-For the past few days, or at least the past day and a half, we have had a bit of snow. This hasn’t really been problematic as the amount we received has not been significant. Hopefully the temperature will stay below zero for the next couple of days so that we don’t just have puddles of slush at every corner.
-So far I a 0/4 on my Roll Up the Rim cups. This is not all that surprising. Actually, I have decided to see if I can beat my record of last year, which was something like 0/17 before I got a free coffee. I should also note that this year I have been able to use my newly acquired ‘rim roller,’ a small device that automatically unrolls a coffee cup rim to save one the hassle of having to do it with either one’s mouth or fingers. The only downside to this device is that the swath it unrolls isn’t quite as wide as I would like it to be.
-On Monday night I finally ditched my beard. This took a while as I had to do it with a pair of scissors and then a razor. For those of you that are curious, yes, I left the ‘stache, at least for the time being. So far I haven’t really noticed much of a difference in terms of quality of life or a diminishing number of people who look at me as though I am nuts (but this latter part is likely because of the shorts).
-Last night, for the first time, I went to Concordia to borrow some books from their library, a privilege afforded me because of reciporical borrowing agreements. I ended up selecting three books, at least two of which are not available at McGill. The only problem is that I now have to try not to mix these three up with the pile of books that I have that are from McGill. Fortunately, I have been able to read the necessary sections already, meaning that I should be able to return them shortly.
-As I mentioned a few days ago, I have decided to apply to do an M.A. in Political Science at Dalhousie. On Monday I submitted my application package and paid the necessary fee. I guess I will hear back from them at some point in the future, hope it all works out.
-More than in previous presidential elections, but this may just be my own persona perception, it seems that instead of the positions of the various candidates news sources are covering events as a battle for polling support. This means that what a candidate says is significantly less important than the fact that they said it to a group of union workers in Ohio on a Sunday.
Another problem with this year’s coverage is that candidates are able to say something outrageous, which is then reported almost verbatim, the veracity of the statement is never seen to be an issue worth examining. Particularly troubling are the claims by Hilary that she has more international relations experience than Obama.
This is troubling as it simply isn’t true. What is more troubling is that the two credentials that Hilary is tossing around are her experience as a senator, as well as her experience as first lady. As far as I can tell, neither of these two positions, the second of which isn’t even a formal position, involves any diplomatic responsibilities. Being one of a hundred people to approve a treaty is not even close to the same thing as negotiating a treaty.
I feel that the claim that living in the White House should count for experience is kind of like the idea of going to the spouse of your doctor for surgery, I mean they have lived with a surgeon for 20 years. Some of that knowledge and experience must have rubbed off, right?
(This should not be taken as a statement in support of or against any particular candidate, but rather as a call for better reporting of the campaigns of those running for President.)
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Apartment Update 4
-Almost everyday it seems that I am discovering new portions of our parquet floor that are no longer attached to the sub-floor. This trend is somewhat frustrating as it seems to be leading to the furthering of the problem. I feel that at some point, maybe even before we leave, most of the wooden slats will actually just be resting on the sub-floor, only kept in place by the presence of the other pieces and the force exerted by gravity.
-Over the past few weeks Nithum and I have had several periods of time during which we didn’t have water. It seems that as time is progressing these periods of waterlessness are increasing in frequency, as well as in vagueness of definition.
The instance of waterlessness several days ago included a relatively concise time frame during which we could expect to find ourselves without water. The outage scheduled for tomorrow includes no such details, and simply states that we should expect to be without water for the day. I really wish they had included a start time as it would have given me an indication of when to get up to ensure that I would have time for a shower before the outage.
Hopefully I remember to fill our Brita and a soup pot tonight.
-It seems that we may finally have to start paying for electricity, though who knows when we might actually get our first bill.
-During the frequent temperature fluctuations that we have experienced this winter it has become painfully obvious that our building is heated centrally and that the quantity of heating to be outputted is not dependant upon the amount actually needed. This means that on days like today when the temperature is above zero, the apartment has a tendency to be unbearably warm, leading me to go as far as to open several windows as well as our balcony door.
-Our freezer is pretty full.
-Over the past few weeks Nithum and I have had several periods of time during which we didn’t have water. It seems that as time is progressing these periods of waterlessness are increasing in frequency, as well as in vagueness of definition.
The instance of waterlessness several days ago included a relatively concise time frame during which we could expect to find ourselves without water. The outage scheduled for tomorrow includes no such details, and simply states that we should expect to be without water for the day. I really wish they had included a start time as it would have given me an indication of when to get up to ensure that I would have time for a shower before the outage.
Hopefully I remember to fill our Brita and a soup pot tonight.
-It seems that we may finally have to start paying for electricity, though who knows when we might actually get our first bill.
-During the frequent temperature fluctuations that we have experienced this winter it has become painfully obvious that our building is heated centrally and that the quantity of heating to be outputted is not dependant upon the amount actually needed. This means that on days like today when the temperature is above zero, the apartment has a tendency to be unbearably warm, leading me to go as far as to open several windows as well as our balcony door.
