-We have had some rather nice weather these past few days. It seems that it hits about 10 degrees by mid afternoon, which is just about right for walking, and then drops to near zero in the evening, which is just about right for studying, reading, and sleeping.
-It seems that I will have a few Halloween parties to attend tomorrow evening. The first I will try to visit is a poli sci grad student event at a local bar/restaurant. The idea is that they will order some appetizers and a few pitchers and then people can get other things.
The second party I plan on attending is the history grad student event. I have been invited to this event because I am taking a graduate level history course this year (and the professor hosting the party is teaching the course). Anyway, aside from the bus ride out, I am looking forward to meeting a few of the history students/types.
Oh, my plan for a costume (all creative credit must go to my friend Jess) is that I will wear a black shirt and pants and then a white collar and go as a priest. The great thing about this is if I decide the costume is too much for me to handle I can take the collar off and then just be a regular looking guy. As I am not really particularly into Halloween costumes I think that this strikes a nice balance between close to nothing and an actual costume.
-On Wednesday we had our final Ultimate game of the fall season. In contrast to past game, we really came out swinging and dominated the entire game. We ended up winning 15 to 0.
I should mention that although the score is clearly quite lopsided, the other team really didn't seem to be playing that poorly (just not scoring). Furthermore, they are one of the most fun teams to play against. There were no rule disputes or poor calls, it was really great.
After the game we invited the other team to join us for a drink at the local country bar. We chose this bar because the last time we went the place was absolutely empty and we were able to take advantage of a few of their amenities (mainly the Wii and the full-size basketball net). This time it seemed that we weren't so lucky, instead of the place being empty we walked in on a multi-week karaoke contest.
Not surprisingly, our group wasn't really into the karaoke contest. Surprisingly, the bar's workers were really quite insistent that we move some of the furniture so that everyone could see the stage. In basically every other matter the staff were great, they frequently came back to make sure we had everything we needed and at one point brought out four large baskets of party mix (a snack food).
I guess I would have to say that after a little bit of initial hesitation, I had a really good time with the other team, and just generally at this particular bar (even if it was a country bar).
-It seems that I am up for another round of lithotripsy on Tuesday. I am a little curious to see if this is actually going to happen or if they will somehow manage to screw up my booking between now and then, as they have done twice already.
-It seems that I am on a bit of a humus tear recently. For the better part of the past few weeks I have almost always had a batch of humus in the fridge that I can tap into at any time. I guess this is likely an indication of my busyness and the fact that this is a food that I can just start eating with little prep work.
-I have been rather busy with grading for the past few days. My plan is to kill off the remnants tomorrow, which should then allow me some time to prepare for my upcoming classes.
-I should probably stop wasting time and get back to at least one of the many school-related things that I really should be doing.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 365
-Though it seemed to be raining pretty heavily last night, and there were a few rain drops at various points today, overall today wasn't too bad a day. That being said, it is definitely fall now and the lower temperatures will mean that I will soon have to make the switch from my sports coats to a more substantive jacket in the coming days.
-Last night, though I don't know why I was move to do it last night, I removed most of my bean plants (as they were approaching death if they weren't already dead). This, at least as far as I am concerned, makes the balcony look a fair bit better. In the coming days I may try and deal with a few more of the plant pots as the end of the growing season is definitely upon us.
-That being said, just a few days ago we started to get our first blooms on the morning glory plants. Unfortunately, due to inattention, I missed the first bloom (but did manage to see the remnants). Luckily, when they started really hitting hard I did manage to see them, and even to snap a photograph of the whole affair.
It seems that in the days since this was taken thins have taken a turn for the worse with the plants. Actually, I imagine that they are all basically dead now as they have been outside in sub-zero temperatures.
-This afternoon I decided to make a batch of bread (four loaves). The first project gave me the necessary motivation to take on a second project, doing my laundry, as these two projects work nicely with one another because of their natural gaps and periods of inactivity. Now that I have sampled the bread and the clean duvet cover I think I can safely say that they both were completed successfully.
-The other major project of the day is some marking that I have to do for my TAship. I may also try to track down a few readings for my upcoming week's classes, though that might be a little more than I can handle in a single night.
-Yesterday, because Neil and Rebecca were attending a math conference dinner, I took the opportunity to prepare myself some marlin that I had in the freezer. It turns out that I think I really don't like marlin. The relatively small piece that I had prepared myself was about twice as much as I could stomach, which is rather unfortunate (though the good news is that I had only paid 50% of the original price for the fish). Anyway, I am just lucky that I had prepared myself 4 potatoes so that I had a satisfying meal even though I didn't eat much of the main dish.
-Last night as I was plugging away at a paper that was due this morning I turned around from my desk and got a look at my floor.
It seems that my filing system really is a little more floor based that I would like (as is my bed). I imagine that some people, upon seeing this, might have a hard time believing that I not only attended library school, but also passed.
-My bedroom plants seemed to have slowed down a little bit, but are definitely still growing. In particular, the tobacco taking up an ever increasing proportion of the window. I keep imagining that I won't even be able to see out, my view will be completely blocked by homegrown tobacco.
I guess the only thing I will be blocked from seeing is a relatively grey cement wall, so it might not be much of a loss.
-Surely there are more import topics on which I should be expounding, but I think I may have to call it for now so that I can get back to my grading and dinner prep (proper meals seem to have gone out of my schedule these past few days and I am hoping to bring them back).
-Last night, though I don't know why I was move to do it last night, I removed most of my bean plants (as they were approaching death if they weren't already dead). This, at least as far as I am concerned, makes the balcony look a fair bit better. In the coming days I may try and deal with a few more of the plant pots as the end of the growing season is definitely upon us.
-That being said, just a few days ago we started to get our first blooms on the morning glory plants. Unfortunately, due to inattention, I missed the first bloom (but did manage to see the remnants). Luckily, when they started really hitting hard I did manage to see them, and even to snap a photograph of the whole affair.
It seems that in the days since this was taken thins have taken a turn for the worse with the plants. Actually, I imagine that they are all basically dead now as they have been outside in sub-zero temperatures.
-This afternoon I decided to make a batch of bread (four loaves). The first project gave me the necessary motivation to take on a second project, doing my laundry, as these two projects work nicely with one another because of their natural gaps and periods of inactivity. Now that I have sampled the bread and the clean duvet cover I think I can safely say that they both were completed successfully.
