's newspaper, nor any of the three student newspapers that I picked up.
-The free book box made its come back today. On its first day pack I was able to pick up about 5 books. I am hoping that this will continue throughout the year.
A Few Quick Notes 14
-I think that I might need to start thinking about getting a new toothbrush, maybe I actually need to start thinking about more than just thinking about it because I have been doing that for several weeks now. Maybe Wednesday I will head over to St. Laurent and try to pick one up.
-I had forgotten that MLA style involves in text citations, something that I hate. Not only do these break up the flow of the reading, they also mean that one has to go to the back of the book to find the full citation details. I also find that this style encourages a rather clunky, name dropping style of writing.
-The forecast for this week does not sound good. They are calling for more rain. When will they learn and just stop calling for rain, no one likes him at this time of year.
-For the past few days a major construction project has been going on below my window. It seems that part of the building next to me is being taken down.
The part of this whole thing that I am not so fond of is that they start quite early in the morning. Today it was at about 7:00 AM, which is about an hour before I was planning on getting up. On Saturday they woke me at 7:37, several hours before I was planning on getting up. I am wondering if there is a by-law that would disallow such early starts?
-I had forgotten that MLA style involves in text citations, something that I hate. Not only do these break up the flow of the reading, they also mean that one has to go to the back of the book to find the full citation details. I also find that this style encourages a rather clunky, name dropping style of writing.
-The forecast for this week does not sound good. They are calling for more rain. When will they learn and just stop calling for rain, no one likes him at this time of year.
-For the past few days a major construction project has been going on below my window. It seems that part of the building next to me is being taken down.
The part of this whole thing that I am not so fond of is that they start quite early in the morning. Today it was at about 7:00 AM, which is about an hour before I was planning on getting up. On Saturday they woke me at 7:37, several hours before I was planning on getting up. I am wondering if there is a by-law that would disallow such early starts?
Monday, November 13, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 13
-I had been thinking about heading to the theatres to check out the Borat movie, but now I guess I might wait to see it on DVD. This is likely what I would have done anyway because with my current schedule and financial situation movies in theatres just don’t make sense.
-One should be very leery of the IMDB top 250. Hasn’t it struck some of you as strange that there are so many films from the last 5 years on the list. A movie gets a bit of a buzz and it shoots right up to no. 2 or 3. As the years go by it seems that this list has become less representative of good movies and more of big hits. A little bit of credibility is maintained by a few classics being spread throughout the list. I guess I should keep in mind that it is pretty open about the fact that it is based entirely on user votes and not dictated by movie gurus.
-About two hours ago I woke up from a short power nap and found myself completely disoriented and unable to think. It was a very strange and unpleasant experience. Hopefully this is not the beginning of a trend, because if it is I might have to give up the almighty name or just learn to deal with a few minutes of disorientation.
-My union meeting this afternoon was very informative. While I might not be the strongest union man my current feeling is that if I am going to give up 2% of my wages to be a member I should at least have a say in how they represent me and try to get them to fight for good things in our to be negotiated collective agreement.
-Earlier this afternoon, while visiting Val, I helped her out with her grocery shopping. While in the store I decided that I needed a few new herbal teas to replenish my diminishing stocks. Fortunately, the grocery store we were visiting had a better selection that the one that I typically frequent. After a few minutes of contemplation I selected a pretty standard peach herbal tea and a rooibos/lemongrass mixture. This last choice is a bit of a gamble. The last time that I had a rooibos tea I was quite unimpressed. But as I sit hear and smell it as it steeps I believe that I may have made a good choice. I will let you know.
Crap, it turns out that nice smell was not coming from my tea but another source. The tea actually smells a bit funky, just like the last time I had it. I guess I really shouldn’t expect that much from something made from boiled twig bark.
Yup, still tastes like boiled twigs. It is unfortunate that I keep buying less that tasty herbal teas, at this rate I will have quite a collection by Christmas.
-I haven’t heard from Greg or Rick since they each moved to their respective ends of the earth. If they want to contact me to let me know how they are doing it would be appreciated.
-One should be very leery of the IMDB top 250. Hasn’t it struck some of you as strange that there are so many films from the last 5 years on the list. A movie gets a bit of a buzz and it shoots right up to no. 2 or 3. As the years go by it seems that this list has become less representative of good movies and more of big hits. A little bit of credibility is maintained by a few classics being spread throughout the list. I guess I should keep in mind that it is pretty open about the fact that it is based entirely on user votes and not dictated by movie gurus.
-About two hours ago I woke up from a short power nap and found myself completely disoriented and unable to think. It was a very strange and unpleasant experience. Hopefully this is not the beginning of a trend, because if it is I might have to give up the almighty name or just learn to deal with a few minutes of disorientation.
-My union meeting this afternoon was very informative. While I might not be the strongest union man my current feeling is that if I am going to give up 2% of my wages to be a member I should at least have a say in how they represent me and try to get them to fight for good things in our to be negotiated collective agreement.
-Earlier this afternoon, while visiting Val, I helped her out with her grocery shopping. While in the store I decided that I needed a few new herbal teas to replenish my diminishing stocks. Fortunately, the grocery store we were visiting had a better selection that the one that I typically frequent. After a few minutes of contemplation I selected a pretty standard peach herbal tea and a rooibos/lemongrass mixture. This last choice is a bit of a gamble. The last time that I had a rooibos tea I was quite unimpressed. But as I sit hear and smell it as it steeps I believe that I may have made a good choice. I will let you know.
