-Today has been one of the hottest days I have experienced in years, or at least that is how it feels. The temperatures exceeded 30, a situation that was made worse by relatively high humidity. Even when it became a little overcast this afternoon it stayed hot and unpleasant.
-Actually, it is so hot and sticky that as I sit writing this I am dripping sweat, a rather unpleasant image I know (and this is with a fan on). I am a little concerned that the current weather conditions may make sleeping difficult.
-Our apartment's Empire Avenue feeding frenzy has continued, somewhat abated, today.
I should first note, before forgetting, that Neil, Rebecca, Jeannette, and I achieved some success as a result of our actions yesterday. Neil, Rebecca, Jeannette, and I all made the list for participants with the greatest single day value increases (I was 1, Neil was 2, Jeannette was 6, and Rebecca was 8). Rebecca, Jeannette, and I were also near the top of another list of that day's achievers.
Things did slow down a little today. One of the first reasons for the slow down was that I realized that I actually had some work to do and observed that it was not possible for me to play an online game and work at the same time. Neil and Jeannette were later held up by the system itself as they both reached their daily transaction limits and thus had an enforced break.
That being said, today was definitely another heavy Empire Avenue day for our apartment. Actually, we even added a new person to the mix, Nick, Rebecca's brother. Nick signed up for an account today and will be coming to stay with us for a few days as of tomorrow, so if we are lucky we might be able to have five people online and circle buying in the same room (what fun!).
-Wow, it is hot. I really hope it isn't this hot tomorrow as I have agreed to help a few friends move.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
The Valley
Today Jeannette and I took a quick trip to the Annapolis Valley and surrounding areas.
After getting some coffee in Wolfville, we made our way to Blomidon park mud flats. While we were there the started to come in quite quickly.
[Embedded video]
Later in the day we made our way to the Oaklawn Farm Zoo. I was generally quite impressed with the experience. Not only did the zoo have quite a range of animals, they were animals I was interested in seeing.
They had quite a number of tortoises, at least one of which was quite spiny.
[Embedded video]
Apparently the Savannah Monitor wasn't too interested in hanging around, though in the end it did.
[Embedded video]
After a full day we made our way back to Halifax.
[Embedded video]
Of course, we celebrated the excitement and successful trip with some more Empire Avenue.
After getting some coffee in Wolfville, we made our way to Blomidon park mud flats. While we were there the started to come in quite quickly.
[Embedded video]
Later in the day we made our way to the Oaklawn Farm Zoo. I was generally quite impressed with the experience. Not only did the zoo have quite a range of animals, they were animals I was interested in seeing.
They had quite a number of tortoises, at least one of which was quite spiny.
[Embedded video]
Apparently the Savannah Monitor wasn't too interested in hanging around, though in the end it did.
[Embedded video]
After a full day we made our way back to Halifax.
[Embedded video]
Of course, we celebrated the excitement and successful trip with some more Empire Avenue.
Monday, August 30, 2010
The Frenzy Continues
The Empire Avenue feeding frenzy is continuing, the intervening night seems to have done nothing to slow us down. Actually, it is possible that our successes of yesterday have encouraged us to continue spending even more time there than we were before.
I think that part of the blame must fall on my shoulders. Not only did I introduce and encourage them to join and be active, I provided them with a target.
Our incredible level of activity was, at least, met with a few rewards (though they are all of the non-monetary kind). Rebecca (#3) and Jeannette (#1) both made the top share price list for people with their level of experience. I made a similar list (#3). I also made the list for those with the greatest increase in share prices, though I wasn't really that close to #1.
Anyway, I know at least a few of us are hoping to drag ourselves away from this internet heroin for at least part of the day. Presumably, as is the case with all good addictions, we will be back it before you know it.
I think that part of the blame must fall on my shoulders. Not only did I introduce and encourage them to join and be active, I provided them with a target.
Our incredible level of activity was, at least, met with a few rewards (though they are all of the non-monetary kind). Rebecca (#3) and Jeannette (#1) both made the top share price list for people with their level of experience. I made a similar list (#3). I also made the list for those with the greatest increase in share prices, though I wasn't really that close to #1.
Anyway, I know at least a few of us are hoping to drag ourselves away from this internet heroin for at least part of the day. Presumably, as is the case with all good addictions, we will be back it before you know it.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Feeding Frenzy
B'ys, at the moment we're going half mad with various Empire Avenue related activities in our apartment. Aside from having two new members sign up, we are presently monitoring activities on four different computers.
It seems to be as addictive and potentially time-consuming as I feared.
It seems to be as addictive and potentially time-consuming as I feared.
A Few Quick Notes 447
-We are in the midst of another nice day in Halifax. Actually, it is pretty warm right now, almost a little too warm.
-This evening we have our second last Ultimate game of the regular season. As it stands now, my main worry is that it will be too hot to comfortably play. I guess things are likely to cool down by this evening, particularly by the latter portion of the game.
-Last night Neil, Jeannette, and I went candlestick bowling with our friends Darryl and Heather. While none of us were particularly great at this form of bowling I definitely had a fair bit of fun. I particularly liked that the pins did not have strings, and thus no string action. Also, the scoring and pin re-setting was done manually, which was actually more fun than I would have imagined.
As you can see, we all took somewhat different approaches to playing the game.
[Embedded video]
-Yesterday was a really busy traffic day for Montifax, though I still can't exactly figure out why. I do suspect my mention of Empire Avenue had something to do with it (now it sounds as though I am trying to sell this group as much as I have been trying to sell SodaStream).
-This evening we have our second last Ultimate game of the regular season. As it stands now, my main worry is that it will be too hot to comfortably play. I guess things are likely to cool down by this evening, particularly by the latter portion of the game.
-Last night Neil, Jeannette, and I went candlestick bowling with our friends Darryl and Heather. While none of us were particularly great at this form of bowling I definitely had a fair bit of fun. I particularly liked that the pins did not have strings, and thus no string action. Also, the scoring and pin re-setting was done manually, which was actually more fun than I would have imagined.
As you can see, we all took somewhat different approaches to playing the game.
[Embedded video]
-Yesterday was a really busy traffic day for Montifax, though I still can't exactly figure out why. I do suspect my mention of Empire Avenue had something to do with it (now it sounds as though I am trying to sell this group as much as I have been trying to sell SodaStream).
Saturday, August 28, 2010
A Few Quick Notes 446
-We are presently in the midst of another great day in Halifax. The sun is out and there is a slight, cooling breeze. Unfortunately, I have, as of yet, been largely unable to take advantage of the great weather.
-Our over use of Neil's newly acquired SodaStream machine continues. I have to imagine that we have now consumed more than 20 litres of carbonated water since it was purchased a few days ago.
The more I think about it the more I have come to realize that these comments seem like some kind of advertisement for this product. They are not, or at least they are not paid advertising. These are coming about because I am just quite taken with the contraption and the output.
-This afternoon, while sitting at my desk with my window open, I happened to hear someone giving a tour of the adjacent building's property. While they were directly across from my window they stopped to explain the existence of a lone appearance of graffiti.
According to the gentleman giving the tour, the location on which this graffiti is found is visible at a nearby intersection. Actually, he suggested that it was more than just visible, that vehicles at the intersection would illuminate the graffiti when they stopped. While they removed the graffiti on occassion they have since decided that they might as well just leave it in place given the popularity of the spot and the likelihood that it will be re-tagged if cleaned.