-The other major project of the day is some marking that I have to do for my TAship. I may also try to track down a few readings for my upcoming week's classes, though that might be a little more than I can handle in a single night.
-Yesterday, because Neil and Rebecca were attending a math conference dinner, I took the opportunity to prepare myself some marlin that I had in the freezer. It turns out that I think I really don't like marlin. The relatively small piece that I had prepared myself was about twice as much as I could stomach, which is rather unfortunate (though the good news is that I had only paid 50% of the original price for the fish). Anyway, I am just lucky that I had prepared myself 4 potatoes so that I had a satisfying meal even though I didn't eat much of the main dish.
-Last night as I was plugging away at a paper that was due this morning I turned around from my desk and got a look at my floor.
It seems that my filing system really is a little more floor based that I would like (as is my bed). I imagine that some people, upon seeing this, might have a hard time believing that I not only attended library school, but also passed.
-My bedroom plants seemed to have slowed down a little bit, but are definitely still growing. In particular, the tobacco taking up an ever increasing proportion of the window. I keep imagining that I won't even be able to see out, my view will be completely blocked by homegrown tobacco.
I guess the only thing I will be blocked from seeing is a relatively grey cement wall, so it might not be much of a loss.
-Surely there are more import topics on which I should be expounding, but I think I may have to call it for now so that I can get back to my grading and dinner prep (proper meals seem to have gone out of my schedule these past few days and I am hoping to bring them back).
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Super busy
As some of you might have guessed based on my limited blogging of the past few days, I am still quite busy with school related work. Though now in addition to the regular reading and writing that has been filling my days for the past few weeks I can add marking. My first batch of the year has to be partly ready to go by tomorrow, which should be fine as I have already taken a quick read through the exam answers I need to mark. Though the completion of the job will require I go through them again in a little more detail.
Of course, on top of this I have a paper due tomorrow (though it is quite short). My plan is to shortly finish the first draft of the paper and then head over to the exams. Once I am done with the exams I hope to kill off the paper. We will see how well this seemingly simple plan works out in the end.
In other exciting news, I did find time to make some marlin for myself for dinner. Unfortunately, it turns out that either I don't know how to prepare marlin or I think marlin is pretty gross. While I am willing to acknowledge the former as a possibility, I am somewhat inclined to lean towards the latter as more likely of the two options. Anyway, it is a good think that we only had one piece in the freezer.
Back to work, at least until I start slacking off again.
Of course, on top of this I have a paper due tomorrow (though it is quite short). My plan is to shortly finish the first draft of the paper and then head over to the exams. Once I am done with the exams I hope to kill off the paper. We will see how well this seemingly simple plan works out in the end.
In other exciting news, I did find time to make some marlin for myself for dinner. Unfortunately, it turns out that either I don't know how to prepare marlin or I think marlin is pretty gross. While I am willing to acknowledge the former as a possibility, I am somewhat inclined to lean towards the latter as more likely of the two options. Anyway, it is a good think that we only had one piece in the freezer.
Back to work, at least until I start slacking off again.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Convocation weekend
As some of you may recall, a few weeks ago I successfully defended and submitted my MA thesis. This meant that I had satisfied the requirements for the Master of Arts degree in Political Science at Dalhousie. I didn't think that this was particularly big news, but it seems that a few people in my family did.
On Thursday evening, a few hours later than originally expected, my grandmother arrived in Halifax with the intention of attending my convocation ceremony. My sister and mother were to, and did, arrive on Friday afternoon for the same reason.
Prior to my mother and sister's arrival I met my grandmother at her hotel (we didn't have room for three) where we had a very pleasant lunch together. Shortly after we parted ways so that I could go to the university and pick up my academic gown, as well as submit a paper.
Not too long after I eventually made it back to the apartment I was able to contact my mother and sister, who had arrived in the intervening period, and suggest that instead of driving through the Valley in the rain they come to our apartment for dinner. Though there was a little bit of confusion about communication and when people would arrive, they eventually did show up and I cooked us all dinner.
That evening, after a few games of Fluxx, Kirsten talked my mother and I into joining her for a dip in her hotel's pool. I think that we were all rather surprised by how big and deep the pool was for a hotel pool on the second floor of a hotel. The other nice aspect of the set-up was that they had a hot tub. As I hadn't been in a hot tub in quite a number of years I was quite keen to see if I still liked them as much as I remembered liking them. It turns out that they were as good as I remember, though I think I may have stayed in a little long as I definitely felt a little faint by the time we got out.
After a group breakfast on Saturday morning we all went back to our respective sleeping locations to either prepare for the afternoon's convocation ceremony, sleep, or engage in some combination of both activities. I know that I managed to sleep for a few minutes before throwing on my convocation garb.
We all made our way to 'The Cohn' about an hour before the event was to start. I arrived at this time because that was when the graduands were instructed to arrive. The other arrived at this time because an additional ticked was needed and this was when they were planning on distributing the extra tickets. Fortunately, within moments of arriving Kirsten was able to secure the needed ticket, allowing me to go upstairs to the staging area with a relative degree of comfort that things weren't going to be screwed.
Almost as soon as I entered the area where all of the graduands I came across a, now former, classmate. We spoke for a few minutes when a third classmate joined us. As it turns out, of the 11 of us who started as MA candidates last September, we were the only three political science MA students to show up for the convocation ceremony. Actually, I got the sense that quite a number of the graduands were no shows. It was so sparsely attended that I was fifth last in the alphabetical line-up even though my last name normally puts me in the middle of most lines.
At the appropriate time the graduands were assembled two-by-two in lines. After what seemed like about 5 order checks we eventually made our way to the auditorium. As it turns out, as MA students, we were relatively near the end of the batch of graduands, though there were a few computer science types and Ph.D. students after us.
Once we made it into the auditorium and were seated things began to move quite quickly. Before I knew it they had started getting the Bachelors students up on stage. Eventually we were moved from our seats to the staging aisle. They had planned things so that once standing no one would have to stand that long.
After just a few minutes my name was called and I was making my way across the stage. Of course I am sure that I slouched and screwed up the timing, but I guess there isn't much I can do about it now. That being said, I think part of the problem is that I had no idea what to expect when I reached the Chancellor in the middle of the stage, this part of the ceremony wasn't explained to us at all. As it turns out he basically just says good luck and you move on (no hand shaking because of the swine flu). It was generally rather awkward, particularly as nothing really happens (they don't hood you like they do at MUN convocations).