-Our freezer is pretty full.
A Few Quick Notes 156
-Today has been an absolutely beautiful day. Though the temperature is being reported as below zero, it certainly doesn’t feel that cold. Having the sun shining brightly hasn’t hurt things either.
-Because of the previously mentioned great weather, I decided to go for a walk shortly after I awoke this morning. Though most of my walk was indoors, as I went to the Staples by walking through connected shopping centers, it was nonetheless quite pleasant.
While at Staples I decided to try and buy some envelopes to go with the ream of paper that I had previously decided to buy. Shortly after arriving in the envelope section I learned that I could not buy five of the envelopes, only six or more. I also learned that for an additional 97 cents, I could have 25 envelopes instead of 6. Of course I ended up buying 25 instead of six, though I really can’t quite imagine what I will be doing with more than about four of them.
-As it is a nice day today, and as I purchased some milk a few days ago, I decided to bake some bread. While all seems to be going well, I have noticed that the dough is taking longer than usual to rise to the appropriate level.
-It seems likely that for dinner tonight I will try to continue my recent tradition of success with chickpea curries. In a change of tradition, I think that I may try to do something with beef instead of chicken. Hopefully the fact that I won’t really be changing my spicing all that much won’t be all that problematic.
-Because of the previously mentioned great weather, I decided to go for a walk shortly after I awoke this morning. Though most of my walk was indoors, as I went to the Staples by walking through connected shopping centers, it was nonetheless quite pleasant.
While at Staples I decided to try and buy some envelopes to go with the ream of paper that I had previously decided to buy. Shortly after arriving in the envelope section I learned that I could not buy five of the envelopes, only six or more. I also learned that for an additional 97 cents, I could have 25 envelopes instead of 6. Of course I ended up buying 25 instead of six, though I really can’t quite imagine what I will be doing with more than about four of them.
-As it is a nice day today, and as I purchased some milk a few days ago, I decided to bake some bread. While all seems to be going well, I have noticed that the dough is taking longer than usual to rise to the appropriate level.
-It seems likely that for dinner tonight I will try to continue my recent tradition of success with chickpea curries. In a change of tradition, I think that I may try to do something with beef instead of chicken. Hopefully the fact that I won’t really be changing my spicing all that much won’t be all that problematic.
Best Function Ever
A few weeks ago I was offered the chance to work at a function. Shortly after agreeing to take the shift I learned that it was to be some kind of Ukrainian dinner, though details were on the sparse side. The up side was that not only was it a dinner, but there was also to be live entertainment in the form of a band.
As the date drew nearer I became more and more excited about the prospect of the band being a Ukrainian band of some sort, and the possibility of the guests engaging in some form of traditional dancing.
Upon mentioning this hope to my co-workers I sensed a degree of skepticism about the likelihood of such events transpiring. The general belief seemed to be that it would just be a normal, run of the mill North American rock band to which the patrons may or may not dance.
My hopes were somewhat dashed when upon showing up for work I learned that during the band’s sound check they had played nothing but standard issue rock stuff, and that they were particularly loud.
Nevertheless, I managed to hold out some hope that the evening would be other what all the signs were suggesting it would be.
As the organizers began to arrive and discuss various logistical issues, which were many, I began to worry even more. Not only were things behind schedule, more dinner tickets were sold than seats were available. Fallback plans were constantly being made and then changed. The general level of stress among the organizers was quite high. The staff seemed to be an outlet for some of the tension.
Eventually, after much debate, and about an hour behind schedule, dinner was served. Upon finishing the salad course there was a round of speeches, the presence of which was unexpected by us, the individuals responsible for clearing the salad plates. Eventually, things progressed and we started to serve the main course.
Though I had been dreading it, I finally got my first serving experience at the function. All things considered, it was pretty easy as there was only one meal option, meaning that everyone just got a plate as we worked methodically through the room.
Soon enough everyone had been served and we were sent to go and eat ourselves. After our short break I returned to the door, where I then stayed for some period of time. Though unintentional, this move meant that I was not involved in either the clearing of the dinner plates, or the serving of desert.
Eventually, just before the band started, I returned to the ballroom to help clear away some of the remaining dishes. For the most part this meant picking up coffee cups, water glasses, and milk pitchers. This tends to be my favourite type of busing, maybe just because it the most familiar to me. Soon enough things were looking pretty neat and tidy and everyone was ready to party.
Almost as soon as the band took the stage it was clear that they were not just a run of the mill North American rock band, they were in fact a Ukrainian rock band (though I still have no idea whether they were playing original music or covers). As soon as they started playing patron’s started dancing, and were they ever dancing. Many females took their shoes off, though a surprising number left their shoes one, and soon found men to dance with. These people were really spinning and jumping at quite incredible speeds. That no one was injured was incredible. Also, that they were able to maintain the same level of energy throughout the night was also shocking.
This turn of events quite pleased me, as it was exactly what I had been hoping for from the time I learned what the event was to be.