I was glad to catch this snippet of conversation as it provided me with an explanation about the absence of removal attempts since the one that I witnessed a few months after arriving.
[Embedded video]
-A few days ago I became aware of a new method for tracking our site visits and usage to complement our use of Google Analytics. While this new method gives us real-time updates, because our blog is relatively unread this hasn't really meant much, at least until today. It seems that my recent post about signing up for an Empire Avenue account has been quite popular, at least for Montifax. The post in question, in just a matter of minutes, received more views than any other posts from the past two months. What was strangest about this is that most of the traffic occurred within just an hour of two of the post first going live.
-Last night, as a follow up to our recent viewing of The Terminator, we sat down to watch Terminator 2 (on Blu-Ray - a completely unnecessary fact). Contrary to opinion of the Video Difference clerk who sold us The Terminator, I think that I preferred the latter to the former, though I guess it is a matter of opinion on both of our parts. Though neither is necessarily a great movie, both continue to stand up amazingly well as action movies. I have to imagine that these two movies are much more watchable than most of their contemporaries.
-Our over use of Neil's newly acquired SodaStream machine continues. I have to imagine that we have now consumed more than 20 litres of carbonated water since it was purchased a few days ago.
The more I think about it the more I have come to realize that these comments seem like some kind of advertisement for this product. They are not, or at least they are not paid advertising. These are coming about because I am just quite taken with the contraption and the output.
-This afternoon, while sitting at my desk with my window open, I happened to hear someone giving a tour of the adjacent building's property. While they were directly across from my window they stopped to explain the existence of a lone appearance of graffiti.
According to the gentleman giving the tour, the location on which this graffiti is found is visible at a nearby intersection. Actually, he suggested that it was more than just visible, that vehicles at the intersection would illuminate the graffiti when they stopped. While they removed the graffiti on occassion they have since decided that they might as well just leave it in place given the popularity of the spot and the likelihood that it will be re-tagged if cleaned.
I was glad to catch this snippet of conversation as it provided me with an explanation about the absence of removal attempts since the one that I witnessed a few months after arriving.
[Embedded video]
-A few days ago I became aware of a new method for tracking our site visits and usage to complement our use of Google Analytics. While this new method gives us real-time updates, because our blog is relatively unread this hasn't really meant much, at least until today. It seems that my recent post about signing up for an Empire Avenue account has been quite popular, at least for Montifax. The post in question, in just a matter of minutes, received more views than any other posts from the past two months. What was strangest about this is that most of the traffic occurred within just an hour of two of the post first going live.
-Last night, as a follow up to our recent viewing of The Terminator, we sat down to watch Terminator 2 (on Blu-Ray - a completely unnecessary fact). Contrary to opinion of the Video Difference clerk who sold us The Terminator, I think that I preferred the latter to the former, though I guess it is a matter of opinion on both of our parts. Though neither is necessarily a great movie, both continue to stand up amazingly well as action movies. I have to imagine that these two movies are much more watchable than most of their contemporaries.
Strange timing
Just a few days ago I noted the strange prevalence of small, sometimes online-only universities in New Brunswick. It seems that in the intervening few days big news has come out about one, Lansbridge University.
It seems that the province will now be revoking its license to grant degrees because it failed to meet a number of required standards, and then failed improve the problems.
The university's own website includes a statement outlining the situation and how things will proceed from the time of the notification of their loss of status. Much to my surprise, the university will be offering classes and granting degrees until the end of the fall semester.
Maybe all of this growth wasn't sustainable after all? I wonder if some of the other new, small universities in New Brunswick are facing similar problems?
I wonder what this means for the students who have been granted degrees by this 'university'? I am not sure if this will matte for most of these graduates, but how does one procure transcripts and whatnot if the university no longer exists? How much does it hurt the value of your degree that the university that granted your degree was shut down only a few years after it opened?
It seems that the province will now be revoking its license to grant degrees because it failed to meet a number of required standards, and then failed improve the problems.
The university's own website includes a statement outlining the situation and how things will proceed from the time of the notification of their loss of status. Much to my surprise, the university will be offering classes and granting degrees until the end of the fall semester.
Maybe all of this growth wasn't sustainable after all? I wonder if some of the other new, small universities in New Brunswick are facing similar problems?
I wonder what this means for the students who have been granted degrees by this 'university'? I am not sure if this will matte for most of these graduates, but how does one procure transcripts and whatnot if the university no longer exists? How much does it hurt the value of your degree that the university that granted your degree was shut down only a few years after it opened?
I am a little worried
A few months ago I heard about something called Empire Avenue. At the time, and maybe even now, I didn't really know what the objective of the site/business was, though I did have the sense that it had something to do with social networking and advertising. What I did know was that the company/venture had strong ties to Newfoundland (as is indicated by its name - a street in St. John's).
While at first I was just aware of this operation's existence, I eventually checked out their website and even their blog. One of the most surprising things that I learned while on their website is that my former roommate, early Montifax reader, Rhodes scholar, and all around good guy Nithum is involved with the project on the research and analytics side of things. Obviously, this news made me somewhat more interested in the project (and hopeful for its eventual success).
As intrigued and pleased as I was to see Nithum's involvement I still limited my involvement with the site to a subscription to their blog. I completely ignored the chance to participate at the early beta testing phases.
Empire Avenue is now several months into the beta testing phase and has opened its doors to the public (meaning that membership is no longer as restricted as it was when they first opened). As a regular reader of their blog posts I was aware of this change, though for some time I seemingly did nothing with this information.
Yesterday, for some reason, though I really don't know what it is, I finally decided to sign up for an account. Much to my surprise, I soon learned that Neil already had an account, which he seems to have had for some number of months. Seems as though we both now engaging in a form of competitive social networking (which still seems a little strange to me).
I guess I should have mentioned this earlier, but Empire Avenue is basically like a stock market, but instead of buying stock in companies with real money users buy 'shares' of people or companies with the site's artificial currency. This, of course, is tied in with user's social networking content. Things like users' overall wealth and share price are then determined by the combination of a number of these factors. If you think of it like a game, which I guess is encouraged, then you might think of one possible goal being to achieve a high share price while another goal might be to amass wealth (which may eventually be exchangeable for real-world rewards/discounts)
Edit: So getting to the title of this post, the thing I am worried about is too much spending time on this site. Even though I have only been a member for about 24 hours I can see that it could be quite addictive, particularly when competing against a particular person or set of people. I guess the only good news is that I know that I won't have the patience to really throw myself into this as some might, though there are a number of dynamics that I really do like.
While at first I was just aware of this operation's existence, I eventually checked out their website and even their blog. One of the most surprising things that I learned while on their website is that my former roommate, early Montifax reader, Rhodes scholar, and all around good guy Nithum is involved with the project on the research and analytics side of things. Obviously, this news made me somewhat more interested in the project (and hopeful for its eventual success).
As intrigued and pleased as I was to see Nithum's involvement I still limited my involvement with the site to a subscription to their blog. I completely ignored the chance to participate at the early beta testing phases.
Empire Avenue is now several months into the beta testing phase and has opened its doors to the public (meaning that membership is no longer as restricted as it was when they first opened). As a regular reader of their blog posts I was aware of this change, though for some time I seemingly did nothing with this information.
Yesterday, for some reason, though I really don't know what it is, I finally decided to sign up for an account. Much to my surprise, I soon learned that Neil already had an account, which he seems to have had for some number of months. Seems as though we both now engaging in a form of competitive social networking (which still seems a little strange to me).