After all of the graduates had been on stage they started the honourary doctorate part of the ceremony. The recipient of the ceremony's honourary degree was the Music Director (and sometimes conductor?) of Symphony Nova Scotia, Bernhard Gueller.
After Gueller's talk things wrapped up quickly and we made our way our to the lobby. Once in the lobby I again ran into one of my former classmates, and then my history professor (who happens to also, be the Associate Dean of Arts and Social Sciences). Eventually, my mother located me, and after a little chatting and photo taking we make our way across the lobby to find Rebecca, Kirsten, and my mother.
After a little bit of indecisiveness and dilly-dallying (along with a few cookies and some juice) we made our way through the building to find a place where we could take some pictures. Eventually, after a few photos, we were ready to leave.
Shortly after leaving we decided to head directly to dinner. After some more indecisiveness and a little bit of snarkiness we settled on the Mongolie Grill (so that everyone could get the ingredients and quantity they wanted). All things considered, I think that the meal went well (though I was definitely tired and not in a celebratory mood).
After dinner we returned to the apartment to kill time (and my chances to study) while my mother waited for Neil's plane to arrive so that she could head out to pick him up from the airport (he was attending a conference for matheletes in Atlanta for the better part of the week).
This morning we again went out for a group breakfast, mainly so that Neil could get a chance to see grandma (and because we all needed to eat). After breakfast Rebecca and I returned to the apartment while The Ladies + Neil made their way to the Valley for some apple picking and touring.
Eventually, the group went to the airport to drop my grandmother off for her flight only to find that one leg of her trip had been cancelled. The eventual result was that she was re-booked for a new set of flights tonight and will be crashing with us tonight (I imagine it has been a few years since she has spent the night on a futon in a student apartment).
Anyway, I am now trying to catch up on some school work and reading while the rest of them are playing euchre in the living room. If the pots get to big I may have to go in and say something, but until then I think I can probably trust them by themselves for a while.
So tomorrow brings us back to another week of school, the main difference being that will have visitors (my grandmother for the morning and my mother the next few days). I imagine that I will feel my slack work weekend in the very near future, maybe as soon as tomorrow morning's class.
On Thursday evening, a few hours later than originally expected, my grandmother arrived in Halifax with the intention of attending my convocation ceremony. My sister and mother were to, and did, arrive on Friday afternoon for the same reason.
Prior to my mother and sister's arrival I met my grandmother at her hotel (we didn't have room for three) where we had a very pleasant lunch together. Shortly after we parted ways so that I could go to the university and pick up my academic gown, as well as submit a paper.
Not too long after I eventually made it back to the apartment I was able to contact my mother and sister, who had arrived in the intervening period, and suggest that instead of driving through the Valley in the rain they come to our apartment for dinner. Though there was a little bit of confusion about communication and when people would arrive, they eventually did show up and I cooked us all dinner.
That evening, after a few games of Fluxx, Kirsten talked my mother and I into joining her for a dip in her hotel's pool. I think that we were all rather surprised by how big and deep the pool was for a hotel pool on the second floor of a hotel. The other nice aspect of the set-up was that they had a hot tub. As I hadn't been in a hot tub in quite a number of years I was quite keen to see if I still liked them as much as I remembered liking them. It turns out that they were as good as I remember, though I think I may have stayed in a little long as I definitely felt a little faint by the time we got out.
After a group breakfast on Saturday morning we all went back to our respective sleeping locations to either prepare for the afternoon's convocation ceremony, sleep, or engage in some combination of both activities. I know that I managed to sleep for a few minutes before throwing on my convocation garb.
We all made our way to 'The Cohn' about an hour before the event was to start. I arrived at this time because that was when the graduands were instructed to arrive. The other arrived at this time because an additional ticked was needed and this was when they were planning on distributing the extra tickets. Fortunately, within moments of arriving Kirsten was able to secure the needed ticket, allowing me to go upstairs to the staging area with a relative degree of comfort that things weren't going to be screwed.
Almost as soon as I entered the area where all of the graduands I came across a, now former, classmate. We spoke for a few minutes when a third classmate joined us. As it turns out, of the 11 of us who started as MA candidates last September, we were the only three political science MA students to show up for the convocation ceremony. Actually, I got the sense that quite a number of the graduands were no shows. It was so sparsely attended that I was fifth last in the alphabetical line-up even though my last name normally puts me in the middle of most lines.
At the appropriate time the graduands were assembled two-by-two in lines. After what seemed like about 5 order checks we eventually made our way to the auditorium. As it turns out, as MA students, we were relatively near the end of the batch of graduands, though there were a few computer science types and Ph.D. students after us.
Once we made it into the auditorium and were seated things began to move quite quickly. Before I knew it they had started getting the Bachelors students up on stage. Eventually we were moved from our seats to the staging aisle. They had planned things so that once standing no one would have to stand that long.
After just a few minutes my name was called and I was making my way across the stage. Of course I am sure that I slouched and screwed up the timing, but I guess there isn't much I can do about it now. That being said, I think part of the problem is that I had no idea what to expect when I reached the Chancellor in the middle of the stage, this part of the ceremony wasn't explained to us at all. As it turns out he basically just says good luck and you move on (no hand shaking because of the swine flu). It was generally rather awkward, particularly as nothing really happens (they don't hood you like they do at MUN convocations).
After all of the graduates had been on stage they started the honourary doctorate part of the ceremony. The recipient of the ceremony's honourary degree was the Music Director (and sometimes conductor?) of Symphony Nova Scotia, Bernhard Gueller.
After Gueller's talk things wrapped up quickly and we made our way our to the lobby. Once in the lobby I again ran into one of my former classmates, and then my history professor (who happens to also, be the Associate Dean of Arts and Social Sciences). Eventually, my mother located me, and after a little chatting and photo taking we make our way across the lobby to find Rebecca, Kirsten, and my mother.
After a little bit of indecisiveness and dilly-dallying (along with a few cookies and some juice) we made our way through the building to find a place where we could take some pictures. Eventually, after a few photos, we were ready to leave.
Shortly after leaving we decided to head directly to dinner. After some more indecisiveness and a little bit of snarkiness we settled on the Mongolie Grill (so that everyone could get the ingredients and quantity they wanted). All things considered, I think that the meal went well (though I was definitely tired and not in a celebratory mood).