Crap, it turns out that nice smell was not coming from my tea but another source. The tea actually smells a bit funky, just like the last time I had it. I guess I really shouldn’t expect that much from something made from boiled twig bark.
Yup, still tastes like boiled twigs. It is unfortunate that I keep buying less that tasty herbal teas, at this rate I will have quite a collection by Christmas.
-I haven’t heard from Greg or Rick since they each moved to their respective ends of the earth. If they want to contact me to let me know how they are doing it would be appreciated.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Borat
I can't believe I wasted an otherwise perfectly good coupon to see this movie. I've just returned from the theatre after having seen Borat with Rebecca. A lot of people might disagree with me on this, but this is the worst movie I can remember seeing in the past 5 years.
The theatre was almost sold out, with Rebecca and I just about perfectly in the middle of the crowd; if we had been closer to an aisle we would have left. This movie was crude, offensive and unintelligent.
The highlight of the movie was when Borat arrived in New York and the music playing was the same as when Joe Buck arrived in NYC in Midnight Cowboy, which I did really like, but still (editor's note: Rebecca actually pointed this out to me as it was happening).
I feel like the internet has betrayed me by giving me the impression this movie was worth my time to watch. I'm also pretty disappointed with IMDb's top 250 which has Borat at #149.
The theatre was almost sold out, with Rebecca and I just about perfectly in the middle of the crowd; if we had been closer to an aisle we would have left. This movie was crude, offensive and unintelligent.
The highlight of the movie was when Borat arrived in New York and the music playing was the same as when Joe Buck arrived in NYC in Midnight Cowboy, which I did really like, but still (editor's note: Rebecca actually pointed this out to me as it was happening).
I feel like the internet has betrayed me by giving me the impression this movie was worth my time to watch. I'm also pretty disappointed with IMDb's top 250 which has Borat at #149.
A Few Quick Notes 12
-Today has been a cold and rainy day. I became quite wet when I walked over to school earlier this afternoon.
-With this cold my room is finally a suitably cold temperature. For some reason I find a nice cold room to be a good place to accomplish work. When the fingers become cold to the touch you know it is just about right.
-Some herbal tea that I had been hoping to purchase was unavailable at the store where I had hoped to buy it. This is too bad as it was tasty and reasonably priced. Maybe it will become available in the next few days.
-While I have not finished any of my projects today I have been able to make considerable progress, or at least progress, on three. One in particular has seen some major advances. Tomorrow I will have to quickly work on an assignment that is due on Monday morning. It will also be necessary for me to work on a few other projects to some degree.
-The disease name “tumoral calcinosis” is frequently mis-used. It should only refer to a hereditary disease, which typically starts to affect individuals before the age of 20. Unfortunately, this term is frequently used to refer to any calcinosis, particularly calcinosis stemming from renal failure. If you are wondering what calcinosis is, it appears to be the accumulation of calcium in the body, sometime in tumor like forms. These forms can occasionally be visible (when the are large enough) and might be removed by surgery. When the disease is tumoral calcinosis these clumps tend to form around joints. The real disease is fortunately quite rare.
-The previous point demonstrates that valuable information can in fact be gleaned from abstracts.
-Ah, nice and cold.
-My schoolwork has not allowed me to read all of the Globe today, something that I quite like to do. Maybe I will some time tomorrow to polish of the last section or two that I would like to read.
-Unfortunately all of this schoolwork that I am having to deal with has pushed Montifax: the Board Game to the back burner. Hopefully in the next few days I will find some time to devote to the development of a side deck and a rulebook.
-With this cold my room is finally a suitably cold temperature. For some reason I find a nice cold room to be a good place to accomplish work. When the fingers become cold to the touch you know it is just about right.
-Some herbal tea that I had been hoping to purchase was unavailable at the store where I had hoped to buy it. This is too bad as it was tasty and reasonably priced. Maybe it will become available in the next few days.
-While I have not finished any of my projects today I have been able to make considerable progress, or at least progress, on three. One in particular has seen some major advances. Tomorrow I will have to quickly work on an assignment that is due on Monday morning. It will also be necessary for me to work on a few other projects to some degree.
-The disease name “tumoral calcinosis” is frequently mis-used. It should only refer to a hereditary disease, which typically starts to affect individuals before the age of 20. Unfortunately, this term is frequently used to refer to any calcinosis, particularly calcinosis stemming from renal failure. If you are wondering what calcinosis is, it appears to be the accumulation of calcium in the body, sometime in tumor like forms. These forms can occasionally be visible (when the are large enough) and might be removed by surgery. When the disease is tumoral calcinosis these clumps tend to form around joints. The real disease is fortunately quite rare.
-The previous point demonstrates that valuable information can in fact be gleaned from abstracts.
-Ah, nice and cold.
-My schoolwork has not allowed me to read all of the Globe today, something that I quite like to do. Maybe I will some time tomorrow to polish of the last section or two that I would like to read.
-Unfortunately all of this schoolwork that I am having to deal with has pushed Montifax: the Board Game to the back burner. Hopefully in the next few days I will find some time to devote to the development of a side deck and a rulebook.