I guess I should have mentioned this earlier, but Empire Avenue is basically like a stock market, but instead of buying stock in companies with real money users buy 'shares' of people or companies with the site's artificial currency. This, of course, is tied in with user's social networking content. Things like users' overall wealth and share price are then determined by the combination of a number of these factors. If you think of it like a game, which I guess is encouraged, then you might think of one possible goal being to achieve a high share price while another goal might be to amass wealth (which may eventually be exchangeable for real-world rewards/discounts)
Edit: So getting to the title of this post, the thing I am worried about is too much spending time on this site. Even though I have only been a member for about 24 hours I can see that it could be quite addictive, particularly when competing against a particular person or set of people. I guess the only good news is that I know that I won't have the patience to really throw myself into this as some might, though there are a number of dynamics that I really do like.
Friday, August 27, 2010
A Few Quick Notes 445
-It seems that yesterday's rain was short-lived. We are already back to full sun and relatively cloudless skies. I guess I probably shouldn't complain. Actually, that one day of rain was enough for me for a while.
-As some of you might have guessed, we have really been hitting the new SodaStream machine hard. Not only did we acquire two new flavours and two new 1 liter bottles yesterday, but we have prepared several more liters of club soda. If we manage to keep up this pace we will be at 60 liters and in need of a new CO2 canister in no time.
-We watched The Terminator last night. As far as I know, none of us had really seen it before this. Aside from some really bad dialogue, it seems to hold up as an action movie. Amazingly, even the special effects aren't as bad as one might expect them to be for a movie from 1984. Actually, I would go so far as to say that they, at least for the most part, look much better than do the effects in Titanic, a James Cameron movie. While I haven't yet seen Avatar, I have to imagine that they even compare favourably to this movie.
-I am hoping to play some squash for the first time in a few months this afternoon. Presumably I will have lost all of the skills that I gained earlier in the summer.
-As some of you might have guessed, we have really been hitting the new SodaStream machine hard. Not only did we acquire two new flavours and two new 1 liter bottles yesterday, but we have prepared several more liters of club soda. If we manage to keep up this pace we will be at 60 liters and in need of a new CO2 canister in no time.
-We watched The Terminator last night. As far as I know, none of us had really seen it before this. Aside from some really bad dialogue, it seems to hold up as an action movie. Amazingly, even the special effects aren't as bad as one might expect them to be for a movie from 1984. Actually, I would go so far as to say that they, at least for the most part, look much better than do the effects in Titanic, a James Cameron movie. While I haven't yet seen Avatar, I have to imagine that they even compare favourably to this movie.
-I am hoping to play some squash for the first time in a few months this afternoon. Presumably I will have lost all of the skills that I gained earlier in the summer.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
A Few Quick Notes 444
-After what seemed like several weeks, though could at most have been two, of rain-less days we finally managed to get some daytime rain today. Strangely, I actually found the experience to be rather pleasant and refreshing. It is strange to go without seeing rain for such a long period, at least that is the case if you are used to living in places where it tends to rain every few days.
-You can feel the excitement building in Halifax. All you need to do is just walk down the street and you can sense that something big is about to happen.
I presume I have whetted your palate? You want to know what I am talking about?
Well, of course, it is the upcoming big week at Casino Nova Scotia. The big week is happening in late September and will commence with a show by Pauly Shore on September 24th and then transition into a Mickey Rooney show on September 26th. Amazingly, tickets for each show are more than $40, and, much to my surprise, the tickets to Shore's show are over $50. As much as I might like to see one or both of these shows, I really don't know how I will be able to justify such exorbitant ticket prices.
-Neil was kind enough to film an early use of the new SodaStream machine (the acquisition of which was mentioned in the previous post).
[Embedded video]
As you can see, it is pretty straightforward and easy to use.
-Somehow we managed to win all three of our last Ultimate games by somewhat substantial margins. While I am not sure if we will be able to maintain such a streak through the play-offs, it has certainly been nice to have some success as a team.
-You can feel the excitement building in Halifax. All you need to do is just walk down the street and you can sense that something big is about to happen.
I presume I have whetted your palate? You want to know what I am talking about?
Well, of course, it is the upcoming big week at Casino Nova Scotia. The big week is happening in late September and will commence with a show by Pauly Shore on September 24th and then transition into a Mickey Rooney show on September 26th. Amazingly, tickets for each show are more than $40, and, much to my surprise, the tickets to Shore's show are over $50. As much as I might like to see one or both of these shows, I really don't know how I will be able to justify such exorbitant ticket prices.
-Neil was kind enough to film an early use of the new SodaStream machine (the acquisition of which was mentioned in the previous post).
[Embedded video]
As you can see, it is pretty straightforward and easy to use.
-Somehow we managed to win all three of our last Ultimate games by somewhat substantial margins. While I am not sure if we will be able to maintain such a streak through the play-offs, it has certainly been nice to have some success as a team.
Let the over-indulgence in club soda begin
Earlier this summer, while Neil and I were busy shopping at the Birch Run, Michigan outlet mall, we ran across some energy drink concentrate. While the product was clearly intended to be sold as part of a carbonated water beverage system we decided that we could just buy the concentrated syrup and try mixing it with store-bought club soda. Nonetheless, we were both somewhat taken with the idea of homemade carbonated water based drinks, something that was a relatively large part of our childhood.
Last night, almost a month after our trip to the outlet mall, I came home to find that a SodaStream home carbonating machine had been purchased for our apartment. As you might expect, I was quite excited by this turn of events. When I looked in the fridge I discovered two new bottles. It looked like one was filled with home-made energy drink. It looked like the other was about a half liter of club soda. As I didn't know exactly what was going on at the time I left both of these bottles un-sampled.
This morning I finally got a chance to get the run-down on the new acquisition. Apparently, this was purchased as a gift for Neil for his birthday (which, in retrospect, makes a great deal of sense). I was also given a quick run-down on the operation of the machine, which is pretty straight forward. The only bad news was that the energy drink concentrate that we purchased in the US, even though it is from the same company, is not available in Canada yet (we are wondering if we can order it from the US site?).
Anyway, since the acquisition of the machine last night we have really be going through quite a bit of carbonated water, though no more than we would if we had 60 liters of club soda on the kitchen floor. For those of you who are curious, we have consumed at least one (though maybe two) liter of energy drink, one liter of grapefruit pop, and at least three liters of club soda. While I don't imagine that we will be able to keep this pace up forever, I do suspect that as big consumers of fluids that we will be able to maintain a relatively steady pace over the coming days, weeks, and months.
For those of you who are interested, Wikipedia has a neat article outlining SodaStream's somewhat surprising history.
Last night, almost a month after our trip to the outlet mall, I came home to find that a SodaStream home carbonating machine had been purchased for our apartment. As you might expect, I was quite excited by this turn of events. When I looked in the fridge I discovered two new bottles. It looked like one was filled with home-made energy drink. It looked like the other was about a half liter of club soda. As I didn't know exactly what was going on at the time I left both of these bottles un-sampled.
This morning I finally got a chance to get the run-down on the new acquisition. Apparently, this was purchased as a gift for Neil for his birthday (which, in retrospect, makes a great deal of sense). I was also given a quick run-down on the operation of the machine, which is pretty straight forward. The only bad news was that the energy drink concentrate that we purchased in the US, even though it is from the same company, is not available in Canada yet (we are wondering if we can order it from the US site?).