As the night progressed and the band played on things kept this frantic pace. Eventually, when 2:30 rolled around, last call was announced and the staff was informed by the organizer that to cap off the night the revelers would be dancing in a circle. As obscure as this may sound, the meaning was immediately obvious to those of us present.
As soon as they formed the circle and the band started to play people would jump into the middle and perform some kind of solo Ukrainian dance for some number of measure before passing the spotlight off to another person or group of individuals. Basically all of the male participants demonstrated both that they were quite strong and flexible, and had maintained an ability to jump to much higher than most members of society.
For the most part the styles of these solos were quite like what most people would imagine, only performed at a much greater pace and with more energy. As the dance went one several solos involving both males and females took place, the most impressive of which involved two males locking arms to form a nucleus of a line, each also locking arms with a female to form the extremity of the line. This foursome then started to spin. As they picked up speed the females on the ends picked up their feet and the males in the center continued to spin, holding the girls above the ground as they went round and round. Myself and the other members of the staff were pretty blown away, and continued to be surprised with almost every solo.
One of the more impressive parts of the affair was that it was possible to see some of the females figuring our their choreography on the side, only moments before they took stage. In almost all instances, this recently improvised routine gave the impressions of both practice and spontaneity.
At one point, one of the guys, while jumping in a rather incredible fashion, managed to split his jeans. The tear was pretty impressive and soon over a foot long. After leaving the spotlight, he came to near where the staff was standing to examine the damage. It seems that not only did he really mangle his pants, but also managed to ‘sprain’ his ‘balls.’
After what must have been at least a half-hour, the circle came to an end, and the band played a final piece before unplugging and starting to pack up.
Instead of this causing people to leave, they instead, in unison, began to sing Ukrainian songs. Most impressive about this was not the somewhat intoxicated singing but that it was both good and involved several parts, somewhat more reminiscent of a choir rather than a mass of revelers.
Eventually people did make their way out and we were able to get on with the post-party clean up. Amazingly, thing went surprisingly quickly and we were able to make good progress. Though I don’t remember the time, we were finished at a much earlier hour than I would have expected (though it was still pretty late).
While tips weren’t amazing, and the night started off on the wrong foot, I will definitely go as far as to state that it was the most enjoyable function I have ever worked. As far as I know, none of my co-workers thought that this claim should be disputed, as they too were pretty impressed by the circle, if not by the Ukrainian rock band.
As the date drew nearer I became more and more excited about the prospect of the band being a Ukrainian band of some sort, and the possibility of the guests engaging in some form of traditional dancing.
Upon mentioning this hope to my co-workers I sensed a degree of skepticism about the likelihood of such events transpiring. The general belief seemed to be that it would just be a normal, run of the mill North American rock band to which the patrons may or may not dance.
My hopes were somewhat dashed when upon showing up for work I learned that during the band’s sound check they had played nothing but standard issue rock stuff, and that they were particularly loud.
Nevertheless, I managed to hold out some hope that the evening would be other what all the signs were suggesting it would be.
As the organizers began to arrive and discuss various logistical issues, which were many, I began to worry even more. Not only were things behind schedule, more dinner tickets were sold than seats were available. Fallback plans were constantly being made and then changed. The general level of stress among the organizers was quite high. The staff seemed to be an outlet for some of the tension.
Eventually, after much debate, and about an hour behind schedule, dinner was served. Upon finishing the salad course there was a round of speeches, the presence of which was unexpected by us, the individuals responsible for clearing the salad plates. Eventually, things progressed and we started to serve the main course.
Though I had been dreading it, I finally got my first serving experience at the function. All things considered, it was pretty easy as there was only one meal option, meaning that everyone just got a plate as we worked methodically through the room.
Soon enough everyone had been served and we were sent to go and eat ourselves. After our short break I returned to the door, where I then stayed for some period of time. Though unintentional, this move meant that I was not involved in either the clearing of the dinner plates, or the serving of desert.
Eventually, just before the band started, I returned to the ballroom to help clear away some of the remaining dishes. For the most part this meant picking up coffee cups, water glasses, and milk pitchers. This tends to be my favourite type of busing, maybe just because it the most familiar to me. Soon enough things were looking pretty neat and tidy and everyone was ready to party.
Almost as soon as the band took the stage it was clear that they were not just a run of the mill North American rock band, they were in fact a Ukrainian rock band (though I still have no idea whether they were playing original music or covers). As soon as they started playing patron’s started dancing, and were they ever dancing. Many females took their shoes off, though a surprising number left their shoes one, and soon found men to dance with. These people were really spinning and jumping at quite incredible speeds. That no one was injured was incredible. Also, that they were able to maintain the same level of energy throughout the night was also shocking.
This turn of events quite pleased me, as it was exactly what I had been hoping for from the time I learned what the event was to be.
As the night progressed and the band played on things kept this frantic pace. Eventually, when 2:30 rolled around, last call was announced and the staff was informed by the organizer that to cap off the night the revelers would be dancing in a circle. As obscure as this may sound, the meaning was immediately obvious to those of us present.