Newfoundland Reunion
Last night seemed to be Newfoundland night at Thomson House. Within just a few hours I had identified four people that were either from Newfoundland or had attended Memorial.
As I am not one that normally seeks out residents of my home province I was somewhat surprised by the evenings findings.
The most impressive element was that a former classmate from High School was there with someone that I had met while at Harlow in 2002. They had also meet at Harlow and met again for the first time last night.
While the Newfoundland love-in was going on I started to ask a few questions about our union. What I learned quickly is that we are not one happy union family. Several staff members are very pro-union, for particular reasons. Other members of staff don’t really care and don’t exactly understand why we are unionized.
Some of these issues are likely to be brought up at the union meeting tomorrow. One of the most important issues may be whether or not we will remain unionized, as we haven’t even been able to sign a collective agreement so far.
As I am not one that normally seeks out residents of my home province I was somewhat surprised by the evenings findings.
The most impressive element was that a former classmate from High School was there with someone that I had met while at Harlow in 2002. They had also meet at Harlow and met again for the first time last night.
While the Newfoundland love-in was going on I started to ask a few questions about our union. What I learned quickly is that we are not one happy union family. Several staff members are very pro-union, for particular reasons. Other members of staff don’t really care and don’t exactly understand why we are unionized.
Some of these issues are likely to be brought up at the union meeting tomorrow. One of the most important issues may be whether or not we will remain unionized, as we haven’t even been able to sign a collective agreement so far.
Friday, November 10, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 11
-I was mentally prepared for rain today but it did not come. Instead I woke up to a very sunny day, oddly I was a little disappointed. I am over that now as the sun seemed to have the effect of waking me up more than I was before I entered its direct presence.
-Apparently the speaker that I mentioned yesterday has been replaced, by his boss. In an odd way this is a bit of a disappointment. I know that I wanted to see the head of Library and Archives Canada, not some ADM that has probably floated around Ottawa, going from department to department, for years.
-Aside from our guest speaker, it seems that some big hot shot will be coming to campus today. There was a very strong security presence and parking was restricted in certain places, even to McGill vehicles
-Yesterday I should have mentioned that Belinda and Bill were in town together for an anti-poverty event. As many of you may know, for several years now rumors have been floating around about the nature of the Belinda/Bill relationship.
-Apparently the speaker that I mentioned yesterday has been replaced, by his boss. In an odd way this is a bit of a disappointment. I know that I wanted to see the head of Library and Archives Canada, not some ADM that has probably floated around Ottawa, going from department to department, for years.
-Aside from our guest speaker, it seems that some big hot shot will be coming to campus today. There was a very strong security presence and parking was restricted in certain places, even to McGill vehicles
-Yesterday I should have mentioned that Belinda and Bill were in town together for an anti-poverty event. As many of you may know, for several years now rumors have been floating around about the nature of the Belinda/Bill relationship.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
My Own Version of “One Red Paperclip,” or How to make a Million
A few weeks ago I was thinking about the paperclip guy. Pretty neat alright. Start with a paperclip and turn it into fame and a house.
It seems that much of this was blog based, a game I am now playing. This guy’s success caused me to wonder if there might be a way that I could do something similar, though that would require less work on my part. I think I have figured it out.
It seems that with Blogspot blogs one can have a Google AdSense account. This means the more hits the more money that the site creators get, or at least this is my understanding of the situation. As you can see we don’t yet have one of these accounts so I have not had a chance to deal with all of the ins and outs of such an account.
Anyway, my plan or idea is that we can use one of these accounts to reach a goal of our one. We should become blogionaires (make a million dollars or more from blogging). All this would entail would be the mass distribution our URL and people that coming to visit out site. If it became a “project” people might be more into the whole idea.
The way I see this working is in a web like fashion. You, our loyal readers, send out our URL to everyone you know and explain the deal (we could actually come up with a short write to be included) and ask them to visit our blog. In this same message they would be asked to forward the address to their friends. To entice people we could commit to giving 90% of all money over a cool million a piece to charity, people would feel all warm and cuddly. If the idea starts to work we could also agree to help others with similar projects, soon enough we will all be blogionaires thanks to Google.
To show people that the plan is actually working we could post our payments. This would show people that with just a click of a mouse they can help two guys become blogionaires. The nice thing about this from our side is that we wouldn’t really have to do anything, or at least not much more than we are doing now. We could just sit back and watch the money roll in.
It seems that much of this was blog based, a game I am now playing. This guy’s success caused me to wonder if there might be a way that I could do something similar, though that would require less work on my part. I think I have figured it out.
It seems that with Blogspot blogs one can have a Google AdSense account. This means the more hits the more money that the site creators get, or at least this is my understanding of the situation. As you can see we don’t yet have one of these accounts so I have not had a chance to deal with all of the ins and outs of such an account.
Anyway, my plan or idea is that we can use one of these accounts to reach a goal of our one. We should become blogionaires (make a million dollars or more from blogging). All this would entail would be the mass distribution our URL and people that coming to visit out site. If it became a “project” people might be more into the whole idea.