Anyway, since the acquisition of the machine last night we have really be going through quite a bit of carbonated water, though no more than we would if we had 60 liters of club soda on the kitchen floor. For those of you who are curious, we have consumed at least one (though maybe two) liter of energy drink, one liter of grapefruit pop, and at least three liters of club soda. While I don't imagine that we will be able to keep this pace up forever, I do suspect that as big consumers of fluids that we will be able to maintain a relatively steady pace over the coming days, weeks, and months.
For those of you who are interested, Wikipedia has a neat article outlining SodaStream's somewhat surprising history.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Times change
Is it just me, or would this passage from Donald Creighton's The Commercial Empire of the St. Lawrence likely not be written in the same way today: "Immediate these migrants had to come to terms with the new continent. From it they had to wrest a living; and since they were Europeans and not Indians, a living meant not merely the food to sustain life but the amenities of West-European civilization which alone could make it tolerable."
Monday, August 23, 2010
Free pylon anybody?
There appears to be a free, almost mint condition pylon in the Halifax harbour. First one in gets it!
Is this really even news?
Apparently Tiger Woods and his former wife are now officially divorced? Not surprisingly, this seems to be a big story. A recent Google News search suggested that already there are more than 750 stories on the topic, though I am not sure if this level of interest is in any way justified.
Does it really matter to anyone other than family members of those concerned that they are actually divorced?
The only way in which I can see that this story might matter to the broader public is that it helps teach the public that just because a celebrity says they are going to try and work out differences with their wife that such differences may not actually be reconciled or reconcilable.
Update: When run about 20 minutes later, the aforementioned Google News search returned close to a thousand stories on the topic. Apparently this is a big story.
Does it really matter to anyone other than family members of those concerned that they are actually divorced?
The only way in which I can see that this story might matter to the broader public is that it helps teach the public that just because a celebrity says they are going to try and work out differences with their wife that such differences may not actually be reconciled or reconcilable.
Update: When run about 20 minutes later, the aforementioned Google News search returned close to a thousand stories on the topic. Apparently this is a big story.
Really?
The message on the sign outside our neighbourhood church.
How does a book/movie in which a woman seems to find Buddhism (or some form of non-christian spirituality) end up being the reference for a sign on a christian church?
Just...groan.
In case you aren't familiar with the Eat, Pray, Love phenomenon, here is the movie trailer.
[Embedded video].
In case you are curious, even though I have been known to fall for movies with romance and personal growth as themes, this movie just doesn't entice me at all.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
A Few Quick Notes 443
-Today has been another nice day in Halifax, though as I look through my window I see that things have become slightly overcast.
-As some of you might have guessed, Kirsten and I arrived safely in Halifax last week. Our train ride, while uneventful, was quite fun. The second leg of the journey, from Montreal to Halifax, took about 24 hours and saw us really traveling in style. Not only did we have access to the panorama car, but we also had access to the dining car and our own sleeper room.
The sleeper room was nice, but quite small. Kirsten could easily stretch her hands from one side of the room to the other. Actually, it was somewhat difficult to move around once the bunks were folded down. This was most problematic when it came to going to the bathroom at night. Fortunately, there were no serious problems on this front.
[Embedded video]
This is a video Kirsten took of a train heading in the opposite direction of our train. Very exciting stuff.
I also liked looking from the back windows of our two trains.
-While Kirsten was here she convinced Neil and Jeannette to take her to the Nova Scotia Natural History Museum to check up on Gus, the museum's resident tortoise. As it turned out, while they were at the museum Gus was out on the lawn for a stroll.
[Embedded video]
Fortunately Jeannette had her camera and was able to film Gus's escape attempt.
-How are there so many small universities in New Brunswick that I have never heard of? At first I thought hearing about Crandall University was strange, more recently I learned that there are actually quite a few small, specialized universities in the province (St. Stephen's University, Lansbridge University, Yorkville University, and Saint Thomas University).
-On Monday I bought a new kettle. Unfortunately it isn't quite as nice the one I used to have.
-As some of you might have guessed, Kirsten and I arrived safely in Halifax last week. Our train ride, while uneventful, was quite fun. The second leg of the journey, from Montreal to Halifax, took about 24 hours and saw us really traveling in style. Not only did we have access to the panorama car, but we also had access to the dining car and our own sleeper room.
The sleeper room was nice, but quite small. Kirsten could easily stretch her hands from one side of the room to the other. Actually, it was somewhat difficult to move around once the bunks were folded down. This was most problematic when it came to going to the bathroom at night. Fortunately, there were no serious problems on this front.
[Embedded video]
This is a video Kirsten took of a train heading in the opposite direction of our train. Very exciting stuff.
I also liked looking from the back windows of our two trains.
-While Kirsten was here she convinced Neil and Jeannette to take her to the Nova Scotia Natural History Museum to check up on Gus, the museum's resident tortoise. As it turned out, while they were at the museum Gus was out on the lawn for a stroll.
[Embedded video]
Fortunately Jeannette had her camera and was able to film Gus's escape attempt.
-How are there so many small universities in New Brunswick that I have never heard of? At first I thought hearing about Crandall University was strange, more recently I learned that there are actually quite a few small, specialized universities in the province (St. Stephen's University, Lansbridge University, Yorkville University, and Saint Thomas University).
-On Monday I bought a new kettle. Unfortunately it isn't quite as nice the one I used to have.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Before I forget
A few days ago Kirsten and I collected most of my grandmother's animated and noisemaking plush toys and had them perform together. The following video is the result of this effort. I think you will agree, it is pretty stomach turning.
[Embedded video]
Enjoy.
[Embedded video]
Enjoy.
On the Train 12
Kirsten and I just arrived in Montreal. After a quick stop at an office supplies store to pick up some headphones for Kirsten we made our way to the special line for passengers taking the sleeper car to Halifax.
That we made our way to this line was something of a coincidence, as I didn’t know that it existed or that we should be on the look out for it. Only because it was next to the first class passenger lounge, which we were looking for, did I happen to see it.
Once we reached the front of the line we had to hand in our tickets, which I found a little strange as we haven’t even seen the train yet. I guess that they do this with the sleeper cars to know what is going on (meaning whether or not every one has arrived) before people board. At this point we were also able select our dinner seating (I chose the late one so that we would have something to do in the evening). Hopefully we have enough food to tide us over until we get to eat at 8:15.
Once we checked in we made our way to the Panorama Lounge, which is where we are now. In about ten minutes, and after we have consumed as many complimentary beverages as we can, we will be able to board our train.
Unfortunately, I don’t think that I will be able to provide many further updates on our trip as it seems likely that we won’t have much internet access once we leave the station. Of course both of us are hoping that are suspicions are incorrect and that we will actually have regular internet access at least as far as Quebec City. I guess I will let you know if this is what we get.
Oh, it turns out that there was a couple from Newfoundland sitting behind us for some period of time. It seems likely that they will be going to Halifax with us as well.
That we made our way to this line was something of a coincidence, as I didn’t know that it existed or that we should be on the look out for it. Only because it was next to the first class passenger lounge, which we were looking for, did I happen to see it.
Once we reached the front of the line we had to hand in our tickets, which I found a little strange as we haven’t even seen the train yet. I guess that they do this with the sleeper cars to know what is going on (meaning whether or not every one has arrived) before people board. At this point we were also able select our dinner seating (I chose the late one so that we would have something to do in the evening). Hopefully we have enough food to tide us over until we get to eat at 8:15.