As soon as they formed the circle and the band started to play people would jump into the middle and perform some kind of solo Ukrainian dance for some number of measure before passing the spotlight off to another person or group of individuals. Basically all of the male participants demonstrated both that they were quite strong and flexible, and had maintained an ability to jump to much higher than most members of society.
For the most part the styles of these solos were quite like what most people would imagine, only performed at a much greater pace and with more energy. As the dance went one several solos involving both males and females took place, the most impressive of which involved two males locking arms to form a nucleus of a line, each also locking arms with a female to form the extremity of the line. This foursome then started to spin. As they picked up speed the females on the ends picked up their feet and the males in the center continued to spin, holding the girls above the ground as they went round and round. Myself and the other members of the staff were pretty blown away, and continued to be surprised with almost every solo.
One of the more impressive parts of the affair was that it was possible to see some of the females figuring our their choreography on the side, only moments before they took stage. In almost all instances, this recently improvised routine gave the impressions of both practice and spontaneity.
At one point, one of the guys, while jumping in a rather incredible fashion, managed to split his jeans. The tear was pretty impressive and soon over a foot long. After leaving the spotlight, he came to near where the staff was standing to examine the damage. It seems that not only did he really mangle his pants, but also managed to ‘sprain’ his ‘balls.’
After what must have been at least a half-hour, the circle came to an end, and the band played a final piece before unplugging and starting to pack up.
Instead of this causing people to leave, they instead, in unison, began to sing Ukrainian songs. Most impressive about this was not the somewhat intoxicated singing but that it was both good and involved several parts, somewhat more reminiscent of a choir rather than a mass of revelers.
Eventually people did make their way out and we were able to get on with the post-party clean up. Amazingly, thing went surprisingly quickly and we were able to make good progress. Though I don’t remember the time, we were finished at a much earlier hour than I would have expected (though it was still pretty late).
While tips weren’t amazing, and the night started off on the wrong foot, I will definitely go as far as to state that it was the most enjoyable function I have ever worked. As far as I know, none of my co-workers thought that this claim should be disputed, as they too were pretty impressed by the circle, if not by the Ukrainian rock band.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 155
-Today, as predicted by Environment Canada, was quite warm. As far as I can tell, there wasn't a part of the day during which a full winter coat was needed, and when the sun was out during the middle part of the day things were really quite pleasant. Since that time there has been some deterioration in the form of precipitation, but nothing major.
-As regular readers of this blog will know, for years I have had an inability it cook beans and other legumes in a personally satisfactory manner. Somewhat surprisingly, this does not mean that I have stopped trying. Actually, my culinary efforts have been quite to the contrary, bean dishes spring forth from our fertile kitchen with a surprising rapidity. The problem is that most of these dishes verge on inedibility.
Remarkably, for dinner tonight I managed to make a bean dish that was more than just edible, it was actually tasty.
For some reason I decided that I would try to make chickpea curry. To find out how to do this I slotted both words into a handy Google search box. If I recall correctly I examined only the first entry and found that I had all of the needed ingredients (why go further just to find that I wouldn't be able to make another version of the same thing).
Of course, being me, I decided that I didn't really need to follow the recipe and would rather just use it as a form of guidance.
Within a few minutes I was on my merry way, frying onions and tossing in unmeasured quantities of spices.
One early, though major, modification was to add a chicken breast. This was mainly because I had earlier in the day thawed the piece of meat and felt that it would be best to use it before it spoiled. Also, who wants to eat a meal that doesn't have at least some form of meat?
After allowing the meat, chickpeas, and spices to simmer for some period of time I added a few stalks of celery. I didn't have a particularly good reason for making this addition, but I guess I felt that I should have some fresh vegetables with my meal.
Anyway, after allowing the celery to cook with the rest of the dish for some period of time I served myself a generous portion on top of a bed of rice. Immediately I was surprised to find that it was edible. As I continued to eat I learned that it was not just edible but tasty. Maybe I will have to try this again in the future, or maybe I want to stop cooking beans/legumes on a high note.
-For some reason all of people covered by today's Globe and Mail Obituary section were quite young. If I recall correctly, the oldest individual to be profiled was 67, while one or two were in the 56-57 range. Such a range of ages is much more depressing than the typical coverage of ninety year-olds.
-As regular readers of this blog will know, for years I have had an inability it cook beans and other legumes in a personally satisfactory manner. Somewhat surprisingly, this does not mean that I have stopped trying. Actually, my culinary efforts have been quite to the contrary, bean dishes spring forth from our fertile kitchen with a surprising rapidity. The problem is that most of these dishes verge on inedibility.
Remarkably, for dinner tonight I managed to make a bean dish that was more than just edible, it was actually tasty.
For some reason I decided that I would try to make chickpea curry. To find out how to do this I slotted both words into a handy Google search box. If I recall correctly I examined only the first entry and found that I had all of the needed ingredients (why go further just to find that I wouldn't be able to make another version of the same thing).
Of course, being me, I decided that I didn't really need to follow the recipe and would rather just use it as a form of guidance.
Within a few minutes I was on my merry way, frying onions and tossing in unmeasured quantities of spices.