The way I see this working is in a web like fashion. You, our loyal readers, send out our URL to everyone you know and explain the deal (we could actually come up with a short write to be included) and ask them to visit our blog. In this same message they would be asked to forward the address to their friends. To entice people we could commit to giving 90% of all money over a cool million a piece to charity, people would feel all warm and cuddly. If the idea starts to work we could also agree to help others with similar projects, soon enough we will all be blogionaires thanks to Google.
To show people that the plan is actually working we could post our payments. This would show people that with just a click of a mouse they can help two guys become blogionaires. The nice thing about this from our side is that we wouldn’t really have to do anything, or at least not much more than we are doing now. We could just sit back and watch the money roll in.
A Few Quick Notes 10
-It is raining in Montreal again. It seems as though we have had a fair bit of rain over the past few weeks.
-I have another long day of work ahead of me. These shifts are usually prefaced by long days at school.
-Ian Wilson, the head of Library and Archives Canada, will be speaking at McGill tomorrow. The downside of this event is that I will have to miss half of my lab to attend. Even though they want to maximize attendance they are unwilling to push it back by a half hour so that the full first year class can attend. I must say that I was really impressed with their logic.
-Project season here at McGill is definitely in full swing. I have a few due in the next few days and then a few more due about two weeks after that. Should be fun.
-As it is project season, I am once again drinking huge amounts of herbal tea. I would say that during a good night I can pound back 5-6 cups of the stuff. As it is, I am currently running rather low on the good stuff, and the bad stuff that I have I don’t think that I can drink. It is too bad that I didn’t take more advantage of a good herbal tea sale that took place a few weeks ago at one of the local grocery chains.
-There was a pretty funny political cartoon in the Gazette today. It showed Bush standing between Cheney and Rumsfeld. Bush was telling Rumsfeld that it would be ok, he was going to go hunting with Cheney.
-Parc Avenue seems to still be in the news here. We are just a few weeks away from the big vote. As it stands, we at Montifax, at least this humble contributor, are in support of it keeping the name Parc.
-I have another long day of work ahead of me. These shifts are usually prefaced by long days at school.
-Ian Wilson, the head of Library and Archives Canada, will be speaking at McGill tomorrow. The downside of this event is that I will have to miss half of my lab to attend. Even though they want to maximize attendance they are unwilling to push it back by a half hour so that the full first year class can attend. I must say that I was really impressed with their logic.
-Project season here at McGill is definitely in full swing. I have a few due in the next few days and then a few more due about two weeks after that. Should be fun.
-As it is project season, I am once again drinking huge amounts of herbal tea. I would say that during a good night I can pound back 5-6 cups of the stuff. As it is, I am currently running rather low on the good stuff, and the bad stuff that I have I don’t think that I can drink. It is too bad that I didn’t take more advantage of a good herbal tea sale that took place a few weeks ago at one of the local grocery chains.
-There was a pretty funny political cartoon in the Gazette today. It showed Bush standing between Cheney and Rumsfeld. Bush was telling Rumsfeld that it would be ok, he was going to go hunting with Cheney.
-Parc Avenue seems to still be in the news here. We are just a few weeks away from the big vote. As it stands, we at Montifax, at least this humble contributor, are in support of it keeping the name Parc.
The Web, my favourite bastion of permanence
So it turns out the web is a pretty transitory place. One day a website is there and another it is gone.
This was brought home to me again today, when preparing for a project, I found that a major library website that I had used just a few days ago is now finished. It has been sucked in by that exceptionally powerful, and useful, group that is OCLC.
One starts to expect a degree of permanence on the web. Each day you wake up, run to your computer and check your email and a host of other sites. What would happen if Gmail just vanished like any of these other web based services? I wouldn’t even want to think about how much information I would lose.
This causes me to wonder if there is a way of backing up or downloading a Gmail account? I have been wondering this for a while, as it seems like it might be nice. Certainly there are things that one might want to have access to in an offline environment.
This was brought home to me again today, when preparing for a project, I found that a major library website that I had used just a few days ago is now finished. It has been sucked in by that exceptionally powerful, and useful, group that is OCLC.
One starts to expect a degree of permanence on the web. Each day you wake up, run to your computer and check your email and a host of other sites. What would happen if Gmail just vanished like any of these other web based services? I wouldn’t even want to think about how much information I would lose.
This causes me to wonder if there is a way of backing up or downloading a Gmail account? I have been wondering this for a while, as it seems like it might be nice. Certainly there are things that one might want to have access to in an offline environment.
More lotto winnings
It's 1:08 and 12 degrees celsius in Halifax right now. The weather forecast tomorrow predicts 13 degree weather, with 30 - 40 mm of rain. I don't like warm weather with rain because I don't have a light rain jacket, oh well.
As you might know, on Saturday's 6/49 draw I won $73.50, because of this, my prediction and the $36 million jackpot I went all out and bought $2 x 5 tickets for Wednesday's 6/49 draw. On my first line I won $10, which I thought was pretty sweet (recouping money on lotto is far better than average). But what the hey, I might as well keep checking the rest of the ticket, which I did. On the fourth line I earned another $10. All the other lines were skunks. I'm definitely on a lotto hot-streak. Unfortunately, this Saturday's jackpot is on $4 million, so I'm hoping the Super 7 jackpot (currently $12) goes up enough for me to justify buying another ticket.