Once we checked in we made our way to the Panorama Lounge, which is where we are now. In about ten minutes, and after we have consumed as many complimentary beverages as we can, we will be able to board our train.
Unfortunately, I don’t think that I will be able to provide many further updates on our trip as it seems likely that we won’t have much internet access once we leave the station. Of course both of us are hoping that are suspicions are incorrect and that we will actually have regular internet access at least as far as Quebec City. I guess I will let you know if this is what we get.
Oh, it turns out that there was a couple from Newfoundland sitting behind us for some period of time. It seems likely that they will be going to Halifax with us as well.
On the Train 11
Apparently the kid in the back doesn't like pulling into Dorval any more than I do. The main difference seem to be that I don't cry when it happens.
On the Train 10
We are definitely now in Quebec. The announcements have switched to French from English. Strangely they haven't yet been bilingual (a la Air Canada).
Kirsten disagrees with me and says that they have actually been bilingual. I think that is another instance of her young hears picking up interference and translating them into words in her head (even if they were never actually spoken). There is no way that she is right.
Kirsten disagrees with me and says that they have actually been bilingual. I think that is another instance of her young hears picking up interference and translating them into words in her head (even if they were never actually spoken). There is no way that she is right.
On the Train 9
Apparently a few hours of train travel is all the kid a few rows behind us could handle. Hopefully his tolerance for crying and making a scene isn't similar.
On the Train 8
We have now passed a few more stations and must now be quite close to the Quebec border. Actually, Kirsten has just informed me that our next stop will be in Quebec.
I think we are both looking forward to our first leg ending. Not only will we get a chance to spend a few minutes walking around, we may buy a few more things and take advantage of the first class passengers lounge (as for the second leg we will be traveling as first class passengers).
Maybe an hour or two ago I finally got around to buying a coffee from the vending cart. Not surprisingly, it wasn't that great. I think I may try to pick-up a non-train coffee during our layover. I may also suggest that Kirsten try picking up a book. I am getting the sense that she isn't all that interested in reading her only book, Lord of the Flies, on the train.
I think we are both looking forward to our first leg ending. Not only will we get a chance to spend a few minutes walking around, we may buy a few more things and take advantage of the first class passengers lounge (as for the second leg we will be traveling as first class passengers).
Maybe an hour or two ago I finally got around to buying a coffee from the vending cart. Not surprisingly, it wasn't that great. I think I may try to pick-up a non-train coffee during our layover. I may also suggest that Kirsten try picking up a book. I am getting the sense that she isn't all that interested in reading her only book, Lord of the Flies, on the train.
On the Train 7
We are now approaching Kingston, which is where we would de-train if were we going to Ottawa. As we aren't going to Ottawa we will be staying aboard the train for the next few stops.
A few minutes ago Kirsten and I tapped into the snacks we purchased last night at the grocery store. Thus far we have managed to consume an entire package of rice crackers. If we maintain this pace we may be out of food before we even hit Atlantic Canada.
For most of this trip a group seated several rows behind us has been engaged in some sort of card game. While they aren't being particularly annoying, they have been somewhat loud for most of the trip. Kirsten just told me that they are playing Euchre, which I should have been able to figure out based on the banter. I am kind of hoping that at some point they quiet down a little, but if they don't I guess it won't be too bad.
A few minutes ago Kirsten and I tapped into the snacks we purchased last night at the grocery store. Thus far we have managed to consume an entire package of rice crackers. If we maintain this pace we may be out of food before we even hit Atlantic Canada.
For most of this trip a group seated several rows behind us has been engaged in some sort of card game. While they aren't being particularly annoying, they have been somewhat loud for most of the trip. Kirsten just told me that they are playing Euchre, which I should have been able to figure out based on the banter. I am kind of hoping that at some point they quiet down a little, but if they don't I guess it won't be too bad.
On the Train 6
It turns out that I am not quite as forward-thinking as I might like. Instead of using the bathroom stall with the nonfunctional door I broke down and used the handicapped stall. I am a little disappointed with myself.
The internet connection that we have has been quite intermittent for the past hour or so, making it quite difficult to keep our devoted readers up to speed with regards to our progress.
In case you are curious, I don't think that the old guy has barfed since that instance I mentioned a while ago. I presume his seatmate is quite that this is the case.
Though we have been making good progress and are working our way across Ontario, we still have a ways to go before we reach Quebec and Montreal.
The internet connection that we have has been quite intermittent for the past hour or so, making it quite difficult to keep our devoted readers up to speed with regards to our progress.
In case you are curious, I don't think that the old guy has barfed since that instance I mentioned a while ago. I presume his seatmate is quite that this is the case.
Though we have been making good progress and are working our way across Ontario, we still have a ways to go before we reach Quebec and Montreal.
On the Train 4
According to Kirsten the bathrooms are still as progressive as I previously described. Strangely, Kirsten decided to forego a visit because of this fact (how can someone so young be so old-fashioned). I am thinking that I might try them out shortly, if only to prove that I am a forward-thinking type who is not stuck in the past.
The guy across the aisle from us just puked in his coffee cup. Yum. I think his seat-mate is less than impressed.
The guy across the aisle from us just puked in his coffee cup. Yum. I think his seat-mate is less than impressed.
On the Train 3
Turns out I was wrong, we both purchased things from the concession cart.
Kirsten just noted that we have now been on the train for about an hour. We only have about 29 hours to go before we arrive in Halifax.
Kirsten just noted that we have now been on the train for about an hour. We only have about 29 hours to go before we arrive in Halifax.
On the Train 2
OMG, we are in Oshawa. Wasn't there a 1980s Canadian movie about minor league hockey that took place in Oshawa?
How is it that we have already stopped twice even though we aren't even out of the Greater Toronto area yet?
How is it that we have already stopped twice even though we aren't even out of the Greater Toronto area yet?
On the Train 1
It is just about noon, meaning that Kirsten have been on a Montreal bound train (Toronto was the departure location) for about 25 minutes. So far most of this time has been spent creeping along or in stations not picking up passengers. Hopefully this train will eventually reach something approximating a reasonable cruising speed. Fortunately, since I started this post things have picked up a little in terms of speed, but we are still nowhere near European speeds.
The train on which we are presently riding is slowly working its way into the 21st century. We have wi-fi access, but it is some of the slowest wi-fi access I have ever experienced. As far as I can tell it isn't good enough to allow users to stream videos or do much more than simple browsing. The other way in which the train is super modern is its approach to privacy. Instead of providing traditional bathrooms that have locks and prevent other people from accessing them while a passenger is using them, these bathrooms do away with such archaic notions of privacy and allow other passengers to enter whenever they would like. Amazingly, I even heard the passenger in front of us complain about such a progressive approach to bathrooms and privacy.
We can now see the concession cart approaching for the first time. As we just boarded the train a few minutes ago I think we will likely pass up this opportunity to buy things, though I imagine that this trend will not hold as time passes. I presume that in about an hour or so I will be quite keen to buy a coffee and Kirsten might like something or other (the water and bran muffins we purchased last night are just not that exciting).
I will do my best to keep you updated as our trip progresses.
The train on which we are presently riding is slowly working its way into the 21st century. We have wi-fi access, but it is some of the slowest wi-fi access I have ever experienced. As far as I can tell it isn't good enough to allow users to stream videos or do much more than simple browsing. The other way in which the train is super modern is its approach to privacy. Instead of providing traditional bathrooms that have locks and prevent other people from accessing them while a passenger is using them, these bathrooms do away with such archaic notions of privacy and allow other passengers to enter whenever they would like. Amazingly, I even heard the passenger in front of us complain about such a progressive approach to bathrooms and privacy.