After dinner we returned to the apartment to kill time (and my chances to study) while my mother waited for Neil's plane to arrive so that she could head out to pick him up from the airport (he was attending a conference for matheletes in Atlanta for the better part of the week).
This morning we again went out for a group breakfast, mainly so that Neil could get a chance to see grandma (and because we all needed to eat). After breakfast Rebecca and I returned to the apartment while The Ladies + Neil made their way to the Valley for some apple picking and touring.
Eventually, the group went to the airport to drop my grandmother off for her flight only to find that one leg of her trip had been cancelled. The eventual result was that she was re-booked for a new set of flights tonight and will be crashing with us tonight (I imagine it has been a few years since she has spent the night on a futon in a student apartment).
Anyway, I am now trying to catch up on some school work and reading while the rest of them are playing euchre in the living room. If the pots get to big I may have to go in and say something, but until then I think I can probably trust them by themselves for a while.
So tomorrow brings us back to another week of school, the main difference being that will have visitors (my grandmother for the morning and my mother the next few days). I imagine that I will feel my slack work weekend in the very near future, maybe as soon as tomorrow morning's class.
Friday, October 16, 2009
The wave heads East
Yesterday I saw an announcement that Seymour Schulich was giving a $20 000 000 donation to the Dalhousie Law school/Faculty of Law. Immediately I wondered if this meant we would now have a "Schulich School" at Dal as similar donations at other universities have lead to a number of "Schulich schools" including the Schulich School of Medicine and Denistry (at UWO), the Schulich School of Music (at McGill), the Schulich School of Engineering (at the University of Calgary), and the Schulich School of Business (at York).
This morning I finally got around to reading a little more than headlines on the topic and learned that Dal will in fact be joining the list with the Schulich School of Law, though, interestingly, they haven't yet made the change on their webpage or even mentioned the donation on their News and Events page (at least they hadn't as of 11:30 AM on Friday).
This morning I finally got around to reading a little more than headlines on the topic and learned that Dal will in fact be joining the list with the Schulich School of Law, though, interestingly, they haven't yet made the change on their webpage or even mentioned the donation on their News and Events page (at least they hadn't as of 11:30 AM on Friday).
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Wow
This helium balloon appears to be really moving. At the time this was filmed there was some thought that there may be a young boy in the basket on the underside of the balloon, apparently when the balloon eventually landed he wasn't there.
Friday, October 09, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 364
-Today seems to have been largely overcast and cool, though it hasn't rained and it hasn't been cold, so I guess it gets a passing grade. That being said, it feels as though we are now definitely in fall and not just experiencing a cold spell.
-On Tuesday night Neil and I attended the Rex Murphy book a launch that I mentioned a few posts ago. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, but the talk was much more entertaining and exciting than I expected. It is likely that Neil and I were so drawn in because Rex spent a good portion of his time recounting his experiences working for Newfoundland Liberal party in the 1980s.
I should also give Rex credit for being a particularly capable public speaker. As far as I could tell, aside from a brief section at the end of his talk, he managed to speak for 45 minutes without notes and without a microphone (and with only a few sips of water). More impressive than just the fact that he accomplished such a feat was that the content, if wandering at times, was well presented and managed to draw out a number of connections that I hadn't previously made. So I guess I am recommending Rex as a speaker if you ever have the opportunity to hear him.
After the talk he signed a few books. As neither Neil nor I purchased a book we did not stick around for the signing, though I did try to snap a few photos (the quality of which were hampered by light and distance).
-Last night I joined the matheletes on a booze cruise on the Halifax harbour. It turns out that most of us weren't really prepared for what we eventually experienced, though I think that once we started to get a sense of things we were at least able to deal with the experience.
I am not sure what it says about me, but I was glad to get the chance to go under both bridges. One thing that I found strange is that only the Souther bridge (I can't remember which is which) was properly illuminated.
At one point two of us were looking at the wheelhouse and were a little bit surprised to see this.
As you might have guessed, the crew was obscured by the wheel. Sadly, they didn't try to ghost ride the Harbour Queen (as unique an experience as that might have been).
-On Wednesday it was quite wet and windy so we decided not to play our Ultimate game, though we only made this decision at the field. As we were all there and free for a few hours most of us decided to hit the closest bar, the Rodeo Lounge in Burnside.
Once in the bar we learned that not only were we basically the only customers but that they had an indoor basketball net as well as Nintendo Wii that we were able to use (and did use). Unfortunately, the mechanical bull was not in use while we were there, though now that I know it exists I have some motivation to head back at some point in the future.
I should also say that the prices were reasonable and the service was great. It was incredibly fun to play a few games of HORSE/take a few shots while hanging out and drinking some beer. It would be great if more bars had such facilities.
-I harvested quite a number of tomatoes today. I think it is safe to say that this was my biggest single harvest yet, though I hope to be able surpass this record next year.
Hopefully Neil will be able to eat them all before they go bad.
-On Tuesday night Neil and I attended the Rex Murphy book a launch that I mentioned a few posts ago. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, but the talk was much more entertaining and exciting than I expected. It is likely that Neil and I were so drawn in because Rex spent a good portion of his time recounting his experiences working for Newfoundland Liberal party in the 1980s.
I should also give Rex credit for being a particularly capable public speaker. As far as I could tell, aside from a brief section at the end of his talk, he managed to speak for 45 minutes without notes and without a microphone (and with only a few sips of water). More impressive than just the fact that he accomplished such a feat was that the content, if wandering at times, was well presented and managed to draw out a number of connections that I hadn't previously made. So I guess I am recommending Rex as a speaker if you ever have the opportunity to hear him.
After the talk he signed a few books. As neither Neil nor I purchased a book we did not stick around for the signing, though I did try to snap a few photos (the quality of which were hampered by light and distance).
-Last night I joined the matheletes on a booze cruise on the Halifax harbour. It turns out that most of us weren't really prepared for what we eventually experienced, though I think that once we started to get a sense of things we were at least able to deal with the experience.
I am not sure what it says about me, but I was glad to get the chance to go under both bridges. One thing that I found strange is that only the Souther bridge (I can't remember which is which) was properly illuminated.
At one point two of us were looking at the wheelhouse and were a little bit surprised to see this.