As you might know, on Saturday's 6/49 draw I won $73.50, because of this, my prediction and the $36 million jackpot I went all out and bought $2 x 5 tickets for Wednesday's 6/49 draw. On my first line I won $10, which I thought was pretty sweet (recouping money on lotto is far better than average). But what the hey, I might as well keep checking the rest of the ticket, which I did. On the fourth line I earned another $10. All the other lines were skunks. I'm definitely on a lotto hot-streak. Unfortunately, this Saturday's jackpot is on $4 million, so I'm hoping the Super 7 jackpot (currently $12) goes up enough for me to justify buying another ticket.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Rumsfeld to resign
CBC is reporting that Rumsfeld is to resign. That was a rather quick result of yesterday's election.
Election Night
Is it just me, or did any of you know that Ahnold was up for re-election tonight?
I can't believe I completely missed that race. At least I heard about Kinky Friedman running in Texas. Friedman is famous for being the front man for a band with the name of something along the lines of "Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys."
I can't believe I completely missed that race. At least I heard about Kinky Friedman running in Texas. Friedman is famous for being the front man for a band with the name of something along the lines of "Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys."
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Bean There, Done That
Today I did it again. I started to cook a bean dish without even thinking about what I was doing. I should know that I can’t cook beans.
Anyway, I ended up giving it a try. This time the dish was to be based on boiled black beans, a dish I first tried this summer when it was prepared for me by a Brazilian guest.
After several hours of boiling things started looking up. I started to get the consistency I was looking for.
It seems that I have finally had some degree of success while cooking with beans. It is about time.
The other good thing, aside from the flavour and texture, is the fact that I will now have leftovers for a while.
As I am obviously in a cooking mood and today is the day of the American mid-term elections, I thought that I would post a recipe that I created a while ago. The recipe was inspired by the current Secretary of State, you might be able to figure out this is when you look at the title of the dish.
Condolezza Rice
-A caramelized rice dessert
2/3-cup butter
1-cup brown sugar
1 shot rum or to taste
3 cups cooked basmati rice
Thickening agent of preparers choice (corn starch, gelatin, etc.)
Butter for greasing pan
Melt butter in pan over medium to low heat. When butter is fully melted add brown sugar over, still over medium heat. Bring this liquid to a boil for close to ten minutes. Add the rum and boil for about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add the cooked rice to the sugar/rum mixture and boil to desired consistency (doughy). Remove from heat and add thickening agent. Pour into greased loaf pan; press down to ensure proper loaf shape. Place in fridge for several hours to set. Once loaf as set turn onto platter, slice and serve.
Anyway, I ended up giving it a try. This time the dish was to be based on boiled black beans, a dish I first tried this summer when it was prepared for me by a Brazilian guest.
After several hours of boiling things started looking up. I started to get the consistency I was looking for.
It seems that I have finally had some degree of success while cooking with beans. It is about time.
The other good thing, aside from the flavour and texture, is the fact that I will now have leftovers for a while.
As I am obviously in a cooking mood and today is the day of the American mid-term elections, I thought that I would post a recipe that I created a while ago. The recipe was inspired by the current Secretary of State, you might be able to figure out this is when you look at the title of the dish.
Condolezza Rice
-A caramelized rice dessert
2/3-cup butter
1-cup brown sugar
1 shot rum or to taste
3 cups cooked basmati rice
Thickening agent of preparers choice (corn starch, gelatin, etc.)
Butter for greasing pan
Melt butter in pan over medium to low heat. When butter is fully melted add brown sugar over, still over medium heat. Bring this liquid to a boil for close to ten minutes. Add the rum and boil for about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add the cooked rice to the sugar/rum mixture and boil to desired consistency (doughy). Remove from heat and add thickening agent. Pour into greased loaf pan; press down to ensure proper loaf shape. Place in fridge for several hours to set. Once loaf as set turn onto platter, slice and serve.
Monday, November 06, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 9
-I finished my first New York Times crossword today. As some of you may know, Monday is the easy day so this isn’t that much of an accomplishment. As some of you may not know, each day these puzzles are printed in the Montreal Gazette. At my current skill level I am pretty stumped after Monday.
-Had a reference test today, I think it went pretty well. I guess we will see when I get it back.
-They take in the bike racks in Montreal during the winter. This is a bit of a pain. They are currently in the process of doing this even though there is no snow on the ground. Shortly I will have to find a place for my bike for the winter, and spend more time commuting to Val’s. This might mean that I will be buying a subway pass in the near future.
-Do I feel the rumblings of a kidney stone? I will let you know.
-Damn it, I just started to prepare a bean dish. What is it with me, why can’t I get them out of my system. Tomorrow night I am hoping to make a black bean dish. Hope it turns out, if it does it will be my first passable bean dish, other than humus, in a while.
-Just moments ago I spent about 30 minutes on the phone participating in a survey about mobility and access to various things in Canada. It basically boiled down to being asked all kinds of questions about how my mild case of dyslexia affected me at work, at school, at home, and in the wider world. The quick answer is “not at all.” Stats Canada wasn’t interested in the quick answer. I have a funny feeling that they are going to class me as access impaired and then mentioned that I didn’t feel impaired at all. Hopefully they weight my “impairment” more than I am giving them credit for doing.