We can now see the concession cart approaching for the first time. As we just boarded the train a few minutes ago I think we will likely pass up this opportunity to buy things, though I imagine that this trend will not hold as time passes. I presume that in about an hour or so I will be quite keen to buy a coffee and Kirsten might like something or other (the water and bran muffins we purchased last night are just not that exciting).
I will do my best to keep you updated as our trip progresses.
Saturday, August 07, 2010
Michigan +11
Since we arrived in Michigan a almost two weeks ago I have wanted to visit an IHOP (International House of Pancakes). I was finally able to satisfy this urge yesterday when my father, brother, sister, and I all visited such a restaurant for lunch yesterday. As expected, it was a very pleasant and satisfying experience. The only problem with the experience was that I ended up eating a little too much and felt somewhat uncomfortable afterwards.
Later in the day those of us who visited the restaurant also visited a driving range to hit a bucket of balls.
[Embedded video]
I would say that most of us were a little worse at this than we might have hoped.
Our final major event of the evening was a party/BBQ at an uncle's house. It was great to get another chance to socialize with my cousins and aunts and uncles.
In the very near future we will be heading out to our hotel for the evening. Then at about 4:00 we will attend the wedding. The reception will follow almost immediately thereafter.
Later in the day those of us who visited the restaurant also visited a driving range to hit a bucket of balls.
[Embedded video]
I would say that most of us were a little worse at this than we might have hoped.
Our final major event of the evening was a party/BBQ at an uncle's house. It was great to get another chance to socialize with my cousins and aunts and uncles.
In the very near future we will be heading out to our hotel for the evening. Then at about 4:00 we will attend the wedding. The reception will follow almost immediately thereafter.
Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned it
Wow, in just a few hours our crappy online poll has gone from 10 to 2 in my favour to a 9 to 9 tie. I presume that this means my post drawing attention to the lopsidedness of the situation encouraged people to vote for Neil. That was not the goal of the last post, I just wanted to make myself look like a more gracious winner. So much for that, now we have an actual race on our hands.
This is getting embarrassing
A few days ago, as a joke, I posted an online poll on our site. The lone question in this poll related sought to determine our readers' favourite Montifax contributor. It seems that thus far I am the overwhelming favourite.
When I originally posted the question I had no idea that the results would be so skewed. That the results are so skewed is making me feel al little bad about having posted the poll in the first place.
Maybe this rallying cry will bring Neil's troops out to vote and end the embarrassingly lopsided nature of the polls results.
When I originally posted the question I had no idea that the results would be so skewed. That the results are so skewed is making me feel al little bad about having posted the poll in the first place.
Maybe this rallying cry will bring Neil's troops out to vote and end the embarrassingly lopsided nature of the polls results.
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Michigan +10
Today started with tour of the River Rouge Ford plant. We were able to see portions of the production of F-150s. All-in-all I would have to say that it was a pretty impressive tour. My sense of things is that they were cranking these trucks out at a rate of about one truck a minute, maybe even less than that. While huge portions of the operation were mechanized, many labourers were still required and involved in various processes. The cleanliness and quality of the working conditions were also impressive.
After the factory tour we made our way the Henry Ford museum.
While in the museum we saw things like trains and presidential limos. We also saw the world's first regular production Mustang (which happens to have been sold in Newfoundland and still has Newfoundland plates).
We also saw, and were able to sit in, the bus on which Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat.
While in the steam engine and generator section of the museum Neil and I engaged in an electricity generating competition.
[Embedded video]
I am pretty sure I won.
Afterwards the museum we made our way to Highland Park, my father's place of birth. As expected, it was pretty desolate.
The highlight of the trip was heading down the alley next to this house to stand on the last piece of Highland Park land still owned by my family. For some reason Neil and Kirsten walked down the alley but then declined the chance to actually set foot on the triangle of land.
We just returned from family dinner at my aunt and uncle's house. As expected, it was great. Unfortunately, I was talked into eating about half of a watermelon. As one might expect, I feel somewhat bloated and water-logged at the moment. I am hoping that this feeling will soon pass.
After the factory tour we made our way the Henry Ford museum.
While in the museum we saw things like trains and presidential limos. We also saw the world's first regular production Mustang (which happens to have been sold in Newfoundland and still has Newfoundland plates).
We also saw, and were able to sit in, the bus on which Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat.
While in the steam engine and generator section of the museum Neil and I engaged in an electricity generating competition.
[Embedded video]
I am pretty sure I won.
Afterwards the museum we made our way to Highland Park, my father's place of birth. As expected, it was pretty desolate.
The highlight of the trip was heading down the alley next to this house to stand on the last piece of Highland Park land still owned by my family. For some reason Neil and Kirsten walked down the alley but then declined the chance to actually set foot on the triangle of land.
We just returned from family dinner at my aunt and uncle's house. As expected, it was great. Unfortunately, I was talked into eating about half of a watermelon. As one might expect, I feel somewhat bloated and water-logged at the moment. I am hoping that this feeling will soon pass.
Wednesday, August 04, 2010
Michigan +9
Yesterday afternoon was actually somewhat busy. Not long after yesterday's trip report my uncle decided to install his digital TV antennae. While this shouldn't have been a particularly complicated process it did require about three people; my uncle was on the ladder with the equipment, my father was holding the ladder and relaying messages, and Neil was working the TV remote and scanning for channels. Eventually the device was placed in a position that allowed my uncle to catch about 20 channels, though some number are duplicates of the same channel (though they seem to be showing different content).
For dinner we had fillet mignon that we cooked on the barbecue. For some reason, presumably laziness, we didn't brand our steaks. To accompany our meat we had some nice corn on the cob and a few fresh vegetables. The most notable of the raw vegetables were a few plum-sized peeled turnips. As it turned out, the small turnips really weren't that tasty. I guess the good thing is that I won't like be tempted to serve too many more raw small turnips (I will stick to turnip sticks).
After dinner my uncle and I installed a solar-powered light on a tree in his backyard. Unfortunately the height at which the light was to be installed meant that we couldn't used the extension ladder but that the would be to short if properly used. As you might have guessed, we mis-used the step ladder (my uncle stood on the top step while I held it against the trunk of a tree). While holding the ladder I was quite taken with the sounds made by the cicadas. Not only was the volume impressive, but also the fact that it almost sounded as though the sounds were gradually moving from one side of the yard to the other.
Though I probably haven't effectively captured it, I did record a short clip of the sounds that these animals were making near the tree where we installed the lamp.
[Embedded video]
After the lamp installation I manned the burning operation for a little while. Aside from burning the lamp packaging, I also burned some scrap newspaper. Much to my surprise, this process took much longer than I originally expected. Apparently if you throw enough paper in to one of these you can really get quite a fire going and have it burn for quite a while.
[Embedded video]
Later in the evening we were visited by a form high school classmate of my father's and two of his daughters. We basically just sat around the back porch and had a few drinks and snacks.
This morning we started to make our way back to the east side of the state. While in Fenton for lunch we saw a great sign at a BP gas station.
Shortly after we arrived in Ypsilanti my father, sister, and I headed out to a raspberry and blackberry u-pick. In about 30-45 minutes we picked 6 quarts of raspberries and 2.5 quarts of raspberries.
While picking raspberries I happened to spot a small frog.