As you might have guessed, the crew was obscured by the wheel. Sadly, they didn't try to ghost ride the Harbour Queen (as unique an experience as that might have been).
-On Wednesday it was quite wet and windy so we decided not to play our Ultimate game, though we only made this decision at the field. As we were all there and free for a few hours most of us decided to hit the closest bar, the Rodeo Lounge in Burnside.
Once in the bar we learned that not only were we basically the only customers but that they had an indoor basketball net as well as Nintendo Wii that we were able to use (and did use). Unfortunately, the mechanical bull was not in use while we were there, though now that I know it exists I have some motivation to head back at some point in the future.
I should also say that the prices were reasonable and the service was great. It was incredibly fun to play a few games of HORSE/take a few shots while hanging out and drinking some beer. It would be great if more bars had such facilities.
-I harvested quite a number of tomatoes today. I think it is safe to say that this was my biggest single harvest yet, though I hope to be able surpass this record next year.
Hopefully Neil will be able to eat them all before they go bad.
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Sexy Rexy live at the McCain Building tonight
For those of you in Halifax this evening, you may be interested to know that Rex Murphy will be having a book launch (which I presume includes either a reading or talk of some kind) at the Scotiabank Auditorium in the McCain Building on the Dalhousie Campus. The event is free and starts at 7:30, though I imagine if you want good seats you will need to show up a little on the early side as I can't see how this won't be rocking.
(Edit: Neil and I plan on attending.)
(Edit: Neil and I plan on attending.)
Monday, October 05, 2009
The results you have all been waiting for
A few days ago I posted a survey that I requested our readers complete to help me learn about the motivations for an upcoming trip that my grandmother, mother, and sister will be taking. The second half of the survey dealt with where and how we should celebrate my upcoming convocation.
I have given people a few days to answer and response numbers seem to have stabilized so I am not ready to release the results. Also, it took me a little while for me to arrange with Rebecca to have her create appropriate visual representations of the survey responses.
Question 1
1. My mother, grandmother, and sister will be arriving in Halifax in a few weeks for a period of time that coincides with my MA convocation ceremony, and also happens to be less than two months after Neil and Rebecca eloped in Las Vegas. Given these details, what seems to be the most likely reason for this travel?
Responses:
These three people are wedding crazy and want to see the bride and groom to celebrate the recent wedding (the convocation story is just a cover for their real intentions).
6.5%
The convocation and wedding are both motivating factors for the trip, though the wedding will be the cause of more celebrating and gifts than the convocation.
41.9%
The convocation is the sole reason for the trips as it symbolizes a real accomplishment, whereas the wedding was just a relatively sterile legal ceremony that doesn't merit celebration.
25.8%
The real reason was that all three women really just wanted to come to Canada's party capital, Halifax, for a crazy weekend on the town.
25.8%
Visualization:
Analysis:
I was very satisfied with these results as they basically confirm my position. Clearly the wedding, along with the convocation, were motivating factors for the trip. To suggest that the wedding did not play a part in the decision-making process would seem to be unfounded, certainly if we trust these results.
Question 2
It is likely that at least one celebratory meal can be expected during the aforementioned visit. Where should we go for such a meal?
Responses:
Saege - Not only is it where we went for Neil's convocation, but is also, arguably, nice.
32.3%
Cousins - The menu includes most of the classic North American meat dishes and most meals also include a serving of Jello and a roll.
12.9%
McDonald's - Inexpensive, quick service, and unlikely to be overrun with other celebrants.
35.5%
An apartment cooked meal - Would allow for more meat per person than any of the restaurants (and the meal could include carrot sticks if we wanted it to).
19.4%
Visualization:
Analysis:
The responses to this question definitely surprised me. I certainly didn't expect that McDonald's would receive as much support as it did (given that this was a convocation meal). I was pleasantly surprised to see how much support the home cooked meal had, though it turned out to be insufficient. Anyway, the good news is that I am not bound by these responses as that would mean that I couldn't go to the restaurant that I subsequently decided upon.
I have given people a few days to answer and response numbers seem to have stabilized so I am not ready to release the results. Also, it took me a little while for me to arrange with Rebecca to have her create appropriate visual representations of the survey responses.
Question 1
1. My mother, grandmother, and sister will be arriving in Halifax in a few weeks for a period of time that coincides with my MA convocation ceremony, and also happens to be less than two months after Neil and Rebecca eloped in Las Vegas. Given these details, what seems to be the most likely reason for this travel?
Responses:
These three people are wedding crazy and want to see the bride and groom to celebrate the recent wedding (the convocation story is just a cover for their real intentions).
6.5%
The convocation and wedding are both motivating factors for the trip, though the wedding will be the cause of more celebrating and gifts than the convocation.
41.9%
The convocation is the sole reason for the trips as it symbolizes a real accomplishment, whereas the wedding was just a relatively sterile legal ceremony that doesn't merit celebration.
25.8%
The real reason was that all three women really just wanted to come to Canada's party capital, Halifax, for a crazy weekend on the town.
25.8%
Visualization:
Analysis:
I was very satisfied with these results as they basically confirm my position. Clearly the wedding, along with the convocation, were motivating factors for the trip. To suggest that the wedding did not play a part in the decision-making process would seem to be unfounded, certainly if we trust these results.
Question 2
It is likely that at least one celebratory meal can be expected during the aforementioned visit. Where should we go for such a meal?
Responses:
Saege - Not only is it where we went for Neil's convocation, but is also, arguably, nice.
32.3%
Cousins - The menu includes most of the classic North American meat dishes and most meals also include a serving of Jello and a roll.
12.9%
McDonald's - Inexpensive, quick service, and unlikely to be overrun with other celebrants.
35.5%
An apartment cooked meal - Would allow for more meat per person than any of the restaurants (and the meal could include carrot sticks if we wanted it to).
19.4%
Visualization:
Analysis:
The responses to this question definitely surprised me. I certainly didn't expect that McDonald's would receive as much support as it did (given that this was a convocation meal). I was pleasantly surprised to see how much support the home cooked meal had, though it turned out to be insufficient. Anyway, the good news is that I am not bound by these responses as that would mean that I couldn't go to the restaurant that I subsequently decided upon.
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Pretty Big Dig
Not sure why I am thinking of this now, but the short film Pretty Big Dig by Anne Troake is definitely worth watching.
Somehow I came across this film a few years ago and typically feel inclined to watch it approximately once every 15 months or so.