One early, though major, modification was to add a chicken breast. This was mainly because I had earlier in the day thawed the piece of meat and felt that it would be best to use it before it spoiled. Also, who wants to eat a meal that doesn't have at least some form of meat?
After allowing the meat, chickpeas, and spices to simmer for some period of time I added a few stalks of celery. I didn't have a particularly good reason for making this addition, but I guess I felt that I should have some fresh vegetables with my meal.
Anyway, after allowing the celery to cook with the rest of the dish for some period of time I served myself a generous portion on top of a bed of rice. Immediately I was surprised to find that it was edible. As I continued to eat I learned that it was not just edible but tasty. Maybe I will have to try this again in the future, or maybe I want to stop cooking beans/legumes on a high note.
-For some reason all of people covered by today's Globe and Mail Obituary section were quite young. If I recall correctly, the oldest individual to be profiled was 67, while one or two were in the 56-57 range. Such a range of ages is much more depressing than the typical coverage of ninety year-olds.
Monday, February 18, 2008
How can I read on after this?
In an article I was reading about William Caxton, the first person to print English language materials, the author suggested that most illiterate members of 15th century English society wouldn't have been able to read latin. As we are talking about illiterate people I think that we are on pretty safe ground with this assertion. Unfortunately, about a line later the author goes on to suggest that "the presence of latin lends authority in a way that would have discouraged pulling down Caxton's bill [poster] even among the ill-lettered."
For this to make sense we must be talking about the type of illiterates who, though they can't read, can distinguish between two different languages printed in the same (gothic) script. These individuals were then able to determine that because one of the languages present is latin that they shouldn't tear down the poster, which, had it been only in English, would have been the obvious action for most of them.
It is pretty hard to keep reading something after encountering such a train of thought.
For this to make sense we must be talking about the type of illiterates who, though they can't read, can distinguish between two different languages printed in the same (gothic) script. These individuals were then able to determine that because one of the languages present is latin that they shouldn't tear down the poster, which, had it been only in English, would have been the obvious action for most of them.
It is pretty hard to keep reading something after encountering such a train of thought.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Curling Clip
Yesterday a few of us library school types went curling. Officially, this was a McGill ACA sponsored event, though there were many more library students than archives students. As far as I could tell, everyone had a good time. Hopefully this sentiment is evidenced in this short clip.
[Embedded Video]
[Embedded Video]
MPs?
Just a few moments ago I happened to see the descriptors following the names of various national politicians.
After the names of those individuals who were members of the House of Commons the letters 'MP' appeared. After the Senator's name it said 'Senator.'
In many ways this seems somewhat strange because both Senators and members of the House of Commons are members of Parliament. How is it that common usage has developed in such a way that only members of the House of Commons are referred to in this way?
Presumably this has something to do with the corresponding usage practices that have developed in the UK, though it might be interesting to know if this has always been the case. I wonder if there has been a time when Lords were known as MPs?
Surely all of you are equally as concerned with this question and will likely lose some amount of sleep in the coming days, at least on until some sort of resolution has been reached.
After the names of those individuals who were members of the House of Commons the letters 'MP' appeared. After the Senator's name it said 'Senator.'
In many ways this seems somewhat strange because both Senators and members of the House of Commons are members of Parliament. How is it that common usage has developed in such a way that only members of the House of Commons are referred to in this way?
Presumably this has something to do with the corresponding usage practices that have developed in the UK, though it might be interesting to know if this has always been the case. I wonder if there has been a time when Lords were known as MPs?
Surely all of you are equally as concerned with this question and will likely lose some amount of sleep in the coming days, at least on until some sort of resolution has been reached.
A Few Quick Notes 154
-While the past few days had been quite cool, today is significantly warmer. When I first went out today I was surprised to find that a full winter coat wasn’t really necessary. More recently, some wet-ish snow has started falling and melting in the above zero temperatures.
-In the past few days I have been listening to the The Sound of Young America family of podcasts. In particular, I have been listening to The Sound of Young of America and Jordan, Jesse, GO, both of which are particularly enjoyable in remarkably different ways.
-For the past few days I have also been trying to work on a grad school application. While I have been putting in hours the product doesn’t seem to be materializing. For some reason I seem to be handcuffed in terms of productivity. I wish that I could find a way past this impediment (the same holds true with other academic work).
-Yesterday about 20 library school types went curling at the Royal Montreal Curling Club. Officially, the event was held by the library school wing of the ACA (a Canadian archives organization), though more participants were from the library stream. The other thing that was noticeable was that most of the participants were library rather than archives students.
While I was one of the more experienced curlers I didn’t really manage to make all that many shots. Part of this I blame on the curling club liaison indicating that the ice was fast, something that was quite clearly not the case.
Fortunately, I was able to impress people with my yelling of ‘hurry’ and ‘hard.’ Most people don’t quite expect me to be as loud as I am.
-Last night I made some nice chicken, potato, and vegetable soup. I will likely have some of this for dinner tonight, how exciting.
-In the past few days I have been listening to the The Sound of Young America family of podcasts. In particular, I have been listening to The Sound of Young of America and Jordan, Jesse, GO, both of which are particularly enjoyable in remarkably different ways.