I have seen frogs like this only in Michigan, though I presume that they exist elsewhere in the world as well.
Tonight we will likely do a little visiting and whatnot. Actually, I think visiting and whatnot will consume much of the rest of the trip.
For dinner we had fillet mignon that we cooked on the barbecue. For some reason, presumably laziness, we didn't brand our steaks. To accompany our meat we had some nice corn on the cob and a few fresh vegetables. The most notable of the raw vegetables were a few plum-sized peeled turnips. As it turned out, the small turnips really weren't that tasty. I guess the good thing is that I won't like be tempted to serve too many more raw small turnips (I will stick to turnip sticks).
After dinner my uncle and I installed a solar-powered light on a tree in his backyard. Unfortunately the height at which the light was to be installed meant that we couldn't used the extension ladder but that the would be to short if properly used. As you might have guessed, we mis-used the step ladder (my uncle stood on the top step while I held it against the trunk of a tree). While holding the ladder I was quite taken with the sounds made by the cicadas. Not only was the volume impressive, but also the fact that it almost sounded as though the sounds were gradually moving from one side of the yard to the other.
Though I probably haven't effectively captured it, I did record a short clip of the sounds that these animals were making near the tree where we installed the lamp.
[Embedded video]
After the lamp installation I manned the burning operation for a little while. Aside from burning the lamp packaging, I also burned some scrap newspaper. Much to my surprise, this process took much longer than I originally expected. Apparently if you throw enough paper in to one of these you can really get quite a fire going and have it burn for quite a while.
[Embedded video]
Later in the evening we were visited by a form high school classmate of my father's and two of his daughters. We basically just sat around the back porch and had a few drinks and snacks.
This morning we started to make our way back to the east side of the state. While in Fenton for lunch we saw a great sign at a BP gas station.
Shortly after we arrived in Ypsilanti my father, sister, and I headed out to a raspberry and blackberry u-pick. In about 30-45 minutes we picked 6 quarts of raspberries and 2.5 quarts of raspberries.
While picking raspberries I happened to spot a small frog.
I have seen frogs like this only in Michigan, though I presume that they exist elsewhere in the world as well.
Tonight we will likely do a little visiting and whatnot. Actually, I think visiting and whatnot will consume much of the rest of the trip.
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
Even more changes at Montifax
Since my last post I have made a few more changes to Montifax.
I added a poll (found to the right of our posts) so that we will be able to figure out our readers' favourite Montifax contributor. Thus far I seem to be leading, though I wouldn't be surprised if Neil had something of a resurgence in the coming days.
I also added a new search function. Readers and contributors will now be able to perform searches of our blog content. I have run a few practices searches and been quite pleased with the results. In many ways I suspect that this function will be a bit more useful than the labels function that we added some time ago.
The final major change I made was to adjust the 'Reactions' choices a little to reflect our sentiments and feelings more precisely. I am particularly proud of the 'derivative' and 'saucy' options.
I added a poll (found to the right of our posts) so that we will be able to figure out our readers' favourite Montifax contributor. Thus far I seem to be leading, though I wouldn't be surprised if Neil had something of a resurgence in the coming days.
I also added a new search function. Readers and contributors will now be able to perform searches of our blog content. I have run a few practices searches and been quite pleased with the results. In many ways I suspect that this function will be a bit more useful than the labels function that we added some time ago.
The final major change I made was to adjust the 'Reactions' choices a little to reflect our sentiments and feelings more precisely. I am particularly proud of the 'derivative' and 'saucy' options.
More changes at Montifax
I just made another exciting change to Montifax posts. People will now be able to quickly respond to our posts by checking one of seven (this number may change) reaction check boxes. Of course, the downside/upside of this change is that this function appears to only be available on the blog and not through RSS readers or our email updates. If you have any comments, or suggested reaction keywords feel free to let us know (probably through the comment function that can be access through links at the bottom of this post).
Michigan +8
This morning I realized that I forgot to mention one of the more exciting activities we engaged in while we were on the West side of the state. My Aunt arranged for us to all participate in a vineyard tour of the Fenn Valley vineyards. The tour, which invovled about 22 people being pulled around in an open trailer, gave us the opportunity to taste close to 20 wines (I don't remember the precise number). Most importantly, many of the wines were juxtaposed in such a way that really highlighted the differences that resulted because of particular types of processing. I was particularly glad to learn that I likely don't like white wine aged in oak barrels (apparently a French technique). Another great thing about this vineyard is that the tour seems to vary from season to season so going once doesn't mean that another trip wouldn't be worthwhile.
Instead of heading back to Birch Run this morning, Neil and I decided to hang around the house in Vassar. So this morning, unlike the aforementioned vineyard tour, saw Neil and I engage in much more pedestrian activities.
For breakfast we made our way to the local McDonald's. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, about 10:40, they had switched from their breakfast menu to their lunch menu. Consequently, Neil and I both had to order non-breakfast foods for breakfast. One of the positive results of this forced decision was that I ended up with a beverage cup that provided us with a coupon for a free smoothie (something that we wouldn't have had if we had ordered from the breakfast menu). The thing about the coupon that differentiated it from many other free beverage coupons that I received was that it indicated that it could not be redeemed until at least two hours after the initial receipt of the coupon.
Not surprisingly, Neil and I went back to McDonald's early this afternoon to take advantage of the smoothie coupon. While there I also picked up some lunch. Amazingly, we ended up paying only about $3.20 for a smoothie, a double burger, a small fries, and a large iced tea. I was even able to take advantage of the free-refill policy before we left.
Shortly after returning from our second fast-food run of the day my father and uncle returned from Birch Run. Though I don't know all of what was purchased, my father did tell me that he purchased a new three-piece suit for about $95 (it would have been only $80 if he opted to forego the vest). My sense is that this isn't the only deal that was taken advantage of.
Fortunately, between our fast-food runs I was able to get down to work. I think I managed to put in about 2.5 hours of solid work. Maybe, if I am lucky, I will be able to get a little reading in later this afternoon.
Unfortunately, I don't really know what the plans are for this afternoon and evening. Actually, I don't really know what the plans are for the rest of the trip. In many ways it doesn't really matter, I will just go where I need to go.
Instead of heading back to Birch Run this morning, Neil and I decided to hang around the house in Vassar. So this morning, unlike the aforementioned vineyard tour, saw Neil and I engage in much more pedestrian activities.
For breakfast we made our way to the local McDonald's. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, about 10:40, they had switched from their breakfast menu to their lunch menu. Consequently, Neil and I both had to order non-breakfast foods for breakfast. One of the positive results of this forced decision was that I ended up with a beverage cup that provided us with a coupon for a free smoothie (something that we wouldn't have had if we had ordered from the breakfast menu). The thing about the coupon that differentiated it from many other free beverage coupons that I received was that it indicated that it could not be redeemed until at least two hours after the initial receipt of the coupon.
Not surprisingly, Neil and I went back to McDonald's early this afternoon to take advantage of the smoothie coupon. While there I also picked up some lunch. Amazingly, we ended up paying only about $3.20 for a smoothie, a double burger, a small fries, and a large iced tea. I was even able to take advantage of the free-refill policy before we left.
Shortly after returning from our second fast-food run of the day my father and uncle returned from Birch Run. Though I don't know all of what was purchased, my father did tell me that he purchased a new three-piece suit for about $95 (it would have been only $80 if he opted to forego the vest). My sense is that this isn't the only deal that was taken advantage of.