Enjoy.
Somehow I came across this film a few years ago and typically feel inclined to watch it approximately once every 15 months or so.
Enjoy.
Saturday, October 03, 2009
(last minute) Road trip!
Yesterday afternoon I received an email from a classmate reminding me the Atlantic Provinces Political Science Association conference that was to take place today in Wolfville and asking if I was interested in getting a ride with him. As I had been hoping to attend this conference but had allowed it to slip my mind I was quite pleased to receive this email, as it also included a way to get to the conference.
This morning I got up bright and early so that we could be on the road by 7:15, as we needed to register between 8:00 and 9:00. While the drive took a little longer than I expected, we did manage to make it with a little time to spare (though I wouldn't have wanted to leave any later).
Once we had completed the registration procedure we made our way to a local coffee shop to pick up some coffee. I am not sure if I had lower standards because of the time of day but my recollection is that the coffee was much better than average. I would definitely consider going back the next time I am in Wolfville. (The coffee break coffee was also great today, so maybe they just know how to make coffee in Wolfville).
Things started on a very positive note for me as the first presentation of the day was on the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly, a subject close to my heart. Eventually I was able to get a chance to speak with the presenter and exchange email addresses (I took his as he had cards and I didn't). Though not quite as close to my area of interest, many of the presentation topics were, nonetheless, quite engaging.
During the lunch break I was pleased to be able to talk with a faculty member of the education program at Acadia and a grad student from the University of Toronto. It seems that the grad student and I have a few mutual acquaintances, which is nice to know. The education prof was able to provide me with some information about teacher certification and the problems associated with moving between jurisdictions.
The other incredibly enjoyable parts of the trip were the rides to and from Wolfville. It was great to get a chance to talk Nova Scotia politics with the classmate giving me a ride as he is definitely a little more in-tune with things here than I am (given that he is from Nova Scotia, among other things).
This morning I got up bright and early so that we could be on the road by 7:15, as we needed to register between 8:00 and 9:00. While the drive took a little longer than I expected, we did manage to make it with a little time to spare (though I wouldn't have wanted to leave any later).
Once we had completed the registration procedure we made our way to a local coffee shop to pick up some coffee. I am not sure if I had lower standards because of the time of day but my recollection is that the coffee was much better than average. I would definitely consider going back the next time I am in Wolfville. (The coffee break coffee was also great today, so maybe they just know how to make coffee in Wolfville).
Things started on a very positive note for me as the first presentation of the day was on the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly, a subject close to my heart. Eventually I was able to get a chance to speak with the presenter and exchange email addresses (I took his as he had cards and I didn't). Though not quite as close to my area of interest, many of the presentation topics were, nonetheless, quite engaging.
During the lunch break I was pleased to be able to talk with a faculty member of the education program at Acadia and a grad student from the University of Toronto. It seems that the grad student and I have a few mutual acquaintances, which is nice to know. The education prof was able to provide me with some information about teacher certification and the problems associated with moving between jurisdictions.
The other incredibly enjoyable parts of the trip were the rides to and from Wolfville. It was great to get a chance to talk Nova Scotia politics with the classmate giving me a ride as he is definitely a little more in-tune with things here than I am (given that he is from Nova Scotia, among other things).
Friday, October 02, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 363
-So far today has been pretty decent, though nothing particularly special. At times it has a been a little overcast, though at other times the sun has come out and made it look quite nice.
-Neil and I both really enjoyed last night's Ransom A Myers Science and Society lecture. Not only was the speaker, Andrew Weaver, informative, he also presented the material in an engaging way. Unfortunately, the post-lecture question and answer session was used by a few local activists to highlight upcoming events. While I don't know how everyone else feels about these incidents, but I know that I find such interjections really off-putting and they make me quite uncomfortable. That there is a risk that such 'questions' might be posed is almost enough for me to think that in most public lecture settings we should just forgo the question and answer session
-The post-lecture awkwardness reminded me of the question and answer session that followed an Oliver Sacks talk I attended in Montreal a few years ago. In this instance people seemed to want on-the-spot neurological diagnoses. These may have even been more uncomfortable for me than the event promoting that I experienced last night.
The other parallel between the two talk was that, through no fault of either presenter, I nodded briefly off during both. I am not sure what it is about large lecture theatres, but they seem to induce sleep quite effectively in males in my family.
-I think that we will be having chicken noodle soup for dinner tonight. I guess I might need to get started on this in the not too distant future.
-The other thing that I need to get started on are my readings for my upcoming week's classes.
While not great, I think comes close to representing what it is I need to read to prepare for class (though there are some other things I need to read for other assignments).
-After a rather dismal September it seems that I am now trying to up my post numbers for October (not that this really matters). I guess I think it would be nice to hit 365 by the end of December, so maybe that is why I am making a bit of an effort to post more frequently.
-There were some other things I meant to comment on, but it seems that I can't remember then at the moment.
-Neil and I both really enjoyed last night's Ransom A Myers Science and Society lecture. Not only was the speaker, Andrew Weaver, informative, he also presented the material in an engaging way. Unfortunately, the post-lecture question and answer session was used by a few local activists to highlight upcoming events. While I don't know how everyone else feels about these incidents, but I know that I find such interjections really off-putting and they make me quite uncomfortable. That there is a risk that such 'questions' might be posed is almost enough for me to think that in most public lecture settings we should just forgo the question and answer session
-The post-lecture awkwardness reminded me of the question and answer session that followed an Oliver Sacks talk I attended in Montreal a few years ago. In this instance people seemed to want on-the-spot neurological diagnoses. These may have even been more uncomfortable for me than the event promoting that I experienced last night.
The other parallel between the two talk was that, through no fault of either presenter, I nodded briefly off during both. I am not sure what it is about large lecture theatres, but they seem to induce sleep quite effectively in males in my family.
-I think that we will be having chicken noodle soup for dinner tonight. I guess I might need to get started on this in the not too distant future.
-The other thing that I need to get started on are my readings for my upcoming week's classes.
While not great, I think comes close to representing what it is I need to read to prepare for class (though there are some other things I need to read for other assignments).
-After a rather dismal September it seems that I am now trying to up my post numbers for October (not that this really matters). I guess I think it would be nice to hit 365 by the end of December, so maybe that is why I am making a bit of an effort to post more frequently.