-For the past few days I have also been trying to work on a grad school application. While I have been putting in hours the product doesn’t seem to be materializing. For some reason I seem to be handcuffed in terms of productivity. I wish that I could find a way past this impediment (the same holds true with other academic work).
-Yesterday about 20 library school types went curling at the Royal Montreal Curling Club. Officially, the event was held by the library school wing of the ACA (a Canadian archives organization), though more participants were from the library stream. The other thing that was noticeable was that most of the participants were library rather than archives students.
While I was one of the more experienced curlers I didn’t really manage to make all that many shots. Part of this I blame on the curling club liaison indicating that the ice was fast, something that was quite clearly not the case.
Fortunately, I was able to impress people with my yelling of ‘hurry’ and ‘hard.’ Most people don’t quite expect me to be as loud as I am.
-Last night I made some nice chicken, potato, and vegetable soup. I will likely have some of this for dinner tonight, how exciting.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 153
-Today is another standard winter’s day in Montreal. If I recall correctly, temperatures have been below zero and we were blessed with a few flurries.
-Last night, while laying in bed reading I heard the building power down and saw lights flash off. After a brief investigation I noticed that the Hydro Quebec truck was stationed outside our apartment building, seemingly working on things. This suggested to me that we would be without power for some number of hours (as was the case last time they worked in the same way).
My main concern was how I would go about waking up the next morning as my alarm clock was plugged into a non-functional power outlet. After a few minutes I decided that I would bank on the power being back on by 8:30 AM.
I set my iPod alarm and then hooked it up to my speakers, making sure that both were also plugged in. My desire being that the power would be back and that the speakers would be powered by the time I wanted to wake up.
Fortunately, by about 5:17 AM the power came on and I was able to ensure that my normal alarm was properly set so that I would be up for class.
-Tonight I made some short bread. It came out a little differently than I expected, so I hope it is edible. One of the surprising things about most of the recipes that I came across was that they called for brown sugar when I would have expected white sugar.
-The several times that I have tried to buy beef for roasting this week have failed. It seems that the stores either don’t have, or are out of the appropriate sale cuts of beef.
-Last night, while laying in bed reading I heard the building power down and saw lights flash off. After a brief investigation I noticed that the Hydro Quebec truck was stationed outside our apartment building, seemingly working on things. This suggested to me that we would be without power for some number of hours (as was the case last time they worked in the same way).
My main concern was how I would go about waking up the next morning as my alarm clock was plugged into a non-functional power outlet. After a few minutes I decided that I would bank on the power being back on by 8:30 AM.
I set my iPod alarm and then hooked it up to my speakers, making sure that both were also plugged in. My desire being that the power would be back and that the speakers would be powered by the time I wanted to wake up.
Fortunately, by about 5:17 AM the power came on and I was able to ensure that my normal alarm was properly set so that I would be up for class.
-Tonight I made some short bread. It came out a little differently than I expected, so I hope it is edible. One of the surprising things about most of the recipes that I came across was that they called for brown sugar when I would have expected white sugar.
-The several times that I have tried to buy beef for roasting this week have failed. It seems that the stores either don’t have, or are out of the appropriate sale cuts of beef.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 152
-Today has been a somewhat overcast, damp day. Instead of nice forms of precipitation such as snow or hale, we received batches of rather unimpressive drizzle throughout the day. This drizzle was accompanied by temperatures just hovering slightly above zero, allowing for plenty of slush and water at each intersection.
-If I recall correctly, some snow removal was done in my part of town yesterday night, or certainly between last night and Saturday.
As I was operating under this assumption, I was somewhat surprised to hear the snow-removal procession moving my way this evening. More upsetting was that they decided to do this while I was trying to take a nap.
-Nithum and I have started the cupboard and closet emptying process that must be complete by tomorrow morning at 8:30. Though we have to stay out of the apartment for at least four hours after the treatment, they haven’t given us a precise time at which we might expect the treatment to occur, or some way of knowing when we might expect to be able to make it back into the apartment.
The particularly strange thing about the process is that they request that we don’t clean the treated surfaces for a month. This would seem to be a somewhat hazardous concept as they locations in question are where we store our food, plates, cups, and glasses. Maybe it is that the stuff they are using to keep cockroaches away isn’t all that poisonous.
-Last night I happened to notice all kinds of flashing lights at about 9:30 or 10:00 PM. Once I got up to survey the situation I learned that about four fire trucks were responding to some kind of situation at the large apartment building across the street from us. All kinds of people had exited the building and were standing on the front steps. Fortunately, after only a few minutes the investigation found nothing dangerous and the residents were given the all clear signal. What an inconvenience in the winter.
-Today I was introduced to a social tagging game that has been developed by the McCord Museum. Strangely, the goal of the project is to accumulate a wide variety of words to describe photos, yet points are given for common answers. This means that the best way to win is to supply the most obvious answers, though this may be completely contrary to what the project is hoping to collect. It seems a somewhat ill conceived concept, or that the game is promoting something contrary to the primary goal of the project.