Fortunately, between our fast-food runs I was able to get down to work. I think I managed to put in about 2.5 hours of solid work. Maybe, if I am lucky, I will be able to get a little reading in later this afternoon.
Unfortunately, I don't really know what the plans are for this afternoon and evening. Actually, I don't really know what the plans are for the rest of the trip. In many ways it doesn't really matter, I will just go where I need to go.
Michigan +7
As planned, our trip to Michigan keeps on chugging along.
Shortly after my last post we made our way to the west side of the state. One of our first goals was to meet Neil at the Grand Rapids airport. Though we were about 20 minutes late, we eventually managed to pick him up without too many problems.
With Neil in tow we made our way to my Aunt's house. Soon after arriving we learned about a concert for which she had purchased tickets. Apparently the Grand Rapids Symphony Picnic Pops (Beatles version) was taking place that evening. The plan was that we would meet some of my aunt's friends and eat a packed picnic dinner. While we were a little to tired to do much socializing, we all enjoyed the show. The one thing that I will say about the show is that the arrangements that were used didn't really seem to allow the symphony to shine. In many instances it was almost hard to tell that the cover band was even playing with a symphony.
One of things that was most amazing about the concert, which took place at a ski hill, was that it was attended by between 10 000 and 15 000 people. This was all the more amazing when you realize that they were going to play the same show again the next night for a similar crowd. The other neat thing about the concert was that they allowed patrons to bring food and beverages, including alcoholic beverages, without a bag search or hassle. If all outdoors concerts were this relaxed I might actually like outdoors concerts.
In the subsequent days we managed to visit one of the local beaches and visit quite a number of relatives.
As usual, I really enjoyed my time at the beach (and with my relatives).
Yesterday we made our way from the west side of the state to the Thumb Region, which is where my father grew up. On our way to this part of the state we stopped to visit a few of my parents' friends. The first visit was to the house of one of my father's grad school lab mates. One particularly enjoyable aspect of this visit was hearing about the husband's surgical implant and implement business and the types of things that surgeons use in surgeries.
A few minutes after this visit my parents took us to another friend's house. This friend is an artist who makes his living painting portraits of professional basketball players. At this stop is was also great to hear about some of the dynamics of an industry with which I am otherwise unfamiliar.
Our final stop was in East Lansing proper, or at least the part of East Lansing that houses Michigan State University, my parents' alma mater. We stopped for lunch at one of their old haunts and then took a very quick tour of the campus and surrounding areas. Not surprisingly, even though I have been there before, I really don't recognize much of the place. One thing that always amazes me about the campus is its size. It is hard to believe that a university could possibly require so much space. Just the space and buildings used for athletic programs are larger than many whole universities in Halifax.
By evening we had safely arrived in beautiful Vassar. As we head to head out for dinner I didn't really get to see much of the place before the sun set.
This morning my mother, Neil, Kirsten, and I made our way to Birch Run to do some outlet mall shopping. As expected, we were quite successful and managed to buy a number of items.
I was particularly pleased with a few of my deals. Almost immediately I found a great light jacket for $40, which turned out to be my most expensive purchase of the day. As time passed I managed to pick up a few more items, including another jacket and a rectangular baking stone. Somehow, though it is likely not a bad thing, I managed to buy five shirts (including two nice Oxfords) for no more than $13 apiece.
Almost as soon as we returned home we threw a few steaks on the grill. Steaks were chosen so that we could test out my Uncle's cattle brand (which is registered in a county in Texas).
[Embedded video]
As you can see, the whole process worked quite nicely. The steaks were quite tasty.
Shortly after dinner Neil, Kirsten, and I made our way to a local discount store. Our goal, which was accomplished, was to find a few types of candy that aren't readily available in Nova Scotia or Newfoundland. I presume that this means that we will have a substantial tasting session once we return to Halifax.
Though I have asked a few times, I really don't have much of a sense of what we will be doing tomorrow. Apparently there has some talk of a return trip to Birch Run, though I don't know what else we will be doing.
Shortly after my last post we made our way to the west side of the state. One of our first goals was to meet Neil at the Grand Rapids airport. Though we were about 20 minutes late, we eventually managed to pick him up without too many problems.
With Neil in tow we made our way to my Aunt's house. Soon after arriving we learned about a concert for which she had purchased tickets. Apparently the Grand Rapids Symphony Picnic Pops (Beatles version) was taking place that evening. The plan was that we would meet some of my aunt's friends and eat a packed picnic dinner. While we were a little to tired to do much socializing, we all enjoyed the show. The one thing that I will say about the show is that the arrangements that were used didn't really seem to allow the symphony to shine. In many instances it was almost hard to tell that the cover band was even playing with a symphony.
One of things that was most amazing about the concert, which took place at a ski hill, was that it was attended by between 10 000 and 15 000 people. This was all the more amazing when you realize that they were going to play the same show again the next night for a similar crowd. The other neat thing about the concert was that they allowed patrons to bring food and beverages, including alcoholic beverages, without a bag search or hassle. If all outdoors concerts were this relaxed I might actually like outdoors concerts.
In the subsequent days we managed to visit one of the local beaches and visit quite a number of relatives.
As usual, I really enjoyed my time at the beach (and with my relatives).
Yesterday we made our way from the west side of the state to the Thumb Region, which is where my father grew up. On our way to this part of the state we stopped to visit a few of my parents' friends. The first visit was to the house of one of my father's grad school lab mates. One particularly enjoyable aspect of this visit was hearing about the husband's surgical implant and implement business and the types of things that surgeons use in surgeries.
A few minutes after this visit my parents took us to another friend's house. This friend is an artist who makes his living painting portraits of professional basketball players. At this stop is was also great to hear about some of the dynamics of an industry with which I am otherwise unfamiliar.
Our final stop was in East Lansing proper, or at least the part of East Lansing that houses Michigan State University, my parents' alma mater. We stopped for lunch at one of their old haunts and then took a very quick tour of the campus and surrounding areas. Not surprisingly, even though I have been there before, I really don't recognize much of the place. One thing that always amazes me about the campus is its size. It is hard to believe that a university could possibly require so much space. Just the space and buildings used for athletic programs are larger than many whole universities in Halifax.
By evening we had safely arrived in beautiful Vassar. As we head to head out for dinner I didn't really get to see much of the place before the sun set.
This morning my mother, Neil, Kirsten, and I made our way to Birch Run to do some outlet mall shopping. As expected, we were quite successful and managed to buy a number of items.
I was particularly pleased with a few of my deals. Almost immediately I found a great light jacket for $40, which turned out to be my most expensive purchase of the day. As time passed I managed to pick up a few more items, including another jacket and a rectangular baking stone. Somehow, though it is likely not a bad thing, I managed to buy five shirts (including two nice Oxfords) for no more than $13 apiece.
Almost as soon as we returned home we threw a few steaks on the grill. Steaks were chosen so that we could test out my Uncle's cattle brand (which is registered in a county in Texas).
[Embedded video]
As you can see, the whole process worked quite nicely. The steaks were quite tasty.
Shortly after dinner Neil, Kirsten, and I made our way to a local discount store. Our goal, which was accomplished, was to find a few types of candy that aren't readily available in Nova Scotia or Newfoundland. I presume that this means that we will have a substantial tasting session once we return to Halifax.
Though I have asked a few times, I really don't have much of a sense of what we will be doing tomorrow. Apparently there has some talk of a return trip to Birch Run, though I don't know what else we will be doing.
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