-Had a reference test today, I think it went pretty well. I guess we will see when I get it back.
-They take in the bike racks in Montreal during the winter. This is a bit of a pain. They are currently in the process of doing this even though there is no snow on the ground. Shortly I will have to find a place for my bike for the winter, and spend more time commuting to Val’s. This might mean that I will be buying a subway pass in the near future.
-Do I feel the rumblings of a kidney stone? I will let you know.
-Damn it, I just started to prepare a bean dish. What is it with me, why can’t I get them out of my system. Tomorrow night I am hoping to make a black bean dish. Hope it turns out, if it does it will be my first passable bean dish, other than humus, in a while.
-Just moments ago I spent about 30 minutes on the phone participating in a survey about mobility and access to various things in Canada. It basically boiled down to being asked all kinds of questions about how my mild case of dyslexia affected me at work, at school, at home, and in the wider world. The quick answer is “not at all.” Stats Canada wasn’t interested in the quick answer. I have a funny feeling that they are going to class me as access impaired and then mentioned that I didn’t feel impaired at all. Hopefully they weight my “impairment” more than I am giving them credit for doing.
Sunday, November 05, 2006
The Home of Cool
I think that I found were all of the Hipsters live.
Last night, when on my way to a dinner engagement, I found this street sign.
Please don’t execute Saddam
Just moments ago I heard that the verdict in Saddam’s circus trial was execution. As far as I am concerned this is a mistake.
I am coming at this issue from a solely pragmatic perspective; I don’t want to see more death and violence in Iraq and abroad. How many people he may or may not have killed is no longer an issue, the issue has become the American regime change policy. His execution will spark more violence in an already violent society. The fact that an American puppet court has convicted Saddam will certainly be an issue for Iraqi residents.
A simple life sentence, while not being flashy, will allow the issue to be diffused. Above all, it is essential that he be allowed to die a natural death.
Making symbols out of these guys only makes them martyrs upon their deaths.
Nothing will be lost if he sits in a jail cell for the rest of his life. The American agenda will not be compromised if he is alive.
I am coming at this issue from a solely pragmatic perspective; I don’t want to see more death and violence in Iraq and abroad. How many people he may or may not have killed is no longer an issue, the issue has become the American regime change policy. His execution will spark more violence in an already violent society. The fact that an American puppet court has convicted Saddam will certainly be an issue for Iraqi residents.
A simple life sentence, while not being flashy, will allow the issue to be diffused. Above all, it is essential that he be allowed to die a natural death.
Making symbols out of these guys only makes them martyrs upon their deaths.
Nothing will be lost if he sits in a jail cell for the rest of his life. The American agenda will not be compromised if he is alive.
Lifetime winner
In September my Dad asked me if I planned on coming home before Christmas. I told him that I was planning on coming home in November after I won the lotto jackpot. Anywho, it's November now and the Lotto 6/49 jackpot was $24 (>20) million so I decided to play. I just checked my numbers a minute ago. I got 4 of 6 for which I win $73.50. This is definitely my biggest lotto win ever, and I think the biggest for my immediate family, just beating out my little sister. When she was about 3 my Dad had her pick some numbers for the 6/49. She picked 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19. I was upset because I said she didn't know what she was doing and it wasn't very fun. As you are probably now expecting, she won about $63.
With these new winnings of mine I claim again to be a lifetime lotto winner. I was beginning to think I might have lost more that I'd won, but now I'm sure again that I'm a lifetime winner. I even think I'll be so tomorrow after I re-invest some of my winnings to try for the $36 million dollar jackpot. If I get around to it I might try to figure out for you what the expected value of a ticket is.
With these new winnings of mine I claim again to be a lifetime lotto winner. I was beginning to think I might have lost more that I'd won, but now I'm sure again that I'm a lifetime winner. I even think I'll be so tomorrow after I re-invest some of my winnings to try for the $36 million dollar jackpot. If I get around to it I might try to figure out for you what the expected value of a ticket is.
Saturday, November 04, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 8
-It turns out that I did make the final cut of the mini-series Above and Beyond that I mentioned a few days ago. According to sources I am seen walking across the shot, as direct by the third assistant director, Terry Stone. Hopefully I will be able to see the scene, which apparently occurs about 16 minutes in.
-Val and I will be heading out for dinner tonight. We have been invited to the house of a friend of hers. I am looking forward to the event. Several weeks ago I met the friend and he seemed like a nice guy. I believe that this is the first time that both Val and I will meet his girlfriend.
-My room now has its first decorations, Christmas tree lights going around the ceiling moulding. When dark and just these lights are used a nice effect occurs.
Hopefully over the next few months I will be able to put something on the bare white walls. I am thinking about maps of Montreal and North America. This would useful reference tools. My plans also include newspaper photos, something that I did while at Keele (cheap and easy).
-Work was fine last night, generally a pretty quiet night. I ran into one of my instructors as well as a few classmates.
-I am in the midst of doing some laundry that I have been meaning to do for a while. While in the laundry room I noticed that for some reason there are all kinds of shoes down there. It is pretty strange.
-Val and I will be heading out for dinner tonight. We have been invited to the house of a friend of hers. I am looking forward to the event. Several weeks ago I met the friend and he seemed like a nice guy. I believe that this is the first time that both Val and I will meet his girlfriend.