-There were some other things I meant to comment on, but it seems that I can't remember then at the moment.
Well, that didn't go quite as expected
I don't tend to follow Olympic coverage much as I am not a particularly big fan of the event, but I did get sucked into a recent story in the Globe and Mail about the process for determining the location for the 2016 summer games. According to the article, and image below, Chicago seemed to be the leading contender.
2016 Olympic Contenders
Imagine my surprise when I learned this morning that not only did Chicago not get the games, but that they were the first to be eliminated. It seems that Rio was the winning bid.
2016 Olympic Contenders
Imagine my surprise when I learned this morning that not only did Chicago not get the games, but that they were the first to be eliminated. It seems that Rio was the winning bid.
Environmental Mercenary
Shortly after moving to Nova Scotia I began to be a little curious about how I could return bottles and cans to get the deposit I had been paying. While I was told that it was possible to return cans, I did not receive was I felt were particularly satisfactory answers. At one point during this time I asked a NSLC clerk where I could return bottles and cans, some of which I was in the midst of purchasing, and he suggested that he had no idea.
Anyway, I eventually figured things out and Neil and I made a trip to the local recycling depot (which is only open from 9 to 4, Monday to Friday) with quite a load, or at least what seemed like a fair bit to transport by foot.
Almost as soon as we entered the facility we observed a major consequence of having a difficult to access deposit system. Most people don't use it, instead they toss their deposit bearing recyclables with their regular recyclables. Recycling bins are then raided by professional can pickers, the group that comprise most of the users of the bottle return depots.
A consequence of this being the way things work is that most people returning bottles have thousands of bottles to return at a time, which can take a fair bit of time to count. When we went the first time we were waiting for about an hour even though there might have only been two or three people in front of us.
Given that we had to each invest over an hour in the whole process and that we received only about $20, Neil was less inclined to save our bottles and cans and instead let the professionals have a chance to get them and return them. I, on the other hand, have been a little more inclined to try to save them and then return them to get the money, which is rightfully ours.
But given that we both knew what an unpleasant experience the returning was likely to be we have been avoiding it for months. The other problem was that neither of us was willing to risk standing in line for an hour to return any less than $20 of bottles or cans, which quite a number of cans. So, consequently, we haven't gone for months, though during this period of time we have been saving our cans diligently.
Over the course of the past few weeks it became apparent that we were approaching a breaking point. We would either need to take our cans to the recycling depot, or find some other way of getting rid of them. Much to my surprise, though maybe I should have figured this out, Neil was not particularly inclined to head back to the recycling depot. I then took responsibility for taking items back to the depot.
Of course, it took me a while to work towards actually taking the cans back once I had assumed responsibility for doing so. I think a few weeks might have been involved. Fortunately, by yesterday I was ready to go and had everything organized and sorted.
Just before making the trip to the recycling depot a friend stopped by briefly and, among other things, noticed my recycling operation. I explained that my plan involved me carrying everything and then walking to the local recycling depot. Not surprisingly, she was a little skeptical of me actually being able to make the trip with such a burden.
After she left and as I was putting on my shoes to head out this friend called me and offered me a ride if I was able to wait until today. Though I had been hoping to use the trip to the recycling depot as a test of my manhood, I quickly realized that accepting the offered ride would really be the most sensible thing to do, so I did.
After accepting the ride I thought I might as well see if I could have actually carried the load I had planned on carrying.
It turns out that it would have been more of a challenge than I expected.
Early this morning, at least as far as my normal schedule is concerned, I loaded up my recyclables in my friend's mother's car and we made the three block journey to the recycling depot.
Almost as soon as we arrived I think that we all noticed the guy sleeping on the ground next to the door, as well as the guy unloading a full mini-van. Moments after we arrived a professional arrived with full capacity shopping cart.
Amazingly, once inside we learned that there was basically no one in front of us. We somehow managed to be the rush. Which was quite good, as by the time the staff were finished counting my stash there were thousands of cans and bottles just waiting to be counted.
The other good news was that I 'made' over $26 (my friend snagged $1.85). I guess I now have some more money to re-invest in beer and future deposits.
Oh, and if it wasn't already clear, I really don't like this bottle deposit system. I think that Nova Scotia should adopt a point of sale approach along the lines of what they have in places like Quebec, Michigan, or New York (not like the one in Newfoundland). Ideally they would even have the automatic return machines as I have seen in some of these jurisdictions. The other thing that I think that they should do is ensure that all NSLC locations take bottle returns. Having a system which, at least from my perspective, seems to be designed to frustrate use is unacceptable.
Anyway, I eventually figured things out and Neil and I made a trip to the local recycling depot (which is only open from 9 to 4, Monday to Friday) with quite a load, or at least what seemed like a fair bit to transport by foot.
Almost as soon as we entered the facility we observed a major consequence of having a difficult to access deposit system. Most people don't use it, instead they toss their deposit bearing recyclables with their regular recyclables. Recycling bins are then raided by professional can pickers, the group that comprise most of the users of the bottle return depots.
A consequence of this being the way things work is that most people returning bottles have thousands of bottles to return at a time, which can take a fair bit of time to count. When we went the first time we were waiting for about an hour even though there might have only been two or three people in front of us.
Given that we had to each invest over an hour in the whole process and that we received only about $20, Neil was less inclined to save our bottles and cans and instead let the professionals have a chance to get them and return them. I, on the other hand, have been a little more inclined to try to save them and then return them to get the money, which is rightfully ours.
But given that we both knew what an unpleasant experience the returning was likely to be we have been avoiding it for months. The other problem was that neither of us was willing to risk standing in line for an hour to return any less than $20 of bottles or cans, which quite a number of cans. So, consequently, we haven't gone for months, though during this period of time we have been saving our cans diligently.
Over the course of the past few weeks it became apparent that we were approaching a breaking point. We would either need to take our cans to the recycling depot, or find some other way of getting rid of them. Much to my surprise, though maybe I should have figured this out, Neil was not particularly inclined to head back to the recycling depot. I then took responsibility for taking items back to the depot.
Of course, it took me a while to work towards actually taking the cans back once I had assumed responsibility for doing so. I think a few weeks might have been involved. Fortunately, by yesterday I was ready to go and had everything organized and sorted.
Just before making the trip to the recycling depot a friend stopped by briefly and, among other things, noticed my recycling operation. I explained that my plan involved me carrying everything and then walking to the local recycling depot. Not surprisingly, she was a little skeptical of me actually being able to make the trip with such a burden.