-I guess in the very near future I might want to check out some of the preliminary Super Tuesday results.
-If I recall correctly, some snow removal was done in my part of town yesterday night, or certainly between last night and Saturday.
As I was operating under this assumption, I was somewhat surprised to hear the snow-removal procession moving my way this evening. More upsetting was that they decided to do this while I was trying to take a nap.
-Nithum and I have started the cupboard and closet emptying process that must be complete by tomorrow morning at 8:30. Though we have to stay out of the apartment for at least four hours after the treatment, they haven’t given us a precise time at which we might expect the treatment to occur, or some way of knowing when we might expect to be able to make it back into the apartment.
The particularly strange thing about the process is that they request that we don’t clean the treated surfaces for a month. This would seem to be a somewhat hazardous concept as they locations in question are where we store our food, plates, cups, and glasses. Maybe it is that the stuff they are using to keep cockroaches away isn’t all that poisonous.
-Last night I happened to notice all kinds of flashing lights at about 9:30 or 10:00 PM. Once I got up to survey the situation I learned that about four fire trucks were responding to some kind of situation at the large apartment building across the street from us. All kinds of people had exited the building and were standing on the front steps. Fortunately, after only a few minutes the investigation found nothing dangerous and the residents were given the all clear signal. What an inconvenience in the winter.
-Today I was introduced to a social tagging game that has been developed by the McCord Museum. Strangely, the goal of the project is to accumulate a wide variety of words to describe photos, yet points are given for common answers. This means that the best way to win is to supply the most obvious answers, though this may be completely contrary to what the project is hoping to collect. It seems a somewhat ill conceived concept, or that the game is promoting something contrary to the primary goal of the project.
-I guess in the very near future I might want to check out some of the preliminary Super Tuesday results.
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Apartment Update 3
-It seems that on Wednesday Nithum and I will have to vacate our apartment for some number of hours to accommodate a visit by the exterminator. In the notice we received were told that this visit is pre-emptive in nature (is this the same thing as ‘shock and awe?).
While this shouldn’t be too big a deal, the major problem is that all of the cupboards in the kitchen and bathroom need to be emptied. This will presumably take some amount of time and be of some inconvenience. My initial thought is that I should reassemble some of the moving boxes that we have and quickly load them up and then place them in the living room.
We also have to clear out the floors of our closets, which shouldn’t take me too long in the context of my bedroom. In the context of the main coat closet this may not be the case, particularly as it will involve moving a large air conditioning unit, boxes, and a sleeping pad.
Actually, the worst part about it all is that it means that we need to vacate the premises by 8:30 and then remain out for a number of hours, before coming back to our torn apart dwelling.
-It seems that the number of sections of our parquet floor that are not actually attached to the floor is growing. My theory is that the lose pieced move and then knock free additional pieces, causing the problem to grow at an almost uncontrollable rate.
-I have installed my first piece of bottle-cap art in the living room. We now have a ‘flower’ coming out of the ground with the sun shining above. Pretty classy if I may say so myself.
While this shouldn’t be too big a deal, the major problem is that all of the cupboards in the kitchen and bathroom need to be emptied. This will presumably take some amount of time and be of some inconvenience. My initial thought is that I should reassemble some of the moving boxes that we have and quickly load them up and then place them in the living room.
We also have to clear out the floors of our closets, which shouldn’t take me too long in the context of my bedroom. In the context of the main coat closet this may not be the case, particularly as it will involve moving a large air conditioning unit, boxes, and a sleeping pad.
Actually, the worst part about it all is that it means that we need to vacate the premises by 8:30 and then remain out for a number of hours, before coming back to our torn apart dwelling.
-It seems that the number of sections of our parquet floor that are not actually attached to the floor is growing. My theory is that the lose pieced move and then knock free additional pieces, causing the problem to grow at an almost uncontrollable rate.
-I have installed my first piece of bottle-cap art in the living room. We now have a ‘flower’ coming out of the ground with the sun shining above. Pretty classy if I may say so myself.
A Few Quick Notes 151
-Today was another relatively standard winter day, not too far below zero, but with a little snow to remind people that it is definitely still winter.
-It seems that today is Stupor Bowl Sunday. I am surprised at how many of the people I know in Montreal have plans that related to watching this event. Particularly surprising is that I can’t see most of them as sports fan (but that may just be because I have a hard time understanding how anyone can be a sports fan).
-After completing a little work on campus I returned home. On my way back I stopped at a grocery store. Though I had originally intended to pick up one or two items, I eventually purchased almost $25.00 worth of goods (most of which were sale items). Unfortunately, I didn’t forget to buy a few cans of water chestnuts (as they will only be on sale until midnight tonight).
-Though I was a little worried about my shift last night, it turned out to be nothing to be scared of. We ended up with about 250 McGill residence dwellers for just over two hours. In part, that this party was tolerable may have been because of the brevity.