-My room now has its first decorations, Christmas tree lights going around the ceiling moulding. When dark and just these lights are used a nice effect occurs.
Hopefully over the next few months I will be able to put something on the bare white walls. I am thinking about maps of Montreal and North America. This would useful reference tools. My plans also include newspaper photos, something that I did while at Keele (cheap and easy).
-Work was fine last night, generally a pretty quiet night. I ran into one of my instructors as well as a few classmates.
-I am in the midst of doing some laundry that I have been meaning to do for a while. While in the laundry room I noticed that for some reason there are all kinds of shoes down there. It is pretty strange.
Union Brother
When I received my first pay cheque from Thomson House I noticed that one of the deductions was “union dues.” This made me wonder, was I in a union? I sat on this piece of information for a while and didn’t really do anything about it until tonight.
As I was eating dinner with one of my colleagues I asked about the union dues thing. He was able to fill me in on some of the details. It seems that the union is called the CSA, though I don’t know what the initials mean, and that many of the people that used to be on the executive are no longer employed at Thomson House.
The end result seems to be that even though the union is new, it is on a downswing. In particular, many of the part-timers (students) don’t really see much need for union representation and don’t feel that they have the time to give to union duties. On top of that they don’t feel abused.
I will likely learn a bit more at the November 12 union meeting. While these meetings are typically not well attended I hope to go. I am not really sure what to expect as the only member of the executive left is the secretary.
As I was eating dinner with one of my colleagues I asked about the union dues thing. He was able to fill me in on some of the details. It seems that the union is called the CSA, though I don’t know what the initials mean, and that many of the people that used to be on the executive are no longer employed at Thomson House.
The end result seems to be that even though the union is new, it is on a downswing. In particular, many of the part-timers (students) don’t really see much need for union representation and don’t feel that they have the time to give to union duties. On top of that they don’t feel abused.
I will likely learn a bit more at the November 12 union meeting. While these meetings are typically not well attended I hope to go. I am not really sure what to expect as the only member of the executive left is the secretary.
Friday, November 03, 2006
What does the Canadian Wheat Board do?
For a while I have noticed that wheat prices in Canada seem to be much higher than they are in other places that I have purchase wheat (the US and the UK). Consequently, it seems that bread and other wheat products are also more expensive. This always strikes me as odd as we frequently hear that Canada is a great wheat-producing nation.
In some cases we seem to be told that that is all they do on prairies. They seem to have tons of it, year after year, it just keeps coming.
If this high level of production is in fact true, and not just an urban myth, then why does flour cost more here than in the low wheat production UK?
If we look back to the 1800s we see that the UK protected its own farmers with the Corn Acts, which fundamentally prohibited the import of grain, driving up prices. This worked for landowners because there was a scarcity of ability to grow grain, a scarcity that is even more noticeable today. These conditions agricultural conditions are not quite what we are dealing with in Canada, though the financial results seem to be similar.
Based on my elementary knowledge of economics I would have thought that even if we limited imports, because of our domestic production, prices would be moderate at worst (for the consumer). It seems that this is not in any way the case. We get hosed on wheat prices day after day, year after year.
I don’t know too much about the Canadian Wheat Board, but I suspect that this pseudo-monopolistic buyer must be causing some of this price distortion (though I can’t pin-point its effect). What I find odd is that I always thought that this type of enterprise was supposed to act on the world market and get better prices for the farmers. The system seems to have broken down in this case because it seems that it is mainly in domestic markets that better prices are being attained.
Maybe someone can shed some light on this and provide me with answers to the following questions.
-Do we limit the import of wheat and other grains?
-What is the world price for wheat and what is the price paid in Canada?
-If these conditions are the case, what is the total value of the implicit subsidy (artificially increased prices) that is received by effected wheat farmers combined with the on the books subsidies?
-Is the Canadian Wheat Board able to negotiate prices with major buyers?
In some cases we seem to be told that that is all they do on prairies. They seem to have tons of it, year after year, it just keeps coming.
If this high level of production is in fact true, and not just an urban myth, then why does flour cost more here than in the low wheat production UK?
If we look back to the 1800s we see that the UK protected its own farmers with the Corn Acts, which fundamentally prohibited the import of grain, driving up prices. This worked for landowners because there was a scarcity of ability to grow grain, a scarcity that is even more noticeable today. These conditions agricultural conditions are not quite what we are dealing with in Canada, though the financial results seem to be similar.
Based on my elementary knowledge of economics I would have thought that even if we limited imports, because of our domestic production, prices would be moderate at worst (for the consumer). It seems that this is not in any way the case. We get hosed on wheat prices day after day, year after year.
I don’t know too much about the Canadian Wheat Board, but I suspect that this pseudo-monopolistic buyer must be causing some of this price distortion (though I can’t pin-point its effect). What I find odd is that I always thought that this type of enterprise was supposed to act on the world market and get better prices for the farmers. The system seems to have broken down in this case because it seems that it is mainly in domestic markets that better prices are being attained.
Maybe someone can shed some light on this and provide me with answers to the following questions.
-Do we limit the import of wheat and other grains?
-What is the world price for wheat and what is the price paid in Canada?