After she left and as I was putting on my shoes to head out this friend called me and offered me a ride if I was able to wait until today. Though I had been hoping to use the trip to the recycling depot as a test of my manhood, I quickly realized that accepting the offered ride would really be the most sensible thing to do, so I did.
After accepting the ride I thought I might as well see if I could have actually carried the load I had planned on carrying.
It turns out that it would have been more of a challenge than I expected.
Early this morning, at least as far as my normal schedule is concerned, I loaded up my recyclables in my friend's mother's car and we made the three block journey to the recycling depot.
Almost as soon as we arrived I think that we all noticed the guy sleeping on the ground next to the door, as well as the guy unloading a full mini-van. Moments after we arrived a professional arrived with full capacity shopping cart.
Amazingly, once inside we learned that there was basically no one in front of us. We somehow managed to be the rush. Which was quite good, as by the time the staff were finished counting my stash there were thousands of cans and bottles just waiting to be counted.
The other good news was that I 'made' over $26 (my friend snagged $1.85). I guess I now have some more money to re-invest in beer and future deposits.
Oh, and if it wasn't already clear, I really don't like this bottle deposit system. I think that Nova Scotia should adopt a point of sale approach along the lines of what they have in places like Quebec, Michigan, or New York (not like the one in Newfoundland). Ideally they would even have the automatic return machines as I have seen in some of these jurisdictions. The other thing that I think that they should do is ensure that all NSLC locations take bottle returns. Having a system which, at least from my perspective, seems to be designed to frustrate use is unacceptable.
Thursday, October 01, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 362
-Much to my surprise, today has been a pretty nice day, the sun is out and it is a little warmer than it has been recently. Strangely, it seems that the forecast suggested that we might be in for showers this afternoon.
-School has been keeping my quite busy these past few days and weeks. In particular the reading has really been taking up a fair bit of my time. I was thinking that I could try to take a picture of this weeks readings to try to give a sense of how much it is on a weekly basis, but I realized that as a few are in books and a little scattered I probably couldn't really accurately represent a weeks readings in picture, so you will just have to try to visualize it yourself.
Actually, soon after I finish this post I plan on collecting and printing my readings for next week. Hopefully I can get a start on things later this evening.
-Last night Neil and I had an Ultimate game. Unfortunately, it didn't go particularly well and we managed to lose by a score of 5-10. The only good thing was the team was a pretty decent team to play against, there weren't too many disputes.
-A few days ago Newfoundland held its municipal elections. For the most part the results in St. John's weren't particularly surprising. It is likely that I actually voted for several winning candidates, something that doesn't often happen.
Anyway, an interesting result did occur in Paradise, where it initially seemed that a 19 university student had unseated the current mayor, a former provincial Liberal cabinet minister. After a recount it was determined that the candidates were tied. Apparently, much to my surprise, the procedure in such an instance is for a name to be drawn from an envelope to determine the winner. The final result was that the incumbent was returned. If you are interested, CBC provides a slightly more detailed version of the story here.
-The tomatoes continue to ripen. Though I don't have an exact count at the moment, I think that there are probably close to 10 that are red, or certainly well on their way to red. I am hoping that one or two more might soon be ripe enough for Neil to eat them.
-For those of you in the Halifax area with a free evening, you might be interested in checking out the 2nd annual Ransom Myers Lecture in Sciences and Society. The lecture is to take place tonight at 7:30 P.M. in Ondaatje Hall in the McCain building. Not that should be a key motivating factor, but after last year's talk attendees were provided with wine and non-alcoholic drinks.
-The tobacco plants are continuing to grow quite nicely.
A few of the plants now have leaves that are at least a few inches across in both directions. While I am pleased with the size, I think that they are likely being limited in size because of the size of the containers in which the plants are being grown. Maybe next summer I will be able to grow a few plants in larger containers.
One of the major consequences of having such a large number of plants with relatively large amounts of foliage is that they are now impeding my ability to see through my bedroom window. I guess I really shouldn't be as surprised about this development as I am.
-School has been keeping my quite busy these past few days and weeks. In particular the reading has really been taking up a fair bit of my time. I was thinking that I could try to take a picture of this weeks readings to try to give a sense of how much it is on a weekly basis, but I realized that as a few are in books and a little scattered I probably couldn't really accurately represent a weeks readings in picture, so you will just have to try to visualize it yourself.
Actually, soon after I finish this post I plan on collecting and printing my readings for next week. Hopefully I can get a start on things later this evening.
-Last night Neil and I had an Ultimate game. Unfortunately, it didn't go particularly well and we managed to lose by a score of 5-10. The only good thing was the team was a pretty decent team to play against, there weren't too many disputes.
-A few days ago Newfoundland held its municipal elections. For the most part the results in St. John's weren't particularly surprising. It is likely that I actually voted for several winning candidates, something that doesn't often happen.
Anyway, an interesting result did occur in Paradise, where it initially seemed that a 19 university student had unseated the current mayor, a former provincial Liberal cabinet minister. After a recount it was determined that the candidates were tied. Apparently, much to my surprise, the procedure in such an instance is for a name to be drawn from an envelope to determine the winner. The final result was that the incumbent was returned. If you are interested, CBC provides a slightly more detailed version of the story here.
-The tomatoes continue to ripen. Though I don't have an exact count at the moment, I think that there are probably close to 10 that are red, or certainly well on their way to red. I am hoping that one or two more might soon be ripe enough for Neil to eat them.
-For those of you in the Halifax area with a free evening, you might be interested in checking out the 2nd annual Ransom Myers Lecture in Sciences and Society. The lecture is to take place tonight at 7:30 P.M. in Ondaatje Hall in the McCain building. Not that should be a key motivating factor, but after last year's talk attendees were provided with wine and non-alcoholic drinks.
-The tobacco plants are continuing to grow quite nicely.
A few of the plants now have leaves that are at least a few inches across in both directions. While I am pleased with the size, I think that they are likely being limited in size because of the size of the containers in which the plants are being grown. Maybe next summer I will be able to grow a few plants in larger containers.
One of the major consequences of having such a large number of plants with relatively large amounts of foliage is that they are now impeding my ability to see through my bedroom window. I guess I really shouldn't be as surprised about this development as I am.
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