One of the more impressive sights at the party (which was to be a New Year’s Eve party) was a table covered in about 250 glasses of sparkling white wine. Not surprisingly, there was somewhat of a feeding frenzy type atmosphere surrounding the table. After talking with one of my co-workers who was more closely involved with the filling of the glasses, I am pretty sure that this was likely even truer that I was able to tell from my few quick glimpses of the scene.
In part because of the number of glasses used for the sparkling white wine, but also just generally it seemed as though it was a good night for stemmed glassware. We seemed to switch from our typical focus on pitchers of beer to glasses of wine.
The downside of the shift is that I didn’t make it back to the apartment until well after 3:00 AM.
-If people are interested, the recipe for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies in the Joy of Cooking is pretty good.
-About three different types of sirens are currently being used to alert car owners in my neighbourhood that snow ploughing is about to take place. After the siren phase, a team of tow-trucks removes any remaining cars and the ploughing begins.
As you may imagine, these are not ideal circumstances for studying or concentrating.
-I should eventually try to prepare some dinner this evening. It is likely that I will have something with a can or two of freshly purchased tuna.
-It seems that today is Stupor Bowl Sunday. I am surprised at how many of the people I know in Montreal have plans that related to watching this event. Particularly surprising is that I can’t see most of them as sports fan (but that may just be because I have a hard time understanding how anyone can be a sports fan).
-After completing a little work on campus I returned home. On my way back I stopped at a grocery store. Though I had originally intended to pick up one or two items, I eventually purchased almost $25.00 worth of goods (most of which were sale items). Unfortunately, I didn’t forget to buy a few cans of water chestnuts (as they will only be on sale until midnight tonight).
-Though I was a little worried about my shift last night, it turned out to be nothing to be scared of. We ended up with about 250 McGill residence dwellers for just over two hours. In part, that this party was tolerable may have been because of the brevity.
One of the more impressive sights at the party (which was to be a New Year’s Eve party) was a table covered in about 250 glasses of sparkling white wine. Not surprisingly, there was somewhat of a feeding frenzy type atmosphere surrounding the table. After talking with one of my co-workers who was more closely involved with the filling of the glasses, I am pretty sure that this was likely even truer that I was able to tell from my few quick glimpses of the scene.
In part because of the number of glasses used for the sparkling white wine, but also just generally it seemed as though it was a good night for stemmed glassware. We seemed to switch from our typical focus on pitchers of beer to glasses of wine.
The downside of the shift is that I didn’t make it back to the apartment until well after 3:00 AM.
-If people are interested, the recipe for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies in the Joy of Cooking is pretty good.
-About three different types of sirens are currently being used to alert car owners in my neighbourhood that snow ploughing is about to take place. After the siren phase, a team of tow-trucks removes any remaining cars and the ploughing begins.
As you may imagine, these are not ideal circumstances for studying or concentrating.
-I should eventually try to prepare some dinner this evening. It is likely that I will have something with a can or two of freshly purchased tuna.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 150
-Though we had a fair range of precipitation types yesterday, today seems to have been pretty pleasant. My only concern is that that some of the slush that accrued yesterday has frozen and turned into ice.
-After a few of us punched out last night, to take advantage of the snow a few of us decided to try and go sledding on McTavish. We originally thought that we could use shovels, but ended up settling for black garbage bags.
Initially I started by sitting down and then trying to just slide. As this didn't really work I realized that I would have to take a slightly more aggressive approach.
I then tried running while holding the bag in front of me and then jumping and landing on my chest. While the speed I achieved wasn't all that great, I did manage to travel about 60 feet. Even after a few attempts, I wasn't able to really beat this mark.
We also tried card board. Unfortunately, this didn't work at all. This failure was likely due to the texture of the snow, rather than the idea. If we had had a little more ice on the street I am sure that this would have worked.
-I will be heading back into work this evening. Thomson House will be playing host to some sort of month late New Year's Eve party. Hopefully everything will proceed smoothly, though I am somewhat skeptical.
-On Thursday night I made the oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe from the Joy of Cooking. I was pleasantly surprised with the results, particularly as the recipe calls for only as many chocolate chips as I typically use in recipes that have much more dough.
-After a few of us punched out last night, to take advantage of the snow a few of us decided to try and go sledding on McTavish. We originally thought that we could use shovels, but ended up settling for black garbage bags.
Initially I started by sitting down and then trying to just slide. As this didn't really work I realized that I would have to take a slightly more aggressive approach.
I then tried running while holding the bag in front of me and then jumping and landing on my chest. While the speed I achieved wasn't all that great, I did manage to travel about 60 feet. Even after a few attempts, I wasn't able to really beat this mark.
We also tried card board. Unfortunately, this didn't work at all. This failure was likely due to the texture of the snow, rather than the idea. If we had had a little more ice on the street I am sure that this would have worked.
-I will be heading back into work this evening. Thomson House will be playing host to some sort of month late New Year's Eve party. Hopefully everything will proceed smoothly, though I am somewhat skeptical.
-On Thursday night I made the oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe from the Joy of Cooking. I was pleasantly surprised with the results, particularly as the recipe calls for only as many chocolate chips as I typically use in recipes that have much more dough.
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