-If these conditions are the case, what is the total value of the implicit subsidy (artificially increased prices) that is received by effected wheat farmers combined with the on the books subsidies?
-Is the Canadian Wheat Board able to negotiate prices with major buyers?
Teddy Bear’s Picnic Not Moving to Montreal
In today’s Gazette there is a letter from a Terry Reilly of Paradise. I am going to presume that this is the same Terry Reilly of the Teddy Bear’s Picnic fame.
It seems that Reilly, which ever one it may be, recently visited Montreal and found the lack of English signs and presence of complicated parking meters less than pleasant.
The author indicates that for him, “the romance is gone” from his view towards Montreal.
From the Anglo-tourist-dollars perspective we might conclude that “another one bites the dust.”
It seems that Reilly, which ever one it may be, recently visited Montreal and found the lack of English signs and presence of complicated parking meters less than pleasant.
The author indicates that for him, “the romance is gone” from his view towards Montreal.
From the Anglo-tourist-dollars perspective we might conclude that “another one bites the dust.”
Thursday, November 02, 2006
A Few Quick Notes 7
-Over the past few months the McGill library system has experienced a few changes. I have been given the impression that much of this seems to stem from a new library Director. At a talk I heard her give she seemed to confirm many of these impressions. She is very interested in the physical side of the library. New computers and chairs were a big deal. To make space for the new chairs and computers something had to give.
It turns out the reference section was what had to give. It has been decimated. Traditional, big name, reference sources have been moved out of the reference section to the stacks or to storage.
These absences have been felt intensely by the instructor and student in my reference class. Many of the sources that have been around for years have been removed, sometimes after promises of their presence.
It is striking that these items have been moved for several reasons. Firstly, it is quite clear that at least 60 individuals will be using these sources a year. That has to be more use than most other sources receive. Secondly, these are important, frequently ground breaking, reference sources that lead to major developments in the field and are still of use as retrospective work has not always been done. Thirdly, I am sure that having easy access to these sources would enhance work by researchers at McGill. Having them in the basement and available only by request is not easy access.
As McGill student newspapers would know, this issue has frequently graced the pages of the student press. It will be interesting to see if the changes, which have been largely negatively received, will cause a boiling point to be reached.
-I had the pleasure of meeting Val’s sister over lunch yesterday. It was a pleasant experience and I look forward to meeting her again.
-It seems that Lorraine Michaels won the Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi by-election.
-To be able to register for classes for next semester I have to see my advisor and have him approve my course selections. For days now I have been trying to do this. Unfortunately, every time I go he is either with someone else or away. Hopefully when I go back this afternoon I will be able to touch bases with him and get this out of the way.
-As I mentioned a few weeks ago, it has been proposed that Parc Avenue’s name will be changed to Robert Bourassa Blvd. I am officially coming out against this change. Of course, I am a bit after the boat.
Over the past few days more and more and more people are coming out against this change. Notably, many local city councilors have changed their position to now be against the change. The vote on November 27 will settle the issue.
It turns out the reference section was what had to give. It has been decimated. Traditional, big name, reference sources have been moved out of the reference section to the stacks or to storage.
These absences have been felt intensely by the instructor and student in my reference class. Many of the sources that have been around for years have been removed, sometimes after promises of their presence.
It is striking that these items have been moved for several reasons. Firstly, it is quite clear that at least 60 individuals will be using these sources a year. That has to be more use than most other sources receive. Secondly, these are important, frequently ground breaking, reference sources that lead to major developments in the field and are still of use as retrospective work has not always been done. Thirdly, I am sure that having easy access to these sources would enhance work by researchers at McGill. Having them in the basement and available only by request is not easy access.
As McGill student newspapers would know, this issue has frequently graced the pages of the student press. It will be interesting to see if the changes, which have been largely negatively received, will cause a boiling point to be reached.
-I had the pleasure of meeting Val’s sister over lunch yesterday. It was a pleasant experience and I look forward to meeting her again.
-It seems that Lorraine Michaels won the Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi by-election.
-To be able to register for classes for next semester I have to see my advisor and have him approve my course selections. For days now I have been trying to do this. Unfortunately, every time I go he is either with someone else or away. Hopefully when I go back this afternoon I will be able to touch bases with him and get this out of the way.
-As I mentioned a few weeks ago, it has been proposed that Parc Avenue’s name will be changed to Robert Bourassa Blvd. I am officially coming out against this change. Of course, I am a bit after the boat.
Over the past few days more and more and more people are coming out against this change. Notably, many local city councilors have changed their position to now be against the change. The vote on November 27 will settle the issue.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Hot Water
We didn't have any cold water this afternoon, and I am not sure if we have any yet as I haven't been home in a few hours.
I first discovered this problem when I stepped into the shower this afternoon. I was immediately surprised to feel a cold splash on my feet. Quickly I left the shower and performed a few quick tests to confirm that we truly did not have hot water.
I am really hoping that we are back in business by tomorrow morning, if not sooner, otherwise I am going to start to stink.
I first discovered this problem when I stepped into the shower this afternoon. I was immediately surprised to feel a cold splash on my feet. Quickly I left the shower and performed a few quick tests to confirm that we truly did not have hot water.
I am really hoping that we are back in business by tomorrow morning, if not sooner, otherwise I am going to start to stink.
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